Disclaimer: I don't own anything recognizable.
Mom drove us to the airport with the windows rolled down. I was extremely happy with that fact, seeing as it was seventy-five degrees here in Phoenix, even though it was January. Bella sat in the passenger seat, wearing the same sleeveless, white eyelet lace shirt that the book said she would, a parka laying in her lap. I lay sprawled out all over the backseat, every once in a while picking my dark auburn hair out of my mouth when it got caught in the wind. I was wearing a black t-shirt with a miscellaneous gold design, a pair of skinny jeans, and a pair of comfy high top shoes.
We were on our way to the rainy little town of Forks, Washington, something I couldn't be happier about. It was one of the many ways I differed from Bella, and changed the book just slightly. When Bella decided she didn't want to go stay with Charlie for the summer anymore in Forks when we were fourteen, she and Charlie didn't take two weeks out of their summer to go to California. It didn't matter anymore, because I still wanted to go to Forks. So Bella just stayed at home with Renee while I went to stay with Charlie.
Unlike her, I liked the rainy weather, and especially the forest and greenery the town was made of. I hated the heat of Phoenix and the fact that it was all desert. It was boring, and left little to really look at. And I was a really big Daddy's girl. It seems that trait carried over from my last life.
"Bella, Serinda," mom said to us, and I rolled my eyes at the use of my full name as opposed to Bella's nickname. Charlie had named Bella, the lucky girl, and Mom had named me. Apparently, my name was too 'pretty' to just say my nickname for. What crap. "You don't have to do this."
"I want to go," Bella said, and it was easy to tell she was lying, though I suppose it was a tad more convincing than her regular lies. The book had gotten that aspect of personality pinpointed. It was actually quite sad to watch. It was also the reason I usually lied for her when we were younger.
"We'll be fine, Mom," I said, smiling comfortingly at her before looking at Bella. "We'll both love it."
Bella looked into my eyes and gave me a small nod, telling me she understood. She knew that I had 'feelings' about things sometimes—she really was extremely observant—and learned to trust me fully on things like that.
"All right," Mom said reluctantly. "Well, tell Charlie I said hi."
"We will," Bella and I said in unison and grinned at each other. We were glad we weren't identical twins, what with my dark auburn hair, dark blue eyes, and lightly tanned skin as opposed to her mahogany colored hair, deep chocolate brown eyes, and pale skin, but times like these, where we were able to speak at the same, brought us joy for some odd reason.
"I'll see you two soon," Mom insisted. "You can come home whenever you want—I'll come right back as soon as you need me."
"Mom," I said, drawing her attention to me. "Don't worry about us. It'll be great."
Mom gave me and Bella a sad look before pulling us into her arms and hugged us so hard I felt like a boa constrictor was squeezing the life out of me. We exchanged 'I love you's' before Bella and I boarded the plane, me skipping and her trudging onto our flight.
As we went through our flights, I thought about just how awkward this might end up being. I knew from the books Bella was more or less thinking about the same thing. It was kind of her own fault anyway. Nothing was awkward between me and Charlie, because I actually spent time with him and got to know him. Bella didn't. So the painful awkwardness was pretty much self-imposed for her.
Anyways, I was still excited to see my dad, so I just shoved the thoughts of awkwardness into the back of my mind as our flight from Seattle to Port Angeles began to land.
It was raining when we landed, and Bella looked out the window of the plane with a sad expression. I nudged her gently in the ribs with my elbow and said, "It will be fine. Soon, the weather will be the last thing you're thinking about."
"And what is that supposed to mean?" she asked me exasperatedly, and I merely grinned in response as we got up to walk off the plane.
Charlie was waiting for us when we got off the plane, and I laughed when Bella stumbled into an awkward hug with him as she walked off the plane. One thing I was definitely glad about was the fact that I had the grace of a normal human being instead of that of a newborn baby deer trying to walk for the first time like my sister.
"It's good to see you, Bells. How's Renee?" he asked, smiling. A second later he grunted as I slammed into him, wrapping my arms and legs around him to hang off of him like a little kid. "Seri! I missed you too, but I'm not quite as young as I used to be."
I pouted as he tried to pry me off of him and jumped back onto the ground. "But Daddy…!"
Dad laughed and Bella rolled her eyes at my antics as she said, "Mom's fine. It's good to see you, too, Dad."
Both of us only had a few bags. Bella barely had any clothes that were fit for the rainy state and nearly all my clothes for Forks were already in our house. The bags fit easily in the cruiser, and I hastily jumped into the backseat, giving Bella an evil grin in response to Bella's glare when she realized she would have to sit up front.
"I found a good car for you, Bells, really cheap," Dad announced as soon as we were all strapped in. My thoughts turned to my own car, that I had bought in Forks with the money I saved doing odd jobs for the elderly people around Forks and Phoenix. I learned early on that I was good at watching and replicating repairs made on almost anything, including cars and plumbing, and the old people paid pretty well since I was so 'cute' and 'helpful'. It was helpful, considering Renee didn't really think about that kind of thing when buying a house and Bella couldn't be trusted on a ladder with tools.
