Irony is a fickle thing. It pops up in the most unusal places imaginable. You're walking along, thinking everything is just dandy and then out of the blue, something ironic happens. Well, that was what happened to me in English class. I was sitting there, minding my own business and doing what I was told, when Mrs. Rofello had to announce the most ironic thing in the history of ever.
"Today we'll start our reading of Bram Stoker's Dracula!" She yelled excitedly. Some of the students perked up. Some of the students groaned. I just stared at her, wondering how she had created such a face-palm moment for me without even realizing it. She began passing out the books, talking about the basic storyline while I sat between two vampires. Two dangerous vampires, might I add. Two vampires who were going to be forced to read what was probably the most ridiculous work of fiction ever. Oh, the irony.
"Will we have to write a report on this?" Someone in the back of the class asked. After spending all year surrounded by these people, I still didn't know half their names. But I did recognize this speaker. Her name was Marcy Langrave, and she was the one who had so rudely dumped one of my best friends. She was not my favorite person at the moment. In fact, I might have actually preferred trying to start a conversation with Alec and Jane instead of talking to her.
Okay, maybe that was a little extreme, but you get my point.
"Yes, there will be a paper due when we finish the reading but it will count as half of your final for this semester." She said. On any other day, Mrs. Rofello was my favorite teacher. But today was different because not only was she going to make me read Dracula (which I had read several times, by the way) but she was staring at Alec like some love-struck teenager as she passed him his book. For God's sake she was a married woman! With two kids! Alec was so not that attractive. I kind of wanted to slap her for thinking about a boy half her age in the way she probably was. Honestly, it was kind of sick. Okay, it was really sick. But I hated thinking badly about a teacher who had been so nice to me all year. Mrs. Rofello didn't miss a beat as she mvoed to look at me and hand me my book and then to Jane to hand her her's. At least she wasn't stopping to stare. She was just casually admiring him in a very unappropriate way. Whatever.
"Mrs. Rofello," I asked, not bothering to raise my hand. That was another reason why I liked her. There was none of this raising hands nonsense. "What if we've already read the book?" I asked, hoping against hope that she'd let me just start right on the assignment. She looked like she was thinking really hard about something for a moment before she reached a decision.
"Well, I would still prefer for you to at least skim back over everything, to brush up on the information. You'll still be expected to answer the questions for homework but if you know the story really well...then I guess I wouldn't be able to tell if you read the book again or not." She shrugged, and I breathed a sigh of relief. Thank God.
"Mrs. Rofello I really don't think it's fair that she doesn't have to read it carefully if everyone else does." Marcy called out, and then my anger was redirected towards her. I turned in my seat to glare at her.
"What do you want her to do, follow me home and watch me read the chapters? If I know the answers, I know the answers. Sorry you didn't think reading was important enough to take up more of your free-time, or you might have read it on your own." I snapped at her, and she just glared back at me. She was one of the reasons I hated people my own age.
"Riddely." Mrs. Rofello called me lightly, and gave me a look that said, 'even though I think you're totally right, it's my job to yell at students, not yours.' I sighed again and slouched back into my seat. "Now, before we move on, we have to welcome two new students to class!" She called, and I almost groaned. While Mrs. Rofello was a great woman, she did have her faults. One of which was being too happy and friendly and thinking everyone else was the exact same. "Alec, Jane would you like to step to the front of the class?" She asked, her eyes bright with enthusiasm.
I watched in anticipation, as well as worry, as Alec and Jane practically glided to the front of the room. They really needed to work on blending in. I just hoped they wouldn't act too creepy or weird and tip people off that they weren't normal. Their contacts were in place, which only helped me relax slightly. Here were two vampires, who hadn't fed on human blood recently, standing in a classroom packed jam with a bunch of teenagers. There was a big possibility this could end badly.
"Now Alec, Jane would you like to introduce yourselves and tell us something about you?" Mrs. Rofello asked. For a senior english teacher, she had a bad habit of treating and talking to us like first graders. It was a little bit insulting at times, and I was hoping that Jane didn't develop any hard feelings towards her for it. Well, any more hard feelings. I was pretty sure Jane just hated everyone as a rule.
