Monday morning. That meant one thing. School. As excited as I was to go back to school, and well finish school, I wasn't looking forward to starting a new school. It was hard enough being the new student at school, I shuddered at the thought of my first day at Forks High, but to be mute on top of that was going to be even more difficult.
My alarm went off at exactly 6am. That would give me plenty of time to shower, get my things together, make breakfast, and then make it to school by 8am. Not only was it my first day at school, but today was also the day Charlie started his new job.
I shut the alarm off and got out of bed. My arms were a bit sore from sleeping on them so I stretched a bit before making my bed. I grabbed the clothes I had picked out the night before and headed to the shower.
The shower woke me up instantly. I took longer than necessary to shower. I enjoyed the warm water and didn't want to leave. Once the water started to cool down I shut off the shower and wrapped myself in a towel.
By the time I finished getting ready for school it was almost seven. I could hear Charlie's shower running from the hallway. I grabbed my backpack and rushed downstairs.
Breakfast was going to be something quick and simple this morning. I spent a little too much time in the shower to do anything more than sausage, scrambled eggs and some toast. I would have preferred something a little for filling for Charlie, like pancakes, but I didn't have the time for that. Once breakfast was done I made some coffee for Charlie and put the two plates on the table. I poured myself some orange juice.
I was putting Charlie's coffee on the table when he came downstairs wearing his police uniform. His gun was in the holster already and he looked ready to go. "Smells good Bella," he complimented. He took a seat dug into his food. "You didn't have to do this."
I shrugged. I was going to make myself breakfast anyway. It wasn't a big deal, I wrote.
Charlie glanced at the whiteboard before nodding. "Well, thanks." I quickly finished my food and started to clean up, not wanting to deal with the mess when I got home. "Go on to school Bella," Charlie told me. "I'll finish cleaning up."
I waved to Charlie before grabbing my bag and leaving the house. I jumped into my truck and listened as the truck roared to life. I loved my truck but I wouldn't mind if it was a bit quieter. The looks I got as a drove by were rather annoying.
The drive to school was slow, mostly because I was trying to remember how to get there. I should have gotten directions before I left. Luckily, the town was rather small, smaller than Forks, so it wasn't too difficult to find.
I pulled into a random parking spot. From what I heard when Charlie and I visited on Friday, there was no assigned parking for students. The staff had their own parking lot on the other side of the campus but where I was now was for the students, and any visitors.
I scanned the mostly full parking lot. None of the cars were particularly impressive. Sure, some of them looked like they were expensive but nothing like the cars in Forks. I wasn't sure if I was happy or not, over the fact that there was no expensive Volvo. A small part of me wished they ended up here. A much larger part was glad they weren't.
I took a deep breath before grabbing my stuff and getting out of the car. My whiteboard was in my hand along with my schedule and map of the school. My first class of the day was English, which was good because it was my favorite subject.
School was better than I expected. Unlike Forks, I wasn't some side show here. Although there were a lot of people curious about my silence. Most of the students stayed to their social groups. Which was fine with me. It meant I could keep to myself without worrying about the other kids.
As soon as the last bell rang I was out the door and making my way to the parking lot. I missed the first couple weeks of school due to the move, and my depression. Luckily, the teachers were nice enough to give me the work I missed, including two tests that I got to do at home. That meant I would be spending the first week or two trying to catch up. I was determined to do so. I wanted to go to college and build a future, even if I wasn't sure what that future would be.
I drove through town back home. I wanted to look for a job but I needed to catch up on my school stuff first. I spotted a coffee shop just off the main road. It wasn't much, just a hole in the wall shop. I wasn't big on coffee but tea sounded nice right about now.
I pulled into an empty parking spot in front of the shop. I grabbed my whiteboard, marker and wallet and got out of the car. The first thing I noticed was the help wanted sign on the door.
The coffee shop was empty when I walked inside.
"Welcome to Káva Kafe," the barista called happily. I cringed. She was far too happy for my tastes. "What can I get you?"
