Page Turner

2. Inscription

"Charlie?"

Still staring straight ahead at the road, I saw the corners of his mouth turn up minutely.

"What? Are you too old to call me Uncle Chuck?" He glanced back at the road waiting for my response.

Uncle Chuck?

Turning back to me, with what I could see was a forced smile; Charlie attempted to ease the tension that permeated the air.

"I understand that it's not the coolest thing for a seventeen year old to say," Charlie muttered nervously. "What I mean to say is if you want to call me Charlie I don't mind. Would you like to call me Charlie, Dree?"

It seemed he was being rather patient with me – almost too patient – and, perhaps, too accommodating.

One thing that he had said perplexed me. I am most certainly not seventeen. At least, I wasn't seventeen when I had fallen asleep. I was a twenty year old university student! I searched my brain and tried to recall things that I had learnt at university.

Complex Variables, LaGrange Equations, and Statistics (or Sadistics)…

Yes. I definitely still had my twenty year old brain, but did I have my twenty year old body? I would have to confirm that later, but none of that mattered because Charlie believed I was seventeen. I wasn't in a position to question him. After all, I was in his car and in his world. I had to improvise and the first rule of improvisation is to accept an offer. Plus, it seemed like he was trying really hard to get me to feel comfortable and as our eyes connected I felt my shield of fear melt away. I wanted to let this man in. I forced a small smile.

"No. Sorry, Uncle Chuck." I paused and moved my fingers through my hair, whilst trying to come up with a conversation starter that would allow Charlie (or apparently my Uncle Chuck) to divulge some information that would allow me to find out what the fork I was doing in Forks.

"I must have fallen asleep and when I woke up suddenly I didn't know where I was." I had decided that the truth couldn't hurt.

Charlie's posture relaxed and he looked at me with caring brown eyes.

"That's alright, Kiddo. That flight from Sydney must have taken a lot out of you." He gazed back at the road again and rubbed the back of his neck before placing both hands on the steering wheel to round a bend. "It took a lot out of me - my flight, I mean. I slept all through Sunday."

Why would Charlie be flying back from Sydney?

I could see he was holding something back from me. It was as if he was scared that his words would awaken something within me – as if they would open Pandora's Box.

"We're not far from home now, Dree."

Home?

This foreign place was not my home. My home was a double story house in the suburbs of Sydney. My home was the place that housed my family. It was the place where I could go to escape the rest of the world and find comfort. Forks was not my home, but if I was going to be staying here I might as well get acquainted with my surroundings.

Now that the rain had stopped, I could see that we were driving along what appeared to be the main street of Forks. We met our first traffic lights since I had been awake and when Charlie stopped at a red light I took a good look around. Cars were parked along the side of the street. Mothers wheeling their young children in strollers were heading in and out of a grocery store, whilst other people could be seen reclined in booths at the local diner. It looked like a scene from a Hallmark movie. As the light turned green, I noticed people glancing towards our car. If I was seated in the cruiser than it would not be out of the ordinary for people to be weary of law enforcement, but something told me that the town-folk knew who drove this car and were eager to see the person who occupied the passenger seat – me. They knew I was coming.

I wish I had known I was coming.

As Charlie turned left, their inquiring eyes followed me in the rear view mirror. I was happy when the streets became less populated and we drove towards a more densely forested area. Eventually, the car slowed and Charlie pulled into the driveway of a small, white, two storey weatherboard home. I looked to my right to appreciate the large tree that reached above the roof of the house and sheltered a large second storey window - Bella and Edward's second storey window.

Would I get to meet Bella? I wonder if Edward visits often.

The loud creak of Charlie applying the hand break forced me out of my musings.

"Well, we're home, Kiddo."

Charlie opened his door and stepped out of the car and then stretched before heading back towards the boot, or trunk.

You have to get out, Audrey.

I stared straight ahead and took a deep breath before extending my arm to open the door. My body protested as I stepped out of the car. My legs felt extremely tight. At the same time, my head was spinning. I quickly shut the door, placed my hands on the roof and leant my head against the cruiser.

I hate motion sickness.

Eyes cast downwards; I noticed I was wearing my white converse, my favourite pair of jeans, one of my whacky t-shirts and my long black cardigan. I hadn't owned these clothes when I was seventeen. These were a part of my current wardrobe, at home.

Well, at least I'm not in my pyjamas.

The cruiser was cold and my hands and head didn't stay in touch with it for long. I wrapped my arms around my torso as the chilly Forks air engulfed me- a great contrast to the sticky, summer air of Sydney. The Swarovski ring my parents had given me for my twentieth birthday adorned my right ring finger and I was grateful for the small reminder of the life I had known before waking up.

With the boot lid up, Charlie had failed to notice my uneasiness and had dutifully started extracting my luggage and placing them in a neat pile on a dry patch of the driveway. With the boot lid shut, Charlie noticed me hugging myself and held out my beige parka that had kept me warm in my travels of Europe, after high school.

