Alright! Thanks to Megan Geyer for reviewing. This is for you. ;p
You may have noticed that Misery Business was cut short, too, as well as Disterbia. Well, Misery Business has a bad word in the second verse, so I cut that out, and honestly, I hate Rhianna SO much, but I really don't know any songs sung by girls, so I had to put that in. But I got so frustrated with it that I cut it devastatingly short. Hope you don't mind. ;p
Okay, this is where we start putting POV's in the story. We're going to start with Alice's, and we're going to flip-flop back and forth between her and Jasper throughout the chapter. So in a way, it's like two chapters in one!
Days left until school starts: 1
APOV
Cynthia's voice echoed through the hallway as she sang at the top of her voice with happiness. For once, I didn't have a dream about Jasper, though it unnerved me a bit that two of my dreams of him had come true.
Jasper's performance the night before was both stunning and solemn. Personally, I thought he'd done very well, but everyone else looked at him as if he was crazy. When he was finished, he'd politely walked off the stage, and I'd wondered to myself ever since if he'd even noticed the silence and confusion.
Cynthia was now debating on what to wear with a thrilled look on her face, one I didn't remember seeing in L.A., and she was asking my opinion on everything.
"Should I wear this one or this one?" she asked eagerly, holding up a black tank top in one hand and a blue halter top in the other.
"This is Forks, Cyn," I said, amused. "The place where the sun never shines. It's cold."
"Well, then what do you suggest?" Cynthia said tetchily.
I sighed. "Come on," I said, leading her back to her room. She sat on her bed with a book while I dug through her closet for something decent for her to wear. It took me a while, but I finally found the perfect outfit for my sister's first date.
"I thought you were supposed to be revealing on your first date," Charlotte complained as she pulled off the T-shirt she slept in and slipped into a long-sleeved cotton blue shirt.
"Maybe," I shrugged. "If you're a hooker."
Charlotte scowled and slipped on a pair of jeans. "How do I look?" she asked, holding her arms out to the side.
"Perfect," I said, beaming. "Call me if you need to do something else–like your makeup." Charlotte scowled again, but said nothing, and she disappeared into the bathroom to brush her teeth and her hair and such.
I flounced back to my room and picked out an outfit for myself–a short-sleeved black shirt and jeans. I was keeping it simple–it wasn't like I'd look like much compared to Edward anyway. I pulled out the box with the red X and looked at the picture of Jasper dreamily until Charlotte stormed into my room complaining about her makeup.
JPOV
"Jasper," I heard a familiar voice in my ear, but it was different somehow. It wasn't Maria's voice.
I opened my eyes and saw Charlotte's face right next to mine. I yelped and fell out of bed. Charlotte did her best to contain her laughter, but she didn't succeed very well.
"What the hell, Char?" I cried, rubbing my head.
"I'm sorry, Jasper," she gasped, trying to calm her laughter. "I couldn't resist!"
"Well, if you don't mind, I'll be going back to sleep now," I said tetchily, climbing back into bed.
"No," Charlotte whined, pulling me back out again. I stared at her with loathing. "You are getting up," said Charlotte simply.
"Why?"
"Because you are going to the carnival," she said.
"What?" I cried; I was awake now. "Why would I do that?"
"Because Alice is going to the carnival."
"Everyone's going to that stupid carnival," I said irately. "Why should we fall into everybody's standards?"
"Because," Charlotte said slowly. "Alice will be there."
"And I care because…?"
Charlotte just stared at me. "You're going," she said, throwing some clothes at me. "Get changed," she said. "And don't go back to sleep."
"Wasn't planning on it," I muttered.
APOV
Mike and Edward arrived at the door together; both dressed as casually as us; that was good. Cynthia shot me a thankful look as Mike took her arm.
"You look lovely," said Edward to me as he did the same. I felt myself blush.
"You too," I said quietly. Edward smiled.
He took me to a shiny silver Volvo, and he grinned as he felt my surprise. "Oh my God," I gasped. "This is your car?!"
"Yeah," said Edward proudly. "Carlisle gave it to me."
