A/N Another chapter! I'm hoping to get a few in this week as its winter break. I'm so excited that we've hit 30k as well as 40 follows! I hope you enjoy and leave a review!

Review from GeeImKate (Chapter 9): Thanks for your review! I'm so glad you enjoy Diana as well as the way that I write pre-existing characters. I really wanted to make Diana relatable, rather than a character that attempts to and falls flat. I also love what you said about her and Bella! I thought it was super important to have a strong friendship between them, because I feel that people always portray her as so broody and un-emotional, when I prefer to see a different side of her where she can be more carefree and teenager-like. I always thought that she was too stony in the movies, as well, so I never really was a Twilight fan until I read the books recently. I also try to do Alice justice; she's such a fun character! And I'm glad to hear that you enjoy the sibling bonds! I hope you enjoy and review more!

Review from Juli Greenthorne (Chapter 9): Thank you so much! I always hate when authors rush through things super quickly, or almost exclusively write dialogue. Bugs me so much, lol. I hope you like this chapter just as much!

It had been a full week since the accident, and I had become sufficiently stir crazy. But finally, after days of keeping myself busy with nothing but tedious chores and pestering Carter for entertainment, I was allowed to go back to school.

Monday morning proved to be quite difficult. I had spent most of my week at home in pajamas, so getting ready with one arm was an extremely awkward experience.

As I brushed my teeth, I chuckled internally at what Bella had told me about my rumored death the previous week.

If that's true, it'll be like seeing a ghost when I walk into first period.

Unfortunately, my truck had still not been fixed, having had to be towed by my Dad down to a mechanic shop called Dowling's. The shop had charged an arm and a leg to just do an estimate, but it was the only repair place in Forks.

This had caused a slight hitch in the Lansing family's daily routine, as my Carter now had to wake up a bit earlier to catch a ride with my dad during his commute to Port Angeles. I, on the other hand, was in luck. Upon hearing that my Ford was still out of service, Bella had insisted that she drive me to school and back until it was fixed.

So, when I heard the telltale rumbling of Bella's Chevy from beyond my window, I made my way outside.

XXXXXXX

Jasper had had a terrible week. Absolutely awful. When he had seen his mate about to be crushed by that out of control van, the deepest pain he'd felt since his days in the Southern Wars overtook him.

It had felt like his heart had exploded into innumerable tiny little pieces, and each of those fractals had spread throughout his whole body, burying themselves deep inside his being and causing indescribable agony. It had felt like the whole universe had lay upon his chest, crushing him to his very last nonexistent breath.

That was the thing about the mate bond. You were so connected, so in tuned to the other person, that when they were in danger, there was them. Only them and nothing else. The entire world faded into nothingness, because that didn't matter. Only they mattered. In fact, only they were your world. To hell with everything and everyone else. You could happily watch the entire planet burn into nothingness as long as your mate was safe from harm.

The mate bond brought something instinctual out n vampires. Something entirely animalistic. All of the self-control and humanization Jasper had gained since becoming a part of the Cullen family diminished.

He had felt like a newborn, with how carelessly he almost tore through the entire crowd that separated him and his precious Diana. At that moment, he would certainly have no qualms about ripping anyone who stood between them to shreds. He had come so quickly to exposing himself, exposing his whole family, that Emmett had needed to wrap him in his vice like grip.

When Emmett had done so, oh Lord. Jasper had never felt that sort of intense rage and desperation in his life. He had forgotten all of his tactical training, all of the techniques that would surely have allowed him to slip from Emmett's grasp so easily. Instead, he only struggled furiously against his gasp like a feral animal.

He hadn't even realized that Edward was already across the parking lot, shielding both girls from the haywire vehicle.

Jasper understood why Emmett had restrained him so, now that he'd had the week to calm down. He was, after all, the least resistant to blood in the entire family. Had that Bella girl even received a hairline scratch from any of the broken glass, he probably would've drained her in an instant.

Edward's speed had come in handy, with the younger vampire being able to slip out of Rosalie's attempts to hold him back as well.

