DISCLAIMER: If you recognize it, it's not mine. I'm not affiliated with SMeyer or any of her intellectual property.
"The meeting of two personalities is like the contact of two chemical substances: if there is any reaction, both are transformed."
Carl Jung
JPOV.
Alice was up to something.
I'd tried asking Edward what was going on in her head but he was too busy obsessing over his singer. I'd gone to Rosalie to see if Alice had confided in her. She hadn't, and my sister wasn't particularly pleased with my interrupting her while she was elbow deep in an engine. Emmett had just grunted at me with his eyes glued to the video game on the television. Esme and Carlisle didn't know anything either but weren't concerned since whatever it was had Alice in an absolutely brilliant mood.
So, I lay sprawled on the couch with a book forgotten in my hand as I watched Alice flit around the room like a kid on a sugar-high. Her spiky hair almost seemed even fluffier as her emotions swirled like a tornado of joy. She normally was a happy person, so the buoyant quality of her emotions wasn't unusual. It was part of what had drawn me to her actually -happy feelings were like a drug to me. Except now.
She kept glancing over at me and grinning, refusing to divulge whatever was going on in that brain of hers.
"What?" I snarled when she did it again, this time dissolving into giggles. I threw my book at her but she dodged it neatly to stand just inches from my face.
"Today is going to be a day you'll never forget," She said brightly, tapping my nose and dashing up the stairs. My brow furrowed as I wracked my brain about what she meant. There wasn't anything special about today. It was November 5th. The date didn't have any significance outside of England so far as I knew and none of us celebrated anything in November. Alice's assertion that today would be memorable didn't make any sense.
Then again some of her visions had a tendency to not make sense until they came to pass. I pinched the bridge of my nose. Vampires didn't get headaches but I was pretty sure this mystery was going to cause one.
I sat up slightly to look out the windows covering the back of the house. It was still dark out but I could hear birds beginning to stir. If I was going to hunt before school I'd need to go now. I grabbed my book from the floor and went upstairs to change into something I didn't mind destroying.
I returned in time to shower and change into whatever Alice had laid out (she insisted on dressing all over us and it was a harmless indulgence even if it wasn't to my taste). I was surprised to find a pair of jeans instead of slacks like usual. She'd left a note on top too.
Find your old boots to go with these.
I dug them out and tugged them out once I was dressed. This was much more my speed. I ran down the stairs and grabbed the messenger bag that acted as my prop for school. I hated this farce. High school was terrible- the dizzying amount of humans crammed into a small space was amplified for me as I could sense their emotional states as well. There is nothing more distracting than trying to focus through the haze of hormonal adolescents.
In another life, I was the youngest Major in the Confederate cavalry- a leader of men forged in the fires of war with more victories than losses under my belt. When I was reborn I was just as fierce; an unholy creature of death that revelled in a sea of blood. Now I lived quietly in a coven of vegetarian vampires while masquerading as a teenage boy.
Feeding on animals didn't bother me. Sure it was unappetizing and left me not quite as strong as I was when I fed on humans but it wasn't terrible. I didn't mind the quiet life with my coven. It was a welcome change from the horrors of Maria but there's some shit you can't shake off. My vampire adolescence, if you could call it that, was one of violence and slaking of lusts- waging war, hours in the arms of lovers, the all consuming desire to feed. I had lived in excess as a reward for my competence in maintaining Maria's massive army of newborns; all for the low price of my sanity.
I wasn't proud of the man I had been then, but I still sometimes found it hard to adjust to a more civilized way of life. It was better for me since I didn't have to feel the emotions of my human victims as I drained them, but I was ashamed to admit that a small part of me missed it. I missed feeling stronger.
When those thoughts crept in I would make sure to spend more time with my adopted family, save Edward. He was a decent person if rather young and he had my loyalty as a coven mate. He was disturbed by my history and by what he saw in my mind. I understood and didn't mention it to him. Neither did I hold it against him when he excused himself from my presence when the heavy thoughts came. I'd never willingly inflict those horrors on someone.
I made it down to the garage to see that Rose and Emmett took the convertible today. Edward's Volvo was also missing. Alice was waiting in the passenger seat of my truck an impish smile on her face. I got in and turned halfway round as I backed out carefully, trying to avoid Esme's flowers. Emmett had made the mistake of being careless and my ears had rang for hours after the tongue lashing he got.
