slowtown ↠ alice cullen

02 | strange enough

It was a twenty minute drive to school, which was ridiculous compared to the ten minute walk Eliza had to her old school. Blasting Panic! At the Disco, she flew down the road, slowing down slightly as she approached campus.

She turned down her radio, and sighed as almost everyone in the parking lot stared at her car. It was flashy, and for once she hated it. Back home, it made her feel proud to have a car like that, but now Eliza stuck out like a sore thumb.

Her new girl status was aggravating and the blonde was sure it would take years to get rid of it. Sighing in relief she saw another girl in the front office.

She waved at the brunette, her gold bracelets tinkling as she moved her wrist. The other girl shyly waved back.

"Name?"

"Um, Elizabeth Courtland." Eliza focused on the woman's purple shirt, before moving onto the fake plant in the corner of the room.

"Here you go, dear. Remember to return this paper signed by all your teachers at the end of the day." Nodding along, Eliza took the stack of papers. Her schedule didn't seem so bad.

Her first three classes were boring—she had already learned about the topics—but the only problem was the staring. She figured Forks rarely got new students, but it seemed excessive.

Eliza headed to her next class, gym. It was the only class Eliza really enjoyed, it always gave her an excuse to move around.

When Coach Clapp announced they would be playing volleyball, Eliza was relieved. Sports came easy to her with bundles of energy and practice. Maybe I'll try-out for the team, she thought.

The game had lasted a while, and her team was winning 4-1. Eliza had scored three out of the four. She frowned once her teacher blew his whistle, signaling them to change.

Following the herd of people towards the cafeteria, a blond boy slung his arm through hers. She raised an eyebrow at his boldness. Did small town people have no manners, she thought as she ripped away her arm.

"Hi, I'm Mike." Eliza didn't smile back, making his falter. "Anyway, I was wondering if you wanted to sit with my friends and I?" She didn't know how he knew she had lunch, but she had no other friends, and he didn't even qualify as one either.

"Actually, Mike Wazowski, she's sitting with me." Behind her was a taller boy with curly hair. He smiled as he adjusted his NFL jacket as Mike opened his mouth, but no words came out. He seemed like better company, so Eliza moved to his side.

"Yeah, sorry, dude." Turning on her heel, she followed him towards a table where two other people were already sitting. A red-headed girl smiled as she sat next to her, the Asian boy next to her not looking up from his phone.

"I'm Maggie," she said, moving her curls out of her face. "This is Alex. don't mind him, he's never off his phone." He muttered a reply, but made no move to look up.

"I'm Jaden," the taller boy said, moving into the seat next to her. He offered his fries, but Eliza shook her head.

"School food is disgusting." He chuckled.

"That's true."

"Well, I'm Eliza."

"Okay, Eliza, tell us about yourself. It's not very often we get new people." So as Eliza told them about living in California—except for certain parts of course—she noticed a group of the most beautiful people walk in.

"Who's that?" The three looked over, not surprised by her question.

"That's Cullen's and Hale's. They're pretty chill, they don't really talk to anyone," Maggie says, stealing one of Jaden's chicken nuggets. He swatted her hand, but she just giggled.

"Yeah, the blonde one is Rosalie Hale, her twin Jasper is right there," she continues, jutting her chin at each respective person. "Alice is the one with the short hair, and Emmett is the one who looks like a bodybuilder. I had him in my Chemistry class once and it was the highlight of my year. Then there's Marissa, the one with the sparkly shoes. She's super nice." Eliza nodded, trying her best not to stare.

"Oh, and here comes Edward. He's a bit more antisocial but he had to tutor me last semester in English," Alex says, finally looking at Eliza. She gives him a smile.

"They all moved down from Alaska...uh... I think two years ago." Jaden says furrowing his eyebrows. "Or was it one," he says to himself.

"That reminds me," Alex pipes up, eager to spill some more gossip. "Last year Jessica Stanley asked out Edward in front of the whole school and he said no. I felt kinda bad, but in all honesty, it was hilarious. Her face was priceless, and she's still so bitter about it."

"I heard a rumor that she has a crush on Mike Newton," Maggie says, fiddling with the rubber bracelets on her arm. Eliza turned towards Jaden.

"Isn't that the blond guy?"

"Yeah, he's part of Jessica's clique, as she likes to call it." Alex explained who each person was, not sparing any details.

"I see they got the other new girl, Isabella Swan," Maggie says, bumping her shoulder with Eliza's. They all turned around to face the group watching the brunette look uncomfortable.

"We should save her," Alex says, going to get up from his seat, but was stopped by Jaden.

"Or, we should just mind our own business." Alex scoffed.

"Nosy is my middle name." It was Maggie's turn to scoff.

"You don't have a middle name, Alex."