Now that Jasper knew his Diana was safe from harm, he was almost reverent towards Edward. After all, it was Edward who had saved his mate from certain death. He did know, of course, that his intention had been to save Bella, and that Edward mainly saved Diana for him.

He had mainly shielded Bella from the crash, only remembering Diana's mortality once he knew that his own mate was safe.

He had pulled Diana back so instinctually that it had been quite forceful and she collided with his stone like body so hard that she'd broken a bone.

Though Jasper knew that saving Diana was more of an afterthought for Edward, he was thankful all the same. He supposed a slightly battered mate was better than a dead one.

Jasper had thoroughly ensured that Diana had survived, running in the woods alongside the ambulance that had taken her and Bella all the way to the hospital, listening to her heartbeat all the while.

It had been quite infuriating that he wasn't able to await her awakening in the hospital waiting room. In fact, he'd been forbidden from entering the hospital all together by Carslile. It had not been out of malice, of course, rather the fact that he knew that Jasper was not ready to successfully withstand the scent of blood that clung to the air within the hospital so strongly. It had taken Carslile himself centuries to feel in control enough to practice medicine. Even Alice was not strong enough to resist the smell, having had to wait outside for the girl's friends in order to give them the cookies she'd baked.

After the accident, Jasper did have to make some amends with Emmett. He had been so driven to protect Diana that he'd accidentally snapped a portion of Emmet's arm off. For this reason, it had been fortunate that their classmates were so preoccupied by the wreck. It had reconstructed itself quickly, of course, but he still ended up having to take a weekend trip to Goat Rocks to hunt grizzlies with him as an apology.

Another interesting feature of Jasper's week had been visiting Diana's house for the first time. Well, technically not the first time, but the first time in which anyone was actually aware of his presence.

It had been upsetting to see Diana's well-loved copy of Gone with the Wind lying forgotten in a puddle of slush, knocked out of her hand during the accident. He had let it dry in the sun that shone through his window before delivering it to her house, where he now lingered in front of apprehensively.

Upon knocking, he learned that unfortunately, his ability to withstand the scent of Diana did not extend to her family. In fact, when speaking with her mother at the door, he found it much easier to just hold his breath altogether.

Diana's mother was a kind woman, of similar build to her daughter. Her face was slightly more angular than her daughters, more weather-beaten and tanned as well. Her hair was entirely different, straight and sandy. He assumed that his mate took more after her father, since she shared little physical similarity with Mrs. Lansing.

It had been plain to see that he'd charmed the woman, though he had hardly paid attention to that when he heard an extra heartbeat in the house. In Diana's bedroom. He almost growled in displeasure, which would certainly have stricken Jen Lansing as odd.

'If that Eric Yorkie has even thought about stepping foot in Diana's bedroom- 'Jasper had thought as he strained to make the unidentified person's scent out. He had felt Eric's emotions spike around Diana, heard his heartbeat quicken each time she smiled at him. It had made his blood boil, despite the fact that he knew that the boy's feelings were not reciprocated. He relaxed upon realizing that the scent was decidedly female, Edward's mate, to be exact.

His relief was short lived. If a vampire could pale, Jasper would have when his honed sense of hearing picked up on their conversation. He could hardly make out what Bella was saying, her tone hushed and hurried, as if she were anxious about someone listening in, just as Jasper was in that moment. But when Diana responded, their topic was quite clear.

"Bella," she had said in disbelief, "even if Edward Cullen could stop a car with his hands, which he can't, he'd be dead too-"

Jasper internally cringed. He knew that Edward had tried to convince Bella that it was her concussion that was confusing her, making her misunderstand what had happened that day. Apparently that hadn't worked. Judging from the inflection behind Diana's response, it was plain to see that she thought Bella had lost her mind. Jasper was thankful at this.

Maybe, he had thought, if the entire family acted perfectly normal, she would drop her suspicions entirely.

