Hi Pals,
If you are reading this, I hope you are well. I am currently at Mayo Clinic searching for some medical answers and doing lots of testing, so I haven't been as active as I would have liked over the past week. I promise to start up again soon. I hope you are enjoying this silly story.
Stay well, stay strong. Love to all.
"Calina?" my eyes dart to the boy in front of me, and I stop my screams momentarily, every part of him makes me want to melt, but all I can remember is the pain he brought me, and how he turned me into whatever I am now.
"What did you do?" I growl again, my throat aching and burning as I look around to the rest of the people in the room, instantly feeling betrayed by those closest to me.
"Calina you were dying." Jasper states calmly, holding his hands up to me as he approaches "I couldn't let you die."
"Like hell you couldn't. What you've done to me, it's not natural. Turn me back." I glare at him, wishing I could just strangle the life out of him, but I don't even know if that would work, since he seems to be whatever I now am; lifeless.
"I told you she would hate you."
My eyes snap over to Rosalie, she looks pleased with my distress, and shoots me a sad smile before returning a scathing gaze to Jasper.
"Rose." Carlisle tries, but I don't want her to stop, I want her to fight for me.
"For the record, they waited until I was out hunting to turn you. I wanted you to stay human." She remarks snidely, obviously disgusted by the actions of the family.
"She was dying." Jasper tries again.
"She should have had a choice." Rosalie's voice is ever so low as she glares dauntingly past me. She shoves away from Emmett, and takes off so fast I can barely see her out the balcony window and into the woods.
I watch the people around me, my eyes brushing over each of them. There are little things I've never noticed about them, like the way Kate's eyes seem to spark in the light, or golden red hue of Edward's hair.
"What am I?" I finally whisper "What are all of you?"
Tanya winces, looking over to Irina with a frown but neither of them make a move to tell me. I turn my gaze to Alice who doesn't seem to be bothered at all, but even she doesn't say anything. Finally, I look back to Jasper, my eyes darting over him lightly before Esme breaks my spell.
"We will give you two time." Esme nods, taking Carlisle's arm and leading him out of the room.
"I'm so sorry." Kate whispers as she passes me, but my anger is not directed to her.
Smiling tightly at her I grab her hand and lightly squeeze it, trying to tell her not to worry too much about it.
As soon as the others leave the room, my glare returns tenfold. He shrinks under my gaze, visibly deflating as I watch him closely.
"Calina, I wish I could have told you, I really do." Jasper starts, and I cross my arms at a speed most unnatural.
He stops for a minute as though he's unsure of his words, but I just want him to say anything. The ache in my throat increases tenfold as we stare at each other.
"You must be hungry." He finally murmurs in an awkward attempt to distract me, and my anger rises.
"Thirsty, actually." I correct him, and he just nods "But I can wait. Tell me what I am." I growl, glaring at him like I could just pull the information from his brain.
"Vampire." His eyes finally meet mine.
I want to laugh, I want to tell him that he's delusional, but all I can do is shout at him.
"What the fuck, Jasper, what the actual fuck. You're crazy, fucking psychotic." I yell, and from somewhere in the house I hear a booming laugh.
"Calina, you have to believe me." He pleads, and I close my eyes, grabbing my head angrily.
"No, I don't. Why should I believe anything you say about me? You fucking overdosed me on pain medicine. I'm dead, this is hell, and I'm dead." I try to convince either one of us, but I manage to only convince myself that maybe he isn't as crazy as he seems.
"It was only in attempt to keep the pain at bay." He winces.
"Yeah, because that worked so spectacularly." I growl, wishing I could just punch him square in the face, he just continues to look small under my scathing glare "I trusted you, I trusted you."
He turns his head away from me and to the ground, watching the tendrils of carpet with extreme interest.
"I trusted you." I whisper, and if I could cry, I would.
"I'm so sorry Calina, I couldn't let you die."
"You could have, you're a selfish man, Jasper Hale, if that's even your name." I don't have the heart to fight with him anymore, wishing he would just leave.
He takes one last look at me with such adoration, but it just makes me feel sick.
"I'll send Rosalie up, I assume she's the only one of us you want." He sighs, shutting the door of the bedroom softly.
