Disclaimer: I own nothing.

When the Rabbit Hole Ends

Chapter One

Tunnel's Light

Jasper's POV

I sighed into my drink, letting the smoke from my cigarette curl around me in tangled, white wisps, as I barely paid any mind to the other patrons inside the quiet bar.

I was only here to drink.

Nothing more.

It had been seven months since Edward's death in the streets of Saint Petersburg, seven months since his burial back in the States which I could not bring myself to attend, no matter how much I wished to bid him farewell him one last time.

I sighed again before tossing the remainder of the sharp-tasting bourbon down my throat before quickly replacing my cigarette in between my lips, my body feeling a bit drowsy and my mind feeling ready to leave.

Russia, in all her damnable pride and beauty, had changed forever for me because of what had happened.

The land that I had loved so much and felt so connected to, felt like she had abandoned me, ripped out all of my still-bleeding organs to hold in my face, before just up and leaving me where I stood in pain.

I sometimes hated the fact that I still lived here, even if I had chosen to live on the polar opposite direction from Saint Petersburg, where the streets were a little rougher and the buildings not so grand.

I did not mind the area, though, as I felt like the weather-worn buildings and grey ambiance here better suited my mood.

I shuffled out of my seat at the bar, pulling on my long, wool coat as I moved away from the tempting liquor and addictive, depressing atmosphere, the two things I had readily accepted upon that fateful day whence my life had literally slipped through my fingers and plummeted to the cold ground.

I straightened the lapels of my coat, not even bothering to button the damn thing up, as I made to exit the small pub, ready to delve into the bitter cold of the dimming afternoon and to try not to remember every single detail of what I missed about Edward Masen.

The burning red cherry on my cigarette was quickly fading once I stepped outside, so I deftly retrieved my lighter and brought my hands up to my mouth to cup around the cigarette and block the flame from the mild wind passing by.

"Oof!" I voiced aloud upon running into something mercilessly solid, so solid that it knocked me down to sit upon the frozen pavement with my unlit cigarette now lying crumpled at my side.

"Oh man, I am so sorry...here...are you alright? Damn, that was dumb of me..." someone spoke to me even though I honestly needed a moment to right my blanking mind and pull together some courage to stand up from the ground.

I lifted my eyes to seek out the face of the person who had run into me, a small part of me wanting to be angry and to lash out, but it was countered easily within me by the much larger part that wanted nothing to do with anyone anymore.

Dark, mocha skin and even darker, heavier eyes looked frantically across my features as he kept his hand outstretched towards me; my own lighter-colored eyes not missing the way the stranger's lips parted in a gasp once I finally lifted my gaze up to his from the pavement.

I frowned lightly at the obviously foreign young man's surprise at my pale, strong features, as I took his proffered hand and let him aid in hoisting me up to my feet, my hands quick to smooth out the folds of my coat and straighten my sleeves.

"...sorry," I offered simply, my voice wholly showcasing my forlorn attitude, as I kept my eyes focused on the cuff I fixed with my fingers.

"Uh...you're not...hurt, are you? I'm Jacob, by the way..." the stranger spoke up, his voice unbelievably cheerful and uplifting where mine was not, the affect of which catching my immediate attention as I whipped my head around to look at him directly.

I swallowed hard at Jacob's lovely smile, a kind of bright smile that reached his eyes and let me see a little piece of his soul...and just how truly happy it was.

I darted my gaze to the right, looking at nothing for the small second it took me to decide to deal with the knot twisting curiously in my stomach and the sudden blazing behind my eyes that made me want to cry, before I snapped my focus into his waiting brown orbs.

"Jascha..." I told him my real name, something I had not done in what felt like ages, as he and I both reached out and clasped each others' hand in a friendly but timid greeting, "...and no...I'm alright."

"Wow...your English is so good! I guess you can already tell that I'm not from here. I'm actually from Washington state in America, and I'm here on a grant to teach English in a few schools," Jacob rambled to me, shocking me even more with his evident nervousness as well as his prominent good-nature that seemed to radiate off of him in waves.

I was quite taken aback from how much information he had just divulged to me in such a short amount of time.

"Oh...um..." I struggled to find a reply to everything Jacob had said, but my train of thought was abruptly relieved of its battle in my mind as I heard Jacob chuckle.

His short black spikes glistened against so much white that surrounded us, as he had his head lowered but only to raise it back up so that his soothing chocolate gaze, the same inviting color as his suede winter coat, met my own once more.

"I'm sorry...it's just...you are..." the dark-skinned American male seemed to search for the right word, his eyes dancing across my features as he licked the inside of his cheek before boldly continuing, "...like...a total knock-out, and I am sort of having a hard time keeping my words coherent, so I apologize if I sound like some weirdo right now."

I could not help the small smile that curved one side of my mouth, finding Jacob's humor admittedly close in resemblance to my own, as I felt that sickening knot in my stomach gradually begin to unwind.

"No problem," I said with a little more buoyancy in my voice this time, feeling myself wanting to warm up to this stranger after all, as it made me feel better, more sure, as I watched him grin bashfully but broadly every time he had held my gaze for so long.

"I know this is ridiculously straight-forward of me to ask you, Jascha..." Jacob began, his great intake of air making his chest puff out some as he braved his next words to me, "...but...would you want to grab a drink with me?"

I lowered my eyes as a genuine smile formed my lips, my heart racing inside my chest at Jacob's absolutely soul-enriching offer, and when I lifted my eyes back to him, it was with a certain sass hidden in my sapphire orbs which I had not felt in a very long time.

"I actually just left that pub right behind you before this," I said as I tipped my curly, blonde head towards said bar that I could still see a few feet behind the American, "...but...if you wanted to...join me to get something to eat, I would not mind."

"Absolutely! I mean, yeah...that sounds great," Jacob's vigor was positively glowing behind his brilliant smile that I felt my chest relax tremendously upon hearing such optimism and joy come from another human being.

My smile was effortless now, my eyes no longer feeling so weighted, and it was a modest spark taking place in the back of my mind that I angled my body towards Jacob's side, ready to walk down the sidewalk alongside him.

"So, Jascha...love your name, by the way...but what is that you do for a living? You already know that I'm a teacher..." Jacob asked once he and I fell into a comfortable stride next to one another, heading just down the block to a quaint diner that had quickly become one of my usual places to eat.

A sad smirk curved my lips at Jacob's painfully innocent question, my senses able to cut through the biting cold around us and know that he was staring attentively at me, waiting for an answer as well as merely drinking in my profile and snow-speckled curls that bounced against my cheeks as we walked.

I flicked my eyes down to the darkened yet white-dusted ground that quickly passed underneath our feet only for a moment, the bright lights shining into the street from the restaurant coming into view while we walked, and I blinked slowly, almost ruefully as my reply flowed from my lips.

"Nothing...nothing at all," I said with a counter-intuitive smile, a smile masking so much yet so telling at the same time, as I regarded the way Jacob's lips parted in concern, his chocolate gaze examining my own even though I offered no other supplementary information before we both approached the diner.

Jacob immediately opened the door for me to enter ahead of him, and it was with a softened expression, my heartbroken smile having quickly faded from my features, that I cast him a quick glance, almost as if in silent pleading for him to follow in after me so I would not be alone anymore, and stepped inside.

Author's Note: Alright, folks lol. So, I was reading Painting the Roses Red a few days ago (yes, I realize it's my own story) and I was so bummed out by the ending lol. I thought to myself, "Self, I need to make Jasper happy. We need to see Jasper happy again." And so BAM! A sequel to make that happen. Thanks for reading; more to come later, fans. XD