THANK YOU soooo much for all who reviewed. I want to stretch out the chapters and give them out daily, but i also wanted to thank you all and keep my promise about updating in the event i get reviews. SO...this isn't exactly a chapter...more like an intermission. It's three new POVs that really wont be mentioned again, but these characters are pretty much irrelevant and disjointed with everything with Mike Angela and Jess. One person suggested adding this first perspective and i typed it up not knowing if i'd put it out. Worth a try. And the last two are different people if it's confusing at all. Just a new way to see things--people who have never met the Cullens. I meant for it to be really short and sweet but it ended up being really long. If you skip thru it, you won't be missing anything important. Enjoy and review please!

MR. BANNER

I massaged my temples as I heard the pencils feverishly scratch the papers all around me. That's all I heard, day in and day out: scratch scratch. A chair squeals as it pulls out. Squeeeeee! A student drums his fingers on the desk in thought. Par-um. Par-um. A dirty sneaker taps the ground in anticipation. The browned laces pitter on the canvas soles: pink-thump. Pink-thump. I sighed and looked up, just as ready for the day to be over as they were.

The final tester was approaching my desk, and I slyfully thought about the rude awakening they'd all get. Normally, once the final test was turned in, the students were allowed to talk. I really didn't feel like allowing it this hour. The head ache pounded my head like a caged animal, rabid and fiercely tearing my brain tissue apart. My fingernails touched my temple, and seemed to tear through my head like knives. I flinched and set my hands down, cold with sweat.

The student that was last to turn it in was Dennan Iggles, and he certainly wasn't the brightest crayon in the box. He gave me a nod like we were old time buddies, and the class giggled. They were watching intently for the OK to talk. Dennan's dirty fingers slid the paper in the bin on my desk for incoming work, and I could see it was riddled with black penned scribbles and doodles in the margins. I frowned and didn't look up as he smiled at me, waiting for the holy words in the classroom: "You can talk now." He stuffed his hands in his huge pockets and his joking smile fainted into annoyance as he shuffled back to his seat. He leaned back, brushing the grimy dishwater-colored hair from his acne-scarred face.

I could feel the entire class's eyes plastered on me as I shuffled through some unimportant papers. It hurt to even move my eyeballs. I could hear the faint ticking of the clock behind me, each second like a huge book slamming on the floor. I clenched my fist as the headache didn't weaken despite the pills I'd taken.

"Mr. Banner?" came a voice, soft and unsure. It was Anna, and even though her voice was smooth and quiet, it was like a huge man was inches from my ear with a megaphone and screaming at the top of his fully developed lungs. I shuddered. My fingers dug into my chair. "Can we talk now?"

I shook my head, and the class hissed their disapproval and unfairness. They groaned, yet I didn't see why it was such a big deal to be quiet for five more minutes. So we sat in silence, and I was beginning to feel my headache go away. Then, the bell rang and made it come back ten-fold. My ear drums bounced around my head and my brain swelled. It felt like my skull was tightening and my eyes were bleeding. I moaned to myself as the class made more racket while leaving. Books were slammed shut and zippers yanked barbarously. I turned away to stare at the wall while they passed, but not before Edward Cullen walked by.

He was such an odd boy. It was students like him that I enjoyed teaching--he was like a sponge. He absorbed everything wonderfully. I would fully appreciate him as a student if it wasn't so flabberghasting. Had there ever been a student that never missed a question on a test and never stuttered when asked a question? Yes. Alice, Rosalie, Jasper and Emmett were the same. Dr. Cullen had to have tutored them or shown them some undiscovered trick to open their minds beyond average or something. In fact, I had Alice and Jasper in my next hour. I suppressed another agonized groan at the thought of sitting through another hour. How could I make this headache go away?

"When do you think we will be getting our tests back, Mr. Banner?" Edward asked. I was fully prepared for bulldozing pain when he opened his mouth to speak, but none came. I raised my eyebrows in surprise. I didn't want to answer him at all. I shrugged painfully, realizing that I felt better. Why was that? I frowned to myself and Edward smiled respectively at me. I touched my temple, and it felt softer and not like my skull was pressing hard against it with huge force.

"Well then, I will see you on Monday. Have a good weekend." I realized after he spoke the words that his voice was healing me...well, he was peaking so wonderully soft. I remember the first time I heard the Cullens speak to me and how beautiful their voices were. I'd asked Rosalie, I believed for the first time, some biology question, and I had to struggle to collect myself in front of the students at her wonderful voice. He left and new students were filing in. I watched Edward leave. What an odd boy. My head was clearing--did he really make me feel better with the velvetiness of his voice? That couldn't be possible. I wondered feverishly if his siblings could remove the rest that lingered. This was silly. Surely it was just the pills kicking in. Of course. What was I thinking--such soothing voices.

