Bella

I stumbled into English, feeling disoriented after my conversation with Evie.

"Nice of you to join us Ms Swan." Mr. Mason drawled sarcastically. My face flushed as I realized class had already begun. Evie was- infuriating as always- sitting neatly in her usual seat. How in the world had she gotten here before me? I glared at her as I took my seat at the back of the room. It just wasn't fair that she was always catching me off guard while she herself remained the picture of composure.

Tyler and Mike met me at the door when class ended. They were both bubbling over with excitement about a trip to the beach they had planned for the weekend. The weather was supposed to be nice, which for Forks meant over 40 degrees and only partly cloudy. I was skeptical, remembering my childhood trips in the cold and the wet. Beaches are supposed to be sunny and warm. But the boys' enthusiasm was infectious, and I found myself agreeing to come along.

The rest of the morning flew by, and Jessica, Angela, Lauren, Ben, and Eric joined in on the beach plan. They were all talking about it excitedly when I arrived at the cafeteria. My eyes immediately looked to the table across the room where the Cullens always sat, but to my sudden and unexpected dismay Evie was not with them. Where had she gone after class? Why did I feel so disappointed that she wasn't here? I puzzled over that for a moment while we waited in the lunch line.

"Bella, aren't you going to get some food?" Jessica asked me when she noticed I was just standing there.

"No, I'm not very hungry." I answered, but grabbed a lemonade just to have something to hold.

"Evie Cullen is staring at you again." She whispered as she took her tray to our usual table. My heart stuttered, and I looked around frantically expecting her to jump out from behind me. Then I saw her sitting at a table by herself, looking right at me. I felt the weight of her gaze like lead in my feet, rooting me to the spot. And then, amazingly, she raised one delicate arm and curled her finger in twice, beckoning me to her. I gulped, and then shook my head to clear it. What was wrong with me today?

"I'd better go see what she wants," I mumbled to Jess, then wove my way through the tables until I was standing across from Evie. She was smiling a crooked smile, and it was hard to believe that someone could be so beautiful in real life. I waited, unsure if she had been serious this morning when she said she wanted to start over.

"Will you sit with me today?" She asked pleasantly. Her face was open, her voice friendly. I still didn't exactly trust her, but I wanted to keep my promise to myself that I would let her know that she could trust me. I pulled out the chair and sat down.

"So what are we, like, friends now?" I managed to say, cursing my inability to articulate in her presence.

"Friends…" she mulled the word over as if it were a bite of food she didn't know if she liked.

"Or not…" I mumbled. This was going to be more difficult than I thought.

"Let's just say I wouldn't be a good friend for you." She told me, and behind her smile the warning was real.

"Oh…" My brain kicked into gear now, and it occurred to me that maybe she hadn't been avoiding me just out of fear of my questions, but also to protect me.

"But I'd be willing to try." She added.

"Why the change in heart?" I asked her.

She thought about her answer for a while. "I'm curious about you." She finally said.

"Really?" I was incredulous. What could possibly be interesting about me, compared to someone who could move faster than the eye could follow and stop a moving van from crushing me? "Why?"

"You're not like anyone I've ever met before." She said this as if it were a novelty of immense proportions. I didn't know whether I should be flattered or frightened. Now it was my turn to mull. As the silence stretched on I could see her scrutinizing me the way she had the first time we spoke, as if she was trying open up my head and look inside. I was getting more and more uncomfortable until finally she broke the silence. "What are you thinking?"

"I was trying to figure out what you are." I answered honestly.

Her face fell. "Having any luck?"

My superhero idea immediately sprang to mind. "You were sent here from the planet Krypton?"

She laughed, suddenly and heartily. The sound was like the ringing of bells, and I found myself grinning in response. "You're a billionaire with a batcave full of gadgets?" I continued, and she laughed harder. "You're a military experiment who was frozen in time until America needed you again?"

"That's closer," she said through her laughter, and then her face went instantly sober.

"What's wrong?" I asked, worried I had offended her.

"I always say too much when I'm around you." She admitted.

I gaped at her. "You're kidding, right?"

"Of course not." Her brow furrowed.

"It's just that, well, you haven't told me anything at all!" I was getting exasperated now.

She looked at me intently. "I will tell you one thing, and I need you to really listen." I nodded, intrigued. "What if I'm not a superhero? What if I'm the villain?"

