A/N: Chap. 2! Almost forgot about today being Monday. The song for this chapter is "Undertow" by Timbaland w/The Fray. As always, go tell luckyj525 that she rocks.
Disclaimer: I own nada. Stephenie Meyer owns all.
"I don't wanna talk now
I don't wanna hear you scream no more
Want somebody to save me
Everything I do feels like its wrong
All we do is fall down
Even though we try to stay afloat…"
It was late that night when Alice's phone rang, pulling her from a deep sleep. She muttered a curse under her breath and glanced at the clock. 2:00AM. Groaning, Alice flipped on the light, wincing a little under the harsh glare as she reached for her phone.
"Hello?" Alice mumbled, forgetting to even look at the screen to see whose number it was.
"Alice," a familiar male voice hissed. "I'm done with him."
"Edward," Alice said, rubbing her eyes. "Edward, what's wrong?"
"We were supposed to record tonight, Alice," Edward said, his voice full of anger. "And he shows up blitzed out of his mind," Edward continued. "And we've put up with a lot of his bullshit but this, this is too much."
"Jasper," Alice said, suddenly realizing whom Edward was talking about.
"Yes, Jasper," Edward sneered. "First we wait fucking hours for him and then he comes in like this. And he puked all over my piano."
Alice sighed. "Where are you?" she asked. "Your place?"
"Yes," Edward said. "I'm sorry to pull you into this Alice but he can't stay here. I might kill him. I tried calling Rosalie but she didn't answer. Probably saw it was me and turned her phone off or something."
"I'll be right there," Alice said, getting out of bed and throwing some clothes on. She drove quickly through the darkened streets of LA to Edward's house and pulled into the long driveway.
Alice made her way to the front door, marveling as she always did over the extravagance of Edward's home. She knocked on the door and Edward pulled it open a minute later.
"He's passed out downstairs," Edward said grouchily. "Garrett and Seth already took off. We got nothing done tonight."
Alice followed Edward through the house and to the basement, which had been converted into a music room. Jasper was on the couch fast asleep. For a moment, Alice paused and watched him, not sure what to do next.
"He's different, Alice," Edward said softly and Alice could hear the sadness in his voice. "When we were younger, he was all about the music. But now, he doesn't care about any of it." Edward glanced at Alice. "I'm sorry to call you but I didn't know who else to call. He's burned most of his bridges."
Alice nodded. "It's alright, Edward," she said. She went over to Jasper and shook his shoulder roughly. "Jasper, wake up," Alice said.
Jasper stirred and his eyes fluttered opened. "Al," he said, grinning when he saw Alice. "What are you doing here?"
"Picking you up," Alice said, tugging on Jasper's arm until he was sitting up. "Come on, we have to go."
Jasper stood up shakily, stumbling a little as he leaned against Alice. "Edward," Jasper said, glancing over at the piano. "I'm sorry."
"I'm sure you are," Edward muttered.
Alice began to steer Jasper towards the stairs and Edward hurried over to help her. "Edward," Jasper slurred as they made their way slowly up the stairs. "Alice is here."
"I know," Edward said tersely. "I called her."
"Alice always takes care of me," Jasper said, smiling down at Alice.
"She does," Edward agreed, helping Alice get Jasper into the car. "Thanks, Alice," Edward said, squeezing her shoulder lightly.
Alice nodded and got into the driver's side, pulling away from Edward's house and back towards her own apartment. It was closer than Jasper's house and who knew where his keys were or if he even had them with him and Alice was too tired to mess around trying to find them.
Jasper leaned across the seat, his head in Alice's lap. "Jasper, what are you doing?" Alice asked, pushing at his head.
"Al," Jasper said softly, breathing in deeply. "I screwed up big time."
"I know," Alice said.
"I just, I don't know who I'm supposed to be any more," Jasper muttered before he drifted off to sleep again. Alice glanced down at his head in her lap and reached out tentatively, running her hand through his blonde curls for a moment. He looked so sad that Alice found herself feeling a little sorry for him.
When they got back to Alice's apartment, Alice woke Jasper up and half-dragged him up to her apartment. They walked in the door and Jasper staggered for a minute, looking around. "This is your place, Al?" he asked.