But back to my car. I bought it when I was fifteen in Forks. It was old, much like Bella's truck, a black 1977 Chevy. It had needed quite a bit of work that had been done by me, Charlie, Billy Black, his son Jacob, Quil Ateara, and Embry Call. Luckily, we did a pretty good job, and it had been up and running perfectly by the end of the summer last year. I, like Bella, didn't want to have to be driven around in the cruiser when it came time for us to live here.
"What kind of car?" Bella asked suspiciously.
"Well, it's a truck actually, a Chevy," he said.
"Whoop, whoop!" I yelled excitedly from the back, causing Charlie to turn around for a moment to grin at me and Bella to roll her eyes at me.
"Where did you find it?" she asked, ignoring my outburst.
"Do you remember Billy Black down at La Push?" he asked her.
Ah, La Push. Home of the future wolves. When Charlie began letting me go there on my own, I never thought I would become friends with the future wolves, including Paul and Jared. Sam I had met a handful of times when I was hanging out with the Clearwaters, and I had been there for the explosion when he left Leah for Emily. It was kind of heartbreaking, having my friends yell at me and tell me they didn't want to hang out with me anymore. I had been especially close to Paul, most likely because he had been one of my favorite wolves in the books, and his break off had been the hardest. But I understood what was happening and let them go. I was actually quite excited to be able to hang out with them again soon, even at the cost of Bella's heartbreak.
"No," Bella answered after a moment of thinking.
"Yep," I answered. Sometimes I would go fishing with Charlie, Billy, and Harry Clearwater. Other times I would hang out with their kids and their friends.
"He used to go fishing with us during the summer," Charlie prompted, trying to bring up some sort of memory for her; however, Bella just shook her head.
"He's in a wheelchair now," Charlie continued after Bella didn't say anything, "so he can't drive anymore, and he offered to sell me his truck cheap."
"What year is it?" Bella asked. I could see Charlie's brows tightened in the rearview mirror, a tell that said he had been asked a question he had been hoping wouldn't be asked.
"Older than dirt," I said quickly. Charlie's eyes met mine in the rearview mirror and he gave me a disapproving look. "Hey, I was just trying to help."
"What year is it?" Bella asked again, ignoring me once more. We were going to have to talk about this ignoring me thing. That was just rude.
"Well, Billy's done a lot of work on the engine—it's only a few years old, really," Charlie said, trying to evade the question. I snorted. Just a few years old.
"When did he buy it?" Bella asked, more or less rewording her last question. She thinks she's sly.
"He bought it in 1984, I think." There he goes. I hate to tell him this but 1984 is more than 'a few years old', and that wasn't even how old the truck really was.
"Did he buy it new?"
"Well, no. I think it was new in the early sixties—or late fifties at the earliest," he admitted sheepishly.
Bella opened her mouth to say something, but I intervened quickly. "Don't worry, Bella. If something goes wrong, I'll be able to fix it. Besides, I helped Dad pick it out, so I know you'll love it."
And I had helped him pick it out. He called me about a week after Bella and I had asked to come live with him, wanting my opinion on cars for her, since I knew her better than he did. He had actually picked out about five different cars of varying price, but I had asked him to find the cheapest thing he could and send me a picture of that instead, knowing Bella absolutely hated having money spent on her. A few days later he sent me a picture of the faded red Chevy pickup, and I told him that was the one.
I'm starting to think I may have more influence in this storyline than I thought I'd have.
After seeing the still slightly doubting look on Bella's face, Dad tried to reassure her by saying, "Really, Bella, the thing runs great. They don't build them like that anymore."
"How cheap is cheap?" Bella asked after a few seconds of silence.
"Uh, I kind of already bought it for you. As a homecoming gift, since Seri already has a car."
"You didn't need to do that, Dad. I was going to buy myself a car," Bella said after realizing it was free. She turned around to give me a thankful look, and I winked back at her. She knew that even if the truck farted out, at least Charlie hadn't spent any money on it.
"I don't mind. I want you to be happy here. Both of you." Another thing the book got right was the way Charlie showed emotions. He was awkward about it, and it frequently made me laugh and him blush.
"That's really nice, Dad, Seri. Thanks. I really appreciate it." And yet Bella still looked at the rain outside the window sadly.
"Well, now, you're welcome," Charlie said, a barely noticeable blush spreading across his cheeks. It's no wonder where Bella gets it from.
It was silent for a few moments and before they started an awkward conversation about the weather, I asked Charlie, "How have Billy and Harry been lately?"
That started a long, comfortable conversation between Charlie and I that got Bella out of talking and lasted until we got to the house. Charlie's house was a three bedroom two bath, which I believe was an accommodation for me, seeing as the original house was a two bedroom one bath. It was lucky for Bella, seeing as she wasn't too keen on sharing a bathroom with Charlie, and instead had to share a bathroom with me.
Bella's eyes widened when she took in the old red truck sitting next to my black one in the driveway, and a small smile adorned her lips. I walked up to her and wrapped an arm around her shoulder as I said, "Nice, huh?"
"It's great," she said to me incredulously. "Thanks."
"You shouldn't have doubted me," I sang teasingly at her as I moved to help Charlie get our bags out of the cruiser's trunk. As I sidled up next to Charlie, I leaned over to tell him, "She loves it. Good job, Dad."
He gave me a quick one-armed hug as he said, "Thanks for helping me out, kid."
