Steph's POV
"So, what are you doing today?" Steph asked her dad from the passenger's seat.
"You know, taking care of business." He answered nonchalantly but she could hear the secretiveness in his voice.
"What business?" Steph replied, trying to get some information out of him.
"My business." He told her with a smirk; she laughed and shook her head. Heads turned to their car as they pulled into the school parking lot… female heads… eyes trained on her dad.
"Try and make some friends today, ok kid?" Dad teased as Steph got out of the car.
"Ha-ha dad." She answered dryly as she slammed the door for effect. She could hear his peeling laughter on the other side of the glass. Jackass. Steph huffed and walked towards school for the second day; hopefully a full day of school without any interruptions.
Just like yesterday, she moved towards the main building with her head down, watching the passing gravel crunch loudly under her feet. She stopped when three pairs of pink high heeled shoes appeared in my vision; Stephanie looked up to see three girls standing in front of her. They dressed like triplets but it was obvious that they were not related; all three were wearing the exact same clothes.
The middle one had a skirt so short that it should be illegal. She was pretty, there was no doubt about that, with her tanned skin and long flowing dark brown hair with a clipped ball fringe in front. Her face was caked with foundation to a sickly level and her lips were glossed to absolute perfection. She looked me up and down then the fakest sickly sweet smile that Steph had ever seen landed on her face. Steph didn't need this right now at all.
"Hey, I'm Trish. This is Tami and Tanya." The middle one told her; gesturing the girls either side of her. Are you kidding me? Matching names? That. Is. Sad. Steph thought.
The other two girls gave Steph a short grunt before turning to their leader like they were waiting for her to throw them a bone; Steph half expected a large tongue o fall out of their mouths.
"Steph." She replied shortly. Why were they talking to her? Steph could already see that they had nothing in common.
"So, you're new here right?" Trish asked, her eyes free from emotion. Steph knew that wasn't the question she really wanted to ask.
"Yes, my family just moved here from San Francisco a few months ago. Yeah, I was really sad to leave but you know… its okay here I guess. The people are nice, the food is nice. It's nice…" Steph trailed off, running out of adjectives pretty quickly. Trish just stood there with her mouth ajar.
"So who was that who dropped you off? Was it your brother?" Trish asked Steph. She chuckled because Trish actually had the audacity to stop her, just to ask about her dad and not even hide her motive.
"That was my dad." She said dryly. Trish and her two 'yes women', started to laugh, although, Steph couldn't understand why; she wasn't being sarcastic.
"No, seriously." Trish answered, seizing laughter almost robotically.
"Seriously, he's my dad." She crossed her arms over her chest and the other two did the same.
"He can't be your dad. He's like eighteen." Steph furrowed her eye brows. Steph knew her dad appeared younger than usual but eighteen was being a tad optimistic.
"I assure you… he can… and he isn't eighteen. Try like thirty five… and married." Steph clarified when she got a weird gleam in her eye.
"Listen okay. I don't know why you feel the need to lie like that so I'm just gonna forget about this little encounter. Just give me his number and you can be on your merry way." Trish demanded, Steph wandered if this bitch was for real. All of a sudden, her breathing sped up and her body began to shake; she was just that angry.
"If I were you, I would get out of my face. Right. Now." Stephanie muttered evilly, even she didn't recognize my own voice. The Barbies were gone so fast that there were skid marks on the floor in front of her. She felt better but the shakes were getting worse. What was happening to her? Steph was instantly calmed when a hand placed itself on her back. She felt safe. She turned around and her eyes widened; there stood the three people that she never expected to see.
"Hey guys." Steph said sheepishly, her eyes suddenly finding her converses very interesting.
"Hey… Stephanie. We just wanted to check if you were okay." Embry told her as his hand fell limply to his side.
"Uum yeah. I'm fine, sorry for passing out on you guys." Steph said awkwardly while she scratched the back of my head nervously. Quil let out a small burst of laughter; he was probably remembering her passing out yesterday.
"It's cool. We didn't mind." Embry replied, and then furrowed his eye brows like he wasn't supposed to say that.
"So do you wanna sit with us at lunch today? That is if you weren't planning on sitting with T cubed." Jake spoke up while nodding to the skanky girls who were now on the other side of the car lot; wimps.
Steph's body started the light shakes again as she thought about the way Trish had spoken to her but soon calmed down as Embry placed his hand on her again. "Thanks." Stephanie muttered, he dropped his arm like a weight to his side. Jake and Quil shared a knowing look.
"So, Steph, do you wanna sit with us at lunch?" Quil spoke up. Steph nodded and made her way to first lesson with the guys. English.
…
The assignment for the lesson was to right a poem on how you are feeling or your favorite things and later present to the class. Steph bit the end of her pen lid as she looked up from her English book and stared around the class room. Everyone was scribbling away at their pieces of paper like there was no tomorrow yet Steph's page was empty. Even Quil had at least a few lines down.
That was when it hit her, the perfect topic for her poem. She began to scribble away at her page until the timer went off causing everyone to jump.
