A/N: I want to make it known that I am no pro, and appreciate whatever you have to say about my writing because it is better then nothing at all. Dedicated to my friend and personal cheesy-feeder – . She is the one who CONSTANTLY encourages me to write; without her this story would not have even crossed my mind.
Chapter 2: Electric Blue Leggings
That smile, that voice!
I thought about him to myself while looking out the window at the soft yellow rays of sun filtered in through the morning haze of Forks, Washington. Everything about this guy was driving me batshit insane! I was astounded, completely mind-fucked as to how he could have had this much of an impression on me after our small encounter on Saturday afternoon. I lay back down and waited for my alarm to go off. I had woken up before it went off, not that I really wanted to beat my alarm clock in the morning. I had an instinctive feeling that it was this man, Jasper, who had both my mind and body completely out of control.
Crap, Alice! Rein yourself in once in a while. He is just another guy…who you can't stop thinking about and have only met for like 12.94 seconds. Crap.
As much as I wanted to just jump his bones, I had to think logically. Who was he? Why hadn't anyone mentioned him? I mean, nobody just shows up in silly little Forks. Surely I would have heard of his arrival before now. Everyone in town has always gossiped about the arrival of new people like it's vital to their well being. I felt so out of control not knowing what was happening. Somebody at school must have heard something! He looked about my age…maybe a year or so older. I decided that the second I got to school I would talk to Bells and Rose.
I decided not to wait for the alarm to go off and just got dressed straight away. Since it looked as though it would actually be sunny today, a rarity compared to the near-constant drizzle, I picked out clothes I rarely got to show off. A pair of electric blue leggings, matched with a white off-the-shoulder top that was long enough to cover the booty. To complete the look I slung a black embellished belt over my hips and threw on my new black suede knee-high boots with buckles on the sides. I smiled as I looked myself over in the mirror. The leggings really brought out my blue eyes.
I wonder if Jasper will notice...shut up. Shut up, shut up, shut up!
I went to the bathroom to do my hair and makeup for the day, and then wandered downstairs to see cat toys strewn every where. Oh sure, now they're all over the place, like drunks at a bar, but I had to dive under the couch just to get one on Saturday. I found myself sighing a dreamy sigh at the thought of Saturday.
"Alice, are you alright?" I heard my father call from the front hall, concern lacing his voice. Carlisle was such an observant father, it sometimes made me nervous. Though I loved him, but he cared so much that he noticed every little switch in mood and behaviour. It was disconcerting.
"Yes, I'm fine, how are you?" I replied cheerily while making my way over to him. If anyone could take my mind off of the confusing bag of hunk down the street, it was my dad.
"Great actually, I've been picking up a lot of extra shifts at the hospital lately though. It's been surprisingly busy. Bella was in again on Sunday…only four stitches this time," Carlisle finished with a smirk. He was such a lucky soul to have found his calling; he truly loved his career and was good at it too. That also explains why Bella never texted me back on the weekend.
"That's good then," I said, referring to his mood. "But what's happened to Bella now?" I had to laugh at the end. Don't get me wrong I loved Bella like a sister, but she was very accident-prone; she practically attracted danger like a magnet.
"An accident with a cheese grater. It wasn't pretty…I'm starting to think that girl needs constant supervision," he joked, but I could tell from his eyes that he truly cared. He was so compassionate, the kind of person you never wanted to let down.
"Yeah well I'm sure that even if she did have supervision, things would still go wrong. After all, it's Bella we're talking about," I replied.
"That's true," he admitted. He smiled and took a sip from his coffee. The mug said, "Hope you don't have to come here often! - Forks General Hospital"
"Nice cup by the way," I added.
"Oh thanks." He smiled sheepishly at me before leaning down to kiss my forehead and give me a one armed hug. "Have a good day, sweet pea!" He hurriedly said, and started fast-walking to the front door as he spoke. He was too nice to say he was running late because of me.
I didn't have to leave for school quite yet, so I made my favourite breakfast. Waffles with syrup AND whipped cream. I ate it down slowly, killing time so I wouldn't be the first one to arrive. Usually I had my mornings perfectly planned out but thanks to my little alarm clock mishap, I had time to spare. Alright, fine, it wasn't the alarm clock's fault. It was his fault.
Those eyes, that hair, that fucking voice! His accent makes me melt just thinking about it!
I daydreamed about him while cleaning up my breakfast dishes. I really needed to stop getting carried away, I didn't even know him! It seemed like I had nothing left to do around the house, yet I still had time to waste.
I heard purring from the upstairs landing. Aha! My saviour! Something to occupy me; I really needed to stop thinking about a certain…guy…
"Bubbles!" I squealed out and ran upstairs to pet him. He was lying on the ground, "cleaning himself".
"Ugh, Bubbles! Is that really why you were purring? You're so gross!" I playfully chastised. He just looked at me like I was insane, as always. I seriously needed a more expressive cat.
