I thought the house was amazing. It was huge, 3 stories, set back in the woods just off the highway. Only about 10 minutes from school, which was convenient. The first floor was open, just as the one in Forks had been, with a sitting area, a dining room and kitchen. The second floor held Esme and Carlisle's room, Jasper and Alice's room, a study for Carlisle and Jasper to share, and Nessie's room. The third floor had its own sitting area, and 2 bedrooms, one being Edwards and my room, and the other was Emmett and Rose's room.
I shifted to lean on my elbow as I looked at Edwards face now. He looked so blissful, I almost didn't want to disturb the peaceful look on his face, but needed to talk about this. Alice would no doubt be charging into the room before long, and then I would have no time to talk, just be dragged about as she made me presentable. Sensing my mood, Edward looked over at me.
"What is it, love?" He looked concerned.
"I am just worried about..." I let the sentence fade off, he knew what worried me. He always knew. His arm flashed out to pull me close to him and kissed my hair.
"There is no need to worry. Today will go fine. We all have faith in you, and Nessie will be safe here with Esme."
I sighed. I knew deep down that everything would work out, I just could not help but worry. Today was the first day since our visit from the Volturi almost a year ago, that I would be away from Nessie for any real time span. I could hear her heartbeat and steady breathing downstairs. I openned my mouth to say something else when the door flew open with a loud bang, and Alice stood in the doorway, almost bouncing with excitement.
"Edward, drop that woman, she is MINE!" The maniacle laughter that followed frightened me a little. Edward kissed me once more before releasing me to her. I groaned as I climbed out of bed and let her drag me into the closet. It was also frightening how large she always convinced Esme to make closets. In a blur she flew through the closet, grabbing clothes I could not see. As she flew past, I felt her hand on my arm, pulling me all the way to her bathroom. I caught the scent of denim and cotton, but knew better than to think she had picked anything simple for me to wear.
As much as I loved Alice, I still feared her. Not physically, I was still a little stronger than even Emmett, but I feared how much she still loved playing Bella Barbie. She found Rose to be well qualified to dress herself, and she was still waiting for my love of clothes and shopping to kick in. Since I was much more graceful, and had gained a love for speed since becoming a vampire, Alice still had hopes that I would develope a love for clothes. I had to admit to myself that I was beginning to like it all much more, but I would never tell Alice or Rosalie that, they would be way too excited by it. Edward knew that I was beginning to enjoy it, but he kept my secret safe, knowing Alice would steal me from him more often if she knew.
So here I sat, in Alice's bathroom, with her tiny hands flying through my hair. I watched in the mirror as she used pins to pull small groups of hair up so that they hung with slight curls. She had gotten accustomed to the sheer amount of hair I had while I was still human, so I showered at night before I met Edward in bed, so it was all dry by the time she needed to work with it. When my hair was acceptable to her, she moved to do my make-up. Just a little blush, like she and Rose wore, to make us look slightly more human, and a little lip gloss, eye liner and mascara. Then she had me stand and helped me pull the shirt over my head without messing up the hair she had worked so hard on. It was a simple enough, a plain black tank top, with a thin, cropped blue over shirt that seemed pretty pointless but it was cute. The sleeves flowed down to my wrists flaring out as they went. She let me climb into the pants myself, but she was bouncing off to the side, waiting for me to get them on. Just a a simple pair of jeans, which surprised me, until she held the shoes out to me. They were the same blue as the shirt, but stilettos. I sighed as I pulled the shoes on, they were cute. The shoe itself was the same shade of blue as my top, but the heel was black. I did a slow twirl to show off to outfit to Alice, her bouncing sped up as she began clapping, too excited to relax. Rolling my eyes, I walked past her to go find Edward again. I wondered what outfit she had picked out for him, they had let me know that Alice helped choose everyones outfits as much as possible.
I grimaced at Jasper as he laid in bed still, chuckling at me. Bella Barbie time was a joke amongst the family, they knew how much it annoyed me to be her personal dress-up game.
I walked back into our room as Edward stepped out of the closet. He had on jeans, a black t-shirt and a blue overshirt that matched me. He tried to hide his amusement at the grimace still on my face.
