The screaming ceased when Vanitas saw a tear trickle down her cheek.
All his anger, all his fury faded upon seeing the one thing he never expected to see from her. He unclenched his fists and pulled back from his offensive stance, shock now painting his face.
"Jasmine…" He whispered her name softly and ran a hand through his messy, black spiked locks.
Jasmine's jaw was tight, her cheeks now red with anger and frustration clear in her vivid eyes. She crossed her arms over her chest and looked around at the mess they made. The sofa cushions in their shared apartment were scattered on the floor and the chairs at their kitchen table had toppled over. On the kitchen floor lay the shattered remains of a large glass tray that spread from one end of the kitchen all the way to the entryway. Their dorm apartment, their living space, the home they made together and shared for two years now was in ruin.
She turned her back on him, her jet black braided hair whipping over her shoulder. Stiffly, she wiped her vivid hazel eyes and then turned back around to face him. Her tanned cheeks were now returning to their originally color and the red was slowly fading.
Instead of hurt and heartbreak, Jasmine's eyes narrowed sharply and now reflected a hardness unlike anything Vanitas had ever seen before.
"Is this really what you think of me? Is that really what you believe?" She scoffed. "That I'd cheat on you?"
"…" Vanitas was silent. In that instant he knew that he was wrong about everything.
Dead wrong.
Huffing, she made her way to their bedroom and reappeared a few minutes later while Vanitas remained in the same spot. Jasmine carried with her a backpack and an oversized hooded sweatshirt. She looked up for a second, noting that Vanitas hadn't moved an inch, then shook her head.
"Where are you going?" He asked, his voice now devoid of all emotion. Lowering his gaze to the carpet, he balled his fists again until his knuckles turned white.
Jasmine licked her lips and then slipped the hoodie over her head. "Take a wild guess," she snapped. "I could be going back home with my godmother. I could be going to visit Naminé." Jasmine pocketed her cell phone and reached for her car keys. Grabbing the backpack and carrying it over one shoulder, she brushed past Vanitas but stopped when they were shoulder to shoulder. "Or I could be off cheating. I don't know," she trailed off. "You pick."
She headed for the door and Vanitas reached for her wrist. Jasmine quickly snatched away from him and continued on her way, missing the flicker of pain in Vanitas' eyes.
Jasmine stormed out of the apartment and slammed the door behind her. She ran down the steps and when she reached the bottom, she glanced back up at her "home" and wiped another tear from her eye.
Vanitas heard the engine of Jasmine's car rev up and he held his breath, secretly hoping that she would stop. However, he heard the sound of screeching tires and knew that she was long gone.
Exhaling deeply, Vanitas looked at the wreck that was his and Jasmine's shared apartment. Sparing no time, he immediately went to work on cleaning the mess starting with setting the chairs upright.
Clenching Jasmine's usual seat across from his, he went over the event in his head like it were a movie.
"You're being ridiculous!" Jasmine shouted, jumping out of her chair and throwing it back. "What makes you think that I'm out there cheating on you?"
Vanitas rose up and his seat too toppled over. His blazing amber eyes were fixed on her with rage. "I know the way Seifer looks at you!" He fired back. "You're always out and you sneak around here like you have something to hide. Who the hell do you think you're talking to?"
Vanitas rearranged the sofa cushions, setting everything in place to give off the appearance that nothing out of the ordinary had happened. But Vanitas knew that no amount of cleaning and denial would make the event going away. There was no taking that ugly incident back, no matter how much Vanitas wished to erase it from existence.
Making his way into the kitchen, he grabbed a pair of flip flops he had nearby and slipped them on to prevent himself from cutting his feet.
He grabbed the trashcan and crouched down on his knees, picking up the pieces of a shattered glass tray that usually always full of white chocolate, macadamia cookies – Vanitas' favorite treat that Jasmine used to always bake for him every Wednesday when she got off from work.
Vanitas' movements slowed as he recalled the very first time he walked into the apartment and caught a whiff of the sweet, familiar scent.
She appeared from behind the stove and stood up, a bright smile on her face.
Vanitas stared at her curiously, a stoic expression on his face like always. "Didn't you JUST get off work an hour ago?" He locked the door behind him and dropped his backpack in the entryway. Vanitas walked forward and set his mountain of textbooks atop the dining room table near the living room setup.
Jasmine smiled and pulled a sheet from the oven, producing two dozen white chocolate macadamia nut cookies. "Yeah, but I figured you'd want something to get you through the night. You have an exam tomorrow afternoon."
Vanitas stood behind Jasmine and rested his chin on top of her shoulder. "Can I have one now?"
"Nope," Jasmine answered, setting the pan on top of the stove. "They need to cool first."
Vanitas frowned. "You're just being mean."
Jasmine walked away and began cleaning up the kitchen. She opened the refrigerator and slipped the flour back inside. "You're right," she drawled out sarcastically. "I'm just being mean. You can eat one."
Wasting no time, Vanitas reached forward and attempted to pick up the largest cookie in the batch but as soon as his finger accidentally touched the still hot tray, he swore loudly and jumped back. He had just burned his index finger. When he finally realized that Jasmine was staring at him (most likely with an all-knowing smirk on her face) he pouted and turned his back to her.
"Shut up," he called out, already knowing what she was thinking.
