Chapter 5: Sweet Success


In my groggy, not quite awake state, the quietness disconcerted me. I opened my mouth to yell for my dad, but something stopped me. Taking the covers over my head in order to protect myself from whatever was out there, the sheets were all wrong. Then, like one of my brothers had run into me at full throttle, I was overpowered with a sense of déjà vu. It shook me so hard that instead of jumping into action, as I would have normally done, I was frozen in place, so tried to figure out what might be happening. Opening my eyes, I suspiciously evaluated the purple comforter. Why was it purple? Was I sleeping over at a friend's house and forgotten? Due to my disgust of the colour and not wanting to look at it anymore, I pushed it off me.

To my jubilation my confusion cleared in the best way possible: I was still Bella Swan. Yesterday had been the most perfect day, and I could only imagine it getting better. Gone were the first day jitters. I had learned Mike's friends' names. I had even hung out with them and fooled them into believing I was Bella. I could only get better at this.

Despite my exhilaration, my body was still frozen in place. I replayed my memory of yesterday multiple times, examining it from every angle. Had Mike really kissed me? It seemed like a dream come true. All my Christmas and birthday wishes had come at once, and I had lived a day that I hadn't even dared wish for, even while creating and carrying out the spell.

Like lightening, my body jumped into motion. Not only was I still in Bella Swan's body, the alarm I had set had yet to go off, giving me even more time to get ready. Exuberant to see what the day would hold, I was going to take advantage of the opportunity to improve my presentation. A kiss was a great first step, but this was about true love and living happily ever after. Regardless of how into me he had seemed yesterday, and how I knew him not to be a fickle person, I wanted to make a second impression that would tie us even closer together.

First, I made sure to go the extra mile with my body care, including shaving. Her skin didn't seem to need the level of moisturising that mine did. Her hair texture and its needs were also completely different to what I was used to. Fortunately, the feminine hair products in the shower were reminiscent of Mandy's. The labels stated that they were shampoo and conditioner. The conditioner I used went in after the shower. Nevertheless, I followed the instructions on the bottle. They seemed to do the trick. With the slight curl in her hair, I had searched for some type of straightener product, but had found none. She was definitely an au-natural girl. I figured if I changed that slowly, then it would seem like she'd gotten into it, which no one should question, not even her father.

The second day of rummaging through her drawers and closet resulted in frustration, reminding me of yesterday morning. The reminder that I was on day two had a pleasant aspect to it, but her clothes had made me want to scream. She really liked baggy shapeless items. On top of that, she had very few items to begin with. It was like her parents had forgotten to clothe her. I just didn't get it. What girl didn't have a decent selection of options?

My parents were struggling. They had mentioned things being tight after my grandmama died, but they still had managed to buy me more clothes than her. And her clothes weren't top brands. I mean, if she was a label girl, then few items might have made sense. But she wasn't. It was like she simply didn't have what she needed. It occurred to me that maybe it wasn't about money. Maybe Chief Swan was neglectful or something. Not wanting to get down when it was the start to second day, I put on a second-rate outfit, even though it was the best out of the bad options, and focused on getting ready. Applying the little makeup she had was a little easier, since I didn't have to take it off and start again as many times. By the time I was walking out the door, I would be right on time, which was disappointing, since I had been hoping to be a little early in order to see Mike before the first bell.

Driving to school once more caused my thoughts to veer towards my Dad. Truth be told, I missed him. My mom and I never seemed to see eye to eye, but my Dad was something special. In comparison, other than a voice through the door, I hadn't had any interactions with Chief Swan. Where my father was warm and supportive, Chief Swan seemed awkward and cold. The strangest part was that he treated me almost like we were roommates rather than being his kid. It wasn't bad, per say, and served me, certainly, but it was odd, and caused me to miss my father even more.

The rumours were that Bella's mom had run off with her when she was little, and Chief Swan had stayed to take care of his parents. I imagined that they had shared custody of Bella like other divorced families in my class, but Washington to Arizona had to have made it extra challenging. Maybe Chief Swan had never had to be a father in a live with her kind of way before. To grow up without a dad caused me to feel a little bad for her. It must have sucked. Hopefully her not having a dad growing up wouldn't cause mine to grow too suspicious.

