Chapter Ten
Jasper's POV
Three months later…
I watched with smiling, appreciative eyes as Edward kept his own eyes softly closed, his lips slightly moving along with the notes of the concerto piece that his long fingers pulled from the piano.
Dressed in black slacks and a white, long-sleeve dress shirt that was left unbuttoned, Edward gently swayed to the beautiful, dramatic rhythm he created on the versatile instrument, the solemn, mellow tones filling our shared Fairbrook apartment with effortless serenity and sound.
A pleased smirk curved my lips as I marveled at the way Edward seemed to charm the low notes from the piano, creating such intricate blues melodies that sounded as if the song he played was the very representation of the moment the hardest criminal in the world finally broke down into tears that filled his hands before confessing his every sin aloud; and I was forever touched by the amount of emotion Edward's music always seemed to inspire within me.
Edward was so beautiful sitting there playing the piano like this at such an early morning hour, purposefully letting me witness into his own personal thoughts and tastes shine through the music he keyed, as he kept his unruly, bronze head lowered in what appeared to meditation whilst he played, whilst he expressed himself for solely me to behold.
I loved him so much.
With my smile for him unable to fade from my lips, I mindfully stepped across the spacious main room of our apartment until I was at his side, watching as he smirked as well upon sensing that I was approaching him even though he had yet to open to his eyes.
Wordlessly, I placed my cool, sheet-white hands on one of his shoulders and smoothly maneuvered until I was standing behind his sitting form, slowly sliding my arms around his strong chest as I bent my body over so I could rest my cheek against his.
I sighed quietly, contently, as I listened to a few more bars of his lovely music, enjoying how I could feel every time Edward's body moved along with the accented notes and mood-changing chords, like he was physically part of the melodies he played, before I turned my face a little more towards my lover's neck and buried my nose against his soft flesh.
"…sounds wonderful, darlin'," I cooed warmly against the side of Edward's neck as he affectionately lifted his head up from hovering over his hands as they glided across the ivory keys, and then smiled his naturally crooked smile at my words.
As I tightened my hold around Edward's shoulders, tipping my curly, blonde head against his own fiery auburn locks, Edward finally opened his eyes, ready to slowly detach himself from his beautiful music so that he could reconnect with the rest of the world once more; Edward Cullen's immortal golden gaze beholding our reflections made in the sleek black of the piano in front of us.
We both smiled at the moving picture of ourselves, before Edward lifted his equally pale hands off of the piano keys and brought them up to my forearms, his body gracefully turning around on the bench so that we may face each other.
"Did you have a nice hunt, sweetheart?" Edward asked me with tender words, his hands sliding up my arms until he could take a gentle hold of either side of my face, making sure that I remained as close to him as possible as I kept my grey-clad arms securely wrapped around his shoulders.
"I did," I replied with a smile, before the two of us pressed our lips together, his cool, silken flesh pleasantly caressing my own, causing me to instantly become enveloped by remarkable, familiar waves of loving affection to coast through me, like I had somehow arrived home within him.
Ending the kiss comfortably, I opened my own sunlight-colored gaze to meet his awaiting one, as I briefly licked at my lips before speaking.
"We should probably be leaving soon," I offered carefully, my mind having recalled our established plans for today, plans that Edward had brought up to me a few weeks ago to which I had eagerly agreed, as I rubbed my nose soothingly against his.
"I know…I just want to hold you some more," Edward responded sweetly; his words making me smile once more, allowing me to relish the delicious combination of Edward's infinite love as well as a touch of personal desperation directed towards me, something which I never grew tired of from the beautiful, bronze-haired male before me; as I quickly kissed his lips in gratitude.
"Later, darlin'…we both need to get ready," I provided happily, bringing my hands down to the opened folds of his white dress shirt and giving them a well-meaning tug until Edward obligingly stood up from the piano bench, a warm smirk curving his tempting lips at me upon witnessing my playful antics.
"Alright…I'll start getting dressed," Edward complied, as he and I stepped around the piano bench, reached out for the other's hand, and laced our fingers together as we began heading out of the grand living room and towards our master bedroom.
"This…really means a lot to me that you'd want me to be there with you today, Edward…" I commented somewhat bashfully as Edward and I walked casually down the white hallway, having already passed various white-and-grey pieces of custom furniture and a tasteful array of glass and cherry oak fixtures that offered a pleasing, earthy counterbalance to so many solid yet soft colors that made up our pristine, modern apartment.
Before approaching the doorway to our bedroom, Edward turned around so that he may face me, the slightly taller male boring his amber-colored eyes directly into mine, and I noticed how much Edward's normally rugged, strict features had softened upon my spoken words to him.
"Of course I want you there with me, Jazz…I can't think of anyone else that I would want to help me through this more than you," Edward spoke somberly, his words as sure and precise as any well-crafted blade, as he gave my fingers a squeeze with his own to emphasize what he was saying to me.
