I wake up the next day sprawled on my bed. Charlie must have decided it was best to let me sleep after my long day. Noting that the disconnect button is still not available on the status window, I click on the help to request my playing time. I then learn that the time has passed normally… There was no of ellipsis. Feeling the panic resurface I wonder what's going on with my body outside of the game. After all these hours, I can't even imagine what fluid I must be bathing in on my bed.

 

“Your body is dormant. No status changes will be applied to him for the duration of the game. Do you have another question?

• I don't understand, I have to go to the bathroom...

 

An identical message appears in the window.

 

“Your body is dormant. No status changes will be applied to him for the duration of the game. Do you have another question? »

 

I sigh and decide to take the question from another angle:

 

"How do I contact the game developers to explain the problem?"

• Developers cannot contact players during the testing phase.
• But I have to log off to go to work on Monday.
• You are currently in a temporal fissure and will remain so for the duration of the test.
• But what if I want to stop along the way?
• It is not possible to stop the test. Would you like to know anything else? »

 

I tremble as I ask the following question:

 

“What happens if I fail the game and die before the end?

• The test ends… and so does your life…
• But my body is dormant… how can I die under these conditions?
• You are not in your body now. If your life ends in the game, younot return to your body.
• To get back into my body and get out of bed, so I have to make sure Bella survives until the end of the story?
• Do you have another request?”

 

So that's how a fish caught in a net feels… I take a deep breath and decide that continuing the game is the most logical solution for now until I have a better explanation of the situation. There's no reason for me to fail, since I know the story by heart… Anyway, panicking wouldn't help.

 

"At least I got a full night's sleep, unlike the original Bella, I'm giggling nervously."

 

I rummage through my duffel bag for a change of clothes, sigh at the extent of the fashion damage, then desperately grab some underwear that claims "like a virgin," a dark blue top, and faded jeans and head for the bathroom. Once my morning wash is done, I remember that I have to contact Renee before she gives me a fit of hysteria.

 

So I turn on the fossil that I use as a computer. Fortunately Bella had a notebook with all these codes. Including the credit card, I noted in disbelief…Shaking my head in disapproval, I reply to my “mother” who has already sent me two messages…Honestly, I want to ignore her just to show my disapproval of this interference, but I remember that Bella is 17 and not 37 like me and it is acceptable for a mother to demand a message to confirm the safe arrival of her daughter.

 

After sending a message that would not only calm his worries, but also, I hoped, give me peace of mind for a few days, I go downstairs to eat my breakfast. Charlie was already downstairs with a coffee in hand. I rummage through cupboards and can't find much edible for me in the morning. Sighing, I grab a granola bar and ask Charlie if we can go shopping tonight. He tells me that I can do them after school by pointing to the jar called "shopping money", reminds me that he is dropping me off this morning and that I will have to walk to the truck or comrade brings me back.

 

I nod and we hit the road. I'm very, very early, but Charlie can't really be late for work so I'm taking this time to think a little. A blue window then appears.

 

“Main quest: Find an ally… Reward: a wardrobe… Penalty: An evening to cry… Time limit: 15 minutes”

 

The reward is even more twisted than the penalty… The devs smoked not-so-legal weed or what?! The only person I can think of is Alice, maybe because of the wardrobe... She's used to dealing with her brother, knows how to hide things from him when needed and has always been positive about- vis-a-vis Bella unlike Rosalie, Jasper and even Edward… But how to contact her? I know !

 

I decide to go talk to her as soon as I see her alone. I would tell her that I have seen the future, that I know that I will be part of their family, but that if Edward finds out, he risks ruining everything. I sit on a bench waiting for the student office to open, hoping that Alice will have received my message. I start to worry again, when I feel a current of air in the back of my neck announcing either the imminent arrival of a downpour or a fashion-loving vampiric tornado. I turn and a wave of relief runs through my body when I meet topaz eyes staring at me puzzled.

 

“Alice…I huff.

