Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight! No matter how much I wish I did, it all belongs to the incredible Stephenie Meyer!!
Chapter 3:
The rest of the morning passed uneventfully. I went to English class, followed by Calculus. Even with Edward seated beside me, commenting softly on the thoughts of our fellow classmates, High School was insufferably tedious the second time round. I was surprised to find that Calculus, which had once presented a challenge, was now extremely simple. I wasn't sure if it was merely because I had already done it, or if my sharper, vampire mind was the answer, but all of a sudden calculus made sense.
When I was bored with listening to the average worries and problems of the rest of the students-which was frequently- I would ask Edward for a detailed account of how Renesme was doing in her own classes. Edward reassured me numerous times that she was fine and even making some friends but I still worried about her. Although my daughter was as mature as any sixteen year old physically, and she was more competent mentally than most humans, to me she was still my baby. The thing that worried me the most however, was the fact that she could unconsciously slip and accidentally expose us all for what we really are. My entire family was positive that she was more than capable of keeping our secret; I was the only one with the doubts-though I hid them carefully from her. Edward and I walked down the hallway hand in hand, ignoring the excited whispers and fascinated stares. I thought back to this morning, smiling slightly at the recent memory, when I had drilled Renesme relentlessly about our story.
"Nessie just one more time, please" I begged, as we climbed into the back seat of the suburban.
"Oh fine!" she huffed, buckling her seat belt with a sharp click.
"Daddy, Uncle Emmett and…" she trailed off uncertainly as she looked at my face. I glared at her pointedly, raising my eyebrows, waiting for her to realize her mistake. She rolled her eyes; looking so much like Edward it was almost comical, before continuing.
"Edward, Emmett, Alice and I are all adopted by Gran-Carlise and Esme." She recited in a dead, monotone voice, emphasizing the names.
I nodded, silently encouraging her to carry on.
"I am Edward's younger sister," she continued in the same dead tone. We had decided the resemblance between her and Edward was too distinct to hide.
"Rosalie and Jasper Hale are twins under the foster care of Carlisle and Esme, and Jacob is simply a family friend who is staying with us." She took a deep breath, before glancing up at me.
"And you momma, are the daughter of Esme's best friend, who is currently staying with our family, because your parents are going through a divorce and things are hard at home. But you are still considered part of the family." She finished with a small smile.
"Good job honey!," I murmured, my mind elsewhere, "Now when you tell people the story, try and sound convincing, not bored!" She grinned before turning to stare at the overcast sky. I suppose I could have pretended to be a foster child with Rose and Jasper but I just couldn't. When Esme had asked what my story would be I hadn't exactly known what we would say, but I knew for certain that we could not tell everyone my parents were dead. I kept my reasoning behind this decision from everyone, including Edward. I had an irrational feeling that even I could not quite fully understand, but I was certain that by even implying that my parents were dead or ill, I would only be tempting fate.
I sighed as the usual lunchroom clamor pulled me swiftly from my thoughts. Edward and I wove our way through the crowded cafeteria angling toward the winding line, taking care not to brush anyone accidentally. We wanted people to be comfortable with us before they could have any reason for suspicion, and accidentally touching our pale, frigid skin would not help matters progress in that direction. We filled our lunch trays with food; the smell of the cheese and grease from my pizza was mildly repulsive. As we walked slowly, desperate to appear normal, towards an empty table on the far side of the cafeteria, I saw our daughter enter the swarming lunchroom surrounded by a large group of freshmen. I smiled happily at Edward, as we sat down beside one another at our unoccupied table. I was thrilled to see the proof of what Edward had been constantly telling me all morning. Our daughter was making friends, she was blending in seamlessly. Edward chuckled suddenly, his eyes flicking towards the food line across the room. I followed his gaze, searching for the cause of his sudden amusement. I spotted Renesme leaving the long line with her new friends. My eyes narrowed as they focused on the large piece of chocolate cake, the sole item balanced precariously on her bright red, plastic tray. I sighed heavily. Well I guess I hadn't specified what kind of food she had to eat. I rolled my eyes, turning to face Edward again. His golden eyes danced, as he stared at our daughter, his full lips pressed tightly together to hide his smile.