I parked in the back lot of the school as usual, taking a moment to brace myself for the day. Hunting beforehand helped but it wasn't a perfect cure. The steering wheel creaked alarmingly under my grip and I relaxed it immediately. I hadn't realized I'd been holding it so hard. Alice touched my wrist and I could feel waves of sympathy from her. I gave her a tight smile I knew she saw through but I didn't know what else to give her that wasn't a lie.
Ever since we'd met in that diner all those years ago Alice and I had been as tight as any two people could be. I was fascinated by her seemingly endless optimism, having been instantly charmed by her abrupt introduction. We were friends and always would be. She'd helped lead me to a better path and I could never thank her enough for it. Through her, I'd found a life with meaning and a family that welcomed me with open arms even knowing who I had been. Their unconditional love and support had been an unexpected gift.
The family had hoped Alice and I would be together romantically, but it wasn't meant to be. I actually had held out hope for a while until she had taken me for a walk to gently inform me she'd seen her mate in a vision. I had been disappointed but got over it quickly. We were still very close friends and did pretend to be together when we moved around- it made unwanted suitors stay away. Which was fine with me. I had enough issues just walking around humans let alone speaking to them one on one in most settings.
Alice and I exited the truck, her skipping at a human pace to where Rose and Emmett sat at a wooden table in the shade. Edward was sitting away from them with Bella, the two of them with their heads bent close together looking for all the world like oblivious smitten teenagers (which I guess was technically true). Rose was glaring daggers at Edward who was either oblivious or ignoring her. My money was on the latter. He hated being in her mind as much as mine since Rose had become a master at keeping him out.
I wasn't a fan of Bella Swan. Besides the fact that she presented a huge danger to our family I found her entirely to negative as a person. It didn't escape my notice either that she quickly abandoned her human friends for Edward, seemingly content to revolve her world around him. I was sure that was likely due to an underlying issue, but Edward was enamored with her. I didn't like how he was playing with fire by being so close to his singer but had been overruled. So I let it go and kept an eye out.
The ice covering the asphalt crunched beneath my boots as I walked at a human pace over to my waiting siblings. I held my breath more out of habit than anything. It was cold today so I didn't have to worry about the students getting in my way since they were all in a rush to inside. I had looked up to catch Alice's eye when she jumped up excitedly to look at something out of my field of vision. Turning my head to follow her gaze I saw red.
Literally.
My head turned around to see a human female exiting the front office with the most vibrant red hair I'd ever seen. She was tugging her hood over those brilliant tresses as she walked placidly next to a tall girl who I was almost positive was named Angela. I always did like her. She was always very calm, nearly serene. Edward had confirmed she was just as kind in her head as she was in her person.
I stood frozen as I tracked the girl's path, every sense I had fixed on her. Her face was hidden from my current angle, and I stepped around to try and catch a glimpse. I could feel my monster wake up and take notice, him also focusing on her. My nostrils flared as I inhaled deep trying to catch her scent.
Asphalt, snow, sweat, oil, perfume, cheap cologne, vampire, trees- none of that was right. I inhaled again once I was a little closer. My throat lit up in the familiar burn from the scent of human but I pushed through it.
Lavender, vanilla, black tea, honeysuckle, roses, ink. I staggered as if I'd been punched, just barely managing to catch myself before I face-planted in the parking lot.
My world hadn't ever seemed off center but the second I scented her it was as I'd been stumbling around lost and she was my true north.
She ducked inside one of the classrooms and I felt a rumble build up in my chest when she disappeared from my line of sight. I stamped it down quickly and hurried over to when my family waited. My monster roared to follow.
Alice was bouncing excitedly with a smile so wide I almost wondered if it hurt. Rose looked exasperated while Emmett looked between all of us, clearly confused.
"Uh, what the hell just happened?"
"Jasper found his mate!" Alice said, flinging herself at me. I caught her and tucked her under my arm out of habit. Emmett's eyes widened as they flicked from the closed door and back to me. He opened and shut his mouth twice before finally just shutting it and stared at me in amazement. My gift told me he was shocked and slightly anxious, but overall very pleased.
"Holy shit, man. A human chick? Like Edward's human?" Rose hissed from her perch on her mate's knee and Emmett pulled her closer to his chest. For all that she projected this image of a stone cold bitch Rosalie was fiercely loyal to her family and would fight tooth and nail against any threat. She was upset, but I knew her well enough that it stemmed from worry rather than fury.