• Bella, she replies expectantly. »

 

I invite her to sit down and as she sits down I ask her what she saw.

 

"I would ask you how you know how my gift works, but I saw that you won't answer me until I answer you first," she said with a mischievous glint in her eye. So, I saw you greet me, explain to me that you need me to prevent my brother from panicking and incidentally to stay alive.

"You summed up the situation well…" I reply, between relief and anticipation.

 

I tell him that I know the future and that I know that they are not human, but that I will not say anything because I am supposed to belong to this family one day, if Edward manages not to kill me in biology this after -noon. I explain to him the phenomenon of the Tua Cantante and what I am for Edward.

 

She listens to me intently in silence, her eyes shining with more and more excitement, then once I'm done, grabs my hand and leads me to the student desk still without saying a word. Opening the door we find what I guess is Mrs. Cope, the secretary. The red hair and the filthy purple sweater were crucial clues in arriving at this deduction. I wince slightly at this lack of taste, but fortunately the woman does not look at me. Alice dances up to her and greets her, then introduces me. I take the timetable that she hands me and stiffen when I see “Spanish”… Damn! I learned German at school, I don't speak a word of Spanish.

 

“Excuse me Madam, there is a mistake in my schedule, I…

• In fact, she's doing French with me, Alice interrupts me. »

 

The secretary seemed surprised, but retrieves the schedule to make the changes, then turns around annoyed. Apparently, there is no more room in Alice's class, who then suggests putting me in her sister's class, Mrs. Cope complies without adding anything. At this level of enchantment, it's quite frightening.

 

"Could it be possible for Bella to have more classes in common with me or my family." She doesn't know anyone here except us and as we are in the middle of the year it may be difficult for her, as she is quite shy. »

 

Damn it ! I wish I could lie as brilliantly as her! Mrs. Cope is as if hypnotized, her eyes glassy and her mouth open. Stunned I then observe the woman change several courses, print a sheet and hand it to Alice who gives it to me after checking it. We thank the secretary and leave. Alice turns to me:

 

“Whatever happens today, don't panic. Do everything as planned, I'll take care of the rest.

• Uh… Okay. So do you believe me?
• Obviously !
• …And… Uh…
• No, I'm not going to kill you and I'm not going to report you either until everything is set up.
• …
• Don't ask me any questions now, see you later.
• All right. »

 

And she's gone in a blink of an eye and a new blue window pops up.

 

“Quest completed. The reward will be given to you soon. »

 

I'm still a little shocked, taking in the last few minutes, then look back at my schedule and sigh in relief. Spanish has been replaced by French. That said, I'm still going to have to read classics in English… Already some French novels from the last century were difficult to understand… In short, I'm going to have to get serious about it so that Bella doesn't repeat her year of high school.

 

I see the cars park one after the other in the parking lot on the side of the school. It's time to find my classroom. I walk briskly, making my way through the students hanging around before their first class. I noticed the presence of the gleaming Volvo in the parking lot. Indeed, here, it detonates. It had been a long time since I had seen such a large gathering of old cars. Since college actually… And of course a lot of American cars…

 

"Well, that's going to change me from Clios and 206s...I whisper."

 

I find my class easily… I have the teacher sign the slip, who invites me to sit next to a magnificent blonde with topaz eyes… Oh mashed potatoes! Rosalie! I sit down, greeting her with a smile. She barely stares at me, then looks away to admire herself in the reflection of the glass… I've just confirmed that it's Rosalie, I tell myself with a smirk. I feel her staring at me for a few seconds, then she returns to her silent contemplation. I have just finished getting my things out when the bell rings for the start of class. Mr. Smith asks me to introduce myself, in French, of course.

 

“Well, my name is Isabella, but I prefer to be called Bella and I just arrived in Forks. I like to read and French cuisine. »

 

The teacher congratulates me on my impeccable French accent. I don't tell him that his is to be cut with a knife and sit down satisfied. Unlike Bella, even though I don't like public speaking, my shyness doesn't make me blush like a tomato. On the other hand, Rosalie's sharp eye when I sit down makes me turn red in a second. My body freezes and I tell myself that everything is going to be just as Alice planned. The hour seems to last an eternity, especially since the level is far from equaling that of a native Frenchwoman.

