At 15 I was fairly mature, had travelled most of the world under the watchful eyes of my family, and was a proficient musician and linguist, being able to play most instruments, and speak most languages. I had read the majority of the books in Castle Volterra's vast library, and had a thorough knowledge of the history of the world, including humans, vampires and other mythical creatures.
They had given my own black card, which I used sparingly, but I was surprised with how used to spending I had gotten under Heidi's influence, and found that I didn't bat an eye when I paid four million dollars for a beautiful painting I wanted for my room in Phoenix
(I never told mum how much it was worth, although I suspected she knew it was extremely expensive).
Santiago was proud the day I got my driver's license, passing the test with ease, much to the tester's surprise. Now that I officially held a drivers license, they bought me a blue and white Bugatti Veyron for my birthday, one of the fastest cars in the world. With the engine boosted it got up to speeds over 450km/h when Santiago and I took it to the Autobahn in Germany.
Santiago also taught me to ride motorbikes, and even taught me how to drive a boat, taking me out on the Tiber River near Rome.
Heidi had also decided that now I was 15, I should have at least one night club experience. Apparently because it would make the other kids back at school think I was cool. I of course, was reluctant for a number of reasons, the first of which was the fact that there was no way I looked old enough to get into a night club.
I had forgotten that when you have money you can get whatever you want, and when we arrived at the club, Felix simply slipped the bouncers large wads of cash and they looked the other way while I walked in.
The first thing on their agenda was buying me some alcohol to try, believing that I should try it at least once before I became a vampire. They ordered me a Cosmo and a tequila shot, and watched eagerly to see what I would think. I sipped at the Cosmo first, grimacing as I tasted the alcohol. It was tolerable, but I didn't particularly like it. I put it down, and hesitantly took a sip of the tequila. It felt like my throat was on flames and I quickly spit it out, coughing and spluttering. The three vampires roared with laughter, and I glared fiercely at them, "I'm never drinking alcohol again." I declared.
One of the other things I had been worried about soon came up when Heidi decided that it was time for us to hit the dance floor. The other people quickly parted for us, leaving us a large space in the middle. People seemed to instinctively shy away from them, something I had gotten used to over the years and barely noticed now. Heidi started moving to the music, dragging me with her and showing me how to move. I was sure I looked terrible, and this was why I had tried to avoid clubbing.
I was however, for the first time in my life thankful for the fact that when I was 13 Heidi had decided that it was time to teach me how to walk in heels. She had forced me to wear them everywhere for months, until she was satisfied that I could do so without stumbling, tottering or falling in them (Although I still occasionally tripped due to my clumsiness). It had been a major source of amusement for Felix and Demetri on the first week as the repeatedly caught me when I overbalanced in my ridiculously high shoes. I had gotten angry over being ridiculed, and secretly practised every night in my room until I could now comfortably run in high heels without falling over- something I was actually quite proud of.
I still preferred flat shoes though, and even though I was fairly stable, I was very scared of the idea of trying to dance at a club in the extremely high heels Heidi had put me in for the night. I was also very worried that if I did trip over, I would give everyone a peep show due to the fact that Heidi had forced me into an electric blue minidress for the night, and it barely came to mid thigh.
After a few songs I managed to escape from Heidi, leaving her surrounded by drooling guys, and I made my way back to the bar and sat on a stool, asking the bartender for a coke. I sipped it, watching my vampires dancing gracefully around the dance floor, and relieved to be off my feet in these killer heels. I was surprised when a guy casually walked up to the bar and asked, "Is this seat empty?" indicating the stool next to me. I frowned at him, disgusted that he would try coming onto me, "Yes, and this one will be too if you sit down," I growled. He seemed surprised by the amount of venom in my voice, but, steeling himself he decided to try again. "How did you get so beautiful?" he asked. I had to give him credit for trying, but he needed to get some better pickup lines. "I don't know," I replied sweetly, a fake smile plastering itself on my face, "I must have gotten your share too." I continued, my gaze quickly turning cold. Felix and Demetri walked up behind me then, and he seemed to get the message, leaving in a hurry as he took in their large, heavily muscled forms.
All in all, I decided that clubbing was definitely not as enjoyable as people made it out to be.