Worried about all the things that could go wrong and how Bella could out me began to fester. Telling myself that I could just deny it straight out and make her look crazy calmed me. Maybe I could find a way to get Leah to threaten her into silence or arrange it for us to talk, so I could threaten her into staying silent. If she knew what was good for her, she would hide what was happening and lay low. Just in case, though, I needed to get some dirt on her. My plan decreased my worries and I once more focused on driving. It was only my third time behind the wheel alone after all.

The first bell rang right as I finished parking, so there was no time to see Mike or his friends.

The first day Bella started at Forks High it was obvious how much attention Mike was giving her. He was like a one man welcome band. Immediately, I had started following her, at a discrete distance, of course. In this way, I had learned her schedule and the location of her locker. It was a blessing that Bella had been so unobservant of her surroundings. She had always been watching where she was walking, rather than around her. Despite all that I hadn't learned her locker combination, so would have to endure Mrs. Cope to procure it.

Just like the homework that I had tried to understand last night, the material in class was more advanced than I was accustomed. The first class was English, which wasn't so bad, since writing was writing and books were books. Eric was in the class, which I saw as an advantage. I hoped that, since he had been with us, and Mike had acted like they were friends, he'd be willing to help me out. On top of passing classes, being in with Mike's friends, seemed smart. So, I made sure to be kind and friendly with him, but not too much, so as to not give him any false hope in getting with me.

After English I walked in the direction of Mike's class. In a good and bad way Mike was almost as unobservant as Bella. Although in the past I had wished he had noticed me, in Bella's body it made it kind of perfect. Thus, it wasn't difficult to make it seem like me running into him was happenstance.

"Hey, Bella," he offered me with a wide smile as soon as our eyes connected.

"Hey, Mike," I answered and to my mortification felt my checks warming.

Bella could often be found blushing, but I had thought it had to do with her inability to hide her emotions. Instead, it seemed to be a physical response. Ugh!

Working at being coy, as that had been something Mike liked, I hid behind her hair, like I had seen her do. As my observations had indicated, they had this class together, which seemed like an extra score! Sitting down next to him, I then parted my hair slightly and looked at him through my eyelashes.

He smiled and blushed a little, so I assumed that playing coy had worked for him. Oddly, though, he seemed nervous throughout the rest of class.

His state caused my mind to swirl. Had I done something to put him off me? Had my plan backfired already? What was he thinking? Had I already lost my chance with him?

For each question, I created a possible way to win him back. After going through so much, I had thought the rest would be easy. But, then again, when had my life ever been easy?

Grandmama had helped me from beyond to create the swap. She would help me again. I was sure of it.

Right before she had died, she had held my hand and told me that life was short, to enjoy it, to hold tightly to happiness and love, and to remember to think before I leapt. As the days after her funeral had passed, I had longed to do her proud and live up to her words. It was like the second day after the funeral and I had been out of it when I had bumped into someone. When my eyes had met Mike's, he apologised, and then had asked how I was holding up, going on to say how sad he had been when his grandfather had died. In the days afterwards, his kind words and thoughtfulness had stood out in contrast to nearly everyone else, who had acted like I carried a disease. My confidence that we were destined to be together decreased my worries.

When the bell rang indicating the class had ended, Mike waited for me and then walked me out.

Relieved that he was still showing interest, I thanked grandmama and then made sure to flirt and act coy some more.

"Want to do something Friday night?" Mike asked about halfway to my next class.

Inwardly jumping for joy at his words, I remained cool, turned towards him, and smiled, "Yeah, I'd really like that."

All nervousness that had occupied his face disappeared. Instead, he looked pleased, a smile widely occupying his face. Then, he told me, "Excellent! I can't wait. Maybe I'll even get another kiss."

Relief swept through me. Rather than his state being a result of him wanting to separate himself from me, it seemed likely that he had been nervous to ask me out. Clearly, I still had a lot to learn about Mike, but that was fine, I corrected myself before my thoughts could get too upset, as long as we were heading in the right direction.

Remembering Leah's recommendation to show interest, but not too much, I smiled at him uncertainly, telling him, "Guess that depends."

"On what?" he challenged.

"On how good the date is," I retorted with a teasing smile.

"I see how you are," he rejoined teasingly, while his posture had changed like he was taking on a challenge.