"No problem," I retorted, grabbing my suitcase out of the trunk before heading toward the house and upstairs to my room. Bella's and my rooms were upstairs with a shared bathroom at the end of the stairs. Charlie's room and bathroom were downstairs in a singular hallway.
My room was practically a mirror of Bella's, except updated since I was here more than she was. It had a wooden floor, ocean blue walls, a peaked ceiling, and forest green laced curtains around the window that matched the sheets on my bed. A desk with a laptop was in one corner of the room, and a sister rocking chair to Bella's sat in the corner near the window.
After I unpacked the little luggage I had, I went downstairs to hang out with Charlie while Bella stayed upstairs and sulked, knowing she wouldn't want anyone to bother her.
I slept pretty well that night, the soft sound of the rain pattering on the roof lulling me into a comfortable sleep. I loved the sound of the rain at night. It had always helped me sleep, and I had learned thunderstorms were even better.
I got up, and, seeing a thick fog outside the window, dressed in a grey tank top, a red and grey flannel long sleeve button up, a pair of boot cut jeans, and a pair of black converse. I slipped into the bathroom to brush my teeth and hair, grabbing a hair tie to slip around my wrist before bounding back into my room and grabbing my black rain jacket and book bag. I took the stairs in twos, barely looking at the now familiar pictures adorning the walls.
Bella came downstairs as I was grabbing around in the cabinet for a poptart. I felt bad for her, seeing the dark circles under her eyes and knowing that she wasn't used to the sound of the rain, which had kept her up. Charlie poured himself a cup of coffee before sitting down at the table to read the paper.
"You want one?" I asked Bella. I was already on my knees on the countertop to reach the cabinet, seeing as I was too short to reach. May as well ask while I was already here. She nodded her head sleepily and I quickly snatched another bag and jumped down from the counter, handing her the bag and sitting down at the table.
One of the few things I was jealous of was Bella's height. She was only five-four, but that was still three inches on my five-one. You wouldn't believe the difference three inches could make. Like the fact that Bella would have been able to reach the poptarts in the top cabinet. It wasn't fair.
Breakfast was a pretty silent affair, with a few words here and there. I was lost in my own thoughts, thinking about how different school was going to be. In Phoenix, we were in a class of seven hundred kids, and now we were going to Forks High School, which totaled out at three hundred and fifty seven—now fifty nine—kids total. It was weird. And because the school was so small, they would obviously notice us and we were going to get stared at. A lot. And that was really not something I was all about.
Charlie left first, wishing us luck on our first day at school before heading out, and I waited for Bella to be ready before asking, "Do you want to follow me to the school?"
She nodded. "Yeah. That would be easier. So I won't get lost."
I snorted as we walked outside together, turning to lock the door as I said, "As if you could get lost in a town this small."
I heard Bella chuckle behind me and turned around to give her a smile. Both of us walked to our trucks and hopped in, and I pulled out of the driveway ahead of her. The drive to the high school was short, because, as I said, the town was small. I'd driven past the school multiple times on my visits here, so it made the transition a little easier. I pulled into a parking space in front of one of the maroon-colored brick buildings labeled FRONT OFFICE, and Bella parked right next to me.
I waited for her before walking towards the entrance, knowing it would be a comfort for not only her, but for me too. At least we had each other.
The inside of the building was brightly lit, and more than a little warm. It was small, mostly consisting of the main desk and a few padded waiting chairs. Awards and different colored papers lined the walls and potted plants were placed randomly around the room. Behind the desk was an older woman, probably in her mid-forties, with red hair wearing reading glasses and a purple t-shirt. Ms. Cope.
Ms. Cope looked up a few seconds after we got to the desk. "Can I help you?"
"We're Serinda and Isabella Swan," Bella informed her, and I saw her eyes widen as she took us in. I gave her a bright smile as she perused me, causing her to give me a small smile in return.
"Of course," she said, digging through a precariously stacked pile of documents on her desk until she pulled two from them, then turned around to dig through a different pile. "Now, which one of you is which?"
I waited until she turned around to look at us with a few more papers in her hands and said, "I'm Seri. She's Bella."
"All right," she said, handing us several different papers. "Here are your schedules, and a map of the school."
She took time to highlight both mine and Bella's maps to show us where each of our classes were. We were then given a pink slip that we were supposed to have our teachers sign and bring back at the end of the day. We left a few minutes later, Ms. Cope wishing us a good first day like Charlie did this morning.
We both got back in our trucks and drove around to the student parking lot, where I noticed a shiny Volvo, since it was the nicest car there. Edward's. I just rolled my eyes and parked, looking to see Bella parked a few spaces down from me. I waited for her to pass by me on the way to the buildings before slipping my arm around her.
"So, what class you have first?" I asked conversationally.
She raised an eyebrow at me as she said, "Weren't you paying attention when the receptionist was highlighting the maps?"
"Not when she was highlighting yours," I told her, giving her another bright smile. I knew, of course, we didn't have the same class schedule. I chose different electives exactly for that purpose. Art instead of Spanish, American Wars compared to Government, and Chemistry instead of Biology.
"English in building three," she said, sighing. She suddenly stopped walking, and I noticed we were currently standing in front of said building.
