Sorrows The Seas of My Heart
Chapter Two: Preparations
Thursday went by in a blur. Charlie went to work early, and I had nothing to do. I brought only two books with me this summer which I'd already finished on the plane ride to Seattle.
On Friday morning, I was surprised to find Charlie sitting on one of the kitchen chairs reading the newspaper. I looked at the clock and saw that it was already 9 in the morning.
"You're gonna be late, Dad ," I said as I grabbed a bowl and spoon.
"Morning, Bella. Actually, I'm taking the day off today." He replied and turned the page.
"You are?" I asked, surprised.
"Well, I wanted to go over to the gym to help finish getting ready for tonight. Would you like to come with me?"
"Um," I replied, truly not wanting to spend the day with a bunch of adults in a gym.
"I'm sure a few kids will be there, too," Charlie said, as if he could read my thoughts. Although spending the day with a bunch of whining little children isn't a very relaxing idea, Charlie probably only wanted to spend time with me.
"Um, yeah, sure," Hopefully I was right. I took a bite of my cereal and feigned interest. "What time are we leaving?"
"Is thirty minutes okay?" He asked and put the newspaper down.
"It's fine." I replied.
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It took me another half hour for me to finish my breakfast and get ready to leave; getting to the gym took up another ten.
The high school, a group of brick buildings, was just off the highway. In fact, if it hadn't been for the sign saying "Forks High School", I wouldn't have thought it was a school at all. Back in Phoenix, I'd just finished my sophomore year, and my school there was in complete contrast to the school in front of me.
Charlie parked the car in the lot and led me into one of the larger brick buildings. Streamers were strewn all over the wooden surface; balloons were everywhere, in the corners, on the floor, hanging high over our heads. Adults ran around trying to add finishing touches to their work. This new family is sure to be very important.
"Ah, Chief Swan," a man said. He was sitting on the first row of bleachers and stood at Charlie's, and my, arrival. "How are you today?"
"Hello there, Jonathan, I'm feeling good today, and you?" Charlie replied, walking towards the man to shake his hand.
"Good, good," the man smiled. He then noticed I was standing behind my father, absentmindedly following him. "Isabella Swan, is that you?"
I nodded.
"Yeah, she arrived a couple of days ago." Charlie instantly responded. The man nodded and turned back to look at me.
"So Isabella, how old are you now, fourteen?"
"Please, call me Bella, and I'm fifteen." I said.
"She's just finished her sophomore year," Charlie said.
"Oh, really? I remember when she was just a little ten year old visiting her father for the summer," he flashed a smile; Charlie chuckled in return.
As Charlie and the man, Mr. Thompson, continued their conversation. Many more adults began to arrive, and with them were their children. However, their children were not the ages I expected them to be. Many of them were probably around my age.
More people also came up to Charlie, and every time, the person would interrupt the conversation after suddenly realizing the I was right behind Charlie. He had said they expected me, but I didn't think everyone knew I was going to arrive.
I'd thought, surely, that at least one or two families had moved into Forks during the past year, people who wouldn't recognize me at all. Maybe this was why they were making a big fuss over this new doctor and his family.
"Chief Swan! … Oh, and Isabella! Since when have you been in Forks?" a woman called. She had thick brown hair reaching just below her shoulders. With her short stature, I was almost looking down on her.
"She arrived on Wednesday." With Charlie's tone, I assumed I wasn't the only one getting tired of the meet-and-greet routine. I braced myself for the same conversation to happen again, but this lady didn't take much interest in the annual return of the chief's daughter.
"So, Charlie, did you hear about the new family?" she asked.
"I haven't heard much about them. Why, is there something you'd like to share?"
"Well, I heard they have five children," she informed.
"Oh, my." Charlie chuckled. "That must be a handful."
The woman nodded her head. "Yes, a very strange family, they are. Five teenagers - all adopted, and this man and his wife, only in their mid twenties or so."
Charlie whistled in amazement. "This man has a very good, clean record, though. They probably won't be any trouble." Charlie said.
"I don't know, Charlie. Some of us can't even handle one teenager alone," the woman joked. "Speaking of which, Isabella should meet my daughter." She stood on the tips of her toes and craned her neck around. "There, she is, over by Mike Newton. You should go over there."
"Um, no, it's quite alright." I told her.
