He thought they were a group role playing as vampires but because he got too close to the truth the Cullen’s had to send him away LMFAOOO
[The dude in the trunk is based off a character in the twilight books called Austin Marks who is friends with Ben Cheney, he’s also the brother of the guy Bella got the bikes from lol]
[Also I drew Austin however I wanted because I couldn’t really find a description for him :P ]
Also this took me a WEEK 💔 (I’m a procrastinator at heart)
also just wanted to share w yall its my hesdcanon that the starving, poor bodyguards that Royce King the seventh or whatever) hired, are Marks’s ancestors 😌 their surviving brother is like the uber great grandfather of Anthony (¿) Marks
- @xostrawberrymlk
I have not been able to stop thinking about this new canon reality ever since you sent this message. the marks' family has been struggling since the depression and they've NEVER recovered—shannon
the other half of the marks' family were killed in volterra while bella was sitting in that waiting room too, probably. because why not—g
Story Summary: Bella Swan, the new student at Forks High, is ready to graduate. She was prepared for a boring year and just wanted to make a couple of friends. Why are there mutant Wolverines running around the woods of La Push? And why do all the handsome men she meets look at her with such unbridled horror? An imprinting AU where Bella moves to Forks two years later than in canon.
Pairings: Bella/Paul, eventual Angela/Leah
You can also read the story on ff.net!
(chapter 1, chapter 2, chapter 3)
Not beta read!
Chapter summary: First day of school, Angela turns out to be a gift from the gods and the Cullen siblings… not so much.
Chapter 4 - Meet the Cullens
The first discovery Bella made on Friday morning while walking from her front door to her truck was that the coat she’d brought from Arizona was not waterproof. It was pouring buckets, and she shivered as the raindrops pierced through the fabric of her coat and drenched the hoodie she was wearing underneath. Her second discovery was that dressing up for school had been a horrible decision; she’d worn her converse shoes that day and had landed in a puddle the moment she’d stepped out of her truck in the school parking lot.
With a growl, Bella slammed shut her door and jumped onto dry land. She fumbled with her keys as she tried to shake the water from her shoes and felt like crying when she dropped them into the puddle. People were starting to stare, so Bella pulled up her hood to hide her misery and fished her keys up. She was tempted to pull the ties of her hoodie to cover her face entirely as she approached the front office to get her schedule. The school was a collection of matching square buildings. They were all the made from the same maroon-colored bricks and surrounded by trees and shrubs. Bella’s mood did not lift; the heavy rain clouds made everything seem so dreary and cold. Her foul expression was enough to keep anyone from approaching her, but she made an effort to clear her face before greeting the receptionist.
The office has a small waiting room, equipped with folding chairs and a bulletin board, which displayed the words: Respect, Integrity, and Commitment. Underneath that was the school motto, ‘WE ARE ALL SPARTANS’, written in bright yellow letters.
“Isabella Swan, welcome,” said the squat woman sitting behind the desk before Bella had time to introduce herself. “Your father informed me you were coming.” Shelly Cope, her nameplate sat on the corner of her desk, had red hair and wore glasses that made her eyes seem small. Her impartial smile informed Bella that there wouldn’t be any small talk.
Good, Bella thought.
“Yes, I’m here for my schedule,” Bella said. The secretary pushed away from the table and rolled her chair over to the printer and pulled out some paper that she stapled together before showing it to Bella.
“Here you are. I’ve put a map in there as well.” She flipped it from underneath Bella’s schedule to show her the school’s layout. ”Your first class is 12th grade English, and it’s held in Building 3, room six. Mr. Berty, your teacher, will provide you with all the material you need for his class.” The dismissal was evident in her voice, and Bella thanked her before heading out into the rain again.
She shielded her papers from the worst of it and was grateful that Building 3 was the closest to the secretary office.
“Bella!”
Bella looked up at the sound of her name and saw it was Angela. They’d been about to enter the same building, and Bella nearly jogged into her when she paused to open the door. Angela held the door for her and their shoes squeaked against the linoleum floor, leaving wet footprints as they sought refuge from the rain.
“Hi, Angela,” Bella breathed.
“I didn’t think I would see you so soon,” Angela said pleasantly. She pulled down the hood of her raincoat and unzipped it to shake her hair out. Her glasses were starting to fog up from the rise in temperature. “What class do you have?”
“English,” Bella answered.
“With Mr. Berty? Me too.” Angela was familiar with the hallways, and Bella let her guide them to classroom six. There were a handful of students loitering outside the classroom, sluggish and heavy-lidded as they waited for the bell to ring. Angela waved to them, and the jerked their heads and mumbled an unenthusiastic greeting. Bella would fit in nicely here. She was already exhausted after having spent the entire night tossing and turning in bed from first-day-of-school jitters.
“What kind of teacher is he?” Bella asked her and sent the gathered students a stiff smile. Like Ms. Cope, they didn’t seem surprised to see her and shot her furtive sidelong glances.
The bell rang, signaling the start of class.
“I guess you’ll see for yourself,” Angela said apologetically as a tall man with graying hair opened the door from the inside. He must be Mr. Berty. He waved them inside with little fanfare, and Bella saw that he was wearing a tweed suit jacket with elbow patches and plaid pants. He looked like he could either be the type who believed that his own brilliance was wasted as a high school teacher or was simply eccentric. Bella hoped it was the latter.