Seeing the sadness on her face, I quickly placed the back of my hand on me forehead and dramatized, "Alas, fair maiden. For now, we must part. But fear not! For soon we will be reunited for a meal of lovely portions!"
It worked. Bella let out a small giggle and pushed me playfully away from her, saying, "Go to class, you heathen."
"A heathen I am not, my lady," I said in a British accent as I skipped off to building five, where my art class was. As I walked in, I noticed there were only two students in there, besides the teacher. The classroom was full of photography and drawings and paintings. There were desks set up in rows that were just big enough to hold two people. In the back of the room were tall cabinets that, I'm assuming, held art supplies.
I quickly sidled up to the teacher, giving the eccentric-looking woman who reminded me of Renee my pink slip to sign and said, "Hi. I'm Seri Swan. I just started today."
The woman's eyes lit up happily as she accepted the paper from me and said, "Hello! I'm Ms. Julian. Welcome to my art class! Now, where to seat you…"
As the woman looked around the room, flitting from seat to seat, I waited patiently. I loved art. It was the number one reason I took this class. I was actually quite good, as I had taken up drawing out some of my more vivid and pleasant visions I had, like the one I had of Bella, Renee, and me at the park in California when we were eight, before we moved. It was currently on the wall in my room at Charlie's house.
Finally Ms. Julian's eyes lingered on one seat, and as she made up her mind, a vision flashed behind my eyes. A large man, probably about six-six or six-seven, and built like a linebacker sat next to me, his head thrown back laughing. His hair was deep brown and curled lightly, making his pale skin look even paler, and his smile while he was laughing showed dimples, making him look more childlike.
Emmett.
I'd be sitting next to Emmett.
"Second row, last seat, on the left," Ms. Julian said as I came out of my vision. I nodded my thanks to her and dragged myself over to my seat, plopping down in it and putting my book bag under the table.
Apparently, I had zoned out, because it felt like only a second later something scraped out the chair next to me and sat down, a chill suddenly in the air. I looked over to see Emmett there, peering down at me with honey colored eyes. The books nor the movies did him justice. He really was quite beautiful. His stature was much different up close, especially since I was so short. I practically had to look straight up at him to look in his eyes.
I meant to introduce myself, since it was obvious he was waiting for me to say something, but I felt like a little kid and all I could say was, "Whoa! You're like a mountain!"
I would have been embarrassed if it weren't so true.
He stared at me for another moment before his lips twitched, and he suddenly burst out laughing. My vision had come true. After a few moments, he stopped laughing and looked at me with a grin on his face. He said, "I like you. You're a funny little thing. My name is Emmett Cullen."
He extended one of his hands to me, and as I grabbed it I took some time to marvel at how much bigger his hands were than mine. He absolutely engulfed me.
My mind finally registered what he said, and I grinned up at him. I figured Emmett would be easy for me to get along with. He'd let me play out my inner child with him, and he found most things funny quite easily. Bella was more mature than me, and didn't always understand my need to act like a little kid. But Emmett did, and so I said, in another mock British accent, "It is a pleasure to meet you, my good sir. Allow me to present to you Seri Swan."
I gave a little flourish at the end, causing Emmett to laugh loudly again, and I vaguely noticed the other students that had filed into the room giving us odd looks. Probably because a Cullen was talking to an outsider. Even I thought that was odd, but hey, if the universe is trying to integrate me into the family so I can be 'in the know' with Bella, I was one hundred percent cool with that.
"I really like you, Miss Seri," Emmett said after he had calmed down again. "I think we're going to be good friends."
And just like that, the ice between Emmett and I was broken and we were becoming fast friends. We joked and monkeyed around together for the rest of the class period. Everyone gave us weird looks, including the teacher, but she never told us to stop, since we were somehow still able to do our work in between our messing around. We talked about a little bit of everything. I talked about Phoenix, Bella, and my summer visits to Forks. He talked about his senior year of high school (for like the fiftieth time—not that he would say that), his family, and especially about his Rosie. I wasn't a big romantic, but the way he talked about her was absolutely adorable.
Soon, though, the bell rang, and it was time to switch classes. Emmett was a gentleman and walked me to the door. At the door, we separated. He headed toward the Physics building, and I was headed to my English class. As he walked away, Emmett yelled back to me, "Bye, Seri! See you later!"
Over my shoulder, I smiled to him and yelled back, "Later, Mountain Man!"
I could hear his booming laugh even as I walked into building three. I walked into the room, noticing it was set up pretty much like the art room, and walked up to the tall, balding man who I was assuming was the teacher. A quick glance at the name plate on his desk identified him as Mr. Mason. I handed him my slip, and as soon as he saw my name, he started gawking at me.
After a couple seconds of the uncomfortable staring, I cleared my throat and said, "Uh, could you, like, not do that?"
He stumbled out a quick apology, giving me what looked like a reading list before pointing me to a lone seat in the back of the class. When I sat down, I glanced at the reading list. It was pretty basic compared to our classes in Phoenix: Bronte, Shakespeare, Chaucer, Faulkner. All the books on the list had already been required for us to read at my old school, so that means all I would have to do is sift through the old essays I thought I might need and brought with me. Sweet. No work.