"She'd better not be anything like Edward's human," she spat. Rose wasn't a fan of Miss Swan either.
"She's not," Alice said cheerfully, reaching out her hand to link her fingers with Rose's. "She's a good girl. You two will be very close friends." Emmett snorted, then yelped when his mate shoved her elbow into his side.
"So what are you going to do?" Emmett asked.
"I have no fucking clue."
Liar, whispered my monster. I ignored it, clenching and unclenching my jaw. This was a disaster. We had one human who was already a danger to us. Edward was risking our exposure by running around with Bella - which wasn't exactly my issue. She was his singer. Edward had excellent control just like Carlisle, but him purposely spending so much time with her was foolish. A vampire's singer was more of a temptation than any other human, something Edward was aware of. It didn't help that Bella was possibly the clumsiest human in the world which increased the likelihood of her dying that much higher.
As a rule, most vampires didn't interact with humans unless they were hunting. There were special cases in which vampires chose to integrate into human society like our coven did, but most didn't follow the vegetarian diet we did. It wasn't uncommon for vampires to have relationships with humans but normally they were physical ones. Occasionally vampires found their mates while human, the relationship normally resulting in the human being changed.
Sometimes though, the human rejected the vampire. If there was one thing most of my kind didn't give humans credit for was just how strong their self-preservation instinct was. Yes, we were designed to be attractive to our prey, but there were some individuals who recognized the danger we posed and as such were unable to be lured in. I tried not to think about the possibility of this outcome.
Just seconds of being in my presence she had both me and my monster wrapped around her finger for the rest of our existence. I'd fight for her if she rejected me, but if she was truly adamant about it I would respect her wishes. Even if I didn't think I'd recover if she said no.
I won't give her a reason to, I vowed.
My mindset shifted back into the Major as I reviewed different mental lists I'd made of the area, what I knew about humans to keep them healthy, various security protocols and plans we'd had in place. She would need time to acclimate to the idea of us, which I didn't mind, but I wasn't going to leave her undefended.
But first I needed to talk to her. I didn't even know her name.
Emmett chuckled as he and Rose stood up. He casually threw an arm around her, shouldering both of their bags. "You're a moody fucker but I've never seen you so pathetic."
I raised an eyebrow and waited for him to elaborate. Alice slipped out from under my arm and wandered off.
"You haven't looked away from that door since she went through it." I blinked, startled, turning my head to look at him. A big cheesy grin was on his face, his eyes glinting with good humor. Rosalie rolled her eyes as she slid off his lap.
"You and I will talk later," she promised me. The bell sounded above us and we all split off to our respective classes like any other day.
I heard the first whispers about her while in French. Not my choice of class but the Spanish teacher had realized I was fluent and promptly swapped me out. Nothing I said could persuade her since the crabby woman saw through all my bullshit. Which was too bad since the French teacher wasn't as half as entertaining. At least Rosalie was here with me.
We'd claimed the back left corner desk away from the window. Rosalie had a sketchbook out in front of her as she drew what looked like a schematic for an engine. I didn't know. We both were both mechanically inclined and interested in how things worked but she was the only one with an engineering degree. She got it right after she'd gotten one in astrophysics, on top of her two medical ones. I was amazed at just how many looked at my sister -vampires included- and assumed she was an airhead just because she was blonde and beautiful.
In front of me, I had open a leather journal Charlotte had sent a few weeks ago. She swore she wasn't gifted but somehow she always knew when someone needed a mood boost, especially Peter and I. Her present had shown up while I was in the middle of a rough few days.
It was good quality. The leather was new and the pages were thick so that the ink wouldn't bleed through. She'd pasted a picture of the three of us on the inside cover: Charlotte was between her mate Peter and I, his arm around her waist and mine around her shoulders. The waterfall behind us looked like it was made of fire from the setting sun. We'd laughed like morons as she tried to the take the picture but her arms weren't long enough. In the end, I'd done it since Peter was too distracted looking down at his smiling mate with an equally big grin. It was from our last trip together in Sitting Bull Falls in New Mexico about four years ago.
It was a very thoughtful gift, even though I didn't need to write things down anymore (vampire eidetic memory) but I liked the familiarity of it as Charlotte knew.