He knew that eventually, both girls would have to find out the truth. It was definite. Jasper knew that resisting the mate bond was impossible, as was keeping the truth from either of them. There would be no reasonable way to explain why nobody in the Cullen family ate, why none of them ever stepped into the sun or slept.

Despite this, he didn't think that either of them were ready to find out about the Cullen's vampirism. More accurately, he wasn't ready. The thought of Diana learning the truth so soon made him recoil. He wasn't sure they were close enough just yet for her to accept him in stride. In fact, what if she would never be ready?

That was something that Jasper hadn't even considered in depth. What if, somehow, she chose to try to reject their bond? What if she refused to pursue immortality? What if the feeling of his cold lips upon her skin revolted her? If she yearned for someone like herself, warm and full of life? Even worse, what if he frightened her? What if she considered him to be a monster?

The thought was difficult for Jasper to stomach. It made him feel as though his unbeating heart dropped down into his stomach. He wasn't even sure what he would do if Diana was disgusted by him.

Pressing the book into her mother's hands, Jasper bid Mrs. Lansing goodbye before returning home, obsessively stewing over anything to give him time, more time before his Diana knew the truth about him.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"And you're sure that you're alright to come back?" She said, eyeing me dubiously from the driver's seat.

"Yes, Bella. I'm doing great, one hundred and ten percent. Fit as a fiddle." I responded, hoping it sounded genuine enough.

Truth be told, my head still pounded often and loud noises continued to make me cringe slightly. Despite this, I absolutely refused to spend even one more day sitting in the house, watching the hours go by.

Who knew I would miss school this much?

Bella bit her lower lip slightly; a habit that I noticed overtook her often. "I just feel so bad-"she started, hesitating as she pulled her keys from the ignition. "I mean, if you hadn't had to push me out of the way, you'd never have had to stay home in the first place-"

I uninterrupted her self-deprecating rant with a groan. "Bella. Can you just shut up? Pretty please? Before I ask Tyler to have a second try at flattening me?"

Bella punched my leg lightly as she let out a laugh. "You're such a jerk. Just- Thank you, again. That's all."

"You're welcome. There you go, we're done. Now you never have to talk about how sorry you are again. Ever." I said.

Just then, Bella's eyes caught something a few rows down from the one we were currently parked in. Following her gaze, I saw none other than Edward Cullen climbing out of his silver Volvo.

I couldn't help the snort that escaped me as I spoke again. "Is it a bird? Is it a plane? No, wait, its Edw-"

Bella smacked me a second time, though this time much less lightly.

"Ow! Now that's rude-"

"Shh!" she hissed, her eyes widening in panic.

I raised my brows in humor. "What? He can hear us now?"

Bella cast her eyes downward in embarrestment. "Well, I don't know, but maybe-"

I interrupted her once again, faux cringing. "Maybe I should stop talking about how gorgeous you think he is, then. How much you love him-"

Bella's eyes lit up in disbelief, a blush overtaking her cheeks. "I do not- When have I ever said that he's gorgeous?"

I grinned impishly. "I like to read in between the lines. You can only call someone pretentious and insufferable so many times before it translates to you having a massive crush on them."

"I do not, and will never have any feelings for Edward besides annoyance." She huffed.

"See, when you say that, it translates to 'take me now Edward'-"

She rolled her eyes. "Just shut up before I ask Tyler to have another go at you."

I laughed as I slid out of the passenger seat, slamming the door shut behind me.

"So," Bella started timidly, "Did you think about what I said last week?"

"You're still on that?" I asked, raising an eyebrow. I really thought that she'd have dropped it by now.

"Yes," she said, deflating at my negative response. "But, I did get him to slip on some things."

That poor boy. She probably hounded him all week.

"He tried to convince me that he was standing right next to us," She said, her annoyance evident. "You know he wasn't, right?"

"Well, yeah, he wasn't." I responded cautiously. I didn't want to encourage her theories, but what reason would Edward have to lie?

"Exactly!" she exclaimed before her eyes lit up even more. "And the dent! The dent that I said I'd show you. It's right here." She said as she grabbed my uninjured arm, dragging me to the other side of the truck. "See?" She said, a smug grin plastered on her face as she pointed to a dent on the car that had not been there previously.