The teacher was boring, and I paid little attention to him as he lectured the class on something or another. The bell finally rang, and I zoomed out of there and towards building four, where my Chemistry class was located. My teacher was a man in his late thirties name Mr. Ardin, and funny enough, he sat me next to Eric. His skin had a few breakouts here and there and his hair was a bit oily, but he was nice enough that it wasn't horrible. I chatted idly with him through the class about mundane things—like he really wanted to know what it was like living in the large, sunny city of Phoenix. He was nice, but not nearly as fun as Emmett.
After Chemistry, I had Trig with Bella, and Eric was nice enough to walk me there. I shuddered at the thought that I might be replacing Bella in the romantic aspect of his life, but I would get over it.
Like the book said, the Trig teacher, Mr. Varner, was the only one that made us introduce ourselves. Bella stuttered and blushed through her introduction, while I merely smiled and said childishly, "I'm Seri, and I like the color red."
Needless to say, that didn't earn me any points with Varner, but it did distract slightly from when Bella tripped over herself walking to her seat. Bella ended up sitting next to Jessica, who I learned really didn't ever shut up. The universe did me a solid and sat me next to Angela, who really was one of the sweetest people I'd ever met. She was nice enough to ask me to sit with them at lunch, and I, of course, accepted.
So, after the bell rang, Angela and I walked behind Jessica and Bella to lunch. We sat at a table with Mike, Lauren, Tyler, Ben, Eric, Jessica, and Angela.
And it was there, sitting at a table with seven other people who were constantly asking us questions, that I saw Bella see them. Well, after I had waved at Emmett and drew her attention to them, of course.
With the Cullens: Jasper's Point of View
Edward, Rosalie, Emmett, Alice, and I all sat around one of the circular tables in the corner of the cafeteria. Ever since we got in here, Emmett had been sending off excitement in waves, nearly causing me to bounce up and down in my seat. It was nice, with Emmett's emotions usually being so pure and happy, but right now it was beginning to be aggravating.
"Emmett," I finally snapped, "could you calm down?"
Sure, I could do it for him, but it wouldn't have quite the same effect. I also didn't like to interfere too much in how the others in our little 'family' were feeling, unless they asked me to.
"Sorry," Emmett apologized sheepishly, his emotions reflecting his sincerity.
"It's alright," I mumbled, going back to staring at the table.
Suddenly, Edward's head snapped to look at Emmett, and he angrily accused more than asked, "You talked to one of them?"
Immediately, Emmett's eyes darkened, and his emotions swirled together in a mix of protectiveness and anger. "That's none of your business. Stay out of my head."
"Emmett," Rosalie said warningly, "you know it is. The closer you get to one of them, the more danger you put the family in."
"Carlisle and Esme talk to others all the time, but I'm not allowed to make friends with one human?" Emmett spat, pouting in his chair. He shrugged off the hand Rosalie tried to place on his arm in a comforting gesture and crossed his arms.
"You know, he kind of has a point," I said, putting my two cents in the pot. I got the same confused mix of emotions from four different directions. It was understandable though, seeing as I was usually the one that opposed getting close to any human, mostly because I still didn't like being around them. But Emmett really was like a brother to me, and if he wanted to befriend just one, insignificant little human, then go for it.
"Who is it?" Alice asked Edward, most likely 'seeing' that Emmett wouldn't tell her.
"Seri Swan," Edward answered, his jaw clenched as he stared at Emmett.
"Seri Swan? Who's Seri Swan?" Alice asked, confused.
"Bella Swan's sister," Edward responded, seeing as Emmett had his nose stuck up in the air and his lips pursed.
Now I was curious. Alice had told me about the vision of Bella coming to town, and how she would be part of our family in the future as Edward's mate; however, she never said anything about a sister. Confusion swirled around Alice like a hurricane as she rubbed circles around her temples and mumbled to herself, "Sister? I didn't see a sister. Why didn't I see a sister? Why didn't I see this? Why didn't I see this!?"
I cut off my gift from her, her emotions becoming too overwhelming, and turned back to the others. Suddenly, the doors to the cafeteria opened, and two new scents blew into the room.
A few things happened in that instance.
The first thing that happened was that Edward's eyes, which had been slowly lightening back up, slammed back into pitch black as one of the largest bursts of bloodlust I'd ever felt hit me from his direction. I instinctively sent him a mix of emotions to counter it, and he sent me a wave of thankfulness in return.
The second thing that happened was that Emmett's emotions lightened back up, and he began to grin towards a specific spot in the cafeteria.
The third thing that happened was that I noticed sthe two new girls that were sitting at a table with a few of the others. One was a bit taller than the other, and had brown eyes, brown hair, and pale skin. I could understand why Edward reacted the way he did, as her scent was one of the sweetest I had ever smelled; however, I was more interested in the girl sitting next to her, who smelled like the wind on a rainy day mixed with lavender and vanilla. Unlike the other girl's, her scent didn't incite hunger, but instead a feeling of comfort, like being at home. She had dark auburn hair that fell down her back in large waves and her eyes were the color of the ocean on a stormy day. Her skin was lightly tanned, and a few freckles littered her cheeks and nose. Her emotions rivaled Emmett's in their purity, and they were full of things like content, joy, amusement, and a little bit of protectiveness.
