"Nice to meet you Bella. I'm Edward." I looked at him and the first thing I saw was his eyes. They were gold with little hints of green floating in them. He was beautiful.
"Hi." I replied. My voice a little shaky.
He smiled, actually it was more of a cocky grin. "We met in the office. At the door?" My eyes widened and I blushed.
"Oh. Sorry." I squeaked out.
"It's no big deal, everyone has to get somewhere. Let's just forget about it. So you're Jasper's sister? I've never heard about you before." Edward looked at Jasper and raised his eyebrow before returning his gaze back to me.
"Well, you'd have to ask Jasper about that part. I'm afraid I may bump into you more than once, just a warning but I am a little clumsy on my feet." I said looking at him as my face heated up in embarrassment.
"I won't mind catching you if you fall again Bella." He smirked at me before turning to Jasper.
"You and Bella should come over and hang out after school one day. Em and Rose will come too." Edward suggested to us.
"What about Alice?" I asked.
Alice's laugh bubbled up before she answered me, "Edward is my brother, and you'd be at my house too. You're always welcome though so don't wait for just Edward's invitation!"
Oh, that was new information. I looked between Alice and Edward trying to see the family resemblance but the only real similarity was their eyes. They were both gold with flakes of other colors in their depth. Green flakes of color were in Edward's and brown flakes were in Alice's eyes. I had never seen anyone with gold eyes before these siblings. They were interesting people, Alice having told me that we were going to be friends the moment she met me and Edward with his cocky but friendly behavior towards someone he should have just ignored.
It was all so strange to me. Having someone lie to make my life more comfortable and keep the personal questions to a minimum, having my own room, the potential to make real friends, all things I never had the opportunity to have before. I was overwhelmed.
Looking at Alice I just smiled and said, "Thanks Alice, do you want to head to Trig now?"
She looked around and then agreed to go, she said her goodbyes to Jasper, Edward, and to the two people I had yet to be introduced to. I almost felt bad for not introducing myself personally to them, but they didn't make an effort to introduce themselves either. Alice linked arms with me as she navigated us to class, she kept my mind off of all of the stares I was getting from other students. Having Alice chatter instead of wishing there would be a hole in the middle of the hall that would swallow me up was a good change of pace.
She dragged me into the classroom and then to the back corner explaining to me that it was the place where we would be the least bothered by the teachers and the less than intelligent students who we were also in class with. She warned me about a few people to avoid as much as possible in school, Mike Newton, Lauren Mallory, and Jessica Stanley. Mike was apparently girl obsessed and looking for a new hookup at all times. Lauren was stuck up and a possessive and aggravating girl. Finally, Jessica was just a gossip who relied on looks and gossip to get her through school and life rather than intelligence or effort.
I was really thankful for Alice, because the second a tall blonde boy walked into the room and almost locked me in as a target, I knew it was Mike. He had a determined look on his face as he walked over, and when he was close enough he tried to change his expression into a sultry smile, but it didn't have the desired effect because I started laughing instead of swooning. Alice elbowed me lightly and I sobered up before he fully reached our table.
"Hey, you're the new girl right? Where are you from? Do you need help finding any of your classes?" He asked me.
"Yeah, I'm the new girl and I am capable of doing things on my own thanks." I looked at him with a less than pleased expression. Seriously? This guy didn't even introduce himself to me, just jumped right in with the invading questions. If that was his way of flirting it was no wonder he was desperate.
"Oh. No I didn't mean that you weren't capable. I just wanted… you know to see if you needed any help. Since it's your first day and I didn't know if you knew anybody. Oh yeah- I'm Mike by the way. Mike Newton. If you need any help, uhm just ask." He looked around nervously, probably trying to find the best exit plan from our conversation before it reached a further level of awkwardness.
"I'm Bella, and thanks for the offer but I don't think I'll need to take you up on it." I looked over at Alice and I could see that she was silently laughing. She was enjoying the discomfort that Mike was feeling over being turned away. Mike just turned around and found a seat at almost the furthest desk away from us.
Alice's giggles surpassed silent the moment he sat down in his chair.
"That was priceless, I can't wait to tell the guys about that." She looked at me with a wide smile and then said, "If they had any doubt that you would be a permanent fixture in our group they will be put in their place after this. God, the way you put him in his place was beautiful Bella."
I shifted a little bit in my seat, uncomfortable. She said 'permanent fixture' as in 'permanent' which seems like she believes that I would be staying in Forks for a long time. I didn't know how to break it to her that I would eventually have to go to my twenty second home. It was inevitable, fate if you would.
"Alice, you know I would love it if this was permanent. But it isn't, and I don't want you to get your hopes up only to be crushed when I get the letter that includes the address for my next home. I don't get the luxury of being a permanent fixture. But I'll always stay in contact with you, even when I'm not allowed to stay anymore." I whispered and stared at the desk, not wanting to see any of the emotions that might have been on her face.
"Bella, do you not like it here? Mary and Harold would love if you stayed, and Jasper really does feel like a protective older brother to you. You really are my friend too, please stay here with us." Alice grabbed my hand.