I was writing down a list of things I needed from Jenks when I heard Eric Yorkie, an over-enthusiastic boy with greasy black hair and skin problems whispering to his neighbor, Mike Newton. Mike was well-liked and very popular with the fairer sex. I couldn't see the appeal in his baby-face and gel spiked hair, but then again I was a one hundred and forty-one-year-old male vampire (one hundred and sixty-one if you included the years I'd spent as a human), not a teenage human girl. All of that aside he was a genuinely kind person and didn't play the petty games that seemed synonymous with high school.
"Did you see the new girl?" Eric whispered. Mike grinned, nodding enthusiastically. The boy was excitable, almost like a puppy. I snickered at the mental image of Mike as a golden retriever. Rose raised an eyebrow but kept sketching. She was listening too.
"Don't get me wrong, Swan is gorgeous but, damn. Red's something else." Eric propped his chin on his hand with a stupid grin.
"That's all they can come up with?" Rosalie said dryly in a voice only I could hear. I grunted in agreement, still writing.
"She's a little curvy for my taste," added Tyler who sat behind them. Mike snuck a look at the teacher who was engrossed in grading tests, then returned his attention to his friends. "I mean, she's hot but I like 'em a little more athletic, you know?"
Eric snorted. "You're never going to get a girlfriend if you keep comparing them to Alice Cullen."
Tyler shrugged unapologetically. "Not my fault she's my kind of girl."
"Her legs looked a mile long in that skirt," Mike sighed dreamily. Eric shoved his shoulder but the blond boy didn't react. My grip tightened on both my pen and self-control. I willed myself to calm down, my monster roaring in its cage, ready and willing to teach these boys some respect. Rose kicked me under the table.
"You're growling. Stop it," she said, glaring. I managed it. Barely.
"Her legs? I was focused on her chest." Eric motioned his hands over his chest to demonstrate. "Be a nice handful or two."
My monster snarled, and I went to stand. Rose clamped a hand down on my thigh hard in warning. Emmett may be accredited to having superior strength, but his mate was a close second. I could probably break her grip but not without causing a scene.
Mike blushed several shades darker causing the other two to snicker. Who would've thought? Mike Newton- sports star, school-girl heart-throb, and blushing virgin.
"Do you think she'd go to prom with me?" Tyler asked, pushing his work aside to fully focus on the conversation. I felt a spike of jealousy from Mike and Eric.
"If you don't tone down the projecting I'm calling Emmett to drag you into the woods." Her grip tightened in warning. I struggled to rein in my gift, crossing my arms over my journal and dropped my head on them with a quiet thunk.
"What happened to her being too curvy for you?" Eric asked a little defensively.
"I said a little. Besides, a girl like that needs a guy who knows how to handle her. You know what they say about gingers."
I'm going to fucking kill him, I thought as my fingers clenched into fists. Rose moved her hand to my back sweeping her hand up in down in an attempt to soothe. She was as disgusted as me at their conversation. Her emotions surprised me a little; I expected the disgust for them and worry for me, but there was anger there too mixed with a growing determination. In my experience that combination signaled a feeling of protectiveness.
Contrary to popular belief, emotions and feelings aren't the same things. Instead, they're two sides of the same coin. Emotions are a hard-wired universal physical response. Feelings are the mental reactions to the emotions you feel. Because emotions are physical, they can be measured objectively by facial expressions and body language. Because feelings are mental, they cannot be measured precisely. Emotions are generally predictable and easily understood, while feelings are often idiosyncratic and confusing. Feelings reflect your personal associations to emotions - the other side of the coin.
My gift enabled me to feel and manipulate the emotions of people around me but because I couldn't sense the feelings that followed, I didn't always know the reasons behind them. Body language and context of a situation usually was enough to draw a conclusion but sometimes I had to ask.
"Sloane isn't that kind of girl and I don't appreciate you talking about her like that," Newton snapped. His emotions spiked with the same combination I felt from Rose. Protectiveness.
"You hear that Rosalie?" I was projecting again but it was positive this time. "Her name is Sloane." My sister didn't stop rubbing my back, and I could hear the smile in her voice even if I couldn't see it.
"You ridiculous, smitten fool." She didn't have much room to talk either seeing how giddy she got every time she saw her mate after they'd been separated for any length of time. Her poker face was amazing but emotions didn't lie.
"-like the Cullens." My attention turned back to the three boys I had been eavesdropping on. They were packing up their things in anticipation of the bell.
