Chapter 10: First Day of School
The lunch bell rang and everyone was filing out of the cafeteria. Bella thought she was going to lose herself in the fray of students when she felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned around to see Mike smiling down at her. "I told you I would walk you to class didn't I?" Bella nodded and followed the jock down the hall and to the right in the opposite direction of the office she sat in only a few minutes ago. When they got to the classroom, Bella went to the teacher and gave the old man her slip. The one that told her she was a new student. The man adjusted his glasses so her could see the writing and he announced her to the class. "Well class, it seems we have a new student joining us today. Ms. Isabella Swan. She comes to us all the way from Phoenix Arizona." Bella chose this time to interrupt. "It's just Bella sir. Isabella makes me feel old." She heard a slight chuckle coming from over by the window. What Bella saw next she didn't expect. 'Oh man. Not this guy.' The teacher looked over the room to search for a suitable partner for his new student and when he saw the seat next to Edwards empty, a glare was plastered on his face. "Ok Bella, looks like I'm going to have to pair you up with Mr. Cullen. Edward would you please raise your hand." The boy in question raised a stiff hand and glared at the girl walking towards him. 'I know she's thinking about something. Why can't I read her mind? A question for Carlisle when we get home I suppose.' Edward smiled at his own thought. 'Her name is Bella huh? Man Alice is gonna be pissed when she hears I know her name before she does.' As soon as the thought entered his mind, Alice's bell like voice rang though his ears. 'I heard that twinkle toes.' Edward growled at the sound of his hated nickname. Bella looked over at the boy and thought 'Oh man, this is gonna be a long class.'
When the bell rang again, Bella couldn't get out of that room fast enough. She hated this guy, Edward his name was, staring at her with this evil angry look on his face. What in the world did she do to him. She didn't even know the guy and he was acting like she had killed his puppy. Bella looked down at her schedule to see what class she had next. Art in room 205. It was then that Bella realized it was on the upper floor. 'Wonderful. I just hope I don't act like a clumsy fool and trip over my own two feet.' She thought as she began her trek up the staircase. "Hey Bella, wait up!" Bella heard a voice come from behind her. She turned around to see Angela follow her up the stairs. "What class do you have right now?" Bella gave her the paper with her schedule on it. "Oh awesome! You have art with me!" Angela exclaimed as she walked with Bella the rest of the way up. When they got to the classroom, it was filled with clay wheels and easels and pieces of canvas. The girl loved this room. No desks littered the room or anything of the sort. Bella's breath caught in her throat once more. The pixie of a girl she saw in the cafeteria was standing with her back toward her and she was drawing on a piece of canvas. It looked to be the outline of a head but she couldn't be sure.
Alice had arrived to her art class about 5 minutes early so she figured she would get to work on another piece. She brought out a piece of canvas and a couple of charcoal pieces for the outline of her latest work. Alice searched her memory of the day and saw the perfect picture in her head. Her dream girl, Bella Swan standing in front of the school with her eyes closed and taking a calming breath. It was the first time she saw the girl when it wasn't in a vision. She began to start with the jaw of her face. A little pointed at the end but with strong cheek bones. Then she began to draw the girl's hair. Alice wanted it to look soft and supple like the real thing. Just when she was about to start with the eyes and facial features, she heard the voice of her best friend in the background. "Hey Alice," Angela exclaimed in a hurried tone. The pixie turned to see her best friend standing next to her dream girl. "Alice this is..." And just as Angela was about to introduce them, Alice interrupted her. "Bella." She said in a dreamy tone of voice. Bella gasped at the color of the pixies eyes 'golden amber eyes. Who is this girl?' "You're Bella Swan right?" Alice asked as she held out her hand. The girl blushed and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. 'A nervous reflex no doubt.' Alice thought as she smiled at how cute it was. Bella nodded as she took the other girls hand. "I'm Alice Cullen." She smiled wider when Bella's blush never went away.