"Well I guess you are getting old," I cooed at him and pet behind his ears; that was his favourite. He let out a couple long meows at me when I stopped.
"But I have to get to school, Bubbles." I explained to him with a smile. He meowed in protest again as I made my way to the front door. I grabbed my book bag and purse then called out a goodbye to Bubbles as I made my way to my car.
Oh, my car. My beautiful yellow Porsche. It is my baby! Nobody touches, let alone drives it except me. Only a select few were even allowed to ride in it, which pretty much consisted of my best friends and my dad. It was bright and flashy and needed to be seen! I felt that it was my personality captured in a car. It was a big step up from the Volvo I had before; and I was proud of it, I worked hard for this car! I asked my dad to buy it for me, and he said he would match whatever I saved. As many can imagine the price I had had been saving since I turned twelve. Finally, on my seventeenth birthday, all of my friends chipped in to make one big donation and Carlisle paid the rest. The day I got it I drove straight out of Forks to Seattle to show it off!
I trailed my fingers along the hood before getting in and turning on the radio, and tuning it to my favourite station. I bobbed my head to the beat as I made my way to school. Please let him be there! I was silently praying. I just felt as if I needed to know him, there was something about him that made me just want.
The yellow lines of the road passed in a blur. My mind was elsewhere, not here driving my car to school but instead seeing strange things. Nothing was completely clear, sort of like I was seeing it out of the corner of my eye. It was so weird. I could see things that looked oddly blurry, that were just shadows and colors. And then I saw him, standing at the end of a long aisle…
WOAH! WHAT THE SHIT!
I snapped out of my odd trance as I nearly ran the only red light in town. My head was spinning like crazy, I felt so disorientated. All my muscles were tensed as I sat perfectly still in my seat. What the hell just happened? I thought as I pried my hands off the steering wheel and shook them out to relax them.I figured those images were just daydreams, but what I saw just felt so concrete. Like I knew it would happen, like I could see that it was going to happen…like I was… I didn't even let myself think the word. I was getting way ahead of myself over a silly day dream, though it wasn't like me to get so distracted while driving.
The light turned green and I sighed aloud and internally kicked myself. Stupid Alice, I thought. Always getting carried away in my own mind over nothing. As I sped toward school I did my best not to think of Jasper, but I still couldn't shake the creepy, intense feeling of what had just happened. It loomed over me in a threatening way that I seriously did not appreciate. It was getting in the way of my usually cheery self.
I pulled up to the school and parked next to Bella's truck. I always found it funny when I parked next to her because of the contrast between our two vehicles. My shiny new Porsche and her rusted red truck were complete opposites, as were Bella and I. I loved fashion, makeup and all things pink and fluffy while Bella well…didn't. She was more of a tomboy, an only-ever-get-dressed-up-if-you-have-to, I-would-rather-stab-you-with-that-stiletto-then-wear-it, kind of girl. Nonetheless, I loved her, and we were best friends. We had been since she moved here in grade nine, a year after me.
I grabbed my stuff, slung it over my shoulder and got out of the car. I scanned the school grounds looking for Bella or Rosalie.
And maybe Jasper.
Get a hold of yourself Alice!
"Alice!" Called a voice I knew very well from behind me.
I spun around to see Rose walking towards me from her car, a red convertible. Yet another personality in a car. She looked gorgeous today with her golden blonde hair in a French braid to one side and still looking like a supermodel in cute jeans and a halter top. An outfit clearly chosen for warmish weather like me.
"Hey Rose!" I said back. By now she was within non-yelling distance. She gracefully approached me and smiled. "How was your weekend?" I asked.
"Oh it was great! Me and Emmett went to the movies on Saturday to see that new horror one," she smiled. "We –" I cut in before she could go on.
"Rosalie Hale! Did you even watch any of the movie? You can't even remember the name of it!" I accused jokingly. "You probably don't even know what happened."
"Hey! I do so! People died. HA!" she laughed out at me.
"Shit Rose, I don't see why you don't just save your money and makeout at home! You guys never actually watch the movie. What's the point in going out? Besides, it's kind of gross!" I was about to ramble on into a complex lecture of why she should always listen to me, and that it would save her money and time if she did, when I was cut off.
"Cool it Alice, it's not your money she's spending," Bella interrupted. "I couldn't help but overhear" She added with a smile. Bella was always the peace keeper in our little threesome.
I turned to her and gave her a squeeze. "Your right, and good morning," I said.
"Thank you! Who got that on tape? Alice just said I was right!" Bella jokingly called out, although no one even turned their head in our direction.
"Looks like the students of Forks high are having a great Monday morning," Rose mumbled under her breath as we all started to walk to our regular morning picnic table. I took this time to fill the silence as our shoes squished in the ever-damp grass with my very important questions about a certain someone.