Leah's advice had seemed to be working thus far. She had been engaged, after all, so it wasn't too surprising.

He walked with me a bit more before it was clear that he planned on walking me all the way to class. A part of me didn't want him to get into trouble, but another part, the part that won out, said that him being late was a sign of how much I meant to him.

When we got to my class, I told him, "Thanks Mike," and then kissed him on the cheek before turning around and entering class.

Each class' material seemed to get worse and worse, and my understanding less and less. Trying to be a junior was definitely going to be a problem. I wasn't the greatest student anyway, but adding the advanced material just caused me to feel like an idiot.

At least my actions with Mike seemed to be the right ones, as he met me in the hall between each class and walked me to the next one.

Excited and pleased at my ability to keep him interested, I began reviewing what had worked and how to ensure we moved towards being an official couple.

Everyday after Mike had shared about his grandfather's death, I had thought more and more about him. As I did, the more memories came to me about him, all the times in my life when he had gone out of his way to speak to me, along with how sweet he has always been to me. It took me a while to puzzle out what all those years of short interactions all meant, but eventually my conclusion was that he and I were destined to be together. It seemed so obvious once I realised it, I had felt a little dumb for not knowing sooner. And me bumping into Mike only two days after the funeral was my grandmama's way of helping point me towards my future happiness. Even though she had made my future clear, him and I were like star-crossed lovers. The barriers of high school life and small town stupidness prevented us from loving each other.

Usually, it was the guy's job to make the first move, but with my grandmama's wisdom repeating in my mind, after our moment sharing in the grief of a beloved grandparent, I had finally gotten enough courage to approach him. When we were within a few feet of each other, I had said "Hi."

He had looked in my direction briefly, smiled warmly at me, while his eyes apologised, and then he had focused back on his friend. His lack of courage to break through the grade barriers and say 'hi' back was discouraging, for sure, but his smile told me everything I needed to know. Clearly, he was felt as pulled to me and I did him. That moment was like the puzzle glue that tied everything together, confirming that making our destiny happen was in my hands. The night I had my big blow out with Mandy I was stumped about how to bring us together. After lots of thought the only idea that came to mind was to discreetly follow him.

I learned his schedule, and then one day made my move to talk with him. When we bumped into each other, he apologised, and helped me get my books. He even smiled at me. It was the same smile as before, so it had confirmation that he was indeed interested in me. Then, before we could say anything else to one another his friend called his name and he ran off. It was such a typical guy thing to do, reminding me of boys' treatment of girls they liked when we were in the second grade. The interaction reinforced my belief that despite how much he liked me, he was scared to traverse the firm lines of Forks hierarchy.

The spell had erased all barriers, making it possible for him to be strutting and showing off to the other boys that I had chosen him. I sent a prayer of thanks to God and Grandmama for making it possible.

At lunch Mike sat next to me, putting his arm on the back of my chair. It was a classical boy territorial ploy, but I didn't mind. Rather, I enjoyed it, revelling in what it might mean. Every once in a while, I caught Mandy's gaze across the cafeteria. I would smile at her, in a gleeful proud way. Once when I caught her staring fuming, I leaned into Mike's chest, and said something small about a teacher to him. He laughed. It had the desired effect. You could practically see the steam rising from Mandy's head. Hopefully, our interaction would make it painfully clear to her that Mike and I were meant to be, and she needed to let her delusion of being his go. For the rest of lunch she scowled and her lips puckered, like she had just sucked on a lemon. Her look increased my smile. What really mattered was that the swap worked, confirming that Mike and I were destined. Nonetheless, Mandy being upset was a delightful icing on the cake. It was the best revenge I could have imagined for how she treated me.

After lunch I had the unfortunate experience of learning that Biology has assigned seating. Not only was I not next to Mike, but my lab partner was Edward Cullen.

Before the swap I had been hard pressed to believe that Quileute magic was real. And if magic was real, then so were the stories about Cold Ones, Protectors, and the Cullens. My brain felt like it might explode. If the spell did anything, it had made me a believer of the Quileute histories. For the first time, I was truly proud of my heritage and hoped that my grandmama would be looking down pleased at how I had taken her words to heart.

