Ghost Love Score [ Chapter 2 ]
Notes: I'm glad to see that people are still interested in what I write, which is surprising actually, I thought people would start to get bored with hearing from me after a while. Though, I guess that the lack of uncanon Twilight writers keeps people coming back for more from the same people, and considering that all I write is uncanon, I suppose I'm a very reliable source. Enough of that, on with the chapter!
Words: 7150 words
Disclaimer: The Twilight series is the property of Stephanie Meyer, who I am definitely not. Anything that isn't recognizable from the original series, though, is mine.
Chapter 2: The Meeting
Carlisle was easier to deal with then I remembered. Bree made it easier too, since Carlisle was very eager to spend much of his time with her instead of with me, and the two of them weren't home very often. There was still a lot of tension between me and Bree, and I doubted that it would ever iron over, but she wouldn't have to put up with me for too long.
The day that Edward was flying in, Carlisle and Bree were leaving on a lunch date followed by a movie. I'd told Carlisle that my 'boyfriend' would be arriving while he was out, and I got a staunch warning not to do anything inappropriate. With that warning echoing in my ears, I shut the door behind him, clicking the lock shut, then I turned back to the small condo.
I let out a heavy sigh, and then went about tidying everything up. Apparently if Bree wasn't around, Carlisle didn't see much point in putting things away or bothering to clean up after himself. Methodically, I went through his bedroom and mine, stripping the beds (which I realized hadn't been washed in a while), and chucking the dirty clothes into their respective hampers.
There was also that large stack of dishes which needed to be done, not to mention a dishwasher that needed to be emptied. I probably wouldn't get it all done before Edward arrived, but I wasn't too worried cause I'd just rope him into helping me. That wouldn't take too much effort, he'd helped me with this sort of thing before, back home in Forks. I knew that he didn't like it, but he helped because that got it done that much faster.
I tossed several of Carlisle's shirts in the general direction of the hamper I'd carted into his room, I didn't really care if they made it in or not, and I got down on my hands and knees to check under his bed. Somehow, things wound up shoved under there far too often.
The moment I pulled the skirt up, I immediately flew back into the dresser. Nope, I wasn't going back under there, even if there were dirty clothes that were desperately needed to be introduced to the washing machine. I wasn't going to risk my hands touching what I found, because really, there's only so much that a teenage boy could handle in terms of his father's dirty room.
No way I was going to be picking through the used condoms and condom wrappers that were under the bed. He could do that himself.
Quickly, I finished up with Carlisle's room, shoving the dirty clothes into the hamper and stacking the dirty dishes I found scattered about in neat piles on a corner of his dresser. I'd take them to the kitchen later, once I'd left the dirty clothes in the laundry room down the hall. The fact that Carlisle even had a laundry room in his condo was surprising, considering he hardly ever did any, and I wasn't surprised when I entered the small room to see that it had pretty much remained untouched since I'd left it months before.
There was already a load in the dryer, so I unloaded that and transferred it from the dryer into the empty hamper which was the ironing pile. I sort of wished that Alice was there, because she was amazing at ironing, she did it quickly and extremely well, something which I wasn't jealous of, per say, but it made my life easier.
Once I was finished that, I slammed the dryer door closed, and balanced the full hamper of dirty clothes on top of it. That left me with just sorting to do, and then I'd be pretty much busy for the entire afternoon doing chores around the condo so that it was more fit for human habitation. The rare times that Bree was over, some of the necessary chores got done, but more often then not, they weren't. My best guess was that I was being tested or something. Bree probably doubted what Carlisle had likely told her that I could do most of the domestic stuff myself.
Just as I was about to start sorting, a pair of cold hands settled on my hips, giving them a squeeze, and then there was a block of marble pressed against my back. Cold breath ghosted across my ear, and a voice that I'd know anywhere, whispered, “It's been a while.”
Edward's sudden appearance startled me, and I jumped before calming down. My heart, though, was still racing wildly in my chest. I smiled, “Oh shut up and admit you missed me.”
“Should I wax eloquently about how my life has been an empty and desolate place since you've been gone, about how I never want to be separated from you again?” His voice was soft, but I could hear the amusement in his voice; he was teasing me.
“Quit teasing me.” I swatted his hands away, and I was about to go back to what I was doing but he stopped me with one of his sudden movements that left me dizzy.
Edward had turned me around, picked me up, and sat me down on the dryer all in the amount of time that it took a person to blink. His hands were back on my hips, pulling me close, “I did miss you, you know. I think I got on Riley's nerves just a tad when we went hunting.”
I hadn't noticed that his eyes were a much warmer, light shade of gold; the shade that they always were after he'd gone hunting, “You went hunting before you came?”
“Of course, that's where I've been the past few days. I wasn't sure when the next time I would get to hunt would be, and I'll be hunting again before we leave for Romania, but I'll be fine until then, I promise.”
I wrapped my arms around his neck, “Good, because I know how much more difficult it is to be around me when you're thirsty. How is everyone else doing?”
“They're fine, and even if it's difficult, I'd still do it,” he replied, his lips close enough to mine so that they were nearly touching. “If I ever thought that you were in danger, I'd be there immediately, even if it was difficult for me to resist.”
Sliding my hands up, I cupped his face between my hands, “I don't want that though. I want it to be easier for you, and I'd kick your ass if you tried to avoid hunting because you were worried about me and whether or not I was safe.”
“I'd like to see you try.”
I rolled my eyes, “Quit making a fool of yourself Edward and kiss me.”
For once, he immediately complied, smiling just a little before he pressed his lips firmly to mine. The kiss was heated, hard, and passionate, but that was fine with me. It was a short-lived, but Edward only pulled back long enough for me to catch my breath before he leaned in for another kiss. This time, he pressed his lips softly to mine. This kiss was much slower, exploratory in nature, and it lasted much longer. It still left me breathless, though.
It took me a while to recover, but when I did, I grinned at him, pulling him close so our foreheads could touch, and muttered, “Carlisle said nothing naughty.”
“What he doesn't know can't hurt you,” Edward pressed his lips to my temple before he pulled away, smiling. “But that can wait, is there anything I can do to help you?”
“Uh yeah, actually. You can go empty the dishwasher and start a new load for me,” I replied. “If you use that vampire speed of yours, then I'm pretty sure we can get everything done before Carlisle and Bree get back from their date.”
“Putting me to work already?”
“I'm trying to domesticate you, you could at least try to feign that you're interested. But then, I know you're only really doing this because I'm asking it of you.”
“Haha, too true!”
.:-o-:. .:-o-:. .:-o-:.
I was right; with Edward's help, it took an afternoon to finish what would normally take me an entire day to do. All of the dishes were done and put away, and I'd just put the last load of laundry into the machine; all of the ironing was done and the clean clothes were put away. Edward was tucking the ironing board back into the utility closet, and I was putting the hamper back into Carlisle's closet, hoping that he'd take the hint to put his dirty clothes in there instead of on his floor.
When everything was back in its place, Edward found me coming out of Carlisle's room, and hoisted me over his shoulder. I hit his back, telling him as sternly as I could that he could put me the hell down, but he didn't listen to me and carried me into the family room.
He laid me down on the couch, climbing so that he was pinning to the couch, and kissed me senseless in the span of a few seconds. I felt his lips trail down my neck, pulling the scarf away from my neck as he did so.
I froze when he did that, and when I felt his lips touch the scar on the side of my neck, it only intensified that feeling of self-loathing and disgust which I held for myself because of it. When his fangs grazed over the mark, I shivered, wondering if he'd actually follow through with the promise he'd made to me on my birthday. I doubted he'd turn me right there, but I remembered what Bella had told me.
