Hunger.

Summary. . . . . . . . . A short drabble set just before Jasper met Alice.

Disclaimer. . . . . . . . Wish they were mine, but I am just a child in Stephenie Meyer's playground.

A.N. . . . . . . . . Thank you so much for taking time out to read this. JP.

He quickly closed the thread bare curtains, the tattered cloth sheets barely meeting in the middle and doing little to keep out the mid day sun. He staggered almost drunkenly across the room and crawled upon the bed, feeling the rough sheets beneath his fingertips as he moved towards the head and the thin pillow that lay there. He closed his eyes as dizziness assaulted him, and buried his face deeply within the musty smelling confines, anything to try and keep the glaring light from battering his eyes.

He groaned as smells from the diner across the way, drifted through the gap in the window that refused to close fully, his insides growling with hunger, and his lips salivating with venom at the thought of just a tiny morsel of that food in his mouth. He pushed his face even further into the pillow, until the air grew thick and hot, and the must and stale sweat odours coated his nostrils, but he refused to move for fear of the sweet smell of children, or the more mature aroma of the adults, their heartbeats loud within his ears.

He willed his mind to shut down, to turn off, the only thing that eased the discomfort, to pass away the rest of the day in a deep oblivion where he felt nothing, but he knew from past experiences, oblivion would not come to him that easily. He needed to go hunting, but he had done so yesterday, and had been sloppy whilst doing so, his mind drifting, not paying attention to his surroundings and almost getting caught in the act, having to leave his meal half eaten, and creating new horrific headlines for the perusers of the morning papers.

He should have left last night, but he was confused, and scared, and hungry, so he had chosen instead to lay low, a decision he was now regretting. He turned and pulled the pillow over his head, growling deeply into it as footsteps grew closer, and a beating heart pounded like a bass drum, and her smell hit his nose with a thick heady bouquet. He could tell it was a she, could hear the faint pitter patter of the tiny life form within her.

He could just pull her into his room, drain her right here on the floor, enjoy what he had heard was the best tasting blood there was. His feet had moved before he even realized what he was doing, his hand reaching for the door knob, turning it slightly, readying himself to pounce. He found though that he couldn't, found himself assaulted by a wave of pure happiness, and such tender love. He slid down the door to the floor, burying his head into his knees, his trembling hands hugging around his legs, pulling him into the tightest ball possible.

He must have shut down, must have been able to relax, because when he next looked around the room the mid day sun was gone, replaced by darkness created from the storm clouds outside. He looked at his watch, only to find it was only four o clock, still too early for hunting, but at least he could venture outside now, walk around the town and pass away some hours. He slipped on his coat, and checked his eyes in the small bathroom mirror, they would pass. Picking up his room key he slipped outside, striding effortlessly through the motels car park, and quickly across the street, once there though he didn't know where to go. He stood there in the rain, until stares from passing humans told him he should move, but where?

He thought about heading out into the woods, to prepare for the hunt to come, but he found his hunger lessening as a different hunger overtook him and the pull to enter the diner grew, a hunger for hope. He turned away from yet more stares, and moved to open the door, a tinkling bell ringing out as he pushed the wooden frame open, as at the same time a tinkling voice sang to him from inside. "You kept me waiting a long time."

A.N. . . . . . . . . . Just a short one shot, I hope that you enjoyed it. If anyone has any requests or suggestions for a story based around Jasper, let me know and I'll attempt to do it justice. I would prefer to keep it J/A though. JP.