They filed into a standard looking classroom. It was smaller than Bella was used to. Posters made by previous students covered the white walls, and the wooden tables were organized into three neat rows. They only allowed two students to sit side by side. Mr. Berty returned to his desk and Bella approached him while the students took their seats.
“Who might you be?” Mr. Berty asked, peering at her over his reading glasses.
“I’m the new student, Isabella Swan,” Bella said, and he nodded.
“Ah, yes. Here is the lesson plan for this term,” Mr. Berty said, and Bella was relieved that he wasn’t about to make her stand in front of the class and introduce herself like they were still in grade school. Instead, he did something much worse. “You might as well hand them out to the rest of the class. Take a seat once you’ve finished so we can get started.”
Bella took the stack of paper silently and made quick work of handing them out while Mr. Berty did the roll call. She avoided making eye contact with anyone, but her school bag hung off her elbow awkwardly, and it bumped against the tables every other step she took. She approached Angela last. She’d saved her a seat and Bella slid the sheet of paper over to her with a grateful smile.
“Now that we’re all here, there will be no mercy today even though it’s our first day. This is a double period class, and I see no point in wasting it by giving you a few more minutes of recess.” Mr. Berty clapped his hands together, making the half-asleep student jerk in their seats. He appeared to regain vigor from the sound of their groans. They’d all been hoping that he’d let them off easy today. “We’ll be focusing on Shakespeare’s work for the majority of the year but rest assured there will be plenty of opportunity for essay writing and presentations.” Mr. Berty smiled when his students slumped lower into their seats, their misery apparent.
The rest of his lecture continued in that fashion, and Bella wondered why teachers felt the need to tell their students everything that was written in the lesson plan. It must be a rite of passage to waste everyone’s time during the first day back. They were nearing the end of their first period when Mr. Bert finally stopped talking. He split them into pairs to 'work on their communication skills' as he put it.
Bella thanked the universe for already being acquainted with Angela because they shared a furtive grin and tackled the task at hand without needing any awkward introductions. They were supposed to compare their favorite work of fiction and discuss the differences and merits of each book. It turned out they both shared a love for Jane Austen so filling out the worksheet was a breeze. Angela chose Sense and Sensibility while Pride and Prejudice continued to be Bella’s favorite. They were in the midst of discussing the differences between Elinor Dashwood level-headedness and Elizabeth Bennet’s playful impertinence and drawing the similarities of their passionate nature when the bell rang.
“I’ve never met anyone who’s into Austen as much as I am,” Angela told Bella after they’d handed their worksheet to Mr. Berty.
“Me neither,” Bella said. It was true, Bella had spent hours reading and re-reading the novels in her youth but had been crushed to realize that none of her old classmates shared her interest in the classics. “Now, you have to be honest with me because this question will be a deciding factor for me to keep you as my friend or not.” Bella’s tone was mockingly grim, and Angela caught on quickly and assumed a serious face. “Fuck, marry, kill; Mr. Darcy, Colonel Fitzwilliam, and Mr. Collin?”
Angela burst out laughing, blushing lightly at Bella’s crude language. “Oh, one is easy; kill Mr. Collins, but I always had a little bit of a crush on the Colonel after having seen the BBC adaptation from 1995,” she mused, making Bella gasp with delight.
“You’ve seen it?” Bella asked with uncontainable delight. She’d watched the series so many times that Renée refused to watch it with her anymore. She forgot her nervousness. “I don’t care who you fuck or marry; you are officially my best friend!”
Angela seemed just as eager as Bella. “I’ve got the special edition with restored colors and commentary,” she admitted in a shy voice, and Bella looped their arms together, letting Angela lead their way to their next class, which was American History.
“I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship,” Bella joked, and Angela nodded in agreement.
Their history lesson passed quickly; their teacher was as eager for the break as the students and promptly dismissed them after giving them the rundown of the course. Bella and Angela continued their conversation, and soon they’d made plans to meet up sometime and watch Angela’s entire Jane Austen film and tv-series adaptations together. Making friends wasn't so hard as Bella had initially thought. She was so relieved to have found a kindred spirit in Angela that she forgot to be worried about lunch.
They were sitting at one of the tables located in almost every corner of the hallways around the school and Bella was getting to know Angela a little better. Angela had lived in Forks her entire life; her father was the Lutheran minister, and her mother worked as an accountant for a small local business. She also had twin brothers, Joshua and Isaac, who could be very rambunctious and trying at times but Bella could hear the affection in her voice as she recounted all of their mischiefs. Angela was just getting into the swing of things, telling Bella about the time her brothers had put a lobster in the cradle as Baby Jesus before the start of the annual Christmas play when they were interrupted.
“Yo, Angie!” A blond haired boy called with unnecessary loudness. He strutted down the hallway towards them with two other guys. He perked up at the sight of Bella and
“Hi, I’m Mike,” he said and held out his hand for her to shake. He was smiling at her with a little too much interest and Bella heaved an internal sigh.
“Guys this is Bella.” Angela, bless her heart, took it upon herself to make the introductions. “Bella this is Austin-” she gestured to the acne-ridden sandy-haired boy who raised his hand in greeting. “- and this is Ben.” The short, black haired boy shot Bella an awkward smile as he sat down next to Angela and entwined their fingers together. Bella blinked. Angela hadn’t mentioned having a boyfriend.
“So, Bella-” Mike started to drawl.
“Where’s Jessica?” Angela asked Mike pointedly, cutting him off. He shrunk back and rubbed the back of his neck guiltily.