My heart swelled inside my chest as my lips parted in brilliant admiration at the male before me, humility flooding through my systems and cleansing me from my every worry about the plans he and I were to see through this day, and I tightened my grip on his hand in solemn appreciation.
"…thank you," I spoke quietly, blinking my eyes down for a moment, before looking back up into Edward's handsome, patient face, seeing just how much love and understanding there truly were behind those transformed eyes of his as they steadily held my shy gaze.
"No…thank you, baby," Edward boomeranged back to me with a growing smirk, before the two of us stepped inside our master bedroom so we may change into something more formal and finally set out to put something of Edward's past to rest.
X
Three hours and seventeen minutes later…
The early afternoon sky was partially overcast, rendering a great portion of the cadet blue canvass to have a smoky, silvery glaze that stretched out majestically above our bowed heads, as Edward and I stood close to one another.
The smell of a thousand, different kinds of flowers wafted this way and that, surrounding both me and my beloved Edward in a myriad of scents that both soothed our still minds and made us remember better days, as the two of us, dressed in pressed, black suits and cream-colored shirts, stood over the graves of Carlisle and Esme Cullen.
…Edward's parents.
When we had first arrived here at their gravesite, Edward and I had each placed a single, long-stemmed white rose on top of his parents' polished, marble grey headstone, simple words becoming elongated sentences to the both of them inside my mind even though I had never met Carlisle and Esme Cullen before.
After he and I had laid our roses down to pay our respects, I had taken quite a few steps back to allow Edward some privacy as he crouched low in front of his parents' shared tombstone and whispered words that I chose not to hear.
He had just finished speaking to them a few moments ago and was now back, standing at my side as we simply stood in contemplative silence and kept our rare, light-colored eyes lowered.
Truth be told, I had been both troubled and deeply moved whence Edward had first explained to me that this day would mark the eighteenth anniversary of his parents' murders and that he wanted for the two of us to visit their graves, as I knew that they had both been killed by vampires all that time ago.
I had been terribly afraid that I would be somehow condemning their deaths by even being in the same vicinity as they, being a vampire myself, but standing beside Edward Cullen at this vivid moment underneath such a murky, unmoving sky, I was at an unforeseeable peace with myself.
Perhaps it had something to do with the fact that Edward was just like me now, a frozen immortal set apart from everyone and everything else, or how he had asked me with brimming sincerity in his golden eyes if I would do him the honor of joining him this day to visit his deceased mother and father.
Whatever the reason, I was immersed in absolute serenity standing there in this quiet cemetery on this grey afternoon; being there for the one I loved most.
Somehow, in some unexplainable yet uncomplicated way, I realized that Carlisle and Esme Cullen would have understood, and that they would have been happy for their son Edward just the same.
They would have smiled and embraced and wished their son well…
Breaking me from my wandering thoughts, I felt smooth, cool fingers gently brush a few of my blonde curls away from my forehead, as my keen gaze took in Edward's sharp jaw line, rose-colored lips, and perfect cheekbones.
"Jazz…where did you go just now?" Edward asked with a subtle quirk of an eyebrow and a smirk of his lips at me, as he kept his large hand on my face as he trailed his fingertips lightly down my temple and across my cheek.
"Nowhere…I was just um…thinking about your parents and how proud of you they'd be if they were still here," I answered with gentle words and an even gentler heart, watching with hopeful eyes as Edward's entire, gorgeous face seemed to lighten up incredibly at my reply.
I began to smile in relief and gratitude upon seeing Edward appreciate my words with a glorious smile of his own, the gesture somewhat odd considering which place we were currently in, but that precise fact only made the motionless atmosphere around us all the more real, all the more precious and sacred, before Edward used his careful hold on my cheek to usher me even closer to him.
Our kiss was kept respectfully simple yet chaste, meanings of admiration and immense love behind the brief connection of our soft lips, before Edward politely pulled away and cast his piercing, half-lidded gaze directly into mine.
"They would have loved you, baby…I know because I do," Edward reasoned to me with a grin, sliding his fingers the rest of the way down my chin until he could comfortably retract his hand and bring both of them to his pants pockets, blinking his wheat-colored eyes at me charmingly all the while.
His plain but heartfelt words warmed my very soul where I stood, allowing me more than a peek inside his own inner-most vulnerabilities and worries, any of his strives and accomplishments and most personal aspirations, and I suddenly felt as if I loved him more as I observed how Edward also appeared to have attained a state of acceptance and calm whilst being here with me.
"What did you say to them?" I asked conversationally with a small, growing smile, my eyes sparkling at my kind-hearted lover, as I also slid my hands inside the pockets of my black suit pants, thoroughly enjoying how proper yet candid we were being with each other right now, like we could tell each other positively anything and it would all make perfect sense…much like our talks at night had been whence Edward had still been human and I would lie across his warm back until he had fallen asleep.
