9. The "Black" Knight?
I was glad that it had stopped raining, since I had locked my raincoat in my locker – which was closest to Biology.
Luckily Mr. Banner hadn't showed up yet, so I calmly walked to my seat, while I turned a little miserable, since Edward wasn't going to be there.
Stupid heart...Why did you have to be so openhearted? I sighed.
I noticed that both Mike and Angela were looking at me. Mike looked... resentful. Angela looked rather surprised, awed even. I knew I was going to like her.
Finally Mr. Banner entered the class, carrying a large white bag. He put it down on his desk and started to explain about today's lesson. "Today we're going to do something quite special." his hand disappeared into the bag and reappeared with a little box. He opened it and took out a little card, a green object and something that looked like a miniature spoon.
I felt how horror spread through my body.
"The Red Cross is having a blood drive in Port Angeles next weekend, so I thought you should all know your blood type." He took the little card and started to tell how each blood type was found on it. Last year I had done this in Biology too. That was why I already knew my blood type: 0 negative. But that wasn't why I didn't want to do it again.
I was terrified of needles.
Mr. Banner started to pass around the boxes to each student in class. "And please don't stick your finger until I've dropped water on your cards," he told us. When he was back at his desk again, he started explaining what each of the individual pieces was. "Okay guys, I want you each to take the objects in front of you, and listen carefully to my instruction. This is an indicator card. I already explained to you how it works before, so I hoped you listened to that," he grabbed the card with the four squares marked on it. "The next in your box is a four-pronged applicator–" he held up the little white spoon-like thing. "And the last thing is a sterile micro-lancet." he held up a small piece of green plastic and spilt it open.
Even though I couldn't see the needle from this distance, I felt how my stomach twisted, and my body went rigid.
He started at Mike's table, dripping water on each of the squares of his indicator card. "I want you all, to carefully prick your finger with the lancet..." Mr. Banner grabbed Mike's hand and jabbed the spike into his middle finger. I felt how the room suddenly started to spin. Have you even eaten enough today? I thought, and clearly remembered the other times where I had actually fainted because I hadn't eaten enough.
"Put a small drop of blood on each of the prongs," Mr. Banner demonstrated by squeezing Mike's finger till the blood flowed. I felt my stomach twisting even more. "And then apply it to the card," he held up the dripping red card for us to see.
My body temperature started rising, and I rested my head on the table. It helped a little, since the table was nice and cold. As if my growing body temperature wasn't enough, I started hyperventilating – but the nausea wouldn't go away. I heard a ringing in my ears and knew that my face was pale-white.
"Michelle, are you all right?" Mr. Banner asked me, his head close to mine. He sounded a bit alarmed.
"I already know my blood type, sir," I said in a weak voice. I felt like vomiting any moment now.
"Are you feeling faint?"
"Yes," I muttered. "I think I'd like to go out for a while." I didn't dare to raise my head from the table.
Mr. Banner was about to ask something, but then I heard Mike say, "I'll follow her to the nurse."
Great, I sarcastically thought. The loyal Golden Retriever at your service.
As Mike came closer to me, I felt how the ringing in my ears got louder.
"Can you walk?" Mr. Banner asked me, just before Mike was beside me.
"Yes," I whispered. Just let me get out of this room. I'll crawl.
Mike was very eager to put his hand around my waist and pulled my arm over his shoulder. I heavily leaned against him as we walked out of the building and the further we walked away from building 4, the more blurry and black my surroundings got.
"Could you put your hand in your pocket?" I asked him, as I felt I was very close to fainting. He did as I told him, and I felt my surroundings get clearer. But as we were at the edge of the cafeteria I knew I would be fainting if I didn't lie down – and that now! Unless I wanted Mike to drag my unconscious body to the nurse.
If I hadn't been close to fainting, I would have grimaced. Like every girl in the world I thought I weighed a little too much – even though I actually didn't.
"Put me down, now!" I felt how everything around me began to fade away, and my vision was blocked with tiny black dots. Mike let me go of me and I fell on my knees. I didn't care if there was asphalt underneath me – all I wanted was to lie down.
