This story was beta'd by Sunflower Fran and NanStew. Thank you both :)
Disclaimer: These characters belong to Stephanie Meyers.
Chapter 6
Bella Pov
Trouble (N.) A cause of worry or inconvenience
I should have known this guy was trouble from the start. I should have gone with my gut feeling and ran far away from him. I don't believe in fate, and I know it has never really worked in my favor so why would I think that now would be any different.
Just because his presence held warmth like I've never felt before, doesn't mean that I should abandon all that I know about the world and fall into his embrace. The world is full of darkness, regardless of how bright his aura may be. No matter how much of his light seeps through my pores, I will forever be made of darkness.
I was born of darkness, and I will die the same.
My words went unheard because Edward's attraction to me was so palpable I'm sure I could've told him I was the devil's daughter, and he would never flee. I can't say that I didn't enjoy the attention, but in the back of my mind, I knew he was way in over his head.
"Bella." I hear my name being called by Victoria across the table in the middle of the mall food court in Seattle. "You failed your challenge last week." She says with a smug grin on her face even though she knows that technically I didn't. She's referring to my kiss with Edward at the beach and I hate her and him for it.
"What the fuck ever!" I lean back in my chair, looking away from her as I slowly breathe in and out. I'm not a violent person, but Victoria is becoming more than a little annoying. I only put up with her bullshit because she gives us a cut of the profit from our videos that quite often go viral.
"Anyway, I should tell you all that our new segment is show and tell. Our viewers will pick our challenge, and we are to show it on tape and tell them about it in front of the participant. It's going to be so much fun."
"Sounds a lot like truth or dare." Rose points out the very thought that was taking root in my own brain. She reached the conclusion before I could even process it.
"No, no, no. This... is so much better. This, my dear friends, is live. No cuts no takes." Victoria looks ridiculously proud of herself for coming up with this, but honestly, I don't see how this can work.
"I need a trial run or something before I can agree. I'm not quite sure what the social experiment is. That's what I signed up for. The experiment. This isn't all fun and games for me." Alice says from across the table, and Lauren nods in agreement.
Although I did sign up for the fun of it, I can see where Alice is coming from. See, Victoria is smarter than anyone gives her credit for and she can easily manipulate people with just her words. She's no mere high school student like the rest of us popular girls attending Forks High. She's a junior in college.
This experiment started our freshman year when she was a senior. Rose, Alice, Lauren and I desperately wanted to be popular, so we naturally flocked to the popular crowd. Victoria asked if we wanted in, and of course, she knew the answer before she asked.
We've grown smarter since then, realizing that Victoria is a shark and her sidekick James is no better. They were in it for the popularity, now they are in it for the money, which can be a dangerous thing.