Enter, Alice Cullen!
The somewhat crowded cafeteria was bustling with life, the hum of idle chatter permeating the air. After somehow making it through the lunch line without being too jostled by eager students, Mike abruptly dragged Bella with him to sit at a large round table a little too near the center of the room for her liking. Within moments they were joined by Eric, Jessica, Tyler, and a couple of girls whose names she still had yet to commit to memory. Honestly, there wasn't enough space for all six of them to sit there without bumping elbows, but these kids seemed hell bent on making it work. Bella had the misfortune of sitting next to some blonde girl with a high pitched, nasally voice who only seemed interested in discussing the latest gossip and talking trash about whomever she pleased. It was slowly grating on her nerves and she felt the impending migraine tickling the base of her skull.
The steady thrum of voices gradually began to fade as she stared absently at a spot on the far wall, allowing herself to drift in her thoughts. She wondered what the future held for her at her new school, after all, the concept of having an actual group of people willing to befriend her was something of a new experience. She figured either they were big enough freaks to be okay with her, or she'd levelled up her social skills enough to fake it. At her last school, she had a nasty habit of speaking before she could actually complete a thought, and the results were usually less than satisfactory. She didn't always come off as the kindest of people. Occasionally it happened with teachers, but most often it would be with other students, who would then end up avoiding her or trying to fight. It wasn't Bella's fault she couldn't hold her tongue, it was just something that ran in her family.
No one runs in my family. She snorted at her own joke.
It was that moment that she realized the buzz of conversation amongst her friends had died down to hushed whispers and hurried glances. Bella looked at each one curiously and scrunched her nose in confusion before turning her attention to the person on her right. She was a darker skinned girl with long, black hair pulled in to a ponytail, and a pair of thick round glasses adorning her face. Bella momentarily struggled to recall her name. Angela. She said to herself, proud of her accomplishment. Names were not her strong suit.
"Angela." The girl flinched, taken aback by the sudden call from the girl who'd barely spoken so much as a hello. None the less, she smiled, satisfied to be acknowledged.
"Bella! What is it?" She put her elbows on the table and propped her chin on both hands.
"What is everyone whispering about?"
"Oh! Right, you're new here so you wouldn't know," Angela gestured with a tilt of her head to the other side of the cafeteria. "They're talking about the Cullen family."
Her brows knit together and she swiveled slightly in her chair to look over her shoulder at the aforementioned students. Chocolate eyes widened as she took in the indescribably beautiful group of people. Their backs were mostly turned to her, but even without seeing their faces she could tell they were on a level all their own; each one moving with fluidity and grace, barely picking at their obviously untouched food. There was a total of five, each one possessing their own unique set of qualities. First was the largest of them; a boy who looked much too old to be in high school with bulging muscles that could rival Jakes. Next to him was a blonde with a body that could kill, and a face that looked like she had. Her features were sharp, and she appeared carefully poised, her movements limited except the interlocking of her fingers with the large ape-mans.
Beside them were two other boys, the first one was exceptionally well-dressed compared to his peers, and possessed messy bronze hair that reminded Bella of what an aggressively used toothbrush might look like. The one to his right had sandy blonde tresses with subtle waves that halted just below his earlobes. He had one arm hooked around Toothbrushes and his free hand was rubbing his shoulder gently in what she assumed was a comforting gesture.
Finally, her eyes flicked to the final Cullen, and her breath left her body with an audible whoosh. She was petite, unlike her brothers and sister, with short, dark hair that spiked out slightly at the ends and back, and a small waist that she felt the urge to wrap her arms around. Bella decided, without even seeing her face, she wanted to know that girl. Angela began to introduce them, and Bella noticed the whole table had gone quiet and was tuning in on the conversation.
"They were all adopted by Carlisle and his wife Esme, the only ones who are related are Rosalie and Jasper, and they're the two blonde ones. The big one who looks like a man-bear is Emmett, he's dating Rosalie, then there's Edward, the one with bronze sex hair, and he's dating Jasper." Angela sighed, her eyes roaming dreamily over Edwards form. "If only they weren't gay, Edward probably has more girls fawning over him than anyone I've ever seen."
"Whatever dude," Mike scoffed "I've got girls after me too, but you don't see me acting high and mighty and better than everyone like them. Besides, isn't it like incest if they're together?"