“She went with Lauren to save us a good table in the Mess,” Mike said. “She told us to go and find you. Your schedule is messed up; we hardly have any classes together. Ben here was starting to pine for you by the third period.”
Angela laughed awkwardly, tightening her grip on Ben and patted the back of his hand with her free hand. “Yeah, but I wouldn’t have met Bella otherwise. Besides, we have photography together next class,” she reassured Ben and placed a chaste kiss on his cheek. He blushed.
“C’mon, I’m starving,” Austin groaned, and they got up. Angela disentangled herself from Ben and fell into step with Bella. He didn’t seem to mind and took to discussing the new chapter of some superhero novel with Austin. Bella couldn’t help but notice that Angela was an entire head taller than her boyfriend, who was about as tall as herself.
The mess hall was starting to fill with hungry students, and they took their place in the forming queue to get their meal. The other students had food stamps, and Angela loaned Bella one of hers when she realized that she hadn’t brought any money.
“I’ll pay you back tomorrow,” Bella promised after thanking her. Angela shook her head and reassured her that it wasn’t necessary. Bella didn’t dare take the time to examine what the school had to offer with a line behind her and picked the same stuff as Angela. They headed for a table that was occupied by two pretty girls and two guys who were both wearing varsity jackets.
“Hey, Lauren, Jessica; this is Bella. She’s new here,” Angela introduced Bella when they took their seats.
“We know,” the girl with white blonde hair, Lauren, said. She seemed to dismiss Bella after giving her a once over with sharp green eyes and leaned into the dark-skinned boy sitting beside her. He tried to tangle his fingers in her hair, but she jerked her head away with a warning glare. He rolled his eyes and introduced himself as Tyler Crowley.
“Hi!” a brunette with voluminous curls waved cheerfully to Bella when she took a seat across from her. Mike had his arm around her shoulders. She must be Jessica. “Don’t mind, Lauren. She’s not good with new people.”
“Shut up, Jess,” Lauren scoffed, but there wasn’t any heat behind her words. Angela, who was sitting next to Bella, raised her eyebrows in a ‘what-can-you-do’ way and Bella stifled her smile.
“Hey, Conner,” Mike shared a fist bump with the other guy.
“Yo, dude. Did you catch the game last night?” Conner asked, licking his spoon free of yogurt.
“The Seahawks got slaughtered, man,” Tyler laughed, and Mike buried his face in his hands with a groan.
“Don’t remind me.” Mike shook his head, and they launched into a heated argument over which team player was to blame for their defeat. Jessica rolled her eyes and leaned forward to tell Angela about what kind of morning she’d had. Apparently, she’d found a dead squirrel on her front porch.
“- I literally died,” Jessica said dramatically, and Lauren grimaced with disgust.
“What did you do with it?”
“Dad got a stick and took it into the woods. It was super gross; it didn't have any eyes!” Jessica said with too much relish for a girl who was supposedly traumatized by the event.
Bella nibbled on the side of her cafeteria bland pizza slice and realized that she was sitting with the popular cheerleaders and jocks. It was an absurd thought because she’d spent years making fun of their type. She couldn’t help but think that Jessica and Lauren were both shallow, but then again; she hadn’t known them for more than twenty minutes.
It was a weird moment for her.
“So, we’re graduating soon. Have any, like, plans?” Lauren asked the entire table. She was obviously the leader here because the other conversations came to a stop to join hers. Lauren didn’t seem too interested in knowing their goals because she immediately launched into her own plans once she had their attention. “I’m going to Canada.”
“Lauren was scouted by a model agency in Victoria this summer,” Angela explained in a hushed voice when she noticed Bella’s confusion. Lauren seemed genuinely excited by the prospect, and she even let Tyler touch her hair when he pressed a kiss to her lips. Bella looked away at their display of affection.
“You’re going places, babe.”
“I’m going to attend uni in Seattle,” Ben said and the rest of the table seemed to have similar plans.
“I’m thinking about getting a degree in communications and maybe entertainment. I really want to have my own talk show one day,” Jessica piped up with a dreamy smile.
“Then you can interview me once I’m famous,” Lauren laughed, and Jessica joined her with a strained smile. Bella sensed a bit of jealousy coming from Jessica and wondered if it was because Laura was the more popular one.
“Totally!”
“What about you, Bella?” Mike asked her and Bella was suddenly the focal point of the entire table.
“Um, I’m going to university and maybe become a teacher.” She shrugged, flushing a little underneath their attention.
“Me too,” Angela said. “I want to be a kindergarten teacher.”
“What do you think the Cullens are going to do?” Jessica asked, and Bella was left behind at the leap in the conversation. She had no idea who the Cullens were, but it seemed like a favorite subject of Jessica’s because there was a gleam in her eyes while the others rolled their eyes. The atmosphere soured even further when Lauren spoke.
“Who cares? They don’t need jobs because they’re all rich and beautiful,” she sneered.
“Speak of the devil,” Mike muttered, and Bella looked up.
A lanky young man and what appeared to be a child at first glance had just entered the mess hall. A closer look told Bella that the girl wasn’t a child but around her age and was just unfortunately short and thin to the extremes. Despite this they looked like a pair of runway models who’d gotten lost on their way to the catwalk and somehow ended up in Forks, Washington instead. Bella couldn’t believe they were still in high school with features like that. Maybe it was the way they dressed, but they appeared years older than the rest of the student population. They walked with the kind of confidence rarely seen in a teenager, and there wasn’t a blemish in sight. They were both deathly pale, and the girl reminded Bella of a pixie; she appeared to float across the room with the graceful steps of a skilled dancer.