"I'm Jane and this is my twin brother Alec. We're juniors and just moved here from Italy. We're living with our dear friend Riddely, until she returns with us this summer to Italy for...more schooling." She finished, an evil note to her voice that I was pretty sure only I picked up on. I shivered. God, she was scary. And i still had that image of her eyes burned into my skull. It didn't matter that she was wearing contacts because that's still what I saw everytime I looked at her.
Quiet murmurs ran out through the classroom. They didn't question their age, although I was sure Alice had told me they were only 15 when they had been changed. Their beauty made their age hard to pin-point. Juniors wasn't so hard to believe. And Jane's voice was probably just orgasmic to all of the horny teenage boys in the room. I resisted the sudden urge to spill my lunch all over my desk. It was sickening, how easily they fell into her trap. I knew that had Alec spoken instead, every girl in the room would be staring wide eyed and drooling all over their desks like he was a piece of meat. I glanced around the room. Oh wait, they already are.
"Thank you! You can return to your seats!" Mrs. Rofello said exctiedly, and they returned to their seats with a grace and an ease that beauty pageant winners could only badly imitate. My hands curled into fists under the table. Why was everyone so blind? How could they not see that Jane and Alec were the farthest thing from sweet and innocent there was? How could they not feel their instincts telling them to stay as far away as possible, and avoid all eye contact whatsoever?
"Riddely," Someone behind me hissed into my ear. I knew who it was. It kind of made me want to shoot myself. I turned slightly in my seat as Mrs. Rofello started lecturing about some english nonsense. Alec and Jane had returned to their seats and I had no doubt they were listening in to this not so welcome conversation. I tried not to feel embarassed. Maybe I was egotistical. I mean, who said they were interested enough to listen in at all?
"What?" I hissed back, trying to make it clear through my tone that he was the last person I wanted to talk to at the moment. Save Jane and Alec. The boy annoyingly gaining my attention was James Quick, and he had been trying to get me to go out with him for...ever. Okay, that was not true, but it seemed I had been fighting off his advances for far longer than I should have. Couldn't the boy get a hint and take a hike?
"There's this party going on at Steve Gregor's house this Friday, and I was wondering if maybe you wanted to go with me." His voice almost had a whiny edge to it that put me constantly on the verge of smacking him across the face. I was suddenly very grateful For Tuck and Charlie.
"Sorry, but I already have plans. Tuck and Charlie invited me over to play video games with them." I replied, my voice trying to be sincerely sorry. I wasn't.
"Oh...that's okay. Maybe some other time?" He asked, his voice so hopeful I almost felt bad for him. Why couldn't he just like someone that could like him back?
"Sure." I said noncommitaly, and turned back to the front of the class, blushing furiously. It was certainly flattering to be pursued so consistently but it was also getting immensely tiring. And damn it, now I felt Alec staring at me again, and it was taking every fiber of my being to not turn to look at him, just to see if I was imagining it. But I wasn't; the weight of his eyes was enough proof to satisfy that annoying bubble of curiosity. And why was he staring? Why? Why couldn't he just make some random girl's dream come true and stare at them? I'm sure Marcy would have just loved to be stared at. It was her thing. But it was certainly not mine.
I felt my face heat more and leaned over in my seat, allowing my heavy curls to create a curtain around me. I kept my face down over my notes, only looking up to gather any new information that was written on the board. It seemed that the minutes seemed to drag, with only a few moments of relief when Alec's gaze would move to something else. But those moments were few and far between. I was starting to think that I was actually going to lose my mind when the bell finally rang, releasing me from that hell hole. I barely zipped up my bag before I zipped out the door into the hallway. Bella and Edward were waiting for me and I instantly tried to clear my head.
Think about something else. Anything...puppies. Dead, sad, puppies. With cute little eyes that are dead...kind of like how Alec's eyes are NO! Dead puppies, dead puppies, dead puppies and...crayons! Crayons! So many colors. Lots of beautiful colored crayons! Like blue, green red...red that is kind of the shade of his eyes when No! Damn it mind! Listen to me! I am in control here! I mentally yelled at myself, beginning to panic. I wish Edward would just leave so I didn't have to be so careful. It wasn't like I was thinking anything bad. It wasn't like I was internally confessing my undying love for Alec. God no. I was just hating the fact that him staring at me had made me blush so badly.