"Ok class, who wants to be first to present?" Mr. Morton asked as he looked around the class expectantly; no one made a sound.
"Don't all volunteer at once." He muttered causing some girls to giggle.
"Ateara?" He asked tiredly while looking at Quil. Quil immediately started shaking his head wildly.
"No sir. It's okay." He tried.
"Yes. Quil. Come on, we haven't got all day." Quil huffed and trudged to the front of the class with his raggedy paper that was missing a corner. Yeesh.
"My poem's about my favorite thing…. And it isn't good so don't expect anything." Quil clarified before bringing his face up to his face and clearing his throat.
"Cod is what I call you,
But you have many names,
But one thing stays constant,
You are the world's best game.
When I first unwrapped you,
My god was I glad,
You are the best birthday present,
That I've ever had,
If I could marry you, I would,
You really are a beauty,
Oh my lady love,
My baby… Call of duty."
Quil ran straight to his seat while the rest of the class sat there with our mouths open. Mr. Morgan removed his glasses and massaged the bridge of his nose.
"Five years of English and that's the best you can do?" He asked Quil who just slumped in his chair. Quil looked back at Steph so she flashed him a reassuring smile.
She looked to her left to stop herself staring at him only to meet the eyes of Embry
.He blushed and looked away sheepishly. Was he staring at her? For some reason, her heart began to speed up the thought of it. Was she feeling something for Embry?
"Meyer..." Stephanie jumped when she heard her name and her eyes snapped from Embry to the speaker.
"Yes sir?" She answered unsurely.
"You're next to read…. Hopefully something that doesn't make me want to reach for the vodka." Mr. Morton replied seriously as he looked over at Quil. Steph stood up weakly and her legs felt like jello as she made her way to the front of the room which seemed like miles away. She took a deep breath as she looked into all of the expectant eyes before her; Embry was smiling reassuringly and she suddenly felt calm. Steph cleared her throat and began;
"Life is about choices,
we have free will to make,
it is left to each one of us,
the path we choose to take.
The journey of life we travel
has guideposts along the way,
to keep us on the straight and narrow,
that we might not go astray.
The first guide is our faith,
we all know what that means,
not wavering in alliance to
the Creator behind the scenes.
The second motivation
keeping us on the trail,
is the hope instilled within our hearts,
enabling us to prevail.
The final inspiration,
as we live and learn each day,
is the love that should encompass,
everything we do and say.
As a precautionary measure,
we all have inner voices,
consciences to guide us,
in making the right choices."
She took a deep breath and lowered the paper to her classmates who were just staring at her blankly. Well, at least they werent throwing scrunched up paper at her head.
Steph walked back to her seat and waited for someone to speak.
"Thank-you miss Meyer. That is the kind of quality I was looking for. Ok Robinson, you're next…." Steph stopped listening and swallowed loudly; she had never liked speaking in front of people.
"Pssst." She heard a sound and looked to her left again; Embry was leaning over into her seat.
"That was really good Steph." Embry told her as he moved back into his upright position; she nodded, too shocked to say anything.
…..
Third period was math; Steph had never fully understood why she had to learn about it; she found it boring and tedious, half of the curriculum was common sense anyway. The only thing good about it was that she had Quil, Embry and Jake with her; it was the only lesson that they all had together. They had become good friends in a matter of hours.
As Steph walked in, the teacher pointed her to the seat in between two other girls and the class started to snigger; Steph became suspicious. She walked over, noticing that Quil, Embry and Jake were in the row behind her; they were all avoiding eye contact with smirks on their faces; she sat down in her appointed seat. The teacher began to speak but she turned her attention to the timid girl to my left. Steph couldn't see her face because she kept it under her long black hair.
"Hey, I'm Stephanie Meyer." She said, trying to peak through. The girl jumped and her head lifted,
"Hi… im Kim Cattori." She replied and her heart skipped a beat. Steph should have expected this but somehow… she didn't. Because Kim was hardly in her books, she wanted to know more about her. Steph went closer to her and whispered.
"You're really pretty Kim. You should totally wear your hair off your face…" She paused to think about the date.
"Especially on Monday… and bring some extra pencils." She told Kim who looked skeptical but nodded her head anyway. Steph turned around feeling annoyed when she heard the guys giggling like goof balls behind her.
"What?" She whisper- shouted.
"Oh nothing…. But you don't mind insects do you Steph?" Quil asked cryptically causing Jake to spit all over Steph through laughter. She wiped it off dramatically and turned around wandering what the heck he was on about. That was when she turned to the right to the other girl next to her.
She seemed pretty regular and much like Kim; quit and shy. Her hair was piled on the top of her head and… Oh my god. Steph almost screamed when she saw some kind of creature, probably a nit or hair lice; walk from under her hair and down the back of her neck into her collar. A new round of laughter began behind Steph… oh god… and she didn't bother turning around. She understood what they meant now.
Kim flashed Steph a sympathetic smile and moved her chair to the left, Stephanie did the same and the other girl didn't seem to notice. She now had this odd urge to scratch her head.
