Waiting for the Sun - 2 - A Human Girl
[MASTER POST]
Port Dixon was a tiny harbor town located on the Washington State peninsula, and the perfect place for my parents and I to attempt to start over. Driving through the small guarded community of wealthy boating enthusiasts for the first time, I realized that it would be very difficult to blend in - and possibly detrimental to stand out. A strange calm spread over the entire region like a daydream, and eventually it struck me that it was due to the perpetually grey skies. My Napa Valley sensibilities were thrown awry.
Meanwhile, Port Dixon Academy shared similar maritime architecture with the other historical buildings dating back to the early 1900s. I stood underneath the tall archway with a quickening pulse, staring up at the crawling ivy on the old walls and the sturdy, silvery green pines that flanked them. A soft sea breeze nudged me forward right before a shrill bell tolled; I didn't get any more time to pull myself together. With a deep breath and a spurt of determination I picked up my feet, marched past the benevolently smiling statue of the school’s founding father, and pushed through the lacquered doors.
Once I found the main office I walked up to a prim lady at the head desk and pulled out my papers. The name tag on the table read Secretary: Ms. Higgins.
“Yes?” Ms. Higgins asked with a little boredom.
“Hello, my name is Aurelia Lilith Fairfax.” I said with an exaggerated smile, trying to establish some friendliness. I gave her the portfolio my parents had prepared. “I’m the transfer student from California.”
The woman’s face bent straight down as she checked through the forms. Attempting again to initiate a conversation, “Dixon sure is umm, beautiful. I love all the water.”
She nodded stiffly. “That’s what everyone says...”
I gave up and fell silent. Paperwork completed, I was handed a blue, white and silver folder with Port Dixon Academy and a picture of the orca mascot on the front. “Your class schedule is in there, as well as codes of conduct, your academic advisor’s contact information... Normally we would have our principal’s assistant show you around but he’s still off on holiday, so just follow this map.” She pointed to the blueprint with a manicured finger. “Your first class is here in the art wing. The period has already begun, but your tardy today will be excused. Lastly, in terms of uniforms - you cannot attend class without yours.”
Ms. Higgins gave my attire a look of disapproval, and it didn’t seem like I had a choice but to change out of my carefully-planned first day outfit.
“Sorry, I - I didn’t realize I needed it right away.”
“We have one that you can borrow until yours arrives.”
It probably wasn’t very lady-like as I frustratingly pulled up the baggy checkered skirt while I simultaneously tried to navigate the halls with the school map. One wrong turn later and I somehow ended up by the indoor race track instead of the art studio. I blew a stray lock of blonde hair out of my face and reoriented myself when a well-built boy in sweaty clothes approached.
“You must be the new girl.” he appraised. He draped his towel around his neck and readily extended his hand. “Nice to meet you, I’m Jay.”
“Aurelia, but please call me Rhea.” I ignored the dampness of his strong palm. “… Is it that obvious that I’m new?”
“Well you seem lost, and you’re also wearing a uniform two sizes too big.” Jay grinned. “In all seriousness though, Old Dixie is small enough that you recognize every single face. A pretty one like yours is sure to be noticed right away.”
Cursing my blush, I jumped over his comment and dared to ask, “Can I ask you how to get to the art classroom? Room 20, I think.”
“With Mr. Miles? I can show you.”
Before I could insist on finding the way myself, he set down the hall and I had no other option but to follow. I wanted to ask him if it was okay to skip his class, but that issue didn’t seem to matter to him.
“So what year are you?” he continued.
“I’m a senior.”
“Right on, me too! Maybe we’ll be running into each other more often then.”
I pulled up the corners of my mouth and simply nodded. As I studied the path for future reference, I turned and caught him eyeing me mischievously.
“What is it?”
“I’m just trying to figure out what you did.”
“Excuse me…?”
“Everyone in the Academy has either grown up in this small town since elementary or transferred mid-way because they were kicked out of every other prep school in the state - for various naughty reasons, of course. You don’t seem like that type, though.”
“Well you see, my father is a doctor. He’s helping establish a small hospital nearby and thought it’d be best if we all moved with him.”
“Oh, the one on the Indian reservation? I heard about that. Very cool. I guess there’s no dirt on you, then. That’s unfortunate - everyone was looking forward to a new topic of gossip.”
That did not mean that I didn’t have a hard story to tell. Jay didn’t notice that the smile did not reach my eyes because we had already arrived. He saluted and left me in front of Room 20. I took a deep breath to prepare myself for more new acquaintances and turned the handle.
The bright classroom smelled of fresh paint, clay, and creativity. “Ah, here you are. Come up front; don’t be shy.” The teacher, an old man with a coarse beard and glasses, was leaning against his desk casually. He ushered me in with a warm smile.
I felt the burn of every pair of eyes upon me. People stopped mulling around and peeked out from behind tall easels to get a good view. I looked around discomfited for what felt like an eternity of a minute before the teacher resumed.
“Everyone, I’m sure you all heard that we would be welcoming a new transfer student this year. Her name is Aurelia--”
“-- Rhea, please, sir.”
“Of course - Rhea Fairfax. Rhea, I am Mr. Miles, and welcome to Port Dixon! We’re starting on watercolors today so you came at a good time. Why don’t you grab that extra coat there so you don’t get any paint on yourself? It’s our TA’s, but I’m sure he won’t mind. You will be expected to buy your own by next week.”
