The cool air brushed against my face as I stared up at the night sky. The stars were barely visible to the naked eye as they were blinded by the city lights. I gave out an exhausted sigh before sitting down on the lonely chair on my balcony. Homesickness hit me like a train as I sat there watching cars go by. I missed the sound of the wind rustling through the trees. Hearing distant crickets chirping their symphony.
"Should I go back?" I muttered to myself.
A tired laugh left my lips as I leaned further back in my chair.
"I can't give up just yet." My mind went through a checklist of things I still have to do before I can think about going back.
I need to apply to a different job and hopefully, I can find one that pays a little more. I also need to finish a project I have for one of my classes. A headache started to form just thinking about how I had to find a new place to stay since the lease was ending soon. Time and money were what I'm lacking the most given that I was a 21-year-old trying to get through college along with my two little siblings I have to take care of.
"Life is hard," I muttered, closing my eyes.
I slowly started to drift off, only waking up to feel my head hit against something. My mind was sluggish, trying to wake up as I rubbed my forehead. Confused and half awake, I glanced around, trying to figure out what was going on. I instantly froze seeing fluffy clouds floating by the window, making me realize I wasn't on my balcony. Rows of seats and passengers filled my vision when I whipped my head around from the window. My toes started to tingle, and my heart started to race as I fully realized I was on an airplane. In the reflection of the window, a girl I had never seen before looked pale and sick, mirroring how I felt. Leaning back into the seat, I closed my eyes, hoping I would wake up.
'This has to be a dream. This is a dream. I just have to wake up." I thought to myself over and over again as I sat there, closing my eyes. But every time I open my eyes, I would still be sitting here inside the plane. My breathing sped up as I leaned over to hug my knees, trying to calm myself down before I had a panic attack. The thought of being thousands of feet above ground made my stomach lurch as my legs began to shake. Fear squeezed tightly in my chest making me want to throw up as I tried to calm my breathing. It took a few minutes of me trying not to gag as I blindly reached out to close the curtain to the window to block the floating clouds. I slowly got up feeling my stomach lurch even more with every movement. A well-worn backpack got caught on my foot, almost making me trip before I caught myself on the empty seat next to me. Looking at the bag I decided to take it with me as I stumbled my way to the bathroom.
Bursting the door open I tossed my bag to the side and rushed to the toilet. After emptying the contents of my stomach I dragged myself up towards the sink to splash water on my face. As soon as I came face to face with the mirror I froze. In a daze, I wondered if I died or if I'm in a coma, as I stared at the unfamiliar girl in the mirror. I was fully expecting to see myself when I looked into the mirror but it wasn't me. The girl on the other side of the mirror had dark brown eyes that were panicked and tired. She was dressed in a dark brown t-shirt with a big brown jacket over it, slightly unzipped paired with some jeans. I pinched my hand hard enough to leave a mark, hoping it would wake me but all that left me was a sore hand and disappointment.
"I shouldn't be here." I gasped and clamped my hands over my mouth. Even my voice wasn't the same. Tears bubbled up as I stood there staring at the mirror hoping that all of this was a dream. I smacked my cheeks hoping it would clear my head to think. Spotting the backpack that I haphazardly threw on the floor, led to me digging through it furiously, trying to find anything to let me know that was happening, or to find a way to get out of here. I found a passport that looked like it belonged to the girl whose body I'm inhabiting.
"Isabella Swan." I hesitantly read out loud, looking at the picture of her that matched the girl in the reflection. My mind raced as the name brought back memories of middle school.
"Birthday September 17, 1987. Issued November 08, 2004." I sat there on the floor, confusion filled me as I stared down at the passport. Questions raced through my mind the longer I stared down at the passport.
"Why would a person hold on to a passport from 2004?" Looking down at Isabella in the picture, and you can tell she was uncomfortable taking the photo with her flushed cheeks and grimace. I expected her to look younger in the photo since it was from 2004 but she looks the same as the girl in the mirror. More questions poured through my mind wondering if I went back in time.
Turning away, I dug further into her bag, retrieving an airplane ticket.
"Destination Forks, Washington. Arrival time is 8:00 pm January 17th, 2005." My eyes widened as my stomach sank when I slowly realized who I was.
The pieces came together on why I was on an airplane, why the passport said 2004, and who I was.
It finally made sense why I was on an airplane in the first place. I was the one and only Isabella Swan from Twilight. The book series that I haven't read since middle school when I went through my Twilight phase. There's no way that this is real. I have to be dreaming. You don't just wake up in another world unless you're an anime protagonist. Panic surged through me remembering my siblings at home.
