77.
You know when things are slowly starting to fall apart. It's not immediately noticeable. It's just little things. A clock stuck at 9:09 AM. That reflection in the mirror doesn't sit quite right. A crooked step on the staircase. The damn zipper that never closes properly. But that day when I got ready to go to school. Every little action I did felt...wrong.
Mom kissed me goodbye as Dad waited in the car. For a second, I thought I forgot something. Some crucial elements in the story. Something. Then the thought eluded me. Dad smiled as he fixed his collar. Yes, something was off. It was daytime.
"What is it?" He asked as the engine roared to life. Dad never dropped me at school on sunny days... My vision fractured like a broken mirror.
Sunny...DAYS! The shards moved in slow motion.
Sparkling...skin! DARKNESS peeked behind the sharp pieces. Taunting me. Smiling.
"Renesmee?" Dad called and I blinked. Everything was back where it was supposed to be. Dad frowned as he kept his eyes on the road. "I thought I'd lost you back there. I was asking if you needed a ride after your sports activity or if Jacob would pick you up?" It took some time to calm my racing heart. I swallowed the panic. What just happened?
"Sports? I didn't sign with any club." I racked my brain to try to piece a coherent answer. Still, that dread lingered like a soar taste on my tongue. He eased the car at the stop lights and gave me a side glance. There it was again...that feeling as if I had forgotten something important.
"Are you sure you're ok? What about baseball? You said you wanted to join us for our next game. You know, our thunder baseball thing and needed to practice. You came home last week saying you'll join their team." I had no recollection of such events. When I looked down my fingers were trembling. Something was off. The low buzz of my power was... My powers?
"Dad?" I asked as the car reached the front of the school. Kids were chatting and forming small groups on the grass leading to the huge ancient mansion. This was not the elite school of the monsters. They looked...utterly normal. Rich, yes. But normal. Grim towers loomed on the top like sentries. The school was cold and uninviting. I shuddered not from the wind that just picked up but from some gaping hole. Missing. Gone. My powers...I couldn't feel them.
"Yes, dear?" When I looked up at Dad, he had his arm propped up on the driver's door with the sun filtering in through the windshield. His golden hair and brown eyes were...normal. Shouldn't they be different?
"About Jacob..." His smile didn't flutter.
"What about?" He waited patiently. My heart picked up. Why was I finding it all odd? I couldn't explain it. I took a deep breath.
"I'm going on a date with him after school so you don't have to pick me up." I waited for hell to break loose. Lightning bolts to hit the car.
"Ok." He reached across me and pulled on my door handle. The door swung open. "Have a good day." He dropped a kiss on my cheek. For a second, I sat there too stung to speak. Numbly I climbed out and the car disappeared around the corner.
"Hey! Didn't you hear me?" I spun and there stood Reka. I knew it was her but she didn't look like...her. I blinked again. Was I slowly slipping into insanity? "What's wrong with you today?" She flipped her blond hair over her shoulder.
"Dad just agreed to my date. He wasn't even bat an eyelash or got pissed that I was going to see Jacob." I couldn't believe it. It felt like I was living someone else's life. Reka waved her golden nails around. Her hot pink skirt gleamed in the warm sun.
"Of course, he'll agree. Wasn't he the one who introduced you two?" She popped pink gum into her mouth. Then it sunk in. It felt like a dream. I knew those memories were false but they obscured my judgment. Fighting their way into my mind. Dad hates Jacob. Of that I was certain.
"Jacob," I whispered like a prayer. "I'll get out of here." Reka tipped her head back and laughed. She slapped my back and I almost lost my footing.
"Yeah, sure. We all want to run away from this place." She winked.