"So has anyone heard of this guy –" The bell happened to ring just then. Fuck. Opposite of saved by the bell. More like I want to kick the bell's sorry ass. Bella was a freak about being late and had already called out her goodbye as she walked towards her classroom, so she was out. I turned to look at Rose who was being beckoned by Emmett.
"I guess I'll see you at lunch?" she said with sorry eyes. She knew I wanted to say something as I was practically bursting out of my body to say it. Not that I could ever stay still anyways.
"Yeah, that's fine," I breathed out, "but we have got some serious talking to do then!" I added as she turned, nodded and waved with a smile. I watched her greet Emmett with a hug and a kiss, and then slowly made my way to first period.
I sat in my desk heavily. My plan for a morning attack was demolished! Now I had to sit through the first two periods of the day with no information when I was already stressing out like crazy! My leg was bouncing up and down ridiculously fast as I waited for class to start. With nothing else to do I opened my purse and checked my makeup.
"Huh..." I let out a small confused gasp that I didn't recognize as my own.
The person looking back at me from my small mirror that I kept in my purse was certainly not one that I knew. She looked so tired…overworked maybe? Clearly confused. She had faint purple shadows under her eyes, which were slightly blood shot. She had stress lines on her forehead too. She was me.
What the hell? I thought. This wasn't how I looked in the bathroom this morning! And I was just as confused about Jasper then as I am now. What happened in the short time period from then to now that made me look so…defeated?My thoughts flickered back to that weird 'episode' I had in the car on the way to school. I quickly shoved that idea out the window. The possibility that that had anything to do with my appearance was just as likely as me buying a fake Louis Vuitton tote. And that would be impossible.
I'm just messing with myself.
I repeated the mantra in my head as I put concealer under my eyes and worked on relaxing my face back into its normal cheery state. Class had started, so I put away my makeup and listened as intently as I could to the teacher, but my thoughts kept sneaking away. Those little bastards.
That smile! That dreamy smile…I could bask in it all day. Those beautiful eyes…what I wouldn't give to get lost in them…
Had I lost all self respect?! I caught myself in full out drool mode in the middle of the lesson. I let my eyes roam to see Mike Newton eye-fucking Jessica Stanley from across the room. Well at least I wasn't the only person in the room acting like a hormonal pig.
I looked away from Newton; he had started making vigorous gestures, the kind that sort of made me want to vomit.
I thought about happy things, like the end of the summer sidewalk sale coming up in Seattle. Rose and I will for sure be going, sans Bella. She would come with us if we begged her, but then we would have to drag around a not-so-happy Bella for a day. It was better to leave her with Edward.
Other happy things that came to mind: Candy, today's warm weather, Bubbles getting off this morning…
My laughter tinkled out at the last one, I couldn't help it! The whole class turned in one motion to look at me inquisitively. Including the teacher. I racked my brains for something to say.
Shit, shit, shit!
What have we been studying? What class was this? Why am I completely blanking? English! This is English right? I'm going with it.
"I just think Shakespeare is so funny! His writing style just cracks me up! And what is with the no female actress's thing? Isn't that just crazy!" I spat out all in one breath. I laughed a little nervously, seriously praying that we were talking about Shakespeare this lesson.
"That's all well and good, Miss Cullen, but hardly relevant to the topic. Would you like to share your feelings on literary devices? Or were you saving that for when we start Macbeth?" Said Mr. Sonas coldly.
"Uh, no thank you sir, I think I've contributed enough for this class," I nervously replied, staring down at the top of my desk and studying the fake wood pattern like it could cure cancer.
"That's what I thought," he said, and then continued his rant on the importance of pathetic fallacy. Whatever that was.
I kept my lips sealed and my thoughts serious until the end of class and wandered through the halls to second period. I hoped this period would go by quicker then the last. Preferably without any major drool fests or brain farts, as those seem to be the trend today. I just wanted lunch to come so I could quiz my friends. Someone had to know something, anything about this incredibly amazing guy! At this point I didn't even care if it was one of the guys that told me.
I barley paid attention in this class either. I did however check my makeup. I sat in the back of the room and could pretty much get away with anything. Eating, passing notes, doing my makeup, even building a bomb for God's sake.
Looking in the mirror felt better this time. I looked like I usually do, no purple bags or bloodshot eyes…it must have been some weird allergic reaction or something. Strange.
Since I was in so wrapped up in my thoughts about a certain gorgeous someone, the bell rang earlier then I had anticipated. I was rushing to pack up my books and meet with the gang for lunch. As much as I wanted to just sit there and drool over him, I couldn't! I had to stop letting myself get so absorbed by some guy I hardly knew. I was Alice Cullen! I would take control of this situation, like I always did!
I walked with determination towards the cafeteria, pushing my way through the halls.
I may be small but I sure as hell am mighty! My thoughts echoed my walk.
A/N: So that's that! Next chapter is the big lunch discussion! Thanks again to who is my beloved beta!
Reviews are better then Carlisle's mug = ]