Thank you Stephenie Meyer for giving us your brilliant characters and allowing us to create our own stories…I have tweaked this chapter every which way I can and still am not 100 satisfied, but for all of you I am going to post it. To my readers please remember that this is an AU and the characters may seem a little OOC after all this is my story…
Chapter 3
A Run Through The Woods
"You!" I gasped. I stared at Edward with hesitation. "There must be some mix up. Why would the Academy send me here?" I mostly murmured to myself.
"Hi Bella, no there is no mix up. The Academy is very well aware of what they are doing." Edward looked as if there was some sort of struggle going on behind his eyes. I glowered at him and all he could do was give a crooked smile back. It was in that instant that I melted. I don't know what it was about his smile but I couldn't help but be smitten by the mere presence of it. This couldn't be happening, this went against everything we were ever taught. We were supposed to be fighting evil not training with them, not feeling for them. All of my training and teachings could not have prepared me for this.
"No," I said still trying to deny the fact they had sent me here to train. "This has to be some sort of joke. Right, I mean, you're a…"
"Vampire," Edward finished my comment for me almost embarrassed to speak it.
I froze I had no more words. I looked up into his eyes and was immediately drawn in. Was it his inhumanly good looks, his crooked smile, his velvety voice or was it just some inevitable force. I didn't know. I was brought back to my senses when he spoke; I shook my head as to rid myself of my previous thoughts.
"Please Bella, don't make this harder then it already is," there was an almost pained expression on his face. He kept clenching and unclenching his fists. I looked into his eyes and noticed that they were of the deepest black, almost frightening.
"Harder then it already is, what are you talking about?" I was confused and knew he was not going to clear up this confusion anytime soon.
Before I could speak another word I watched Edward as he stepped off the porch and headed toward the woods. "Where are we going?" I yelled after him.
"For a run, in the woods, you are here to train right." I shrugged my shoulders and followed him. He managed to always stay a few steps ahead of me which made my questions difficult to ask. After about ten minutes of trying I just gave up. I would have to get my answers later.
We ran for two hours before we finally made it back to the mansion. I was sweaty and only a little out of breath I actually felt good. I stopped at my truck, grabbed my water bottle and proceeded to sit on the porch steps to try and steady my breathing.
"Same time tomorrow night?" Edward asked as he proceeded up the stairs to the front door.
"What that's it? Just an easy jog in the woods," I said sarcastically. He didn't look amused. Instead, I just threw his question back as a statement. "Same time tomorrow night," I gave him a quick smile before he was out of site, the front door clicking shut.
I stood up from where I sat and made my way over to my truck to head home. I continued to ponder about Edward and his rude behavior and still could not figure him out.
School the next day felt normal as if I hadn't been away for so many years. During lunch I continued to catch up with my old friends and meet new friends that came along while I was away. I made a decision that this high school thing might not be as bad as I had originally thought.
I was so wrapped up in the conversation with everyone that I hadn't realized what time it was. Unfortunately it was time to face the music and return once again to Biology and Edward Cullen. When I walked into the classroom my heart sank. Edward was not there. I guess I should have known that since I don't remember seeing him at lunch.
I felt slight ping of disappointment in the pit of my stomach. Why should I feel like this? He was rude yesterday in class and even last night was nothing special; a two hour run in the woods and there wasn't even a word spoken. There was a force here that I didn't understand, a draw to what would seem unnatural.
Class ended and I couldn't even tell you what the lesson was about. My mind was too wrapped up on Edward to even think clearly. I made my way over to PE not even thinking when I was nearly run over by short pixie like girl. "Bella?"
"Yeah, that's me." I knew immediately who she was. She had to be one of Edward's so called family, another vampire.
"Hi, I'm Alice Edward's…sister," she stumbled for the right word. "Anyway, he asked me to give you this."
"Um…thanks, I guess." I took the folded piece of paper from her.
"See ya later." Alice turned with a giggle and walked away.
I hurried to the locker room to change for PE to see what Edward could possibly put on paper and couldn't say to me directly. I changed quickly and hastily unfolded the note.
Bella,
Please meet me tonight, 8:00 pm sharp, same place.
Edward.
Ok now I was thoroughly confused. First he doesn't want to even converse with me now he is sending me notes through his sister. Tonight I was going to get to the bottom of this.
PE was the same old boring class that it had been the day before. It seemed to drag on forever. When we were finally dismissed I was the first one dressed and headed to the parking lot after the final bell.
I stopped dead in my tracks when I saw Edward sitting in the car apparently waiting for his family. My stomach flip flopped and I couldn't tear my gaze away from his. When I could focus more I gave him a weak smile and nod and practically ran to my truck. When I got in I started it and tore out of the parking lot. Now I was furious. If he was here, why couldn't he have just told me about our meeting tonight? No, he had to send a note and communicate via Alice.
When I got home and started dinner I couldn't get over how furious I was with Edward. Why should I be mad at him? Maybe he had a perfectly good excuse. Doubt it though.
I left a note for Charlie telling him not to wait up and that dinner was in the oven. I changed into something comfortable after grabbing a bite to eat and headed back to Edward's.
When I arrived he was already out on the front steps waiting for me. I got out of my truck and headed toward him refusing to say one word to him, until he spoke first. I sat next to him on the steps and it was only a few awkward moments before he spoke.
"Ready?"
"No," I said more forcefully then I probably should have. "I have a few questions for you and you will answer them before we go anywhere."
"Fine, what do you want to know?"
"Why were you so rude yesterday?"
"Next question," he answered without even a blink of an eye.
'No, I think I deserve an answer."
"Next question." He said through gritted teeth. I couldn't believe he still refused to answer my question.
"Fine I'll start with something simple. Why weren't you at school today?" I figured he ought to be able to answer that one; I wasn't quite ready to ask the question I desperately needed the answer to.
"I didn't feel like going."
"So…how old are you anyway?"
"Seventeen," he answered promptly.
"And how long have you been seventeen?"
I noticed his lips twitch as he stared at the ground. "A while,"
"What about all the stories, they never taught us about the vampires that could walk during the day or tolerate humans the way your family seems to at the Academy. We are only taught to believe that you are burned by the sun, sleep during the day and attack humans." I felt like I was rambling but I wanted to avoid the one question I so desperately needed to know the answer to.
"They are all just myths. In fact I can't sleep. The sunlight does have an affect; however it is not as you are taught. There is one question you seen to be avoiding."
"What?" I didn't want to lead on my curiosity.
"My diet."
"Fine, what is your diet anyway?" I shied away from his gaze as I finished asking looking to my toes.
"See now that wasn't so hard was it?" I looked back at him; all I could focus on was how light his eyes were compared to yesterday.
"No, I guess not, so are you going to answer or are you going to tell me next question?"
"No, this one I will answer. You could say we are vegetarians, we only drink animal blood."
"Oh, and your eyes, they were black yesterday and not today they are lighter, because of the diet right."
"Yeah, new born vampires and ones that drink human blood are subject to have red eyes. Because we survive on animal blood ours are more…"
"Topaz," I blurted out before I realized I was even speaking.
"My aren't you observant." He said sarcastically.
"I guess you could call it that if you want. Yesterday your eyes were onyx and today they are…I guess you could say lighter, topaz." There was a slight laugh that escaped his lips.
"You do know it is not the safest thing to actually be this close to any vampire, right?"
"I think I can handle myself. I was trained at the Academy." There was a look in his eye that actually frightened me.
"Oh is that right?" Edward stood up from the steps and I followed taking only a few steps. The next thing I knew he was standing in front of me with his teeth bare on my neck.
