NB: This was written very quickly, I finished at 1:57am this morning, and it is un-Beta'd so I apologise in advance for any mistakes or what not!

Alice POV

Golden rays pierced the sky, the clouds glowed a pastel pink and the headlights above the highway buzzed to life as the last remnants of day disappeared.

Due to Emmett and Edward wanting to greet us as well two cars had been needed to get to the airport. Carlisle had brought his Mercedes and Esme was borrowing Edward's Volvo. Sure, they were nice cars, but for the life of me I couldn't tell what they were, apart from recognising the logo. Emmett had promised me lessons in 'car language' which I told him I looked forward immensely. No sarcasm involved of course.

And so, Esme had taken Edward and Emmett with her, while Jasper and I were going with Carlisle. To be honest, I preferred the Mercedes to the Volvo, it looked nicer. The start of the journey was filled with small talk, general chit-chat and your normal questions after seeing some one. For the rest of the ride, we mostly sat in silence. Jasper had put his hand on my lap, making sure I knew he was still there, and I slid my hand underneath it, curling my fingers into his. I saw a smile on his face, and needless to say, I couldn't stop one appearing on mine either. I could've sworn I saw Carlisle look at us in the mirror, his eyes softening at the sight of us.

It was this that leads me to another string of thought that I had previously dismissed. What were we?

Sooner or later, I was sure of this, Jasper and I would have to talk things over and actually figure it out. For now though, I was happy, and that was a miracle in itself. I hadn't been happy in a long time, about anything really.

I didn't want to lose this happiness now.

We turned off the highway and suddenly I was hit with green. Everywhere surrounding us was green, all tones and variations of it, yes, but just green. Dark, sinister shadows were created from the tall trees, that were probably a thousand years old or more and they just created barriers through which none could penetrate. Instinctively, I clutched at Jasper's hand. He gave me a look of curio, but rubbed smooth circles with his thumb into my hand instead of speaking, as to not attract Carlisle's attention. I didn't know why I was scared, but I knew that the one motion Jasper was doing was all I needed to be calm.

The fact that I was scared, and I didn't even know why, confused me. Why should I be scared now, when the only thing that could scare me was nearly two thousand miles away? I needn't be scared, I was safe. Smiling up at Jasper, I saw the worry in his eyes, but that scarpered as soon as our eyes met. It was an odd connection, but something I would treasure.

"So, kids, what are you going to do back in Forks?" Carlisle's voice broke the silence that only the hum of the engine had filled.
"Well," Jasper started, looking at me uneasily, "We could go to college, or ask if we could just do an elective course. Alice never finished school, so I don't really know…" he trailed off. This got me thinking, what did I want to do now? Where did I want my life to be? Sure, I wasn't eighteen yet so could probably ask to be taken back into school but I would be so far behind would there be much point?
"What do you think, Alice?" Carlisle directed the question straight at me. I felt like I was under a bright, burning spotlight, one which would follow my every move.
"I'm not sure really," I mumbled, "I mean, I would love to do school again, but wouldn't I be majorly behind, would they accept me?"
"If you like, I could talk to the school, explain your situation and try and get you in for next semester?" Carlisle looked at me in the mirror as I literally bounced in my seat.
"I would love that Carlisle, thank you so much!" with a grin on my face, my brain whirring, thinking of all job possibilities I could now have, and how I could finally get my life back on track.

My parents would love me again. At this thought, my heart swelled with joy. I would no longer be the child that they dismissed from their minds; the child that they wished would've stayed normal and been respectable. I would be the child that would have made a nice shiny trophy in their cabinet. This was my goal.

"So with that sorted, what are you going to do Jasper?" I snapped back to reality and looked up at him. His features were contorted in thought, and it took him a while to say something.
"Maybe I should get a job, just for the mean time. I've finished school and got the grades I need, and if I really want more qualifications there is time. For the moment, the money would be appreciated. Is that okay with you Carlisle?" Jasper seemed very keen to be on the same wavelength with his father, I envied their relationship.
"Of course I'm okay with that Jasper, it's your life, and I'll support you in whatever." Jasper smiled, and started humming a tune. It was then that he rummaged around in the pockets of his jeans and jackets, looking for something.