Thinking about her always brought me down, even if it was about the good moments with her. Not wanting to be sad when things were going my way nor did I want to even think something that would dishonour her, I instead focused on my blessings. First, the spell had actually worked!

The Quileute oral history meant he was inhuman. The Cullens weren't meant to be dangerous to humans, assuming they kept their word, but I'd never been near to one before. Seeing him up close confirmed for me the legends.

He tried to talk to me, but I wasn't having it. The possibility and his nearness kept me on edge, getting in the way of concentrating on the material, which went way over my head. He spent the rest of the time Mr. Banner taught, after I shut him down, gazing out the window, and I ignored him. Unfortunately, there was group work, and that just escalated everything.

It was an hour of nerve-wreaking, fear induced torture, where my mind kept imagining how quickly he could kill me and when not focused on that, considering how failing Biology would ruin everything for me. The 'I shall suck your blood' thing really was a turn off and made me want to run as fast as possible. Surviving Biology without failing or giving myself away would be hard enough, doing so with a Cullen was asking for the impossible.

Leaving Biology was a God-send. The last period was even better, since Mike was in gym with me. He volunteered to be on my team and didn't complain about this body's lack of coordination.

After changing, Mike waited for me. So, at the last bell, Mike and I walked out of gym class together.

"I need to visit Mrs. Cope," I let him know.

"Sure," he answered, while continuing to walk with me.

Smiling at the action, I thanked him and then asked him if he understood what had been taught in Biology. Unfortunately, he didn't seem to really get the class either, although he made some under breath remark about Edward that I ignored.

When we entered the office Mike stood at the back wall, and I stepped towards the counter, bracing myself for Mrs. Cope's hostile attitude.

When she took note of me she smiled at me kindly with a sweet warmth like she cared about me and asked, "What can I do for you Bella?"

"I lost my locker combination," I sputtered out, expecting a stern tongue lashing.

"It happens to us all," she assured me with a smile and an understanding tone, "and you just started. Hold on one minute while I get that for you."

My mouth opened up a little and bees could have made a hive in my mouth, as my brain was unable to process her treatment of me.

Sure, I had noticed a few times how Mandy would get treated with more respect and courteousness than myself when we were in Port Angeles, but this was Forks. Everyone knew my mom and dad. They were well respected members of the community. He was a police officer and her a nurse for goodness sake. Was it because Bella was the Chief's daughter and everyone wanted to stay on his good side? Or was Mrs. Cope's attitude something to do with me? I didn't get it. Her change of attitude bothered me more than I would want to admit, although I thanked her when she gave me the combination.

Mike walked me to my truck and then made some comment.

"I'm so sorry, Mike," I told him. "I've seen Mrs. Cope be rude to other students, yet she was so nice to me. I just don't get it and I'm a little upset by it. I apologise."

He sighed. "No need to apologise. She is picky about who she treats well or not. The Cullens get the royal treatment and she treats me well, but not Eric. I get it. It sucks to see the differences."

"Exactly!" I agreed and hugged him tightly. "Thank you for understanding."

"No problem," he stated with a small smile, helping me into the truck. "Wish I could come to yours and study, but I have to work at the shop."

"Yeah, that sucks," I stated. Then putting my hand on his arm, even though I wore gloves and he a jacket, I gazed into his eyes and attempted to sound sultry as I stated, "Maybe another time?"

His irises grew and he stuttered a little, "Sure, Bella."

Holding in my happy dance for how Mike responded, I was proud of myself for making my grandmamma pleased. She would no doubt look down upon me and see how hard I was working at thinking before acting.

Heading back to Chief Swan's, I thought about a conversation with my Dad the first time Mrs. Cope had been rude to me. He had told me that her treatment of me was probably due to her ignorant judgemental views. Immediately, I had dismissed his statement, as it had seemed ridiculous at the time. I grew angry, realising my foolishness for not believing him. Yet, due to the body swap, I wasn't the one Mrs. Cope treated badly. Knowing there was nothing I could do about it and not wanting to dwell on such depressing thoughts, I focused on how the day went with Mike.

I was pleased with how I had maintained Mike's attention for the day and covered over my lack of attention at the end. He hadn't even glanced at Jessica. And we seemed to have bonded over Mrs. Cope's treatment of students. It was beyond exciting to see how things were progressing in the right direction.