"It's Alice," Alice said through clenched teeth. "And yes, yes it is."
Before she could say anything else, Jasper was wandering towards her bedroom. "Hey, where are you going?" Alice asked, following after him.
When she caught up with Jasper, he had stripped his t-shirt and his jeans off and was down to just his boxers. "No, Jasper, you're sleeping on the couch," Alice said, even as Jasper climbed into her bed.
"Come on, Al," Jasper said, hiccupping a little. "I mean Alice," he corrected himself. "I'm too tall for a couch. I just need to sleep a little and then I'll feel better."
"You aren't sleeping in my bed, Jasper," Alice said, walking around to the side of the bed and pulling on Jasper's arm.
"There's room for you too," Jasper muttered. "I'll be the perfect gentleman, I swear. Jasper looked up at Alice and smiled sadly. "I don't deserve you Alice," he said, rolling over and falling into a deep sleep once again.
"Fuck," Alice mumbled, fighting the urge to stomp her foot. She certainly did not want Jasper Hale in her bed, even though most women in the country would kill to be in the exact position Alice now found herself.
Alice went to the bathroom and pulled on a pair of sweatpants and a baggy t-shirt before she went back out to the bedroom, eyeing Jasper carefully. Sighing, she climbed into bed and pulled the blankets around her, keeping as far away from Jasper as possible.
Alice closed her eyes and breathed in deeply, trying to calm her mind enough to sleep. But as much as Alice hated to admit it, having Jasper Hale in her bed was distracting. She rolled over and watched him sleep for a moment. He looked restless and anxious even in his sleep, his forehead creased with worry. Alice's eyes traveled across his chest, taking in the faint jagged scars Alice knew had been caused a few months ago when Jasper had crashed his motorcycle into a guardrail along the highway.
Alice had known Jasper for a long time and she had watched as he sank deeper and deeper into some kind of hole where no one could reach him. Jasper had always been a bit of a badass, the troublemaker of their teenager boy band. But now, it was more than silly teenage rebellion.
Jasper mumbled something in his sleep and his face relaxed and Alice could see a glimpse of the boy he had once been; the boy whose face had plastered Alice's walls as a teenager. When she was 15, the idea of having Jasper Hale in her bed would have been something that only happened in her wildest fantasies. Back then, when Jasper and Edward would visit the Cullen home, Alice would be reduced to nothing more than a giggling, speechless teenage girl in Jasper's presence. Back then, she was just Edward's little cousin and she had desperately wanted Jasper to see her as something, anything more than that.
He certainly saw her as more than that now. But still, Alice wasn't sure if it was exactly what she wanted. She was getting tired of cleaning up Jasper's messes. Sighing Alice rolled over and turned away from Jasper, closing her eyes once again and willing sleep to wash over her.
Alice's alarm clock woke her early the next morning, jarring her from a restless sleep. She fumbled for it as she felt the body next to her stir as well, muttering a curse as the noise continued to blare through the room.
"Fuck, turn it off," Jasper muttered and the events of last night came rushing back to her. Alice sat up and leaned over Jasper, remembering that the alarm was on the side of the bed where Jasper currently slept and flipped the switch to off.
"Thank God," Jasper said. He opened his eyes slowly and looked over at Alice. For a moment, he grinned and then he sat up hurriedly, pulling the sheets around him. "Al?" he asked. "What happened? Why are you here? Did we…?" Jasper sputtered, his eyes traveling wildly around the room. "Please tell me we didn't have sex."
Alice glared at Jasper. She got out of bed and crossed her arms angrily. "We didn't have sex, Jasper," she said. "You got drunk and pissed off all your friends and I had to come get you," Alice said, stomping towards the bathroom.
"It's nice to know that the idea of sleeping with me terrifies you so much though," Alice said, her voice clipped.
"Al, that's not what I meant," Jasper quickly backtracked.
"I'm going for a run," Alice said, going into the bathroom and quickly changing clothes. "You should be gone when I get back," Alice said, yanking on her running shoes and storming out of the apartment.