The one thing I wanted more then anything at that moment, other then being with him forever, was for that scar to disappear. If it was his fangs which sank into my flesh, then I'd be fine with that. I knew he wouldn't drink my blood, but just biting me would make that control of his would make it even more difficult. He'd said before that drinking human blood would make it impossible for him to go out into the sun for one or two years, and I couldn't do that to him.
Would giving my blood voluntarily change that? Or would the fact that we were mates make my blood exempt from that rule? I didn't know, and I wanted to know.
Edward didn't give me the time to ask, though, because suddenly he'd pulled me back up into a sitting position and was sitting beside me. With a few quick movements, he straightened out my clothing, covering the scar back up with my scarf; incidentally, it was the one that Riley had given me for my birthday.
I looked to Edward for an answer, he smirked.
“Your father is coming down the hall right now,” he explained. “He's rather giddy, I suppose you could say, from his date this afternoon.”
He pressed his lips to my cheek, and when he pulled back, I could hear the front door creak open. Carlisle was back.
I reached out and grabbed onto Edward's hand, squeezing it, the familiar feeling of nervousness settling into the pit of my stomach. This was how I'd felt, somewhat, when I'd first arrived in Vancouver and had to tell my dad that I was 'dating' another man. Only this time it wasn't as bad, because Edward was there and I didn't have to worry about dealing with this alone.
“Jasper?” I heard Carlisle call, the familiar clink of his keys hitting the decorative bowl where he kept them.
“I'm in here dad!”
When Carlisle came into the family room, I heard a sharp intake of breath, and then my father's slow footsteps. I wasn't sure what to do.
Luckily, Edward seemed to have a better idea of what to do (and he probably knew exactly what Carlisle wanted), because he pulled me up off the couch and back onto my feet. He kept his smile polite and pleasant while I tried to catch up to what was running through his head.
Carlisle cleared his throat, breaking me out of my thoughts and bring me back into the present moment. He was waiting for me to start the introductions.
“Um, dad, this is Edward Swan,” I began, not looking at either of them. I was blushing already. “Edward, this is my dad, Carlisle.”
On the other hand, Edward seemed to have no problem with the stress, but then he had the advantage of knowing exactly what my father was thinking. He gave Carlisle his most charming smile and held out his hand, “Hello doctor Whitlock, it's a pleasure to finally meet you.”
I think Carlisle was taken aback by just how polite Edward was, but he recovered quickly enough. He took Edward's hand in his and gave it a quick shake, before they dropped hands, “You can call me Carlisle, and it's very nice to meet you too, Edward. Jasper has told me so much about you.”
The smile on Edward's face grew, and I knew that he was hearing Carlisle's thoughts on the matter. I'd have to get him to spill it later, because the look in his eyes and his smile told me that my father's thoughts were very entertaining. I think Edward liked my father, but I couldn't really be sure until I actually had the chance to ask him, which wouldn't happen until the two of us were alone.
When the three of us sat back down on the couch, with me smushed in the middle between the two of them. Edward was careful with the contact he kept with me, only holding my hand and making sure that our entwined hands were between us and not resting on either my thigh or his. Carlisle's eyes carefully scrutinized us, even though it looked like he was paying attention to the TV.
He wasn't being very subtle about it.
“So, Edward,” Carlisle began when the silence started to get too uncomfortable. “You don't seem like the kind of person who'd live in Forks.”
Edward shrugged, “I've never complained about it, I like the town. Alice's only complaint is that it's such a long drive to Seattle, but she loves Forks too. It's a place that all of us love.”
“Hmph.” I knew that Carlisle hated Forks, it was just in his nature. I could remember his rants on the subject to Esme about the place being a boring town where the social life was fuelled by the gossip mill. His negative view on the town was the reason for why he refused to return to the small town, and also why he was so surprised that I actually liked it.
Being in the same room with Edward and Carlisle was a nightmare and also incredibly awkward. You could cut the the air with a knife, it was so stiff with tension. I was extremely glad when the evening was over and it was time for bed. Carlisle's threat before bed was that if he caught Edward in my room at all during the night he'd castrate him kept us separate.
His lips pressed against my temple, waking me up almost immediately. It helped when he whispered, “Are you awake?”
“Am now,” I grumbled out, still half-asleep. Turning over, I wrapped my arms around his neck and pulled him down beside me, snuggling close to his side; the light from the sun was only creeping through my window. It was far too early to be getting up, much less awake. But I was glad for Edward's company.
“Carlisle left for an emergency shift at the hospital a few minutes ago,” Edward's voice was low, and was lulling me back to sleep, but I was still awake enough to make sense of what he was saying. “Then he has his own shift today, so he won't be back until late tonight.”
“Mhm... that's good...” My arms tightened around his waist, pulling him closer and maneuvering myself so that I was using his chest as a pillow. I'd be freezing when I actually woke up in a few hours, but I'd take that if it meant that I got to be close to him while I slept.
“You'll be cold when you wake up.”
I mumbled something unintelligent, and drifted back to sleep very quickly.
.:-o-:. .:-o-:. .:-o-:.
Several hours later, I woke up properly. I wasn't as cold as I usually was when I slept using Edward as a pillow, but I wasn't about to complain. I could feel one of his arms was wrapped around my shoulders, holding me close to his chest. I sighed and curled closer. Sure I was hungry, but I could wait to eat for a few more minutes since it meant more to me to spend time with Edward then to waste it with my stupid human needs. Or at least, for a while.
“Are you actually awake now?” Edward's voice broke the peaceful quiet.
“Yeah, but I don't wanna get up just yet.”
“Well, let me know when you want to actually get up for breakfast.” He dropped a kiss to the top of my head, arm tightening around my shoulders.
I used the time to think about how my visit with Carlisle was going, and I felt just a little guilty that this might be the last time that I'd spend with him with me still being human. While Edward had promised that he'd turn me after I graduated from high school, he hadn't actually specified when. I could still have a chance to see Carlisle one last time before I had to say goodbye, but it made me feel a little upset that I'd be this selfish to hurt my father that way.
But then again, I though, I associated with vampires. That meant that anyone close to me in danger, because for as long as I stayed human, the more curious other vampires would be. Maria and her coven had been interested in me (well, more like just Maria), because the presence of the Swan family convinced her that there had to be something special about me for the Swan coven to be spending so much time with me. Any of my family or friends could be put in danger if those vampires ever wanted to go after me. The sooner I was turned, the safer my remaining family would be.
Thinking about my family, reminded me about Carlisle's warning that Edward and I were not allowed to get up to anything inappropriate while he was out of the house. Even though I was legally an adult, it was still his house, which meant that we had to follow his rules.
I blushed when I realized just where my mind was headed, and shoved those thoughts aside. I wasn't going to think about that until we weren't in Vancouver anymore. Maybe I could broach the subject when it was just Edward and I in Romania. He had, after all, promised that the rest of the summer would be just the two of us.
Thinking about that made me smile.
“What are you smiling about?” Edward's voice was pleasant. He was curious.
“Well, first off, I still can't believe that your father would ever have something custom built for us; that's a little hard to swallow.”
“Technically speaking, he had it planned and constructed several years ago. He's just been waiting until I found that special someone for him to finally give it to me. You just came along at the perfect time; he wasn't sure how much longer he could wait.”
I nodded against his chest, “The fact that it's mine too is a little hard to deal with; I'm barely eighteen, and now I have a house of my own, and it's in another country! It's just a lot that I have to come to terms with at once.”
“I can understand that. What else is on your mind?”
“The fact that it's just going to be you and me,” I replied. “We haven't spent that much time together, alone, yet and I'm a little nervous about just what it is that we're going to do to occupy the time. I mean, there's sight-seeing, sure, but we can't do that for the entire time that we're there. And then there's a problem that you'll have to face that I won't be able to help you with.”
“Which is?”
“Hunting. How are you going to hunt without having to worry about whether or not I'm safe? You've said before that I'm not allowed to go with you because of how you rely on your instincts when you hunt...”
