As I made my way toward Biology class, I tried to focus my mind on any thoughts that might be floating in the air around me. And sure enough, as the door to my class came into view I was hit by a steady humming – another classical piece, this time Debussy's Clair de Lune, one of my favorites. Again, I was struck with the loveliness of her voice, the otherworldly perfection in her tone. I steeled myself for the onslaught of her thoughts as I opened the door. I tried to close my mind, mask her thoughts as much as possible so that my perceptions were clearer.
I sucked in a deep, almost painful breath, as my eyes came to rest on the beautiful vision at my table. She sat still as a statue and I marveled that her alabaster skin resembled marble – as if she truly were a work of art and not a flesh and blood girl. I don't remember the walk to the table, just that I found myself standing in front of her and managed to smile before sitting in the seat next to her.
I wasn't hit with the same kind of imagery and words as the day before, but faint portions of Clair de Lune kept running through my mind like a mantra. I began to wonder if I was thinking of the song, or if it was coming from her. Yet, she showed no outward sign that she was making an attempt to block me. I kept sneaking covert glances in her direction and found that she was perfectly composed.
I couldn't stop myself from looking – she was too amazing and my eyes were drawn to her like a magnet. Each time they came to rest on her long mahogany locks or her deep red lips fire coursed through my body. I felt ablaze. I needed to hear her voice. I needed to see if I could rouse some sort of reaction out of her. I desperately wanted to interact with her.
"I'm Edward. Edward Cullen." I said to her. She looked at me in silence for several long seconds while I tried to imagine what she was thinking. And then I heard it in my mind. Bella control yourself. Don't breathe. "Bella?" I said before I realized that she hadn't spoken yet. I saw a brief glimmer of shock in her expression before her features reworked themselves.
"Hello, Edward." She purred at me, her voice affecting me like no other had before. "Yes, I'm Bella. Bella Swan." If she still felt any animosity toward me, her eyes did not betray her feelings. If anything, she appeared to be fascinated by me, as if I were a biological specimen to be studied. I hoped that I gave the impression that I was calm, though her scrutiny filled me with anxiety – her behavior was so unpredictable and so unlike her thoughts the day before.
Just as I turned myself toward her more directly to attempt to keep her talking, our teacher walked through the door and class began. Knowing that that this gorgeous creature was sitting next to me made it extremely difficult for me to concentrate on the lesson. However, I found that I didn't need to concentrate.
A short girl with curly hair and braces was passing out worksheets, smiling shyly at me as she approached our table. Her trembling hand held out the paper for me to grasp but Bella reached over across my chest, whipping the sheet out of the poor girl's hand. The girl's eyes opened wide in shock, perhaps even fear, and she stumbled away hurriedly. I couldn't help inhaling deeply as Bella's scent invaded my senses. I couldn't define her smell but it was intoxicating, like a drug and I felt even more attracted to her.
I couldn't seem to peel my eyes from Bella as she scribbled hastily but effortlessly on the paper. But as her eyes flitted to my face, I forced myself to drop mine and I leaned toward her to look at the words on the sheet. She slid it across the table without speaking and I wrote my name next to hers. I scanned to paper to see that she had filled out some of the information already, leaving a few blanks, I assumed to allow me to do some of the work.
Yet, just as soon as I read a question, the answer appeared in my head. There was no doubt in my mind that Bella was sending me the information. I didn't know if she was testing me or if she was simply thinking of the answer for her own benefit. Regardless, I wrote the answers down exactly as they came to me. None of the words came from any conscious effort on my part - they were just sitting there ready for me to pluck them out of my brain. Not until the sheet was entirely filled, did I turn and look up at Bella.
I could see the confusion clearly written in her expression – her eyes were narrowed and suspicious and I could tell that she was trying to understand. My face didn't answer any of her questions. I was just as confused as she was and as she looked deeply into my eyes with her dark, mysterious gaze, I think she saw that this was true. It seemed like we sat like that for minutes, having a silent conversation that was more profound than any conversation with words. To my consternation she broke our connection, looking away, towards the window. And then…
"You can hear my thoughts?" I heard her silent words in my head and I sought her eyes. When she turned her head back toward me I nodded at her. "Why? How?" she thought. I shrugged my shoulders at her, and I was filled with worry that my ability to read her mind might scare her or at the very least, drive her away from me.
Just then the bell rang signaling the end of class and she rose from her seat. I reached down to grab my bags and saw to my dismay that she was already at the door, headed out to the hall. At the last second she turned around and found me staring at her – her long beautiful legs in black jeans, her tight gray t-shirt clinging to her womanly body. Anyone else would look plain in her outfit, but she was anything but plain – she was stunning…perfect and left me yearning – for her touch, her scent, and her thoughts.
She stood at the door for a moment, and I couldn't help but feel as though she was looking at me in the same way that I had been looking at her – or devouring her is more like it. I certainly didn't detect any fear on her face – if anything, she looked intrigued. She turned to walk away and slipped out into the hall. I placed our paper on the teacher's desk in the front of the room and headed out of the class to follow her. I scanned the crowd but couldn't find her in the sea of faces and bodies. I began to walk toward my next class when I distinctly heard in my mind, "Bye Cullen, see you tomorrow."