A New Dawn
Disclaimer: All that is Twilight belongs to Stephenie Meyer. No copyright infringement intended.
The rest is mine.
A/N: Hello again ;) Time for another update.
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Here we go, chapter 3 ;)
Chapter Three
I didn't really believe in second chances.
Perhaps I might have a long, long time ago, but as I made my way over to my seat next to Alice Brandon…second chances and fresh starts and all that bullshit sounded like some made-up fairytale far, far away.
Her wide eyes hadn't left mine still, and I was growing almost annoyed. I took my seat without protest and made sure the stool was inched as far away from the evil pixie bitch as possible.
Her mouth was hanging open.
Careful, you'll attract flies that way,I wanted to remark immaturely like a seven-year-old.
But I didn't.
I kept my mouth clamped shut, my teeth locked together.
Don't say anything unless she does. Just keep your trap shut.
I got out a pencil and a half-used up notebook I'd used all semester at my old school, and, damn it, I could still feel her eyes on me, boring holes into me.
And to be honest, it was really starting to piss me off.
Wasn't it bad enough I had to sit next to her? She couldn't keep her fucking eyes anywhere but glued on me?
I turned my head in her direction, a glare already in place, ready to snap out on her.
"What?" I hissed, low enough so Mr. Riley wouldn't hear.
Surprisingly, she flinched, yes flinched, back a little and looked down at her paper.
I couldn't say I wasn't satisfied with her reaction, and I'd be lying if I said that it didn't almost made me feel a little…empowered. I hoped she got the idea and passed the message along to her other little friends aka my shit list.
Bella Swan would no longer be the object of other peoples' amusement at Forks High.
No more; I'd had more than enough.
To my immense satisfaction, Alice kept her head down and her eyes anywhere but on me the rest of the class period.
I smiled internally.
I was surprised, though. Where was the retaliation? No cruel words? No punch or slap? Not even so much as a murderous glare? Hmm, perhaps later when she had her band of brainless dick wads with her, she'd strike back.
At the end of class when the bell rang, Alice gathered her things quickly and quietly. She did not dare even glance my way.
Again, I smiled internally to myself.
This would be easier than I'd originally thought it'd be.
…
"Hi, I'm Mike," the little baby-faced worm greeted me as I took the only seat available in chemistry which happened to be right in front of Mike Newton.
I sighed loudly, annoyed. "I know."
"Yeah, Bella, right? We go way back! Don't you remember me?" he asked, sounding fucking happy like he was some childhood friend or some shit.
I turned to glare at him, probably the nastiest glare I'd given anyone all day.
Yeah, I remember you alright shit bag, I thought bitterly as the unwanted memories flashed through my mind quickly.
Mike laughing as Cullen poured milk on my head.
Mike "accidentally" bumping into me in the hallways, knocking all my things out of my hands.
Mike getting pissy after I turned him down for a date.
Mike telling the whole school I'd let him fuck me in the back of his dad's beat up Sedan so he'd feel like a big man after I shot him down.
Feeling absolutely humiliated and alone.
He didn't seem to notice or maybe didn't care that I was giving him one of the dirtiest look I'd given anyone in my life. He was probably used to getting them.
He'd made my life a living hell along with the rest.
"So, I was thinking we could get together, you know, catch up on old times?" he asked.
This I had to laugh at. The nerve of that prick!
He slightly flinched back at the sound of my laughter, unexpected as it was to him.
"Is this a joke?" I demanded, looking at him with laughter dancing in my eyes.
Then I laughed some more.
Then I glared at him some more.
"You're fucking kidding me, right?" I asked, laughing again.
By this point, we had the attention of the entire class and I was glad Mr. Banner was making copies down the hall and not here to witness this. I didn't need to be sent to the principal's office on the first day back, you know?
He seemed at a loss for words, no idea what to say.
"Uh, w-what?" he stammered, confused which only made me laugh harder.
"Well, you said you remembered me, right? Bella Swan? You do know I'm the Bella Swan you said you fucked because I turned you down and wounded your poor, pathetic ego as if your dick could shrivel up any more?"
The entire class was silent before a roar of laughter erupted through the entire classroom.
Mike, face as red as tomatoes, did the smart thing like a good little sheep and went back to his desk with his tail between his legs.
And this time I'd be ready for him if he tried to say he fucked me in the middle of chemistry while the teacher wasn't looking. Yeah, did I mention he was never all that bright?
I looked back up to the board, copying today's notes.
"You rock," said a sweet voice from beside me.
I turned my head in the direction of the gentle voice and smiled.
And I smiled not only because she'd just told me I rocked but because she was a new face, a new, friendly face.
"Thanks," I replied, smiling.
She smiled back. "I'm Angela. Angela Webber," she said quietly, shyly.
"Bella. Bella Swan."
That's when I made my second official friend at Forks High.
…
Jake was in a fit of laughter at lunch as I told him about what I'd said to Mike the Newt.
"Mike the Marshmallow," he laughed to himself. "What a pansy."
"Trust me, I know," I said bitterly.
Then he was serious again.
"So, he told everyone that you and him . . ."
"Yep," I said, remembering the terrible time and trying to shake the horrid memories out of my head. That had been real the beginning of the slaughter of the only decent reputation I'd held onto at that point after already being bullied by Cullen and the others.
