Broken Soul • Emmett Cullen

chapter three

Alaina was waiting at the bus stop with her old hoodie flipped up over her head, covering her brown hair from the weather. The seemingly constant drizzle of the Pacific Northwest was replaced with an ice storm the night before. Back home in Michigan, school would have been easily canceled and she desperately longed to be safely back in her bed. Although she appreciated the resiliency of Forks, she was praying that her bus didn't run off the side of the road.

She heard the familiar rumble of the bus from around the corner. As the bus pulled onto her street, she noticed that the giant tires were covered by chains to help drive in the snow and ice. Alaina smiled, feeling safer. In Detroit, she was terrified to drive in winter, so she appreciated the precautions that Forks took.

The bus stopped at her stop and she carefully walked over the icy sidewalk to the bus. The bus door creaked open, and the bus driver smiled at her.

"Mornin' Alaina," he said kindly as she walked on the bus, careful not to slip on the wet surface.

"Good morning Harry," she responded and took her seat to prepare for the bus ride. Her motion sickness reared into full power the moment the bus took off. The mixture of skidding due to the ice and the sickening diesel fuel caused Alaina's insides to churn unpleasantly. She knew she was about to be sick. I have got to save up for a car, she thought as the gray landscape sped past her.

She let her mind wander to try to forget about the fact that she was stuck on a bus. She couldn't believe that it was only her second day of her new school... the second day of her new life. She put her forehead against the cool, frosty glass and shut her eyes to try to ease the sickness off. After a few more bus stops, the reached the school. The sudden stop did nothing to curb Alaina's impending nausea. She quickly walked off the bus, giving a quick wave to the bus driver. If she opened her mouth, she knew she would be sick.

Instead of walking to the school, Alaina moved towards the parking lot. She took deep breathes of the chilly air to settle her upset stomach as she maneuvered around the cars. The cool air was slowly calming down the acid in her body.

"Hey, Detroit!" Alaina whipped her head around to see who yelled, her brown hair escaping from her hoodie. Mike Newton had spotted her from across the parking lot.

She inwardly groaned. "Hey Mike," she yelled back, but she didn't want to try to engage this early. She didn't need him following her around like a dog. He was nice enough, but he was overbearing.

Mike beckoned for her to come over to him. Alaina hesitated, but then realized he was just a few cars over from the Cullens. Although her better judgment warned against her, she started to walk over to him, yearning for a closer look at the strange family. She felt guilty about using Mike to get a better look at the Cullens, but the guilt didn't stop her.

All of Dr. Cullen's foster kids were in deep conversation around a silver Volvo. Although she couldn't hear their conversation, she could see the intense anger etched on Rosalie's immaculate face. She looked furious as her eyes darted between Edward and Emmett. Jasper had the same pained expression on his face as he did yesterday, and Alice looked annoyed, if not bored, with her sibling's fighting.

"Have a good ride with the freshmen this morning?" Mike said as she reached him. His hands were planted in the pockets of his faded letterman's jacket; he didn't move to hug her like he did yesterday. She must have scared that out of him with her immediate negative reaction.

"Ha, ha, ha." She responded, sarcastically. "It's the highlight of my day... Car sickness and underclassmen. You really can't get any more exciting than that."

"Why don't you just drive here?"

Alaina raised one eyebrow and resisted the urge to roll her brown eyes. "Because I don't have a car?"