Alive | Jasper Hale | Book 1

4. New Friends.

                                               4. New Friends

 

There was a girl next to Greyson. Instead of a normal shade, her hair was cut short and a vivid shade of blue. Her face was soft and round, her skin like peaches-and-cream. Though she had soft features, she wore a nose piercing and harsh, black eyeliner around her eyes. Her lips weren’t covered in anything but chapstick.

“Yeah, the Cullens are kind of gorgeous. It’s hard to think when they’re in the room or anywhere near you. I’ve had the experience,” she laughed, and paused for a moment as if she were remembering a long-distant memory. “Anyway, from the look on your face I can tell you just seen them for the first time.”

“Actually, I met Jasper before... he was the one who pulled me out of the coffin,” I told them, popping a torn piece of pretzel into my mouth.

Understanding filled the girl’s eyes. “Right, right. I’ve heard about that,” she quickly moved on, not lingering in the subject of my awakening. “The big one and the guy that looks like he could be a model—that’s Emmett and Edward Cullen. The short one is Alice Cullen. The blondie is Rosalie Hale, and I guess you know Jasper.

“They’re all Dr. Cullen and his wife’s adoptive kids. They arrived a couple years ago from some place in Alaska, I think.”

“So, they’re all adopted?” I asked.

“Emmett, Edward and Alice are. Rosalie and Jasper have been with Mrs. Cullen since they were eight. Wasn’t she their aunt, Greyson?”

Greyson answered offhandedly, “Yeah, yeah. Something like that.”

Sensing Greyson was obviously uncomfortable with the subject of the Cullen family, I leaned in with my elbows on the table. A smile lit my face and I asked the girl, “So, what’s your name? You never said.”

I could almost see relief pass through Greyson’s eyes before he bit into his pizza. My gaze fell on the girl again as she finished swallowing down her milk.

“You can call me Cole,” she answered, smiling. “My real name is Nicole, but I won’t answer anyone who calls me that. You can ask anyone, even Greyson, here. He’s been my closest friend since middle school.”

My eyes glanced between the two of them. Their body language screamed that they were close—knees touching, bodies inclined towards each other, no signs of tension between them. Cole was telling the truth, it seemed.

“I guess you know me as the girl almost buried alive. But, you can call me Hollie.”

Cole laughed and our discussion continued on about school. She told me a few things about some of the students here. Like, how Jessica Stanley sometimes was a backstabber and to stay clear of her and her friends. Mike Newton and Angela Weber were two good friends out of her group, as I was told. Cole and Greyson gave me the in’s and out’s of Forks, enough for me to understand that if I continued hanging around with the both of them, I’d be in good hands and my freaky, new girl status wouldn’t always be that way.

After lunch, I’d found out I had Geography with Cole and Spanish with Greyson.

In Geography, I’d nearly fallen asleep three separate times. If it weren’t for Cole, I was positive Mr. Jefferson would have caught me. It was clear to me that I wasn’t the only one having troubles staying awake. A couple others I’d recognized in my English class were looking tired as well; the palm of their hands keeping their head propped up as their eyes drooped low.

Lastly, Spanish with Greyson was difficult. I’d been lucky with timing--it was October, only a month into the school year. Catching up with what they’ve learned so far wouldn’t be difficult for me if I actually put some effort into learning.