I leaned down as I studied the imprint. It did look suspiciously like a hand-

I shook the thought from my head. I would not let Bella's wild ideas affect me. There was no way someone could push a car.

"Oh, I don't know, Bells." I said apprehensively.

Her shoulders sagged slightly. "What? You don't see a hand?"

"Well, I do, but it's still impossible. You've got to realize that."

"Well that's not all!" She said, perking up slightly. He said that nobody would believe me if I told them what I said I'd seen. Isn't that a weird way to respond? Like kind of cryptic?"

"Well, yeah, but-"I started, before she interrupted me again.

"And his eyes! They change color. When I first met him, they were black. Like pitch black. And now, now they're different, like a brown-amber color-"

I froze at this installment, stricken by what she'd said. It seemed quite familiar; in fact, it was almost exactly like Jasper. I had never truly realized that his eyes were not always the warm honey color that I envisioned when thinking about him. No, when I first saw him, standing in front of Mr. Jefferson's classroom, they were as black as night.

Bella was positively glowing when she saw my expression. "See? You've seen it too, haven't you? With Alice or Jasper?"

I nodded slightly, my brows drawn together in confusion.

"Exactly! So that means that there has to be something up. People's eyes don't just change color. And when I mentioned it, he gave me some lame excuse about the 'fluorescence of the lighting,' as If I would ever believe that."

"Well," I started hesitantly. "Well maybe it's like a practical joke. Like a 'see who notices first' kinda thing. I remember Carter did that once, when we were younger. He wore like same clothes to school for like a week and a half to see who would call him out on it."

"Ana." Bella said, her tone firm. "You know something about this isn't right."

I pulled a face as I tried to reason with the side of my brain that was agreeing with her. "Well, yeah. But I don't know what to say Bella. There's no reasonable explanation." I said, frustrated with my inability to refute her logic.

"Well maybe the explanation isn't reasonable." She said, her tone heavy with suggestion.

"Well, now who's the cryptic one?" I asked, bringing a note of humor back into our otherwise serious conversation.

She rolled her eyes good naturedly. "Look, can you just accept that I have a point? So I don't go crazy?"

I sighed. "Fine. You're right that something isn't adding up. But I'm definitely not on board with these superhero theories you've been telling me about. Maybe he's just on some serious kind of steroids or something."

"Well I'm just happy that you think it's all strange too. I've been going crazy the past week with nobody to talk to about it." She said as we began to walk towards the main building of the school.

I nodded as I slung my bag onto the shoulder without a sling. "I can imagine. Did I miss anything important last week?"

She shrugged. "Not a ton, except for that field trip to the greenhouse on Thursday with Mr. Varner." Bella's face lit up as if she remembered something. "Oh and Edward, he was there too. He went on this weird rant about how it would be 'better if we weren't friends, but not that he didn't want to be.' "Her tone was lowered a few octaves as she imitated his low, drawling voice. At least, I assume that's what she was trying to achieve, as I'd never actually spoken to Edward before.

I laughed at the mocking face she pulled during her imitation. "Have you ever considered the possibility that he has a severe personality disorder?"

Bella chuckled. "I have actually. But that's not even the worst thing that happened." She said, her face souring as she spoke. "Guess who asked me to the girls choice spring fling?"

I doubled over in laugher. The annoyance in her tone cued me in to the boy in question without her having to say it explicitly. Mike.

"So how did you turn him down?" I asked, feeling a bit of sympathy for him despite how funny I found the entire situation.

"I told him that I'm going to Seattle that weekend. " She said, looking a little guilty at the rejection that probably hurt Mike's feelings.

"And are you?" I asked, bemused.

"Yes," She started cautiously, wringing her hands. "I mean, mostly because it was a perfect excuse, but I'll still go."

I hummed, nodding." I didn't even know that there was a dance coming up."

She nodded. "Do you think you'll go?"