Bella felt a twinge of envy at her coordination. Some people just had it all.
Her companion was just as fetching. He was devastatingly handsome with windswept hair that was the most unusual shade of copper. Heads turned as they walked past but they didn’t seem to care, getting a tray of food and taking a seat in the corner. They slouched elegantly in their chairs and stared in separate directions in stony silence.
Were these the Cullens? Bella was almost afraid to ask at this point.
Sound returned to the room, and slowly the students returned to their conversations, shooting the Cullens glances as they put their heads together to whisper and giggle about something; most likely how hot they were.
Jessica sighed before she caught herself and shot Mike a guilty glance. He'd been checking out the pixie Cullen, and Jessica elbowed him in the gut. Mike winced.
“Are they related?” Bella wondered. They didn’t look remotely similar beyond their pale skin and good looks.
“Oh, no,” Jessica answered, eager to dish out their dirty secrets. “Dr. Cullen adopted them, that’s Alice and Edward Cullen, but they have three other siblings who graduated last year. Emmett Cullen, and the Hale twins; Rosalie and Jasper.” Jessica leaned in like she was about to share something scandalous, sending the Cullens an eager look. “They’re all like, together together.”
“Wait, like romantically?” Bella asked.
“It’s really weird,” Jessica nodded and was put out when she saw that Bella didn’t share her disgust.
“Well, you said that they’re not related,” Bella said slowly. Call her a romantic, but she believed that love could be found in the most unexpected places.
“It’s weird,” Jessica asserted before resuming her gossiping. “Alice and Jasper are together, and so are Emmett and Rosalie but Edward is like the only one who’s single,” she said and looked at Edward with a hungry expression. “He’s never shown anyone interest though because apparently, no one is good enough for him.” She blushed and drew back to fold her arms against her chest. Mike glared at Edward Cullen and pulled Jessica to him, which seemed to cheer her up. “Whatever, it’s not like I care.” Her sour expression gave away that she wasn’t as unaffected as she pretended. Bella didn’t know what to say to this.
She glanced at the Cullens again and met the golden eyes of Alice. Her large doe eyes were alight with some indiscernible emotion, and she whispered something to her brother, not taking her eyes off of Bella. Bella looked down at her plate quickly, embarrassed at having been caught but a quick glance told her that Edward was watching her as well. He didn’t seem to share his sister’s excitement and glared at Bella. Humiliated, she felt like a sideshow freak when they kept staring at her.
“Bella, what class do you have next?” Angela offered Bella an out from the awkward silence.
“I have Spanish,” she said after consulting her schedule. It had been an obvious choice because Bella had taken it in Phoenix, as it is the second most common language spoken in California and Arizona. “What about you?” Bella asked, and Angela reminded her that she had photography with Ben after lunch.
“I’m taking French,” Lauren piped up. She buffed her nails against her blouse without looking up. Jessica appeared to have gotten over her herself and her good mood was restored.
“So am I!” she said brightly. “Mike, you have trig right?”
“Don’t remind me,” he moaned and looked over at Connor and Tyler. “Do you guys remember anything from last year?”
“Nope.” They didn’t appear to be bothered by the fact and started to pile their trash onto their trays when the bell rang to signal the end of lunch.
Bella’s map came in handy when she was forced to split up with Angela, who’d been her guide up to this moment. She arrived at the correct classroom in the nick of time. Mrs. Geoff, the Spanish teacher, greeted her enthusiastically and made her stand in front of the class and introduce herself in Spanish. Bella wanted to sink into the floor, but her grasp on Spanish was good enough, and she was able to rattle off some inane facts about herself.
“¡Te felicito! Tu trabajo está muy bien hecho,” the teacher exclaimed and received blank-eyed stares from her students.
“Gracias, señora,” Bella said and quickly went to the only seat available. She nearly swallowed her tongue when she saw Alice Cullen sitting in the chair next to hers. Bella sat down and gave Alice an awkward smile, which she returned trifold, nearly blinding Bella with the beauty of it. Her teeth were straight and a pearly white. Bella had the urge to go and brush her teeth, feeling self-conscious.
“So your name is Bella?” Alice asked, her voice sounding like wind chimes. Bella got lost in her eyes for a moment. Bella had never seen such an unusual eye color; they were a stunning liquid gold. She shook herself out of her daze when she realized Alice was waiting for an answer.
“Sí,” Bella replied jokingly.
“How wonderful.” Alice’s smile widened impossibly. She seemed oddly thrilled about learning Bella’s name because she laughed with delight at the simple introduction. Even her laugh was beautiful.
Mrs. Geoff spoke in Spanish throughout the class, but Bella had a hard time focusing. Alice was the most beautiful creature she’d ever met, with her pale skin and red. She reminded Bella of a miniature Snow White.
Alice didn’t pay attention to Mrs. Geoff either because she kept asking Bella questions in a low whisper. Bella was a little flattered by it. The rest of the students seemed stunned to see Alice voluntarily talking to another human being outside her own family. Mrs. Geoff didn’t seem to notice anything out of the ordinary.
“What color were you thinking about?” Alice’s question brought Bella back. They’d somehow gotten onto the topic of interior design. Bella had learned that Alice was a fashion enthusiast with a thing for decorations, and had let slip that she was thinking about painting the wall in her room to add a little warmth to it.