"I am so jealous that you get such simple outfits." I pouted as he wrapped his arms around my waist. He kissed my forehead and chuckled softly.
"I wish I was a boy." I leaned my head against his chest, still pouting.
"Not me, love. I rather prefer you as a girl." I rolled my eyes even though he couldn't see it. There was a set of footsteps headed towards our door that made me stiffen slightly. Keeping Edwards arms around me, I turned to face Alice as she danced into the room with her hand behind her back.
She glided over to me and breifly touched my ears, smiling and announcing I was perfect. I shifted to look in the mirror on the wall and saw she had added a pair of dangling blue earings. The only other jewelry I wore was my wedding and engagement rings and a neclace Esme had given me for my first official vampire birthday.
Edward and I held hands as we followed Alice downstairs. Everyone was already dressed and waiting for us. Even Nessie. She sat at the counter in the kitchen with a bowl of cereal infront of her. Apple Jacks were one of the few human foods that appealed to her. I was happy that she had found some human things she liked, if only to give her something to eat and do around Charlie that would not freak him out. She still prefered to talk through her visions, but was getting used to speaking out loud as well.
"Momma, you look pretty!" Nessie exclaimed when Edward and I reached her. Edward kissed her head as I smiled at her.
"Well, so do you! Did Aunt Alice buy you a new dress?" I reached out and tugged at the bottom of her dress carefully. Alice spoiled her like there was no tomorrow, well we all spoiled her, but Alice was the worst. I almost shuddered at the thought of when Nessie would be joining us in the high school charade one day.
Alice bounced a little at Jaspers side, his arm around her waist as he smiled at his wife. We stood around talking for a few minutes before we all kissed Nessie goodbye and headed out to the garage. Edward had purchased a new car for us to take to school, so we would not have to take two, and his was the only one that would not stand out. We climbed into the SUV, a Dodge Nitro. It was a dark red color with heavily tinted windows. He took the drivers seat with me next to him, as the others piled into the back. As we pulled out, I saw Esme and Nessie standing on the front porch, Carlisle had already left for his first day on the job at the local hospital. We all waved to them as Edward sped off to school. I sighed and watched as the trees flew past us, Edward squeezed my hand encouragingly. I gave him a small smile and turned back to face the others. Jaspers arm was around Alices shoulders and she was playing with his hand while they whispered to each other. Rose and Emmett were cuddling, neither saying anything, just holding each other as they stared out the windows. They all seemed so peaceful, I was the only one who apparently had any unease about the day.
Edwards driving slowed a little as we got close to the school. I turned back to watch as the building came into view. West High School. It seemed like a decent sized school, big enough for 6 new people to walk in and not be too noticable. There was a parking lot to the side of the building, but Edward just pulled around front to where the buses would normally be to drop off students. He parked and we all climbed out of the car. It was a nice, overcast day. A perfect day. After shutting my door, I waited for Edward to round the car at human speed.
"Shall we?" He extended his arm to me, and I took it, letting him lead me forward.
The others followed as Edward lead us into the front of the building. It seemed like every kid who had been milling about infront of the school stopped and watched us. I thought I caught sight of a boy walking into a pole, and the quiet laughter from my siblings confirmed that. Poor kid.
We walked into the front office and stopped at the front desk. A woman had her back to us as she sorted through some paperwork. Alice cleared her throat slightly and the woman jumped, obviously not realizing anyone had entered. Turning, she welcomed us after a breif pause as she took in our faces. I felt as if mine should have turned bright red, but knew that it wouldn't.
"Hello! We are new here." Alice stated the obvious in an overly friendly voice. The woman seemed a bit shaken still, but asked our names.
"Well, I am Alice Cullen, we also have Edward and Emmett Cullen, and Rosalie and Jasper Hale. And Bella Swan." She point to each of us as she said our names. I had argued with them all that I should have been called a Hale or Cullen, but they said I did not look enough like Rose or Jasper to be a Hale and Edward didn't feel like dealing with people thinking we were siblings, since everytime they changed schools, people seemed to figure out they were all coupled up. It kept things from seeming too weird. They had told me Swan would be perfectly fine for a last name since we were far enough from Forks for there to be any real problem, no Cheif Swan or anything for people to connect me to.
