x o x o

I ran outside to the farthest part of the school; away from where the rest of the school was having lunch. I didn't want them coming after me. They had no idea why I left. I wanted to keep it like that, but that probably wasn't going to happen. They were going to ask about it sooner or later.

I collapsed under a tree and put my head in my hands.

I had promised myself I wouldn't let this happen! I didn't want anybody to know about any of this. I had come to Forks to start anew, to be away from everyone who would know what had happened and ask questions. I didn't want to be reminded all the time. It just hurt too much.

Now I realized that no matter what I did, no matter where I went, I was always going to remember them. I was going to have to find another way to deal with my loss. There was no other solution I could think of.

"I know this is the last thing you want to hear but I'm really sorry." I jumped as the smooth, velvety voice broke through the silence. "I was going to stop them sooner, but I didn't know how." The voice sounded sincerely apologetic. The sound of such a beautiful voice showing that kind of sadness and regret touched my heart. I looked up and gasped at the sight of its owner.

Above me stood a tall, unbelievably beautiful boy. I realized that he was one of the people that had been sitting at the corner table. The one that had stood out to me. He had bronze hair in a casual disarray, and pale skin. He had faint shadows underneath his eyes as if he hadn't gotten any sleep for a while. I noticed that one of his hands at his side was clenched in a tight fist. What stunned me most were his eyes. They seemed to momentarily dazzle me. They were a strange liquid golden, topaz colour.

It was strange though, I could swear I saw something in his eyes. It looked as if he was in pain…

Tears were still streaming down my face and I bent down to wipe them away. I didn't want this beautiful person to see me like this.

Suddenly I felt his icy hand on my wrist. I looked up and gasped to see his face right in front of mine. He raised his other hand and wiped the tears from my face. His hands were so cold!

I couldn't help myself. I broke into sobs again as another wave of emotion swept over me. He wrapped his arms around me. His sweet scent wafted around me.

"Shh. Shh, its ok…" He whispered to me.

I had absolutely no idea who this stranger was, and I should feel absolutely terrified for being held like this by someone I didn't know, but for some reason I felt calm and perfectly safe.

Why did my problems matter to him? He didn't even know who I was. What did he mean he was sorry? Who was he going to stop from doing what? Did he mean stop them from talking about their families? Most importantly though, who was he?

I realized I wasn't crying anymore and he backed away from me.

"By the way, my name is Edward Cullen."

"I'm Bel-"

"Bella Swan, I know." He smiled down at me and held out a hand.

I cringed slightly at his ice-cold grasp as he pulled me to my feet. As he pulled me up, I could tell that he wasn't using all his strength. It was just one of those things you could tell.

He stared intensely into my eyes. "Are you sure you're alright?"

"Yes." It was strange. Despite not even knowing this stranger, he seemed to make me feel at calm and at ease. I wondered why that was…

He frowned, as if he heard something that seemed to bother him.

"What class do you have? I'll walk you there." He smiled at me.

"Umm…" I dug my schedule out of my bag and quickly scanned it. "Biology."

"Ok, let's go."

We walked in silence towards one of the buildings on the other end of the school.

As I walked inside, I was surprised to notice that he walked in right behind me. I threw him a questioning look and he smiled his dazzling smile again.

"I have Biology too."

I wondered why he hadn't told me before.

Beside me I felt him shrug. I found that very odd.

He went to go sit in a seat near the middle of the room, and I continued on towards the front to give the slip to the teacher. It was then that I realized how many people there were in the room already. I recognized some of the people from the table I had been sitting at. They all had curious looks on their faces and were looking from me, to Edward, and then to me again. I wondered what they were thinking.

When I gave the slip to the teacher he sent me to the empty seat beside Edward. I could hear people start whispering as I made my way to my seat. As I passed her seat, a girl from the lunch table smiled shyly at me. I couldn't help but smile back. I suddenly felt bad for not paying attention to everyone's names.

I sat down and glanced quickly over at Edward. He was frowning and he had his right hand clenched in a fist again. I wondered if there was a reason for that or if he just did it out of habit. He noticed me looking at him and smiled. I smiled back and took out my books.

Through the whole class I kept shooting glances at him. I couldn't stop wondering about him. I was glad that he hadn't pried into why I had left the cafeteria, but at the same time, he hadn't told me how he knew that I was so upset and that the people at my table were the cause of it.

He was so mysterious and why did he care so much!? He didn't even know me!

After class he waited for me to pack up my books. I wondered how he had done it so much faster than I had.

As we walked towards my gym class, I noticed that he kept frowning. I wondered what was wrong, but I didn't want to ask. He was a complete stranger, it was none of my business.

When we got to the gym, I turned around to say goodbye, but he was already gone.

I couldn't stop thinking about him all through gym, even when the volleyball came straight towards me and hit me in the head. I was definitely not paying attention to what was happening around me.

After class I made my way to my truck. It seemed like everyone I passed was staring at me or whispering something to the person beside them. I wished I knew what rumours they were spreading about me.

I sighed and slammed the door behind me as I got into my truck. Great first impression I made. Why did I have to embarrass myself like that? I started the truck and pulled out of the parking lot, passing a shiny, silver Volvo as I went.

A/N: Hi!! For all you who guessed it was Edward, CONGRATS! Imaginary kiss from Edward for you! :)
PLEASE REVIEW!!!3