Students made way for me without a word as I took the long white garment off the hook on the wall. It reminded me of my father’s long doctor coats he used to let me play dress-up in. As I slipped my arm in the sleeve the collar brushed my nose--
-- The scent triggered my senses without warning. It was so familiar somehow, like icy rain and warm musk all at once. Faded memories that I hardly remembered I had drifted across my subconscious - a glittering, statue-like figure, a dazzling laugh, a comforting shoulder, and this breathtaking fragrance.
..
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A tall young man as strong as a lion with translucent pale skin stepped into the school office. Although he had been a teacher’s assistant at the Academy for almost two years, they never had never quite become accustomed to his strikingly amiable but detached presence. All heads turned to stare at the noble figure and his graceful movements as he calmly signed into the teacher's log with his precise cursive like any other day. The secretary quickly and subtly fixed her appearance.
“Why, hello Jasper! You’re back from your trip! How was it? You look refreshed.” she exclaimed with an uncharacteristic sweet smile.
“Ms. Higgins.” The man nodded in formal greeting. “Yes, I just returned last night. It was alright, the same as usual, although I had to stay longer than expected.”
“Oh, I heard about those mudslides blocking the Pass... How did you manage to brave such dangerous conditions?” the woman simpered a little disturbingly, toying with her pearls.
His lucid topaz eyes remained still with either patience or resignation and he muttered politely as he always did, “Yes, well... I tried to get back to work as soon as possible. Have any teachers requested my assistance today?”
Jasper was a Renaissance man of sorts, helping out whoever on campus needed it - the gardener, the physics teacher... A man of his intelligence, charisma, and credentials certainly could have held a much higher position in the big city, but for some reason he chose to stay rather inconspicuous. Perhaps he liked such a school that offered him generous vacation days.
The lady held up a post-it note and batted her lashes. “Mr. Miles is next on the list. Room 20.”
“Very good. Thank you ma’am.”
Everyone in the room exhaled once he was gone. It was as if they had all been holding their breath in awe.
“Excellent, Mr. Hale! I’ve been expecting you all week.” the art teacher beckoned. The classroom was empty, as all the students were off to second period.
“Sorry I’m late. What can I help you with today, sir?” the young man smiled. He had always been particularly fond of Mr. Miles - the man reminded him of his grandfather, whom he of course hadn’t seen in many, many years.
“I was hoping that you could paint several stages of the painting process onto several canvases just so the students see how theirs should be coming along.”
“That’s a good idea. I’ll put on my smock and get on it.” Jasper strode to the rack, took the coat down off the peg, and stopped dead.
It hit him, but even harder than it had over a decade before - that scent lingered on the robe, faintly, but unmistakably. That remarkable, alluring fragrance unlike anything else in the world he had ever experienced. How did it follow him after all these years? Jasper stood like a statue, closing his eyes and gritting his teeth in trying to control himself. He felt the fresh blood violently pump in his veins and suddenly he was thirsty once more.
“... Mr. Hale, is everything alright?” Mr. Miles tentatively asked. No response but a flex of muscles. “Jasper--?”
“-- Did someone use my coat?” Jasper hissed lowly.
“Err, yes actually. Our new student needed one to borrow. I assumed it would have been... I’m sorry if she stained it or...”
With strain, Jasper slowly turned around. Some shrinking instinct was triggered in Mr. Miles by the slight animalistic appearance the young man had taken. His eyes glimmered dangerously and his jaw clenched rigidly. Suddenly, he just dropped the garment to the floor and started stalking out.
“I’m sorry... E-excuse me for a moment...” He tried not to race off at his full capable speed until he was out of sight.
------------
... “Alice, I think you’re being paranoid.” Edward sighed. “You can’t keep Jasper away forever. Pretty soon he’ll persuade you to tell him why.”
The girl with the spiky black hair hissed, “I know what I saw!”
“Your visions can change in an instant, with each different move people make.”
“These premonitions - they’ve been coming for years. The only way they change is that they get stronger.”
All this time, she had hidden her troubles well from her telepathic adopted brother. If what she said about persistence was true, and if circumstances were not being manipulated by the oblivious principle people involved, it was only a matter of time before Alice’s imminent visions came to pass. And if she was beginning to panic now, it probably meant that she felt the mounting pressure of their impending fruition. It would happen soon.
Gravely pursing his white lips he tried, “This might happen twenty years from now, who knows?”
“It shouldn’t happen at ALL! I thought that he... forever...” If she could shed tears, she probably would have. Alice’s small, angelic face contorted with distress. “To be perfectly honest, I did sort of force things.”
“Alice, don’t say that--”
“-I followed him to that diner all those years ago, simply because I was tired of being alone. If I hadn’t told him I’d had a vision about us, he’d probably never have been compelled to join me.”
Edward knew he could not get away with sugar coating his words nor deny reality in order to comfort her. “... Who is this girl?”
“I don’t know. Things are still fuzzy in the details.”
Edward took his tiny sister in his arms with pity. “He hasn’t ever wandered, Alice. Why would he now, and for a hu--?” A human girl. But look how Edward himself had fallen for Bella in an instant? He furrowed his brow and tried to reassure her as best he could. “You found him, remember? You found each other.”