"Why do you think she'd do that?" Tyler asked, shoving something into his mouth and chewed loudly. "For all we know she might not be looking to date." I heard him take a deep pull from the giant water bottle he carried everywhere.
"Bella did when she first got here," Eric replied, glumly. "We didn't stand a chance."
"Come on, it's not like she's been in town long enough to scope them out and set her crosshairs on them! We don't even know what her type is."
Hopefully me, I thought.
"A girl that gorgeous knows she's gorgeous. But that doesn't always mean she's stuck up about it. Angela is her cousin, so she has to be nice. I can't see anyone being related to the Weber's being a bad person," Mike reasoned. I was a little concerned at how attached he was already to Sloane.
"Maybe. But isn't she from New York? I've heard they're all pretty moody and rude." I lifted my head up in shock, Rose included.
"You couldn't tell from the accent?" Eric joked.
A New Yorker. The youngest Major in the Confederate Cavalry had a Yankee for a mate. Peter was going to laugh himself stupid. I dropped my head onto my crossed arms again.
"We're all going to ask her out aren't we." It wasn't a question. Eric and Mike nodded as Tyler sighed.
"Then may the best man win." Rose snorted but continued what she was doing. Her feelings of protectiveness grew to my relief. I wanted my favorite sister and mate to get along.
"I won't tell Alice she was right," I said with a smile hidden by my arms. She punched me in response. Completely worth it.
We lined up with the other students to get the lunches we would later throw away untouched. Emmett and Alice were already at our usual table playing what looked like thumb war.
"You're cheating," Emmett accused as Alice pinned down his thumb. Rose rolled her eyes as she sat down next to him to lean into his side. She pulled a paperback out of her bag and settled down to read. Emmett wrapped her free arm around her, his thumb softly sweeping back and forth on her arm.
"You can't cheat at thumb war, Emmett!" Alice laughed, bracing her forearm on the table again. I noticed she had glitter in her spiky hair. My brother mock-glared at her.
"'Can't cheat at thumb war' the psychic says. I call bullshit." Still, he accepted her challenge and the two played again.
"You are both children," I said without malice, picking up and shredding the soggy french fries on my tray. Once they were complete mush Rose swapped our trays so I could continue on hers.
I stretched my legs out under the table and crossed my ankles, doing my best to look aloof. My mind wandered. As a vampire, I had the cognitive ability to focus on many things at once. One part of my attention was fully focused on my four coven mates, my senses on high alert outside of our den. I couldn't relax until we were back. Another part was a sort of background process that never shut off, identifying and tracking the humans who moved around us. A third background part monitored the emotional atmosphere of the room in case of an emergency requiring my skills to defend my coven and now Sloane.
The most active part of my attention was focused on finding her. I itched to get up and hunt her down, but the thought of looking like a creeper (read: Edward) restrained me. She'd be here soon. My fingers drummed on the table impatiently.
I looked around the room to distract myself. Edward sat alone at an out of the way table as was his new usual waiting on Bella. I disapproved of how much time he spent with her. It wasn't a secret that he spent his nights in her room watching her sleep. It was unhealthy for them both to spend so much time together, albeit different reasons. For Bella, she had completely dropped the rest of her social life to let it revolve around him. For Edward, well. Even he only had so much control before he inevitably snapped.
Edward threw me a dirty look having heard my thoughts.
"You're just as obsessed with the new girl," he said from his seat. I heard him as if he were right next to me.
"Sloane is none of your business."
I also don't need to spend every moment with her, I thought, knowing he'd hear it. Sure, I'd always need to know Sloane was safe but I was content with the idea of she and I being in the same vicinity but doing our own thing. I wanted her to have her own life.
And there she is.
Sloane followed Angela to a full table in the center of the room both of them carrying trays. Newton was right, her legs did look a mile fuckin' long. My appraisal of them also revealed that she seemed to favor her left leg slightly as if it pained her. Her boots clumped heavily against the dingy linoleum (were they steel toed?) to take a seat next to Mike. I still couldn't get a good look at her face. Her hair was in the way and it was even longer than I thought, a whole mess of copper curls falling to her upper thighs. I nearly choked at the sudden mental image of wrapping it in my fist as she-
A growl from Edward interrupted my thoughts. I turned to glare at him but his attention had switched from me to what I assumed was Bella. Turning back in my seat I saw Sloane lift her hand at to greet Bella, who sped past her without a second look towards Edward's table, leaving the scent of strawberries in her wake. I narrowed my focus to fix my gift on Sloane. Once I got a read on her I'd be able to pick her out of any crowd.