I crawled towards the closest wall and lay down. I breathed in heavily through my nose and held my eyes closed. I didn't want to look at Mike's wondering face, and I didn't want him to follow me to the nurse. Fresh air always helped against dizziness. And I didn't want to pollute my body with unnecessary medicine all the time.
"Wow, Michelle you're green," Mike's nervous voice told me. At least I hadn't fainted yet.
"Michelle?" this wasn't Mike's voice that sounded close. Why did he suddenly have to show up? I didn't want to answer him, though. I was too terrified of throwing up.
"What's wrong with her?" Edward's voice was full of concern. I almost groaned. Why could he never leave me alone?
"I don't know what happened. She turned all pale after the first ones had pricked their fingers. She didn't even do it herself," Mike sounded stressed, yet protective.
Sigh. Your faithful puppy.
"Michelle?" Edward's voice was very close now. "Are you all right?"
"No," I groaned and squeezed my eyes even more shut. "Just go away!" I sounded stubborn – and a little sick – to myself.
Edward laughed and I felt how the floor disappeared from underneath me.
"Hey! Put me down!" My eyes flew up in shock and I noticed that Edward held me in his arms, carefully holding me away from his body. He didn't seem to have trouble carrying me – like my hundred pounds only were ten pounds. And I hated being carried around. I was afraid of heights – even though there wasn't really far to the ground. But I was afraid that he would drop me, and I would hit my butt. So I closed my eyes, hoping it would make the fear of falling – and vomiting – go away.
"Hey! I was supposed to take her to the nurse!" Mike's protest was far behind us.
"So you faint at the sight of blood?" Edward seemed entertained by the thought.
"No, I'm a diabetic," I hoped the sarcasm was clear in my weak voice.
Edward laughed, but ignored my answer. "And not even your own blood," he laughed again.
What the heck is so damn funny about fainting at the sight of blood?
I breathed in heavily through my nose and squeezed my eyes even more shut. I hoped this would help me not fainting, or vomit all over him for that sake. I clamped my lips together. The trip to the nurse was pretty...rocking.
"Oh my!" I suddenly heard a female gasp.
I opened my eyes, and found myself in the front office. Edward had somehow managed to get inside with me in his arms.
"She fainted in Biology," Edward explained to Miss Cope, the receptionist. She hurried past the front counter to hold the nurse's door open for us. The grandmotherly nurse looked up from a novel, astonished, as Edward placed me gently on the crackly paper that covered the brown vinyl mattress on the one cot. He then moved to stand against the wall as far across the little room as possible. His eyes were exited and bright. It was like watching the eyes of a little child.
"She's just a little faint," he reassured the startled nurse. "They're blood typing in Biology.
"There's always one," the nurse nodded understanding.
I closed my eyes and heard Edward muffle a snicker. I immediately felt better – it was just to breath heavily in and out. And for that matter, to lay still.
The nurse disappeared for a moment, and came back with a cold compress – probably for my head. But I felt much better, so I knew I wouldn't have use of it.
"Now dear, it's going to be much better," she friendly and caring assured me.
I quickly got up and sat down on the edge of the bed. "I'm feeling much better now, thank you¸" my voice was still a little weak, so I cleared my throat.
The nurse looked like she wanted to push me back down again, but she didn't. She walked out again, sighing. She probably was going out for another cold compress if more 'injured' arrived.
I lay back down again, ignoring the cold compress.
"Feeling better?" Edward sounded like he was trying not to laugh.
"Yes," I sincerely answered, yet I felt my irritation rise. What was it that was so funny?
He suddenly turned all serious, "You really scared me back there. I thought Newton was dragging your dead body off to bury it in the woods. I was concerned that I might have to avenge your murder." His tone made it sound like he was confessing a humiliating weakness.
As if Mike would ever kill me. I'm probably going to kill him first because of his Golden Retriever-ness.
Edward snickered and I turned to look annoyed at him. "You know, I've seen corpses with better color than you," his teasing tone made me look away and laugh halfheartedly.