A rolled up paper came tumbling off of Steph's shoulder and landed square in front of her. She opened it and huffed when she saw what it said:
You know, they can jump up to one meter?
Steph huffed again and tore the paper up; throwing it back over her shoulder; a new round of laughter started behind her. Quil leaned forward into her ear and started whispering a stupid song,
"Spider-man, spider-man,
Does whatever a spider can,
Can he swing from a web….
…no he can't…. Coz he's on your head."
Steph let out a short burst of laughter and buried her head into her hands for the rest of the lesson.
…Lunch
"It's getting worse." Quil declared as he held his apple out into the air in front of his friends.
"Aren't there rules for this sort of thing?" He asked as he turned the apple around, frowning when he found that the other side was just as bruised as the latter. Jacob shrugged but Embry let out a short burst of laughter then stopped. At the end of religious education, Steph and the guys had played a game of dares. Embry's was to not use the bathroom all day long.
"That apple…" Steph was interrupted by Embry who was already partially laughing and jerking in his chair randomly.
"Please don't say anything funny. I actually really need to go to the bathroom." He said as he blushed and moved in his seat awkwardly; Quil and Jacob stared at him incredulously. Stephanie smirked mischievously and his face went pale.
"That apple…" She said louder; he jerked in his seat again like his body was spasming. Quil was trying to hold in his own laughter and Jake began to film Embry inconspicuously with his cell.
"That apple…" She said again; enjoying this way too much.
"Please…. Oh come on…. Jake? Are you filming me... what is wrong with you?" Embry asked incredulously. Steph chuckled a little at that; he looked like he was really bursting so she went easy on him.
"That apple…. Looks like it's been in a fight." She said, knowing it wasn't even remotely funny. Much to everyone's surprise, Embry burst into uncontrollable laughter and scrambled from his chair; running like Usain Bolt all the way out of the cafeteria. Heads turned from the open double doors, to their table and back to their lunches. Quil and Jacob were just regaining their composure from the not-so-funny-joke when Steph turned her attention back to them.
"I know, right. The food here is just… sad… but I guess you've gotta get used to it now Steph." Quil said randomly; totally forgetting about what had just happened and continuing his rant on his appalling fruit. They ate in silence for a few minutes until he spoke again.
"So Steph. Why'd you move to La Push?" Quil asked her as he took a bite of his battered apple then he grimaced lightly. Embry approached their table again; a slight blush on his face and sat down. Jake ginned superiorly and turned to Steph.
"My parents got tired of San Francisco and wanted to come home." She answered, staring down at the unidentifiable mush on her tray; she pushed it away from herself in disgust.
"Oh, so you're parents are Quilieute?" Embry asked; his eyes wide. Why was that so hard to believe? Was it not obvious? Her high cheek bones and long black hair were dead giveaways.
"Yeah, my mom is full and my dad is half." She answered surely.
"Cool." He replied. Trying to sound unphased but she could still hear the surprise in his voice.
"So are you gonna tell us how you know us or what?" Jacob joked. Steph should have seen this coming but surprisingly, she didn't. She had to think of something quickly.
"…Yeah, I mean, how can I put this... Your pasts proceed you. You're Jacob Black, your like future chief. Then you got Quil, your granddad is on the council. And Embry, I generally just heard about you." Steph lied .They nodded. She couldn't believe that worked, it was inconsistent and a complete lie.
"So how long have you been in La Push? I haven't seen you around." Embry asked her, he peered right into her eyes; she looked away as she blushed.
"Well, about two months. And I haven't really gotten out much while I've been here. Too busy writing." Steph told them, hoping that they wouldn't pry. Luckily, they didn't.
"So, you wanna hang out after school?" Quil asked her hopefully.
"I would… but I can't. I gotta go to a bonfire with my dad tonight." She answered them. Jacob's eyes widened and a smile broke out on his face.
"How could I not remember? You're second name's Meyer, right? You're dad's Jamal Meyer." Jacob practically screeched as if he'd just solved the winning puzzle.
"Yeah?" Steph asked him; wondering why he was so intrigued. Why was that so exciting? Quil and Embry looked just as confused as Steph.
"He was like a member of the council before he left." Jacob confirmed. He was? Steph wondered why her dad had never told her that; she told him everything. She jumped in her seat at her own thoughts. He knows.
"Are you okay Steph?" Someone asked; she was too distracted to recognize the person.
"Yeah, yeah. I'm cool." They all nodded.
…..
"Dad!" Steph screamed through the house as she walked in and leaned against the door frame.
"Steph?" Jamal asked as she moved into the kitchen. He bounded heavily down the stairs and Stephanie turned to see him. She dropped her school bag on the floor in front of her in shock. How could she have been so blind? It all seemed so obvious now that she was looking at him. The bulging muscles, his lack of aging…. Leaving and returning at odd hours. Wolf.
Thoughts?
What do you think?
I've got pics of Stephanie's mom and dad on my profile XD
The poem by Steph was actually by 'Carol Gioia'… and of course I wrote the call of duty one, lol, in like 40 seconds may I add. Lol.
The spider-man thing actually came from one of my friends.
Reviews please.