I do not own Twilight or its characters. Stephenie Meyer does.
April and Gabby, thank you for pre-reading, and Fran, thank you for editing. Any mistakes left are my own.
Ch. 13
"Bella, what's that on your arm?" Dad placed his coffee mug down roughly, so the hot liquid splashed.
"Battle scar from playing dodgeball in gym class." I turned my arm to look at the deep purple bruise.
"What were you guys using? Bowling balls?" He reached out to inspect the damage himself.
"No, Mike Newton decided to pile drive one into me as payback for accidentally hitting him with a volleyball last week." I held back the information that the mark on my stomach was much bigger.
"I don't like this at all. I have half-a-mind to call the school, ream out Coach Clapp and then have you pulled out of the class; I knew it was a bad idea." He fumed.
"In all fairness, I think everyone winds up with a bruise or two playing dodge ball. Coach immediately sent me to the nurse's office. Well, he did after Emmett blurted out that I had cancer when yelling at Mike for hitting me so hard," I explained.
Dad's anger subsided, and he cringed. "That boy has a big mouth, but he was right. I take it the whole school now knows."
"Probably, but I'll find out in about an hour." I sighed as I swirled my spoon in the milk around my cereal.
"I'm sorry, Bells. Do you want to skip today?" he offered.
I couldn't help but smile. "Wouldn't that be hypercritical, allowing me to skip school when I'm not really sick."
"I'm the chief of police, not a truant officer. Besides, who would question me?" He winked.
"Can I take a rain check? It's nothing I've haven't been through before—though it was nice while it lasted." I put on a brave face.
"Okay, you might want to get a move on then. Does Newton still drive a graySuburban, license plate number MWN-692?" He stood and brought his plate to the sink.
"I have no idea. Do you have everyone's license plate in town memorized? Wait, why do you want to know?" I asked.
"No reason. Have a good day, I'll see you later." He smiled innocently as he headed for the door.
I washed the dishes in the sink, trying to decide whether or not to feel bad that my dad was now gunning for Mike. I winced as I turned my waist, any sympathy I had for him left my mind.
RR
After arriving at school, I remained in my truck staring up at the building with trepidation. I knew I led Dad to believe I could handle this but I was still dreading it. The first few days will be the worse, then hopefully everyone will find something new to talk about.
A knock on the window made me jump, and I turned to see Edward standing outside my door. I gave him a small smile before pushing it open.
"Hey, morning," I greeted him.
"Good morning. Are you okay? You seemed to be thinking awfully hard in there," he asked and adjusted his bookbag strap.
"I'm fine. I have a feeling it will be a very long day," I commented as we slowly headed to the entrance.
"Maybe it won't be as bad as you think," he suggested.
I snorted. "Somehow I doubt it." I could already see students whispering as soon as they spotted me, and we hadn't even entered the school yet.
Edward stayed by my side until I got to English class. When I was finished settling myself in my seat, Lauren and Jessica came into the room. Lauren stopped in her tracks and pulled on Jessica's elbow as Jessica looked back at her with a confused look. Lauren whispered something in her ear. Jessica responded with a shrug, and then they both moved their desks a foot away from mine.
Before I could even contemplate it, Alice walked in and hurried over to me. She sat and turned; her face etched with worry.
"Let me guess, you heard it from Kim, who heard it from Lucy, who got it from Alec, who was told by Jane that Maria told her what happened in gym class," I said sarcastically, trying to put a humorous edge to it.
Her lips twitched slightly. "Actually, I heard it one summer at band camp."
She made me laugh, and a few students looked over at us in curiosity before the whispering started once more. I sighed and shook my head as I overheard 'she's the one with cancer.'
"So in all seriousness, did Emmett really announce out loud in class that you had cancer?" she asked quietly.
"Yes. He yelled at Mike for hitting me so hard with the ball when I was sick." I nodded.
"Idiot," she mumbled as her eyes widened. "You don't think he…" She stopped when she noticed Jessica and Lauren were leaning closer to hear.
"...Will lead us to the state championship? I hear there's a good chance this year," I lied.
I opened my notebook and wrote her a quick note, guessing what she was going to ask.
If you're worried that he may squeal your secret, then talk to him and make sure he knows to keep it to himself. I don't think he purposely announced my cancer to hurt me. I never told him not to say anything.
She read it over and slipped it into her bag just as Mr. Mason started class.
"Class, please quiet down and open your books to Hamlet, act one, scene four. Do we have any volunteers to read?" He sat on the edge of his desk.