Nervous, self-conscious, uncomfortable, anxious, shy, slightly happy.
"Don't bother," Jessica Stanley said, jealousy rolling off of her. "She doesn't bother with us anymore when she can hang out with the Cullen's." Mike shifted to make more room for Sloane to sit closer to him as he sighed heavily at Jessica's obviousness. Sloane went to prop her elbows on the table but like with her posture, corrected herself and instead only let her forearms do so. She was picking at her cuticles.
"It's true! As soon as Edward paid her the time of day she up and left us!"
"Like you wouldn't do the same," Mike said and took a bite of his food. He continued talking with his mouth full which caused Sloane to lean away from him in disgust. As the table got rowdier the more her emotions shifted towards distress and anxiety.
First, I noticed was how tightly she gripped her water bottle in her left hand. Her body was held stiffly, her posture still perfect. After a moment her right arm reached around to wrap around her stomach as if she were trying to hug herself. Then her breathing changed, becoming deliberate rather than unconscious. Sloane inhaled for three counts, tapping the table with each beat to keep time. I watched fascinated as she held it for the same three counts, then exhaled, all the while tapping each count.
It was interesting to watch her slowly, but effectively, manage to soothe herself in an environment that was obviously overstimulating. She pulled her arm away from herself to bring it back to the table and grabbed her banana, taking care to peel it just so, as if the deliberate motions helped her focus on being calm.
Then Newton fell back against her and shattered it all.
To my ears, her sharp inhale was as clear if she and I were standing side by side in an empty room. In just seconds Sloane's whole body tensed, her shoulders finally hunched and her emotions climbed frighteningly quickly to what would peak as an anxiety attack.
I didn't think, just reacted. A heavy blanket of calm wrapped around her as best I could. She relaxed near instantly. Then Sloane looked up.
If my heart were still beating I'm positive it would have stopped the second her eyes locked with mine, her makeup and lashes applied to make them seem even larger than they already were. Her glasses only helped emphasize their size, giving her a distinctly innocent look. I'd never seen eyes that shade of mint green before. The effect of them combined with her strong jaw, high cheekbones, fair skin and red hair was striking.
I laced the cloud of calm I'd surrounded her in with more subtle emotions of peace and comfort.
It was easy to just look at her and take in the little details. Her eyes had subtle creases at the corners as if she smiled a lot. Her curls were just slightly frizzy and pulled back out of her way almost as an afterthought. Her hands had faint paint flecks as if she hadn't managed to scrub it all off. She was left-handed, and the dark green polish on her nails was chipping.
Quiet, calm, peace, curiosity, undercurrent of nervousness.
Her appraisal of me was just as thorough. Her eyes seemed to jump everywhere, from my head to my boots, my exposed forearms but they always jumped back to my eyes. I wondered what she was thinking. Her poker face was very good.
Jessica snapped angrily at her, and she flushed a fetching shade of pink. With a tight smile I'm not sure she realized she gave me she returned her attention to her friends. Beside me, Emmett whistled.
"That was some intense shit, man." He sounded slightly awed. I looked over at him to see Alice had moved to sit to his left. Even Rose had set down her book to observe what was going on.
"She's an artist. Her work is amazing! Esme is going to love the piece she creates for her." Alice twirled her unopened straw between her fingers, her eyes focused on something only she could see.
"We'll see. Mate or not, I don't want another Bella," Rosalie added, returning her attention to her novel. Emmett chuckled and pressed a kiss to her forehead.
"Give her a chance, babe. She's your future best friend." She swatted at him. Emmett turned his attention back to me.
"She's somethin', I'll give her that. You ever seen eyes like hers before?" I shook my head no, turning my own back to Sloane. She was laughing at something Angela had said. It changed her entire face, lighting it up like sunshine.
"So, what's your plan?"
"I'm working on it."
"She has gym after lunch with Bella, then physics and history with you." Alice cupped her chin in her hand as she stared ahead with slightly unfocused eyes. Well, that was good news at least.
"I've seen Bella in gym," Emmett said. "She's a disaster. Your girl better have some good reflexes."
"She does," Alice replied, tilting her head to the left slightly. "She'll tell Bella about her black belt in karate next period." Emmett sat back in his chair looking a little impressed. Pride swelled in my chest at that revelation.
