Chapter Four – My Personal Demons.

As I walked into the lunch hall I felt every eye upon me. I was really kicking myself for standing up to Gina; it couldn't have been worth the attention. I had vowed to fit in, had I not?

I tried my best to ignore everyone and joined the queue for hot food. The people stood in front and behind me seemed to shift nervously, uncomfortable with being stood near me. Thankfully, nobody talked to me, although I knew from reading their minds that they had all been talking about me.

I bought some spaghetti, a cup cake and a bottle of water and looked around for a place to sit. The hall was your standard school hall, different cliques sat at different tables, the odd person would throw food at a friend and everyone was chatting animatedly. Also, like most school halls, there seemed to be a lack of seats; every seat seemed to be filled. There were two spaces at Gina's table and four at the vampires. I guess people subconsciously don't feel comfortable around them. Ha!

I realised I was stood looking utterly foolish as I scanned the room for a seat. To my luck a group of four girls got up from their table and left. I quickly took a seat at their empty table and relaxed.

I ate my food slowly, cutting the spaghetti into small pieces before using a spoon to scoop it up. I couldn't help watching Josh's table out of the corner of my eye. How could they be so carefree and happy? I watched enviously, wishing that my life had turned out like that. It should have been, if it wasn't for my parents. There were seven of them sat at the table in total, all beautifully laughing in bliss. How is that fair?

Half of me wanted to go over and sit down with them, to tell them the truth about me and hope they would accept me. But, I didn't. I sat in isolated misery and focused on converting my sadness into anger for the people who had inflicted it upon me. My parents. Particularly, my mother.

When I was young, I still saw my parents as hero figures that would one day rescue me. I constantly questioned Mrs Roberts, the one person who had met my mother.

"What was my mum like?" I asked Mrs Roberts. She smiled at me sympathetically.

"She was beautiful, just like you. She had pale skin like yours and long red hair," she replied, as she always did. I smiled at the thought that I looked like mum, but wasn't satisfied with the answer; I wanted to know everything.

"Yes, but what was she like?" I asked eagerly. I wanted to know her favourite colour, if she laughed much, if she smiled like me. Everything.

"She was nice" she said hesitantly and I scowled. Why was she frowning as she said it? I felt myself getting angry at Mrs Roberts; she was lying to me, she must be. My mum must be more than just nice. Then the strangest thing happened. My anger seemed to swell inside of me into something alien yet comfortably familiar and I felt my shield around me pulsing out with my anger. It was the first time I had felt my shield, but I knew instantly that it had always been there. From pure instinct I pushed it until Mrs Roberts was captured inside it.

"Poor child, what am I suppose to say? That her mother didn't want her? That she told me that she could never love her? That she threatened to kill me if I didn't take her baby?" said Mrs Robert. But she didn't say it, she thought it.

I gasped and ran to my room, sitting against the door so nobody could get in. The truth, I finally knew the truth.

"Where are you mum?" I whispered, "Why didn't you love me?" Then the tears came fast and thick as my whole body shook uncontrollably. I felt like I was dying inside.

That was the last time I ever shed a tear because of my parents. They were no longer my heroes. I soon learnt to hate them.

In order to control my mind from replaying painful memories, I ate my spaghetti rhythmically, concentrating on cutting the pasta into equal size pieces. I soon glanced back at Josh, unable to resist watching him and his family enviously. Unfortunately, they were all staring right at me. I blushed but held their gaze.

Josh motioned for me to come over, but I shook my head and looked back down at my plate. I was annoyed that I had even considered going over to sit down next to them; they were vampires. They would hurt me.

I knew that he would probably approach me soon, so I left my dinner and fled.

I had two lessons after lunch, both of which I managed to scrape through vampire free, although, Jasper had been in one lesson. I had made up my mind that I would avoid the inevitable as long as possible, but, alas, they cornered me after school.

"Hi Alexis," said Josh nervously as his family surrounded me. I stretched my shield to enclose them, they were suspicious about me.

Suddenly I got a strange thought,

Whoa I can read her mind now! She's thinking about... how we are suspicious and... how I can read her mind! She's panicking, how can-

I snapped back my shield nervously; I never realised that they had a mind reader amongst them or that their powers worked whilst they were inside my shield.

"Who are you?" growled the boy who had been reading my mind. He was tall and beautiful with copper hair and the typical golden eyes which were currently flashing with emotions ranging from confusion to anger to pity, I could tell without reading his mind that he knew I was different. They all did.

I decided to pretend I knew nothing about them; it may make it easier.

"I'm Alexis, who are all you? And why have you surrounded me?" Josh glared at his family,

"Yeah, give her some space guys, there's no need to interrogate her."

The mind reader growled slightly.

"What are you?" he snapped. I looked at him in what I hoped was a confused face.

"What am I? What do you mean? I'm a girl..." I said sarcastically.

"No, I mean, you are not human." I snorted; this boy was pretty stupid to say that before being certain.

"Oh yeah, I'm a, I'm a Werewolf" I whispered looking around dramtically, as if it was a secret. I knew that they would know that I was not a werewolf, but I was not going to tell them the truth. The copper haired boy hissed and a brunette put a hand over his mouth,

"Sorry about him," she said, "I don't know what he's on about."

"So who are you all again?" I asked Josh.

"This is my family," explained Josh, clearly uncomfortable that they had been so unsubtle, "Rosalie," he said, referring to an amazingly gorgeous model like blonde, "Emmet" and I nodded to the muscled vampire guy Gina had been hitting on earlier. Josh introduced Alice and Jasper as a couple and they both grinned at me. I stared stonily back at them. Then he introduced the mind reader as Edward.

"And finally, this is Bella" said Josh. I inhaled sharply at the name; it was my mother's name. I glared accusingly at Bella. She had thick brown hair framing a heart shaped face with big eyes and full lips. She was looking at me with a softer gaze than the others, almost as if something about me made her comfortable. I felt my muscles relax; my mother had had red hair not brown and I doubt she had a soft gaze.

"Hi Bella, what's your last name?" I asked, just to be sure. Everyone seemed confused by my question.

"Errm, Culle-Swan. I mean Swan" she stuttered. I froze; I could not believe it. She was my mother, and she didn't even recognise me. The anger swelled up inside of me like a raging monster.

It was time to face my demons.

I brought back my fist and hit her with all the force I could muster.

A/N Thank you for everyoneeee interested in this story, all four of you :P haha.

I update quicker if you review. Hint Hint.

Susie xx