Lauren's hand shot up in the air first. He gave her a look of surprise but nodded pleasantly.
"Okay, Lauren, why not. If men could play the female characters in Shakespeare's time, I see no reason why a female couldn't be the male role in today's world."
"No, no, not that. I don't want to be some deranged prince. I just want to know why Bella's allowed in here. Shouldn't she be quarantined or something, so the rest of us don't get sick?" She shot me a glare over her shoulder.
I felt my cheeks burn in embarrassment as nearly everyone was now looking at me. It wouldn't be the first time someone tried to avoid me, thinking it would protect them from getting cancer, but Lauren had certainly raised the bar. However, I didn't expect Mr. Mason's response either.
He slammed his textbook shut and dropped it on the table next to him. "Miss Mallory, you owe Miss Swan an apology right now."
"No. I won't apologize for being concerned about my own health. Wait until my daddy hears about this," she hissed, folding her arms in front of her.
Mr. Mason didn't look threatened at all. "You're certainly right about one thing, Miss Mallory—your father will hear about this."
She opened her mouth, and he held up his hand to stop her. "Not another word or it will be detention."
Mr. Mason looked around the room and shook his head in disgust. "I heard the gossip around the halls since yesterday, and I have to say, I'm appalled at the lack of compassion some of you have for a fellow student. First off, you can't catch cancer like the flu."
He focused on me with a sympathetic look. "Bella, would you mind sharing what form of cancer you have?'
I cleared my throat and tried to ignore that everyone was still looking at me. "Acute lymphoblastic leukemia."
"How long have you been in remission?" he asked kindly.
"Four years." I bit my lip.
"Congratulations for winning your fight and I wish you the best," he said sincerely.
He turned back to the rest of class. "It seems the lack of knowledge is reflecting some of your perceptions. Therefore, I have an assignment for everyone; I want you to research acute lymphoblastic leukemia, the history, facts, and statistics about the disease and the treatments. Your reports should be three pages long, double spaced, with a bibliography of at least two sources. And no, asking Miss Swan isn't an option. You will all leave her alone. Papers are due a week from today."
"This is all your fault," Lauren spat at me.
"No, Lauren, this is all on you," Ben, a boy in the class, retorted.
"Ben is right. Bella hasn't done anything, and the way people in the school are treating her is horrible." His girlfriend, Angela, shook her head sadly.
"Miss Mallory…"
"This paper isn't fair. It has nothing to do with Hamlet, and she already knows all about it; she has an unfair advantage," Lauren whined as Jessica whispered at her to shut up.
"This is an English class, and writing essays on topics of my choosing is in your syllabus. You have earned yourself two days of detention, Miss Mallory, and two additional pages on the essay," Mr. Mason informed her.
"But. I'm. A. Cheerleader," she declared as if it excused her.
"And, I'm. The. Teacher, and I won't be disrespected in my classroom. To the Principal's office. Go." He pointed to the door.
She grabbed her stuff and left in a huff, muttering under her breath. Mr. Mason picked up the phone, and for a minute, talked in a low voice over the line, before turning back to us.
"Does anyone else have a problem with the assignment?" he asked.
Everyone shook their heads silently and still seemed to be stunned by what just happened. I slowly raised my hand, and he lifted an eyebrow.
"Sir, if it would be all right, could I chose another form of cancer to write about since some think I have an unfair advantage?" I asked.
He thought about it then nodded in agreement. "That would be fine, how about Hodkin's lymphoma?"
"Yes, sir," I agreed.
"If we can finally move on, Hamlet, act one, scene four. Ben, please take Hamlet's part. Austin, you take Horatio, and…Jared, if you would Marcellus." Mr. Mason opened his book.
RR
The next few classes were somewhat better until Calculus. I was so distracted from everything going on that I failed the pop quiz. Mr. Varner pulled me aside after class to tell me to get my act together, because if I was well enough to be in school, then I didn't have any excuses for slacking.
I had hoped that if I had any luck, the gossip would've died down by lunch; however, luck wasn't on my side. In fact, the entire cafeteria became dead silent. I took a half-step backward to leave when I bumped into someone.
"It's not you, it's me," Jasper said. "I get this all the time."
"Did you just give me a classic breakup line," I retorted with a snicker. "Besides, I think it really is me today—you're welcome for the day off."
"Okay, then it is you." He shrugged. "But seriously, ignore the fucking losers."
"I keep trying." If it weren't for Alice and Edward, I would eat outside in my car, but then I would be a hypocrite.
