As the first rays of dawn pierced through my bedroom window, I was filled with absolute contentment. I had no troubles on my hands and nothing to worry about but attending school with my sister Renesmee.
I dressed in a periwinkle blue garment and denim jacket, placed my cornflower blue contacts into my eyes. I braided the top of my hair into an intricate crown braid.
As if drawn by an invisible force, Bruce appeared in my doorway.
"Bella and Edward will look after you today," I said reassuringly. "Renesmee and I are heading to school."
Bruce leapt onto my lap and licked my face from chin to hairline.
With Bruce perched happily on my lap, I made my way into the brightly lit kitchen. I found my sister standing next to the bench preparing her lunch. She was dressed in a red turtleneck jumper and black high waisted jeans.
"Good morning sis," she said happily as she convincingly buttered a bread roll and filled it with salad.
"Good morning sis," I repeated cheerily.
I took out a large ceramic container from the fridge and began to pour the contents into my drink bottle. Silky ribbons of Sangue poured like an eager scarlet river into my drink bottle which I placed in my artfully decorated backpack.
Sangue was my life force and would keep me satiated throughout the day.
"See you tonight!" we yelled in unison to our parents, who were hunting in the forest nearby.
With a sense of enthusiasm, we left the house and began the trek down the lane towards Forks High. This felt like a new and exhilarating start for me.
Renesmee and I arrived at the stately building that housed our classrooms. As I propelled down the topiary-lined pathway and into the corridor, swathes of kids walked past us like rivers of trout heading upstream. I chatted happily with many of my peers on the way to our
first class of the morning, which was English.
Miss Greenwood welcomed us with a cheery wave.
"Ella, Renesmee, we have missed you!" she said. "So great to have you both back."
"Thanks," I said. "Our hiking trip into the Smoky Mountains was thrilling."
Renesmee stared at me with a knowing expression. We had made up the story of the hiking trip to cover the REAL reason we were away - rescuing dogs with our vampire family.
After a lesson about Hamlet's Soliloquy* we moved on to Science.
Mr Redford handed around bunsen burners, test tubes and various liquids. Science wasn't my favourite subject, but sitting next to Renesmee made it a bit more bearable. Lunchtime rolled around quickly. We sat in the cafeteria with our good friends Hannah, Verity and Ashlyn, chatting about day to day normalities.
Before I knew it, the finishing bell rang out like a high pitched clap of thunder. Saying a rushed goodby to my sister, I headed off toward the Forks library.
I had gone back to my job as a librarian assistant for three afternoons a week. I loved sorting through the books, welcoming friendly book readers and scanning the books they took out.
As I came through the heavy wooden door, I heard a disconcerted mumble coming from behind a nearby bookshelf.
"Come on, you foul fiend of dusty pages - get into the shelf immediately," the voice intoned. "I know you can fit, I saw you there last week!"
With a backhanded slap at the book, a woman emerged from behind the shelf. It was Florence, the head librarian.
She had been at the Forks library for as long as I could remember. She was a wonderful, if slightly unique boss. She was dressed in a floor length gown that moved like liquid gold when she walked. Her long mahogany hair was twisted into a unkept bun.
"Oh hello dear," she said sweetly. As she waved enthusiastically, the sounds of her many bangles made a spooky melody against the empty confines of the library.
"Hello Florence," I said with a wry expression. "Which book got on YOUR bad side?"
"It was that ghastly Encyclopaedia of Animal Paraphernalia," Florence said crossly. "It always refuses to be wrangled into its place on the shelf."
"I'm sure it will accept it's fate somehow," I said brightly.
"It's simply marvellous to have you back, girl," Florence said with a twinkle in her eye. "This library was a shambles without you."
"It's great to BE back," I said. "What would you like me to do this afternoon?"
"Well you can start by putting away this fiendish fiasco of volumes," Florence said dramatically, gesturing to an enormous pile of books stacked dangerously on the desk.
"You could also deal with readers that may grace these hallowed literary halls.' she said with a flourish. "I'm going back to deal with that dastardly volume once and for all."
I began the meditative process of returning book after book to the shelves. As I worked, my mind wandered into the worlds of the books I was returning. I couldn't help but look at their blurbs as I restored each one to their rightful place.
I was so engrossed in my work that I was startled to hear the bell above the library door jingle. I looked up to see a boy head inside the library. He looked to be about my age. His lean frame was dressed head to toe in black. Shaggy blond shoulder-length hair hung messily over his intense blue eyes and framed his angular features. His expression was serious, almost angry.
Before I could welcome him into the library, he disappeared amongst the bookshelves. I wondered about this boy. I had not seen him at school before. He must be new. Shaking my head, I continued to sort through the pile of books.
A little while later, the boy reemerged from the bookshelves, a pile of books in his hands. He headed almost begrudgingly towards the librarian desk, and set his books down in front of me.
"Hi, I'm Ella Cullen," I said with an encouraging smile. "I go to Forks High. Are you new to town?"
The boy stared down at the floor, a grim expression on his face.
Do you have a library card?" I asked him awkwardly.
Wordlessly, he handed me his card. The name Felix Bramwell was written alongside his image and barcode. I scanned his books and returned them to him nervously.
Deciding to try one last time to be friendly, I looked down at the stack of Shakespeare volumes in his arms. "I'm a fan of Shakespeare too," I said with forced cheer.
With a cool stare from his icy blue eyes, he turned and headed out the door.
Felix Bramwell, I thought to myself .What is your story? And why are you so darned rude...?
*Author's note - Hamlet's Soliloquy is the most famous speech from the Shakespearian play. If you want to see it, here is David Tennant (who played Barty Crouch Jnr in Harry Potter) performing it.
Soundtrack:
While I was writing this, I was listening to:
Kommentare