The next morning, Maya got up at her usual time and like normal, Jasper had already left to head home to change and grab his truck. She rolled around in bed for a few minutes, not wanting to leave the warmth and comfort of it just yet. But finally, the promise of coffee and food got her up. She stumbled her way into the bathroom to do her normal routine before returning to her room to pick out an outfit. Though by this point, "pick out" mainly meant checking her phone for a text from Alice to see what she should wear. God forbid her outfit clash with that of her friends and mate.
When she was dressed, she headed down to the kitchen to grab her coffee and begin making breakfast. Her and her dad had their morning routine down to an art at this point. He, being a disgustingly early riser, would get up and make the coffee, which would allow her to rouse herself enough to cook a decent breakfast for the both of them. It worked well as he couldn't cook to save his life and it gave Maya a reason to crawl out of bed in time for school. It also had the added bonus that Maya not only got her coffee without having to wait but that they both got to sit down and enjoy their morning together. It was nice seeing as his job didn't always allow them to eat dinner together.
As they were finishing, they finally heard Bella stir. Or at least that was what Maya assumed was going on judging by the loud thumps coming from her room. Glancing at the time, Maya got up to deal with her plate and then rushed upstairs to throw stuff into her bag. She headed back downstairs just as Bella was beginning to look through the kitchen, still dressed in her pyjamas.
"I left your portion of breakfast in the microwave as I wasn't sure when you would be up. There's also some extra coffee in the coffee pot. Me and dad weren't sure if you drink it or not" Maya commented, setting her bag down on a chair to check through it one last time to make sure she had her homework.
"Thanks" Bella muttered.
Maya sat down on a chair then to put her shoes on, before heading to the closet to grab a coat. As a shifter she didn't really need it, but she knew that she would get some weird looks if she didn't at least have it with her.
"Why are you leaving so early? School doesn't start for at least another hour." Bella questioned.
"We like to go early sometimes. It gives us more of a chance to hang out that way" She replied not really paying attention as she heard Jasper's truck pull up.
She headed outside to meet him, smiling as she approached. He had already hopped out and had come around to open her door for her and help her in, giving her a peck on the cheek as he did. When she was settled, he made his way back to the driver's side and they were off. They drove in a comfortable silence until he pulled off the road and came to a stop. He reached behind him then and handed her a lunch bag.
Esme had taken it upon herself to make lunch for Maya everyday after she had mentioned once about how awful the school food was and how lucky they were they didn't need to actually eat it. Maya had tried to talk her out of it, but had been brushed aside. That was when Maya had discovered Esme's love of cooking and how delighted she was to have someone to actually cook for. It had also delighted her to see how much Maya obviously loved her cooking.
Maya took it and opened it up to smell it. "Mm, you are aware that if I ever see a sign of Esme leaving Carlisle, I will dump you in a heartbeat for her, right Love?"
"Yes Darlin'. You tell me almost every time you see or taste her food. And if you are not telling me, you are asking her to run off with you" he said with a chuckle.
"Ah, right. Well, never fear my dear. Much to my eternal disappointment, Carlisle seems to love Esme just as much as I love you, so the chances of it ever happening are less than nonexistent." She gave him a pat on the shoulder as she pouted in disappointment.
He let out a laugh at that and pulled her onto his lap, "Right. Consider me relieved. But just to be sure, maybe I should ensure that you remember why you love me." He then pulled her down into a kiss.
Almost an hour later, she slid off his lap and back into her own seat with a laugh. "You know, every morning I groan about getting out of bed so damn early, but you always manage to make it worth it."
"Glad I could be of service" He joked while starting up the truck again and pulling out to finish driving to school. Which was luckily just long enough for her to fix her hair and touch up her make-up.
They pulled in right after his siblings and parked beside them. Once again, he got out and walked over to her door to open it for her and help her out. Almost immediately, they were joined by the others and they all began chatting as they waited for first bell. At the sound of a loud engine they, along with everyone else in the parking lot, turned to watch as Bella pulled in and parked.
"So that's your sister?" Alice asked, trying not to wince at her lack of fashion sense.
"Yep. And she is not too happy to see me here" Maya commented. Jasper pulled her closer to him and growled at the memory of the hurt he sensed from her last night at Bella's words.
"Is she any fun?" Emmet questioned.
Edward cut in before she could answer, "why does it even matter? She is a human and we will avoid her just like we do all the rest." He stormed past them then and headed off to his first class.
Maya stared at his back as he went. Though Edward had eventually accepted that she was part of the family as she was Jasper's mate and a supernatural herself, he still hadn't really warmed up to her. Rosalie had told her that it was just because he was jealous that Jasper had met his mate first and to ignore him until he managed to pull his head out of his ass. Maya had tried to do that, but she had to admit she was a little sad that he did not like her. He seemed like he could be a fun person to hang out with when he wasn't acting like a moody teen.
The rest of the family let out groans before slowly following him into the school as the warning bell rang. None of them were excited to be there. The Cullens had all been through it enough times to not even need to pay attention and thanks to Maya's tutors, she was ahead in all her courses, except for history. The history she had learned had focused on the world history or ancient history, so she was playing catch up when it came to American history. Lucky for her though, she just so happened to be dating a man who knew more about it than any textbook.
Unlucky for her, she did not share her first class with him. This term they had almost identical schedules, except where she had French, he had Spanish. Although she did not mind it that much as she did share the class with Alice and mostly the two just talked through it.