Jasper flipped the gawkers off with both hands. "Get some lives of your own!" he shouted.
"Thanks." I was relieved when they all turned back to their own conversations and stopped staring at me.
"Sure, sure." He headed to the table in the back where Alice and Edward were already sitting.
"Should I even bother to ask how your day is going?" Edward asked cautiously, pulling out the chair next to him for me.
"I've had better, but there have been worse too. I bombed my Calc quiz, and I could've done without Mr. Varner's lecture. I don't suppose you'd mind helping me study. I can't figure out where I went wrong on the quiz," I asked.
"Sure, we can work on it after we finish the bridge if that's okay for you," he agreed.
"Thank you."
"You should've just told Varner to shove it. The man is a prick." Jasper threw in his two cents.
"Yeah, because that would've ended well." Alice giggled.
Loud laughter caused us to turn our heads to the football table. Most of them were joking around, and Tyler seemed to be in the center of it. I rolled my eyes and observed Emmett, who was sitting on the end looking pensive and not eating. As if he felt my stare, he met my gaze for a moment before lowering his eyes and grimacing.
"Want me to pay Newton back for you?" Jasper broke into my thoughts.
"The guy deserves it. He didn't have to wail on her that hard with the balls. Look at her arm." Edward pointed to my bruise, and Jasper's eyes narrowed dangerously. "I can only imagine she has another one on her stomach with how the ball knocked her off her feet."
"Want me to hold him back as you take a couple of swings?" Jasper asked him.
Edward flinched slightly but seemed to be thinking about it.
"Violence never solves anything," Alice said.
"I agree with Alice. As sweet as it is that you both want to help, there is no need for either of you getting into trouble on my behalf. Besides, I think my father may have something up his sleeve." I placed my hand on Edward's arm, and he relaxed under my touch.
"Well, by all means…if the chief is on the case," Jasper said cryptically.
"Emmett is headed this way," Alice whispered.
I looked up to see he was indeed approaching our table, sans tray. He stopped in front of us and looked nervous. Edward's posture tensed and he slipped his hands underneath the table clenching his fists.
"Can I join you guys for a moment?" Emmett asked.
No one answered him right away. From the glance at their faces, he wasn't welcome.
"What is it, Emmett?" I asked after a beat of silence.
He turned the chair around and sat backward. "I wanted to apologize for yelling out what I did yesterday. I didn't mean to out you like that. I just got so mad at Newton that I blew my top."
"I know you didn't, Emmett. It's okay." I accepted his apology.
"It's not okay," Edward snarled. "People are talking about her all over school as if she's a leper."
Emmett's eyes shot to him, and he looked filled with regret. "I know, and I heard what Lara did in class this morning. I never meant for anything like this to happen. If anyone deserves to be ostracized right now, it's Newton. I tried to stop him but fucked up. Coach has him running wind sprints at lunchtime detention for the rest of the week for his unnecessary roughness."
"Thank you for trying to help me, Emmett. I know you tried to deflect as many balls as you could," I said softly as Edward scowled beside me but kept his mouth shut.
"You're welcome, I didn't want to see you get hurt." Emmett looked at my arm and frowned.
"Emmett, please don't say anything about my dad moving without me. I really can't have that getting out, either." Alice seized the opportunity to tell him.
He glanced and noddedquickly. "Sure thing, Ali Cat."
"Ali Cat? Wow, no one has called me that in years." Alice smiled slightly.
"My bad?" Emmett looked apologetic.
"No, it's okay, I don't mind it." Alice shrugged.
"Where's Rosie? I haven't seen your sister today?" Emmett glanced at her usual table.
"Mom took Posey to Seattle to find a dress for Homecoming." Jasper rolled his eyes, looking bored.
"Isn't that like a month away?" Alice asked.
"Hell if I know." Jasper shrugged. "I need a smoke. Later."
"I should get back before someone eats my lunch. If there's anything, I can do, just let me know." Emmett stood and headed back to his table.
"So what, you're friends with Emmett now?" Edward grumbled.
I eyed him cautiously. "No, I wouldn't call us friends, but he does appear to be trying to make amends."
"Whatever." Edward stared out the windows.
Alice raised an eyebrow to ask 'what's with him?.' I shook my head because I didn't think it was my story to share. And I couldn't really blame Edward for his resentment.
A/N:
Do you think Emmett will ever get Lauren's name right? What Lauren did was wrong and was mostly done out of ignorance. How do you think Mr. Mason handled it?
Thank you for all your love and sharing your thoughts with me in your reviews.