Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight or any of its characters.
Chapter Six: School
Bella awoke Monday morning to her brand new alarm clock. Stifling the urge to throw it out the window, she gently turned off the annoying ringing. Bella wasn't particularly excited to be going to school, but anything that could successfully distract her from the thoughts that were constantly haunting her was welcome, so in her mind it was, school-onward!
While putting on her new and freshly laundered clothes, Bella noticed a faint sweet smell coming from them. Although she hadn't noticed it the previous night, she just assumed it was Charlie's fabric softener. Bella shrugged off the slight feeling that there was something strange and possibly dangerous about the scent.
Charlie had already left by the time she was clean, clothed and downstairs. He always went to work early, even though the most crime Forks usually had was a rebellious teenage deciding that vandalizing public property would be a good way to vent his/her anger.
Not wanting to stick around in the empty house after eating her miniscule breakfast, Bella headed to school early. The school may not be large, but, she reasoned with herself, if she was early on her first day she might be able to walk around and make sure she wouldn't have to keep her nose in a map the entire day.
Her truck roared to life as Bella glared at the classic mist that seemed to just be hanging in the air. She had never liked the fact that Forks made her feel like a sponge that was never properly wrung out and that did not change with her sudden move there.
Parking in front of a building labeled "Administration", Bella got out of her truck to figure out exactly what she was supposed to do. She wasn't quite sure whether her fellow classmates and the staff would shun her for being an outsider, or if people would be overly friendly.
Her question was quickly answered when she spoke her name to the receptionist. The woman's eyes lit up with interest before turning soft; it was painfully obvious that the circumstances that caused Bella to move here had been broadcasted throughout the town to the ears of all those interested.
After receiving her schedule, a map, and a special neon-colored sheet devised to prevent her from skipping classes her very first day of school, Bella drove her truck around to the other side of the school where the student parking was.
Using the twenty or so minutes that were left before classes began, Bella ran through her schedule and walked to path to her different classes. There were hardly any students there at the time, so the number of stares she received was down to a minimum. Even with an indifferent attitude, Bella didn't enjoy being the center of attention. She knew by the amount of attention she was already getting that it was going to be a long and head-achey kind of day.
Lost in her own thoughts, Bella only noticed that the campus had become much more populated when the warning bell went off. Hurrying off to her first class, English, Bella cursed herself for being caught off guard like that.
If her first class was a sign for how the rest would go, it did not bode well. All the books listed on the reading list she had already read – multiple times – and she also seemed to have managed to pick up an overly helpful male at the end of class.
Eric, a boy suffering from a mild case of acne and a heavy case of overfriendliness, seemed a little too eager for his own good. Bella had never really had any special interest in the males in her classes, just as they had no special interest in her, and that fact had not changed since her move to Forks.
Bella was careful to be diplomatically polite and answer questions, but she did not give any unnecessary details and tended to stick to one or two word answers. Undeterred, Eric continued to attack her with a barrage of questions until they reached her classroom building.
Cutting him off mid-question, Bella thanked Eric for his help and swiftly stepped into the classroom.
Bella had never really felt a connection to anyone her age, or anyone at all for that matter. It sometimes seemed like she just wasn't even on the same wavelength as some people. Bella was forcefully reminded of this fact when, in her third period class of trigonometry, – a subject she loathed – a chatty, energetic girl whose name had escaped Bella's mind as soon as the girl had said it, had commandeered herself to fill Bella in on all the juicy gossip and relationship issues she knew of.
Knowing the mouth with a body attached would not notice, Bella tuned her out as they were walking towards lunch. Bella's appetite had still yet to return since her mother's death, but for the sake of Charlie, she consistently ate, even if it was in small portions.
As Bella opened the door to enter the cafeteria, a strong gust of wind surged past her, throwing napkins on the floor. Five heads shot up, each belonging to an instantly tense and wary person. The Cullens watched the doors with narrowed eyes; they looked past Bella, ignoring her presence altogether, in search of the offender.
Four sets of eyes flashed to the black-haired pixie before returning to the door.
"You didn't see anything Alice?" The bronze-haired god asked.
Alice shook her head, slightly frantic at her "blindness" in the situation. It was odd, they all understood that. Though they could not locate any of their kind in the crowd of teenagers, the scent still remained.
Accepting the possibility that another vampire had simply come across their scents and was curious as to what exactly they were doing in a high school, the Cullens went back to acting bored, but in reality stayed on alert.
-x-
After getting food, Bella had been stuck between Jessica, who kept up the constant stream of gossip, and Eric, who decided to go with constant questions. Completely bored and out of her element, Bella turned more towards Jessica, the less interactive choice, and let her eyes wander around the cafeteria.
There wasn't much of a difference between this school and her previous school in Phoenix, she mused, well, except for the size…and the fact that Bella was apparently an interesting creature in this school. That last bit of change was not an improvement in Bella's mind. More than ever before in her life, Bella wished to just blend in with the background.
Her eyes finally fell on the Cullens, the most unusual yet most ignored group of people. They were easily the five most beautiful people she had ever seen. The fact that three people of said group were males did nothing to change her mental use of the word 'beautiful', because, well, they were.
Jessica must have been trying to ask Bella a question because she noticed that Bella's attention was elsewhere. Following her gave, Jessica grunted.
"The Cullens," she introduced. "They're all extremely attractive but have attitudes that rival their looks. They don't like to associate with others." She sounded slightly bitter to Bella and it was not long before she understood the reason why. "They're all together, you know. They live as Doctor and Mrs. Cullen's adoptive children under the same roof but Emmett Cullen," she pointed each god or goddess out as she mentioned them, "and Rosalie Hale are a couple. Alice Cullen and Jasper Hale are also together. Edward is the only one that's single, but apparently he doesn't date." Yup, definitely bitter. "I just think he's stuck up enough that he thinks none of the girls are good enough for him."
"Oh," was all Bella could manage without bursting out into hysterical laughter at the fact that Jessica was still so upset about being turned down. He is attractive, but get over it.
Bella was saved from having to hide her laughter by the sound of the bell. Waving goodbye to Jessica, she trudged to her next class: Biology.
After giving her neon sheet to the teacher, he waved in the vague direction of where Bella's seat should have been.
Turning around, she scanned the room for an empty seat. Making her way to the only empty seat, it wasn't until she had sat down and set her bag on the table that she noticed who she was sitting next to, the little piece of perfection named Edward Cullen.