I ran to school

111

I ran to school, arriving a few seconds after my siblings did.  They did not turn,
though Alice at least must have known that I stood here in the thick woods that bordered
the pavement.  I waited until no one was looking, and then I strolled casually from
between the trees into the lot full of parked cars.
I heard Bella's truck rumbling around the corner, and I paused behind a Suburban,
where I could watch without being seen.
She drove into the lot, glaring at my Volvo for a long moment before she parked
in one of the most distant spaces, a frown on her face.
It was strange to remember that she was probably still angry with me, and with
good reason.
I wanted to laugh at myself—or kick myself.  All my plotting and planning was
entirely moot if she didn't care for me, too, wasn't it?  Her dream could have been about
something completely random.  I was such an arrogant fool.
Well, it was so much the better for her if she didn't care for me.  That wouldn't
stop me from pursuing her, but I would give her fair warning as I pursued.  I owed her
that.
I walked silently forward, wondering how best to approach her.
She made it easy.  Her truck key slipped through her fingers as she got out, and
fell into a deep puddle.
She reached down, but I got to it first, retrieving it before she had to put her
fingers in the cold water.
I leaned back against her truck as she started and then straightened up.
"How do you do that?" she demanded.
Yes, she was still angry.
I offered her the key.  "Do what?"
She held her hand out, and I dropped the key in her palm.  I took a deep breath,
pulling in her scent.
"Appear out of thin air," she clarified.
"Bella, it's not my fault if you are exceptionally unobservant."  The words were
wry, almost a joke.  Was there anything she didn't see?
? 2008 Stephenie Meyer