"Miserable at Best" by SimplyDazzling

Posted by Pb

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 "It wasn't an invitation, but at the same time it wasn't a rejection either. I took a deep, steady breath as I kept my eyes on the side of his tense face. 'I know it's not in my place to talk about, but if you do want someone to talk to sometime, I'll be ready to listen.' He pulled into my driveway then, eyes still staring directly in front of him and nowhere else as he put the car into park. The hard line of his jaw only increased, as did the slight strain present in all his other features. He still hadn't said anything. I bit my lip as I unbuckled my seatbelt, just sitting there for a few seconds in the thick silence as I waited a little longer. I wondered idly if he had even heard what I had said or not."

Bella Swan has just recently moved to Forks, Washington, to get closer to her father Charlie. On her first day of school at Forks High, she feels uneasy and nervous, hoping to be able to make new friends quickly. Trying to push her devasting experiences from elementary school to the back of her mind, Bella manages to get acquainted with a small group of people - without even having to approach them. Alice Cullen literally dances up to her, asking if she would like to be friends, and the rest, as they say, is history. The two seniors are glued at the hip and because they spend so much time together, it is inevitable that Bella meets Alice's cousin Edward. She has only heard about but never met him as Edward tends to be regularly absent from class. Alice tells Bella that her cousin has been going through a lot, resulting in him cutting himself off from the world around him. His rude and arrogant behavior is nothing but a mask to keep people at bay and even though Alice advises Bella not to try and "fix" him, Bella can't seem to stay away from the handsome, young man. The more Edward pushes her away, the more she gets determined to make him confide in her. She wants him to trust her but has no idea why. Why does she care so much about this heartbroken man?

Very intense -  two words that perfectly describe the whole story. SimplyDazzling has really put together a heart-clenching story that will probably leave you wanting to read it over and over again. The author managed to create an intricate plot-line with amazing, yet sometimes annoying, characters that you will fall in love with - I know I definitely did. I think what makes this story so great is the fact that SimplyDazzling really uses a very descriptive way of describing Bella's (very mature) thoughts and emotions. The story is completely written from her point of view, yet because of her being very observant and conscious of her surrounding you won't miss out on any important details. I really think SimplyDazzling has done a phenomenal job in writing this fanfiction. A fanficion that, without a doubt, is strikingly similar to the amazing and very popular fanfiction "How To Save Your Life" by unholy.obsession (especially in terms of the characters), yet that is written and carried out in a completely different manner. Miserable at Best made me tear up and cry at several points - something that is extremely hard to to! Please please PLEASE go ahead and read this story! If not you will miss out on a very under-appreciated fanfiction and definitely deserves a 'chapeau'!

Miserable at Best consists of 36 chapters and 185,314 words. The story is rated MA for angst, dark themes and lemons.

COMPLETE

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