Bella turned to face Mike with a bemused expression, "Please, the only girl I've seen fall for you was Angela, and that's only because she tripped over your foot on the way here. Besides, who cares if they're together? Technically they aren't related by blood, so what does it matter?"
Mike's face flushed a deep red while Tyler and Eric erupted with laughter, slapping him none to gently on the back. Angela was stifling her own laughter behind one hand, and Bella decided she didn't want to see Jessica's reaction; she could already feel the piercing glare coming from her without having to make eye contact.
"So what about Emmett and Jasper? I'm sure they attract just as much attention." She inquired, turning back to Angela.
"I mean, yes, but no one would dare try," She shook her head, "No one really goes near Emmett or Jasper. Rosalie is the ultimate ice queen, people won't get within ten feet of her, much less her man. If looks could kill, Rosalie would probably be incarcerated for life. As for Jasper…he's good looking, but a bit intimidating if I'm honest. He always looks like he's in pain, and I haven't heard him say a word to anyone outside his family since they moved here."
"Wait, you only introduced four out of five." Bella pointed out.
"Oh, right! The last one is Alice, she's super polite, in my opinion probably the most approachable of all of them, but she also seems a little off sometimes?" Angela tapped a finger on her chin.
"Alice." Bella said out loud, to no one in particular, enjoying the way the girls name rolled off her tongue.
"Sometimes? The little thing is a freak," The blonde to her left finally cut in, her words dripping poison, "I have her in one of my classes, I've seen her just freeze up and stare off in to space for a solid five minutes and no one can get her attention when it happens."
Bella had been thinking to herself quietly, deciding that she was going to talk to Alice Cullen if it killed her. When Lauren called her a freak, she bristled defensively and prepared a nasty retort before she was cut short by Mike.
Mike shoved Laurens chair slightly with his foot, fixing her with an exasperated expression. "Don't be such a bitch, Lauren, Alice is a sweet girl, and even if her and her family are a little weird you still shouldn't call her a freak."
Lauren scoffed and rolled her eyes dramatically, sitting back in her chair with her arms crossed, not unlike a petulant child. Bella gave a small smile, her respect for the normally thick-headed jock going up just a few notches. She could understand to some degree why the Cullens drew so much attention to themselves. Just from observing them, Bella could tell that something was strange. First of all, their mouths were moving, but it didn't seem like they were talking, then there was the fact that not a single piece of food had been touched beyond the occasional poke of a fork. Regardless, she didn't see a point in putting so much time and effort in to idle gossip.
She was also positive they had to have heard it before, there's no way you can attend a school for four years and not hear what people were saying at least a few times. Bella shook her head, she knew all too well how it felt to have that many people talking about you when they thought you weren't listening. Deciding to ignore the bickering that had followed Lauren's unnecessary comment, she looked over her shoulder, hoping to see the little one called Alice again, only to suck in a mouthful of oxygen when she met a pair of honey-colored eyes. Alice Cullen was staring back at her.
Before she could react or fully comprehend what was happening, everything seemed to slow down significantly. Her eyes were almost exactly like the ones she had seen that night in Phoenix, albeit a few shades darker. Those damned yellow eyes. Bella could feel her chest tightening, her skin broke out in a cold sweat and her breath came in short puffs. Her vision began to blur at the edges, and she could see flashes of snapping jaws and blood covered canine teeth inches from her face. Somewhere in the background she heard Angela's voice, but it was drowned out by the screaming that echoed in her mind. A gentle hand was placed on her shoulder and Bella recoiled violently, causing her chair to screech across the tile floor. She met Angela's dark green eyes, which were swirling with a mixture of concern and shock. Bella could see her lips moving but couldn't make out the words through the roaring in her ears. It was then that she noticed the whole table staring at her.
"I'm sorry, I need to go. I don't feel well." Bella managed to mumble out, snatching her backpack from the chair and briskly walking to the doors that led outside.
A gust of chilled wind hit her face when she stepped outside, and she willed herself to keep walking, making a beeline for the trees just on the edge of the school grounds. In hindsight, that probably wasn't the best direction to go, but she knew she couldn't stay in that room and nature was generally comforting for her. She briefly considered calling Jake to pick her up but she didn't want him to know about it. In fact, she didn't want anyone to know about this, it was bad enough that her new school friends bore witness to it. Bella stopped once she was surrounded by nothing but pine trees, sinking to the forest floor and pulling her knees to her chest. She placed her head between her legs and began counting in an attempt to regulate her breathing and calm herself down. It worked, for the most part, until she heard the clearing of a throat. She threw her head back at the offending sound and was met once again with the golden gaze of one Alice Cullen.