Another reminder, Audrey, that you are not seventeen.

I walked up and smiled at Charlie before draping the parka over my shoulders and bending over to carry my messenger bag. Charlie locked the car before picking up the remainder of my luggage – the large suitcase I had used in Europe and my black and silver back pack. I followed Charlie as he headed towards the front door and I began to shiver. Not from the cold. No. I shivered because my psyche was struggling to comprehend the situation I was in and my emotions were responding appropriately. Nervousness, fear, excitement…

Jasper wouldn't know what had hit him.

Charlie placed my luggage in front of the blue painted timber door before reaching down to a pot, containing what used to be a plant (I think it might have drowned), and producing a bronze key. Unlocking the door, Charlie turned to me before replacing the key.

"You caught that, Kiddo?"

I nodded and gave him double assurance with a, "Yep".

Charlie grinned before replying, "Good, but we'll get you a set of keys cut, anyway."

Getting a set of keys cut implies that I'll be staying here a while. What about my parents?

Charlie opened the door and ushered me inside. I heard him place my bags on the timber floorboards and close the door whilst I was taking in my surroundings. Moving out of the foyer and to my right, there was a cosy sitting room that contained a fairly large plasma TV, a coffee table (that had seen better days), two recliners (one more worn than the other) and a two seater couch. A series of pictures arranged on the beige wall, near the staircase that bordered the sitting room, showed the aging of a girl with long mahogany hair, a pale complexion, a heart shaped face and rosy cheeks – Bella. She was quite pretty and delicate looking. I could see why the boys were attracted to her.

As I peaked further around the partition, I noticed a small table set in the corner of the sitting room. A lamp was placed on top of it, as well as a picture containing three people. A middle aged man and woman beamed from the shoulders of a teenage girl with an oval shaped face, medium brown hair and olive green eyes.

Charlie had a picture of my parents and me, but where were my sisters?

I heard the creak of the floorboards before I felt Charlie remove my parka. I turned to watch him place it on the hook near the door.

"You thirsty, Dree?" Charlie began walking towards the doorway on the left of the hallway. Now that Charlie had mentioned it, my mouth was rather dry.

"I am a little bit, Ch… Uncle Chuck." That would take some getting used to.

I followed Charlie through the doorway and was introduced to an eat-in-kitchen, with the famous yellow cabinets that Renee had painted all those years ago. There were a few dirty dishes in the sink and the counter tops were quite dusty. When Charlie opened the fridge, I saw that it contained a carton of milk, a pizza take out box and a few cans of beer.

I guess the book was right when it said Charlie didn't cook.

Charlie buried his head in the fridge and rubbed the back of his neck before turning to me with an apologetic expression.

"Sorry, Kiddo, but I can only offer you milk or water."

"That's ok, Uncle Chuck. Water is fine." I answered quickly and with a smile to try and put him at ease.

Sipping our glasses of water at the kitchen counter, Charlie spoke up.

"I was thinking of ordering pizza for dinner. Is that ok?"

I nodded as I swallowed my water.

Charlie enquired, "Any favourite toppings?"

I placed my now empty glass on the counter.

"I don't really mind. Just as long as there's no"- Charlie cut me off - "Anchovies?"

I tipped my head to the side. He paused and then softly answered my unasked question.

"Your Mom hated them, too." He finished the last of his water and took mine and his glass to the sink. He seemed hesitant about mentioning my Mum.

He used past tense, didn't he?

"Well, I guess I should show you your room." Charlie left the kitchen and I took a moment to steady myself and then promptly followed him into the foyer, retrieved my messenger bag and tailed him as he ascended the stairs with my luggage. There was one door directly to the right of the stairs. Charlie nudged the partially closed door open and went inside. I had created a picture of Bella's room in my minds eye and I wasn't disappointed. True to description, the walls were light blue and yellow laced curtains framed the windows situated to the left and front of the room. A wooden desk, dresser and rocking chair were positioned around the windows and built-in-closet on the right hand wall.

If I was staying in Bella's room, where was Bella?

"Isn't this Bella's room, Uncle Chuck?" Charlie looked up from where he was placing my bags.

"Well, it was, but now it's yours. I'm off until Sunday, so I was thinking that we could change the room up a little, if you like. You know, change the wall colour?"

"But what about Bella?" Charlie went and sat down on the edge of the double bed. His tone was solemn.

"Bella hasn't stayed here in a while, Audrey. I spoke to her and she said to strip the room bare and let you make it your own. She wanted to talk to you after you were settled in, by the way."

I interrupted Charlie, "Is Bella not living here because I am?"