“I'm surprised that you've been thinking about this so much,” Edward was definitely amused that I'd been thinking about this so much, but I could feel him tense beneath me, and I knew that he was concerned about leaving me along too.
Now that I'd brought the subject up, Edward was putting much more thought into it then he usually did. He was probably making all sorts of plans that he'd propose to Charlie later, some of them completely outrageous and that I'd be pissed at him for later. I knew that all he wanted was to keep me safe, but sometimes Edward went a little overboard.
“I'll talk it over with Charlie later.” Edward nodded, his mind made up. “We'll figure something out, don't worry about that.”
“I don't like inconveniencing your family just because you're worried about my safety,” I muttered. “I feel like I'm just putting all of you in more danger then you already are. You don't know how much it sucks to be the only human surrounded by a bunch of a vampires.”
He smiled, sitting up and pulling me into his lap. His arms wrapped around me in a comforting gesture, “Don't feel so guilty about this; you know that all of them would do anything to keep you safe. You're part of our family now too.”
I winced when he said that. There was a member of his family who didn't like me, at all. Rosalie.
“Rosalie doesn't like me. She'd rather see me die then have to sacrifice herself or her husband for my safety.” It hurt to admit that, but I knew that it was the truth. Even though Riley had openly admitted to me that he already did think of me as a brother (a little one that needed to be protected), he'd had no luck with convincing his wife of the same. Rosalie tended to avoid me, and when we were forced into the same room together, she'd pretend that I didn't even exist.
“That's not completely true. Rosalie just has... more difficulties accepting our relationship then the others.” That was all Edward would tell me on the subject of his temperamental and devastatingly gorgeous adoptive vampire sister. I'd given up on hoping that I'd ever know more about her.
Even I recognized a lost cause when I saw one. I'd just have to deal with the fact that Rosalie and I didn't get along, though I still hoped that just maybe I could repair my relationship with her when I wasn't a constant weak point to her family. If I wasn't always the reason for why her husband and family was putting their lives on the line, then maybe I'd be able to get along with her better. That was my hope, anyway. I wasn't putting too much faith in it.
My stomach chose that moment to start growling, I blushed.
“I think it's time that we get you something to eat before we decide on what we're going to do today,” Edward smiled and helped me off the bed.
“Don't sound so damn cheerful about it!” I snapped back at him playfully. But it was true, we needed to figure out something to do, or else I'd probably bore him out of his mind.
Breakfast was quick; I just made myself some toast and then I quickly took a shower and got dressed. Since Edward was there, I decided to fish Alice's outfit out of the bottom of my bag and wear that instead of some of my more worn clothes that I'd left behind in Vancouver when I'd moved to Forks.
When I emerged from my room after everything was taken care of, Edward was leaning against the wall across from my room. I was confused about what he was up too, since he was fully dressed and cleaned up (but I'd expected that). He'd been like that when I'd stumbled out of the shower and into my room to get dressed. I was pretty sure that he already had a plan for today.
“So... what do you want to do ?” Since I figured he knew what he wanted to do, I'd go along with it. After all, I had no idea of what we could do.
“How about you just show me the city?”
Okay that I hadn't expected. “Sure, I guess. What do you want to see?”
I was sure that Edward had probably been to Vancouver before, since he wasn't fond of the sun because of what it did to his appearance, he'd had come here because of the rain and overcast weather. He'd already be familiar with most of the landmarks, so there'd be no point of my showing those to him. That didn't leave me with a lot of options.
“Anything that you'd like to show me.”
That was an incredibly open suggestion.
Eventually, I settled on just showing Edward a few of my favorite places in Vancouver. We left Carlisle's condo building (I still had the spare key), and wandered down to where my old high school was. Since it was July, it was obviously empty and no one was around. Nonetheless, Edward still seemed interested in seeing it, and he asked me about what going there had been like, what the students had been like, etc.
“No one really liked me; I was always on the fringe of the social scene,” I told him. “Girls didn't like me because I was smart and my appearance wasn't really all that appealing. A lot of the guys didn't think I was masculine enough, so they'd pick on me. But mostly, I was a huge target for the popular guys and girls to fling all sorts of names and mean stuff at, I got used to that after a while.”
“There weren't a lot of pleasant people?”
I shook my head as we walked away, “Not really. Like I said, I didn't have any real friends; just people that I hung out with in my spare time. I sent them a few emails when I first moved down to Forks, but none of them really were interested in continuing whatever the hell you'd call our relationships. Long distance things don't tend to work out very well.”
Edward nodded and let the subject drop, something that I was glad for.
We were walking down the street towards one of the beaches, one that happened to be my favorite. Even though it was lightly drizzling out, the two of us were only dressed in what we'd wear if it wasn't raining. I was wearing one of the hoodies that Alice had bought me, with the hood pulled up. I liked the rain, but I got cold easily so it was best if I stayed as dry as possible.
On the other hand, Edward was looking like a fashion model in a charcoal jacket which hugged his muscular frame well and brought the focus to his shoulders. Under that he was wearing just a plain black tee with a pair of straight dark jeans. Even though it was an extremely casual outfit, he made it seem like the height of black-tie dinner wear. There was no way that he could ever be less then perfect.
My cheeks were flushed when we got to the edge of the beach and I realized that several of the popular kids from my high school were there too. The rain had stopped by the time we got there, so I'd removed my hood when it came into sight.
The moment that I recognized Melissa and her hulking boyfriend Joe, I immediately thought about just turning around and leaving. But Edward's hand was around mine, and he was pulling me down onto the beach, anxious to see it.
I realized too late that because Edward couldn't read my mind, he wouldn't know that the two leaders of the group on the beach were the ones who were most responsible for making my time at high school here a living hell. The last thing that I wanted was to have to confront them here, because I knew that they'd recognize me easily and then the torment would start anew.
As we got closer, I could recognize the other two girls and the guy with Melissa and Joe. The bleached blond one was Zoey, and she always took joy in stealing other peoples boyfriends; especially if she felt that they'd be much better off with her. I'd seen the weeping girls whose boyfriends had been stolen by her, and I didn't want to go through her trying to get Edward away from me; even if I knew all too well that it would never happen.
The dark red haired girl was Jennifer, commonly known as Jen, and she delighted in just making fun of my appearance in general. She was the one who'd originally started circulating the rumours that I 'took it up the ass' from any guy that I happened to fancy or would do it with. That was complete bullshit because I'd never even had a boyfriend until I met Edward, and I hadn't even considered it either.
Victor was the only other guy in the group. Big, brawny, and stupid, Victor would listen to whatever Melissa or Joe told him to do. He was Joe's best friend, and it was pretty well known that he had a soft spot for Zoey; despite the fact that she never committed to him. I figured that one day she'd eventually get knocked up and would be forced to settle down; and that would be Victor's lucky day.
It was too late to turn back, because Melissa had looked up the moment we'd stepped onto the beach. She probably didn't recognize me until we were closer to the group, but I froze the moment I spotted that cruel smirk on her face. Without thinking, I ducked behind Edward, at which point he realized that something was definitely wrong with me.
“Jasper? Are you-”
“Well, well! If it isn't Jasper Hale back from exile!” Melissa's voice was about ten times worse then Lauren's. It was high and breathy, but also way too self-assured in tone. She loved to lord it over others that her father was extravagantly much wealthier then the rest of ours.
I was chewing my lip and trembling. My hands were tightened into white fists in Edward's jacket. I was terrified to move out from the safety of hiding behind him, but I knew that I'd have to move at some point if I wanted to keep Zoey's hands off my vampire.
Edward just seemed confused by all of this, but it didn't take him very long to clue into the situation. His mind-reading was a very handy little ability. It didn't take him too long to figure out that this was all going to go south very hard and very quickly. There was no easy or clean way out of this.
