"Whoops," chuckled Eleazar as he helped me to my feet. I got up, slightly flustered and was almost sure I heard him say, "That's the one."
"Are you okay?" Carlisle asked, looking concerned.
"Er...yeah,"I said, trying extremely hard not to look back at the cause of my little fall. "I guess it's hard to escape my clumsiness, even when I'm a vamp." There were a few laughs and the subject was quickly dropped, thank god.
"I didn't get a chance to introduce my family," Carlisle smiled kindly. He gestured to the small girl. "This is Alice, Jasper," he said, pointing to the blonde behind her. "Emmett, and my wife, Esme," he said, pointing to the boy with the huge muscles and the lady with the sweet face. "And finally, this is Edward."
Oh, great. Now I couldn't not look up. I mean, it would seem rude if I kept my gaze down and smiled and nodded when I didn't even know what the damn face looked like. So I took a deep breath and looked up. The gaze was still piercing, as if he was trying to look right through me. I had to remember how to breathe. He was too beautiful. The most stunning face I had ever seen. Every feature on his face was perfectly formed; it was a sculptor's dream. His hair was untidy and a bronze colour.
It just wasn't fair. I wanted to look that beautiful. I must've been staring a bit too long because Kate suddenly cleared her mouth and announced, "Why don't we go into the dining room?" There was a murmer of agreement and the crowd dispersed. All but one.
"Hi!" Alice said excitedly, bouncing to my side. I looked up in surprise.
"Oh. Hi. How you doing?" Oh, well done, Bella. Yeah, great going: How you doing? You should win 'The worst start of a conversation' award.
"Not bad. So you're new..." She trailed off, looking at me expectantly.
"Yeah, I guess you could say that," I answered with a shrug of my shoulders.
"If you don't mind me asking...how and why did you get changed?" I stopped in my tracks, astonished by her blatancy. I mean you don't just ask people that question after a few sentences into a conversation, do you?
"Sorry," she said, catching the look on my face. "I really didn't mean to pry."
"No, no," I said quickly. "It's just I wasn't expecting you to be so...straightforward..." She looked at me for a moment, then threw her head back and laughed. I stared at her for a second, flabbergasted. Her laugh was like bells, lovely and harmonious.
"Yeah, most people are quite surprised by it." She stopped and waited for me to talk. I thought about it for a minute, then decided to tell her and get it over with.
"I didn't live far from here," I said, gesturing to the mansion. "I lived with my dad, Charlie," I smiled involuntarily, remembering him.
"And your mum?" Alice asked curiously.
"My mum, Renee and Charlie were divorced; she lived in New York with her boyfriend, Phil. I was okay with it, though," I said quickly, catching the sympathetic look on Alice's face. "I mean, I wasn't like the normal kids who got angry or depressed or upset; Charlie and Renee weren't happy together and I accepted that."
"So didn't you have any brothers or sisters?"
"Nah, I was an only child," I said with a grin. "So, anyway, it all started when I was coming home from school in my truck..." I trailed off because Alice suddenly looked a little nervous.
"Is everything okay?" I asked.
"No, yeah, everything's fine," she said, shaking her head. "Please, carry on."
"Yeah. Anyway, I was on my way home when a girl ran across the road out of nowhere, really. I swear my heart stopped for a minute," I shook my head, remembering that day as if it were only yesterday. "I moved to pull on the brakes but they were jammed and...and so I had no choice but to just steer off the road," I gave a shudder. "Half of my truck literally crashed into a huge bark of a tree on the side. I could actually feel my skull crack." Alice winced.
"Sorry, you probably don't want to hear this," I apologised.
"It must've been hard for you," she said in a low hum. I nodded.
"It was. I could feel myself slowly dying. It was so horrible because it was slow and painful. It would've been so much easier if it was quick and just done with."
"I was there for ages, just waiting for me to die. I couldn't move a muscle. Then I heard a stirring by me and when I looked to the side, I saw the most beautiful person ever. Tanya had seen me crash from her car. And she was there to save me."