"Well my name is Ms. Johanson. Here are your schedules and maps of the school. I see Rosalie, Jasper, and Emmett are all sophomores, your classes will mostly be in this area." She circled one wing of the school with her finger. "Bella, Edward and Alice, all freshmen, you will mostly be in this area." Circling another area, she handed us all our papers. We thanked her and walked out of the office. Alice, Edward and I compared schedules as Rose, Emmett and Jasper did the same. I had Algebra 2, Guitar 1 and Physical Science with Alice, and English, Spanish and U.S. History with Edward. We all had lunch together. I was happy I had classes with both Edward and Alice all day. It made this seem easier, knowing I would never be left to fend for myself. I glanced at the school map just long enough to have it committed to memory, no need walk around with it infront of my face all day.
Edward and I said our goodbyes with everyone to head off to History class. What a way to begin each day, listening to a teacher drone on about things that meant nothing to me anymore.
When we got to the room, it was still mostly empty, so we quickly made our way to the back of the room, taking seats next to each other. The class slowly filled, and I watched as the students gawked at us.
"Do they always stare like this?" I murmured to Edward so that only he could hear.
He chuckled softly before responding. "Pretty much. It gets better after a while, you get used to it. At least you can't hear their thoughts." I smiled at him and threw my shield over the entire class. I watched as he went into shock for a moment before realising what I was doing. He leaned over and kissed my forehead and the contact made me lose focus and the shield rippled back to just me. I heard him groan softly then chuckle.
"Thanks for trying, love. I will have to deal with it once I go to my classes without you anyways." I smiled at him and reached over to squeeze his hand. Class started and I started going over random things in my head. I imagined that we had not had to return to school, how we could stick with our daily routine. I missed it already. I wondered what Nessie and Esme were doing right now. When the class was finally over, we stood and walked to the door together. Alice was waiting for us already. Edward walked the two of us to our algebra class and after kissing me on the forehead, he left to go to his class.
Algebra and Science went by pretty fast, all things considered. 4th period was lunch. Edward met Alice and I right after class and we walked to the cafeteria together. The others were already there, so we got in line to pick up some prop food, and met them at the table they had chosen. Alice danced over to sit next to Jasper, while Edward and I followed to sit across from them. The cafeteria was filled with those long, greenish-blue rectangle tables with the benches built in. Rose and Emmett were on the end facing each other. Alice and Jasper were next to Rose with their backs to the rest of the student body who shared lunch with us, and that left Edward and I to face them all.
"So Bella, hows your first day of high school going?" Rose asked, one eyebrow raised.
"You know, I have been through high school recently, its not much diferent." I tried to sound as dismissing as she did, but I was pretty sure I did not succeed.
"Ah, yes, love. You did, but so did we, and we remember it much better than you do." Edward leaned over and kissed my forehead after saying this. I glared at him then looked at Alice, she was practically jumping up and down on her seat.
"What is it Alice? You are about to hop away." I laughed at her, but she just stuck her tongue out at me. Edward was her a funny look, which made me worry more. What is she thinking about? I asked Edward in my mind, it was easier and easier everyday to pull my sheild off of myself.
"She is reciting Romeo and Juliet." Her murmured to me, and she smiled when she heard us trying to figure out what was on her mind.
The day went by pretty uneventful. Edward and I were the first ones back to the car, so we waited there for everyone. Edward was telling me what was on people's minds as they passed us. Most were in awe of the new kids, while those who weren't did not amuse us very much. I did find it quite hilarious how many of these boys thought of me, and how everytime they did, Edward would growl. He wanted very much to hang some sort of banner to announce that I was his, and no one was to even bother thinking about me. I was laughing at him when the back door openned and Alice and Jasper hopped in.
"What is so funny?" Alice asked as she and Jasper exchanged confused looks.
"Bella finds it amusing that these... these... boys want her." He spat the word boys like it was poison.
Alice laughed along with me as Jasper sent calming waves to Edward. When Rose and Emmett climbed in though, Edward was still fuming. He revved the engine and flew out of the parking lot, narrowly missing a few of the boys he had growled at earlier.