“The fag's back?” Joe.
Okay, that was really hitting beneath the belt! I could feel my temper start to swell inside of me, and I snapped at Joe for the first time ever.
“Fuck off,” I snapped at him, charging out from behind the sanctuary of Edward's back. I stood, shaking, in front of my very confused vampire. I don't think he'd ever seen me that angry before; in fact, I don't think that I'd ever felt like punching someone so much ever before.
Jen giggled, “Oh look, the little pussy has claws. Be careful with him!”
I flushed just a little, which didn't go unnoticed by any of them. All of them laughed when they realized that Jen's comment had gotten to me. These people had made my life hell and now they were going to continue with that pattern even if they no longer were at the same school as me and didn't even live in the same country.
The only one not laughing was Zoey, and that was because she was too busy checking out Edward, and I knew by the predatory look in her eye that she'd already decided that he was perfect for her. There was no way that she'd overlook someone like Edward, just because of how he looked, but also because stealing him away from me would hurt me so much. She was hoping to break my heart, just like she'd done to so many girls.
“Oh, the little pussy has a lion now?” Zoey practically purred. It didn't take a genius or an empath to know just how turned on she was.
“You're right Zoey!” Melissa was joining in now. Victor was the only one who hadn't spoken, but he hardly ever did. He just lurked in the background, the muscle of the group.
“Still whoring yourself out? You've actually landed a catch!” Melissa taunted. I could see the hunger in her eyes as she looked Edward over. “Is he paying you or is it the other way around?”
Zoey was already making her way over, swaying her hips in a manner that was meant to be seductive. She'd set her sights on Edward, and there was no way that she would give up easily, “You shouldn't waste your time on Jasper, gorgeous, he can't stay in one man's bed for too long before he gets bored. What you need is a real woman, not a boy who can't satisfy a man.”
I refused to let their cruel words get to me, but I could feel the tears welling up despite my control. They'd called me worse before, but it was usually something along the same lines. The reason that I hadn't really had any friends was because most of the guys had been convinced by Zoey's rumours that I'd sooner sleep with them and move onto the next one. It was a favourite of hers; she liked to make people believe that I whored myself out.
“He doesn't need a slut like you, Zoey, everyone knows that the reason you can't hold down a boyfriend is because you've already fucked everyone! What? Did the teachers get bored of you too?!” I was sinking down to their level but I didn't care. Already my raging anger and depression at their tormenting was getting to me and causing me to lash out harshly.
“You fucking WHORE!” Zoey's hand flew out, and I knew that Edward hadn't expected that or was trying to keep up the illusion that he was human, because her hand smacked me across the face. Hard. It didn't help that her nails were manicured and sharp, digging in and causing superficial scratches.
They still bled.
It wasn't so much the shock that she'd slapped me that caused me to fall down, more of the fact that she'd caused me to bleed and the knowledge that Edward desired my blood with a strength that was shocking. Would this set him off? I couldn't let him kill them, not even if they deserved it.
I didn't get much time to think over the matter, because before I could blink, Victor had pulled me up by my collar and was winding up for a punch that would probably dislocate my jaw or something. My eyes squeezed shut as I waited for the punch or Victor's death; whichever came first.
Surprisingly, there were no screams of pain and I wasn't suddenly dropped on my ass. As well, I didn't feel any fist connect with my face. I didn't open my eyes, afraid of what I'd see.
Edward's cold voice broke the silence, “That's quite enough.”
Now I opened my eyes, and was a little shocked. Edward hadn't killed anyone, which meant that he had more control over his blood lust then I thought he did, which made me feel horrible for my lack of faith in him. Furthermore, the reason that I hadn't been punched in the face was because Edward's hand was tightly wrapped around Victor's fist.
“I'm going to have to ask you to let go of my boyfriend or I am not going to be responsible for my actions.” It was the same tone of voice that he'd used against Mike that time in the parking lot where he'd punched him.
But unlike Mike, Victor seemed to understand that challenging Edward to a fight would be a stupid idea; even if Edward was two times less brawny then him. It was just that he emitted malice and danger so thickly that it wouldn't be a good idea. I didn't doubt that Edward would beat Victor to within an inch of life if he made one move to hurting me. Edward had already stood by when Zoey had slapped me, he wasn't about to let a punch to my face slide.
I was promptly dropped onto my ass back in the damp sand.
With one last dark glare, Edward released Victor's fist, and instead half-turned to me and extended his hand wordlessly. I took it and let him pull me back onto my feet and then I was tucked back behind him. Apparently, I wasn't going to be allowed to deal with this situation anymore because it had gotten beyond my control and all of them had taken too many steps over the line.
Just for the record, all of them looked like they were about to shit their pants from sheer terror. You do not piss off vampires, especially if you're going after their future mates. I made a note of it so I wouldn't make that mistake in the future.
“Hey, look we were just-”
“I do not need to hear any of your petty excuses,” Edward snapped. “I've already seen what your intent is, and calling Jasper any of the names which you just did is something that I won't stand for. Nor am I interested in any sexual advances that you might want from me.” He directed that last bit at Zoey, who winced but didn't back down.
She really was a stupid girl.
“Oh come on, you'd pick someone like HIM over me?”
“I don't know you, and after how you treated my boyfriend, I don't care to.”
Zoey turned all of her anger towards me, “You God damn fucking whore!”
I pressed myself against Edward's back, trying to hide from her fury and not let her words get to me. It didn't work. I was still crying. I knew that Edward could smell my tears, despite the fact that we were right beside the ocean, and that only set him off more.
“Say that again.”
None of them were stupid enough to do so. Edward's face was contorted into a violent snarl, and I knew that he was close to losing control of his anger and that I had to get him out of there before Zoey dug her grave even deeper.
I wrapped my arms around Edward's waist, “Come on Edward, let's go.”
“Fucking coward,” Joe hissed.
Edward's posture was stiff, “I believe that I'm sparing you a very painful stay in hospital, and I would much rather avoid being charged with assault. It would be much more intelligent of you to back off right now.”
“I think we can take you.” Joe and Victor cracked their knuckles in a gesture that was meant to be threatening, but I could already see the fear in their eyes. They wouldn't actually challenge Edward to a fight; not when he was giving off such a dangerous aura.
When it looked like Edward might just indulge them, I tugged on his waist, “Come one Edward, let's go; they're not worth it.”
My pleading won out in the end, and Edward turned away from them stiffly. His arm snaked around my waist possessively, and I could feel the muscles in his arm twitching at all of the restraint he was exerting over not just going back there and tearing them limb from limb.
We got away too easily, in my opinion, but I was glad that none of them decided to risk their lives further by insulting me or trying to goad Edward into a fight. I was willing to accept that one small blessing as I was led away from the beach and the shocked group of teenagers gathered there. Edward was pissed, which meant that I'd be the one who had to deal with trying to calm him down. Not that I really minded, but I was upset too which wouldn't help the situation at all.
Eventually, we stopped in an alley that was close to the beach. I wasn't surprised that we didn't just head back to the condo, but obviously Edward needed to calm down somewhere where he wasn't liable to breaking things that my dad would know weren't broken or damaged before.
I waited for him to break the silence.
.:-o-:. .:-o-:. .:-o-:.
Longest chapter yet for this series, and it's also probably got the worst ending too. I hate leaving you guys with cliff-hangers like this, so the moment that I finished this chapter, I immediately started working on the third one so that I could post them together as quickly as possible. Of course, I had to finish the fourth one as well before I could post either chapter.
So, um, if you're wondering about what that group of jerks was thinking, I'd rather not go into that cause it's some pretty nasty stuff. Trust me guys, you do not want to know and I seriously would rather not talk about it or bring it up again. Teens can be capable of a lot of things when they're jealous, and... well, it's just better if you don't know because I disturbed myself when I was writing this. Luckily, we won't hear from them again.