As I watched the blue eyed girl, her eyes strayed over to our table, where her eyes suddenly lit up and her happiness skyrocketed. She grinned, and waved in our direction. Emmett's emotions of happiness, protectiveness, and, surprisingly a tiny amount of familial love roared about him as his grin widened and he waved enthusiastically back at her. So, that one was Seri Swan. That means the uncomfortable one with swirling bits of insecurity, wonder, and awe was Edward's future mate. Great.
I was assuming the wonder and awe came from the fact that she was now looking at us. The brunette girl, Bella, watched as Alice, becoming frustrated with her lack of seeing Seri, took her things and headed toward the trash can, telling us quietly that she needed some alone time to try to 'see'.
My curiosity soaring, I began listening in on the conversation occurring at their table.
"Who are they?" Bella asked Jessica Stanley, who was sitting right next to her. Jessica's emotions brightened, probably at being able to gossip to someone who actually wanted to listen. Seri leaned her elbow onto the table, placing her chin in her hand so she would be able to see Jessica more easily while still being able to see us.
I noticed Edward's emotions flickered, bloodlust being the main emotion that came and went, and my eyes flitted over to him and saw him staring at Bella. Wonder and frustration began to weave its way into his emotions, making the bloodlust more insignificant.
What's wrong? I asked him silently, and, as he continued staring at the girl, he said, "I can't hear her."
We all knew what that meant. A little bit of jealousy flared up in Rosalie, Emmett, and even me. Sure, we'd learned how to mostly hide our thoughts from him, but it would still be nice not to have to run around mentally guarded all the time.
Edward suddenly looked back to the table, and I realized that, while he'd been staring at her for quite some time to me, in actuality he'd only looked at her for a split second. Bella also dropped her eyes, and Jessica giggled in embarrassment, the smallest touch of fear from her self-preservation instincts mixed in. Seri just rolled her eyes.
Can you hear the other one? Seri? I asked him. The corner of his mouth tilted up slightly as he said, "She just thought Jessica was a dumb blonde and that her sister looks so awestruck it's gross."
I looked toward Emmett as another thought cropped up into my mind and asked him, "Did she act like the other humans do?"
"You mean staring like idiots with drool hanging out of their mouths because they think we're so attractive, but also smell a little funky from fear because in the back of their minds they know we're dangerous?" he asked. I nodded and he happily said, "Nope. No funky smell and no drool. She did stare at me and call me a mountain though."
I don't know if it was Emmett's amusement or my own that made the corners of my mouth twitch at that statement. My mind turned back to the girl to confirm with her emotions, and found no awe, attraction, fear, or anything of the sort. My curiosity went up another level, and I tuned back into their conversation, watching them out of the corner of my eye.
"That's Edward and Emmett Cullen, and Rosalie and Jasper Hale. The one who left was Alice Cullen; they all live together with Dr. Cullen and his wife," Jessica said under her breath, like she was trying to tell them a secret.
Edward's lips twitched again, and I had to ask, "What?"
"Her thoughts are just…quite interesting. Seri's," he said, and I momentarily wished I had his gift, so I would know what she was thinking too.
"They are very…nice-looking," Bella said slowly, and Seri suddenly grinned toward her twin. Bella met her eyes and blushed, and embarrassment made itself known in her emotions.
"Yes!" Jessica agreed, not noticing the exchange, and I internally rolled my eyes. The girl was so self-absorbed it was disgusting. "They're all together though—Emmett and Rosalie, and Jasper and Alice, I mean. And they live together."
"It's not like they're all actually related, though," Seri said, disgust blooming into her own emotions. She turned towards Bella and continued, "Besides, I talked to him earlier, and the way he talks about Rosalie…" Seri turned her eyes towards us, and I noticed they connected with Rosalie's as she said, "it's like she's his whole world. He absolutely loves her with all his heart and soul, so I don't think it should matter if they live together or not."
I could feel Rosalie's emotions soften, and the little bit of jealousy and insecurity she felt when Emmett had spoken of the girl earlier dissipated; however, this didn't mean she wasn't still upset over the danger to the family, because she was.
"Well," Jessica said snootily, a bit of discomfort tinging her emotions, "I guess."
"Which ones are the Cullens?" Bella asked. "They don't look related…."
"Oh, they're not," Jessica said quickly. "Dr. Cullen is really young, in his twenties or early thirties. They're all adopted. The Hales are brother and sister, twins—the blondes—and they're foster children."
"They look a little old for foster children," Bella stated.
"What makes you think they weren't adopted, oh, I don't know, a few years ago?" Seri asked Bella while giving her a duh look. Bella glared at her in return, a blush coming onto her cheeks as embarrassment once again swirled in her emotions. To my right, Emmett snorted and his shoulders shook as he tried to contain his laughter. Edward and I looked at each other with small grins, and even Rosalie's lips twitched slightly, amusement filling all our emotions.
"Jasper and Rosalie are both eighteen now, but they've been with Mrs. Cullen since they were eight. She's their aunt or something like that," Jessica helped clarify.
"That's really kind of nice—for them to take care of all those kids like that, when they're so young and everything," Bella said. That was nice of her.
"I guess so," Jessica agreed reluctantly, and jealousy permeated her emotions as she added, "I think that Mrs. Cullen can't have any kids, though."
"And what, that makes them less kind?" Seri asked, calling Jessica out. Jessica stuttered for a moment before huffing and sitting there silently.
