Chapter Text
Sobbing in the restroom before school had even officially started was not what she had wanted but in true Elizabeth Swan fashion, it had happened anyways. To say she looked and felt like a wreck would be an understatement.
A bell went off and Eliza began to sob harder if that was even possible. So now she was really late, what a great first impression to make. God her chest ached.
Lost in her thoughts as she was she didn't notice that somebody else had come in until they gently touched her shoulder. For the second time that morning, Eliza jumped a foot in the air and the unknown person took a few steps back.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to startle you," the person was female and was speaking lowly, clearly trying not to startle Eliza further, "I heard crying and I just wanted to make sure you were ok."
Did it look like she was ok? Eliza's throat closed up further as the humiliation at being caught sunk in. Seemingly recognising this, the other girl began rambling on, trying to distract the sobbing girl.
"Wow, your first day and you have already found the best place to have a breakdown. You definitely have your priorities right. I am actually impressed Elizabeth Swan."
Eliza's eyebrows shot up and the other girl giggled.
"Well, I didn't recognise you but your dad has been talking about you for weeks and I assumed you were Elizabeth because he mentioned you having your mothers eyes and he has brown eyes but I am so sorry if I'm wrong. Oh my God, this would be so embarrassing if I was and oh great you have only just met me and I am rambling on like an idiot." The girl hid her face in her hands.
Eliza laughed...sort of. It was more just a release of air but it helped clear her head a little.
"It's just Eliza, thank you." She managed to force the words out between her attempts at regulating her breathing. The other girl looked up from her hands, a relieved grin curling at her lips.
"Well 'just Eliza', I'm Nora and I am your guide for the day." Eliza was confused. Had the receptionsist mentioned a guide?
"Self-appointed," Nora clarified. "Forks is just such a big and scary place and you need someone to help you."
"You can just call me ridiculous and move on with your life you know." Eliza snapped furiously scrubbing at her face humiliation once again burning her insides. Forks wasn't big nor was it scary and it was incredibly stupid of her to be so worked up over it.
"That isn't what I meant at all!" Nora's eyes went wide with panic. "I was trying to be funny. I'm sorry." She looked down at the ground.
Eliza instantly felt bad for snapping. This girl had gone out of her way to help her and she had bitten her head off. Guilt dug its claws within her and she forced out a big gust of air.
"No, I'm sorry for snapping." Taking another deep breath she continued, "I do need some help if you wouldn't mind."
Nora smiled brightly, nodding. "I think you might want to focus on fixing your makeup first."
Eliza laughed weakly as she accepted the tissues Nora offered taking the time to wash everything off. Then, just like that morning, she took the time to do her eyeliner, mascara and lip gloss. Once she was satisfied that she didn't look too horrible she quickly finger combed her hair, redoing the pony tail. With another deep breath, she turned back to Nora.
"Oh my God, you are gorgeous." The words seemed to fall from Nora's lips without her realising because she blushed and slapped a hand over her mouth.
Eliza laughed, properly this time. "Thank you very much although I fear I pale in comparison to you."
And it was true. Nora was stunning with green eyes and dark red hair, and an athletic build that Eliza would kill to have. Nora blushed and then cleared her throat.
"Can I see your timetable? I fear we have missed our first period but that's ok." Checking over the piece of paper, her eyes seemed to light up. "It doesn't matter anyways! We both had study hall and by the looks of it, the rest of our lessons together anyways!"
Eliza was relieved to hear that she didn't miss any of her lessons. She didn't know how she would be able to explain that to anybody.
"What do we have next?" She asked
"Art with Miss Mitchell." Nora once again gently placed a hand on her shoulder. "If we go now, we can introduce you to her before lesson begins. She normally doesn't have a lesson at this time."
Eliza nodded and Nora grinned. She looped their arms together and began walking. The hallways were quiet and Eliza relaxed slightly. She didn't know if she could handle an onslaught of people.
The girls moved in relative quiet with Nora occasionally pointing out a few key classrooms and a quick synopsis of what each lesson would be like. The other girl hummed a few times to show she was listening even though a significant portion of her brain was preoccupied with thinking over the events of the morning.
She was incredibly thankful that Nora had gone out of her way to help her, of course she was, but the embarrassment over the situation ran deep. She felt like child unable to cope with the basic demands of life. It wasn't fair on Nora to take care of her like this, they didn't even know each other for crying out loud.
Eliza went to move her arm away but before she could, Nora pulled her into a classroom. The room was relatively big and filled with light. Eliza didn't know what to look at first. The beautiful paintings? The clay sculptures? The hauntingly beautiful charcoal pieces on the walls?
As captivated as she was, she didn't notice the teacher slowly making her way towards her until she was in her direct field of sight.
"Do you like them?" Miss Mitchell was a curvy lady with kind, hazel eyes and honey brown hair. Eliza nodded mutely anxiety evaporating for a moment as she took in the familiar comfort of an art classroom. "What type of art do you do?"
Eliza cleared her throat. "I'm kind of basic but I really like painting landscapes."
"Why?" Miss Mitchell had started to walk across the room and with a nudge from Nora, Eliza followed her. She took a minute to think over the question, intuitively understanding Miss Mitchell wanted honesty.
"I don't exactly know why but I like being able to capture the memory of places I have been, especially familiar places. I find some comfort in it." Eliza's voice was quiet as they came to a stop at a desk in the back.
"This will be your desk for the semester my dear," Miss Mitchell said. "You will be sharing with Nora. Why don't you take a moment to get settled in before I explain the task for today."
Miss Mitchell's smile was as kind and warm as her eyes and Eliza felt something unwind in her. The panic attack had worn her out but she was excited at the prospect at doing something arty. It was something her and her mum shared, although her mum's interest quickly dissipated once the initial excitement was over.
Nora showed her where all the supplies were and they settled down next to each other. Eliza still felt guilty over what happened but she was starting to realise she actually enjoyed Nora's presence. She was also thankful she was sat at the back because nobody noticed there was somebody new and she didn't have to introduce herself.
Today's task was to create something that reminded them of joy.
Eliza settled down and started sketching. By the end of the lesson, she had created a picture of home, bathed in the golden sun she missed.