Other then that, enjoy your chapter and please leave a review telling me what you thought! Remember, suggestions and ideas are welcome!
Twilight.
Words: 7150 words
Disclaimer: The Twilight series is the property of Stephanie Meyer, who I am definitely not. Anything that isn't recognizable from the original series, though, is mine.
Chapter 2: The Meeting
Carlisle was easier to deal with then I remembered. Bree made it easier too, since Carlisle was very eager to spend much of his time with her instead of with me, and the two of them weren't home very often. There was still a lot of tension between me and Bree, and I doubted that it would ever iron over, but she wouldn't have to put up with me for too long.
The day that Edward was flying in, Carlisle and Bree were leaving on a lunch date followed by a movie. I'd told Carlisle that my 'boyfriend' would be arriving while he was out, and I got a staunch warning not to do anything inappropriate. With that warning echoing in my ears, I shut the door behind him, clicking the lock shut, then I turned back to the small condo.
I let out a heavy sigh, and then went about tidying everything up. Apparently if Bree wasn't around, Carlisle didn't see much point in putting things away or bothering to clean up after himself. Methodically, I went through his bedroom and mine, stripping the beds (which I realized hadn't been washed in a while), and chucking the dirty clothes into their respective hampers.
There was also that large stack of dishes which needed to be done, not to mention a dishwasher that needed to be emptied. I probably wouldn't get it all done before Edward arrived, but I wasn't too worried cause I'd just rope him into helping me. That wouldn't take too much effort, he'd helped me with this sort of thing before, back home in Forks. I knew that he didn't like it, but he helped because that got it done that much faster.
I tossed several of Carlisle's shirts in the general direction of the hamper I'd carted into his room, I didn't really care if they made it in or not, and I got down on my hands and knees to check under his bed. Somehow, things wound up shoved under there far too often.
The moment I pulled the skirt up, I immediately flew back into the dresser. Nope, I wasn't going back under there, even if there were dirty clothes that were desperately needed to be introduced to the washing machine. I wasn't going to risk my hands touching what I found, because really, there's only so much that a teenage boy could handle in terms of his father's dirty room.
No way I was going to be picking through the used condoms and condom wrappers that were under the bed. He could do that himself.
Quickly, I finished up with Carlisle's room, shoving the dirty clothes into the hamper and stacking the dirty dishes I found scattered about in neat piles on a corner of his dresser. I'd take them to the kitchen later, once I'd left the dirty clothes in the laundry room down the hall. The fact that Carlisle even had a laundry room in his condo was surprising, considering he hardly ever did any, and I wasn't surprised when I entered the small room to see that it had pretty much remained untouched since I'd left it months before.
There was already a load in the dryer, so I unloaded that and transferred it from the dryer into the empty hamper which was the ironing pile. I sort of wished that Alice was there, because she was amazing at ironing, she did it quickly and extremely well, something which I wasn't jealous of, per say, but it made my life easier.
Once I was finished that, I slammed the dryer door closed, and balanced the full hamper of dirty clothes on top of it. That left me with just sorting to do, and then I'd be pretty much busy for the entire afternoon doing chores around the condo so that it was more fit for human habitation. The rare times that Bree was over, some of the necessary chores got done, but more often then not, they weren't. My best guess was that I was being tested or something. Bree probably doubted what Carlisle had likely told her that I could do most of the domestic stuff myself.
Just as I was about to start sorting, a pair of cold hands settled on my hips, giving them a squeeze, and then there was a block of marble pressed against my back. Cold breath ghosted across my ear, and a voice that I'd know anywhere, whispered, “It's been a while.”
Edward's sudden appearance startled me, and I jumped before calming down. My heart, though, was still racing wildly in my chest. I smiled, “Oh shut up and admit you missed me.”
“Should I wax eloquently about how my life has been an empty and desolate place since you've been gone, about how I never want to be separated from you again?” His voice was soft, but I could hear the amusement in his voice; he was teasing me.
“Quit teasing me.” I swatted his hands away, and I was about to go back to what I was doing but he stopped me with one of his sudden movements that left me dizzy.
Edward had turned me around, picked me up, and sat me down on the dryer all in the amount of time that it took a person to blink. His hands were back on my hips, pulling me close, “I did miss you, you know. I think I got on Riley's nerves just a tad when we went hunting.”
I hadn't noticed that his eyes were a much warmer, light shade of gold; the shade that they always were after he'd gone hunting, “You went hunting before you came?”
“Of course, that's where I've been the past few days. I wasn't sure when the next time I would get to hunt would be, and I'll be hunting again before we leave for Romania, but I'll be fine until then, I promise.”
I wrapped my arms around his neck, “Good, because I know how much more difficult it is to be around me when you're thirsty. How is everyone else doing?”
“They're fine, and even if it's difficult, I'd still do it,” he replied, his lips close enough to mine so that they were nearly touching. “If I ever thought that you were in danger, I'd be there immediately, even if it was difficult for me to resist.”
Sliding my hands up, I cupped his face between my hands, “I don't want that though. I want it to be easier for you, and I'd kick your ass if you tried to avoid hunting because you were worried about me and whether or not I was safe.”
“I'd like to see you try.”
I rolled my eyes, “Quit making a fool of yourself Edward and kiss me.”
For once, he immediately complied, smiling just a little before he pressed his lips firmly to mine. The kiss was heated, hard, and passionate, but that was fine with me. It was a short-lived, but Edward only pulled back long enough for me to catch my breath before he leaned in for another kiss. This time, he pressed his lips softly to mine. This kiss was much slower, exploratory in nature, and it lasted much longer. It still left me breathless, though.
It took me a while to recover, but when I did, I grinned at him, pulling him close so our foreheads could touch, and muttered, “Carlisle said nothing naughty.”
“What he doesn't know can't hurt you,” Edward pressed his lips to my temple before he pulled away, smiling. “But that can wait, is there anything I can do to help you?”
“Uh yeah, actually. You can go empty the dishwasher and start a new load for me,” I replied. “If you use that vampire speed of yours, then I'm pretty sure we can get everything done before Carlisle and Bree get back from their date.”
“Putting me to work already?”
“I'm trying to domesticate you, you could at least try to feign that you're interested. But then, I know you're only really doing this because I'm asking it of you.”
“Haha, too true!”
.:-o-:. .:-o-:. .:-o-:.
I was right; with Edward's help, it took an afternoon to finish what would normally take me an entire day to do. All of the dishes were done and put away, and I'd just put the last load of laundry into the machine; all of the ironing was done and the clean clothes were put away. Edward was tucking the ironing board back into the utility closet, and I was putting the hamper back into Carlisle's closet, hoping that he'd take the hint to put his dirty clothes in there instead of on his floor.
When everything was back in its place, Edward found me coming out of Carlisle's room, and hoisted me over his shoulder. I hit his back, telling him as sternly as I could that he could put me the hell down, but he didn't listen to me and carried me into the family room.
He laid me down on the couch, climbing so that he was pinning to the couch, and kissed me senseless in the span of a few seconds. I felt his lips trail down my neck, pulling the scarf away from my neck as he did so.
I froze when he did that, and when I felt his lips touch the scar on the side of my neck, it only intensified that feeling of self-loathing and disgust which I held for myself because of it. When his fangs grazed over the mark, I shivered, wondering if he'd actually follow through with the promise he'd made to me on my birthday. I doubted he'd turn me right there, but I remembered what Bella had told me.
The one thing I wanted more then anything at that moment, other then being with him forever, was for that scar to disappear. If it was his fangs which sank into my flesh, then I'd be fine with that. I knew he wouldn't drink my blood, but just biting me would make that control of his would make it even more difficult. He'd said before that drinking human blood would make it impossible for him to go out into the sun for one or two years, and I couldn't do that to him.