I stared at him blankly. When he offered no other explanation, I said slowly, "Carlisle?"
"Oh, he's a doctor. We're good friends."
I nodded. "I see," We rode the rest of the way in silence.
JPOV
"I can't believe you're making me do this," I exclaimed as Charlotte dragged me out the door. "I can't believe it. Who are you and what have you done with the Charlotte I used to know?"
Charlotte smirked. "Cute," she said. "You're still going."
I groaned. "But Char–"
"You'd be going in a heartbeat if Maria told you to," Charlotte muttered. I clenched up in anger.
"It's not my fault, Char," I snapped. "I told you: I know what's good for me. I've lived with Maria for seventeen years. You don't know her like I do."
"I've lived with her for six," Charlotte protested.
"Yeah. And I've been protecting you ever since you got here," I exclaimed.
"Protecting me?" Charlotte cried. "From Maria?"
"From yourself," I corrected.
"Okay, now you're just making things up," Charlotte said. "Come on. We're going to that carnival." I gritted my teeth, but said nothing. She was better off not knowing.
APOV
I had a fun time with Edward at the carnival. He was such a gentlemen, opening the car door for me and being so polite.
His voice was like velvet, smooth and soft. He was gorgeous, from head to toe. But I couldn't help feeling that he was showing me off with every step he took.
I missed Jasper. I knew that I didn't know him that well, but that didn't make me miss him any less. I was uncomfortable, standing next to Edward. I liked him a lot, and I knew there were precious few people as kind-hearted as him, yet it was Jasper I wanted by my side. I couldn't understand it.
Still, I tried to forget that and have a good time with Edward, going on fast rides so we wouldn't go on them later and puke. I had the time of my life, the most fun I'd had since I'd come to Forks.
At around noon, Edward and I went to a barbecue in the center of the carnival. There, a bunch of the adults were serving burgers and hotdogs. We both took a hotdog and sat down under one of the many trees in Forks.
We ate quietly and watched everyone else get their own lunches and sit down in groups. We finished eating after a while, but we did not move. Edward got an odd thinking expression on his face, and I kept watching for people I recognized and Jasper.
Then I saw him. He was standing in line to get a burger with that girl from the diner right by his side. He had a bored expression on his face, as if he really didn't want to be there. Then he saw me, and he stared, elbowing the girl.
She looked at me, too, and then she looked away. She elbowed Jasper and whispered something to him, and then he looked away, too. My heart sank. They were gossiping about me.
"Hey, um…Edward?" I said quietly. He looked at me, still partly in his dream-world. "I'll be right back." My uncertainty made it a question. Edward nodded, distracted.
"Sure, sure," he murmured, thinking again.
I walked up to Jasper before I could change my mind and said sweetly, "Excuse me,"
JPOV
For hours, Charlotte pulled me throughout the carnival as she scouted for Alice. We found nothing.
It seemed pointless to me; a meaningless feat. What difference would it make if we found Alice, anyways? It wouldn't make her love me any more.
"You're such a pessimist," Charlotte snapped. "Smile. Look on the bright side." In response, I gave her a cheesy grin that was too wide for my face. Charlotte sighed and continued searching.
Eventually, our stomachs made us get lunch. We'd been searching for hours, and we'd come up empty. I was ready to call it quits–then again; I hadn't wanted to start in the first place. Part of me did wonder what would happen if we found her, if I stayed with her for the rest of the evening. Part of me wondered what it would be like if she did choose me. But it was impossible, I knew.
As we stood in line to get a couple burgers before heading out and searching again, my eyes wandered helplessly through the familiar crowd for a different, pixie-like face. I didn't really expect to find one.
But then, I saw her, and I stopped. There she was, just sitting there, as if she was looking for something. Right there; right where I could see her. I froze with surprise.
After a while I gained enough composure to elbow Charlotte in the ribs.
"Ow," she whispered, and then looked toward Alice. She must have seen her, because she looked away sharply and whispered in my ear, "Don't look at her. She's looking right at you."