I took a moment to think. A dance? A girl's choice dance? I wasn't even sure that there would be anyone I'd want to ask. Well, besides maybe a certain blond from history class-

No. Jasper and I are strictly friends. And friends don't daydream about friends.

"I don't know," I said finally as I skirted around a large puddle in my path. "Probably not. What's in Seattle, anyways?"

Bella smiled as she answered. "Not Forks, that's what."

I laughed. Figures that the city girl would already be tired of small town life.

When I arrived at French, Alice crushed me in a hug so tight that I was surprised the small girl had so much strength. "You are never to do something so- so foolish ever again!"

I was taken aback by her harsh tone. Alice was usually all smiles, so I was rather unprepared for this reaction.

"I mean, who jumps in front of a moving car?" She continued to rave.

"I know, I know. You sound like my Mom."

Alice nodded in a self-satisfied way. "Well good. At least someone has been trying to talk some sense into you."

"Oh, my brother really liked those cookies you sent, by the way" I said as I struggled through the review sheet we'd been given.

Just like that, Alice had regained her usual bubbly persona was back. "Oh, did he? That's a relief. I didn't try them myself so I was hoping they turned out alright, as I don't bake much you know-"

Alice's fretting over how exactly the cookies had turned out carried us through most of first period, despite the fact that I assured her numerous times of their quality.

Calculus inched by at a miserably slow rate, as always. It took all of my willpower to sit through the difficult equations. Truth be told, I was terrible at calculus. I wasn't fond of mathematics in general, but this course seemed to be impossible.

In my old school, I had achieved all the math credits I needed to graduate, but here, in Forks, a math class was necessary for each year up until graduation. Unfortunately, since I had taken all the classes leading up to Calc that Forks high provided, my options were fairly limited. Within the first day of class, I knew that Calc would be a class I'd pass by the skin of my teeth.

So when the bell tolled, signifying the end of my least favorite subject, I was overjoyed. Somehow Calculus had become more hated by me than even French was.

In fact, I hated it so much that I was almost eager to sit through Mr. Jefferson's lecture.

Now that says something.

Well, I was actually more excited to see what my eyes were inexplicably drawn to upon entering the classroom. Jasper. He sat at his normal seat, his hand supporting his chin as he regarded the board lazily.

An involuntary breath escaped me as I took him in. His hair was a little more disheveled than usual, though it worked in his favor. In fact, I was sure that just about anything could work in his favor. He wore a grey jacket over a tight fitting blue shirt that made my mind wander just a bit before reigning it in.

His handsome features were fixed in a far off expression; before he suddenly perked up a bit, his eyes flicking over to where I now stood. His expression changed rather suddenly, to my surprise. His shoulders seemed to relax as he shot me a genuine smile with all of his perfectly straight and pearly teeth. And dimples. Of course Jasper Hale would have a set of adorable dimples.

You did not just call him adorable. Friends don't call their friends adorable. Especially their weirdly attractive male friends.

My heart seemed to stutter. Sure, I'd seen Jasper laugh and grin, but this smile nearly took my breath away. I enjoyed how it reached his eyes, their honey tone dancing with emotion.

For reasons unbeknownst to me, my chest felt lighter as I took him in, strangely. Almost relieved. I couldn't quite place the logic behind that emotion. I knew that he'd be there, he almost always was. So why had I felt such potent reassurance?

Clearing my throat, I made my way to my seat, hoping that I hadn't stared for too long.

Leave it to me to stand in front of the whole class ogling him.

I took my usual seat next to him, returning his nonverbal greeting with a tentative smile.

"Hello." He said simply, his velvet voice making my heart tremble. It was a little pathetic that two tiny syllables could affect me so.

"Hi," I blurted, more instinctually than consciously.

He seemed to find that humorous, a corner of his mouth twitching ever so slightly. "How are you feeling?"

I bobbed my head before responding. "Good, all better."

That was a lie.

His expression portrayed that he realized that. He quirked a single brow in a slightly challenging manner, humor dancing in his eyes. "You're a bad liar."

I narrowed my eyes. "I'm a perfectly good liar, thank you very much."