I frowned as I scanned the menu. It was rather extensive. I decided to settle on something simple. One day I would try to test the different drinks. But today, I wanted something familiar. I quickly wrote my order on my whiteboard and showed it to the barista. She frowned slightly at the sight of the whiteboard but didn't comment.
"Vanilla latte, medium," she said ringing it up. "Anything else?" I shook my head. "That will be $4.75."
I pulled out a five and handed it to her. While she finished the transaction I quickly scrawled a new message. Can I get an application?
The barista's eyes widened as she read my message. My face fell slightly. They weren't going to hire a mute. I shouldn't have gotten my hopes up. "Yeah, here," the barista said handing me my chance and an application from under the counter. "Why don't you leave your name and number? The owner comes by in the evenings to check on things and I can pass the information along."
She handed me a piece of paper and a pen so I could write down my contact information. As I wrote my name, I had a feeling someone was watching me. I looked up and scanned the room but there was no one there. I shook away the thoughts and handed her the slip.
"Well, it was nice to meet you Bella," the barista said, after reading the slip. "My name is Claire. I'll text you tonight when I hear from the owner. Give a few to make your coffee."
I took a seat at a table by the window. It was nice watching the many people wander through the streets. There were couples and families and what looked to be groups of friends. I felt a twinge of envy. Would I ever get the chance to be like them? Probably not. The one person I thought I would spend my life with wouldn't want to do something so… mundane.
I felt a flutter in my chest. It was a strange feeling. It was…almost like there was a cord around my heart and someone was tugging on it. Once again, I had a feeling someone was watching me. I glanced at the barista, the only other person in the shop. It wasn't her. She was busy making my drink. That meant it had to be someone outside.
I studied the many people outside. No one even glanced in this direction. From what I could see there wasn't a single person staring at me. Then why did I have this feeling? Why was there this strange feeling in my chest?
"Your latte," the barista said gently placing it on the table. She placed another item on the table. "A biscotti, on the house."
I nodded at her and she went back behind the counter. The latte was surprisingly good. I wasn't a big coffee fan but it had just enough sweetness to counteract the bitter coffee.
I filled out the application while I sipped on the coffee. The biscotti was good as well. I was going to order some to take home for Charlie.
When I finished, I cleaned up my mess and went back to the counter.
Can I get a dozen biscotti's, to go? I wrote.
"Sure," the barista agreed. I pulled out my wallet but she shook her head. "No, my boss says you don't have to pay here. Anything you want, drinks or food, is free for you. Also, she told me if you still want the job you can start tomorrow. You'll be a barista, which I'll train you for. Starting wage is $12 an hour, with potential bonuses and yearly raises and of course free coffee."
My eyes widened at her words. Really? I was hired already? I wanted to question it, honestly, I should question it but I couldn't bring myself to do it. This was a dream come true. A little too good to be true, if I was being honest with myself, but I didn't care.
Thank you! I get out of school at 1. I can be here by 1:15.
"Let's aim for 1:30," the cashier said. "That gives you a little extra time so you don't have to rush. At least one of the owners will be by around 2 tomorrow so you can meet her."
Owners?
"Sisters, three of them," Claire said. "Irina is only one that really comes by, although all three of them own this place. Her sister, Tanya, was here earlier but she had to leave. Irina is the one that will be here tomorrow." Claire handed me the bag with the biscotti's. "I'll see you tomorrow Bella."
Bye Claire.
I headed back to my truck. The strange tugging feeling disappeared by the time I left the coffee shop. It was a strange feeling but not completely uncomfortable. It was almost like…. A longing… for someone or something. It was something I had never felt before. Not even when he left.
I shook my head. It didn't matter. It had to be nothing. Maybe my subconscious playing tricks on me. I couldn't dwell on the feeling, even though the feeling was rather nice. I felt… healed. It was as if the tugging was trying to guide me to where I would be whole again.