I certainly did not have any feelings for Alec. And no, that isn't denial, it was the facts. He had done nothing but make my life harder and I harbored a lot of resentment for him for that fact. I didn't secretly have an image in my head of him and me, being together forever. I wasn't stupid. I knew he was evil. And so I will once again stress the fact that at that point in time, I was not in any sort of denial. There was nothing to deny. I hated him, and was completely open with that fact.
But I was a girl after all. And having an attractive boy stare at you could have that effect but it was Alec! Mean, murdering, heartless, stone faced Alec! I shouldn't have thought him the least bit attractive. Yet there I was, thinking it anyways. I was utterly ashamed of myself for even thinking he had a nice face. It made me feel dirty and bad. I didn't want Edward thinking I had gone bonkers and started fantasizing about Alec, because that was certainly not the case. I just...for some reason I didn't want Edward to know that Alec had been staring at me all lunch. And then all class. It felt private and...weird. It wasn't something I wanted other peoply knowing. Not because I didn't want him to get in trouble. No, I would have revelled in the fact that Alec got punished. There was something about the stare though, that made me want to keep it to myself, because it made me uncomfortable, and I didn't like sharing that uncomfort with others. It's nearly impossible the explain the feeling, now that I am looking back on it. Just know, readers, that it was something I wanted for myself, if only so that I could have the chance to analyze it farthur, before my opinion was tainted by the opinion of others.
And there you go thinking about it. Cover blown. Mission failed. You are a failure. Just give up any hope for privacy now.
I risked a quick glance at Edward, but he wasn't looking at me. He was staring steadily at Alec, something akin to fury roaring in his eyes.
Oh dear God, just kill me now and get it over with. I can't bare this mental torture any longer.
Somehow, I made it through the rest of the day without exploding. I managed to keep Edward at bay (although I could tell he really wanted to talk to me), and also keep as far away from Alec as possible. Just the thought of sitting through another class with him staring at me like that...it was unsettling.
I tried to keep my thoughts trained on other things, but it was hard. It was like my own mind was rebelling against me, trying to make me as miserable as possible. I was almost starting to regret not letting the Volturi take me right then and there. I was almost regretting coming back home at all. Because the Volturi were making it a horrible experience, and I didn't want my last memories of Forks to be bad ones. So, yes, I almost regretted my decisions. But, I had told myself I was living without regrets. So, it remained an almost.
Humans are funny. Out of vampires, shifters, werewolves, and humans, humans are, without a doubt, the most flawed. Their design is in the most need of tweaking. But, they have moments of such severe righteousness that you would think they were the dominant species. They never take the credit for their bad decisions. No, they seem to always find a way to place the blame on something or someone else. Hell, they even created whole beings to place the blame on. Karma. Luck. They chalk up their flaws and destruction to something. It never fails. Because humans have a certain way of thinking that simply doesn't allow them to realize that they are weaker, less intelligent, and less cunning than other things on this Earth. And when, if ever, they finally admit they've done something wrong, they have an excuse for that as well. It's my personal favorite and I will use it now. It will explain my horrible, stupid mistake and somehow convince you that I am not a complete idiot because (wait for it) I'm only human. There it is. I'm only human so I screw up, make wrong choices and act dumb. Only deep down I know that that doesn't even begin to explain how I managed to find myself in such a fucked up situation as I did on Friday evening.
See, the day started off fantastically. I woke up and had breakfast in my kitchen without incident. I was feeling just amazing because it was the last day of school this week, which meant I could have two Jane and Alec free days after I suffered through classes. Well, everything was going swimmingly until I actually got to class. Then, Alec had to start up with his fun little staring game. Edward, surprisingly, hadn't said anything about it, for which I was grateful. He must have heard my internal, pathetic begs for privacy. But, I still hadn't quite been able to figure out why exactly he thought staring at me was so fun. It made it extremely hard to focus in class. But I just set my jaw and suffered through the day, because I was finally going to be able to get out of that God forsaken house and just hang out with my buddies, right? WRONG.