"Well, that's definitely not on her everyday agenda," Alice murmured. "I wonder why she chose you."
"She never really says," I said bitterly. "All I get is 'I just knew you were special'," I said in a poor imitation of her voice. Alice laughed.
"She brought me back here. Of course, not everyone was delighted to see me. Eleazar was the one who screamed at Tanya the most. But she just didn't care. I just wished they'd all stop screaming and just kill me once and for all. I could almost feel myself leaving this body when Tanya bent forward and bit me. It was okay at first, but then there was this excruciating pain." I winced.
"I begged them to kill me. I shrieked my way through two nights until my throat was sore. It was like a fire spreading through my body. The worst pain imaginable. And finally, when I came to my senses, Tanya explained everything to me. And so...here I am." I had tried to fit all the important information in to create a brief story. It felt like I was done far too quickly.
There was a long silence between us and suddenly a velvety voice broke through.
"Interesting story." I gasped and whirled around just in time to see Edward walk out of the shadows.
"I'm so sorry, Bella," apologised Alice. "I didn't want to tell you he was listening in case it would be awkward for you; and I really wanted to hear your story."
"No, no, it's okay," I said.
"Please, forgive me," Edward said, and he smiled a crooked smile. I swear, if I had a heart, it would've stopped.
"You're forgiven," I answered, trying extremely hard not to stutter. I turned to Alice.
"Would you like to see your room?"
"I'd love to," she said with a huge smile on her face. I turned and lead the way and for some reason, was hugely irritated when Edward followed. After a minute of contemplation, I realized I didn't want him here because of the way he made me feel in his presence. I hadn't felt such a strong emotion since I was human.
"So, the first is your's and Jasper's room," I said, gesturing to the closed door. "After, it's Carlisle and Esme's, Emmett and Rosalie's and so- so." So-so? Idiot Bella! Now Edward's going to think that you think he's a nothing! Stupid, stupid girl!
"Which one's your room?" asked Edward, hitting me with the full force of his eyes. I almost staggered again. Almost.
"Er...I don't really like rooms." Urghhh Belllaaaaaaa!! "I mean, I do like rooms, but I don't have one. Well, I do, but I'm downstairs." I caught Alice's puzzled stare and just decided to change everything.
"Okay, well I just spend the nights downstairs watching movies; it's better that way." I almost let out a sigh of relief when they both seemed to understand.
"Well, I'm going to pack," Alice said with a smile. She was gone for less than a second but was upstairs again with a huge suitcase that would've crushed a normal human. "Well, someone's got to do it round here," she said, catching Edward's smirk. I decided it was high time I bowed out and joined the rest.
"Well, I'm off," I announced. Edward turned.
"I'll come with." Oh, great! Okay, just think before you say anything, I told myself. We walked down the stairs slower than usual when Edward spoke.
"I hope you don't mind, but I'm honestly curious as to how you're doing this."
"Doing what?" I questioned, flabbergasted.
"Blocking me." Blocking you?
"How do you mean?"
"I can read people's minds," he explained. I stopped short.
"What?" I gasped. He looked up and smiled. I grabbed onto the banister for support.
"Don't be alarmed. Well, not until I finish my sentence. What I meant was I read people's minds, but I can't seem to read yours."
"You...can't?"
"No."
"Well, I guess that's-"
"Edward!" Tanya bounced into the hallway, looking cheery. "I hope Bella's not being rude," she said, shooting me glare which looked like it was intended for another purpose.
"Not at all. On the contrary, she's very hospitable."
"That's nice." Tanya's smile looked forced. "Why don't you join us in the dining room." Edward shot me one last smile and then disappeared. Tanya whirled on me.
"Bella, you stay away, got me?" She said it in a jokey voice so I sighed in relief.
"Yeah, I got it." Not.
"I mean it. I saw him first. He's mine."
"Yeah, yeah. I'm going to help Alice with the unpacking." And I left her standing in the hallway, knowing she was secretly scheming to make me stay out of the house as long as the Cullens' were here.