Besides that though, her and Jasper were almost inseparable at school. Her being around him helped him to keep control better, as all mates tended to have a soothing affect. They were also in their first few years of their mating bond, which are usually the worst for pairs as the mate bond can make them act a little irrationally. Mates tend to be jealous of others easier and more protective as the pair is still getting to know each other and confirming their bond.
As such both Maya and Jasper tended to get jealous rather easily when the humans tried to flirt with them and staying together was the easiest way to make sure that neither of them got too upset. Jasper was also very protective of her, mainly due to the fact that as a shifter she could still bruise and bleed, which did worry him a lot. So, she spent most days tucked into his side or wrapped in his arms. Something she did not mind at all as they always made her feel safe and loved. Not to mention as a cat shifter who tended to share some similarities with real cats, she was absolutely shameless in seeking out his attention when she wanted it. At home they could spend hours watching TV or reading to one another as Jasper ran his hands through her hair and making her purr at the attention.
As the bell rang to head to lunch, they all gathered at Alice's locker before going off to lunch. As they entered the cafeteria, they could hear Jessica giving Bella the speech on "the Cullens", which Maya swears was the exact same as the one she got when she first arrived. While her hearing was not quite as good as a vampire's, Jessica was talking loud enough for her to catch it without even trying.
"They're Dr. and Mrs. Cullen's foster children. They all moved down here from Alaska like two years ago. They're kind of weird." She said, leaning in towards Bella as if she was confiding in her some dark secret.
"They kind of keep to themselves" Angela added, trying once again to balance out Jessica's judgment.
"Yeah, because they're all together. Like together together. The tall blond is Rosalie, she's with the big dark haired one Emmet, they're like a thing. I'm not even sure that's legal!"
"Jess they're not actually related." Angela defended.
"Whatever, they still live together. It's weird" Jess muttered, defending her thoughts. "Okay the small girl with the pixie cut is Alice, she's really weird. The two behind her are Jasper and Maya. Jasper always looks like he is in pain and Maya is his new girlfriend. They hooked up like, two weeks after she moved here. It was really weird. If any girl approached him, he just scared them off, but with Maya, he chased her. Then one Monday she just started sitting with the Cullens and they have been practically inseparable ever since. It's like super weird and honestly a lot of us have been trying to figure out what she offered him to make him take notice, if you know what I mean. Anyway, Dr. Cullen is like this foster dad slash match maker."
"Maybe he'll adopt me." Angela said trying to distract everyone from what Jessica was insinuating. She and Maya may not be the closest of friends, but she still thought the girl was nice and didn't want anyone bad mouthing her if she could help it.
Jasper growled under his breath too low for the humans to hear at what Jessica was saying about his mate and siblings. It seemed no matter where they went there were always going to be people who were not content unless they were putting others down. But being used to it didn't make him want to kill Jessica any less for insinuating that Maya had used her body to get him. Maya simply gave his hand a tug and sent him a smile to show him that the words of one girl didn't bother her. He relaxed and gave her a twirl to bring her closer as they made their way to their usual table.
"Who's he?" Bella asked, not being able to take her eyes off of Edward who had just entered.
"That's Edward Cullen, totally gorgeous obviously, but apparently nobody here is good enough for him. Like I care you know" Jessica said in an obviously fake attempt at being causal, "anyways like don't waste your time."
"Wasn't planning on it" Bella said, glancing over that their table again, or more specifically, Edward. Maya rolled her eyes at that, seeing that Bella was obviously interested in him.
"I can't read her thoughts" Edward announced, glancing back over at her to focus better.
"What? Like how you can't read mine?" Maya furrowed her brows in confusion. She was one hundred percent certain that Bella was human, so she couldn't figure out a reason as to how this was possible.
"Yeah, it's like she has a wall up in her mind just like you do" Edward confirmed, still staring at Bella.
"Well then, that's all the more reason why we should ignore her and not draw attention to ourselves." Rosalie punctuated this point by giving Edward a kick under the table so he would stop staring. Edward turning to give her a glare in response.
"Maybe your powers are disappearing" Emmet joked, "but more importantly, Maya, can you talk to cats?"
"What?" Maya shook her head in disbelief wondering where that question had come from. "What on earth makes you think I can talk to cats?"
"Well, you can turn into a cat. Stands to reason you might be able to understand them in that form" Emmet reasoned.
Maya shook her head again, "no I can only take on the form of a cat. Even if I do have some personality traits of a cat and their form, I'm still human on the inside. It would be like asking you to speak Japanese just because you put on a Kimono."
"Oh" Emmet said in disappointment.
The conversation moved on from there, Edward still glancing over at Bella from time to time. His inability to read Bella's mind also confused Maya and she found herself playing with the charm on her necklace as they talked.
It was actually a new charm that Jasper had gotten her a few weeks ago. He had asked why she was always wearing it and she had laughed as she told him the story of her being picked up by animal control. The next day he had shown up with a new charm with his name and number stamped on the back. He had claimed that it was because he figured her uncle would be too far away to help if she got picked up again, but she suspected that it had more to do with mates and their possessiveness. He probably hadn't liked it that she was wearing a collar that had another man's mark on it and she couldn't blame him. She would be upset if he had something similar, so she switched it without complaint. She also had to admit that she loved it. It was a lovely little charm in the shape of a rose.
Soon enough though, lunch ended, and Maya had to put aside her thoughts and worries so that she could focus on her lessons.