I was beginning to like this girl.
"Have they always lived in Forks?" Bella asked.
"They moved here two years ago from Alaska," Seri answered, before Jessica. I felt confusion and curiosity from Rosalie, Emmett, and Edward. The same emotions came from Bella as she turned to Seri and raised an eyebrow. Seri rolled her eyes and said, "Unlike you, I still spend the summers with Dad. It was big hype when they moved here. Apparently, Carlisle Cullen is a really good doctor. Good thing, too, since now you're here."
Bella made to elbow her sister in the ribs, causing Seri to laugh as Bella once again blushed. Pity and relief colored Bella's emotions, an odd combination, and she looked over at us again. Curiosity peaked Edward's emotions as he met her eyes before she quickly looked away again.
"Which one is the boy with the reddish-brown hair?" Bella asked as she peeked over at us again.
I smirked at the question as a small bit of lust entered Bella's emotions while Emmett laughed and said, "Look, Eddie, Belly-Boo has a crush on you!"
Edward became embarrassed and snapped at Emmett, "Don't call me Eddie!"
"That's Edward. He's gorgeous, of course, but don't waste your time. He doesn't date. Apparently, none of the girls here are good-looking enough for him," Jessica sniffled.
"Or maybe he just doesn't like gossip whores," Seri whispered in Bella's ears. "I think you have a chance."
Bella put her hand over her mouth and giggled slightly, amusement taking place of the insecurity that had popped up when Jessica had said Edward doesn't date.
That was the last part of the conversation, and a few minutes later we all bid good-bye to each other and headed to our classes. I walked to building two for my American Wars class while Edward headed for Biology and Rosalie and Emmett headed to Spanish. As I walked in, I nodded to the teacher, an older man in his early fifties who somehow was able to retain a full head of hair named Mr. Roberts, and walked to the back of the room and sat down. I watched the rain fall and counted the drops as people began filing into the room, flipping the switch to my gift and ignoring them all.
Ignoring them, that is, until the scent of wind on a rainy day mixed with lavender and vanilla. I carefully opened my gift slightly, just enough to be able to feel only her emotions. Discomfort mixed with a light dose of courage and anxiety. Those were normal for someone on their first day at a new school, especially high school, so they weren't very interesting; the surprise as she looked as me, however, was.
Why was she surprised to see me?
"You'll be sitting in the back next to Mr. Hale," I heard Mr. Roberts tell her. She nodded to him and started walking back here. I straightened up in my seat and looked back out the window. I heard the chair scrape next to me as she pulled it out and the sound of her book hitting the table and her book bag hitting the floor. Her scent washed over me, and I closed my eyes for a moment to revel in it.
It was odd. I'd never smelt a human that had a scent that didn't incite hunger. All humans incited hunger, even if it was only a small bit that was easily ignored. Seri's scent, though, incited no hunger. Just comfort. It made me more relaxed, and I had the urge to speak to her like Emmett had. I had to wonder if Emmett felt the same way about her scent, if that's what made him want to be friends with her too.
The sound of books opening made me look around, and I had to look in the back of my mind to see what the teacher said and the forefront of my focus missed. We were supposed to be working on questions in the back of Chapter 12 in our books.
I let out a small breath and opened my book. Out of the corner of my eye I could see Seri already leaned over a piece of paper. Her hair fell over her shoulder and onto the paper where she was writing, and she brushed it back behind her ear. A couple seconds later, it fell again, and she brushed it back again. This happened three more times, each time making her more and more angry, until she finally snapped, letting out a small growl as she ripped a hair tie from around her wrist and pulled all her hair into a messy bun at the back of her head.
I couldn't help the small chuckle that escaped me.
She looked over at me with a small glare and said, "What? You trying to tell me you don't have the same problem?"
She had a point. My hair was almost chin length, and often fell in my eyes while I was working, so I just said, "You're right. Sorry." And then, as if I just couldn't help it, I added, "My name is Jasper Hale, by the way."
She smiled at me and laughed before saying, "I know. Emmett told me a little bit about you. Mostly your sister, but you too. I'm Seri."
"Oh?" I responded. "And what exactly did Emmett tell you about me?"
"Only a little," she admitted. "He said you're probably the quietest one of the family, and that you have a very big interest in the Civil War. No trade secrets or embarrassing moments. Promise."
"That's surprising. Usually Emmett likes to talk about every prank he's ever pulled on anyone, and there have been quite a few on me," I told her.
For a moment, her emotions went completely blank, and her eyes almost looked like they were glazed over. Worry began to well inside me, but about three-fourths of a second later, I felt her amusement and curiosity as she said, "Really? Any you care to share?"
It was odd, the way she went blank like that, but I let it slide since it lasted less than a second, and moved on.
I laughed, and just like that, I fell into the same easy friendship with the girl that Emmett had gotten berated for earlier. It was easy, like it was meant to happen, and I could already feel the same protective emotions that Emmett had emitted earlier. It was almost instinctive. Maybe it's because she was so small, and it, along with her humanity, made her seem very fragile. She was only a couple inches taller than Alice, maybe about five-one, so I had about eleven inches on her at my even six foot height. Though she was small, she had some pretty nice curves, and I noticed more than a few glances from boys and felt their lust as they looked at her. It was annoying, and usually when it happened I growled, low enough that no one would hear, but enough that they would instinctively know to look away.