Apparently, I wasn't even allowed to go to my friends house without the company of a Volturi member. And just who do you think opted to go with me and Renessme? Yes, you guesed it, Alec. Then of course, the rest of the family had offered to come along to, and I had to put my foot down at that.
"Listen, as much as I appreciate the concern," Even though I really don't appreciate it at all. "Tuck invited me and Nessie over. Not me, and the rest of the Cullens okay?"
"Riddely we aren't going to let you be alone with him." Jasper said lowly, shooting daggers at Alec. I was partially surprised when Alec didn't crumple to the ground, writhing in agony. Then I remembered that not all vampires have the Jane Power Glare.
"Jasper, do you realize how little sense it makes for Aro to send them all the way out here, if they were just going to kill me? Really, please, think about it." I said. And they said humans were the dumb ones.
"But this is-"
"But nothing! I'm not going to be alone! Nessie will be there, and also three humans who have no idea that vampires even exist. Is Alec really going to out himself just to drain me? No. So can you just let me go before I punch one of you in the face for being so damn protective?" I asked, staring them down one by one with wide eyes. Rosalie hissed at my word choice, but I chose to ignore it. Edward and Jasper growled for a while about it, but eventually told me I didn't have to go if I didn't want to. I think Jasper was trying to nonchalantly actually plead with me to just stay at the house. (And here comes my line everyone.) But I was only human and having my family breathing down my neck all week was making me anxiousl. I kept glancing over my shoulder at every turn to see who was watching me. And someone was always watching me. It made me edgy and paranoid and I had to get out of there before I started hallucinating.
So, being human me, I told him stubbornly that I couldn't cancel my plans and that Alec would just have to tag along and not speak. Alec hadn't said anything to that (which was what I prefered anyways), just stared down Edward. The staring contest lasted only until the rest of the Cullen Clan started snapping at him to just leave already. I couldn't help but think that they had all gotten much more animalistic ever since the Volturi showed up.
So instead of just showing up at Tuck's house with just Renessme by my side, I showed up with Nessie, and Alec. But Tuck, as always, was a polite host and welcomed us all in. his house smelled like vanilla and paint and I breathed it in, letting it relax me. The totally normal atmosphere of the house helped me to stop glancing over my shoulder every two seconds to make sure Alec wasn't going to try and do something...unhuman. I think I apologized to Tuck's mom at least ten times for the inconvienience, but she just brushed it off. I loved that woman.
"So, anyways...me and Charlie had already started playing. Come on." Tuck said, focusing mainly on me. He wasn't all that comfortable around Nessie, and he certainly wasn't comfortable around Alec. I wanted to slap myself in the face. He was never going to invite me over to his house again.
"How far are you?" Nessie asked, as we entered into the carpeted T.V. room. The couch was squishy and lumpy and perfect. I absolutely loved Tuck's house. I would have just lived there if it had been culturally acceptable.
"Well we actually just got past this like, battle thing with these cannons. And the guy's uncle or something got killed."
"Alright, let me beat this." Nessie said, cracking her knuckles and snatching the controller rudely away from Charlie, who had only just become aware of their presence. I tried to sit and play with them, I really did. I tried to relax and let everything feel normal. It would work for a while but then I'd become aware once again of the eyes on me and I would stiffen back up. Nessie was completely lost in the game and so were Tuck and Charlie. I was glad they were too distracted to notice my odd behavior.
After an hour I got up and started pacing around the back of the couch, trying to calm my nerves. But I just couldn't sit still. I couldn't take being watched like that. So instead I walked into the kitchen to get a glass of water. The sound of the tap and the feeling of being alone calmed me a bit, and I downed the glass. I could do this. I could ignore Alec for today.
I closed my eyes and took a deep breath, smoothing back the hair that had escape from my ponytail.
"Nervous?" A voice came from behind me, and I jumped harshly, spinning around to face the intruder of my private calming moment.
Wow. I just can't catch a break can I? I thought as my eyes narrowed. Shoot me now.
A/N: Ohhhh cliff hanger! not really. im sure it's fairly obvious who it is but this chapter is too short. But it's only because if I add the next scene in it'll be too long. I needed to end it! Are you guys super excited for Chapter 8? There is going to be some actual Alec and Riddely interaction! YAY! Reviews are love. And i love reviewers.