"I'll skip the "I told you so" today." Jasmine shut the refrigerator door and grabbed a napkin, easily picking up the cookie he reached for then handing it to Vanitas. Once he took it with his other hand, he sneered at the treat.
"I don't want it anymore," he pouted.
"Yes you do," she replied almost instantly. "Now, let me see." Jasmine took Vanitas' free hand and stared at the burn. "It's a small one. Don't be such a baby."
Vanitas rolled his eyes before staring at the cookie with contempt. "Still your fault."
"You didn't want to listen," Jasmine pulled him over to the sink and ran the cold water, placing his finger directly under the stream. Vanitas winced slightly and Jasmine laughed.
"What's so funny?" Vanitas demanded.
Jasmine shut off the water and continued to hold onto his hand. "For someone who likes to come off as a hard ass ninety percent of the time, you sure are a softie."
"Am not," he argued. Jasmine carefully tapped the tip of his index and he winced again. "Don't do that!"
"Are too," she teased. "But it's okay."
"Huh, how so?" He asked, a little flustered over the fact that he was genuinely bothered by the burn.
Jasmine stared at the cookie in Vanitas' hand. "Because you're acting human, that's why it's okay. You don't have to go around all the time emitting this dark aura of "don't screw with me or I'll chop your head off". Remember? We used to fight all the time when we first met because of that fact."
"That's true," Vanitas mumbled. "I'm still a little shocked."
"About what?"
Vanitas hesitated at first, his gaze shifting to the floor. "That you picked me," he answered, setting the cookie down on the countertop.
Jasmine immediately latched her arms around Vanitas' midsection and pulled him tightly into an embrace, resting her head against his chest. Vanitas initially flinched at the action and stared at Jasmine with a wide-eyed, startled expression on his face. Then eventually, as he began to feel Jasmine's warmth, he relaxed and wrapped his arms around her, pulling her even closer to him.
"I'm happy, Vanitas. Otherwise I wouldn't be here now. I love you. You know that."
Vanitas said nothing. His hold on Jasmine lessened and he leaned back, staring into her gorgeous hazel/gold eyes. Without saying a word, Vanitas pulled Jasmine's hair out of her face and gently kissed her forehead. He watched her cheeks flush with red at the intimate action before pulling her back into his arms where she belonged.
Vanitas finished cleaning up the glass when his cell phone rang. He ran to the living room and snatched the phone off the chair, hoping that it was Jasmine calling him. His disappointment was clear when the number that reached him was not Jasmine's, but he answered the call anyway.
"What is it, Ventus?" Vanitas asked crossly.
"Well hello to you too," the blond replied back cheerfully. "I know you're usually a grump but sheesh! What are you up to? A few of us were going to go to the movies and wanted to know if you and Jasmine wanted to come."
At the mention of Jasmine's name, Vanitas sighed. He took a seat on the sofa and rubbed his forehead.
"Uh oh," Ventus' cheer immediately vanished. "What happened?"
"How do you know anything happened?" Vanitas asked distantly.
"Come on, Vanitas," Ventus sighed. "We've been friends since we were kids. I know when something is wrong."
Vanitas swore under his breath. He should have known better. Ventus, while he was the seemingly carefree wild one in their group of friends, was extremely perceptive…especially when it came to Vanitas. As he already mentioned, the two had been friends since childhood and no one knew Vanitas as well as Ventus did. He should have realized that Ventus would know something was wrong the minute he opened his mouth.
"Jasmine and I won't be going out with you guys. She's not even here right now."
"Huh?" Ventus was perplexed. The couple had always spent Wednesday nights together. "Well where is she?"
Vanitas shrugged his shoulders. "My guess is with Naminé. We had a fight."
Ventus was quiet for a bit. He didn't like the tone of Vanitas' voice. "I'll be over there in a few minutes," he decided.
"Ven, you don't need – "But before Vanitas could protest Ventus hung up the phone. All of them lived in the apartments connected to the university and Ventus lived up the block from him and Jasmine. Knowing Ventus, he would probably be there faster than Vanitas could reach the door.
Just as well.
Vanitas hung his head in shame.
He wasn't much in the mood for being alone in the apartment now. Everywhere Vanitas looked reminded him of his fight with Jasmine. At least with Ventus there Vanitas could tune out the voices and get a sense of what just happened as well as figure out what the next steps were to fixing this mess.
If it could be fixed at all…
Author's Note: Hey you guys! So yeah I know I've been slacking severely on my stories as of late. With work, school, birthdays (btw thanks everyone for the PMs and birthday wishes) it's been stressful. However I'm happy to say that I'm on vacation and aside from work I'm free to work on my stories. I hope to get "Sins and an Absolution" done by the new year so fingers crossed!
This is something I've been working on for months. Unlike "Perfect Blue" which was done mostly because of real life personal experiences, this one doesn't tether too much to any of those. I've been on a huge Vanitas/Jasmine kick lately and I wanted to explore their relationship. Now, I've finally got the heart of the story's end down I have a concrete, full grasp of Jasmine and Vanitas.
I won't spoil anything, nor will this story as it is a complete AU within the "Heartbreakers" universe but those of you who have an inkling of Jasmine and Vanitas' story might see a slight parallel.
In any case, this story will be short like "Perfect Blue" but I'm shooting for three chapters maximum. Please, let me know what you guys think and look out for new updates soon. Take care!