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"Did you hear?" Jessica Stanley asks her best friend as soon as the blonde sits down at their first period bio II class wifh Mr. Molina.
"Hear what?" Gemma Newton, sister of Mike Newton, asks.
"About the new student starting next week, duh!" Jessica gushes. "How have you not heard and you're besties with me?"
"Because I'm not in your gossip circle, Jess," Gemma replies with ease. "Did you gather the newbie's name in your gossip mill this morning?"
Jessica frowns. "No, I didn't, but I will."
Gemma raises her eyebrows but she nods, choosing not to argue with her best friend. She isn't sure why she's best friends with such a gossip and snobby popular girl, but she is. Jessica hasn't always been this way; Jess developed this personality over the summer between their eighth grade graduation and their first day of freshman year in high school. It's like Jessica was a brand new, insufferable person.
"I'm sure we all will," Gemma responds verbally after a moment. "It's not every day we get a new student."
Alice Cullen enters the classroom with her 'companion', Jasper Hale. Alice is super sweet; even if Jessica obsessed sometimes, she still talks to them. She says more to Gemma, for some reason unknown to the dirty blonde. Jasper is always super quiet and looks very pained.
"Good morning, Gemma!" Alice chirps, smiling at her coven brother's blood singer, whom he hasn't spoken to since the Cullens moved to Forks two years ago.
"Good morning, Alice," Gemma replies.
"Hello, Jessica," Alice greets before she joins Jasper at their table right as Mr. Molina walks in, and he gets started on the lesson right as the bell rings. ⚜️⚜️⚜️
Gemma goes to gym next and she bumps into Emmett Cullen as he's leaving for his second period. He is the one she likes, and Jessica doesn't shut up about it. Jess flipped one of her gaskets as soon as she found out who Gem was crushing on and that it was the big, goofball Cullen.
"I'm sorry," Gemma gushes. "I didn't see... I wasn't watching where I was going."
"No, you're fine," Emmett replies, his voice surprising her; it's the first time he has spoken to her in two years. "I'm Emmett, but I'm sure you already know that."
"Yeah," Gemma replies. "I'm Gemma."
"Well, Gemma," Emmett says as Rosalie's mate, Chamberlin, walks in, "I have to go. Maybe we can talk later?"
"Bye, Emmett," Chamberlin muses, combing his fingers through his black hair. "You don't wanna be late."
Emmett rolls his eyes at Chamberlin before he offers a smile toward Gemma before leaning. Chamberlin watches as Gemma struts across the gym and goes to the dressing rooms. He cracks his knuckles. Chamberlin always looks forward to this class because he knows how competetic and athletic Gemma is. He hasn't shared this with Emmett because Emmett has never asked.
Rosalie enters the gym and sees the flint in his eyes. "Let me guess... you're eager to see if you can beat Gemma Newton this time."
"No offense, Rose-bud, but she's the reason you girls keep beating us!" Chamberlin declares as he and his mate walk across the gym.
"Oh, I know," Rosalie replies. "I'll see you during the indoors soccer game."
Chamberlin nods and he heads toward the boy's locker room. ⚜️⚜️⚜️
Gemma goes to Newton's Olympic Outfitters. It's a sporting goods and hiking gear store in Forks, a Washington. Karen Newton owns the store and has kept it going even after her husband died in a car crash, he was hit by a drunk semi driver.
Gemma works at the store sometimes during the week but it isn't an actual job. She does it to help her mom out around the store; she'll work the cash register, take inventory, stock the shelves, hang the sports and hiking equipment. She tries taking as much of the hassle off of her mom as she can.
Karen heard her daughter's voice amongst the customers in the store as she does inventory. She's not surprised that Gemma came straight from school.
"You better be doing your homework, Gemma!" Karen yells from the back.
Gemma grimaces, making the man in his forties chuckle. "Then you better check this man's gear out!"
Karen huffs before she puts the baseball glove back into a box and she leaves the back. "You should have done that at home like Mike does."
Michael 'Mike' Geoffrey Newton is Gemma's brother. He's an athlete and a complete pain in Gemma's butt, but what brother isn't?
"But I like it here, mom," Gemma replies while her mother rings up the hiking gear for the man. "Mike probably has his music blaring right now, and I can't focus. I focus in the real world. The smell of sporting stuff, hiking stuff, and the sound of people."
Karen sighs and she tells the man the price. He pays and Karen gives him the needed change back.
"Good luck with the homework, kiddo," the man claims, he is one of the big stone shoppers here.
"Thanks," Gemma replies and the man leaves. "Mom, guess who finally talked to me today?"
"That Emmett guy you've been rambling on about for years?" Karen teases. "I'm going back to the back. Finish that up so you can help out."
"Already on it, mom," Gemma replies.
Karen watches as her daughter focuses on her work. Gemma always was a mama's girl growing up but it got even worse when her father, Henry Newton, died in that accident. The woman couldn't ask for a better daughter. She kisses Gemma on top of the head before she heads toward the back door the store, and Gemma works on her homework,
