Chapter One
Beep. Beep. Beep. I sighed at the sound of my alarm which informed me that I had to get up and get ready for school. It was five in the morning, and I had an hour before I had to leave for school. I looked up at the ceiling trying to wrap my thoughts together before getting up.
I've been staying here in Forks for a little over a month and my time here has been my own personal hell. My step-father, Phil, plays baseball and he travels frequently and my mother stayed home with me but I knew it made her miserable so I decided to stay with my dad, Charlie, for a while so she could go on the road with Phil. It incessantly rains and it's always cold which makes Forks look gloomy as hell. I despise anything that is wet or cold. It's the ghastliest thing ever. It caused me to feel extremely low. I have gained a few friends. Some of them are nice, but some aren't so nice. Jessica and Lauren are two-faced; they can be nice at times but then at other times they can be extremely spiteful. I'd wisely say they were more spiteful than nice. My closest friend is Angela. She's a lot quieter than the others, a bit like me, so it's effortless to get along with her. And Mike, well he's something else. He follows me around like a lost puppy and I know he likes me more than a friend but I don't. He is just starting to be a creep and it is starting to make me anxious, but at the end of the day what can I do? He is part of the friend group, and I can't avoid him. Although I do try.
Finally deciding to get ready I rose up out of my messy bed and quickly made it. I slowly made my way over to my dresser making sure not to trip over my own feet as I always do. I grabbed my toiletry bag and made my way to the bathroom. Knowing Charlie, he was already away to work which made my mornings a lot easier. He's the local chief of police in out small town of Forks, Washington. Nothing bad happens here so most of the time his day consists of helping out in Seattle which is only a thirty-minute drive from Forks which is a blessing for the folks down in Seattle at the moment. Charlie kind of keeps himself to himself, which is easier for me since I do the same thing. We do have short conversations at the dinner table where we discuss our day, and he is a good father. Routinely checking on how I am. He was a good man to my Mother, but my mum just fell out of love with him and didn't want to string him along. I gazed in the mirror at my reflection. Even though I am a very pale person, I did have some sort of a bronze shade due to living in Phoenix which was now all gone so I was back to looking washed out. I brushed my teeth and cleansed my hands and face. After a final glance in the mirror and took a deep breath. I turned around and headed back to my room to get changed for the day. I'm not very much into fashion and when I say that I mean I hate it. I'm not up to date with the new styles, but I didn't care. I inevitably preferred something that was comfortable, which was a button-up shirt and some jeans with my black and white converses. After I had changed, I brushed through my hair and pulled it up into a ponytail so that it wasn't in my face. I peered over at my bedside clock again, and it was now five-thirty. I still had half an hour before I had to start leaving to head to school so I made my way down the stairs to the kitchen and made myself some cereal for breakfast. I sat down at the table and slowly consumed my cereal while I worked on some homework for English Literature. We were working on Romeo and Juliet, which I harbor a passion for. I am not a passionate believer of love at first sight or love in general but I do love reading about it.
After I had finished my breakfast, I packed my book in my backpack for school, washed my bowl and spoon and put them back to where they belonged. I grabbed my keys from the hook and my jacket that sat beside the door. I threw my jacket on and zipped it up before the cold got to me. I opened the door and headed out to my truck, securing the house up beforehand. My truck was a welcome home present from Charlie who bought it off his most beloved friend Bill down at La Push. It's old, but it runs great and it was free so I was very grateful for it. I was a little stressed about having to get a lift to school in Charlie's cruiser. I carefully put the key into the ignition and twisted the key. It roared to life and then I backed out of the driveway and headed down the road to school. I enjoyed the drive to school. The one remarkable thing I do appreciate about Forks was the forest. It was so beautiful.
