Paloma was sure she had never frowned this much in her life.

In many ways it felt like she was always angry. At least since their mother's murder, Paloma couldn't remeber a day where she truly felt happy anymore. But the more she saw of Forks, the darker her mood became.

Nothing about the town felt like home.

It was too cold. The people all felt the same, content with their boring lives. And the one way street that ran through the small town felt like it was stripping her of all options.

As Emiliano parked the car he sighed as he turned to face his younger sister. She already knew that he was going to attempt to give her some big brotherly speech, he always tended to act self-righteous and that he was better than her. "I know this sucks Palomita, but dad has his reasons."

"Of course you think that." Paloma muttered, not bothering to meet Emiliano's eyes. She knew what she would see reflected in them. He always looked at her like a child who knew nothing about the world, like she wasn't capable of making her own decisions. Which was ironic coming from the guy who didn't make any decision without his father's approval. "You're like dad's loyal puppy."

Emiliano's jaw hardened, but he was very aware that Paloma wanted to get under his skin. That she wanted to start a fight, and he hated fighting with her as much as he hated lying to her. "I understand him. Maybe you should try doing the same."

"I've tried too many times to count. But I'm done making up excuses for him." Paloma replied as she stepped out of the truck slamming the car door behind her.

Although Paloma quickened her pace as she headed for the school her much taller brother quickly caught up to her, walking by her side. It annoyed Paloma how easily her brother could pretend as if they didn't just fight, as if everything was okay. Or maybe she was jealous that she couldn't do the same, that she couldn't easily let things go the way that Emiliano could.

The two siblings came to a stop at the top of the stairs as they were quickly approached by two students. The girl reached them first almost like it was a competition between the two. She smiled at them brightly, her tan skin seeming out of a place in a town like Forks where its residents clearly didn't get much sun. "You must be Paloma and Emiliano."

"Welcome to Forks High School!" The boy exclaimed loudly enough that multiple heads turned in their direction. It wasn't like they weren't looking at the two siblings like they were beings from another planet. Sure, after being the new kid so manys times Paloma had grown accustomed to the fact that people would always be curious about her and Emiliano. It was something that was better to embrace than fight against. "The names Eric Yorkie. Hang around me and you'll automatically be accepted as cool around here."

"We don't really have a welcome committee here. We don't get new students often." The girl added, as if it wasn't already incredibly clear that they didn't get many new students at this school. A welcoming committee felt like an incredibly outdated concept, something that none of the other schools that she had been to had bothered with.

"More like at all." The boy interrupted, completely oblivious of himself. He seemed nice enough but he certainly wasn't someone that Paloma could see herself interacting much with. "Up until Bella we hadn't had any new students."

The girl glanced at the boy from the side of her eyes with very obvious annoyance. Clearly the two didn't get along, but her welcoming smile still didn't falter. "I'm Saira by the way. We're part of the ASB leadership team here and if you'd like we would be happy to show you around."

"No thank you." Emiliano stated bluntly as he walked around the two Fork's students without another glance. This reaction was expected of him, it was like he enjoyed being the mysterious one even if he hated the attention.

Rolling her eyes Paloma turned her attention back to Saira and Eric who seemed speechless at Emiliano's response to their kindness. It made Paloma feel terrible for the two who were clearly trying very hard. "Sorry about my brother. He's as rude as you think he is."

"I'm sure it's not easy being the new kid." Saira replied, attempting to brush off the reaction as normal. And maybe it was, for someone who was just experiencing being the new kid for the first time. Having to start a new life over wasn't easy. But she and Emiliano had already done it more times than they should have bothered counting.

"He should be used to it by now."

Eric continued to look uncomfortable as his attention suddenly shifted to something behind Paloma. Looking over her shoulder Paloma spotted the pretty girl in glasses waving Eric over enthusiastically. "Oh look there's my girlfriend. See you around Paloma!"

The boy couldn't seem more relieved to step away from what had turned into an incredibly awkward situation.

"Of course!" Saira stated as she immediately began telling Paloma everything about the school as she took her to the office to get her schedule and assigned locker number. Everything about the girl felt incredibly rehearsed as if she had been preparing for this for an entire week. As they headed towards the library to get her books Paloma couldn't help but feel curious as to why they girl felt like this was so incredibly important.