 

I take this opportunity to wonder about my ability to understand and speak English. This one comes naturally to me, as if it were really my mother tongue… Another quirk of the game I guess. If it's really a game. I don't understand if it's a bug, linked to a particularly twisted AI, or the full will of the developers. In any case, I don't really want to test what happens if I die in the game. I already don't know what state my body is in in real life!

 

What the game helper told me didn't make sense. A temporal rift doesn't exist. I am a scientist through and through. Yeah, I love the supernatural, but that's because I love trying to figure it all out and all those mysteries are brain-boosting. That said, the joke is going a little too far for my taste right now. Finally the bell rings and the mannequin that serves as my neighbor escapes elegantly from the room on her 10 cm heel.

 

As if to counterbalance the image, I trip over a bag and nearly puncture my skull on a coat rack on my way out. I'm starting to think Bella has something wrong with her inner ear. We're going to have to work on that because at this rate, I'm going to end up dying a very banal death: falling. I'm looking for my next room, but not for long. At the same time difficult to get lost in an establishment of this size…. And even less when a mischievous little elf makes big gestures to get your attention. I walk over to the professor's office, get him to sign my slip, hand me my list of books to read, and sit next to my supercharged new friend, smiling at her.

 

"How was your first class Bella?"

• Let's say that I master the language of Molière quite well...
• Can you give me lessons?
• Like you don't have a perfect memory.
• It's always better to learn with a real French woman.
• How do you…”

 

I look at her shocked, but the professor starts his lesson and we stop our conversation. The course begins with a lecture, then continues with written expression exercises. I go through the list of books given at the beginning of the course. After a few minutes, I'm discouraged, they are all more depressing than each other. Decidedly, alongside these authors, Baudelaire serves as a merry fellow and "Flowers of Evil" a bucolic stroll. There is only Chaucer who finds favor in my eyes for the historical side, on the other hand the difficulty of reading is quite substantial. Alice reassures me by telling me that she will help me if I help her in French. I gratefully accept.

 

" It was nothing. We'll organize on Saturday during our shopping spree in Seattle, she replies kindly.

• .. Really? Are we going to Seattle? But when did we talk about it?
• Come on! Beautiful! You had planned a shopping day last night.
• Yes, but I didn't tell you about it.
• Not yet, I'm just anticipating to save you a migraine.
• I have my doubts about ending the day with a headache though. »

 

She laughs softly and it sounds like a harmony of bells. I love this sound. The bell finally rings and she accompanies me to the next lesson. When I ask her why, she tells me she has to see someone. When I see a tall blond man with a tormented look next to the door to the room, I understand. He first stares at Alice as if she were his oxygen tank. Which is perhaps the case among all these humans filled with boiling blood and hormones. Seeing that Alice is talking to me, he turns to me and his piercing gaze tenses me immediately. Alice then takes my arm and pulls me towards him.

 

“Jasper, meet Bella, my new English Literature tablemate and French tutor. »

 

I take my courage in both hands and greet Jasper who has visibly stopped breathing. He nods and turns to Alice who gives him a kiss on the cheek asking him to be nice to me and that we have a girls night out on Saturday. He's surprised but nods obediently as I enter the room to present the paper to my teacher again… Of course, the only free seat is next to Jasper and he tenses as I approach. I'm glad I kept my hair down this morning, and I force myself to breathe slowly, trying to relax. I suddenly feel a wave of calm wash over me. Without thinking I thank Jasper who stares at me, amazed… I really feel like an elephant in a china shop.

 

It is at this moment that a new quest chooses to appear that terrifies me:

 

“Main quest: Find the right words to calm Jasper… Reward: Survival… Penalty: Death… Time limit: Until the bell rings”.