'I need to go back. I have too many responsibilities. I can't be here. I shouldn't be here. Why am I here? Where is the real Isabella? Did she go in my body? Is she taking care of my siblings? How did we switch? I need to go home.'
With new determination I continued to dig through Isabella's backpack. There wasn't anything useful apart from her wallet and plane ticket. It was filled with a book, an iPod, and miscellaneous things. Patting down her jacket pockets, I found a Nokia cellphone that brought back memories of my childhood. I fumbled to turn it on vaguely remembering how to work it to see it was 6:57 pm on January 17th, 2005. It was a shock to see it was a completely different time and date confirming that I wasn't where I should be. I stared down at Isabella's phone, knowing that I couldn't just Google 'what to do when trapped in a novel.' Plus, I don't think her phone can load up google in the first place. There wasn't anything I could do in this situation to figure out how to wake up in my world. Frustrated, I shoved her phone back into her jacket pockets.
Who can I even contact in a time like this? It's not like I can explain the situation. 'Oh hey sorry but I'm stuck in a teenage love story about vampires, could you help me out?' Who would believe that nonsense? Certainly not any sane person plus I was holding on to hope that I was in a dream. Do I just go up to people and say it's a dream time to wake up? Was there a chance that I would even wake up? Maybe if the day ends I'll wake up?
"I have to wake up," I closed my eyes clutching my knees hoping I would somehow wake up back on the balcony. I have too many things to do at home. I can't be here.
Knock knock knock
I froze terrified before I slowly turned my head towards the door. Slowly I became aware that Isabella's things were all over the floor along with my dignity seeing that I was hunched over crying.
"Are you done yet?" Someone called through the bathroom door, reminding me that I wasn't in a place to be having a mental breakdown.
"Yes, I'll be right out," I called out meekly, wiping away my tears.
Quickly I dumped all of Isabella's things back in her bag as I slowly stood up. Isabella mirrored me standing up to meet my eyes looking haggard from crying. I quickly turned away feeling sick to my stomach. Hesitantly I opened the door, wishing inside my head that I would just wake up from this awful dream. A lady was waiting, tapping her foot impatiently glaring at me before it turned to sympathy. I muttered an apology as I shuffled out keeping my head down not wanting to meet anyone's eyes.
"It's okay, first flights are always hard," She said reassuringly as I moved out of the way.
Back at my seat, I leaned back in my seat, telling myself that I would not get involved with the plot. Under no circumstances should I get involved with sparkly vampires. I just need to figure out how to get out of here. I have to go back home.
"When was this nightmare going to end?" I said to myself as the flight attendant started giving everyone instructions on exiting the plane.
I had some hope this dream would end when the flight ended but I was wrong. My anxiety picked up as I got off the airplane and stood by the baggage pick-up. I felt like everyone was staring at me waiting for me to mess up. Squinting, I found Isabella's surprisingly heavy luggage before quickly making my way towards the entrance. Oddly enough, the sound of the rain hitting the windows gave me some comfort in my moment of panic.
"Hey, Bells," A voice called out from behind me. I turned around to see a slightly built man with a mustache.
"It's good to see you," the man said, coming in for a hug that I awkwardly accepted, making him chuckle.
"You haven't changed much. How's Renee doing?" He asked me while grunting, picking up my luggage.
"Um, she's fine. It's good to see you too." I answered timidly as we walked to his police cruiser. I knew after seeing him it was probably Charlie Swan, Isabella's dad. I felt bad for Charlie having to finally have his daughter live with him only to be a stranger in her steed.
"I got a car for you, really cheap," Charlie announced as we settled down inside the car.
"Oh, you didn't have to do that," I said, fiddling with my hands as my thoughts raced.
My heart started pounding out of my chest trying to come up with excuses to not drive. Isabella may have gotten her license but I was a 21-year-old who didn't have their license yet. I mostly took the bus so there wasn't ever a need to learn along with the fact I didn't have the money for a car. It would be weird if Isabella suddenly forgot how to drive all of the sudden. I fiddled with the jacket zipper trying to calm down. I didn't want another panic attack with Charlie here.
"Do you remember Billy Black down in La Push?" Charlie asked, peeking over towards me.
"Not really?" Memories of the books and movies flashed by.
He raised an eyebrow then continued explaining who Billy Black is.
"He's in a wheelchair now and offered to sell me his truck for cheap."
"That's too much for me to accept," I said quickly, hoping he would drop the topic.
"Hey, I don't mind. I just want you to be happy here." Charlie said warmly with a side glance as we drove.
"I don't think I need the truck on my first day," I said, trying to come up with an excuse not to drive.
"Well, the thing is, I already kinda bought it for you as a homecoming gift." He said sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck. My stomach flipped when I realized that any excuse I used wouldn't work.