Forks High had a limited number of students. There were six hundred and forty-nine students in the whole school. In last school in Phoenix they had three hundred students just in my year. This is a lot different from my previous school. But I didn't mind it even though everyone knew everyone. As I drove into the car park of Forks High, there seemed to be something different this morning. Everyone seemed excited about something. There wasn't much excitement in Forks, so I'm wondering what could be happening today to make everyone be in such a good mood. I parked next to Tyler's black van. Tyler is someone who hangs around with us at lunch but isn't a part of the friend group. I turn the ignition off, snatch my bag from the passenger side and leave the warmth of my truck. I sigh softly as I lock my door and then head over to everyone. I want to ask someone what the commotion is about this morning but I'm quiet so I just don't ask. As I approach them, Mike is the first person to greet me which in ways is a kind gesture but in Mike's case it's obsessive.
"Hey Bella, you look great today", Mike beamed.
I had to force a faint smile upon my lips. It was the least I could do right? Although the way he greeted me made me anxious by the way he approached me.
"Thanks", I muttered and then made my way towards Angela as quickly as I could.
I approached Angela who was wearing a cute jumper and a pair of plain jeans. It suited her. She extended her arms and gently pulled me into a hug when I made my way to her. Angela was the only one that I'm close enough to hug. I want to ask what the commotion is about but even with Angela I'm still too shy and I don't like to be nosy.
"I like your jumper", I complimented her.
Her face widens into a smile, and she looks at me up and down.
"I love your outfit. It's so you", she said in return.
It was pretty easy to get along with Angela. We always constantly seem to venture off on our own to our favourite picnic table in the grassy area of the school so we could speak alone and not have everyone listen in. That's why I don't feel like I'm a part of the group. One I don't like most of them and another thing was they were all friends from childhood and I just showed up one day to live with my dad, the local chief of police. I feel very out of place here. As we make our way to the table, I try to muster up the courage and ask Angela about all the commotion but as we sit down she answers my question before I even have to ask.
"Did you hear about the new students that are starting today", she asked.
She seems oddly thrilled about this news. I've only known Angela for about a month now but I know she doesn't get excited this easily or maybe Forks is just that boring where people are getting excited over new students.
"No, I haven't but I was wondering what all the excitement was about this morning", responded.
Angela now supported her elbows on the table and her chin resting on them like she was getting comfortable to tell me a story.
"Apparently a new family has moved to town. The Cullen's or something. Well, Mr Cullen is meant to be the new doctor at Forks General, and he and his wife have like five kids that are going to be starting today and I did see a new Mercedes in the car park this morning and no one in Forks is rich enough to have a new Mercedes", she explained.
She was right about the Mercedes; no one in Forks was rich enough to own one. I'm surprised that Charlie had not mentioned anything to me about the new family, but having a new doctor in town is definitely a positive thing. The one thing that I'm not understanding is why a doctor, who seems to be making a lot of money considering the type of car one of his kids is driving, would decide to work in a small place like Forks in the first place. But I'm not complaining, almost half of the cases that walk through Fork General are me as I am a very clumsy person who trips over her own feet. I reflect on what the new students are like. I mean five typical teenagers under one roof Good luck to Charlie and everyone else at the local station on carefully keeping them in line. But I can't judge them too quickly. I mean they might be extremely well behaved.
"Anyway, Mike is asking about you… again", Angela said, bringing me out of my train of thought.
I mentally scream. I would have thought he would get the point by now that I do not want a relationship with him or with anyone else at that matter. I hate hurting people's feelings but this is getting beyond a joke now. There are only so many times I can gently turn him down.
"I thought he would understand by now that I don't want to date him. I just want to focus on school and then maybe think about dating after graduation", I replied.
Angela chuckled. I know she wants me to be happy, and she always says that you can't control when you fall in love with someone. I know I don't want a whirlwind high school romance. I have barely considered my future with anyone. I haven't dreamed about falling in love or settling down and getting married and having kids. My dreams are to focus on studying. I've always loved reading and writing so one day maybe to become a writer. I sigh as the bell rings through my ears telling me that I had to get a move on to my first-period class.
"You can't control who you fall in love with. Remember that", Angela said to me as she pulled me into a hug.
I pulled back and gave her a small smile and said goodbye as I walked towards the left wing building for algebra which was the worst subject in the world.