"Shit," Jasper muttered, hitting his hand hard against the mattress. The last thing he had wanted to do was to piss off Alice, the one person who was still on his side, and yet he had somehow managed to do just that.
Jasper lay in Alice's bed for a moment, breathing in the scent that was uniquely Alice. He groaned as his cell phone began to ring and he found it on the bedside table. Glancing down at the small screen, he made a face when he saw his sister's name. He thought about not answering but he knew she'd just keep calling.
"What Rose?" Jasper said into the phone.
"Good morning to you," Rosalie answered. "Alice is right, you are grouchy this morning."
"Alice?" Jasper asked. "You talked to Alice?"
"Yes," Rosalie said. "I don't know how you managed to piss her off already this morning but she's not happy with you."
"I know," Jasper said softly.
"Listen," Rosalie continued. "You and I are having lunch. Go home and clean yourself up and meet me at that one place downtown, okay? Noon?"
Jasper sighed. "Okay," he agreed. He hung up the phone and climbed out of Alice's bed, rubbing his forehead. He found his discarded shirt on the floor and he tugged it on. He glanced around Alice's bedroom, smiling to himself. The Alice he knew was organized and efficient; her office was neat and everything had its place. Her bedroom was different. Clothes spilled from the closet and a few things had been discarded in a chair in the corner.
Japer could clearly imagine Alice trying on several outfits before deciding on one in the morning. Random pairs of shoes were scattered around the room as well—as if Alice had slipped them off wherever she happened to be at the time and just left them. There was a stack of books next to the bed along with a stack of magazines. Jasper's eyes fell on the glasses sitting on the bedside table and he picked them up. He had no idea Alice wore glasses.
Deciding he didn't want Alice to catch him checking out her bedroom, Jasper went to the bathroom and splashed some water on his face and borrowed some of Alice's toothpaste to give his teeth a quick finger brushing. Jasper walked back through Alice's apartment, smiling when he noticed that the small kitchen and living room were neat and put together, just like her office.
Jasper found a pad of paper sitting on the kitchen counter and he tore a piece off, scribbling a quick note to Alice and sticking it on the refrigerator before he headed to the lobby to get a cab.
Jasper slid into the seat across from Rosalie, keeping his sunglasses carefully over his eyes and wincing slightly when a car honked loudly on the street. "Did we have to sit outside, Rose?" Jasper asked.
Rosalie, his twin sister, raised a perfectly shaped eyebrow at Jasper. "It's too nice to be inside," she declared. "Besides, it's noon, you should be over the hangover by now."
Jasper shook his head—he knew Rosalie was making him suffer. "How's Emmett?" Jasper asked.
Rosalie smiled and Jasper knew it was genuine. His sister had always been gorgeous—with her perfect blonde hair, deep blue eyes, and perfectly proportioned body, Rosalie Hale was essentially a walking Barbie doll. When Jasper had become an overnight teen sensation, Rosalie had effortlessly waltzed into a modeling career that even now continued to thrive. Rosalie had always been independent, stubborn but years and years of men treating her like a piece of meat, undressing her with their eyes and trying desperately to get into her pants had turned Rosalie into someone hard, cold.
Then she met Emmett. Emmett played football in San Diego and Rosalie had assumed he was the same as every other hothead athlete she had met but Emmett had proven to be different. Emmett was sweet and attentive and he adored Rosalie. You couldn't help but like Emmett and Rosalie was happier than Jasper had ever seen her.
"He's good," Rosalie said. "He's in New York this week. I miss him," she admitted.
"I'm glad you're happy, Rose," Jasper said, smiling at his sister.
"Thanks," Rosalie said. "But we're not talking about Emmett and I," she said quickly. "We're supposed to talk about you and your fucking up of late."
Jasper laughed a little and they paused to order their lunch. Once the waiter left, Rosalie fixed Jasper with a knowing stare. "So," she asked. "What'd you say to piss Alice this morning?"
"Nothing," Jasper said quickly. "I woke up in her bed and I panicked, thought maybe we had, well, um, you know," Jasper said quickly. "And when she said we hadn't, I was relived and then she got pissed and left."
