I gunned my deafening engine to life, ignoring the heads that turned in my direction, and backed carefully into a gap in the line of cars that were waiting to exit the parking lot. As I waited, trying to pretend that that earsplitting rumble was coming from someone else's car, I saw the two Cullens and the Hale twins getting into their car. It was the shiny new Volvo. Of course.
I hadn't noticed their European clothes before—I'd been too mesmerized by their statuesque faces. But now that I looked, it was obvious that they were all dressed exceptionally well; simply, but in cuts that subtly hinted at continental origins. With their remarkable good looks and the confidence with which they carried themselves, they could have worn dishrags and pulled it off, although they didn't. It seemed excessive for them to have both looks and money, unfair even, but as far as I could tell, life worked that way most of the time. Unfairly. At least it didn't look as if it brought them any acceptance here.
No, I didn't fully believe that. The isolation must be their desire; I couldn't imagine any door that wouldn't be opened by their beauty, no door that wouldn't immediately surrender to their designer threads.
They looked at my noisy truck as I passed, just like everyone else. I kept my eyes straight forward and was relieved when I finally was free of the school grounds.
The Thriftway46 was not far from the Forks High School, just a few streets south off the highway, like everything was in town. It was nice to be inside the supermarket; it felt normal. I had shopped in supermarkets like the Forks Thriftway before, although never one that had such a selection of liquors, and felt much more at home in its wide aisles than I did in the crowded hallways of the Forks High School. I did the shopping at
45. A combination liquor store/supermarket that is common throughout the Pacific Northwest.
46. First incorporated in 1813, it was originally two stores: Thriftliquor and Foodway. Both companies were facing dire financial trouble and so decided to combine their individual strengths to form "Thriftway." The name "Foodliquor" was briefly considered.