I couldn't count the number of nights I'd cried myself to sleep over that. It was a terrible, awful thing to be accused of something you didn't do or accused of being something you weren't like, in my case, a slut or fucking the slimy worm, Mike Newton.
Jake snorted, bringing me back to reality. "He should be so lucky," he said, making me laugh and, gratefully, lightening the mood.
I was really starting to like Jake.
"And Alice just sat there?" he asked, referring to what I'd told him during economics about the little Alice incident.
"Yeah, pretty much," I told him.
"Well, that's a good thing, right?" he asked.
I shrugged, picking at my food.
Shitty cafeteria food was the worst. Half-frozen fries. Gross pizza. Bruised fruit. I made a mental note to bring my own lunch from now on or not eat at all.
"Hey, there's Cullen," Jake said, nodding towards a nearby table and folding his arms across his chest.
I didn't glance up to where he was looking, fearing I'd come into eye contact with Cullen. "What's he doing?"
"Don't look. He's staring at you," Jake murmured, leaning back in his chair.
I pretended to go about my business, not even looking in Cullen's direction. Pretending I had no idea he was there, hadn't even thought of him, but I wanted to look, see his face after all this time.
Then I wanted to flip him off.
Suddenly, Jacob laughed loudly, freely, attracting the attention of a few people sitting close by at neighboring tables.
My head snapped up from my repulsive food, and I stared at him questioningly.
"What?" I asked curiously.
I waiting impatiently as he tried to pull himself together.
"He—he's glaring at me," Jake managed to get out between laughs.
"Who?" I demanded, glancing around, although pretty sure who he was talking about.
His laughing finally let up and I could understand him better. "Cullen," he chuckled.
"What? Why?" I demanded.
How strange…
The fucker didn't even know Jake.
At least I didn't think he did.
Jacob shrugged. "No idea. Maybe it's 'cause I'm sitting with you and he isn't," he joked.
I laughed once, sarcastically. "Right," I replied dryly.
"Is he still looking?" I asked, trying to shield my face by letting my hair fall over my shoulder and forming a curtain so Cullen couldn't see what I was saying just in case he could read lips.
EPOV:
Bella Swan was beautiful, even more so than I remembered.
I'd heard she was returning today, but I hadn't seen her all day and was beginning to think it was just another stupid rumor until lunch rolled around.
There, sitting next to that scum, Jacob Black, was Bella, looking beautiful as ever. Her chocolate brown eyes were just as I remembered, beautiful and dark. Her skin was pale yet looked so smooth and creamy, almost translucent it was so clear.
But she was sitting next to Black, the lucky bastard.
I'd watched with a jealous rage I couldn't understand whenever Bella smiled or laughed at something he said.
That should be me.
Wait, what? I didn't really know where all this was coming from or why I was jealous. Maybe it was just the guilt eating at me.
Either way, I was jealous.
I glared openly at him. He saw me, of course, and the bastard actually started laughing. I sensed he knew why I was glaring daggers at him, and he was enjoying it . . . very much.
I watched as Bella shifted, letting her hair fall over her shoulder and forming a curtain, officially blocking off my view of her perfect face.
That pissed me off. I wanted to look at her, see her face.
Shut the fuck up, Cullen. Like you deserve the privilege.
BPOV:
Three words: Fuck. My. Life.
That's what I thought to myself as I walked into my pottery class for fourth block.
Do you know who I saw first thing?
Edward Cullen.
He sat with his back towards the door, he hadn't seen me yet for which I was grateful; it gave me a minute to get my shit together.
I sighed and gave myself a mental slap across the face.
Come on, Bella. Don't crumble now.
And I didn't.
I walked confidently into the room, right past Cullen, not even sparing as much as a glance in his direction. Fuck him.
I took a seat at the table farthest from his, my back to him so I wouldn't have to worry about seeing his face.
I could feel his eyes on me, but I didn't squirm.
I was going to pretend as though Edward Cullen never existed.
A/N: What? Don't look at me like that...I had to give them a class together!
Bella and Edward will have to have a show down at some point, right?
And Edward thinks Bella's beautiful? Hah, eat your heart out, Eddie.
TwiFic Recommendations:
1. Bottled Lies by Karina Cullen
Summary - Labeled as the freak at Forks High, Bella keeps her distance from her peers. Especially Edward, a boy who hates her for no reason. The moment Edward walks into Bella committing suicide, everything is tested. Hatred. Love. Truth ... and Bottled Lies. BxE
2. Sanguineous Torment by PlzFangMe
Summary - Suddenly the human race find themselves slaves to the Vampires. Used only for their bodies and blood. Bella is a blood slave, the Cullen's are totally OOC, and, Edward is in for a world of hurt as he tries to protect the one thing that matters most...
3. Hydraulic Level 5 by Gondolier
Summary -Critics hailed Edward Cullen's novels as "masterful" and "brimstone beauty"-a genius of his generation. To Bella Swan, he was simply the complex man who broke her heart for his career in New York. How does one forget her first love and the new woman on his arm? With whitewater rafting. Skydiving. Surfing. A bit of mischief and sweet, sweet revenge.