All too soon, the bell rang, and Seri and I grabbed our bags and headed towards the door.
"What class do you have next?" I asked as we crossed through the door.
"Gym. With Bella," she said. Her tone sounded like she was reluctant to go, and I had to admit, I was reluctant to go too. She was an interesting human. She sighed as she turned toward the gymnasium and said, "Injuries are about to appear on people like flies on a fly strip."
"Well, then, good luck, Seri," I told her, watching her.
She smiled up at me and said, "Thanks. I'm going to need it. I'll see you tomorrow."
"See you tomorrow," I said as she began walking away, then I turned and started toward my Calculus class.
Back with Seri
As I walked to the gym, I thought about what had happened last hour. I had officially made friends with two of the Cullens. What I didn't understand was why I didn't have a vision of Jasper beforehand. I had that vision of Emmett, but not one of Jasper. Seriously? What is with that? I had no idea what to do when I had sat down. Sure, Jasper had been one of my favorite characters in the books, but that didn't mean I knew exactly how to win his friendship. And I definitely hadn't expected him to start up a conversation, but hey, I'll take it. He was just as awesome as Emmett, too, just in a different way.
I saw Bella walking towards the gym with some blond guy, and I ran up to them while yelling, "Belly-Boo! I missed you!"
Bella laughed, the pensive and upset look on her face dissipating like I had hoped it would. The vision I'd had last period had been of Edward's decision not to kill her, so I'm assuming she may have been talking to blondie about the constipated look on Eddie's face.
"Hey, Seri," Bella said, before gesturing to the guy next to her. "This is Mike. He's in my Biology class, and he'll be in PE with us."
I leaned over to get a better look at Mike as I asked, "Do they offer full body padding and helmets? Because you're going to need it."
"Seri!" Bella said, embarrassed.
"What? The guy deserves a fair warning," I said, and Mike laughed. "So…what were you guys talking about before I came over?"
Bella cringed as Mike said, "Edward Cullen looking like Bella stabbed him last period."
I gasped dramatically and said, "Bella! I didn't know you had it in you!"
"I didn't do anything!" she said exasperatedly. "I just sat next to him and he looked at me like I was gum on the bottom of his shoe."
"He's a weird guy," Mike said, as though he were trying to comfort her.
"Maybe his stomach hurt because he's been constipated for a few days. I bet it wasn't you at all," I told her. Mike laughed and waved goodbye as he walked to the boy's locker room. Bella smiled slightly, but I could tell she was still upset by the way Edward had acted.
The gym teacher, Coach Clapp, gave us both a set of gym clothes, but told us we could sit out after I told him about Bella being a danger magnet. He thought I was joking at first, then realized I was serious when Bella turned toward the locker rooms and tripped, falling on her knees. That was when he told us we could sit out.
The whole period then bounced between watching four volleyball games at the same time and talking about Bella's crush on Edward. At first she tried to deny it, but the way she blushed and stuttered told me differently. Eventually she admitted to it, and then tried to steer the conversation away from it by asking me about Emmett. I called her out on it, but told her about my budding friendship with both Emmett and Jasper.
Soon enough, the final bell rang, and Bella and I began our walk back to the office to turn in our paperwork. The rain had pretty much stopped, but the wind was a bitch, blowing colder and stronger than earlier in the day. Bella wrapped her arms around herself while I turtled it down into my coat and shirt.
Bella walked into the office in front of me, and I nearly ran into her when she suddenly froze. I followed her gaze to see Edward Cullen standing at the desk, trying to get his Biology class switched to a different one, while Ms. Cope continually told him that his schedule couldn't be changed.
The door swung open behind us, and a strong wind rushed over the both of us. The girl who came in walked around us, placed a note in one of the eighty wire baskets on the desk's counter, and walked back out. I watched as Edward's back stiffened, and he turned around to glare at Bella.
My protective instincts rose, and my back straightened as I began to stand taller, a growl starting up in the back of my throat. Bella, sensing that I was about to do something bad, placed a hand on my stomach. Edward's eyes moved from Bella to me, and I couldn't help but think at him as I glared back, You got a problem, dickwad?
He turned back to the receptionist and said hastily, "Never mind, then. I can see that it's impossible. Thank you so much for your help." With that, he turned, pushed through us, and left.
I nudged Bella forward to get her mind back on what we were here for, and we both stepped up to the desk and handed over our signed slips.
"How did your first day go, girls?" Ms. Cope asked maternally.
"Fine," Bella said, obviously lying.
Ms. Cope looked at me with questioning eyes, but I just ignored her and said, "It went well. Thank you."
As we walked out of the office and toward our trucks, I grabbed Bella's arm, pulling her to face me, and asked, "You going to be okay?"
She nodded, tears in her eyes. I sighed, bringing her into a soft hug. She hugged me back tightly, and I whispered into her hair, "Don't worry. It will get better, Bell. I promise."
She nodded again before pulling away, wiping a few tears that had escaped her eyes, and said, "I'll see you at home."
With that, she turned and walked away. I rolled my eyes and headed to my own truck, hopping in and heading home.
I better get prepared for a long week.