He leaned back in his chair as he regarded me. "So if you don't feel perfectly fine, which you don't, why are you back in school?" He took a moment before adding "Not that I'm not happy about it, of course."

He's happy I'm back?

He has to say that. That's what people say when you come back to school after being gone for a long time. Literally everyone has said that to you today.

The constant mental battle that went on within my head every time I spoke to Jasper was infuriating. The boy confused me to no end, and I oftentimes felt like I had two separate people in my head that were always bickering over what he was thinking.

"Well," I started, pushing my internal monologue to the back of my head, "I couldn't stand another day at home. It's horribly boring. You know you can't do anything with a concussion? No reading, no writing, no TV, no texting or calling. Nothing!"

He chuckled slightly. The sound was deep as it rumbled from his chest. "So you're going to make it worse so you're not bored?"

"That's the plan" I responded as I dug my history notebook from my bag.

Whatever Jasper was about to respond with next was cut short by Mr. Jefferson's drawling voice as he began the lesson.

After class, Jasper approached me as he normally did. He had frowned when I slung my back over my right shoulder, and all but wrestled it from my grasp.

I had insisted that I was fine to carry it myself, but he had countered my argument by saying that it was the 'gentlemanly thing to do' by carrying it himself.

Unfortunately, his height and superior strength worked in his favor as he simply held it above me until I agreed to him helping me.

Damn Southern morals.

On the way to the lunchroom, we engaged in casual conversation regarding just about whatever came to mind, though it was periodically interrupted by me trying to catch him by surprise and snatch my bag.

Much to my frustration, I remained unsuccessful. Only when we entered the lunchroom did he give it back to me, gingerly placing it onto my shoulder.

"Thank you," I said in a comically sour tone that made him laugh at my expense.

"Anytime, darlin' " He had responded with a nod of his head before he made his way to the corner of the lunchroom where his siblings awaited, regarding our interaction with expressions varying from interest to anger. Well, really only the blonde girl seemed angry.

The pet name did not go unnoticed by me as I narrowed my eyes at his retreating back, trying to ignore the heat overtaking my cheeks.

Who calls people that? Nobody, that's who.

Why did he have to be so… well I wasn't even sure of the proper term. southern gentlemanly? It was infuriating, only because of how my face so easily betrayed how flustered it made me.

As always, Jess did not let it go unnoticed. "He's carrying your bag now? Come on, Ana, you have to admit that that's something."

I bristled slightly at her suggestion. "It's a common courtesy for people to help the recently disabled," I joked as I gestured to my sling. "Maybe you all should do the same."

Mike snorted. "Oh, you wish."

I laughed, setting my bag down between Angela and I. "It was worth a shot."

Eric joined us, halting the current topic of discussion as he sat beside Ben. "So, Ana, you coming?"

I quirked a brow in confusion.

"To La Push," he supplied, as if I were supposed to know what that meant.

"What's La Push?" I asked.

It was Angela who answered me. "It's a beach on the Quileute reservation. We're going this weekend, you should come."

"Well I wouldn't be able to swim or anything," I said, frowning as I remembred Dr. Cullens 'no submerging in water' rule. It was a shame; I would've loved to see the reservation. We had passed by the sign upon entering Forks, and I had been stricken by curiosity. I had never been on a reservation before.

"You don't have to swim, I'm not going to." Bella assured before shuddering. "Too cold."

Jess nodded in agreement. "We're going to surf," she said, gesturing between her, Mike, Eric and Lauren. "But you can also hike and whale watch and stuff."

I perked up slightly upon hearing that I wouldn't be alone in not going into the water. "This weekend?" I asked rhetorically as I scanned my memory for any plans that might potentially interfere. "Sure, I'll come."

Eric whooped in victory. "Try not to swoon when you see my master surfing skills."

The snort that escaped Jess let me know that Eric's surfing skills were probably anything less than master.

With those plans set, I was quite excited for the weekend to come, eager to explore the reservation with my friends.

A/N: Let me know what you thought!