Tick Tock ➙ Edward Cullen

Chapter Three

The last two classes of Melinda's day consisted of Government and Gym. She tried not to fall asleep in one, and tried not to get killed in the other. Her Gym class had just started their volleyball unit and it was the other students Melinda had to worry about. She was a decent player, but many rogue balls had come her way from different sides of the gymnasium.

Her first day at Forks High School had come to a close, and Melinda walked out the front door just as the final bell rang. A car horn caught her attention, and she turned around to see Cindy's Acura behind her.

"Were you planning on walking?" Cindy yelled through the open passenger window as she pulled up beside Melinda.

"No, I was just gonna look around for you." Melinda replied. She didn't actually know what her plan was, she only half expected to be getting a ride. Melinda got into the sedan, and watched her new school disappear from view as Cindy drove away.

"Don't freak out when we get home. I'm not done getting everything ready for your birthday so just head straight upstairs, unless you want to ruin the surprise." Cindy explained as she drove down the winding roads of Forks.

"You didn't have to do anything for me, Cindy." Melinda replied, pulling her attention away from the scenery of green outside the car. The dark pavement of the slick road contrasted nicely with the lucious forest. It was a view that Melinda knew she would never get bored of, and could only imagine what went on in the depths of the dense forest.

"It's not every day you turn eighteen." Cindy glanced over at the girl with a small smile on her face. "Or ninety eight. However you want to look at it."

"Eighteen sounds better." Melinda mumbled as she looked back out the rain speckled window. One thing about Forks: it's almost always raining. Melinda didn't mind the rain too much. As she focused on the tiny drops of rain that rolled down the window her mind wandered to the boy she sat beside in English today. The lack of sunlight in Forks would explain why he's as pale as he is.

Cindy pulled into the driveway of her small house, and Melinda jumped out of the car before the engine was turned off.

"Don't look at anything!" Cindy called after her, wondering what the rush was.

"I know!" Melinda waved over her shoulder as she went inside. Keeping her green eyes glued to the laminate flooring, Melinda kicked her shoes off before running upstairs. The girl went into her decent sized room and dropped her school bag and jacket before flopping down on her unmade bed. The cold metal of her new necklace hit her skin as gravity took control, resting the charm between the tendons in her neck. Melinda starred up at the white popcorn ceiling, replaying the day in her mind. From everything to first period Spanish, making new acquaintances in the cafeteria, and meeting the blonde haired boy in her English class, Melinda was pleased with how her day had unraveled.

Thumps, bangs, and Cindy talking to herself traveled up the stairs. Melinda shifted her eyes around the room as she smiled, listening to her friend prepare whatever she had planned for her birthday. Melinda took in the decorations that filled her room, all of them being things she had collected throughout the many years. Her first move was when she was the technical age of twenty-five, and moved every few years after that.

There was a large oak bookshelf hung up on the wall at the foot of her bed. Under that was simple laundry basket that Cindy bought her. On the shelf was a few poetry books, as well as a globe of the world, a fake potted plant, and a snow globe from New York City. Beside that was a floor length bookshelf full of books that Melinda couldn't bring herself to part with, including a school yearbook from 1975, and her parents' wedding photo album. There was also a few knick knacks
from her childhood, things that would probably shrivel up if they were hit with direct sunlight.