A/N: Happy Twilight Tuesday and way to go Bella Cullen Project!
I hope you all like what I have in store for this chapter.

Disclaimer: I still own nothing...


Jasper POV

Sunday

It took me a moment to comprehend anything that Alice was saying. Faye, the little girl I had met in the grocery store. The angel that unmistakably had her mother's beautiful eyes, was mine? It couldn't be possible...could it?

"Are you... are you sure?" I stuttered as I clutched the picture of the unborn baby in my hand.

"Jasper..." Alice sighed, her voice pained. "Of course I'm sure. And if you hadn't been the only man I've ever been with, this picture should be proof enough."

She held out the other picture to me, her hand was shaking, but I took it from her and ran my fingers over the glossy finish. The little girl looking up from it was the carbon copy of me it seemed. Her blonde hair was shining in the picture where it hung down to her shoulders in waves. Her smile was lazy, but her eyes were twinkling. It seemed the only thing Faye had missed from my genes was the blue of my eyes. I was so stupid to have not realized this sooner. How could I not have? I had been so close to her, I had shook her hand, and yet still, I didn't know she was my own flesh and blood. I could kick myself. I ran a hand through my already messy hair, noting how long it had gotten since Maria had last made me cut it.

"Why didn't you tell me Ali?" I whispered, trying to fight down the anger that had risen inside of me.

"Excuse me?" Alice asked indignantly and I looked up to her face. " I tried to tell you. I called you, you ignored it. I emailed you, you obviously didn't read them or you would have known I needed to talk to you. Rosalie, Bella and I went to New York looking for you Jasper. I tried everything I could to tell you so don't you dare blame this on me."

"You came to New York?" I asked in disbelief as I stared at the woman in front of me. Had she really gone to all those lengths to tell me about Faye? Alice only nodded her head and swallowed loudly. "When?"

"A few weeks after you left." She laughed humorlessly, "It was Bella's idea."

I couldn't think of anything to say as I looked at Alice. Her arms were crossed over her chest and she was biting hard on her bottom lip. Her eyes were filled with so many different emotions; sorrow, pain, sadness, fear. It sliced me deeper than a knife to know that I was the reason behind everything I saw in Alice's eyes. Every emotion that flickered across her beautiful face, every tear that came to her eye, it was because of my doing, and that made me angrier than I ever had been before.

"I really am sorry Alice." I whispered as I studied the picture in my hand closer. Noticing the light splattering of freckles that could only be seen in this picture because of the way the sun hit her nose. "Can I see her?"

"No." Alice said forcefully and my head snapped up.

"Alice...she's mine, I want to see her." I felt like a child, whining to his mother about not getting desert after finishing his dinner.

"She's sick Jasper. I think...I think it would be best if you waited and let her get better." Alice swallowed as if waiting for the torrent that was about to rain down upon her.

"She's sick? Is she all right? Have you taken her to the doctor? Is she..."

"She's fine. She's just running a fever. Probably just a little cold is all." Alice placated me.

I breathed out a sigh of relief and found myself running a hand through my hair again.

"Would you...would you like to see her baby books? They have pictures and...things."

"I would love to."

And so Alice led me into the living room, gesturing to the couch and I realized it was the same one that had been there when I first met Alice. One where we had spent many a night together, and one where I had first told her I loved her.

"Your dad isn't going to walk in on us again is he?" I laughed as I remembered the night he had walked in on Alice and I. I had gone home quicky and hadn't walked properly for a week.

"My dad...um.." Alice sat down beside me a stack of books in her lap. "My dad divorced my mom about four years ago."

"Why?" I asked in disbelief, it had always seemed as though William and Mary Brandon had been in the perfect marriage.

"It's my fault." Alice said shakily. "My dad..he didn't agree with my choice of keeping Faye. He said I was ruining my life and that it would ruin yours too in the end. It tore their relationship apart. My mom was on my side and my dad resented her for it. I haven't really spoken to him since. He sent back Faye's birth announcement unopened."

"Oh Ali." I sighed as I placed my hand gently on top of hers. "I know I've said this so much, but I am sorry. If I were here..."

"It's all water under the bridge now Jasper." Alice said as she pulled her tiny hand out from under mine and opened the first book on her lap. "This was my very first ultrasound picture."

