Edward sat down on my other side and started quietly eating. This was odd... for him. He usually didn't notice me, much less eat lunch with all of us. He usually ate lunch with his friends from the school's basketball team. He was team captain for our tiny school's basketball team. Girls were usually hanging all over him, or trying to, at least. He tried to keep them away from him with no success. Everytime he pushed them away, they came back with more enthusiasm than before. It was actually sort of sickening to see it happening.
"So, Edward..." Alice started to say. "Why are you eating with us today? Don't you have somewhere to be? Like another table? With your basketball buddies or something?" Alice always hated the way Edward treated us, like we weren't alive. She still loved him to death because he was her brother, but she had a good reason to hate him the way she did.
"What? Am I not allowed to enjoy one lunch period with my family and friends? Or am I being shunned because of the fact that maybe didn't want to sit with my teammates, as you so kindly put it?" he snapped back.
"I never said that, Edward," she sneered his name like it was a bad word. "I was just asking why you were going to sit with us today"
"Oh. Sorry. I just felt like maybe I should sit with you guys today, since we never see each other a whole lot, you know"
No one answered him, so he decided on going back to chewing his food at looking away at nothing; probably staring off into space. He tended to do that a lot lately. Especially when I was in the same room as him. I also noticed that I had been paying a lot more attention to him lately and his habits of pushing away everyone who came near him except Emmett and Jasper. It was like he was trying to keep a secret away from everyone except his brother and best friend. It was really strange. And the fact that he sat right next to me was weird, too. Maybe I'm just making things up... or maybe I'm right.
"So, Edward... Bella told me about your little 'meeting' incident this morning." As soon as Alice said that, I immediately blushed the darkest shade of crimson you'll ever see. "Care to explain that, dear brother"
"I just didn't realize she was in my class, Alice. It's no big deal"
"You didn't see her even though she sits right next to you"
"Alice, drop it. He made a mistake. It's okay," I butted in.
"Whatever. I just find it amusing," she replied, chewing on her cheeseburger.
I sighed and took a big drink of my Coke as I looked around the cafeteria. I set down my soda and looked at Edward. He wasn't paying any attention to anything except his taco. It was almost like he was trying not to look in my direction. I didn't have a problem with that, but I felt like I needed him to look at me; like if he didn't, something was missing from me. I also felt the strange, sudden urge to reach out and touch him, to tousle that amazing bronze hair.
What's wrong with me? Stop, Bella, stop!
"So, Alice," he said. "How have you been lately?" He was really hesitant with his words, like he had to think them through very clearly before they came out of his mouth.
"Figures you wouldn't know," she mumbled to me while rolling her eyes. She put on the cheesiest smile I have ever seen in my life and looked straight at Edward. "I've been marvelous, Edward! Life is great for me... I've been keeping my grade point average as high as I possibly can, and I got a new pocket protector yesterday; that made my day just amazing. And I also"
"Okay, Alice, I get it! I obviously should learn to pay more attnetion to the world around me, huh? That's the point you're trying to get across, right? Well, I'm going to leave then, since no one here obviously wants to talk to me. See ya... or not." And with that, he stood up, turned around, and walked out the door to his next class.
"What was that for, Alice?! You couldn't be a little nicer to him? For goodness' sakes, learn to loosen up a little!" I stormed out of the cafeteria without even taking my tray. As I walked out the door, I turned around and saw Alice staring after me with a dumbfounded expression on her face. I saw Edward walking down the hallway with his hands in his pants pockets and ran after him. "Hey... are you okay?" I asked once I caught up to him and caught my breath.
"Yeah. I'm just sick of Alice always being so rude to me. Don't get me wrong, I love her as though she were my real, boilogical sister, but she can just get on my wrong nerve whenever she feels like it and I'm just so sick of it. I want her to realize that even though I'm not the best guy around, I do have feelings. I'm not just some rock that she can kick around all the time." By the time he finished his rant, we had stopped in the middle of the hallway and people were rushing around us.
"Wow, Edward, I'm so sorry. I had no idea"
"Bella, it's not your fault. Don't worry about it. I just needed to... vent... to someone. Do you know where Emmett is? I really need to talk to him," he said, changing the subject.
"Umm... I think he's still in the cafeteria. But I'm sure you don't want to go back there, huh"
"Not really. I guess I'll just talk to him after school, then. Later, Bella," he asked as he walked away.
I stared after him, watching his god-like figure sauntering off towards his next class.
What are you thinking, Bella?! He's your friend, nothing more. Stop, stop, stop!
But I still couldn't help but watch him as he walked away.