Alice and her family had been talking silently amongst themselves, their words too low in volume and too quick for average human ears to pick up on. It wasn't until she caught the sound of someone describing them that she chose to tune in. They didn't have to look to know that it was the new student they had all heard about it, and it seemed her new friends were taking it upon themselves to introduce her family without actually introducing them. She smiled faintly at the joke following the comment about girls fawning over her brothers and decided she wanted to see this girl for herself. Alice had already had a few visions about her, but she was nothing more than a fleeting shadow in all of them, only appearing when she was in someone else's future.
Curiosity getting the best of her, Alice craned her neck just a bit, trying to peer around Edwards shoulder. With her playing a vanishing act in Alice's visions, her family insisted on finding out why and establishing whether or not she a potential threat, or just a very special human. Although understandable (seeing as only other super naturals were hidden from her talents) she couldn't help but think they were being a little melodramatic. She could only see her from behind, but without a doubt this was the girl her family had worried over, which was remarkable in itself because she appeared to be nothing more than an average human. Average. Alice tried to convince herself, ignoring the pull she felt to go to her and strike up conversation. It would happen in time, but that time wasn't now.
"I can't read her thoughts." Edward's cheery voice piped up from his spot beside Jasper, causing four pairs of golden eyes to fall on him.
"Wait," Rosalie's eyes narrowed to slits, "So Alice can't see her in visions, and you can't hear her thoughts? What's next, Jasper not being able to feel her?" Her gaze snapped to her "twin", who held up his hands in innocence.
"Don't look at me like that Rosalie, I can feel her emotions just fine, maybe because it's physical? They don't change as quickly or as much as other teenagers though, so I don't know how much of a difference it's going to make trying to get a read on her. She seems well controlled for her age." He said in his southern drawl, shrugging.
"Eddy boy can't get in her head, and to Alice she's unpredictable? Oh, I like her already, and I haven't even met her yet!" Emmett clapped his hands together.
"Stop it Emmett, we don't even know if she's human! The only things that can pull that off are those mutts. I can smell her from here, she's got wet dog scent all over her!" Rosalie hissed quietly.
"Ah, no, she's definitely human. Through the shifter scent, she smells human, most certainly has blood in her veins, and there's nothing about her physical appearance that stands out like ours. Even the wolves are obviously different from normal humans, and to make my point, I can read their minds." Edward tapped on the table thoughtfully.
Alice sighed to herself, for reasons beyond her comprehension, she felt like Bella had her own gravitational pull, and she was feeling it's affects. It would be a lie to say she didn't find her attractive. She'd only seen her face with a quick glance when they filed in to the cafeteria, but Alice thought she was the most beautiful girl she had ever laid eyes on. Honestly, she wasn't out of the ordinary, but everything about her was captivating; her long, chestnut brown hair that framed her heart shaped face with gentle waves, her pale skin, her full, pink-tinted lips, the slim jawline connected to a slender neck…Alice shook her head almost violently and noticed Jasper and Edward eyeing her suspiciously. Well, shit. Caught with a hand in the cookie jar.
"Alice," Jasper's eyes twinkled with laughter, "You like her, don't you?"
If she could blush, Alice was sure that she would be pink from her neck up at that point. It wasn't just a blatant attraction; she had seen the shadow of this girl in all of their futures, especially her own. She knew from the first time she had a vision involving her that they were going to become exceptionally close. Rosalie glared daggers in her direction while Emmett bounced slightly in his seat like a small child. Edward was giving her the same amused expression that Jasper was.
"She most certainly does, if those thoughts were anything to go by." Edward snorted.
"Don't tease me, you mop with legs." Alice sneered
"You wound me, dear sister, I just call them as I see them!" He held up his hands in mock innocence, much like his partner had done with Rosalie earlier.
"You know…" Jasper trailed off, glancing quickly at the table across the room, "She likes you too. Whether or not she understands it, I couldn't say, but I can feel her from here. She's curious, but nervous, and when she looked at you her heartbeat sped up."
The corners of her mouth turned down in a thoughtful frown. How could she possibly introduce herself without coming off too strange or eager? It was dangerous enough to be friends with a human, but Alice knew that if she had it her way, they wouldn't be just friends, which complicated things more. Not to mention the resistance Rosalie would most definitely give her. Although, Emmett was excited at the prospect of making a new friend, and Edward and Jasper didn't appear to care either way, as long as she was happy. Then of course there was Carlisle and Esme to deal with. They probably wouldn't mind, but would urge her to be careful.