The truth of this statement washed over me. "You're dangerous." I stated. I had sensed that from the very beginning.

She nodded gravely. "So you do understand."

"I saw you that day, in the bathroom. I saw your face."

Her lips pressed together tightly. "That never should have happened." She put her face in her hands, distraught.

I suddenly wanted to do something, anything to make her feel better. "I haven't told anyone what I saw."

"I know." She told me. "I was monitoring you." I bit back the slew of questions that that statement brought on. "Why didn't you?"

"I thought I was losing it!" I laughed, trying to lighten the mood again. "I wasn't sure what I had seen, so I decided to go to school the next day to see you again. You seemed, if not normal, at least not scary." She laughed this time, and I was relieved at the sound. I sensed this was my chance. "That was the day you saved me. That is how I know that, even if you are dangerous, you are definitely not a villain. I will never betray your secret. I owe you my life."

"What you must know is this: that wasn't the first time I saved your life. The first time was the day you walked into biology and took your seat next to me. Since then I have been saving you, every minute of every day, from myself." She stopped to let her words sink in. I was so shocked by this new information that I couldn't speak. "So you see, Bella, I am most definitely a villain."

She sat back in her chair, studying me. I was waiting for the fear to take hold of me, but it never came. Instead, I was filled with even more curiosity about this being that sat across from me. I opened my mouth to ask a question, but I was interrupted by the bell signalling the end of lunch hour.

"I think your friends are waiting for you," she said. I glanced past her toward the door, where Jessica and the others were indeed standing there waiting for me. It then occurred to me that Evie couldn't see them from where she was sitting.

"How did you-" I started to ask, but she silenced me with a hand in the air.

"Suffice it to say, people usually follow patterns. The bell rings, they walk to the door. It makes most of them quite predictable."

I wondered at the strange way she emphasized most. I still had so many questions to ask, and I was reluctant for our conversation to end. Would this be the last time she spoke so openly with me? I stood up and grabbed my bag off the floor, trying to shake the feeling. Evie stayed put, though the cafeteria was nearly empty now.

"Aren't you going to class?" I asked her.

"Nope." she grinned. "It's healthy to ditch now and then." For a second I thought she might ask me to stay with her. I longed for the chance to ask her more questions, since she was in such an informative mood. But I also had never ditched class before. Since she didn't invite me to stay, I started to walk towards the door. As I passed her seat, I stopped for one last question.

"Will you do me a favor Evie?" I found that I liked the sound of her name as I spoke it.

"That depends…" She was back to being guarded.

"Could you give me a heads-up the next time you decide to ignore me for my own good?"

She blinked, surprised. "That sounds reasonable." She agreed.

"Thank you." And with that I left for class.

Evie

I walked through the rain to my car, thinking about everything that had just transpired. Had I revealed too much? I was trying to impart a warning to this girl, but it didn't seem to have worked. Her gratitude was overshadowing her common sense, that much was obvious. I was glad that her theory about me had been so far off. A superhero, really? If only she knew the truth. But as perceptive as she was, would she figure it out on her own? I was walking a dangerous path by continuing my involvement with the girl.

I sat in my car and turned the key to run the stereo. My favorite CD started to play, and I relaxed into the music, staring out through the rain toward the school. My head was back against the headrest, eyes half-closed when it happened.

The door to building four crashed open and out came Tyler Crowley, supporting a limp and faint-looking Bella Swan. I was out of the car before I even realized what I was doing. Luckily I had the afterthought to check my speed just before Tyler looked up at my approach. I was getting too careless.

"Bella?" I called to her, but she slumped to the ground and laid her cheek on the wet pavement. As I neared them, I could smell the tiny pinprick of blood welling on Tyler's fingertip. I froze, waiting for the surge of bloodlust. To my surprise, it never came. I realized then that nothing would ever compare to the scent of Bella.

Tyler's mental anguish was screaming inside my head. He really did seem to care for her. "What happened?" I asked him, and crouched down so I could look at her face. She was pale- more so than usual- and her skin was moist with sweat.

"We were blood-typing in biology today," he told me. I nodded, already aware of this fact- hence the ditching of class today, "and as soon as she saw the needles she just dropped." I exhaled in relief that it was nothing serious.