I stand, walking around the room, attempting to keep a normal pace, but it doesn't seem to work very well. It feels completely unnatural to slow down, and I find I must completely do everything in slow motion before it even begins to look somewhat normal.
"Hey Cali." Rose pokes her head into the room, a tinkling laugh escaping her lips when she realizes what I'm doing.
"Hi." I whisper, my voice not even sounding like my own.
"It gets better, eventually moving slow becomes completely natural." She assures me.
"So, you're a vampire too then?" I frown, deflating a bit when I realize the severity of my situation.
"Yes, but not by my choice." She sighs, "But that's a story for a much different time, you need to hunt."
"Like with a gun? I don't know how to shoot."
She laughs, rolling her eyes "It will come naturally, don't worry."
"Oh." Is all I can mutter, and I move to follow her.
"Wait, you haven't even seen yourself yet."
Rose grabs me by my hand, tugging me towards the long mirror that covers a portion of the wall in a far corner.
"Here." She smiles, pushing me up in front of her.
The girl staring back at me is far more perfect than I remember. My hair has grown and shines in the light, and my skin is so pale it seems luminescent. What startles me most are my eyes, they glare red at me, and I can't help but jump back when I finally register them.
"Oh, my god, my eyes." I gape at Rose, hoping that she will tell me that they aren't as red as they seem.
"They will fade after a few weeks, they aren't as noticeable as you think." She assures me "Now, I hope you don't mind, but Kate and Edward want to come, they aren't very happy about your situation either."
"Not at all." I shrug, still enticed by my eyes.
"All three of us were appalled by my brother's decision. I truly am very sorry." She smiles softly at me, pulling me in for a hug.
I welcome her embrace, sighing into the hug.
"My throat is burning, why is that?" I frown, pulling away to look at her.
"You're thirsty, and you need to feed. Trust me, you'll feel much better once you do. It never truly goes away, but eventually it will become bearable." She nods towards the window, signaling for me to follow her as she jumps gracefully from the balcony.
Wide eyed, I approach the edge, what's left of my humanity begs me to stop and just go down the stairs, but afraid of seeing Jasper, I jump behind her. I'm startled when I land on my feet, and even more startled when I realize that the other three are watching me from the edge of the woods. Even from here I can make out every needle on the pines.
"Well, come on then, Cali." Kate calls across the distance, a small smile dancing along her lips as I jog over to her, still unsure of how exactly to use my newfound strength.
I watch the forest come to life in a way I never knew it could as we run. The way the trees dance in the wind, barely holding their loads of snow enthralls me, and I wish I could just sit and watch it forever.
. . .
"She took down a bear, all by herself?" Emmett questions Rosalie as we walk up the drive.
Edward chuckles behind me as I shake off the last bit of snow and debris that managed to attach themselves to me along our hunt.
"Of course, she did, did you expect anything else?" Kate chuckles, nudging me slyly with her shoulder.
I catch a glimpse of Jasper in an upstairs window, watching over me silently, but he disappears as fast as he came. Frowning, my hand brushes through my hair. Although I know that these people love me, they still have betrayed me, and I can't help but want to run far away as though that would solve my problems.
I glance back at Edward, watching as a troubled frown passes over his face before he notices me watching him and offers me a crooked grin.
Nodding at him, I head into the house and up to my room. Alice, had it decorated for me while I was changing, or so she says. It's a shame I won't be using it for long.
. . .
Jasper
The first night was the worst. When Calina realized she could not sleep, the anxiety hit her like a train. Carlisle tried to explain the life to her, but she was too worked up to listen, and instead she stared at a wall for an hour before cursing at me yet again.
I could feel her anger, but what I could feel most was her sadness, and I longed to take it from her. Somehow though, it was more than even my gift could take away, and I suffocated with her.
She longed desperately to see Allison. If she could cry, I have no doubt she would.
"Jasper."
I turn to face Alice, my tight smile dropping when I see the look on her face.
"Alice, what is it, what do you see?" I rush to her side, helping her sit on the couch behind us.
"We can't stop her, I'm so sorry, so sorry Jasper."