Alice exhaled through her nose and looked across the room at the brunette, starting when her eyes met a pair of chocolate brown. At first, the world felt like it was falling away and her entire being seemed to tilt on its axis. Alice felt like she was drowning in the depths of her dark brown eyes, but even that couldn't hide the drastic shift in Bella's demeanor.
"Jasper, what's wrong?" Edwards' anxious tone cut through her thoughts and she turned to look at them. Jasper had stiffened and was gripping the table. Hard.
"She's having a panic attack. She looked at you and it must have done something because…" He trailed off when there was a surprised yelp from Angela and a loud screech of metal dragging on tile, followed by Bella Swan breezing past them and out the double doors.
Alice stared at the exit in bewilderment, unsure of what had just happened. A dozen thoughts began racing through her head. What the hell was that? Was she just prone to panic attacks? She hadn't been bothered when she had kept stealing glances at them, so what changed when they looked at each other? Was it her fault? Should she go after her? How weird would it be if she did go after her? Did she somehow know what they were? Is that why she freaked out so bad? She had never seen any human panic that much with something so little as eye contact.
"Alice, I need you to calm down, your thoughts are too loud." Edward grimaced.
"Somethings wrong," Rosalie growled, "That was too abnormal of a response just from looking at Alice of all people. Carlisle told us to assess a potential threat, if she knows something it could be a fucking problem!"
"Calm down Rosie, getting angry isn't going to help right now." Emmett put a massive hand on her shoulder.
Alice flinched when all four of her siblings suddenly looked at her.
"Go find her." Rosalie ground out.
"Excuse me?!" Alice stared at her like she had just sprouted a second head.
"Something is off, Alice. Jasper said there was a lot of fear coming from her when she left. If she knows something, then we need to know, worst case scenario she just had a normal panic attack over something unrelated and it'll give you a chance to comfort her." Edward winked. Alice fixed him with a blank look. She couldn't find a good enough argument to counter that. On one hand, they could find out what she knows, on another hand she has her opening to talk to the girl who's caught her attention since before she arrived at Forks High.
"Fine."
Alice slid gracefully out of her chair, leaving her untouched lunch and her siblings to continue their hushed discussion. She strode out the double doors, pausing briefly to look around for passerby's, then tilted her head back ever so slightly to sniff the air. The wind carried the strong scent of lavender and honey, and she smiled softly before shaking her head and following the trail to the dense forest that lay behind the high school. She couldn't possibly have gone far. Alice thought to herself, absently stepping over braches and other obstacles without sparing a glance at her feet.
It was the sound of labored breathing that caused her to eventually halt in her tracks, and there, not ten feet away, sat the person of interest, her back pressed against a pine tree and her knees pulled flush against her body. She had her head tucked between her legs and Alice could hear her faintly mumbling numbers to herself. Unsure of how to proceed, she cleared her throat gently, causing Bella's head jerked up so quickly she was sure the girl was going to give herself whiplash.
"Alice Cullen." Her voice was hard, but quivered slightly, "What are you doing out here? Did you follow me?"
"I was hoping to formally introduce myself, but it seems your friends did the honors. I did follow you, though. My siblings and I saw what happened in the cafeteria, and none of your friends seemed eager to make sure you were okay, so I decided I wanted to check on you. It's not easy being the new kid, we've been there before. You looked white as a sheet, I honestly thought you were going to be sick." Alice took one step forward, her eyes widening when Bella pressed her back further against the tree and threw her hands up.
"Stop! Don't come closer, please." Bella choked out.
Bella had managed to reign in the panic attack, but she still couldn't shake the fear. She was ashamed of it, if she was honest with herself. She took pride in having better control over her emotions, and the fact that something like that blindsided her was definitely not something to be proud of. The entire trek to the forest her mind raced with curiosity, fear and confusion about how there was no way the Cullen's could be human; not with eyes like those. She shook her head to clear those thoughts, rolling her eyes at how ridiculous she sounded.