“I haven’t gotten that far yet,” Bella admitted.
“Well, I recommend you go to Benjamin Moore in Port Angeles and look at their swatches. Here, let me give you my number in case you need help picking out the right color,” Alice said as the bell rang. She ripped some paper from her notebook and scribbled her mobile number on it and gave it to Bella.
“I don’t have a phone,” Bella said dumbly.
“Oh, that doesn’t matter,” Alice dismissed. “There are plenty of places that sell them.”
“Thanks.” Bella blinked, feeling like she’d been caught in a whirlwind.
“No, problem,” Alice smiled and waved as she headed in the other direction. “I’ll see you around, Bella!”
“See ya,” Bella said weakly. She got caught in the flow of students and walked with them in a slight daze.
Alice was a little overwhelming. It was apparent that she was the type who knew what she wanted and had no issues with getting it. It was an admirable trait, but Bella was a little shell-shocked after taking the brunt of her attention. Yes, Alice was persistent for someone her size but otherwise harmless. Mostly.
Bella soon learned that the same could not be said about her brother.
Biology class started out fine. Mr. Banner, the teacher, handed Bella her book and bade her take a seat without making her introduce herself using the theme of the subject as Mrs. Geoff had done. It would have made an interesting introduction: “Hi, my name is Isabella Swan, but call me Bella. I started out as a zygote inside my mother’s womb and developed into a human through the wonderful process of mitosis and meiosis. I’m also a Virgo.”
The only seat available was next to one Edward Cullen.
Everything rolled downhill after that.
Bella couldn’t help but stare at him when she walked between the aisles. Edward’s chiseled features belonged in renaissance paintings or on statues of Greek deities, crafted by master sculptors, not in this backwoods high school. Bella had never seen anyone as handsome as him. It was disquieting, and it provoked something indescribable inside her.
He looked like an angel.
When she drew near, his nostrils suddenly flared, and his head jerked up. Edward glared at her with monstrous black eyes, his pupil indiscernible from their darkness, and his face contorted like he’d smelled something foul. He went so far as to lean away from Bella as far as his seat allowed him when she sat down next to him.
Her heart gave a painful squeeze of mortification, and she quickly looked down at the tabletop, her hair falling forward to hide her face. She tried to subtly sniff her shirt to see if she stunk and was a little insulted when she smelled nothing out of the ordinary. Sure, Bella didn’t smell like her usual strawberry shampoo, having forgotten to pick it up at the store, but she wasn’t smelly, and her natural musk was too faint for Edward to smell from this distance. Maybe he was sick; he certainly looked like he was in agony.
She drew a breath and was about to ask him if he needed the nurse when a tantalizing sweet scent wafted towards her, similar to the one his sister bore. Her mind felt fuzzy, and Bella was drawn towards it like a bee to honey, but the look in Edward’s soulless eyes spelled death. It was a spine-chilling experience.
Bella looked away quickly. She took it back; Edward wasn’t a beautiful angel, not at that moment. He was an archangel, cast out of heaven and turned demonic. He didn’t look human.
Maybe he just has bad gas, she thought to herself, feeling the beginnings of hysteria creeping on her. Twenty minutes dragged past, and Bella kept one eye on the clock and the beast beside her. She hadn’t heard a word of what Mr. Banner was saying, distracted by the murderous intent emanating from Edward. He hadn’t moved, frozen in his odd hunched position. Bella doubted that he was even breathing; his chest wasn’t moving, and his hand was covering his mouth and nose. He certainly wasn’t blinking.
Fear. That was the feeling Edward provoked inside her; a deep primitive fear that urged Bella to either leap out of the window to get away from him or to pick up her pencil and stab it into those unnatural black eyes of his. Bella was not a violent person by nature so the sudden desire to attack a classmate, no matter how creepy, took her by surprise.
What was happening to her? Bella didn’t know, but she knew it had something to do with Edward. She refused to take this anymore; Edward Cullen had no right to affect her like this. Bella stood up and walked to Mr. Banner’s desk for her escape. He looked up at her, and she didn’t have to fake her nervous smile.
“Excuse me, sir. Can I go to the bathroom?” she asked in a low voice.
“Certainly,” Mr. Banner said and handed her a hall pass.
“Thank you,” Bella said and hurried out of the room. One last look at Edward almost sent her running. He was no longer straining back but leaning forwards like a predator readying itself to leap onto its prey. He looked like he wanted to eat her.
Bella settled for a brisk pace down the corridor instead of hightailing out of the school like she wanted to. She was halfway down the hallway when Alice Cullen, of all people, rounded the corner. She was speaking anxiously into her phone, and Bella caught a bit of her end of the conversation when they walked past each other. “-can’t see him, Carlisle. Hi, Bella!” Alice wiggled her fingers at her but didn’t slow down, which suited Bella just fine. She’d had enough of the Cullens today. “No. I’m getting him now.”
Him? Did she mean Edward? If so, Bella hoped she was taking him to the hospital for a rabies shot. He was clearly feral.
She made it to the bathroom without any hindrance and locked herself in one of the stalls. It offered her a bare minimum of protection, but at least no one could see her. If you can’t see it, it’s not there - it being a black-eyed monster in this case. The irrational thought was exactly what Bella needed to calm down. She stared blankly at the scribbles on the stall door as she wrangled her thundering heart under control. Someone had written in looping cursive about, oddly enough, the militia movements of the Confederate Army in the Civil War. It was signed J. W. at the bottom, and Bella sent a silent thank-you to them for the distraction.