Rosalie laughed. "You're an idiot," she said, taking a sip of her drink. When Jasper gave her a confused look, Rosalie said. "Jasper, you were freaked out when you thought you had slept with Alice and relived when you found out you didn't. That doesn't do much for a girl's self-esteem, you know."
Comprehension dawned on Jasper. "But it's Alice," he said. "I just meant, I didn't want her to be one of my drunken hook-up girls, you know?" Jasper said.
"I know," Rosalie said. "But you do realize you managed to piss off your best friends and the one person whose job it is to make you look good all in one night, right?"
"Yeah," Jasper muttered. "Edward totally overreacted though," Jasper said quickly. "He always does."
"You know I've never liked Edward," Rosalie said. "But I have to say I'm on his side this time."
Jasper rolled his eyes and Rosalie continued. "Jasper, there was a time when it you wouldn't let anything interfere with your music. What happened?"
"I don't know," Jasper muttered, shifting uncomfortably. He didn't want to talk to Rosalie about any of this.
"Jazz," Rosalie said. "You really aren't going to tell me what's bothering you? Why you're suddenly going out every night, drinking until you pass out, getting into fights? Smashing your motorcycle into guardrails?"
Jasper looked up sharply. "That was an accident, Rose," Jasper said.
"I know," Rosalie answered. "I'm just worried about you Jasper. I know what it's like to lose yourself. Remember?"
Jasper sighed. Of course he remembered. Rosalie had dated a string of jerks before she met Emmett, the worst being an older movie producer named Royce King. Royce had destroyed the little self-confidence Rosalie had left until she had showed up at Jasper's house one night, crying about how she'd never be good enough and none of it was worth it any more.
Emmett had turned out to be everything Rosalie needed and he brought back the confident, self-assured sister Jasper loved. And that's what Jasper wanted—someone who instinctively understood him and could help him out of this dark hole that his life had become. He knew the Hollywood bimbos he was currently making his way through weren't going to do that for him but Jasper didn't know where else to look for the kind of relationship that he really wanted.
Rosalie was still staring intently at him and Jasper leaned back in his chair. "I don't know, Rose," Jasper admitted. "I just, I feel off lately. Like I don't know who I am or what I'm supposed to be doing. "
Jasper ran a hand through his hair. "I miss how it was in the beginning—when we were kids and we'd just mess around and play and sing and write. And now there's just so much pressure all the time. I hate it," Jasper said.
"Maybe that means it's time to quit?" Rosalie said with a small shrug. "There's no point in doing something if you don't love it any more."
Jasper shook his head. "I want to love it," he said. "I have to figure out how to love it again."
Rosalie smiled at Jasper. "You will," she told him firmly and Jasper wished he could believe her.
Alice was sweaty and tired when she got back to her apartment after her run. She paused just inside the door and listened for a moment. When all she heard was silence, she knew that Jasper must have listened to her and left.
Alice wasn't sure why she had gotten so upset with him that morning. Sure, it wasn't wonderful for someone to freak out at the thought of having sex with you. But still, Alice usually didn't let things like that bother her too much. She told herself that she was just tired and annoyed over having to pick up a drunk Jasper at two in the morning.
Alice walked to her fridge to get a bottle of water and saw the note stuck to the door. She pulled it off and read in Jasper's scrawled writing—
Alice,
I'm sorry about last night and this morning. I know I'm a pain in the ass to deal with and yet for some reason you're always saving me. I'll make it up to you, I promise. I like having you on my side.
See you later,
Jasper
Alice ran her hand over the messy handwriting. She couldn't really ever stay mad at Jasper. Even when Alice had been a teenager and the mere sight of Jasper had turned her into a mute idiot, she had always found him to be rather sweet. While most of her friends had lusted after the gorgeous Edward, Alice had always been drawn to Jasper. Of course, Edward was her cousin and all but still, there was something about Jasper Alice had always found appealing.
Alice set the note down on the counter and walked into her bedroom, stripping off her sweaty clothes. She paused for a moment and breathed in deeply. Her bedroom smelt like Jasper. Alice bit her lip, the thought making her oddly happy as she headed into the bathroom to take a shower.