Immortal Bella

Chapter One: Rebirth.

"I'm going to miss you so much." My mother cried as she wrapped her arms around me once more, trying to hide the shiver that crept up her spine from holding onto my freezing body. "I'm going to miss you, mom." I sighed heavily, breathing in her scent that made my throat burn - and I forced myself to ignore it.

"Renee, you'll miss your flight." Charlie, my father, warned her as he set her small carry-on bag down on the wooded floors before pulling her back. She turned and buried her face in his chest, sobbing heavily for a soft moment. That form of affection caught me and Charlie off guard: my mother tried to keep her distance from him when she arrived to see me one last time for a while.

It had been decided after my re-birth that I would stay in Forks and live with Charlie, who is the chief of police in this small town that is under constant rain clouds that hid the rays of the sun, and that would hide my true self. Renee had been told nothing of what happened over the phone when I called her and told her to pack up my personal belongings, as I was extending my summer visit here in Forks to stay here for good. She thought it was a joke, knowing how she practically had to force me on the plane to come visit in the first place. 

When she arrived a week ago, she had no clue what was in store for her. She saw my piercing red eyes and screamed, before breaking down into tears as I explained to her what had happened. Almost a month into my visit, while Charlie was at work, I stupidly decided to explore the woods that spread out behind Charlie's small house; what I thought would be a good, calming walk, turned out to be a nightmare come true that ended in my death. Well, death of my human life, at least.

I don't remember much about what happened besides the venom that spread through the veins in my wrist, the burning sensation that enveloped my body and the darkness that clouded me as I screamed in agony. Whoever had bit me had ran away before helping, and I was alone. I stayed like that, curled up on the damp forest ground for what felt like days as the transformation happened.

When I finally awoke again, the burning pain in my throat was worse than what I felt moving  throughout my body while I turned; and all of my senses overpowered me. I could hear every little thing within at least 50 miles, and that included a small stream of water nearby. Listening to my aching throat, I seemed to flash my way towards it and dove my head in, thinking the cold water would soothe the fire. When it didn't, I pulled away and peered down. 

I looked into my reflection, and almost fell back as I saw a complete stranger staring back at me. I reached up and touched my face, confirming that this was me. I couldn't believe how much more beautiful and foreign I looked. My hair was healthier and thicker, my pale complexion became nearly white and completely flawless, my lips looked full of color; but what shocked me the most was the red in my eyes. My ordinary brown eyes I had all of my life were nowhere to be found, and I examined the stranger looking back at me.

Standing back up, I listened closely at everything in the woods: the chirping of birds, the soft chewing sounds from a squirrel . . . and the steady heart beat pulsing with blood coming from a large cougar. For some reason, that made my mouth water more than the water I just forced down my throat and before I could stop myself, my feet sent me gliding through the trees as my hunting instincts took over and I became animal-like. I let my temptation take over and followed the sound until I found the cougar sleeping, where I made the hunt. It was fast, easy, clean; and I never felt more . . . alive.

I returned to Charlie that night, to find him alone in the kitchen crying to himself. "Dad?" I called out, then realizing how different I sounded. My voice had become almost musical and very captivating. Charlie's head had snapped up from his hands and he scrambled up from his chair before pulling me into a tight hug. I forced myself to stop breathing when the venom filled my mouth and the burning in my throat returned; it was way worse than when it was around the animals in the forest, but I ignored the craving. This was my father, and I couldn't kill him for my own satisfaction.