I turned onto our new street and vowed I wouldn't think about that feeling anymore. It was a one-time thing and would remain a onetime thing.
It took a little longer to find the house then I expected, mostly because I was driving extra slowly to make sure I didn't miss it. I pulled into the driveway and parked in my unofficial spot. I grabbed my backpack, whiteboard and the bag of biscotti's and headed inside.
Charlie wasn't home which wasn't a surprise. It was his first day so I assumed he would be late. But that didn't bother me. It gave me time to fix him a nice dinner.
I kicked off my shoes, dropped my backpack by the door, and made my way to the kitchen. The whiteboard was placed on the table and the biscotti's on the counter. I opened the door to the fridge and scanned the contents. There was some leftover pizza and enchiladas. We could eat leftovers tomorrow. Tonight, tonight I wanted to cook something, anything really. I enjoyed cooking and it was a good distraction.
After scanning the fridge, freezer and pantry I decided to make burgers and frozen French fries. It wasn't the fanciest meal but it would be delicious and I knew Charlie would love it. Charlie was pretty simple when it came to food. He wouldn't even notice the fries were frozen.
I checked the clock and frowned. It was only four and I had no idea when Charlie would be home. Should I start cooking now? Or wait?
I sighed. After several minutes of debating I decided to wait until after five to cook. In Forks he always got off around five unless something happened. I didn't see why that wouldn't happen now.
I grabbed my backpack and set up my make up work. Since I wasn't cooking I figured I could at least get started on my make up work. It turned out there was quite a bit I missed. Luckily, I had plenty of time to catch up. It wasn't as if I had anything else to do, except work now.
Which reminded me. I needed to tell Charlie about my new job. Not only that but I needed to get an Alaska drivers license soon. I pulled out my notebook and ripped out the top sheet. I needed to start a to-do list. At the top I wrote Alaska drivers license. There was no reason to wait. We weren't moving back to Forks, Charlie made that very clear.
I stared at the one item on my list. It turned out that I didn't really have much to do after all. I pushed it aside so I could work on my assignments. I started with English because it was favorite subject. Since I couldn't do every little assignment I missed, my teacher, Mrs. West, decided to give me two larger assignments. I had to pick two books from a list, read them, and write an essay off the prompts she had given me.
Because I had some much make up work to do, I decided to cheat and do my essay's on Wuthering Heights and Frankenstein. I'd already read them both and the essay's would be easy to do because of that.
I grabbed my notebooks and got to work on the essay for Wuthering Heights. I chose to do my essay on how sympathetic Heathcliff's character was. Two years ago, I could easily go on and on about how sympathetic he was and how he wasn't a terrible person. Now, now I was arguing the opposite and I was surprised by how easy it was to get my outline done.
I ended up getting my entire essay done in a short amount of time. I was writing the last few sentences of the conclusion when I heard the front door open. I checked the time and it was 5:15. I jumped up and grabbed I need to make the burgers and fries.
"Hey Bells," Charlie greeted when he walked into the kitchen. He was wearing his police uniform, this time with the Denali logo instead of Forks. His gun was attached to his hip. As far as I knew he'd never fired one before and probably wouldn't now. But he had to have it with him, just in case.
I sat everything down so I could scribble a quick message.
Hi Dad! Sorry dinner's going to be a little late. I was doing my makeup work and lost track of time.
"No problem Bella," Charlie assured me. "Do you want any help?"
It seemed Charlie felt guilty for leaving me to cook and offered to help whenever possible. While I appreciated it, I preferred to cook alone and always declined. I shook my head at him and got to work on the burger patties.
Charlie headed upstairs to change out of his police uniform while I prepared dinner. Once the patties were seasoned and formed, I sat them aside to heat up the oven for the fries. I cut up some tomatoes, lettuce and onions for the burgers and put them back into the fridge. By the time I finished the oven was ready.
Charlie came back downstairs just as I got the fries into the oven. He grabbed a beer and sat at the counter.