"Nonsense, come on with me."
She grabbed my arm and dragged me along with her to the bleachers where two teenagers were sitting. One, was an exact replica of Mrs. Stanley, except her brown hair was curlier and longer. The other, a blonde boy, sat next to her, chatting away in amusement.
"Jessica," Mrs. Stanley called. The two stopped talking and looked in my direction. "This is Chief Swan's daughter, Isabella. You should get to know one another. Maybe you'll be friends." That was when Mrs. Stanley walked away, and Jessica took her cue to start talking.
"Hi, Isabella -," she began, but I interrupted before it could go anywhere.
"Bella, please," I said.
"Well, Bella," she giggled, "This is Mike." She gestured at the blonde boy sitting next to her, and he grinned from ear to ear.
"Hello," I greeted, and he replied.
"I wonder where Lauren is. She's so awesome; you just have to meet her, Bella!" Jessica was very enthusiastic. She came on too strong.
"Lauren's out of town, remember Jess? She kept telling us that she was going to California for something," Mike said. Jessica sat back down.
"Oh yeah, I forgot." Her excitement died down by a decibel, but that didn't stop her from talking. This trait, I knew, she took after from her mom.
"Mike! Did my mom tell you?" she asked. Mike asked her what she was talking about, and Jessica continued on to tell Mike what her mom told Charlie just a few moments ago.
"Wow," Mike said, "So, that's, what, five new students at Forks High?"
"Hopefully they're good looking. What's the point of getting new people who don't even look good?" Jessica said in disgust. I stayed silent the entire time.
Another hour passed, and another, and another. Everyone took a break at two to eat a late lunch. Two parents were assigned to make sandwiches for everyone helping. Unfortunately, Charlie had to volunteer me to help pass out the sandwiches to everyone. And who else would my partner be, but Mike?
"So, Bella, how's your stay in Forks, so far?" He asked, as we walked towards the long silver table where the picnic basket full of sandwiches was.
"Um, it's okay," I told him.
"Are you a sophomore?"
"When I get back to Phoenix, I'll be a junior." I said, as I flipped open the lid of the basket and took a few sandwiches out; I began to walk around. Mike reminded me of a puppy dog, always following me around.
"Mike, it would be a lot more efficient if you took some and brought it to other people instead of following me around." It sounded insulting the way I said it, but Mike didn't seem to notice. He nodded, sheepishly grinned, and went back to the basket.
I tried avoiding Mike the rest of the day and ended up being successful. When I saw him, he was always with Jessica. A light-brown haired girl suddenly darted past me, chasing two little kids.
"Luke! Adrian!" She whispered loudly.
"Um, do you need any help?"
"Oh, no it's alright. No need," she said, as she walked over to the bleachers next to where I was currently sitting. "Are you new here? I've never met you before."
"I'm, uh, Bella. Cha-Chief Swan's daughter," I told her, and she nodded.
"Is this your first time here?"
"No, I'm here every summer."
"Oh, I'm surprised I never met you before." She smiled.
"Well, I mostly stay home since my Dad's always at work. Sometimes he drops me off with some family friends down in La Push."
"I'm Angela, by the way. Angela Weber."
"Nice to meet you, Angela." And indeed it was. She was the first person I felt comfortable talking to all day, besides Charlie. Angela was really nice, and we spent a lot of the day getting to know each other.
At 7 o'clock, though, everyone was running around, trying to hurry up what they were doing. Charlie suddenly appeared next to me, looking tired and dizzy at the scene.
"Dad, how exactly is that new family supposed to get here? Do they even know where the high school is?"
"And that is my cue to leave." He said, as he got up and stood in front of me.
"Huh?" I asked, confused.
"Police escort." He smiled, amused, and I grinned back. I wonder if Charlie would make them ride in the cruiser. If they're new, they couldn't possibly have a car yet. Unless, they rented one for a time being. It dawned on me then that it took an hour to get to the Port Angeles airport.
"Dad, wouldn't that take an incredibly long time?"
"What, Bells?" he asked.
"Well, the airport's an hour away."
"Oh, no. They won't be at the airport. They told us they'd be at their house by seven at night."
"Oh." I replied.
"Would you like to come with me?" he asked. In the cruiser?, I thought.
"No thanks. I'll just wait till you get back." I smiled, and he walked towards the door.