Five minutes passed faster than she liked and Bella was forced to return to the Biology classroom. She felt like she was heading towards the gallows.
Edward was nowhere in sight, and Bella was faint with relief. She returned her hall pass with shaking hands and returned to her seat. Feeling brave, she vindictively took the chair Edward had occupied. It was silly, but it gave Bella a small measure of comfort; how evil could he be if his presence hadn't left behind a tainted mark.
Bella’s thought hadn’t even finished when she noticed hairline fractures in the wood extending from the place where Edward had gripped the desk. Had he broken the counter? It seemed a bit excessive, but Edward must really not like her. She ran her fingers on the underside of the wood and found finger size groves embedded there.
Her breath came fast and shallow, and Bella was on the verge of hyperventilating when she caught a flash of copper in her peripheral vision. Her mind had evidently associated the color with Edward, and rightly so, because her head snapped to the side, afraid that he was coming for her again. Alice was frog marching Edward across the car park. It would have been a comical sight, Edward’s lanky height dwarfed Alice’s tiny form, if Bella wasn’t freaking out. Alice led him towards the woods for some reason. Didn’t they have a car?
Then something astonishing happened; Alice pushed her brother forward with unnatural strength and his shape blurred as he took off at a sprint. With the same supernatural speed, Alice followed suit, and they were both gone before Bella had time to blink.
The only thing keeping Bella grounded was the grip she still had on the table, her fingers fitting into the indentations Edward had left behind.
It was proof that she hadn’t lost her mind.
A/N: I don’t speak Spanish and neither does anyone else in my family so don’t hesitate to correct me if what Mrs. Goff said was incorrect!
Next chapter: Momma Renée gives life advice, and dinner at Billy’s turns into an eye-opening experience, featuring Bella; the amazing grocery mountaineer.
It had been two weeks since the accident and everyone was hoping to see Tyler return home either today or tomorrow. I remember thinking how odd it was for him be let out so soon. The doctors made it sound as if his head injury was far more serious than that, but after a few days, he was up and about the hospital, looking fit as a fiddle. It was as strange as the accident itself. I remembered seeing the van speeding sideways towards me and raising my arms like a shield when I lost my footing and fell to the ground, only for the van to go skidding towards Bella.
Speaking of Bella, I was leaving the school entrance when I encountered her sitting on the stone wall. She held a book in her hands but her attention was on an empty parking space. The Cullen's usual parking space. No one had seen them for over a week, which wasn't really surprising. They would often disappear for days at a time, especially when the weather was nice. Apparently, they would go out camping or travelling. Alice was heard saying something about going to Alaska. With so many absences over the years, it was no wonder the school teachers wanted a word with Mr & Mrs Cullen.
"They shouldn't be gone for long," I said. She looked up at me, caught off guard by my comment.
"Oh, yeah. I was wondering about them." She put the book down in her lap and moved to offer me a seat. "I'm Sorry to hear what happened your friends grave. That's pretty crazy."
I sat beside her. "I still don't believe it. As if it wasn't bad enough that she was murdered, they had to dig up her grave and steal her body." I wanted to hit something as I thought about the news reports. It hadn't just been Lacey, but the other victims too.
"My Dad told me everything. Did you hear the news reports about the warnings being put out? Everyone is scared to venture into the forests or even go to the gym alone." She said.
"Yeah, I heard. Our parents forbade me and Angela from going to the Olympic national park last week. We were planning to go on the zip wire." I was so fed of being stuck in the same place and constantly monitored by my parents. Just once, I wanted to blow off steam and forget everything.
"Maybe that's why the Cullens took off. Perhaps they just wanted to go somewhere they didn't have to be afraid." She said. I doubted that. The Cullens were absent so often, this just seemed like par for the course. But it was a good idea.
"Hey, Eric said something about going to La Push sometime. If we all go as a group are parents would have less reason to worry. What do you think?" I asked her.
"La Push?" She asked.
"Yeah, the beach next to the Quileute ranch. Do you want to see if the rest of the gang are up for it?" I asked.
"I don't know." She said nervously.
"Oh come on we'll make a day of it." I was aware that I was being a bit pushy, but I was anxious to do something and clear my head.
"Ok. Let's do it. I'll call my Dad and let him know."
"Perfect," I said finally able to smile about something.
Once the rest of the gang arrived at the entrance, we all called our parents and with their permission, we were allowed to go to La Push. We already had our swimsuits and towels in our school lockers so there was no need to rush home. The got all excited and boys jumped into my car while Angela, who was getting chatty with Bella, climbed into the truck beside her and we all sped off. During the drive, I noticed an odd look between Eric and Mike. I remembered them being strangely quiet since the news reports. Earlier, Mike came to the canteen, asking Eric if they could talk privately. I didn't think much of it at the time but now I was starting to feel curious but said nothing.
When we finally arrived at the beach, the sun was shining and there wasn't a cloud in sight. We had an awkward time getting undressed in the vehicles, covering up with towels as we did so. We usually came here in Tyler's van, which offered more privacy and movement. The car wasn't the greatest changing spot as I, Angela and Bella struggled to get our swimsuits on with one hand while the other held our towels up. The boys had an easier time as they quickly changed in the truck, and I could have sworn I saw Austin and Mike having a cheeky look in our direction. When we finally finished getting ready, we all ran down towards the Shore. The sand was hot under our bare feet and there was hardly a breeze in the salty sea air.
