Hybrid (Twilight FanFiction) [REWRITE]

Chapter 8- Throwing Caution to the Wind

Chapter 8- Throwing Caution to the Wind

March 2005

Andrea

It's been a whole month.

An entire month of pretending that I don't know about the existence of vampires and hybrids. It's also been a month since I first arrived in Forks as part of a ridiculous punishment concocted by my parents. I missed my first Mardi Gras ever. They wouldn't let me come home for even one day. How sinister.

This was also the worst Black History month I have ever experienced. The number of Black students at Forks High School is sparse, but faculty and staff could have at least pretended that they cared. They should be ashamed of their lack of respect for Black people in Forks. Mr. Jefferson tried as much as he could to make anyone besides me care about Black history. He could barely get through the first day of the month— just imagine how the rest of the month went. February 28 could not have come fast enough.

The first few games for softball went well. We're on a winning streak of six so far. Charlie has come to all six games with a camera to record me. He and Bella are always the first to congratulate me after a game. More townsfolk showed up for the games than I expected would. I assume it's because there's nothing else to do. Forks High doesn't have a track and field team, so there's hardly any competition for a good turnout besides baseball who plays every day that we don't. I have to admit that I do miss being on a team. I haven't played a sport since before high school. I may have been homeschooled, but I participated in the club and neighborhood teams. I've played everything from soccer to lacrosse and rugby to water polo. But once I got to high school, I didn't care about much but Ellie and partying, so being on a team again is a beautiful feeling.

With the worst, most boring February over, I'm looking forward to Spring Break because I can see myself somewhere warm. But that's all that I can see. I haven't been able to see into the future as well as I did in January. It could be attributed to the fact that I haven't been hunting since my first one with the Cullens. As a result, I can't push myself to run in the same forests that they do. I don't want to cross their path or leave my scent anywhere besides school, Charlie's home, the police station (the one or two times I've accompanied Bella to bring Charlie dinner because he was working late. Something about animal attacks in the area), the grocery store, and the softball diamond. I'm afraid of what will happen if any of the Cullens come across my scent in the woods. I can't risk my vision of being erased from everyone's memory coming true. No matter how much it hurts to be away from Jasper and his family, I can't sacrifice my family. I can't be selfish.

I guess that's what brings me to La Push Beach with Bella and her friends one not-so-gloomy Saturday. Besides talking to Angela and Katherine, I don't have any friends in Forks. Unless you count the lovely old lady, Mrs. Emory, I help with her shopping at the grocery store. She was friends with Grandma and Grandpa Swan, and she took care of Charlie once they died. Assisting her is the least that I could do. But most wouldn't count an almost-70-year-old woman as a friend. Thus, I have no friends in Forks. It makes me miss home, and the week I had with the Cullens even more.

When Bella's friends got hyped about going to the beach because of the incoming "warm" weather (because anything over 30 degrees is warm), I figured getting out of the house after softball practice would do me some good. However, after practice and a quick shower, I can say without a doubt that these white kids are delusional. By the time I drove Bella's truck to La Push Reservation, the water and the sky were the same dark, ugly gray. It made both look endless. It feels like a warning of what is to come— and I don't mean the storm that is rolling in.

"Andrea! You made it!" Tyler is the first to greet me when I hop out of Bella's truck. Most of the group is huddled in Tyler's restored van while some sit at the fire that emits a strange blue-green flame. Even fewer are running in from the ocean sporting wetsuits and holding surfboards. Bella is nowhere to be seen.