"Kids will be kids," he defended her. "I guess even immortal ones." He could not stand it any longer, as he burst out laughing, earning us a few more stares.
"Yeah, I guess even the immortal ones." I agreed, smiling slightly. I opened my soda although I had no intentions of drinking it, unless…
"Hey, Edward," I asked, a thought suddenly occurring to me, "What happens when we eat food?"
"You have to get it out of your system."
"How do you do that?"
"You have to, uh, force it back up." He said seriously, although there was something different in his eyes, something I had never seen there before. It was amused but somehow testing, as though his topaz gaze was somehow challenging me. I had to admit though, the whole forcing it back up thing, did not exactly sound pleasant.
"Maybe another time," I murmured meeting his golden stare. He flashed my favourite crooked smile, his whole face lighting up. I started to smile back, but in that instant everything changed. I felt Edward stiffen beside me, become a marble statue, as his smile slid off his face. His hands balled into tight fists, the tendons standing out against his pale skin, his chin tilted defiantly toward something behind me. I couldn't see his face, although his whole body tensed, almost as though he was preparing to fight. His flawless lips pulled back over his gleaming teeth as a low snarl escaped through his usual perfect control. I froze involuntarily, me eyes darting frantically around the room, hunting for anything that could prove threatening to us.
"Edward what is it?" I murmured, much too low for human ears. I automatically released my shield, bending the invisible elastic band around Edward's body, before stretching it across the room to envelop Renesme's small form. I relaxed slightly as I felt their two bright lights beneath my shield.
"Edward?" I whispered, resting my hand on his marble arm. He looked up at me, an anguished expression on his angel face, his golden eyes uncharacteristically hostile.
"Edward, what's wrong?!" I asked worriedly, struggling to keep my voice low. I could see Renesme across the room laughing with her friends, completely unaware of what was going on. Then again, I didn't really know what was going on. I stared at him anxiously, waiting for him to relax his position while my sharp mind tried to guess what could have happened, or perhaps even worse, who was hurt. Was it Jacob, Esme, or, I forced myself to think the name, Alice? My panic became more and more pronounced as his anguished silence dragged on. I could see the effort it cost him just to unclench his jaw.
"Them," he growled, spitting out the word, "Them. And their thoughts."
"Who?" I asked puzzled. What could someone possibly be thinking about that would cause Edward to react this way. He didn't answer, however he continued to glare at something-or someone-over my shoulder, so I figured the offender must be in that direction. I turned around completely, scanning the crowd. It didn't take me long to find who I thought I was looking for.
"Them?" I asked, tilting my head slightly towards a group of human boys seated at a table in the opposite corner of the cafeteria. He nodded once, his eyes dangerous. I studied the group closely, memorizing each young face. They were all laughing and smirking, throwing casual glances over their shoulders at us and Renesme's cluster of friends. I couldn't find anything particular about them except for the fact that the group was mainly comprised of seniors. They didn't appear any different than the other students who were looking curiously at us.
"What about them?" I said, unable to believe that they were the ones upsetting Edward. Okay, maybe upsetting was too light a word. He was absolutely livid, his glare murderous.
"They're thinking about you." He grimaced, before flinching slightly. "You and Nessie."
"Huh. Well maybe they're curious?" I reasoned. He shook his head stiffly.
"Well you know, they haven't seen Alice or Rosalie yet so they'll stop thinking about me as soon as they come in." I said, trying to lift his mood.
I was pleased to see that my words seemed to affect him somewhat. His fists loosened, the tension fading from his face, as his whole body relaxed.