As an added bonus, I had managed through the whole day without anyone doubting I was Bella. Biology had been terrible, and I'd have to be extra careful there, but overall the classes had gone okay. The only real concern at this point was not failing them. The Quileute stories rattled in my brain. The part where Dr. Cullen had promised in the treaty that no Cullen would harm a human circled round and round. There had been no mysterious deaths over the last two years, since their arrival. Although that might keep me from Edward's jaws, it still didn't solve the problem of being his lab partner. I really wanted nothing to do with him. He and all the other Cullens creeped me the fuck out.

As soon as I got to Chief Swan's, I searched Bella's closet, but there wasn't anything close to being suitable for a date, so I went downstairs, wrote the Chief a note saying that I had gone to Port Angeles to get a few shirts, and took the cash in the jar that was in the kitchen, even though it said "Food" on it. I was a little scared in doing so, as I didn't know the kind of consequences Chief Swan would give me for spending the food money. However, as I weighed up the options, it seemed to me like the date going well was worth any consequence. Clothes were critical for a date, and certainly much more important than studying for classes I didn't understand. Hopefully, Chief Swan would be sympathetic towards my logic when I explained in person.

Once in Port Angeles, I went to a few shops that often had deals, since I didn't have that much money. I was greeted with smiles and trite welcomes. No security guards followed me. A few employees even asked me if they could help me find something. It was like nothing I had ever experienced before. For the first time since shopping without my mother, I was able to relax and enjoy myself. Fortunately, I was able to find three tops, and even better, one that would be ideal for a date. Thus, I drove back all smiles and pleased. I was even getting to be more comfortable driving.

Upon returning, Chief Swan still wasn't home, so I made a sandwich for myself, and then started on my homework.

At the sound of the front door closing, I went downstairs, wanting to face the music as soon as possible and get it over with.

"Dad," I greeted him, after his gun belt was hung up, even though using that title with Chief Swan was beyond weird.

He looked startled, and a sweet smile crossed his face, like I had given him the world.

Taking that as a good sign, I continued, "I went to Port Angeles today and used the money in the kitchen to get myself some new shirts."

His face scrunched up as if my words didn't make sense and then unexpectedly asked as if in disbelief, "You went shopping? Why?"

Looking at the floor, sensing my cheeks warming, I answered, "Mike asked me out on a date, sir, and I said yes."

When I lifted my eyes a little Chief Swan appeared stuck with his mouth open. After a few more minutes he asked, "And where is this date going?"

Realizing that Mike hadn't given me any details, I confessed, "He hasn't told me the plans yet."

Chief Swan huffed.

Before I could lose my nerve, added, "And I really need new bras and underwear. I didn't get any this time, because I didn't have enough money, but I'd appreciate it if I could get some of those items too."

He looked at me like I was alien, but pulled out his wallet and handed me a couple of twenties. "That'll have to do."

"Thank you," I told him gushing and really meaning it. For extra measure, I went over and hugged him adding, "You're the best." Then, I ran back to my room, closing the door before he could change his mind or I could squeal in excitement.

His response answered so many questions. Clearly, it wasn't about the money. Bella wasn't being neglected or anything. Rather, bizarrely enough, it seemed to be of her own making. His responses implied that she didn't like shopping, which just seemed beyond strange, but whatever. The only problem it created was that I did care about clothes and I wasn't willing to hide that.

This being an only child thing and the daughter of the Chief was certainly a leg up. First off, I didn't get into trouble like I expected. Sure, he seemed surprised by my behaviour, which I'd need to keep an eye out for, but I didn't get grounded or anything. Second, my parents had never handed me that much money for anything. Instead, they insisted on going with me, and talked about the needs of the family and making sure everyone had what they needed. Not only were things with Mike heading in the right direction, but being Bella had come with all these other perks. It was fantastic! The only small hitch in being the Chief's daughter was finding a reasonable explanation to convince him that Bella was becoming interested in clothes. Smiling ear to ear, while heading to bed, I would absolutely solve this minor hiccup, as it was completely solvable in comparison to my family.

Falling asleep I thanked grandmamma for the swap, told her all about my blessings, and then prayed to the Great Spirit, grandmamma, and any other ancestor who might listen to have another day as Bella Swan.