First of all, there was no proof that their eye color was especially abnormal, just because she had never seen it before didn't negate its existence. At the same time, however, there wasn't a single study she'd come across in any biology class, textbook, or online article that talked about yellow eyes unless it was colored contacts, and the odds that every Cullen kid wore yellow contacts also seemed a bit farfetched. She also couldn't just say 'Hey, I think you aren't human' because that just made her sound off her rocker. Bella stared at Alice curiously when the small girl suddenly sat down in the same place she'd been standing, crossing her legs and watching Bella intently.
"Okay, I'll stay right here." Alice smiled softly, hoping to calm her a bit, "Can I ask you something?"
She nodded cautiously.
"What happened in there?"
"Nothing, I just remembered something and it freaked me out a bit." Bella skirted around the actual reason.
"May I ask what had you so on edge?" Alice tried to gently encourage her to open up, to little avail.
"No." Came the curt reply.
"Why?"
"Because if I tell you, I'm going to sound crazy, and I've had enough of people thinking that about me." Bella stated quietly, casting her gaze downward. She whipped her head back up again when light, tinkling laughter bubbled from the other girl.
"Isabella-"
"Bella."
"Right, Bella. I'm sure you've heard what they say about us, yeah? It's alright, I promise not to make fun of you or make you feel crazy. So please, trust me just a little, if only this once." Alice needed to know what she thought, not just to satisfy her own curiosity, but for the safety of her family.
Bella couldn't entirely argue with that. Alice was right, her new "friends" had made their fair share of comments on the Cullen family, and she had openly defended them. Opening up about the real reason she panicked was not something she was entirely prepared to do though. Not a single soul in Phoenix believed her when she tried to tell them about what actually happened that night with her mother, but she had a feeling that Alice of all people would understand how it felt to be patronized and treated differently. She once again stared at her shoes, chewing gently on her bottom lip and mulling it over in her head. Her friends already thought something was strange about her, what with that display she'd just put on, and Alice didn't seem like the type to gossip. Hell, from what she had been told, it didn't seem like anyone in her family even spoke to the other students unless they had to. In the end, Bella decided that she was more terrified of being right, than being wrong.
She fixed her gaze back on Alice, studying her before deciding to open her big mouth. Something definitely seemed different about her, she was sitting like a statue on the forest floor with absolutely no movement, not even a subtle rise and fall of her chest as she breathed. Her skin looked flawless, like smooth marble, and her movements earlier had been a little too graceful and fluid. Bella then realized she hadn't heard Alice approach when she first arrived, and a simple glance at the forest floor around them told her there was no way she could've avoided making some sort of noise.
"You know, it's kind of stupid. I saw your eyes, and thought 'are they even human?' but that's pretty ridiculous." Bella chuckled at her own idiocy. Alice looked a little taken aback, but her features quickly softened again and she gave Bella another soft smile.
"It's understandable, you aren't the first to wonder about that either. Though, how did you come to a conclusion like that?" Alice inquired her eyes never leaving the other girls.
Bella shifted uncomfortably, "It's just…"
"It's okay, you can tell me." The pixie pressed
"Your eyes. They're gold, which shouldn't be possible unless your family has a weird cultish belief in colored contacts," Bella frowned, reconsidering whether or not she should tell her why her eyes were unnatural to her, before throwing caution to the wind. "I've only seen eyes like yours one other time."
That certainly seemed to get Alice's attention. Bella couldn't decipher the look that crossed the other girls face at that admission.
"What?" Alice stared at her intently, but maintained a light tone. "What do you mean? You've seen them before?"
Bella narrowed her eyes suspiciously. The pixie still held the same smile, but there was something behind her eyes and the barely noticeable strain in her words. She sighed, she didn't much want to talk about it, but she needed someone to know the truth, stranger or not. Although, she felt she could hardly consider Alice a total stranger by this point. An acquaintance at least.
"You know…" She started, fiddling with the hem of her shirt nervously, "I'm tired, Alice….I want to tell you, I need someone other than me to know, but we just met. I'm ashamed that you saw me in this predicament and I wholly feel that I'm being overdramatic about all of this."
"Bella, I swear to you that whatever we talk about right here, right now, will never leave this spot. They say there's comfort in strangers, you know?" Alice replied, waiting to see if she would open up.