"Just relax, Eddie. I have no interest in those boys, so you have no need worry about what they think. Would Jazz or Emmett care about the things that are thought about their wives?" I tried to make Edward relax as we drove home.
"I don't know." He got an evil look on his face and I heard Alice giggle in the back seat. "Oh Jasper, tell me, would it bother you to know what some of those boys were thinking about Alice?"
Jasper seemed as confused as I was. "No, I don't think so."
"And Emmett, do you feel the same way?"
"Just tell us what they were thinking, Edward. It doesn't matter what we say." Emmett didn't like whatever Edward was planning. He and Jasper exchanged a wary look.
"So, it does not bother you that I caught a glimpse in one mind of Alice, tied to a desk in a classroom, in the nude, giggling and being spanked? Mind you, this was one of the teachers. And I caught sight of Rose in a run down sedan, leaning over quite feverishly helping a football star get off?" Edward was just grinning now.
I glanced back and saw Emmett and Jasper both pull their lips back over their teeth. If they would have known who specifically had had these thoughts, they no doubt would have ripped a hole in the back of the car to get out and find them. Alice, Rose and I laughed at them.
"Seriously Jazz, you worry that one of those teachers can woo me better than you?" Alice sang to her husband.
And I heard Rose coo to Emmett, "Baby, you should know you have nothing to worry about, I mean, a run down sedan? Hah! It would take a lot more to pull me from you."
when we got to the house, the boys were still grumpy, so we sent them off to hunt. They needed to be on their best behavior at school, and if Jazz and Emmett were still pissed about what guys thinking, there was nothing to stop them from doing something stupid.
After saying our goodbyes to the boys, I went to find Nessie and Esme. They were in the living room, watching a movie. I tried to move as quietly as possible, I knew Esme could hear me, but Nessie seemed oblivious, which is what I wanted. When I was about 5 feet from the back of the sofa, I coiled then sprang forward. I flew over the sofa, grabbing Nessie as I did, and rolled onto the floor tickling her as we tumbled. The scream she let out quickly turned into a fit of laughter. My tickling slowed then stopped as we lay on the ground, Esme chuckling to herself from the sofa, and Alice and Rose had run into the room when they heard Nessie scream, now they were laughing at us too.
I felt the small silver phone in my pocket vibrate and realized that the guys would not be far away yet, and probably heard the scream too. Pulling it out, I flipped it open and pressed it to my ear.
"Hello?" I sang, not even bothering to check who was calling, I was fairly certain it would be Edward.
"Bella? Is everything ok? We heard Nessie scream. Do you need us to come back to the house? We are on our way back now." I heard the whooshing sound of air as he was, indeed, running back that moment.
"Edward, everything is fine. We were playing. Don't come back now. You will see her when you get back. Go eat. Plus it is a little offensive to know you don't think we girls could handle it if anything happened to her." I heard the wind die down and knew they had stopped.
He tried to backtrack and say he did not doubt we could take care of her, then gave up when I could not hold in my amusement. I handed the phone to Renesmee so she could prove to her father that she was perfectly fine before he accepted it and the boys were back on their way to hunt.
I was actually surprised that Jake was not here yet, after Nessie had screamed, I half expected to see him there faster than Alice and Rose. I suppose he probably heard her laughter too, and figured out what had happened. I heard his slow footsteps coming through the back yard now and looked up to see him climb the stairs and come in the back door. Esme had built him his own small house behind ours, figuring while he was in love with Nessie, he would not want to live in a house full of vampires.
"Hey Bells. How was school?" He gave his toothy grin as he took a seat on the sofa next to Esme.
"Not bad. You should have joined us." We had all discussed the fact that since Jake was, basically, part of the family now, he should join in on the charade. But he had refused, saying it was not necessary. Honestly, he did look to be at least as old as Carlisle and Esme, if not older. But so did Emmett, if not just due to his size. But I knew it was because he did not want to spend any time away from Renesmee. So, until she would be in on the school act, he would be staying home. I had to admit I was a little jealous. He had several years before that came. Nessie could easily now pass for a 5th or 6th grader, but we wanted to wait to put her in school. She still grew at a much faster rate than humans, so we wanted to hold off on enrolling her in school until she was old enough that the changes would be less noticable.