The library was quiet and it was obvious that not many students wandered through here. It was also incredibly dark and antiquated compared to the rest of the school. It almost seemed out of place and lost in time.

Saira immediately took Paloma to the librarian's desk to get all her school textbooks. The girl was clearly taking this whole thing seriously, and Paloma couldn't be sure if she wanted to form a friendship with the girl just yet.

If there was one thing that she had learned after being the new kid at school was that you needed to establish your friend group quickly. The last thing you wanted was to become the outsider, though usually that was what Emiliano preferred.

He enjoyed being on his own, and to not be bothered with anything related to high school. All he did was show up to classes, get the grade and move on. Paloma on the other hand always made sure she surrounded herself by people. She always wanted to take charge of any situation she was in.

The deafening silence in the room was interrupted by the sound of the library doors opened as a group of four teenagers stepped inside. Paloma wasn't sure what about them felt so incredibly unsettling other than how ridiculously flawless they all looked. Their strikingly pale skin and the almost unnatural way they seemed to carry themselves made them like no other group of teenagers Palmoa had ever seen.

The girl with the pixie haircut came to a sudden stop, a blank look coming over her features as she suddenly turned to meet Paloma's eyes. The action startled Paloma into finally looking away and stepping closer to Saira who was anxiously waiting for the librarian to return with the textbooks.

"Who are they?" Palmoa whispered.

Saira followed Paloma's eyes to the library entrance where the group of teenagers were entering the room. All of them looked at the girl with the darker hair with concern as they guided her to one of the long tables. "They're the Cullens. They mostly keep to themselves."

"They're...."

"Hot? Yeah I know." The girl replied as she took one last look at the Cullen's before stepping closer to Paloma and lowering her voice. "They're Dr. and Mrs Cullen's foster kids. But they are kind of weird. I mean they're like together."

Saira now had Paloma's full attention. There was nothing that she enjoyed more than a little school gossip and considering how invested Saira looked, Paloma had to know more. Not only did she have a lot of questions about whatever happened to the girl with the dark hair, but the fact that Saira had completely forgotten about getting her textbooks was a sign that the gossip was good. "You mean they're dating each other?"

"Yeah the pretty blonde that's Rosalie, and she's with the one with all the muscles, Emmett." Saira explained as she began to absently twist the straps of her backpack around her finger. "I mean I know they really aren't related but it is kind of weird."

"But not as weird as Alice. She's the one with the short dark hair. She looks like she's the nicest of them but she's with the Jespher. He's the one that always looks like he's in pain. It's honestly really freaky."

"You said they mostly keep to themselves?"

Saira nodded in confirmation. "More like they only keep to themselves. They aren't friends with anyone in school. The five of them just go to school and go home."

"Five?" Paloma questioned as she dared another at the oddly beautiful teenagers only to find that the weird girl, Alice, still had her eyes on her. It was rare whenever Palmoa felt unsettled, but at the moment she felt unsettled by the girl's intense eyes. Unconsciously. She found herself reaching for the pendant around her neck, which she began to nervously twist around her fingers.

"There's also Edward Cullen. But he hasn't been back at school since Bella Swan broke up with him a couple of weeks ago." Saira stated and from the excited look in her eyes it was clearly news that the school was still invested in. Remembering Bella Swan the other night at the dinner, she didn't seem like someone who would be at the center of the school's juiciest gossip. "I had the biggest crush on him my freshmen year. But so did every other girl in Forks. He's like...totally gorgeous. They all are."

Satisfied with everything she had just heard Paloma smiled. Maybe this school wasn't as boring as it initially seemed. "Saira, you and I are going to be great friends. I can tell."

Saira smiled and instantly seemed to relax. Before she had seemed tense and like she had something she needed to accomplish, she was someone who clearly took school very seriously. Paloma was sure she would too if it meant getting more chances of getting out of this town.

"Wait till you meet Kennedy. She's more invested in this whole Edward and Bella drama than I am."