The students began to trickle out slowly, one by one and in pairs. The table Sloane was at was emptying quickly. She stood up and walked across the floor to the trash, dumping her mostly untouched tray into the bin. I frowned. Anxiety or not, that's not healthy. She needs to eat. I made a note to keep something on my person in case it happened again.
She paused after she dumped her tray and looked up at me. Her posture went rigid again, almost military with her shoulders back and feet shoulder-width apart. Her face was carefully controlled. I projected a gentle wave of calm but all she did was tilt her head. I couldn't resist giving her an admittedly thorough once-over. Her cheeks flushed a pretty pink and I bit the inside of my cheek hard to keep from smiling at her like an idiot.
Whatever she was thinking about must have been interesting- her emotions were calm but she felt like she was happy. Then her face lit up with what looked like a realization. With a short gasp, she darted over to the now empty table to grab her bag. She paused at the door to look back at me.
I couldn't resist teasing her just a little. Her blush darkened as I winked and she all but threw herself out the door.
There was still time before the next period and I wasn't in any hurry. Alice planted a kiss on my cheek before she left, pulling the keys to the truck from my pocket. We couldn't participate in gym, so if we couldn't swap it for another class we'd come up with an excuse for us to sit out.
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Bella walk out of the room. Edward came over and took the seat next to me. He felt curious and frustrated. Good. Let him know what it's like for the rest of us.
"You're making a mistake," Rose said as she turned a page in her book. Anger spiked in Edward but he did a good job of controlling it. Emmett and I stayed quiet to watch the show.
"My personal life is none of your business," he replied curtly. "If you don't like it, then don't worry about it." Bad move. I glanced at Emmett out of the corner of my eye, smirking as he readjusted his hold on Rosalie to give her more range of movement.
She slapped her book face down onto the table practically vibrating with barely suppressed. I pushed a bit of calm at her but she made a slashing motion with her hand to signal no.
"It is all of our business. Your obsession with this girl could expose us. I refuse to let our lives be uprooted because of your selfishness." I nearly rolled my eyes at the heady blend of lust and pride rolling off of her mate. He at least looked a bit sheepish when I kicked him hard under the table.
"The only person you should be worried about exposing us is Jasper," Edward snapped. "I'm not the one who struggles to see humans as people instead of potential meals. You cannot tell me you think it's a good idea for him to be spending any sort of time in close quarters with this girl?"
I stood up and grabbed my bag, watching with satisfaction as Edward's emotions spiraled into fear. Rose was glaring daggers at him, with Emmett holding her back. He didn't get involved in the arguments that occasionally broke out, and really wasn't the sort of guy who got upset. He was probably the most even-tempered person I'd ever met, as well as one of the most perceptive.
Quick as lightning I had my hand tightly gripping the back of Edward's neck, forcing him to hunch under the pressure I exerted. I leaned into his personal space to speak right into his ear.
"Listen up and listen well. You don't know a thing about me. What you see in my head isn't who I am. I respect that you don't like it and do my best to keep myself out of your way because I do understand that you can't exactly shut your gift off." I shook him slightly when he growled and continued.
"I don't give two shits what you think or say about me, but I'm doing you the courtesy of warning you now. If you even so much as breathe wrong around my mate I will have you on a pyre faster than you can say gasoline. We clear, boy?" With a final shake I released him and strode out of the room.
A/N: I'm not entirely happy with this chapter, but I did enjoy writing Jasper. It's difficult to not cross the line of "aware and protective" over to "stalking and possessive". I'd also like to say that this is not an Edward or Bella bashing story. I think Edward would have been a better character, but his attitude toward his and Bella's relationship wasn't healthy. I'd like to address that in this fic and make it less… star crossed lovers and more "navigating first love to true love."
In regards to the boys: I've been out of high school for a while (it was military school actually) so I'm going off of what actual conversations I've heard teenage boys have. I'm aware that Sloane could come across Mary-Sueish but I'd also like to say that she's the shiny new toy. Like all new stuff, interest fades and goes back to normal.
Now that's out of the way, I'd like to hear your feedback: did I do the character's justice? Does it seem rushed? The mate trope is a lot of fun to play around with, but it's also kind of tricky. Are alternating POV chapters to distracting?
Next time: we finally let the first day of school end, and explore some more characters.