Would giving my blood voluntarily change that? Or would the fact that we were mates make my blood exempt from that rule? I didn't know, and I wanted to know.
Edward didn't give me the time to ask, though, because suddenly he'd pulled me back up into a sitting position and was sitting beside me. With a few quick movements, he straightened out my clothing, covering the scar back up with my scarf; incidentally, it was the one that Riley had given me for my birthday.
I looked to Edward for an answer, he smirked.
“Your father is coming down the hall right now,” he explained. “He's rather giddy, I suppose you could say, from his date this afternoon.”
He pressed his lips to my cheek, and when he pulled back, I could hear the front door creak open. Carlisle was back.
I reached out and grabbed onto Edward's hand, squeezing it, the familiar feeling of nervousness settling into the pit of my stomach. This was how I'd felt, somewhat, when I'd first arrived in Vancouver and had to tell my dad that I was 'dating' another man. Only this time it wasn't as bad, because Edward was there and I didn't have to worry about dealing with this alone.
“Jasper?” I heard Carlisle call, the familiar clink of his keys hitting the decorative bowl where he kept them.
“I'm in here dad!”
When Carlisle came into the family room, I heard a sharp intake of breath, and then my father's slow footsteps. I wasn't sure what to do.
Luckily, Edward seemed to have a better idea of what to do (and he probably knew exactly what Carlisle wanted), because he pulled me up off the couch and back onto my feet. He kept his smile polite and pleasant while I tried to catch up to what was running through his head.
Carlisle cleared his throat, breaking me out of my thoughts and bring me back into the present moment. He was waiting for me to start the introductions.
“Um, dad, this is Edward Swan,” I began, not looking at either of them. I was blushing already. “Edward, this is my dad, Carlisle.”
On the other hand, Edward seemed to have no problem with the stress, but then he had the advantage of knowing exactly what my father was thinking. He gave Carlisle his most charming smile and held out his hand, “Hello doctor Whitlock, it's a pleasure to finally meet you.”
I think Carlisle was taken aback by just how polite Edward was, but he recovered quickly enough. He took Edward's hand in his and gave it a quick shake, before they dropped hands, “You can call me Carlisle, and it's very nice to meet you too, Edward. Jasper has told me so much about you.”
The smile on Edward's face grew, and I knew that he was hearing Carlisle's thoughts on the matter. I'd have to get him to spill it later, because the look in his eyes and his smile told me that my father's thoughts were very entertaining. I think Edward liked my father, but I couldn't really be sure until I actually had the chance to ask him, which wouldn't happen until the two of us were alone.
When the three of us sat back down on the couch, with me smushed in the middle between the two of them. Edward was careful with the contact he kept with me, only holding my hand and making sure that our entwined hands were between us and not resting on either my thigh or his. Carlisle's eyes carefully scrutinized us, even though it looked like he was paying attention to the TV.
He wasn't being very subtle about it.
“So, Edward,” Carlisle began when the silence started to get too uncomfortable. “You don't seem like the kind of person who'd live in Forks.”
Edward shrugged, “I've never complained about it, I like the town. Alice's only complaint is that it's such a long drive to Seattle, but she loves Forks too. It's a place that all of us love.”
“Hmph.” I knew that Carlisle hated Forks, it was just in his nature. I could remember his rants on the subject to Esme about the place being a boring town where the social life was fuelled by the gossip mill. His negative view on the town was the reason for why he refused to return to the small town, and also why he was so surprised that I actually liked it.
Being in the same room with Edward and Carlisle was a nightmare and also incredibly awkward. You could cut the the air with a knife, it was so stiff with tension. I was extremely glad when the evening was over and it was time for bed. Carlisle's threat before bed was that if he caught Edward in my room at all during the night he'd castrate him kept us separate.
His lips pressed against my temple, waking me up almost immediately. It helped when he whispered, “Are you awake?”
“Am now,” I grumbled out, still half-asleep. Turning over, I wrapped my arms around his neck and pulled him down beside me, snuggling close to his side; the light from the sun was only creeping through my window. It was far too early to be getting up, much less awake. But I was glad for Edward's company.
“Carlisle left for an emergency shift at the hospital a few minutes ago,” Edward's voice was low, and was lulling me back to sleep, but I was still awake enough to make sense of what he was saying. “Then he has his own shift today, so he won't be back until late tonight.”
“Mhm... that's good...” My arms tightened around his waist, pulling him closer and maneuvering myself so that I was using his chest as a pillow. I'd be freezing when I actually woke up in a few hours, but I'd take that if it meant that I got to be close to him while I slept.
“You'll be cold when you wake up.”
I mumbled something unintelligent, and drifted back to sleep very quickly.
.:-o-:. .:-o-:. .:-o-:.
Several hours later, I woke up properly. I wasn't as cold as I usually was when I slept using Edward as a pillow, but I wasn't about to complain. I could feel one of his arms was wrapped around my shoulders, holding me close to his chest. I sighed and curled closer. Sure I was hungry, but I could wait to eat for a few more minutes since it meant more to me to spend time with Edward then to waste it with my stupid human needs. Or at least, for a while.
“Are you actually awake now?” Edward's voice broke the peaceful quiet.
“Yeah, but I don't wanna get up just yet.”
“Well, let me know when you want to actually get up for breakfast.” He dropped a kiss to the top of my head, arm tightening around my shoulders.
I used the time to think about how my visit with Carlisle was going, and I felt just a little guilty that this might be the last time that I'd spend with him with me still being human. While Edward had promised that he'd turn me after I graduated from high school, he hadn't actually specified when. I could still have a chance to see Carlisle one last time before I had to say goodbye, but it made me feel a little upset that I'd be this selfish to hurt my father that way.
But then again, I though, I associated with vampires. That meant that anyone close to me in danger, because for as long as I stayed human, the more curious other vampires would be. Maria and her coven had been interested in me (well, more like just Maria), because the presence of the Swan family convinced her that there had to be something special about me for the Swan coven to be spending so much time with me. Any of my family or friends could be put in danger if those vampires ever wanted to go after me. The sooner I was turned, the safer my remaining family would be.
Thinking about my family, reminded me about Carlisle's warning that Edward and I were not allowed to get up to anything inappropriate while he was out of the house. Even though I was legally an adult, it was still his house, which meant that we had to follow his rules.
I blushed when I realized just where my mind was headed, and shoved those thoughts aside. I wasn't going to think about that until we weren't in Vancouver anymore. Maybe I could broach the subject when it was just Edward and I in Romania. He had, after all, promised that the rest of the summer would be just the two of us.
Thinking about that made me smile.
“What are you smiling about?” Edward's voice was pleasant. He was curious.
“Well, first off, I still can't believe that your father would ever have something custom built for us; that's a little hard to swallow.”
“Technically speaking, he had it planned and constructed several years ago. He's just been waiting until I found that special someone for him to finally give it to me. You just came along at the perfect time; he wasn't sure how much longer he could wait.”
I nodded against his chest, “The fact that it's mine too is a little hard to deal with; I'm barely eighteen, and now I have a house of my own, and it's in another country! It's just a lot that I have to come to terms with at once.”
“I can understand that. What else is on your mind?”
“The fact that it's just going to be you and me,” I replied. “We haven't spent that much time together, alone, yet and I'm a little nervous about just what it is that we're going to do to occupy the time. I mean, there's sight-seeing, sure, but we can't do that for the entire time that we're there. And then there's a problem that you'll have to face that I won't be able to help you with.”
“Which is?”
“Hunting. How are you going to hunt without having to worry about whether or not I'm safe? You've said before that I'm not allowed to go with you because of how you rely on your instincts when you hunt...”
“I'm surprised that you've been thinking about this so much,” Edward was definitely amused that I'd been thinking about this so much, but I could feel him tense beneath me, and I knew that he was concerned about leaving me along too.
