✓ | 𝐁𝐋𝐔𝐄 𝐌𝐎𝐎𝐍, j. hale [1]

IV. Rigid

Dread was slowly growing in Evelyn's stomach as she walked alone to her next class. None of the people she had spent the day with were taking AP Government this semester, so she had to endure sixty minutes of awkwardness without anyone familiar to help pass the time. It wasn't that she was afraid of making friends; before the fire and the death of her parents, Evelyn had been extremely social. Losing everything has a way of changing someone completely; she wasn't sure yet if she would ever go back to the way she was before. She also wasn't sure if she even wanted that. At this moment, the very thought was just too painful.

As she shuffled into what she hoped was the correct classroom, she was met with the familiar hum of conversation as the students chattered loudly with their friends. No one had noticed her arrival. She let out the breath she didn't realize she had been holding as she hung up her jacket on one of the hooks by the door. A soft hand on her shoulder made Evelyn jump. She whirled around to face its owner.

"Sorry! I didn't mean to scare you. I'm Mrs. Davis, you are Evelyn Masen, correct?"

Evelyn's voice was coarse as she gathered herself. "That's me." God, I sound like an idiot.

Mrs. Davis smiled kindly at the new girl, perfectly aware of the awkwardness and anxiety she must be feeling. "I've seen your transcripts, and it appears you're familiar with this class. I wouldn't worry too much, I think you're going to be just fine."

It's not the class I'm worried about. Evelyn offered her teacher a smile in return as she was given a textbook and her office slip was signed. Mrs.Davis nodded towards the back of the room.

"You can sit next to Alice, she's fairly advanced and I think you two would be good partners. Alice!" She called, but it seemed that Alice Cullen was already standing and waving her over before Mrs. Davis had even finished her sentence.

Weird. Evelyn's gaze shifted to the wiry girl standing next to an empty desk at the back fo the classroom. She was smiling, her strange topaz eyes glittering with excitement. The girl felt another pair of eyes on her amidst the conversation around her, and her gaze once again met that of Jasper Hale, who just so happened to be sitting at the desk directly in front of what was to be her own. She noticed he had that same curious look gracing his impossibly perfect face that she had noticed at lunch. Her palms started to sweat, her stomach fluttering with a bundle of nerves that was rearing its ugly head once again.

She carefully made her way down the aisle to her desk, dodging backpacks and her fellow students. She kept her eyes on Alice, who despite her unusual look, was offering her an encouraging smile. As she passed by Jasper, she immediately sensed a change in the atmosphere. Against her better judgement, she looked at him.

His entire body had gone rigid, each individual muscle clearly contracting and visible through his navy knit sweater. His head snapped towards her, an angry glare making her heart speed up. No, angry was an understatement. He looked murderous, his upper lip curling up over his teeth like a feral animal. The most terrifying part was the fact that his eyes were no longer the pools of endless gold she had gotten lost in just twenty minutes prior. Pitch black irises poured into her and she suddenly felt like a defenseless deer staring into the eyes of a hunter.

Heart pounding, she quickly stepped past him and slid into her seat. She could feel the adrenaline pumping through her veins; the boy's stare had initiated what she could only assume to be her body's fight or flight response. As she pulled her notebook out of her bag, she noticed her whole arm was trembling. She glanced around at the other students, and nobody else seemed to notice his unnerving behavior. What the hell just happened?

Alice Cullen cleared her throat, the normally mundane sound like music to Evelyn's ears. "Hi, I'm Alice. It's so nice to finally meet you."

Evelyn shook herself out of her trance and smiled at the unusual girl, whose voice was akin to the sound of tinkling bells. "Oh! Hey, Alice. It's nice to meet you, too. I'm Evelyn, by the way."