On the beach were a group of boys with surfboards, One of which Bella seemed to recognize. "Hi, Jacob." She called out to a long-haired native American boy. Smiling he ran towards us. He was gorgeous, tall and muscular.
"Hey Bella, are you going to introduce us to your friend?" Eric asked. I smirked as he eyed up Jacob with a lusty grin. It was about time he had a boyfriend, maybe this time he would get lucky.
"This is my friend, Jacob Black."
"Hi, nice to meet you." He said, greeting us with handshakes. "You want to go surfing with us?" he cheerfully asked, pointing out his friends in the water.
"Sure. I'm in." Mike agreed. Austin nodded in agreement.
"I'd like that," I said, looking out at the boys. Just like Jacob, they were buff and handsome.
"I hope that's all you 'like'." Austin had the look of a green-eyed monster as he put his arm around my waist and kissed me with a big grin on his face.
"Don't worry. I'm not going to up and dump you for a bunch of sexy, shirtless Indian boy's, or am I?" I joked. He laughed as we head towards the water. Bella opted to stay on shore as she pulled Jacob to one side.
"I wanted to ask you about those old legends." I heard her say as we reached the water. The water was freezing as we swam out towards the others. I looked back towards the shore and saw the two them walk along the beach arm in arm. I knew Jacob was already taken, not that it bothered Eric who was happy getting to know one of the other boys. The boy introduced himself as Jared Cameron as he climbed out of the water onto the surfboard and introduced us to Paul and Quil.
As we talked, another boy came running into the water and swam towards us. "Embry?" Jared said as the boy reached us.
"Have any of you seen Sam?" He asked.
"No. I thought he was back home, preparing for the party." Paul said.
"We can't find him. Leah wanted to talk to him before the party, but he's gone. We don't know where." Embry looked worried but the others didn't seem too bothered.
I waited in the cafeteria line, glancing over my shoulder to see if my friends were coming through the door. I'd had the unfortunate luck of being stuck next to the Cullens. The oh so high and mighty rich kids forced to roam in a crowd of peasants. I know it's not right to judge people on their appearances, but there was just something about their stuck up, snobby looking faces that I just wanted to punch. Edward was the worst.
He reminded me of Christian Grey, the obnoxious arsehole who had my sister locked in a psychiatric ward on trumped-up charges and forced my family to relocate. I missed Leila so much. At her trial, any idiot could tell that she was not some deranged stalker, but a broken woman, and yet she was locked up. I remember the proud smirk on Grey's face as he left the court. If I had been close enough to reach him, I would have beat him to a bloody pulp. As I imagined Grey pleading through a mouthful of broken teeth I saw the faintest smirk on Edwards' face. I tried not to make eye contact with any of them, ordered my food and kept moving.
Finally, I saw Mike and Jessica heading towards the lunch line as I walked towards our usual table. There was a girl I didn't recognize with them. She was a pale, skinny thing with long brown hair, dressed in a dull navy-blue shirt and grey jeans. The Cullen's walked past me and I noticed that they also wore lifelessly, washed out colours. The only exception seemed to be the blonde girl, Rosalie who wore a lime green dress under her grey leather jacket with matching boots. She looked so miserable compared to her siblings who swaggered towards their table like they owned the place.
"Hey, Babe," Jessica said as she greeted me with a kiss. "This is Bella," she said introducing the new girl.
"Hi, its Austin right?" she asked.
"Yeah, that's me," I said, shaking her hand. In the corner of my eye I saw Angela, Eric and Tyler enter the cafeteria. "Here comes the rest of the gang."
As we waited for the others we asked Bella what brought her to Forks. It turned out that she was the daughter of the chief of police. Charlie Swan. She'd been living with her mother, Renee in Pheonix since they divorced. When her stepdad was offered a promotion that required him to travel long distances, Renee really wanted to go. So Bella came here to finish school, giving her mother more freedom to travel with her new husband.
While Tyler and Eric were talking to Mallory, Angela came to the table to show off her new birthday present. It was a new camera. "My mum and dad took a nice restaurant for dinner last night and gave it to me." She giggled looking very pleased with it. "And you'll never guess who we bumped into."
"Who?" asked Jessica.
"Mr and Mrs Cullen."
"Oh. What were they doing there?" Jessica asked.
"Just enjoying a romantic night out, I guess." She said. "They seemed especially keen to know our plans for the future after I told them about that photography and visual advertising course." Angela smiled. She couldn't wait to apply for that course. It was all computers, art and visiting different places for each assignment. Angela would be right in her element. Angela was still getting used to the new camera and figuring out how it worked. We took some funny pictures of ourselves making silly poses, with the exception of Bella who was distracted by something behind us. The Cullen family were all sitting silently at their table, except for Edward who was glaring in our direction and rolling his eye's. He said something, but I wasn't close enough to hear.
Tyler who was closer to them strode towards Edward looking very annoyed. Edward just smirked, not even acknowledging him. "I'm talking to you," Tyler yelled at him. Emmet quickly stood up and got between them. "Oh, right. You think you're a big man mouthing off shit like that, but when I'm asking you a simple question, you need a bodyguard." He waited for a response.
"C'mon Tyler, he's an asshole. He's not worth it." Eric pleaded, but Tyler's attention was firmly on Edward who still refused to acknowledge him while continuing to sit there with an obnoxious grin on his face. I didn't know what that puny twat was grinning about. Tyler could knock him into next week with his pinkie. From the look on his face, Tyler was happy to do just that.