"I told them…" Edward began with a purposefully enthralling tone, not unlike how a schoolteacher would read a story to young children, as he took an elegant, rounded step to my side, prompting the both of us to begin taking our leave and set out on our way, "…about how you and I met…how finding you…was like finally finding the most important piece of myself…"
"…Edward…" I breathed out my lover's beautiful name with indescribable awe into the sweetened air as the bronze-haired vampire and I took slow, leisured steps down the winding concrete path that curved out of the extensive, lush cemetery.
"But wait, I'm not done, sweetheart…" Edward added playfully, his rose-colored lips trying to hide how great his smirk was becoming across his lovely features whilst we strolled along the pathway, taking our time as we took great pleasure in such a bittersweet moment together.
"I told my mother just how beautiful you are…about how you take my breath away every time I see you," Edward continued to confess, my lips parting unconsciously as I kept my eyes trained on his striking profile while we casually progressed out of the beautiful cemetery, barely paying any heed whatsoever to our magnificent surroundings such as the white, stone statues of fallen angels and the desperately reaching weeping willows that appeared only to be happy in their stoic life whence they were able to sway softly with the delicate winds.
"…and my father…I told him…" Edward began once more, this time turning his bronze head towards me and meeting my gaze perfectly with his own as our unhurried footsteps never ceased, his voice becoming much more serious, much more emotional and captivating as he concluded, "…how you saved my life, Jasper."
The second after my gold-colored eyes widened in utter astonishment, Edward and I simultaneously stopped walking and turned towards each other, just as a breeze much stronger than the rest briefly rushed passed our tall, immobile forms, causing the folds of our tasteful, flat-black suit jackets to push and pull against our arms as I held his unwavering gaze with my own, searching his features for any traces of casualness.
There were none.
I had…saved his life…?
I knew that I had been the one who had turned him into a vampire, but by the strength I could clearly see in his majestic eyes and the strength present in his kind smile towards me, I also knew that…Edward had meant so much more with his proclamation to me.
I had saved his life.
He was referring to our love, to the fact that I loved and cared for him as well, ultimately returning his feelings and making us a couple...making me part of his future just as he was in mine…that had been what he had meant had saved his life.
My pale features softened with my realizations; the true weight and significance of Edward's words settling amiably within me, granting me an enormous euphoria to be felt that positively enchanted my every instinct and thought, riddling me with cotton-soft happiness which I had only caught a glimpse of before, as I smiled in earnest at my bronze-haired lover before replying.
"Edward, I…barely know what to say, but…"I began with words made difficult by the frequency of the toppling, battling thoughts going on inside my pleased mind and scrupulously flattered senses, "…you…this…saved me, too."
I breathed easier seeing Edward smirk and accept my awkward reply, his eyes twinkling a brilliant, richer gold that added just enough enrapturing light to contrast with the cloudy sky around us, and only a small minute passed between us before Edward reached a pale hand towards mine and entwined our fingers together.
I watched with a heavy heart and a fluttering stomach as Edward lifted my hand held inside of his to his lips and pressed an appreciative kiss to my fingers, promises and further words of love and impossible devotion shining through such a sugar-sweet gesture, before we both continued walking down the narrow pathway.
Subtle, green hills, patterned flawlessly with the graves of the dearly departed on either side of us, Edward and I walked hand-in-hand through the otherwise unoccupied cemetery, our eyes and hearts forward and confident as the human world around us continued to live out its fleeting existence, all passing cars and bustling people and endless chaos versus our measured steps.
Edward and I, silently loving each other with every fiber of our being, calmly strolled passed all of the noise and commotion, paying absolutely no attention to anything besides the other's hand pressed inside our own, as we perhaps symbolically took our time navigating out of such an inevitable resting place for the mortal world, the thought being mutually understood but never voiced aloud that this fate would never be ours.
We would have each other until a higher power finally deemed otherwise.
I would always have Edward's dazzling smile to see, his amazing love to feel, his everything to experience…
Edward, in turn, would always have my hand to hold during difficult times, my infinite love to latch onto and use as he pleased, anything I could ever offer him…just like now.
He had been through so much, had already sacrificed so much…just for me…that I knew that giving Edward Cullen everything I possibly could and more, was the least I could do.
I wanted to do that for him.
Our feelings towards one another did border on being desperate longing at times, but it was rather beautiful the way we needed each other so fiercely.
I could still clearly remember when Edward had burst through the double, metal doors of the abandoned hospital basement, charging forward with malice burning in his eyes, something I had not seen present within him before, as my protective, perfect lover had rushed to my aid and had fought bravely against his own comrades for me.