And sure enough, she was, staring right at me just as I was her. Embarrassed, I looked away sharply. "Oh, God," I murmured.
Charlotte smirked. "I knew you liked her."
"Shut up."
Charlotte chuckled, but said nothing, her battle won.
Then I heard her voice; her sweet, soft voice that matched her face so well. "Excuse me," she said. Hesitantly, I turned to face her, and I instantly regretted it. She was so beautiful in her own way, and she was looking at me with false politeness. It made my heart sink with regret.
It took a while for me to register that she was talking to me, but how could she not be, with that tone of voice? She continued on, either unaware or perfectly aware of my speechlessness. "I couldn't help noticing–" she stopped then, and I was shocked when I figured out that she really hadn't thought this through. "Um…" she blushed a deep shade of red, and then continued quietly as though she had never said anything before. "Maybe you remember me from the other day? I'm Alice."
It took me a while, but finally I said, "Yes. I remember you." Charlotte snorted, and I shot her a look.
"Um…I was sort of wondering…" her voice was so quiet, I could hardly hear it, but that didn't seem to matter. I was dumbstruck. She was nervous?
Charlotte chuckled to herself. "He'd love to," she said. I stared at her incredulously. "I'll see you later, Jazz." And she left me alone, gaping like a fish.
APOV
He turned to face me, and his expression dropped. It made me waver a bit, but I said unthinkingly, "I couldn't help noticing–" I stopped. What couldn't I help noticing? That he was talking about me? That he was staring at me again? What was I thinking? "Um…" Oh, God, this is awkward, I thought. I could feel myself blush, and my face grew hot. Finally, I thought of something humanly to say, and I said quietly, "Maybe you remember me from the other day? I'm Alice."
He looked stunned; absolutely astounded. I knew I would have blushed deeper, if I could, but I couldn't. I started swearing mentally. Finally, he said, "Yes. I remember you." The girl beside him snorted, and he shot her a look. At least he's polite… I thought hopelessly.
"Um…I was sort of wondering…" my voice was so small, even I could hardly hear it. He must hate me, I thought.
The girl beside him whose name I still did not know chuckled, and, to my surprise, she said, "He'd love to." Jasper stared at her with shock. "I'll see you later, Jazz." And then she left.
………………………………………………………………………………………………
I found myself walking through the forest with Jasper by my side, talking about everything we could ever talk about when it came to boring little Forks.
"So…you just left him there?" he asked incredulously. "Edward Mason?!"
"He didn't seem to mind," I said sheepishly, my blush beginning. "He was thinking."
Jasper shook his head in shock. "You know most girls are dying to go out with him," he said.
I shrugged. "Not me," I said.
"I guess you're the only one he would go out with," Jasper murmured as if to himself. "Everyone wants to go out with you."
"Why?" I asked cautiously, wondering if he was being sarcastic.
"Because you're new, of course," Jasper said, kicking a twig aside. "Everybody loves new people, especially in Forks. Nobody's moved here since…well, I don't know." I smiled.
"I thought that exact same thing a couple days ago," I said.
"Great minds think alike," said Jasper wisely. "So, anyway, you know you can pick whoever you want, don't you? You could pick Mike or Eric or Tyler, or even Emmett if you wanted to."
"Emmett?"
"He's a really big guy," Jasper said. "He's on the football team. He only started hanging out with Edward a couple months ago. Now Ed's starting to realize his full 'girl potential', I guess you could say."
"Oh," I said. "What's wrong with picking you?"
"Me?" Jasper looked stunned. "There are better options; that's what. Much better options."
"How come?"
"Just…I'm not liked, Alice," he said in a low voice. "You don't want to choose me. You'll find yourself in a world of trouble."
I gave a wry smile. "I already am."
JPOV
"I already am," she said sadly, a look of deep remembrance in her eyes. I wondered for a moment, for a split second, what exactly brought her to Forks. Did she do something wrong? Did she break out of juvy? Was she really as good of a person as I thought she was?