"Ha ha," I doubted that. I had seen my dead grandfather, and I had never been as pale as him. But Edward was... Hmm... "How did you actually find me? I thought you were ditching," I was mostly curious to know what he had done. Had he been out saving the world?
"I was sitting in my car, listening to a CD."
Dang. That wasn't interesting at all.
I felt that the ringing in my ears was gone, and sat up at the edge of the mattress again. My hair started to stick to my head, but I didn't care how it looked right now. I didn't actually have any problems with my hair, when it blew into my eyes and such stuff. I just couldn't take when half of it blocked my right eye. I sighed.
That's the bad part of having a side parting hairstyle...
I suddenly heard the front office door open, and the receptionist say, "We have another one."
Edward sighed. "I think you should go outside now Michelle."
I looked bewildered at him, but suddenly felt the room spin again, as Mike came in with a guy named Lee Stephens – another boy from our Biology class.
"Trust me – Go." I followed Edward out of the infirmary. The nurse quickly walked past us. "You actually listened to me," Edward was clearly stunned by this.
I turned around to look at him, and found him looking curiously at me. "I could feel the blood," Or...I didn't know how else I could explain it. "Almost smell it," I lied. How was I supposed to tell him that I had problems with my blood sugar if I didn't eat? I wasn't even a diabetic! Okay, he was my friend, but he had cheated me before. Then I could cheat him too – that would at least make us even.
"People can't smell blood," he looked at me, almost as if he was examining me for something.
"I normally can't either. But it smelled...rusty." Or, that was what I had heard it did. Edward looked at me with an unfathomable expression.
I blushed. "What?"
"It's nothing," his voice seemed indifferent, but his face still looked a little curious.
He can't possibly be more curious than me, I thought and Edward turned his head away. Smiling?
I heard the door to the infirmary open, and saw an angry Mike walk towards us. Doggy has temper, I sarcastically thought, and felt the urge to grimace. Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed Edward went to stand against the empty counter, staring off into space.
"You look better," Mike didn't sound too happy. Somehow I liked it. At least he wasn't annoying anymore.
"Yes," I simply answered. ''Can't you just walk away again?''I had the strangest urge to add, but I didn't. There was no need to torture Mike more that necessary. Even though I enjoyed the thought more than I should.
"Aren't you going back to class?" he asked me, still angry.
My eyes widened, "Are you crazy? I'd just have to turn around right away!"
"Yeah, I guess..." he didn't look too happy about that thought. Suddenly I wished to make him happy again. Exactly like a puppy.
We stood a little in silence before Mike said something again. Out of the corner of my eyes I noticed Edward make a face.
What is wrong with that guy?
"Are you coming to the beach on Saturday? Nicole told me that she could drive you, if it is," his voice had a hard edge to it. I wasn't sure if he even noticed it himself, but I was sure he didn't mean it as an open invitation.
I wanted to say no, but I knew that would disappoint Nicole. She hated whenever I was alone in the house. Somehow she felt responsible for not being that much together with me, showing me the 'American culture'. I almost sighed.
"Okay, I'll come. Nicole's been bugging me about it anyway. And she's told me that the beaches here were supposed to be extremely beautiful." Mike looked happier as I said this. It wasn't so hard to make him happy.
"We meet at my dad's store at ten," he sounded strict again. His thoughts are probably, "Cullen's not invited!"I sarcastically imitated in my mind.
"Okay," the sarcasm should have been clear in my voice, but my thoughts and my mouth were sometimes two different organisms. That was probably why I was so good at lying and acting.
"I'll see you in Gym," he smiled at me and I smiled back, as he walked out of the office and towards Biology again.
When he was gone I couldn't help but to groan. "Gym," I shook my head. I didn't have the strength for that right now, I felt extremely exhausted. The only thing I needed right now was something to eat, or I would surely faint in Gym. I blushed at the thought. It wasn't the prettiest vision – embarrassing, really. Then you're really going to be the damsel in distress. I blushed even more.