"It's not my choice. I don't get a choice Alice. If I was able to choose I would have been adopted into a loving family, or my mom would have loved me, or my dad would have found me, if I was able to choose I would be able to have someone to fight for me. I'm not allowed to choose, and pretending that I can makes it harder. When they see that I'm not the best fit for them, or someone else needs them more than I do- I'll be going to a new house. I only have a few left, there are only two years left until I am on my own." Tears welled in my eyes and I berated myself for starting to talk about this subject while waiting for class to start.
"You think they'll throw you out?" She whispered horrified.
"When they don't want me anymore, yes. I don't belong anywhere, to anyone. It's happened many times before so it's not a surprise anymore. You just pick up the bags and you walk into the next part of your life."
"Oh Bella, how wrong you are. You belong here, I can feel it. You belong with us, with Jasper's family." Alice squeezed my hand.
I was about to reply, but the teacher chose that moment to walk in and start class. Trigonometry was boring, and math was one of my worse subjects. Besides the fact that I was already preoccupied with the kind words Alice had spoken right before class didn't help my concentration either. The only thing I could think of were the phrases, 'You belong here' and 'You belong with us'. They were words that no one had spoken to me before.
The bell rang, signaling the end of class. Students stood up and soon there was a flurry of movement as people attempted to move towards their next class. I knew I had English next and Alice had a class in the same hall, so we walked their together in a silence. It wasn't awkward, but it was contemplative. We were both thinking about our previous conversation.
I sat down alone in my desk during English. I waited for class to start and just looked out the window. It had started to lightly rain and the raindrops raced down the window and hit each other on their paths to the ground. I looked past the rain and into the trees surrounding the school, the greenery blurred into just green. It made it easier to just think. Think about how everything would fall apart, and seeing as how I could see myself become happy and content here, I knew it would fall apart soon. I was a foster kid, I didn't belong anywhere. I didn't belong with my own family, let alone in someone else's.
Soon Jasper will get tired of being asked about me, his new 'sister', Soon Alice will get tired of being my friend. Soon Mary will get tired of me being in her house, or not doing something right. Soon everyone will know that I really don't belong. I made up my mind to make sure my bags were close to my dresser so I could pack quickly and efficiently when the time came. I know that when I have to leave Forks, my heart will probably be broken. I have fallen in love with the dream life I could have in Forks which just means I will shatter when it falls apart and I wake up.
English came and went quickly, as did my other classes up until lunch. I had butterflies in my stomach about where to sit in the cafeteria. Would Jasper and Alice let me sit with them, or would I have to find somewhere else to sit. Should I just go to the library instead of the cafeteria to avoid the whole situation. What if Alice was upset at what I said and didn't want to talk to me, or Jasper was annoyed at the questions he might have been asked about me.
My stomach growled and made my decision for me. I walked into the cafeteria and into the lunch line, not wanting to look around at all of the people in the room. I would just get lunch and then go to the library to eat it. I noticed that the line had become shorter, so I moved up and while doing so looked around the room.
Alice and Jasper were sitting at the table closest to the windows, the two people I hadn't been introduced to earlier in the day were sitting with them, along with Edward. Jasper noticed my glance to the table and waved me over. I blushed and then looked at my feet, embarrassed to be caught looking. I felt like I looked desperate, which I guess I was.
I finally got a tray and filled it with an apple, a sandwich, and a lemonade. After I paid and turned around to walk towards the doors that would lead me to the library, a seemingly familiar chest stood in my way. As I looked up, I saw those enchantingly strange gold eyes once more. Edward smirked down at me, like I was the prey he just caught and he was about to show the whole world the trophy he won.
"Come sit with us." He ordered me.
"I don't take orders from strangers." I raised one eyebrow at him, daring him to rebut.
"I'd say your blush and my shirt have had a lot of contact today- so that means we are hardly strangers. Come on, I'll introduce you to Emmett and Rosalie." He took my tray from my hands, and then subsequently took my choice away from me as well. I wasn't about to let my food go to waste.
He placed my tray in-between Alice and himself. I didn't even get to choose where to sit. Edward had another thing coming if he thought he could start making all of my decisions for me. I wasn't going to play anyone else's games.
"Emmett this is Bella, Jasper's sister. Bella that's Emmett, a big buff teddy bear." Edward said while pointing to one of the largest guys I had ever seen. He looked as if he was made to play for professional football teams and I would have been intimidated by him if it wasn't for the gleeful childish look on his face.
"Hi Bella! I'm Emmett, it's nice to meet you!" He introduced himself to me while reaching his hand towards mine to shake. I smiled and shook his hand.
"Bella next to Emmett is Rosalie, Emmett's girlfriend."
"Hi Rosalie, it's nice to meet you." I smiled at her, hoping for a somewhat nice response.
She just looked at me blankly and then scowled slightly. I shrunk back into myself slightly. She gave me a look like I didn't belong at the table, or even anywhere near her. Like I didn't already know that. I turned my gaze away from her icy features and instead focused on the tray of food in front of me. I ate half of my sandwich and just listened to the conversations around me. No one really asked me any questions so I was free to eat and not worry about anything. It was comfortable, sitting at the table and being able to smile and laugh at jokes that everyone said.
It made me wish I really belonged.
Hello again! Please review, favorite, alert, recommend, or whatever you heart desires.
Thank you for reading!