That was the last bit of push she needed. Bella launched in to her story, careful to avoid certain….specific details. She didn't notice that Alice had gradually shifted closer until she was side by side with her, but when she did she couldn't bring herself to send her away. After all, she was just trying to be friendly, right? At first it was easy, telling her about how she had chased Mayor in to the desert when he uncharacteristically ran off, but when it came time to describe the creature itself, she couldn't bring herself to conjure up the image. It wasn't until an ice cold hand brushed her knuckles that she realized she was clenching so hard her nails had bit in to her palm. She allowed Alice to wrap a comforting arm around her shoulders. It wasn't until near the end, when she was describing what happened to her mother, and revisiting how no one believed her about what had happened, that Bella noticed a few stray tears roll down her cheeks.
Alice stared at the girl sadly, trying to decide if hugging her was the right course of action. Whatever appeared that night was nothing short of supernatural, and she made a mental note to bring it up with Carlisle. She'd heard legends of creatures like that, but as far as she knew they had long since died out, and even if they did still exist, what are the odds that it would wander in to a crowded suburb and attack a family unprovoked? Something fishy was going on, but she was torn from her contemplation when Bella sniffed, clearly trying to hold in her sorrow. Alice felt her heart break in two and she gathered the girl up in her arms, smiling to herself when Bella returned the gesture with a vice grip. She allowed her to bury her face in her neck and cry as much as she needed to. It didn't last long. After about a minute, Bella forced herself to swallow the lump in her throat and eventually pulled back, still sniffling.
"I-I'm sorry, this is embarrassing," She stuttered, rubbing her eyes with her jacket sleeves, "I hate crying, and I especially hate crying in front of people. I know I sound insane."
Bella's eyes went wide when Alice gripped both of her hands in her own; the action and her ice cold skin caught her off guard but she didn't try to pull away. She wasn't sure if she could if she wanted to, Alice had a surprisingly strong hold. She chewed her lip again, waiting to be fed the same excuses the police gave; that it was just a normal animal attack or that she was suffering from some kind of trauma-induced delusion.
"Isabella," Alice's gold eyes bore in to her own with an intensity she didn't expect, and even though she hated her full name, she couldn't help but think she wanted to hear Alice say it again. "I would think you stranger if you didn't cry, but more importantly, I need you to know that I believe you, every word of it."
Bella deadpanned for a moment, unsure if she trusted her. She searched Alice's face for any sign of give in the sincerity, and when she found none she mentally slapped herself. This stunning, polite, kind, and inhumanly beautiful girl had followed her all the way in to the forest just to make sure she was okay. She had sat with her for nearly the entire lunch period just to listen to her story and hear her out, and had even validated it by explicitly telling her she believed her. Yet Bella had the nerve to allow herself doubt at this point.
Alice held her breath, although it was unnecessary to begin with. Those large, brown eyes held her locked in place, clearly searching while she drowned in their depths. She needed her to trust that she was being honest, that she full-heartedly believed her story and wanted nothing more than to be supportive. At this point, if Bella knew anything about her family, she certainly wasn't admitting to it, but she could reason that the girl didn't know and had just experienced an unfortunate casualty that came with being near supernatural creatures. It wasn't until she felt the brush of a warm breath on her cheek that she realized at she'd leaned in to the human. Alice froze momentarily, then sighed in relief when two arms tangled around her neck.
"Thanks." Bella mumbled in to her shoulder. Emotions weren't her friends, so she tried her best to convey her appreciation. For the first time since she moved to Forks, it felt like some of the world had been chipped away from her shoulders, if only a little bit.
"You're welcome," Alice chuckled, rubbing a hand on her back. Her ears picked up the sound of the final lunch bell, indicating their next period. "If you ever need anything, you can call me, you know? I'll give you my number, but we should get going, sixth period is about to start and I don't think it would bode well to miss any classes on your first day."
Pulling back, Bella stared at her quizzically. She could barely hear the occasional bird cry and scuttling of animals hiding in the underbrush, much less the school bell from more than fifty yards away. Deciding to ignore it for now, she stood up and stretched out one hand to her companion. Alice accepted the assistance and continued to hold on even as they began heading back toward the school, dragging Bella behind her and chatting about which classes and teachers they had to attempt to lighten the mood a bit. Bella stared down at their intertwined hands as Alice led the way and smiled to herself. Maybe this new school wouldn't be so bad after all.
HeyoooO! What a doozy! A solid 5600 words! I started writing this one and couldn't seem to stop, so I just let it go. I rewrote several parts, several times, and reread the whole chapter 2-3 times. I think there are still some little things bothering me, but for the most part I'm satisfied, I hope you are too! With any luck, my future chapters will match this one in length. Enjoy!