Now that I'd brought the subject up, Edward was putting much more thought into it then he usually did. He was probably making all sorts of plans that he'd propose to Charlie later, some of them completely outrageous and that I'd be pissed at him for later. I knew that all he wanted was to keep me safe, but sometimes Edward went a little overboard.
“I'll talk it over with Charlie later.” Edward nodded, his mind made up. “We'll figure something out, don't worry about that.”
“I don't like inconveniencing your family just because you're worried about my safety,” I muttered. “I feel like I'm just putting all of you in more danger then you already are. You don't know how much it sucks to be the only human surrounded by a bunch of a vampires.”
He smiled, sitting up and pulling me into his lap. His arms wrapped around me in a comforting gesture, “Don't feel so guilty about this; you know that all of them would do anything to keep you safe. You're part of our family now too.”
I winced when he said that. There was a member of his family who didn't like me, at all. Rosalie.
“Rosalie doesn't like me. She'd rather see me die then have to sacrifice herself or her husband for my safety.” It hurt to admit that, but I knew that it was the truth. Even though Riley had openly admitted to me that he already did think of me as a brother (a little one that needed to be protected), he'd had no luck with convincing his wife of the same. Rosalie tended to avoid me, and when we were forced into the same room together, she'd pretend that I didn't even exist.
“That's not completely true. Rosalie just has... more difficulties accepting our relationship then the others.” That was all Edward would tell me on the subject of his temperamental and devastatingly gorgeous adoptive vampire sister. I'd given up on hoping that I'd ever know more about her.
Even I recognized a lost cause when I saw one. I'd just have to deal with the fact that Rosalie and I didn't get along, though I still hoped that just maybe I could repair my relationship with her when I wasn't a constant weak point to her family. If I wasn't always the reason for why her husband and family was putting their lives on the line, then maybe I'd be able to get along with her better. That was my hope, anyway. I wasn't putting too much faith in it.
My stomach chose that moment to start growling, I blushed.
“I think it's time that we get you something to eat before we decide on what we're going to do today,” Edward smiled and helped me off the bed.
“Don't sound so damn cheerful about it!” I snapped back at him playfully. But it was true, we needed to figure out something to do, or else I'd probably bore him out of his mind.
Breakfast was quick; I just made myself some toast and then I quickly took a shower and got dressed. Since Edward was there, I decided to fish Alice's outfit out of the bottom of my bag and wear that instead of some of my more worn clothes that I'd left behind in Vancouver when I'd moved to Forks.
When I emerged from my room after everything was taken care of, Edward was leaning against the wall across from my room. I was confused about what he was up too, since he was fully dressed and cleaned up (but I'd expected that). He'd been like that when I'd stumbled out of the shower and into my room to get dressed. I was pretty sure that he already had a plan for today.
“So... what do you want to do ?” Since I figured he knew what he wanted to do, I'd go along with it. After all, I had no idea of what we could do.
“How about you just show me the city?”
Okay that I hadn't expected. “Sure, I guess. What do you want to see?”
I was sure that Edward had probably been to Vancouver before, since he wasn't fond of the sun because of what it did to his appearance, he'd had come here because of the rain and overcast weather. He'd already be familiar with most of the landmarks, so there'd be no point of my showing those to him. That didn't leave me with a lot of options.
“Anything that you'd like to show me.”
That was an incredibly open suggestion.
Eventually, I settled on just showing Edward a few of my favorite places in Vancouver. We left Carlisle's condo building (I still had the spare key), and wandered down to where my old high school was. Since it was July, it was obviously empty and no one was around. Nonetheless, Edward still seemed interested in seeing it, and he asked me about what going there had been like, what the students had been like, etc.
“No one really liked me; I was always on the fringe of the social scene,” I told him. “Girls didn't like me because I was smart and my appearance wasn't really all that appealing. A lot of the guys didn't think I was masculine enough, so they'd pick on me. But mostly, I was a huge target for the popular guys and girls to fling all sorts of names and mean stuff at, I got used to that after a while.”
“There weren't a lot of pleasant people?”
I shook my head as we walked away, “Not really. Like I said, I didn't have any real friends; just people that I hung out with in my spare time. I sent them a few emails when I first moved down to Forks, but none of them really were interested in continuing whatever the hell you'd call our relationships. Long distance things don't tend to work out very well.”
Edward nodded and let the subject drop, something that I was glad for.
We were walking down the street towards one of the beaches, one that happened to be my favorite. Even though it was lightly drizzling out, the two of us were only dressed in what we'd wear if it wasn't raining. I was wearing one of the hoodies that Alice had bought me, with the hood pulled up. I liked the rain, but I got cold easily so it was best if I stayed as dry as possible.
On the other hand, Edward was looking like a fashion model in a charcoal jacket which hugged his muscular frame well and brought the focus to his shoulders. Under that he was wearing just a plain black tee with a pair of straight dark jeans. Even though it was an extremely casual outfit, he made it seem like the height of black-tie dinner wear. There was no way that he could ever be less then perfect.
My cheeks were flushed when we got to the edge of the beach and I realized that several of the popular kids from my high school were there too. The rain had stopped by the time we got there, so I'd removed my hood when it came into sight.
The moment that I recognized Melissa and her hulking boyfriend Joe, I immediately thought about just turning around and leaving. But Edward's hand was around mine, and he was pulling me down onto the beach, anxious to see it.
I realized too late that because Edward couldn't read my mind, he wouldn't know that the two leaders of the group on the beach were the ones who were most responsible for making my time at high school here a living hell. The last thing that I wanted was to have to confront them here, because I knew that they'd recognize me easily and then the torment would start anew.
As we got closer, I could recognize the other two girls and the guy with Melissa and Joe. The bleached blond one was Zoey, and she always took joy in stealing other peoples boyfriends; especially if she felt that they'd be much better off with her. I'd seen the weeping girls whose boyfriends had been stolen by her, and I didn't want to go through her trying to get Edward away from me; even if I knew all too well that it would never happen.
The dark red haired girl was Jennifer, commonly known as Jen, and she delighted in just making fun of my appearance in general. She was the one who'd originally started circulating the rumours that I 'took it up the ass' from any guy that I happened to fancy or would do it with. That was complete bullshit because I'd never even had a boyfriend until I met Edward, and I hadn't even considered it either.
Victor was the only other guy in the group. Big, brawny, and stupid, Victor would listen to whatever Melissa or Joe told him to do. He was Joe's best friend, and it was pretty well known that he had a soft spot for Zoey; despite the fact that she never committed to him. I figured that one day she'd eventually get knocked up and would be forced to settle down; and that would be Victor's lucky day.
It was too late to turn back, because Melissa had looked up the moment we'd stepped onto the beach. She probably didn't recognize me until we were closer to the group, but I froze the moment I spotted that cruel smirk on her face. Without thinking, I ducked behind Edward, at which point he realized that something was definitely wrong with me.
“Jasper? Are you-”
“Well, well! If it isn't Jasper Hale back from exile!” Melissa's voice was about ten times worse then Lauren's. It was high and breathy, but also way too self-assured in tone. She loved to lord it over others that her father was extravagantly much wealthier then the rest of ours.
I was chewing my lip and trembling. My hands were tightened into white fists in Edward's jacket. I was terrified to move out from the safety of hiding behind him, but I knew that I'd have to move at some point if I wanted to keep Zoey's hands off my vampire.
Edward just seemed confused by all of this, but it didn't take him very long to clue into the situation. His mind-reading was a very handy little ability. It didn't take him too long to figure out that this was all going to go south very hard and very quickly. There was no easy or clean way out of this.
“The fag's back?” Joe.
Okay, that was really hitting beneath the belt! I could feel my temper start to swell inside of me, and I snapped at Joe for the first time ever.