"You know you don't see yourself clearly." He murmured, his golden eyes smoldering once more. I sighed heavily; this was an old argument we had had numerous times. I took his smooth hand in mine, delighting in the warmth-well it felt warm to me.
"Aren't you up for some competition?" I asked playfully. He knew better than to take me seriously; my need for him was no secret.
"I had no problem with them up until a few minutes ago. They were simply thinking the same thing as every other male in this room."
I raised my eyebrows questioningly. What was every other male thinking about?
"About you and Renesme obviously." He answered my unspoken question, rolling his eyes. A small smile toyed at the corners of his mouth, his topaz eyes teasing.
"Why is it my daughter and wife have to be the most beautiful creatures on earth? I shouldn't really even be upset that they all desire you Bella, since I feel no different. "
"I understand your opinion of Renesme, but towards me you are strictly biased." I muttered. If I was still human I would have blushed. He shook his head exasperatedly, and opened his mouth to say something. I was pretty sure I knew he was going to recite the whole "Don't see yourself clearly" speech again, so I rushed to change the topic.
"Why did their thoughts only start to aggravate you a few minutes ago?" I asked, hoping to distract him. It worked, though not quite how I had planned. His face darkened, his lips pressed together in a firm line. All of a sudden I was pretty sure I didn't want to know the answer to my question.
"Why don't we set them straight?" I said mischievously. His golden eyes looked up at me in confusion. I grinned as I leaned in towards him, planting my lips firmly on his. I reached up to entwine my free hand in his hair, pulling my body closer. I could not enjoy the kiss completely, instead I had to remain focused on where we were, otherwise I would soon find myself going a lot farther than I had intended in the middle of the cafeteria. Almost immediately Edward pulled away, and I was startled to see his face murderous once more.
"Not helping," he said through tight lips.
"Oh," I looked over towards the group of boys, before quickly turning away, trying unsuccessfully to avoid their jeering smiles, and obscene gestures.
"How about we go finish our lunch somewhere else?" I suggested, "They won't bother Nessie, will they?"
"No, they will leave her alone. They just see her as a freshman." I nodded reassured. We gathered our food and walked toward the garbage can. I plucked the water bottle and granola bar off of Edward's tray before he dumped the untouched contents in the garbage. I tossed my open soda in as well, but left my pizza and salad.
"I'll just be a second," I said in reply to Edward's quizzical stare. I walked swiftly-for a human-towards Renesme's table, my lunch tray held purposefully in front of me.
"Hello Nessie," I said clearly, trying very hard to keep the bell-like music out of my voice. I used her nickname remembering Edward's earlier comment this morning on how she had insisted that everyone call her Nessie. My daughter's expression was both mortified and reproachful as she glanced up at me.
"Hey," she answered quietly, her cheeks flushing a dull red as all of her friends gawked and stared in surprise.
"I noticed you didn't have much to eat and I am not really hungry so I wondered if you wanted some of my lunch." I explained. Although I kept my tone light and casual, I stared critically at her half-eaten piece of cake. Only she would understand that my offer was actually a request.
"Uh, thank you," she mumbled unenthusiastically.
"You are very welcome," I replied, grinning at her sullen face. I turned gracefully and walked slowly towards Edward who was waiting by the cafeteria door. I was not to far away before I heard the awed whispers.
"Is she really your sister?"
"Are all of your siblings beautiful too? Or is it just your brother, her and you?"
I didn't listen to Renesme's mumbled replies as I giggled silently.
"You know," Edward said conversationally as he grabbed my hand, and pushed the door open, "if you continue to be so maternal people are going to become suspicious and then you'll blow our cover."
"Right!" I scoffed, rolling my eyes, "Like people are really going to believe we're her parents!" I burst into uncontrollable laughter at Edward's dumbfounded expression.
Okay sorry this took an extremely long time to write! But please keep sending in reviews!! I love to know what you guys think! I appreciate all of your comments, they motivate me to keep writing!!