"Thanks Tyler, I'll take it from here." I told him.

"But I'm supposed to take her to the nurse," he protested, and Bella groaned.

"She'll be fine, I promise." I was calm and confident, leaving no room for argument. "You should just go back to class." He shrugged, and, not knowing what else to do, turned and went back inside.

"Bella, can you hear me?" I asked her gently.

"No," she said defiantly, and I chuckled. I was about to take a momentous risk now. I turned my face away from her into the drizzling rain and sucked in a huge breath of fresh air. Then I held my breath and turned back to her. I gently placed my hand under her shoulder and helped her into a sitting position. The rain made her more fragrant, I could taste her scent on the back of my throat without even inhaling. The beast inside me roared to life when I touched her; telling me to pull her close, press my lips against her neck. Just a little taste...I clenched my teeth and fought down the monster. The need was so strong I felt I would be rent in two. But I was stronger.

"Bella, look at me please." Her eyes fluttered open, her pupils retracting as she focused on my face. I was using my extensive medical training as well as my extra...gifts to assess her vitals. I could hear her that her heart rate was normal and her breathing even. She really was fine.

"You were right." She told me.

"I usually am," I answered, curious. "But about what in particular?"

"It's healthy to ditch class." I laughed, relief sweeping through me. "Why are you still here?" She continued. "I thought you'd left after lunch."

"I still have to wait for my family. We all came in my car." I told her. Then an insane idea occurred to me. "Would you like to wait with me? If you go back to class now you'll just have to turn around and leave again." I was still convinced that prolonged exposure to her scent would reduce my sensitivity to it. What better time to test my theory than the present? If it didn't work I could always just get out of the car.

"Okay." She agreed, and I carefully helped her to stand. She took a deep breath and turned her face up into the rain, letting the water wash over her. It struck me then that she was quite beautiful, for a human. Her rain-soaked hair was curling into dark ringlets down her back, and when she tipped her head back down to look at me I felt caught in her deep brown eyes. I found myself staring into their depths, wondering for the thousandth time what she was thinking.

"Shall we?" I asked her, blinking to break the trance I'd fallen into. We walked across the parking lot to my Volvo. I got in the driver's side and turned on the engine to get the heater going for her. It sputtered and emitted a faint burning smell, reminding me that it had never been used. I hoped it would still work. Bella climbed into the passenger seat and I braced myself. Sure enough, the wave of her scent slammed into me and once again I battled my internal demon. Did I imagine that it was just a tad bit easier this time? Wishful thinking, I told myself.

The heat finally kicked in, and Bella sat in her seat angled toward me, fanning her hair in front of the vent to dry it. This magnified her scent ten-fold. I held my breath and clenched the door handle, ready to bolt the second it became unmanageable. My entire body was burning, surely the fire would destroy me any minute now. I didn't know how long my agony lasted, but suddenly Bella spoke, and her voice helped to clear my head.

"Clair de Lune?" She was asking me. I fought through the haze of bloodlust, trying to make sense of her words. After a moment I realized she was referring to the song playing on the stereo.

"You know Debussy?" I asked her, surprised. Most humans had no appreciation for the classics.

"I took piano lessons when I was a kid," She told me. "This was one of my favorites, but Beethoven most of all." I smiled, trying to picture her as a child at a piano.

I knew I had to keep the conversation going, to distract myself from wanting to tear into her.

"Bella, what happened to you in class today?" I asked her.

"I have a weak vasovagal system," she joked, and I coughed out a laugh in spite of the fire tearing at my throat. This girl is funny, I realized. She was also evading the question.

"I highly doubt that," I told her gently, and waited to see if she would tell me the truth.

She shuddered. "Mr. Banner was passing out the lab equipment for blood typing, and as soon as I smelled the chemicals and saw the needles I lost it. It was like I was right back there, in the hospital after the accident." She got quiet, and I waited patiently for her to elaborate, if she wished. "I was hooked up to all of these machines," she recalled. "There were needles stuck in my arms. My whole body hurt, and the smell- that hospital smell. My mom was in the bed next to me. Then they came to tell us what had happened, that grandma and grandpa were gone." She was silent then, a silence filled with memory and sadness. But her eyes were dry. I realized then how strong she was, to have gone through that and still have the capacity to remove herself from her home in order to give her mother the chance to heal. She was entirely selfless.

