CHAPTER II ―

THE IN'S, THE OUT'S!

𝐍𝐎𝐑𝐀 𝐓𝐎𝐎𝐊 𝐀 𝐃𝐄𝐄𝐏 𝐁𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐓𝐇 𝐀𝐒 𝐒𝐇𝐄 𝐆𝐎𝐓 𝐈𝐍𝐓𝐎 the front passenger seat of her father's BMW. She still had a hard time sitting in a vehicle, the PTSD of the accident taking its toll. She wondered if she'd ever be able to get into a car and not feel like she was on the verge of a panic attack every time... Nora was ripped from her thoughts by the driver's side door opening and her father getting in.

"I suppose I'll have to get you your own car soon, huh?" William smiled at his daughter as he pulled out of the driveway, beginning his way down the road to Forks High School.

Nora hummed, looking outside the passenger window as her hands clenched into fists, her fingernails digging into her palms. A new habit she'd developed since the accident. "It's not important."

William sighed, peering at his daughter out of the corner of his eye, before returning his gaze to the road. "Alright."

And the rest of the fifteen-minute ride was quiet as William drove, pulling in front of a gray school.

Forks is going to be just like any other school, Nora thought to herself as the gray school appeared. She was trying her hardest to calm her nerves, wondering why she couldn't just ignore her anxiety and PTSD. She wished she could talk to her best friend, April again... she wished she wouldn't have cut everyone off... Nora wanted everything back to normal. Only that wasn't possible.

"I'm guessing you don't want your father to walk in with you?" William mused to his daughter as he stopped the car at the sidewalk in front of the school. There was a line of cars in front of the school, dropping off and teenagers scattered around.

Nora shook her head. "No, this is fine." Grabbing her bag that was resting on the floor between her feet, she gave a small, unconvincing smile to her father. "See you at 3:15?"

"Of course."

...

There were a lot more kids hanging about outside than she had expected. Shyly ducking her head, Nora headed towards the main entrance, praying that no one noticed her. She wanted to go the entire year undetected, under the radar. Surely no one would want to be friends with a short brunette that had anxiety and PTSD.

Nora heard tires screech behind her as she whirled around, jumping out of the way only to land on her back, a light groan escaping her lips as her body hit the hard pavement. Way to go under the radar, she mocked herself, wincing at the ringing in her ears. "Rosalie! Get out of the car!"

 A bitter chuckle left Nora's lips, wincing as she did, only she would manage to get run over by a car on her first day. Well, not really run over, but she might as well have been. The headache she was going to have was going to be horrible. It really didn't surprise her, she always did have a slight bad luck streak. As her Aunt always said, if Nora didn't have bad luck, she'd have no luck at all!

"Are you alright?" A worried voice called down to her. Nora knew she was, and she knew she should have answered, but she didn't. She couldn't. Her anxiety levels were through the roof and she didn't trust her voice. She was trying to put a face to the voice, perhaps he was tall, skinny... rather frail- but with a masculine voice. Anything to distract herself.

"I think we should get her up." This time it was a woman.

"No, I think she's waking." I was, Nora bitterly thought, before I was rudely run over. A huge hand slid down her back, it was cold and Nora tried not to shudder as they lifted her up.

Nora's eyes flashed open and she squinted for a moment, looking around her as her sight began to clear. "Just great," Nora mumbled, blinking at the large boy next to her. His hand was still resting in the middle of her back.

"You almost hit our car. Are you alright?" He jerked his thumb towards the expensive Volvo. Nora frowned slightly. So, this was the guy that she thought was scrawny? She was far off. He was tall, buff, and beautiful. In fact, the more she began to look at him, the more surreal he was becoming.

"If she were looking, it wouldn't have been a problem." The woman snapped, standing up and brushing off her white jeans. She was a tall, angelic blonde with a slight sneer on her face. Nora shook her head, pulling herself out of the man's grip and grabbing her bag off the ground.

Turning around, Nora looked at the two again and pushed a curly brown tendril out of her face. "It was nice to meet you both," Nora gave the best smile she could as her head pounded. "but I'll be on my way now. I'll be sure to watch out for the next driver to almost hit me." Nora watched as shock took over both of their faces before she turned on her heel and left the two Cullen's to themselves.

 A heavy sigh fell from her lips as she walked up the stairs with a pounding headache, rubbing the back of her neck as she grimaced at the ache. This was going to be fun, she thought.

...

Nora clenched her jaw in annoyance and embarrassment as she tugged on her lock for the fifth time! This damn locker just wouldn't open. "Mother fu-" before she could finish her sentence, a hand appeared in front of her and hit the locker door once, and it easily popped open. Nora's lips formed an 'O' shape, her cheeks flushed lightly in embarrassment as she looked to her right to see a tall blonde with a bright smile.

"I had that locker last year," she chuckled. "It was a pain, but you just have to hit it once and she pops open. I'm Candice." The tall blonde, Candice, held out her hand for Nora to shake.

"Nora," the brunette shook her hand, giving a strained smile. "And thanks." Nora gestured to her now open locker, before she began pulling out a few books that were in it for her.

"Where did you get your bag?" Candice questioned, inspecting the very pretty, leather brown messenger bag. "It's adorable!"

Nora cocked an eyebrow, looking down at the bag she had gotten from her Aunt in Paris. "Uh, my Aunt got it for me in Paris." If it was possible, Candice's bright smile got even bigger.

"And you are my new best friend!" Candice quickly grabbed the white piece of paper from Nora's hand, scanning the girl's schedule. "Alright, it seems we have all but French and AP Trig together." A frown took over Candice's pretty features. "You have AP Trig?"

Nora nervously bit her lip, shutting her locker and shrugged. "Uh, I'm good at math?" she offered, sheepishly. Nora was freakishly smart, especially when it came to math. Something that came from her mother... Nora shoved the thoughts out of her head and focused on Candice.

"More like a genius!" Linking arms with the smaller brunette, Candice grinned again as she dragged her along. "C'mon, I'll show you where everything is. The in's, the out's, and don't forget the juicy gossip!"

─ ✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*✧ ─
shitty start, but it's
better than nothing.
and it's all i had time
to get done before bed.