"I can take care of that," Edward's voice was only a whisper at my right ear. His cold breath tickled my ear – my concentration started failing... "Just sit down and look pale," he muttered. That wasn't really a challenge – not when you were superior at acting.
I went over to one of the creaky folding chairs and rested my head against the wall with my eyes closed. Now Edward would see me in action. I had lied myself sick many times before in Denmark, but that wasn't something I necessarily wanted Edward to know. I just wanted him to notice my great acting skills.
Why do you even want him to notice that? But I pushed the thought away. There's no time for failure now.
"Miss Cope?" Edward asked the receptionist – whose return I hadn't noticed. His voice was like melting honey, and I wondered what his eyes would be like. That made my heart beat a little faster – even though it shouldn't. How did he do that?
"Yes Edward?" the receptionist answered, slightly dazzled.
"Michelle isn't feeling too well for Gym next hour. Actually I was thinking I should take her home now. I was wondering if you could excuse her from class?" his voice was like silk and honey at the same time, and my mind suddenly imagined him talking like that to me...
I quickly returned to my role and groaned a little, carefully not overdoing it. No need to make Miss Cope suspicious.
"Do you need to be excused too, Edward?" her voice fluttered. He shouldn't dazzle people like that. Did he even know that he did it?
"No, I have Mrs. Goff. She won't mind."
"Okay, it's all taken care of. You feel better Michelle," I weakly smiled at Miss Cope. She looked at me with a worried expression.
You're fantastic Michelle, my mental voice sounded proud.
"Can you walk, or do you want me to carry you again?" Edward had turned around and lightly grimaced.
Was he trying to be funny? I didn't want to be carried again – I would rather skip another ride if necessary. "I'll walk."
When I got up from the chair, I suddenly felt how the black dots reappeared in front of my eyes, and my legs started shaking a bit. Luckily it passed, and I walked with firm steps out of the office. I was going to get my stuff from my locker, before I would start a one-hour walk towards Nicole's. There's no need to make her ditch to drive me home.
I felt how the rain slowly drenched my sweater, but I didn't walk any faster – instead I stopped and lifted my head up to the sky. My head was still sweaty, and there wasn't a faucet in sight, so the rain was the only wet thing I could use to clean my sweaty face with at the moment.
Edward suddenly stood beside me as I lowered my head again. I felt how it was beginning to rain a little harder now. If I didn't get to my raincoat soon, I would probably catch a cold.
I quickly, but shyly, waved at him before I started walking towards building four. But I didn't get far, before I was stopped by a hand grasping my sweater.
"Where do you think you're going?" Edward sounded a bit offended.
"I'm going to get my things in my locker. I can't go home without them," even to myself I sounded confused. And I can't go home without a raincoat. Then I'll really get soaking wet and probably catch a cold.
He let go of me, and I walked towards my locker again. Edward quietly followed. When I finally had my things, was wearing my raincoat and standing outside at the parking lot again, I started to walk in the direction of Nicole's house. But I didn't get very far, before I was pulled backwards once again.
"Where do you think you're going now?" Edward sounded outraged again. He started dragging me after him.
"Let go! I'm going home!" He was so stubborn!
"You can't walk home without catching a cold. Besides, I promised to bring you home safely. Or didn't you hear that?" he sounded both teasing, serious and worried at the same time.
Was he even a teenager?
"There is nothing wrong with my ears!" I didn't like that he was being like that towards me. He was almost like my overly protective mother! "And I'm perfectly capable of walking home myself!"
He let go of me by his car, and got in the driver's side. I calculated my chances of running from him, but realized they weren't too good. Boys usually ran faster than girls, and I wasn't a very fast runner. Says the girl with a grandfather who has won 60 mile marathons... Sigh.
"I'll just drag you back," he threatened. Dang! He had discovered my plan.
"This is utterly unnecessary!" I almost laughed at my own words. They didn't sound at all like they belonged into the 21st century.
"Just get in Michelle."
I stubbornly stood in front of the car. The rain increased and I remembered how much I hated getting wet. I angrily sat down on the passenger seat, and felt how my wet hair was dripping on the leather seat.
Stupid rain, I surly thought.