Back in Phoenix, mum had started dating again. I was often amused by her stories of some of her more horrible dates, "You wouldn't believe it Bella, this guy spent the whole date running his hands up my arms and trying to subtly cop a feel of my breasts!" she said indignantly, or, "The guy I went out with yesterday was always making lame jokes, and laughing at them. They weren't even funny Bella." She ranted. "Nobody finds 'What do you call a camel with no humps? – Humphrey!' funny." Sometimes I felt a little bad for her having to survive these bad dates, but I was glad that she normally seemed to have fairly good dates.
I was especially happy for her when she told me she was serious about Phil. Phil was a minor league baseball player, and a couple of years younger than her which was probably a good thing given her childlike tendencies. I teased her about being a cougar, but I was happy for her. When I finally met Phil I got along really well with him. We shared the same tastes in modern music, although he wasn't a fan of classical, and I thought he was perfect for mum.
Castle Volterra got a receptionist when I was 16. Uncle Caius had gotten tired of always having to sort out all the documents and tedious details that came with the upkeep of the castle, and they employed a beautiful woman by the name of Gianna.
Gianna was very friendly, and I quickly made friends with her. She never asked questions about the vampires, or me, and kept her mouth shut about her observations. We were all sure that she knew what they were, her sparkling green eyes missing nothing as she silently watched the castle's activities, but as long as she didn't voice her suspicions, technically they weren't breaking any rules by having her work for them. Aro made sure to shake her hand regularly, checking her thoughts, and we soon realised that she was hoping to be changed at some point. She was very loyal to us, and I respected her greatly for that. She never asked questions about why I would be staying, or where I had come from, and was always very polite.
She also held a great respect for me, because I had saved her life. I had been talking to Gianna about the renovations to a room next to my tower, where my new grand piano would be going, when a hungry vampire walked into the castle, obviously seeking Marcus, Caius and Aro. His eyes were pitch black, and when Gianna absentmindedly flicked her hair, he lunged for her. I had reacted instinctively, cloaking us both in shields, before catching the hungry vampire midair with another shield. Growling at him, I smashed my shield in on itself, quickly leaving the vampire a pile of pieces in the floor.
Felix and Demetri had come running at Gianna's terrified shriek, and arrived just in time to see me smash the vampire into pieces with my shield, my eyes blazing with anger. They stood there shocked for a second, before Demetri pulled a lighter out of his pocket and set the remains on fire.
The next day they gave me my own lighter.
I still saw my dad, Charlie for two weeks every year in Forks. We would spend the time exploring, watching TV, and fishing, where Charlie would fish, and I would sit on the bank and read a book, which we both found relaxing. I refused to go anywhere near the little boat after the fiasco that had happened when I was 11. It was the last time I had ever fished, when one day I had leant too far over the edge of the aluminium boat, searching for the fish, when I suddenly found myself in the water, having capsized us. I had surfaced with mud all over me, and when I had finally gotten clean, I found that my body was covered with dozens of leeches. I had been subjected to days of torture trying to find them all and get rid of them, and I now avoided the boat like a plague.
We usually went down to the Quileute reservation while I stayed too, as Charlie's best friend Billy lived there and was one of the tribal elders. I was usually a bit standoffish though, knowing that they carried the gene that could turn them into shape shifting wolves. Billy's youngest son Jacob was also a little too nice at times, even though I was two years older than him, and I tried to avoid him when possible.
One of my favourite places on the reservation though was first beach. It was absolutely beautiful, and I loved sitting in the soft white sand and listening to the waves crashing onto the shore.
Inevitably though, the two weeks would quickly come to a close. Charlie always seemed to enjoy having me, and I usually left every year feeling a little guilty that I didn't spend much time with him.
All of this changed the year I turned 17. Much to my surprise, and delight, mum married Phil. I decided that it was time to spend a few years properly getting to know my dad, and my vampires agreed with me, although they extracted promises from me that I would visit for a couple of weeks every year. We were all well away that my deadline to be changed was coming up quickly. We had agreed when I was four that I would be changed before I turned 20, so I only had a few years left as a human.
I knew that Renee and Phil needed to spend time together alone as a newly married couple, and that if I wasn't there she could go with Phil when he had to travel due to his work. While I could have easily gone to Volterra, I would have plenty of time to spend with my vampires after my change, so it was time to pack for Forks.