Biology - A Twilight Fanfiction

“Would you cut that out?”1

I tore my gaze away from Bella and her “new best friend” to glare at my lab partner. “Cut what out?”2

Amy rolled her eyes, then bent her head down to look through the microscope’s eyepiece. “I need your help with this stupid lab, and I can’t do it all by myself while you’re ogling the new girl.”3

“I’m not ogling,” I denied. I glanced over at Bella again. Her lab bench was one over and two back from ours, but even from that distance, she appeared to be something akin to star-struck by her own lab partner, the pale-skinned Cullen. I couldn’t really blame her specifically — every girl in Forks lusted after him, and every guy resented him — but this time, it was different. First of all, she was stunning, and second of all, he seemed to be fueling the fire. I could see the way he stared back at her. It just wasn’t fair.4

To get my mind off the lovefest taking place across the room, I turned back to my own lab table. “Can I take a look at this slide?”5

Amy backed away from the microscope. “Be my guest. I don’t get it anyway.”6

I positioned my left eye over the ocular lens and adjusted the instrument’s focus. What came into sight was a series of beige squares with blackish centers. “What am I supposed to be looking for?”7

My partner scanned the lab instruction sheet. “Um…identify the phase of mitosis pictured in the slide.”8

I frowned into the microscope. “That’s it?”9

“That’s it.”10

“But there’s a million different places to look in this thing!”11

I saw Amy gesture to a chart on the sheet with my right eye. “Look, I’ve already figured out three of them. I think there’s only one per phase.”12

“What’s left?”13

“Prophase and Telophase.”14

I shrugged and stepped away from the microscope. Again, I looked over at Bella. She and the Cullen seemed to be getting pretty friendly; by the looks of things, they were already done the entire lab. I groaned. “Cullen did all the work, didn’t he?”15

“What was that?” said Amy absently, not looking up from the assignment sheet at which she stared in frustration.16

“Uh…nothing,” I stammered. “Any luck with the slides?”17

“No,” she growled. “I can’t figure out which of these shows which phase. They all look the same!”18

We alternated between slides countless times without any success. By the time Mr. Banner announced the end of the lab period, we were no further in the assignment than we were ten minutes ago. The images the teacher displayed on the overhead projector did little for my scientific knowledge; I didn’t take in any of it. The moment the bell rang to end the period, Cullen was out the door. I sighed in relief as I realized this meant time to talk to Bella, and hopefully erase the apparently friendly encounter between them during the lab.19

*Be charming, Mike,* I thought to myself as I practically pranced over to her lab bench. She gave me a half-smile as I lifted her books off the table.20

“That was awful,” I complained somewhat inelegantly. “They all looked exactly the same. You’re lucky you had Cullen for a partner.”21

“I didn’t have any trouble with it,” she replied in a condescending tone. I was confused by her defensiveness. “I’ve done the lab before, though.”22

*Well, that explains it,* I thought as I pulled on my raincoat. “Cullen seemed friendly enough today,” I muttered, trying to sound blasé.23

“I wonder what was with him last Monday.” She was trying to pull off the same indifference, but I could tell she was still enthralled by the mere thought of the kid. 24

*I can at least be sociable and funny. That’s what I’ve got over him. He’s all dark and mysterious, but I’m likeable. Bella will like me if she gives me a chance.* With positivity in my mind, I stepped out of Building Four and into the rain, Bella Swan at my side.