"What are you looking for?" I asked, curiosity getting the better of me.
"Something to write on, and something to write with, but it doesn't look like I have anything. Damn," He frowned, and I started to claw through my bag, knowing that I had a notepad and pen in there somewhere. I found them, and in triumph I passed them to him.
"Here you go," his smile once again reappeared, and he kissed me on the forehead, whispering a thanks. I could've sworn my heart leapt.

Jasper's hand flowed across the page, words forming in his elegant script as he wrote whatever was in his mind right now. After about half a page of writing he stopped and looked at it at eye level. Satisfactorily nodding, he ripped out the page and folded it, tucking it into his pocket. He then saw me following his hand and answered my unspoken question.
"Ideas for a poem, or maybe a song, I could write." He explained, and at this Carlisle looked at me in the mirror.
"He always does this when he is in that type of mood, you get used to it," he joked, and Jasper smiled, embarrassed, "By the way, we're nearly home."

I stared out the window as the scenery changed from the wall of green to the town of Forks, with its huge welcoming sign, its hand-crafted wooden bear statues dotted around, the small town shops, and the rain. Then, before I knew it, we were back to being surrounded by greenery, driving down a winding road with many twists and turns.

We turned a bend, and then a magnificent house was brought into my vision. My jaw actually dropped. Even after only living with Jasper for a little while, I would have never expected for him to have previously lived in such a beautiful house. Why on earth move to Dallas when you could stay here? It was madness to me.

It seemed I was too busy staring at the house to notice we had parked in front of it, and both Jasper and Carlisle had gotten out of the car to get the bags out. A small knock on the window was enough to grab my attention. Jasper opened my door and made a chauffeur-like pose as he held my hand to gently pull me out of the car. He grinned at me and I returned the gesture.

Jasper led me into the house, I drank in every single detail I possibly could, but the bubble of laughter and chat distracted me from this as we walked into the kitchen. Esme walked over to us and pulled me into a hug.

"Welcome to our home, Alice," she whispered into my ear, and she then looked into my eyes, a gleam of something more than normal happiness in her eyes as she looked into mine, but Esme then turned to Jasper and sized him up, making sure he was okay.

The Cullen's were just like any other family, but better. As the night went on I watched how they acted, how they were around each other. They weren't putting on a fake show to try and improve their egos or anything, they were just being themselves. And for this, I instantly warmed to them. I could see how my time spent here definitely wouldn't be an unhappy one.

It was around eleven o'clock that I started to tire. The long day, and flight, had worn me out, and an escaped yawn proved me guilty. Esme was sharp to notice this, and insisted that I should get some sleep. Needless to say, I was promptly shown to my new room and I immediately loved it. For me, it was perfect. Not too small, not too big. A very inviting bed, a decent sized desk and chair to the side and an ornate wardrobe on the wall that held the door. The walls were a pale purple, and somehow everything in the room complimented it. Then I noticed an area that was covered by blinds, and so I asked Esme what was there.

"They're balcony windows, but there is no balcony, so be careful," she smiled, but I was still puzzled.
"But why have a window there, if there is no balcony?"
"It was just something we wanted at the time; it's an odd little feature that starts conversations you see. Anyway, I'll leave you to your unpacking, sleep well!" With that, and a smile, she backed out of the room and shut the door.

It didn't take me more than ten minutes to unpack and fold or hang all my belongings in the wardrobe, and no longer was I in my comfy Pajamas and wrapped up in the quilt. Despite it being summer time still, it was rather cold. It was something I could get used to though. I drifted into sleep not feeling worried or defensive for once. Right now, I knew I didn't have to panic.

A/N: Sorry. Another pretty lame, short chapter. One exam down, two to go. I'm going to try and write two long chapter this week, to get one up next weekend hopefully, and then one to upload on the thursday after that. Hopefully. I can't promise anything, but I'll try :(

Biiiiiiig thanks to:
Roses004 (as always!), EveryROSE, hansbmd, Hannah, luvcandy, lilsabeth and XXSkittlesXX for reviewing, and also thanks to Jedi Master Adi Gallia and twilight2muchx3 for story alerting/fave story-ing! I love you all :)

Okay, well I hope you enjoyed this chapter nonetheless, please review, they make a very happy internet geek! (L)

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