Once Paloma had all her textbooks in hand they headed out, but the weight of the Cullen's presence seemed to be found throughout the entire school. And Paloma simply couldn't shake the reminder to the blank look on Alice Cullen's eyes as if she had witnessed some kind of miracle or nightmare come to life.

The day continued to feel incredibly long and sitting in the noisy cafeteria only added to Paloma's teenage angst. But she continued to nod as Saira told her about the limited amount of school clubs and activities that Forks High had to offer.

"How about cheer?" Paloma finally questioned hoping that a school as small as Fork had a cheer team considering how limited their selection of sports and school activities seemed to be. To Paloma, being in cheer was the only constant she found in every school, finding enjoyment in the sport that allowed her to spend as little time at home as possible.

"The cheerleading team is really small. Like I mean really small." Saira emphasized as she opened her yogurt. "My girlfriend is actually the captain on the team. It is the middle of the semester but I'm sure they'll gladly accept you."

"So you're the new girl everyone seems to be talking about?" A new face stated as they set their tray down beside Saira. The girl carried all the confidence that Saira seemed to lack. Although her balck hair was perfectly braided back there was also something about her that felt as if she was a wild card. "I'm Kennedy by the way."

"Paloma." She replied introducing herself, glad to finally meet the girl that her new friend had not stopped talking about. "Saira has been telling me alot about you."

"Of course she was. She's obsessed with me."

"Funny." Saira replied with a hint of annoyance in her voice, but there was still a lot of affection in her eyes as she looked at Kennedy who seemed happy to continue to tease the other girl. "You know what's funny? When Bella first arrived almost everyone was jumping at the chance to get to talk to her. But people really seem hesitant to approach you and your brother."

"That's because they're afraid of you guys. Bella just seems much more approachable." Kennedy replied dismissively as if she couldn't be bothered to talk much about Bella Swan. "It's just like how everyone just naturally avoids the Cullens."

"I told you Ken is obsessed with the Cullens."

"They're just so weird." Kennedy continued as she began to pick at the wilted lettuce on her tray with distaste. Like Saira there was something about Kennedy that just screamed that she was tired of Forks and that she would jump at the first opportunity to escape it. "Anyway, what brought you to Fork Paloma?"

Telling people her life story wasn't something that Palmoa did, but she always said just enough to satisfy their curiosity. She was sure that by now there had already been multiple rumors about her and her brother that were being said. Kennedy was probably looking to confirm or disprove the ones she had heard up until now.

"My dad's the new doctor at the town hospital."

This caught Kennedy's full attention, as the girl sat up straighter at the new piece of information. "Forks Community Hospital?"

Paloma simply nodded, unsure of why the small hospital was suddenly a topic of interest. They had driven past the unimpressive community hospital when they arrived the day before. The sight of it had her questioning why her father would leave the prestigious LA hospital where he had been working.

"That means that he's going to be working with Dr. Cullen."

It amazed Paloma how everything suddenly seemed to revolve around the Cullen family. And truthfully the more she continued to hear about them the more disinterested she suddenly became. "I guess so."

"Well, if your dad is able to get any more info about the Cullen's make sure to share."

"Will do." Paloma replied with a smile, of course she wasn't about to tell them about her strained relationship with her father. Talking about your flaws and family troubles wasn't the best way to make friends. It was easier to fake perfection. "Anyway I heard you're captain of the cheer team?"

"Girl I'm going to stop you right there." Ken said as she pointed her fork at Paloma, the piece of lettuce that had been hanging on the tip falling on the table between them. "You're in. We need someone to freshen up the team. Our stuff has been getting so stale and boring."

Hearing Kennedy's words was an unexpected relief. It was almost ridiculous how desperately Paloma wanted to hang onto the few things in her life that left normal and familiar. She knew that this arrangement wouldn't be permanent, that in a couple of months she would have to say goodbye to Forks.

Luckily for her she couldn't find herself being attached to anything the small town had to offer. This town unlike the others would be easy to let go of. 

A/N: Yes! New characters. I really wanted Paloma to have her own friend group outside of the already established characters. I really want to avoid her just taking away from Bella so I created some new characters for Paloma to interact with. And don't worry Saira and Kennedy will have their own storylines they won't just be reduced to background characters. And I'm very excited for you to read what I have planned for them.