“Fuck off,” I snapped at him, charging out from behind the sanctuary of Edward's back. I stood, shaking, in front of my very confused vampire. I don't think he'd ever seen me that angry before; in fact, I don't think that I'd ever felt like punching someone so much ever before.
Jen giggled, “Oh look, the little pussy has claws. Be careful with him!”
I flushed just a little, which didn't go unnoticed by any of them. All of them laughed when they realized that Jen's comment had gotten to me. These people had made my life hell and now they were going to continue with that pattern even if they no longer were at the same school as me and didn't even live in the same country.
The only one not laughing was Zoey, and that was because she was too busy checking out Edward, and I knew by the predatory look in her eye that she'd already decided that he was perfect for her. There was no way that she'd overlook someone like Edward, just because of how he looked, but also because stealing him away from me would hurt me so much. She was hoping to break my heart, just like she'd done to so many girls.
“Oh, the little pussy has a lion now?” Zoey practically purred. It didn't take a genius or an empath to know just how turned on she was.
“You're right Zoey!” Melissa was joining in now. Victor was the only one who hadn't spoken, but he hardly ever did. He just lurked in the background, the muscle of the group.
“Still whoring yourself out? You've actually landed a catch!” Melissa taunted. I could see the hunger in her eyes as she looked Edward over. “Is he paying you or is it the other way around?”
Zoey was already making her way over, swaying her hips in a manner that was meant to be seductive. She'd set her sights on Edward, and there was no way that she would give up easily, “You shouldn't waste your time on Jasper, gorgeous, he can't stay in one man's bed for too long before he gets bored. What you need is a real woman, not a boy who can't satisfy a man.”
I refused to let their cruel words get to me, but I could feel the tears welling up despite my control. They'd called me worse before, but it was usually something along the same lines. The reason that I hadn't really had any friends was because most of the guys had been convinced by Zoey's rumours that I'd sooner sleep with them and move onto the next one. It was a favourite of hers; she liked to make people believe that I whored myself out.
“He doesn't need a slut like you, Zoey, everyone knows that the reason you can't hold down a boyfriend is because you've already fucked everyone! What? Did the teachers get bored of you too?!” I was sinking down to their level but I didn't care. Already my raging anger and depression at their tormenting was getting to me and causing me to lash out harshly.
“You fucking WHORE!” Zoey's hand flew out, and I knew that Edward hadn't expected that or was trying to keep up the illusion that he was human, because her hand smacked me across the face. Hard. It didn't help that her nails were manicured and sharp, digging in and causing superficial scratches.
They still bled.
It wasn't so much the shock that she'd slapped me that caused me to fall down, more of the fact that she'd caused me to bleed and the knowledge that Edward desired my blood with a strength that was shocking. Would this set him off? I couldn't let him kill them, not even if they deserved it.
I didn't get much time to think over the matter, because before I could blink, Victor had pulled me up by my collar and was winding up for a punch that would probably dislocate my jaw or something. My eyes squeezed shut as I waited for the punch or Victor's death; whichever came first.
Surprisingly, there were no screams of pain and I wasn't suddenly dropped on my ass. As well, I didn't feel any fist connect with my face. I didn't open my eyes, afraid of what I'd see.
Edward's cold voice broke the silence, “That's quite enough.”
Now I opened my eyes, and was a little shocked. Edward hadn't killed anyone, which meant that he had more control over his blood lust then I thought he did, which made me feel horrible for my lack of faith in him. Furthermore, the reason that I hadn't been punched in the face was because Edward's hand was tightly wrapped around Victor's fist.
“I'm going to have to ask you to let go of my boyfriend or I am not going to be responsible for my actions.” It was the same tone of voice that he'd used against Mike that time in the parking lot where he'd punched him.
But unlike Mike, Victor seemed to understand that challenging Edward to a fight would be a stupid idea; even if Edward was two times less brawny then him. It was just that he emitted malice and danger so thickly that it wouldn't be a good idea. I didn't doubt that Edward would beat Victor to within an inch of life if he made one move to hurting me. Edward had already stood by when Zoey had slapped me, he wasn't about to let a punch to my face slide.
I was promptly dropped onto my ass back in the damp sand.
With one last dark glare, Edward released Victor's fist, and instead half-turned to me and extended his hand wordlessly. I took it and let him pull me back onto my feet and then I was tucked back behind him. Apparently, I wasn't going to be allowed to deal with this situation anymore because it had gotten beyond my control and all of them had taken too many steps over the line.
Just for the record, all of them looked like they were about to shit their pants from sheer terror. You do not piss off vampires, especially if you're going after their future mates. I made a note of it so I wouldn't make that mistake in the future.
“Hey, look we were just-”
“I do not need to hear any of your petty excuses,” Edward snapped. “I've already seen what your intent is, and calling Jasper any of the names which you just did is something that I won't stand for. Nor am I interested in any sexual advances that you might want from me.” He directed that last bit at Zoey, who winced but didn't back down.
She really was a stupid girl.
“Oh come on, you'd pick someone like HIM over me?”
“I don't know you, and after how you treated my boyfriend, I don't care to.”
Zoey turned all of her anger towards me, “You God damn fucking whore!”
I pressed myself against Edward's back, trying to hide from her fury and not let her words get to me. It didn't work. I was still crying. I knew that Edward could smell my tears, despite the fact that we were right beside the ocean, and that only set him off more.
“Say that again.”
None of them were stupid enough to do so. Edward's face was contorted into a violent snarl, and I knew that he was close to losing control of his anger and that I had to get him out of there before Zoey dug her grave even deeper.
I wrapped my arms around Edward's waist, “Come on Edward, let's go.”
“Fucking coward,” Joe hissed.
Edward's posture was stiff, “I believe that I'm sparing you a very painful stay in hospital, and I would much rather avoid being charged with assault. It would be much more intelligent of you to back off right now.”
“I think we can take you.” Joe and Victor cracked their knuckles in a gesture that was meant to be threatening, but I could already see the fear in their eyes. They wouldn't actually challenge Edward to a fight; not when he was giving off such a dangerous aura.
When it looked like Edward might just indulge them, I tugged on his waist, “Come one Edward, let's go; they're not worth it.”
My pleading won out in the end, and Edward turned away from them stiffly. His arm snaked around my waist possessively, and I could feel the muscles in his arm twitching at all of the restraint he was exerting over not just going back there and tearing them limb from limb.
We got away too easily, in my opinion, but I was glad that none of them decided to risk their lives further by insulting me or trying to goad Edward into a fight. I was willing to accept that one small blessing as I was led away from the beach and the shocked group of teenagers gathered there. Edward was pissed, which meant that I'd be the one who had to deal with trying to calm him down. Not that I really minded, but I was upset too which wouldn't help the situation at all.
Eventually, we stopped in an alley that was close to the beach. I wasn't surprised that we didn't just head back to the condo, but obviously Edward needed to calm down somewhere where he wasn't liable to breaking things that my dad would know weren't broken or damaged before.
I waited for him to break the silence.
.:-o-:. .:-o-:. .:-o-:.
Longest chapter yet for this series, and it's also probably got the worst ending too. I hate leaving you guys with cliff-hangers like this, so the moment that I finished this chapter, I immediately started working on the third one so that I could post them together as quickly as possible. Of course, I had to finish the fourth one as well before I could post either chapter.
So, um, if you're wondering about what that group of jerks was thinking, I'd rather not go into that cause it's some pretty nasty stuff. Trust me guys, you do not want to know and I seriously would rather not talk about it or bring it up again. Teens can be capable of a lot of things when they're jealous, and... well, it's just better if you don't know because I disturbed myself when I was writing this. Luckily, we won't hear from them again.
Other then that, enjoy your chapter and please leave a review telling me what you thought! Remember, suggestions and ideas are welcome!
Twilight.