I could still remember the shock that had first flashed across Edward's half-covered face the very first time he had seen me in that damp alleyway, me having had just finished drinking from a young woman entering her apartment complex, as the bronze-haired, weapon-clad male had visibly hesitated with wide, intriguing eyes prior to making any kind of move.
He still looked at me that same way at times, like it would absolutely kill him to take his eyes off of me, and I knew that I would also have that forever.
These thoughts fresh inside my mind, I ducked my curly blonde head down and smiled merrily to myself as we walked, my habitual movements not going unnoticed by my equally perceptive and keen lover.
"What is it, baby doll?" Edward asked me with such contentedness in his tone that my smile broadened before I lifted my head to cast a sideways look at him prior to answering.
"I was just thinking…" I began thoughtfully, pausing briefly to collect my racing, repeating words inside my mind before voicing them aloud so that Edward may understand exactly what was making me smile; "…it's ironic that you had to…go through so much darkness until you could finally find some light in your life."
Edward's eyebrows rose for a second, his luscious lips parting pensively for a second as he considered my surprisingly profound words, before his features returned back to their normal state, perhaps with even a little more sternness along his brow, as he licked his lips before speaking.
"Actually…it was out of that darkness that I was able to find light…" Edward countered with smooth, deliberate words that caressed over me like warm velvet, as he tightened his hold on my hand and continued to explain his thoughts.
"…if not for my parents' deaths, I may not have ever met you, Jazz...I wouldn't have had a reason to…" Edward spoke to me with emotional, careful words, both igniting and soothing me at the same time, as I adamantly listened to my bronze-haired lover confess something so obscure yet riveting to me, "...so…it was out of the darkest thing to have ever happened to me that I was able to become happy…and see some light. It was because of you, sweetheart…because I found you that night and…I've never been happier."
"Even…even though you're…different now, and…?" I tried to ask my lover, my bashful, accented words being considerately cut off as Edward already knew what I was trying to ask without my having to complete my thought.
"Even though I am a vampire now…ultimately sharing some kind of attachment to that same darkness; I would do it all over again, baby… go through all that shit and face everything I did… just so I could be with you, Jasper;" Edward affirmed my unfinished question with such grace in his words, such quiet valor present in his every syllable that it both stunned and exhilarated my heart and mind, "You're worth…whatever it took for me to be here, with you now…looking at your beautiful face…"
Without truly thinking about my actions before performing them, I lunged forward into Edward's strong arms, throwing my own around his broad shoulders and squeezing him tightly to me at once, no one verbal reply being able to form completely inside my gloriously forfeited mind at the moment as the only thing I could accurately acknowledge was how unbelievably moved I had been from hearing Edward's revelation.
It was staggering to feel this needed by the one person I loved most, so unconditionally loved and cherished, and I was left with an impossible overflow of bliss to course through me that made me wholly believe that where I was now, with Edward here in this cemetery at this very minute, was where I was supposed to be.
I could tell that our expensive suit jackets were creasing in places as my lover returned my iron-clad embrace with solemn silence, our gesture right now being nothing to chuckle lightly about as I positively clung to Edward Cullen, needing to bury myself in him and know nothing else but his values and ideals, as we held onto each other with everything we had, like either of us was the only thing the other male had in his life.
It was beautiful poetry to be like this with him, feeling what I was with his earlier words still ringing clearly inside my heart and soul, encouraging them both with the purest form of adoration and care that kissed over my being like precious warmth.
Crystal-colored tears slowly slid down my porcelain cheeks as I trembled in the absorbing security of Edward's arms, my mind gradually processing the sheer magnitude of everything Edward had just said to me – how he did not fully despise vampires anymore, how he was, in some backwards, retrospective way, grateful for the terrible tragedy in his life…how him being with me meant the world and more to him.
…how Edward's very life had been nothing but a single, darkened night until…until he and I had come together.
I could only tighten my grip along his powerful frame, nuzzling my nose into his shoulder, as I sought out his own body to help me cope with the severity of the swirling, wonderful emotions I was currently feeling, knowing that Edward would understand my need to be as close to him as possible right now, cemetery or otherwise.
I would continue to be the light to his darkness for all of time; there was nothing that would make me happier in my many years to come – I vowed it right there, silently to myself in Edward's loving, comforting arms with glistening tears of joy running down my cheeks.
However much time passed while we simply stood there holding each other, I could not be certain; a few hours or a few days, it did not matter; but the one thing I knew I could be certain of was that spending forever with my beloved Edward…would not be nearly enough time for the two of us.
X
Author's Note: Oh. Em. Gee. It's finally over. XD I really hope that it felt like the people were actually speaking this story to you, as most of it was typically in someone's point of view and all that. Yeah? Aside from that, I hope everyone enjoyed reading Dark as Night and I appreciate you all! Many thanks.