Tick Tock ➙ Edward Cullen

Chapter One

They say that time freezes when you meet your soulmate. The hands on a clock come to a halt when you find the one your destined to be with until the end of time. Love is a powerful thing, and for most people, time does seem to stand still. Falling for the soul of another human being is enough to move mountains and calm seas. It's enough for one person to commit to another, and hand their heart over.

For Melinda Porter, her clocks finally start ticking again when she moves to the rainy town of Forks. She fell in love with the pale, amber eyed boy that sits in front of her in English. The only problem is, he's already in love with someone else.

The high pitched voice of Cindy Ainsworth reached Melinda's ears as she lay awake in bed, flame coloured hair askew around her as she waited for the blare of an alarm clock to go off. "Mel! Get up, you're going to be late on your first day."

"No I won't!" Melinda yelled back, rolling over with a groan in the light grey sheets. The girl's olive coloured eyes fluttered open, and a soft smile reached her features as she noticed Cindy now standing in her doorway.

"Happy Birthday, kid." Cindy was an aged woman with creases along her forehead, and laugh lines around her mouth. She was equipped with shoulder length black hair that curled ever so slightly at the ends, warm brown eyes, and a dimple carved into her cheek.

"Who are you calling 'kid'?" Melinda asked with a raised brow as she sat up in bed. "I'm older than you." She pointed out.

Cindy closed her eyes as she nodded and said, "I've heard this before."

It was true. Today was Melinda's birthday, but she had been the same age for eighty years. When Melinda was thirteen, way back in 1920, she had been cursed by an old woman that was out for revenge. Melinda's mother and father had fallen in love, even though her father was destined to marry the witch. Angry that her true love had been taken away, the witch cursed their first and only child. Once she turned eighteen, She would stop aging until she met her soulmate. Melinda has been eighteen since 1925.

Melinda didn't mind being eighteen. The only problem was she had to lose everyone she loved due to her temporary immortality. Every time Melinda thought she had found her soulmate, she was proven wrong by the youthful appearance that refused to change. The girl once spent five years with the same man, but didn't age a day. To avoid all the overbearing questions about why she wasn't aging, Melinda skipped town every now and then.

When she found out her best friend's daughter was alive, and living in Washington, Melinda decided to contact her. Now, Melinda sat on the edge of her double sized bed with sunrays stretching across her room as Cindy wished her a happy birthday.

"Technically, I'm ninety-eight today." Melinda pointed out with an amused expression written across her features.

"Wow, what is your secret? You look amazing." Cindy asked sarcastically, earning an eye roll from the red head. "Technically, you're eighteen. And eighteen year olds have to go to school."

"Fine! Get out so I can get ready." Melinda demanded in the nicest way possible.

"Here, I want you to open this first. Put it on, and come downstairs when you're ready." Cindy walked into the room and handed Melinda a small square box that was the same colour as blood, and had a tidy black bow wrapped around it.

"You didn't have to get me anything." Melinda replied with a sad smile, her eyebrows turned up slightly as she took the box.

"I didn't buy it." Cindy told her before walking out of the room.
Melinda pulled the bow off the box, letting it fall gently to the hardwood floor. She then pulled the lid off, revealing a dainty silver necklace with a small M charm on it. There was a note underneath, written in a cursive font. Melinda carefully took the necklace out of the box and set it down in the lid, before taking out the piece of aged paper.