Things quickly escalated as Emmet and Tyler got into a fistfight. I and Mike had to run up and try to break up the fight, but it wasn't long before the Gym teacher, Mrs Selena Milone came storming in to put an end to it. She was a tall woman with a bleach blonde pixie cut and the biggest collection of brightly coloured tracksuits.
"PACK IT IN, THE PAIR OF YOU!" Her thunderous voice rendered the entire cafeteria silent. "TYLER CROWLEY, EMMET CULLEN. GET TO THE HEAD MASTERS OFFICE, NOW!" Neither of them dared to argue with her and head to the office. She looked around the room to make sure everyone was listening. "AS FOR THE REST OF YOU. GET BACK TO YOUR FOOD AND BEHAVE YOURSELVES." She headed out behind Tyler and Emmet, making sure they did as they were told. You wouldn't know Mrs Milone was one of the nicer teachers when she was angry at someone. I and Mike went back to our seats, wondering what the hell just happened. It wasn't long before the bell rang and we had to make a move for Chemistry class. Turned out Bella would be in the same class as me.
As we entered Chemistry class, Edward walked past us towards his desk. He was always sat by himself. At first, he just seemed like the brooding loner type and a couple of girls who seemed to find his attitude sexy sat net to him, only to move back to their own desks soon after. Mr Molina said hello to Bella and after scanning the room for empty desk space, the only option was to sit her next to Edward.
"OK, everyone, get your books out and turn to page 20. The Emerald wasp." Mr Molina said as he pulled the blackboard down and began writing something. "Now, let's see who been doing their homework and discuss how this creature..." he was suddenly interrupted by a loud screeching noise. It was Edward's chair as he stood up, grabbed his stuff and stormed out of the class. "Take your seat, Mr Cullen." Mr Molina said much to the irritation of Edward, who just ignored him as he left the class, slamming the door behind him.
Finally, the bell rang and school was out. While the gang stood chatting to the new girl, I decided to run ahead and bring the van to the entrance. As I walked down the steps I saw the Cullen's, with the exception of Emmet, watching me and my friends. I just headed for my van and ignored them. I was just glad Emmet wasn't there. It was bad enough being stuck with him a the headmaster's office. I'd left my van parked at the far side of the school entrance.
The gang made their way down the steps as I climbed into the driver's seat and put my stuff away. I could see Angela fiddling with her new camera. She was so cute when she got all cheery like that. I raked through my pockets to find my key and put my seatbelt on. I didn't see anything in the way when put the key in the ignition and slowly pulled out of the spot. The new girl was headed towards her truck at the front gate. I turned to see my friends waiting for me when I just felt a massive jolt.
My head spun. I thought my neck would break as the impact sent my van flying forward. I panicked, scrambling for the wheel as I hurdled towards my friends, but I couldn't gain control. I felt my heart jumping into my throat when I saw the look of realization on Jessica's face, causing her to stumble backwards, raising her arms to shield herself. In my panic, I stamped on the breaks trying desperately to stop, instead, I was hit with another jolt. I felt a moment of relief when veering away from my friends, who were not hurt, only to realize I was headed towards the new girl. She was trapped between her truck, a car and a brick wall with no way to avoid me. I saw a look of absolute terror in her eyes as I felt my van come to a crashing halt.
Everything was pitch black and for a second I wasn't sure what was happening until I heard screaming. My vision was clouded as I lifted my head from the steering wheel. Everyone came rushing towards the wreck.
"CALL AN AMBULANCE!" Angela screamed.
"TYLER! BELLA! OH GOD! IF YOUR OK ANSWER US!" Austin's voice grows closer and I saw that he and Mike were climbing over the back of Bella's truck to get to us.
"Austin," I called out.
"Holy shit T, what the Hell just happened?" Mike climbed over to check on me.
"The new girl, Bella. Is she alright?" I needed to know she was alive.
"I DONT KNOW MAN. I CANT SEE HER." Autin shouted as he climbed over the hood of her truck to see.
"Oh God. Don't tell me I've killed her." I never more sick in my life. That poor was either dead or dying under my van.
"WAIT!" Jessica screamed as got down on her hands and knee's to look under the wreckage. "I CAN SEE HER ARM STICKING OUT AND..."
"WHAT? WHAT'S WRONG?" Mike asked.
"THERE'S SOMEONE ELSE UNDER THERE WITH HER. I DONT KNOW WHO IT IS" she cried.
Someone else. Oh my God. I thought to my self. I had to get out and help. I struggled to put my window down. I felt so light headed as my vision came and went.
"Easy There. Just take my hand T." Mike reached into the van to help me. I wasn't easy but I managed to break out of my seatbelt and climb out. Angela helped me down as everyone was banding together to save Bella and whoever else was under there.
The teachers came flooding out the main entrance, towards the chaos. "Nobody touche anything."The headmaster yelled. "We have to wait for the emergency services."
"THEY NEED HELP NOW," Austin Shouted as climbed back over Bella's truck and looked underneath. "WE HAVE TO PULL THE VAN OUT." He urged everyone to help. "CMON EVERYONE." Austin and Mike grabbed one end as Eric and I grabbed the other. We struggled for a bit until more people joined in. Jessica and Angela went to look under the truck.
"They haven't moved," Jessica said. "They must be dead."