"Good afternoon, Mr. Banner." I stared up at Jasper, who had spoken, and Alice trailed behind. My jaw unhitched and hung open as the purity of his voice flowed through my ears, soothing them, and washing like waves inside my head. I saw swirls of blue and green, and I was breathing in long sighing exhales. I opened my eyes, and became suddenly embarrassed for day dreaming in front of Jasper. He was smirking it seemed, like he was satisfied with himself.

This was different than Edward…the feeling was totally gone and I felt like I'd just stepped out of a spa. I struggled to find words as Jasper smiled at me kindly and took his seat. What was this? The Cullens were odd, but really--what was this? It had to be the pills, right? I did take one extra than normal. I was getting a little loopy it seemed. Of course. I was thinking foolishness for believing the two Cullen boys were hypnotizing me with their voices. I had never really talked to them directly, so up close. It was an odd experience, that's for sure. Of course, that calming could not have been from two ordinary boys. That's all they were: ordinary boys with nice voices.

I busied myself by stacking some papers before the bell rang to begin. I stole a glance at Alice and Jasper. The class was talking and squawking at each other…and they were whispering silently to each other, their burnt gold eyes looking serene. Alice blinked her purple stained eyelids and smiled at Jasper…an odd couple, too. I wasn't one to judge the silly high-school hook ups, but the Cullen's relationships were by far different than making out behind a fast food restaurant. It seemed like they were old couples, together for a long, long time. I supposed I had heard talk of them growing together rather close; the Hales met the Cullen children as eight year olds. They must have began as playmates and became serious love interests. That was nice. I thought that those were a couple hook ups that would make it past graduation and perhaps last to marriage. They'd been together this long, right?

I stood up to begin class.

AT PORT ANGELES OUTLET MALL (betsy-ann)

I slammed my phone shut after angrily texting my sorry excuse for a boyfriend. My mother always told me that sadness could be cured with a couple bucks. I fished out a fifty and eyed my favorite store greedily. The air felt cool through my fishnet stockings. My heels clanked the tiles rhythmically and to satisfactory. Sounded like the mall. I loved the smell of the smoothies, the perfume, the pretzels. I loved the sight of clothes lit with colored lights and neon store names. And the guys.

The thought hit me like a wrecking ball…for I saw the three most beautiful men in the whole world at that second. I nearly tripped on a tile crack, actually--my high heel wedged in the deep crack. I gasped and flushed, yet I couldn't even blink. I hadn't even looked down to unary myself. If I'd fallen and was bleeding in gushers, I'd still be looking at them. I had to have one.

The first was huge and had a tight shirt on, making his muscles look perfect. I wanted to hug his firm arms. His hair was dark and his features perfect and friendly, yet undeniably god like and delicious.

The next was bronze haired and smaller looking, but only compared to the huge football star. He looked intelligent, he had a white button up on which was rolled to the elbows, showing his pale perfect muscles.

The final had wavy blonde hair and was in the middle build-wise with the others. He looked a little worried, and I suddenly thought lustfully that it was because so many girls were looking at him and his friends. His arms swung, every limb long and lithe…so was his body.

I swung around at a pillar with a mirror mercifully on it. I fluffed at my hair: it was bleach blonde with black streaks shot through and one chunky purple strand. My glittering green eyes looked back at me fiendishly, surrounded by purple eyeshade. I dropped a couple pennies and didn't bother to pick them up when I ripped out my lip gloss and slid it on. I checked my outfit: pink tank with a denim miniskirt and green fishnets. I looked sassy and sophisticated. I smiled and darted out to where the guys had been walking. I gasped. I'd only been two seconds, and already they'd gone.

***

(georgia)

I worked long hard shifts at the make up counter, sprayed old ladies with perfume and caking smelly make up on their botoxed faces, all the while smiling just as falsely. It was a day like any other when I did something totally out of character--screamed at a customer to come over. Usually it was their choice in the first place. You didn't just yell at random people, and yet, that it just what I did.

"Gentlemen! Care for.." What would guys every do at a make up counter? Stock up on blush? Panicked, I snatched a guy cologne on the opposing counter--not my station, and held it up while the worker there whined at me. "…cologne?"

The guys were still many feet from me, yet my heart both broke and sang from afar when they smiled and shook their heads, changing course. I'd seen angels at the mall. I sighed dreamily as the other female worker pried her scent from my fingers.

***