I got a job, I wrote on my whiteboard.
"Really?" Charlie questioned surprised. "Where at?"
Káva Kafe. It's a coffee shop in town. I got hired as a barista so I'll mostly be in the back making coffees and not interacting with people. I'm going back after school to work out the details.
Charlie nodded. "That's great Bella," he exclaimed. "I'm proud of you."
I blushed. I wasn't used to the praise. Renee never praised me for anything, mostly because she wasn't aware of my accomplishments. While I knew Charlie was proud of me, he never really expressed it.
I glanced at the timer and was relieved to find I had a way to distract myself. I jumped up and got the skillet ready to grill the burgers.
Twenty minutes later and dinner was on the table. The toppings were on plates, spread out on the table, so we could build our own burgers. The various condiments were also set up on the table, along with the plate of fries I cooked in the oven. The burger patties were on a separate plate and the burger buns were still in their packaging, ready to be used.
We quickly assembled our own burgers and started eating. I grabbed my whiteboard and scribbled a quick message in between bites.
The coffee shop gave me a bunch of biscotti's for free. They're on the counter. They're delicious.
I tapped the table to get Charlie's attention and showed him the message. "That's great," Charlie exclaimed after swallowing a mouthful of fries. "I'll try one for dessert."
Charlie spent the rest of dinner chatting about his new job. It was nice to know he was happy with his new job. It was something positive to come out of him being forced to move.
"The guys are nice too," Charlie continued. He had finished eating about five minutes ago but was content to sit at the table with me while I ate. "One of them invited us over to a BBQ this weekend," he added.
I looked up from my plate and stared at him with my eyes wide. That truly sounded terrible. Even before Forks, I wasn't the most social person. The thought of being forced to interact with strangers, especially when I couldn't talk, didn't sound appealing.
"Will you come?" Charlie asked hopefully.
I glanced at Charlie and instantly regretted it. He looked so hopeful and I didn't want to ruin his mood. I nodded and he beamed.
As much as the idea of going to this BBQ sucked, I was glad I could do something to make Charlie happy. He didn't deserve what I had been putting him through and this was a small price to pay to make it up to him.
After dinner I cleaned up the kitchen. Charlie tried to help but I grabbed a beer from the fridge, gave it to him and pushed him toward the living room. A clear sign I did not want help tonight.
Even though I had some homework to do, that wasn't make up work, I took my time cleaning up the kitchen. I made sure it was spotless before grabbing my backpack and heading upstairs. I pulled out my math book and my notebook and placed them on my desk. My new computer was sitting there, still plugged in. I hadn't had a chance to set it up yet. I pushed it aside and vowed to get it set up tomorrow. I would need it to type up my papers anyway. Which reminded me that I needed a printer. I grabbed a post it and made a quick note to ask Charlie about getting a printer. Until then I could use the school one. After school I would run and grab a flash drive to save my work on.
Math took far longer than I expected to finish, though it wasn't surprising since I always struggled with math. By the time I finished it was after seven. I decided on a quick shower to relax myself before finishing the rest of my homework. Luckily, there wasn't much left to do, a short worksheet for history and reading through the lab assignment that we would be doing for Chemistry.
The shower was a nice break from homework. I felt refreshed and confident that I could finish the rest of my work in no time. It was a nice feeling. I dumped my dirty clothes into the hamper in my bathroom and grabbed my brush.
I was in a hurry to get back to my room and wasn't paying attention. I opened the door and rushed out… right into Charlie. "Easy there, Bells," he said, making sure I didn't fall over. I blushed in embarrassment.
"I'm going to the station early tomorrow so I'm heading to bed now. Don't stay up too late alright?"
I nodded and he walked off to his room.
The rest of my homework took no time. I was completely done by 8:30pm. I cleaned off my desk and picked out my clothes for tomorrow, setting them on my desk chair for easy access, before climbing into bed. I made sure my alarm was set and closed my eyes, wondering why I was feeling that strange tugging once again.
