Chapter 2 - Confusion
As I walked into my biology class I realised three things.
One, Mike seemed a little peeved he wouldn't be sat next to me in class.
Two, I was rather relieved he wouldn't be – yes, he was a harmless, nice guy but I really did need the breathing space and three…
Three, I would be sat next to Alice Cullen.
My legs carried on walking towards the empty seat as if on auto pilot. I sat down. I removed my things from my bag. I dropped my book. I bent down to pick it up, mentally scolding myself for being clumsy.
I smiled at the teacher as he came across to me with a handful of notes, introducing myself as Bella Swan.
Mr Ryan smiled; "Nice to have you in my class Bella" he replied, "oh, and if you have any problems catching up, I am sure your lab partner, Alice, can assist… Alice?"
I turned for the first time to look at Alice who merely nodded.
Mr Ryan walked back to the front of the class, and I heard myself thank Alice, who merely nodded again. Was she unable to speak?
The lesson continued, as did my confusion. Each time I turned to look at my lab partner, she seemed to have moved further and further away from me. Had I somehow offended her? The smile she had flashed at me earlier that day was gone; instead she seemed to wear a permanent frown.
Thankfully, we didn't have to actually talk to each other – Mr Ryan seemed to fill the entire lesson with slides, and handouts and endless chatter - no experiments would be taking place today – thankfully. I was never that good at small talk, and it would seem as though Alice Cullen was worse.
I started to think ahead, to the lessons where we would have to converse – would she be the same then? I passed her a handout, and she took it – avoiding eye contact. Later, I passed her another. This time she did look at me, her amber eyes thoughtful… within a flash, they had averted their gaze back to the desk and I found myself wondering if she had looked at me at all.
I wanted to say something to her, but my mind was blank. My Ryans voice was a faint echo, all I could hear was the blood rushing around my head, my heart thudding in my chest...
The bell sounded, and before I could even put my things away, the small form that was Alice Cullen darted from the desk towards the door.
Okay, so now I was getting a complex.
What on earth had I done to make her act so… strangely… towards me? She hadn't uttered a single word, but then again, neither had I. Perhaps neither of us was that good at meeting new people, but then I remembered that smile… so open, and friendly, and breathtaking….
The last word entered my brain and seemed to ricochet around my body.
Breathtaking? Where had that come from?
I packed my things away and moved towards Mike, whose smiling face actually gave me a little comfort.
"Boring lesson eh Bella" he replied.
I just nodded.
I wasn't sure what had just happened, but for some reason it would seem as though Alice didn't like me, and that thought didn't rest easy with me at all, especially when I realised I did like her… perhaps a little too much….