Charlie spoke down to the floor. "She was thinking of coming here, whilst her Mom and Phil move around, but she never really wanted to come. I could hear it in her voice. She's just like her Mom – hates the cold." He looked up from under his eyebrows. "You coming here gave her the reason she needed to wait it out with Renee and Phil. There's not enough room for three," he trailed off.

I felt so sorry for Charlie and guilt welled up inside of me at the thought of me preventing Bella from being here, even though I had no control over my current whereabouts.

"I'm sorry, Uncle Chuck. If I wasn't here, Bella could be. I'm sorry for separating you from your daughter." Charlie looked bewildered. He moved from the bed, stood in front of me and raised my chin so he could look at me eye to eye.

"Dree, you did no such thing and you had no control over what brought you here. I don't want you feeling guilty on top of everything else you must be feeling right now."

What was he avoiding?

His expression changed. "So what do you say to painting the room?"

I wiped away a tear that had unexpectedly fallen and smiled meeting Charlie's concerned eyes.

"Sounds good."

"It'll have to be on Saturday, though. I know that this might be a bit quick for you, but I was hoping, since tomorrow is Friday, that we could meet with the Principal at the high school and sort out your enrollment and then head to Port Angeles. If you don't feel up to it that's ok…"

"That's fine, Uncle Chuck." Charlie breathed a sigh of relief.

"Alright then, I'll leave you to unpack." He turned towards the door, but glanced back as if he remembered something.

"Follow the stair railing around and then first door on the right is the bathroom." He left, but quickly returned.

"By the way, your shipment is scheduled to arrive on Saturday. I'll call you down for dinner."

Shipment?

"Ok. Thanks."

Then he left and I heard his heavy footfalls as he descended the stairs.

So much for, "Charlie doesn't hover"!

For the first time, since my sudden appearance in the land of Forks, I was alone. I moved to stand in front of the mirror that hung above the dresser and was relieved to see that I looked the same as I remembered. Perhaps a little bit worse for wear due to my… travels. Moving my hands up to my hair, I looked for and found the scar that I had received only last year after an unfortunate soccer accident. Apparently, the goal post is a better defender than I am. The most important thing was that I had confirmed that I was the same Audrey, both physically and mentally, as I was at home.

Phew!

I placed my messenger bag on the floor, beside my bed, whilst I sat down on the bed edge and took a few, much needed, deep breaths. I had so many questions – so many unknowns – that I needed to find an answer for, just for my sanity's sake. From Charlie and mine's discussion, I had come to think that, in this world, my Mum was dead and perhaps my Dad, too.

Was this also the case back in reality? What is reality anymore? Would my last memory of my parents be of saying goodnight prior to awakening here?

Eventually, I decided to take a peek into my bags, hoping that they might contain some much needed clues. I opened the messenger bag first, since it was the closest. I found my wallet. Surprisingly, I still had my driver's license. I checked my date of birth. It was still the eleventh of January, 1989. Yet, Charlie believed that I was seventeen.

Could the year be 2006?

I found my travel documents. Again, my date of birth hadn't changed, but my place of birth had. Instead of being born in Sydney, I had apparently been born in Forks, Washington. This accounted for the Australian and American passports that I had discovered. My ancient laptop (which wouldn't be so ancient in 2006) and charger seemed to be the culprits behind the heaviness of the bag. I also found my IPod Touch in its standard compartment. If the year was 2006, than having an IPod touch, which was released in 2007, may not be such a good idea. I scanned my playlists and found that they still contained songs – I guess – from the future.

I wonder if my laptop is the same.

In the process of moving my laptop, I came across another item - Mavis' blank Twilight book.

Stunned, it took me some time before I retrieved and opened it. It was no longer a blank book. There was an inscription on the second page.

For my train friend, Audrey, who must live her dream and write her story and worry not of the home that she will return to in 434 pages time.

With a shaking hand, I turned the page. The words on it briefly recounted what had already come to pass in my time in Forks, as if someone was writing my story. Three pages had been used. I closed the book and rotated it around in my hands as I tried to comprehend what I had seen. I stopped moving it when I saw something peculiar on the spine – something I had failed to notice when I first tried to compare my copy of Twilight to Mavis', back home. How I couldn't of noticed, I don't know. Maybe it had appeared, along with the inscription when I entered this world.

The image of Mavis' brooch stood in place of the publisher's symbol.

I took a few more deep breaths ahead of starting to think again.

The inscription had posed more questions than answers, but of two things I was sure:

Mavis was responsible for however I had ended up in this world; and I had 434 pages to fill of this book before I was able to go home.

A knock at the front door stirred me from my reflections. A moment later, the sound of Charlie's voice carried up the stairs.

"Audrey! The pizza's here!"

As I placed Mavis' book in the top drawer of the dresser, I made up my mind about what I was going to do. For now, I would do as the inscription said and try not to worry about my family and my home, but most importantly, I would try and enjoy the time I apparently had in the not-so-fictitious world of Twilight.