But then that moment was gone, and it was just me and Alice again, in the forest of Forks, Washington, and I was alone with my problems again. What was I thinking, bringing her here? She probably didn't even want to be here, and Charlotte forced her to do it by cutting in. She'd probably just wanted to know why the hell I'd picked the song I did to sing the night before. I'd be embarrassed, too.
"You don't want to be here, do you?" I said quietly. I was too sad by this realization to be angry.
Alice looked at me with shock. "Where'd you get that from?"
I shook my head. "Just…you don't have to stay if you don't want to, Alice. I understand."
"Of course I want to stay," Alice protested. "I've been looking for you all day!" She blushed a deep shade of red as she realized what had just come out of her mouth. I stared at her fixedly.
"Really?" I asked softly. I half expected for her to start laughing and shouting, "No! Are you kidding?" But she just blushed deeper and nodded. I brushed my hair back, astounded.
"You shouldn't, you know," I said quietly. "You should go with Edward or Emmett or Mike. Ethan's not bad, either. You should go with people who…who deserve you. People you deserve."
"You have low self-esteem," Alice noted quietly. I couldn't help myself; I laughed. Alice glanced at me a moment, then laughed with me. And I could tell they were real laughs, not those fake 'ha-ha's that Maria make.
When I was finally out of breath, I said, "You have an eye for detail." She gave a wry smile.
"Thanks," she said.
APOV
The sun was just beginning to set when we finally emerged from the forest. Jasper looked me in the eye, and he said, "Edward will be worrying about you."
"Your…uh…friend will be worrying about you," I said, because I still didn't know that girl's name.
"Who? Charlotte?" Jasper asked, surprised. "Oh, she's my sister. She's not worried about me."
"Your sister?" I asked, confused. They looked the same age to me, and nothing alike.
"Adoptive sister," he corrected. "And there's Peter, too. He's the tall one."
"Ah," I remembered that enormously tall boy that had accompanied Jasper and Charlotte to the diner.
"Just go back to that tree you were sitting under," Jasper advised. "I'll bet you anything he's still there. And–Alice?" I stared at him and waited. "Don't pick me."
He walked away, then, leaving me speechless. He didn't want me to pick him. And yet, that only made me want him more.
JPOV
Charlotte didn't say anything as she drove us home, and I intended on keeping it that way.
Peter was in the Gallery, playing some video game involving guns and aliens. He looked up at us as we walked inside, and he said, "Where'd you go? I've been waiting all day for you."
"Jasper ran into Alice," Charlotte said with a smirk. "At the carnival."
"That's great, Jasper," Peter exclaimed. "Did ya' kiss her?" I rolled my eyes, but said nothing.
That night, I stared out my window at the moon and the starts up above, and I whispered to them, as if they could do anything about it, "Please…let Alice choose right." The only thing was, I didn't know whether I was right or not.
APOV
I didn't say anything as Edward drove me home in his Volvo, and he didn't ask. He was still in deep thought. What about, I had no idea. I wondered if he'd even noticed that I was gone.
Cynthia came into my room and started babbling about her terrific time with Mike. I wasn't really listening, but I nodded my head and said, "Mmm-hmm," at the appropriate times. I was thinking of Jasper as he said, "I'm not liked, Alice." But I liked him. Didn't that count for anything?
"Alice," Cynthia said, interrupting my thoughts. "Are you listening?" I nodded.
"Of course I'm listening, Cyn," I murmured.
"I said that Mike asked me to be his girlfriend," Cynthia said tetchily.
"Really? That's great!"
"Thank you," Cynthia said. She stood up. "I have to go. Busy day tomorrow."
"Yeah, me too," I murmured, though I still wasn't really listening. "Sweet dreams."
"Likewise," Cynthia walked out of the room and, thankfully, closed the door behind her.
I stared out my window at the night sky, and immediately thought of Jasper. It was as if it was beckoning me, "Choose him! Choose him!" And so I lay down on my bed and closed my eyes, and in my heart, I knew I already had.
Phew! That was a long chap! That was about seven pages on Microsoft! Wow.
Is that a treat? I think that's a treat.
Again, thanks to Megan Geyer and to everyone who has and will review. You all rock. ;D
