The Cullens, after my initial shock, then talked about what it meant to be a vampire; a real vampire.
First, I don't sleep at all which I kind of figured; walking all night and day without feeling tired is something you notice. Second, I don't burn under the sun, but I do sparkle which I knew already; I thought I was just losing my mind. Third, I can't be easily killed by a stake to the heart, which I was glad to hear, but I can still be killed by being ripped to shreds and then having my remains burned. In that case, I think I would prefer a simple stake to the heart instead of such a torturing death. Fourth, I have enhanced senses; touch, smell, hearing, taste and also inhuman strength, speed and reflexes. Lastly, I do drink blood, but there was something else I could drink besides human blood which is animal blood. At the thought of it my nose wrinkled in disgust, causing them to chuckle.
Each of the Cullens told me about how they had become vampires and all of them seemed to have been dying when turned. Edward was dying of the Spanish influenza, Emmett was mauled by a bear, Rosalie was left for dead, and Esme committed suicide. That left Alice, Jasper and Carlisle who weren't dying at the time. I found out that they were all paired off. Hearing their stories about how they came to meet one another made me feel extremely lonely, but then I thought of Edward who was alone among couples and I pitied him.
They also told me about their special traits. Edward read minds, but luckily he couldn't read mine and that's why he was so frustrated earlier. Alice was a psychic; she could see the future, but it was constantly changing depending on people's choices. Jasper; he was some type of mood changer which meant he could feel and affect emotions. Rosalie; she brought her beauty which I didn't doubt for a second. Emmett had his strength which made sense; he was well built. Esme brought her compassion; there was something nurturing about her. Carlisle; his self-control which of course allowed him to do stuff other vampires even older than him wouldn't be able to do.
Carlisle had a theory about how vampires got their abilities which was that when in transformation, one is able to bring their strongest characteristic or quality to them to their other life, therefore enhancing it. I didn't tell them about how I thought maybe I had an ability. I didn't want to sound stupid so I remained quiet.
When all the vampire talk was done Emmett and Rosalie began telling me about all the weddings they have had and all the amazing places they had gone. Alice interrupted them in mid story, which Rosalie didn't like much and Emmett simply looked relieved.
"Let Bella tell us about her" She whined causing me to laugh and she looked at me like she was hurt
"No, I'm not laughing at you.. It's just nice knowing that some one wants to know about me. As silly as it sounds, it makes me feel wanted" I admitted
Esme sat next to me and took my hand in hers. I was shocked by the gesture.
"Didn't you have parents? They must have wanted you" She said meaning no harm, but I took my hand out of hers roughly at the mention of my parents
"I was an unwanted child. I was just a poor excuse for a punching bag" I said in a hiss and I was engulfed in a hug by Esme.
"Oh poor thing! it must have been awful" She said and even if her hug was warm and well wanted, I still pushed her away
"I don't need your pity. I'm fine" I stated
"But you're not" Jasper said and I growled at him
"I will be in time anyways. Now I have all eternity" I said as I threw my hands in the air out of frustration
"So how did you become one of us?" Alice asked obviously changing the subject and I was glad for that
"I don't know. I just woke up like this" I said as I waved my hands over my body
"You don't know anything at all?" She asked skeptically
"I just remember running and running without stopping and when I did, I collapsed. I was leaning on a tree and then everything went blank, but I did hear a growl" I pointed out
"I see" She simply said
"I mean of course I remember the excruciating pain, but I wasn't alone. Whoever did this to me stayed by my side. I would just like to know why he or she left" I said shrugging my shoulders
"So you have no place to stay?" Carlisle suddenly asked
"No. I'm... what do you guys call it? Oh yeah, a nomad" I said
"Stay with us then" He said with a smile
"I don't want to be an inconvenience to you" I said
"The kids go to school, but you're not ready for that so you can stay and keep Esme company" He said
"Kids?... School?" I asked and he chuckled
"Our human tale. Edward, Alice and Emmett are our kids" He gestured between him and Esme, "We adopted them along with Rosalie and Jasper. They go by Hale since they look like twins and so we pass them off as twins" He continued explaining, but yet I was confused
"So you pass them off as your adopted children and they go to school while you and your wife do nothing?" I said not trying to be rude
"Somewhat, but I do work as a doctor at the local hospital" He said as he chuckled
"With all that blood?" I asked surprised
"With my practice, I am able to do so" He said with a proud smile
"That's cool" I said in awe
"So, what do you say about our offer?" He asked
"Where do I stay?" I asked answering his question
He didn't answer. Instead, Alice took my hand and took me upstairs in a hurry and reached the second floor in matter of seconds.
"You're going to love your room! It's right next to Edward's" She said
We walked in and it was gorgeous. I gasped as I took in the room. It was very grand. There was a red couch in the left corner and next to it was a CD stand with a stereo system next to it. There was a computer desk on the right corner and a book shelf next to that. I had a walk in closet and my own bathroom, which only made me smile, even though I could probably do without it. I didn't have any clothes. I would enjoy taking a shower though. I turned to thank Alice, but she was gone. I guess she was letting me get settled. I went to my couch and closed my eyes. It was almost surreal that I had a place to stay. I was not going to miss the woods, that was for sure.
After a while, there was knocking at the door and at first I debated getting up, but I gave in. To my surprise, it was Edward.
"Hi" I said shyly
"My family thought it would be best if I took you hunting. You should get used to animal blood and I haven't gotten a chance to hunt yet" He said pointing at his eyes which were darker than before
"It would be bad if you went to school hungry" I said as I closed the door behind me
He laughed before commenting, "Very bad"
He started walking and I followed behind as we walked down the stairs. I spotted Alice and she had a big grin on her face as she winked at me. Great, what was that all about? I was getting nervous now. Was it good or bad?
The car ride to where ever he was taking us was quiet, but it was nice. Finally, we came to a stop and we walked side by side, our hands almost touching. Once we were deep in the woods, he stopped and turned to face me.
"Are you ready for this?" He asked
I stepped back and shook my head. It would be good to one day stop drinking human blood, but the thought of not having it was making me nauseous. The thought of replacing it with animal blood was that unappealing.
"No. Maybe some other time" I finally said
He simply smiled as if understanding and took my hand. The same electricity jolt ran through us, but this time we didn't let go as we stared at our locked hands.
"Why does that keep happening?" I asked
"It feels nice" He simply said with a smile and so we kept holding hands.
He began to walk a different direction than where his car was, but I didn't care. I didn't doubt Edward for a second as I let him lead me. He could have been taking me to my death and I would have still gone willingly.