"It was very thoughtful, thank you," I said, forcing a smile. The car grew quiet as we continued our drive.
Charlie continued to make conversation here and there on the drive before I asked to turn on the radio. The music that played was a nostalgic walk down memory lane for me, further reminding me that I was back in the early 2000s. Looking out the window, trees and greenery were everywhere, reminding me of my hometown. I wonder if I was trapped within my memories seeing how I was homesick before I fell asleep. That would explain why I was dreaming about Twilight.
When we pulled up to the house, you could see the iconic red truck sitting outside. Getting out of the cruiser I could see that it had better days with the chipped paint and rust. It reminded me of my grandpa's old truck that I only got to ride inside once before the entire thing broke down. I can see the charm of having a vintage truck but I wasn't the type of person to keep up maintenance that it needs.
"Do you like it?" Charlie asked, patting the back of the truck.
"Yeah, it's great," I gave him a small smile as I looked at the truck.
"I'm glad you like it." His cheeks slightly tinged pink before he quickly grabbed my luggage and headed inside.
Taking one last look at the truck, I walked inside the house. It was a cozy two-story house with a living room and kitchen on the first floor. Pictures hung on the walls of young Isabella and what looks like her family. If this were Isabella, she would probably be feeling nostalgic walking through the house. But, on the other hand, I felt like I was just a stranger intruding on someone's life. Following Charlie upstairs, I saw that both of our rooms were here, along with the only bathroom in the house. Isabella's room was painted a light blue, matching the dark hardwood floor and queen-size bed. A desk sat by the window that had an ancient-looking computer I haven't seen in years.
Charlie put my hefty luggage by the bed before wiping away his sweat. There was a slight moment of silence as we both glanced around the room.
"I uh haven't changed your room since you left," I glanced over to see him rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly.
"We can change it if you don't like it," He quickly added, looking at the childish decorations on the wall.
"No no it's fine we can change it later," I reassured him. It's not like it's my room to change in the first place.
"Well, I'll leave you to unpack, remember you have school tomorrow," Charlie gave a nod before leaving.
As soon as the door clicked behind him, I collapsed on the bed, finally taking in everything that was happening.
'How the fuck did I end up here.'
I was just a regular person trying to make it through life. Why would I wake up as Isabella Swan? What happened to cause this? Different questions raced through my mind only to be met with question marks to all of them. Letting out a big sigh I sat up slowly and started to make my way towards Isabella's luggage. I mindlessly started to unpack, hoping that some magical thing might happen to take me back. It felt strange going through her things, so I tried to pretend that I was just helping a friend unpack.
Doing this started to paint a picture of who Isabella Swan was before I came. She was a very reliable person seeing her notebook book filled with budget plans that span for months. Finding little of what makeup she had it seemed she had a fondness for brown tones. One of her suitcases was filled with books that reminded me why I loved Isabella when I was younger. I wasn't into classic romance like Isabella but I very much had a fondness for books. My shelves at home were filled to the brim along with books I had collected from middle school. The day me and my siblings left those were the only things that I was stubborn enough to take with us when we left. Going through my shelves you could see the phases of interests I had throughout the years. The Twilight books were among them when I went through that fad in middle school when New Moon came out. It was my greatest pleasure being able to go and re-read stories I already finished. Sighing I started putting Isabella's books away on her empty shelves.
Isabella also had pictures of her mom and presumably the man she married, I forgot what his name was. It's petty of me to say that I was jealous of Isabella. She had loving parents that would do anything for her. Meanwhile, I was stuck with shitty parents that didn't care about me. I was stuck being the oldest sibling that had to do everything for the family. I didn't have someone like Charlie to give me a truck that was an unattainable dream for my own dad to do. I had to work for everything and never got a chance to breathe.
I wonder if she woke up in my body in my world. It must have been weird for a 17-year-old to wake up in my body. Jace and Emily should have told her that I need to go to work and drop them off at school. Hopefully she's smart enough to look through my laptop to see the project that was due on the 19th. I thought back to when I first woke up here, and there wasn't anything to give me a signal about where the real Isabella went. It was so instant that I didn't give time to think about what could've happened to her. There's no way I could have died because if I did, then where is Isabella's soul? There has to be someone who knows what's going on since there are vampires and werewolves. Or maybe I was having an elaborate dream, and I would wake up.
Will I wake up tomorrow and be home in my apartment?
Looking at the time, it was right before midnight, showing that I've been here for 5 hours. I laid down snuggling with the blankets and pillows, shutting my eyes as tight as possible. 'Go to sleep. Go to sleep.' I chanted in my mind hoping that I'll just wake up in the real world.