A couple of minutes later the bell rang for the start of class. The teacher that walked into the room was one that kind of resembled a hippy. He was a white guy with long blonde hair put up in a ponytail. He didn't wear the whole suit and tie get up that most teachers wore, this guy had a regular button down t-shirt and jeans on. The shirt was covered in paint and remnants of clay. Bella smiled at the man's easygoing behavior. "Hey class, today we're going to be working with clay. There are a couple of tools here in the room and the material is in the closet. Pick a partner and head over to a clay wheel. Have fun guys. Search your mind and see the muse within it." Alice and Angela automatically picked each other, but when they looked around, they saw that everyone was paired with someone else. Alice went and tapped the teacher on the shoulder. "What's up Alice?" Alice looked down at her toes and spoke in a cute little voice tone. She used this to get what she wanted with mortals and it worked. "Mr. Freeman, Bella's new here and she doesn't have a partner. Can she work with me and Angela?" Mr. Freeman looked over at Bella, went over to her and hugged her around the shoulder. "Well hey there Bella. Let me see your slip."
Bella handed the shaggy man her slip and he read it with a smile. "Ah you're from Phoenix, huh? Right on. I've done a few art shows there." Bella loved art. That was the one part of herself she had gotten from her mother. "I've been to some back home. Can I see one of your pieces?" The man smiled and said, "I don't have any of my major ones here. They're all at home, but maybe I can bring in one for you sometime soon." Bella smiled and nodded her head. Mr. Freeman then turned his sight to Alice. "She can pair up with you and Angela, Alice. Make her feel welcome ok?" He said while ruffling the pixies hair. Alice grabbed Bella by the hand and lead her over to the cabinet that had the clay and tools in it. When the two girls got what they needed, they headed over to the wheel where Angela was standing over by the open window. It was open just to let some fresh air in, Mr. Freeman enjoyed a cool class room so that his students could think. For Alice, it served another purpose. A small breeze flew into the room and from where Bella stood beside her closest to the window, it blew the scent of her skin, her hair and her blood right in Alice's direction. From the enhanced senses of the vampire, she could smell everything, right down to the last pencil shaving, but the scent of Bella was intoxicating. Even the scent of her blood sent Alice into an internal feud. 'She smells so delicious Alice.' A voice she had not heard for decades made its way into her mind. It took most of the pixies will power to resist the voice of her demon but it still gave her an advantage. Alice was stronger than her demon gave her credit for.
After Angela was done with the clay wheel, Bella decided it was her turn to step up to the plate with her blob of clay. She sat down on the small stool, dipped her hands in a bowl of water beside her and stepped on the little peddle beneath her. As Bella began to form her clay, it kind of looked like a spike. It wasn't really what she was looking for so she tried again. Once again she dipped her fingers into the bowl and began forming her clay. She gasped as she felt a pair of arms come around her shoulders and the hands rested on her own. Alice leaned over Bella's shoulder and spoke in her ear as they both molded the clay. "You can't rush it Bella. You have to nurture it and care for it. Slowly mold the clay into whatever shape you desire it to be and it will listen to you." Bella couldn't hold back a shiver as Alice whispered this into her ear. She seemed so passionate about art that it almost made it seem real. The pixie felt the girl shiver in her arms and asked, "Cold Bella?" Bella just turned to face Alice and nodded. The proximity of the two women made it hard for Bella to breathe. The girl tried to keep her concentration solely on the pottery she was trying to create but her mind always drifted to the girl behind her. The color of her eyes, the temperature of her skin. The cold would unnerve most people but it really seemed to embrace her and comfort her. When she heard Alice's voice in her ear. "Hey Bella I think you're done." Alice giggled when Bella did not respond at first. The laugh brought the girl out of her musings, and when she looked down at the shape of the clay, she blushed profusely. There on the clay wheel was a piece of clay in the shape of a heart. "Y-yeah. I think so too. T-thanks Alice." Alice smiled as Bella got up out of the stool and went to go carve optional decorations into the heart shaped clay.