Her sadness was heartbreaking. I had a sudden urge to draw her out of it. "What is your mother like?" I asked her, hoping it wouldn't be too fresh a wound to open.

She smiled; my instincts had been right.

"She's silly and sensitive, and very indecisive. She will work song lyrics into any conversation and sing them. She's my best friend." Her face fell. "I miss her so much." Her sadness again was palpable.

"Have you heard from her?" I asked gently.

"No. She's not allowed phone privileges yet. That has been the hardest part. We went from talking every single day, to not at all." She stared out the window morosely. For one wild second I wanted to reach over and embrace her, to let her know she was going to be okay. What was I thinking? I wanted to do something to ease her pain, but didn't know what.

"What about Phil?" I asked the first question that popped into my mind.

She looked at me, puzzled. "What about him?" She asked hesitantly.

"Have you spoken with him since moving here?"

"No, but my dad has." She didn't seem to want to talk about him, so I pressed her.

"Do you not like him?"

"No, Phil's fine. He's really good to her, and she's crazy about him. That's all that matters, isn't it?"

"I suppose." I paused, then asked the next question that popped up. "I wonder, do you think she would extend the same courtesy to you?" I was more confused than Bella looked. What made me ask that question? "I mean, no matter who your choice was?"

Bella's heart was hammering in her chest now, her eyes were wide and her full lips slightly open in shock. It appeared I had hit a nerve that I wasn't even searching for.

"I have no idea," she whispered, her voice tinged with fear. This girl was terrified. What was she so afraid of? I was suddenly reminded of her conversation with Tyler yesterday, and her similar reaction to being asked to the dance. Something about dating...did she have a secret love? Someone she would never want her mother to find out about? Suddenly the answer hit me: Phil. She had been reluctant to talk about him. It was the only logical explanation. What could be more taboo than being involved with your mother's husband? I proceeded with caution.

"And Phil? What would his reaction be if you brought someone home to meet them?" I was really pushing now, determined to unlock the mystery of what had this girl so scared. To my surprise, her heart began to slow again rather than accelerate. Had I guessed wrongly?

"I don't think he would have much opinion. He seems like a pretty open-minded guy." I could tell by her pulse that this answer was honest and forthright. What was I missing?

To my dismay, the final bell rang and students began pouring out of the school buildings. My family would soon be here.

"So will I see you at the beach tomorrow?" Bella was asking me as she opened the car door to leave.

I got out of the car as well, my hands out palms up in the rain. "Good weather for sunbathing!" I joked to mask my disappointment at failing yet again to uncover the mystery of Bella.

She laughed. "They tell me it's going to be sunny-ish."

I frowned. The beach was definitely out then. "Unfortunately I already have plans. Camping with the family." I told her, though hunting would have been a better description.

"Oh," she actually sounded disappointed. "Well, have a good weekend."

"Thank you, you as well." She turned and started walking across the parking lot. Out of the corner of my eye I glimpsed my family by the doors, watching us intently. I could hear their suprised thoughts as they saw me conversing yet again with the girl.

Idiot! That was Rosalie, her objections the loudest.

Lost her mind, poor kid. Emmett still could not fathom what could be so fascinating to me about a human.

Jasper had caught Bella's scent and was fighting down the bloodlust, though for him she was only slightly more tempting than any other human. He didn't understand my predicament either.

Can I talk to Bella now? Alice was looking at me while she thought, knowing I could hear her. Like me, the mystery of why our gifts did not work on this particular human was driving her mad. But I had called dibs. I decided to provoke them all further, just for fun.

"Bella?" I called to her as she walked away. She turned to face me. "Will you do something for me this weekend?"

She backtracked until we were face to face again. "Yes?"

"Try not to fall into the ocean or get run over while I'm gone, would you?"

She glared at me, incensed at my implication that she couldn't take care of herself. "I'll do my best!" She spat, and stomped off. It was just too easy, goading her like that. I felt a strange satisfaction that I was able to get under her skin, like I was beginning to understand her even without reading her mind. Plus, the subtle reminder to my siblings that we were still keeping her alive was a bonus. They joined me then, five vampires piled into a Volvo hatchback, and I laughed all the way home.