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In the Olympic Peninsula of northwest Washington State, a small town named Forks exists under a near-constant cover of clouds.
No one was going to bite me.
It was there, sitting in the lunchroom, trying to make conversation with seven curious strangers, that I first saw them. They were sitting in the corner of the cafeteria, as far away from where I sat as possible in the long room. There were five of them. They weren’t talking, and they weren’t eating, though they each had a tray of untouched food in front of them. They weren’t gawking at me, unlike most of the other students, so it was safe to stare at them without fear of meeting an excessively interested pair of eyes. But it was none of these things that caught, and held, my attention.
“That’s Edward and Emmett Cullen, and Rosalie and Jasper Hale. The one who left was Alice Cullen; they all live together with Dr. Cullen and his wife.”
“That’s Edward. He’s gorgeous, of course, but don’t waste your time. He doesn’t date. Apparently none of the girls here are good-looking enough for him.”
If I was being honest with myself, I knew I was eager to get to school because I would see Edward Cullen. And that was very, very stupid.
That was the first night I dreamed of Edward Cullen.
“Well…” He paused, and then the rest of the words followed in a rush. “I decided as long as I was going to hell, I might as well do it thoroughly.”
“Aren’t you hungry?” he asked, distracted. “No.” I didn’t feel like mentioning that my stomach was already full—of butterflies.
“What if I’m not a superhero? What if I’m the bad guy?” He smiled playfully, but his eyes were impenetrable.
Not while the rain made it dim as twilight under the canopy and pattered like footsteps across the matted earthen floor.
About three things I was absolutely positive. First, Edward was a vampire. Second, there was part of him—and I didn’t know how potent that part might be—that thirsted for my blood. And third, I was unconditionally and irrevocably in love with him.
“Grizzly is Emmett’s favorite.”
“It’s twilight,” Edward murmured, looking at the western horizon, obscured as it was with clouds.
“Do you see the brightness ahead?” I peered into the thick forest. “Um, should I?” He smirked. “Maybe it’s a bit soon for your eyes.” “Time to visit the optometrist,” I muttered. His smirk grew more pronounced.
Edward seemed to take a deep breath, and then he stepped out into the bright glow of the midday sun.
“I’m the world’s best predator, aren’t I? Everything about me invites you in—my voice, my face, even my smell. As if I need any of that!”
“So what you’re saying is, I’m your brand of heroin?”
“You are the most important thing to me now. The most important thing to me ever.”
“And so the lion fell in love with the lamb…,” he murmured. I looked away, hiding my eyes as I thrilled to the word. “What a stupid lamb,” I sighed. “What a sick, masochistic lion.”
“I love you,” I whispered. “You are my life now,” he answered simply.
“And you’re worried, not because you’re headed to meet a houseful of vampires, but because you think those vampires won’t approve of you, correct?”