Bella felt a couple of conflicting feelings at once. She was feeling grateful for the fact that she could breathe again but she instantly missed the pixies touch as she walked away. As she picked up the scalpel to carve symbols into the clay, Bella thought about how to decorate it. Stars, strips, other miniature hearts, a name, what? Then she figured it out. She would write her name surrounded by little hearts and stars. As she began to carve her first symbol, Bella looked over at the pixie that now haunted her thoughts. She had never felt this way about anyone so quickly let alone a girl. Bella never thought of herself as a lesbian but she did have a strange attraction to other women. However, Alice was different. She felt drawn to her. Bella felt drawn to the coldness of her skin, the comforting look in those amber eyes, the scent of her hair. The next thing she knows is that she feels a sharp pain in her finger. It was the only time she looked away from the girl. When she looked down at her finger she felt a little nauseous. Blood began seeping out of her digit and it also showed on the carving tool. Bella took a couple of deep breaths and walked over to where Mr. Freeman was looking over another students work. "M-mr. Freeman," the hippy turned around and Bella held up her finger to show him. "Oh jeeze Bella, are you alright?"
The copper scent of blood entered the room and Alice felt the little hairs on the back of her neck stand up. She turned to see Bella and Mr. Freeman over by the first aid kit hanging by the wall. She walked a little closer to the group that had formed around the two. The scent that invaded her nose was the most intoxicating thing she had ever experienced in her immortal life. 'Oh my god Alice.' Her demon moaned as Alice got close enough to see the blood. Bella locked eyes with the pixie and she had to turn away quickly. "Are you alright Alice?" Bella asked as she looked at the pixies back. Alice knew that her eyes were probably pitch black at this point. It had been a couple days since she had hunted and the scent of blood alone sent her through the roof. "Yeah Bella, I'm fine. Just kinda get more than a little nauseous at the sight of blood. Mr. Freeman, is it alright if I go to the nurses office for the rest of the class?" The teacher nodded and said, "Yeah Alice. That's alright. Just don't forget your stuff okay?" It wouldn't be long before the bell rang signifying the end of class so Alice ran at human speed to get her stuff and headed out the door. Her first stop would be the front office. 'I need to get another class.' The demon inside her roared in frustration. 'I will not drink from her so don't even think it.' The demon sighed and spoke. 'That's not the only thing I want her for. That's not the only thing you want her for either.' Alice shuddered as she thought about telling Bella who she really was. 'No. I can't do it. What if the Volturi finds out?' That's when her demon got quiet. 'I can't put her through that kind of risk.' Alice looked around her and when she saw no one around her she blurred herself to the front office.
The bell rang not five minutes after Alice had left the room. Bella knew where she was going by the end of the period. Angela had went over the schedule and the map that she had gotten from the front office with her. Her next class was math and that was downstairs past the office. When she past the doorway to the room, she heard raised voices. "You need to give me another class. Please." The front desk secretary shook her head with a sad look on her face. "I'm sorry Alice honey, we don't have any room in any other classes." Alice dropped her head and sighed. "Alright. Thanks for trying." She said with a sad smile. The older woman looked passed the door and saw Bella standing there with a confused look on her face. "Hi Bella. How's your first day going dear?" Alice's shoulders tensed as she turned around to look at the girl. She felt bad for this but there was no other way. What if she couldn't control herself? What if Bella found out what she really was? She couldn't look at the girl as she headed out the door to her next class.
Bella for her part was really confused. 'I thought we were getting along.' She thought as she felt a shocking amount of pain enter her chest. She also felt tears come to her eyes as she watched the pixie walk away. "Who are you Alice Cullen?" Bella thought aloud as she walked to her math class. She was bound and determined to find out who exactly this girl was. This girl with the amber gold eyes and freezing skin. 'I'll find out soon enough who you are Alice.'