Edward turned on the heat and turned down the music playing in the background. I looked out the window while we were driving, and I didn't really see anything because of the rain. I was also planning on giving Edward the silent treatment, when the music suddenly seemed familiar to me. I began to wonder where I could have heard it before.
"What's actually the name of this piece?" I asked him. I hated unsolved mysteries – one like Edward. I was an extremely curious person.
"It's Debussy––"
"Clair de Lune?" I cut him off. I knew that I'd heard it before. My dad had sometimes played it, so I had it on my iPod – but only because of my dad.
"Yes. Do you know it?" he looked as surprised as I felt. We actually had something in common. Wow.
"Only superficial. My dad's been playing it sometimes, so I remember the melody," suddenly the thoughts started flowing to me: Edward liked classical music, behaved old-fashioned and even talked like that sometimes. How old was he actually? He could impossibly be over 20, yet he behaved like that. He was so...old-fashioned.
Just like me.
"How old are you Michelle?" I looked surprised at him. Could he read my mind or something?
"I'm sixteen," No need to tell him when my birthday was.
"You don't seem sixteen."
I suddenly noticed that we had stopped, and were parked right in front of Nicole's house. Wow. That was fast.
I couldn't help but to laugh at Edward's statement. He had sounded almost reproachful.
"What?" Edward looked both curious and confused. It made me laugh even harder. Did he know how funny he looked right then?
"You're the first to ever tell me that. People have always guessed me younger than I am," I paused to look at Edward. He looked really interested in what I said. "But I've always told myself that I have the looks of a teenager and the brains of an adult. My dad seems to agree with me on that." to myself I sounded very egocentric, and that made me blush. That was yet another bad quality of mine. I was really selfish, and I hated it. I longed to be selfless.
Edward just laughed.
"What's so funny?" he stopped laughing, and just shook his head. Instead, I decided to ask him something as well. It was him who was the mystery after all – not me. "You don't seem much like a High School student either."
He made a face and changed the subject. "What are your parents like?" He looked out the windshield as he asked me. It was like he was trying to compose his features – or else it was only me imagining things.
"My mom looks like me, only she's much prettier," he looked at me and raised his eyebrows at that. "She at least looks like a lady," I couldn't help but to sigh at that. Edward only seemed amused. "Even though my brain seems older, I still look like a little girl," I could only shake my head at that. "Well, my mom has darker hair than mine, and longer," I continued. "She can be a bit overprotective some times, but I know she means the best with it. She's an amazing cook. And she's one of my best friends," I stopped and couldn't control the emotions that floated through me right then. How I really missed her – even her way of being overprotective sometimes.
Edward was still looking curiously at me, so I figured I had to continue. "My dad's older that my mother – about twenty years. He's extremely smart and kind," I smiled at that. "He's very proud that both my brother and I have his eyes. And he absolutely loves to talk science and philosophy. But he's very… weak of his age," I didn't want to mention that he also had cancer. It wasn't something I shared with just anybody.
I shortly glanced at Edward again. His eyes were smoldering. I felt my cheeks turn hot, and looked at my hands, while my heartbeat quickened.
"What about your brother?" his voice was curious. It was like I couldn't tell him enough about me. And it made me wonder why he never told me about himself.
I laughed again. "My brother is two and a half years younger than me, sweet in the extreme but a little childish sometimes. And he's taller than me." That fact made me grimace. I was the older sister and my younger brother was already taller than me. It was pretty annoying. "But he's still one of my best friends," and that was true. We had often talked about stuff we couldn't talk to our friends about – like how annoying or father could be sometimes.
We sat a while without saying anything, before I remembered about the trip to the Indian reservation. I hesitated for a long time before I said anything. I knew what I was about to do was stupid, but my promise was half broken already. Besides, I could ask him as a friend, right?
"So, are you going this Saturday? To the beach, I mean," I hoped that I didn't sound too hopeful.
Edward's facial expression changed so fast, I almost didn't catch it. "I don't think I was invited," he probably remembered Mike's reaction in the office.
I sighed, and got a bit shocked by this. It made me sound interested – in non-friend-like terms. The corner of Edward's mouth turned into a smile, but I pretended like I hadn't noticed it.
This was a bad idea! the voice in my mind screamed at me. But my mouth ignored it, "I just invited you." Why did Edward Cullen have to be so damn interesting?
"What beach are you all going to, exactly?" he looked expressionless out of the windshield.
"The name was something like 'La Push'," I wasn't sure if I pronounced it right.
Edward shortly looked annoyed, but then he was his playful self again. "Let's you and I not push poor Mike too far. We wouldn't want him to snap," he smiled his irresistible crooked smile.
It felt like my heart did a somersault. I liked the thought of "you and I" more than I should. Much more than I should.
We again sat in silence, and I felt very awkward for not saying anything. Smalltalk had never been my strong side. "Um... aren't you going to tell me about your family?" I insecurely managed to say. Why did I have to be extremely bad at starting conversations?
"What do you want to know?" his face seemed careless but his eyes looked cautious. Was there something he didn't want me to know?
"Dr. Cullen and his wife adopted you?
"Yes."
I thought about what else I could ask about. "What actually happened to your parents?"
"They died many years ago," his tone was matter-of-fact.
"I'm sorry," I had made him remember something painful. What a friend I was.
"But that was a long time ago. I don't really remember them that clearly. Carlisle and Esme have been my parents for a very long time now," he sounded really proud when he spoke of his foster parents.
"You really love them, don't you?" he looked so happy when he spoke of them. It couldn't be different.
"I couldn't imagine two kinder people on earth," he smiled, and sounded proud again.
"What about your siblings?"
He shortly glanced at the clock at the dashboard, before he said anything again. "My siblings are going to be very angry with me, if they have to wait for me in the rain."
"Oh! I'm so sorry. I'm keeping you here," my body didn't move an inch, even though I wanted it too.
"That's okay."
"I guess I'll see you tomorrow," I friendly said and was about to open the passenger door.
"I wouldn't be so sure about that," I instantly froze and slowly turned around to face him again.
"Why?" my voice came out sadder than I had intended. Edward shortly smiled, but then turned serious.
"Emmet and I are starting the weekend early," Right. The Cullen's were known for their many camping trips.
"What are you going to do?" I acted curious, and hoped that Edward didn't see through me. Actually I didn't want to know, all I wanted to do was sulk. Which is stupid! my mind screamed at me, for the millionth time today, I guessed.
"We're going to be hiking in the Goat Rocks Wilderness, just south of Rainier," he sounded a little annoyed – as if he regretted making plans. Did he want to be with me instead? My intuition around boys was usually really bad – so I thought that couldn't be the case.
"Have fun there," I sounded overly enthusiastic, and Edward noticed. The corners of his mouth twitched upwards.
I got out of the car and started moving towards the house, when I heard Edward calling again.
"Michelle!" I turned around. "Could you do me a favor this weekend?" his eyes were like butter. Even through the rain I could see it. And, like the idiot I was, I gave him what he wanted.
"Okay," I answered him, dazzled.
"Would you try not to fall into the ocean or down a cliff?" his eyes were intense.
I felt how my facial expression turned hard and I snorted. As if I was going to fall into the ocean or down a cliff. I was absolutely not clumsy.
"It's just because you seem like a magnet for accidents," he was playful again.
"I'll see what I can do," my voice was as cold as I felt. I was definitely not a magnet for accidents – okay, Tyler's van had moved towards me like I had been a magnet, but that didn't mean it would happen again. I was the luckiest person in the world.
Who would wish she could be unlucky just once in a while, my mind sadly thought.
Even through the rain I noticed Edward's smile in the side mirror. I turned towards the house and heard his car drive away. Then I walked towards the front door, grabbed the key – which was lying in a pot plant – and unlocked the door. I put the key back and went inside. I took off my raincoat and my shoes, left my bag on the floor and walked into the kitchen to grab the phone and call Nicole. School would be over by now, and I wanted her to know that I was home already.
The story behind that, I didn't need to tell her. At least not right now.