She placed the book on my lap and I ran my hands down the black and white picture that looked like nothing more than a black hole. I could hear Alice's shaky breaths from beside me as I looked down at what I had missed. As I turned each page Alice tried to tell me everything she could remember about when the picture was taken. She told me of how she had begun to show early and how she had been terrified of going to school, scared of what people would think, until Rose and Bella had taken it upon themselves to rent sympathy bellies and wear them along with her. The first book contained pictures from through out Alice's pregnancy. Pictures of her with my family, with her mom and sister, with Bella and Rose and Edward. I went slowly through the pictures watching as Alice's tiny body slowly began to expand. The last page was adorned with a picture of Alice, her hair a mess, her eyes red from crying and a tiny baby in her hands.

"She was born early." Alice supplied as I looked down at the picture. "About a month. She was so tiny."

"She was okay?" I looked up into her face and she nodded.

"I had to drive myself to the hospital. Bella and Edward had gone on a double date in Amarillo with Mike and Rose. My sister was eleven and in bed sleeping and my mom was working late."

"So you drove yourself?"

"Yeah...did you expect me to have her at home?" Alice laughed dryly as she closed the book and handed me the next.

She waited for me to open it as I held it in my lap. My eyes never leaving her face. She was so different from the girl I had left behind. Her eyes showed it. They were void of the emotions I had fallen in love with, it was like my departure had left her cold and empty, a shell of the person she had once been.

"Mommy?" A tiny voice called from the stairs.

Alice had bounded out of her seat and up the stairs before I had even turned my head in that direction. I could hear her soft murmurs and her gentle whispers and I could imagine her holding our daughter close to her and whispering reassurances. Our daughter. It felt so right to say that. I heard a door shut upstairs and then Alice's soft footsteps on the stairs as she descended down to me once more.

"Sorry about that." She whispered.

"Is she all right?" I found myself asking again, worried for the tiny girl that I had seen in the market.

Alice tilted her head to the side as she gnawed on her lip thoughtfully. It looked as if she was contemplating something, and I might have bothered asking what, had I not wanted nothing more than to take her in my arms and hold her there forever, never letting go again.

"It's amazing isn't it?" She said suddenly and I tried to pull my eyes away from her face so that I could focus.

"What is?"

"How easy it comes. It's hard to believe you can love someone so much when you've just met them. For a moment your whole world stops and then when it starts again, it revolves around them. You would do anything to make them happy. To keep them safe. You just wanna do what's right by them, and give them what they need." She took a deep, ragged breath and I saw her eyes glisten with tears. "I told you about Faye, because I can't do that anymore. I can't be everything she needs. I've tried Jazz. I've tried so hard and I can't be you."

Her tears were falling hard and fast now and I placed the books on the couch beside me as I walked over to her. It didn't matter now. Nothing mattered now but her. I crossed the room in seconds and pulled her into my arms, relishing the warmth she emanated into my core. Having her in my arms was like finding the missing piece to my soul. It was everything and nothing I had hoped it would be. I used my thumbs to gently wipe away the tears that were cascading down her cheeks. She looked up at me, her head resting against my palm. Her eyes were scorching into mine and my heart beat was erratic. She was the only person who could make my heart beat slow down and speed up at the same time. She made my knees feel week with just on glance. And her whole being called to me.

"You don't have to be." I whispered as I held her face firmly in my hands.

"What happens when you leave again? To go home." Alice questioned hesitantly.

"I'm not going anywhere." I breathed as I closed the distance between us. "I am home."

And then, her lips were on mine. The kiss was sweet and gentle, like they had been so many years before, but there was an underlying passion to it. Something that was brewing underneath both of our facades as slowly the walls that closed us off from each other began crumbling. Too soon, she pulled away.

"I'm sorry." She stuttered. "I shouldn't have..."

"Ali please." I groaned as I held on to her face.

"No Jasper, I shouldn't have done that. I'm sorry, I don't know what came over me." Her voice was flat as she apologized and gently pulled my hands away from her soft cheeks. "You can take the baby books with you. I'll call you when Faye is well again."

Her tone was dismissive and she wouldn't meet my gaze. I stared at her for a few seconds, not long enough for mind which was trying to soak up every detail of the woman in front of me, and then I nodded as I walked back over and picked up the books.

"Don't be sorry." I pleaded as I stopped in front of her on my way to the door. I reached down again and placed a feather light kiss on her head before walking back out to my car. My heart immediately throbbed at the distance between Alice and myself and I wanted to run back and take her into my arms.

I ignored my heart as I climbed into my mom's car and started it up. Only then realizing I had left my phone in the cup holder on the console. It was lit up and flashing and as I picked it up I swore under my breath. I had forgotten something...Maria.


A/N: Eh? Once again a review equals a sneak peek. Sorry Breaking Twilight that I didn't send one to you but I got your review right as I was going to post this.
Don't forget to vote on my profile for the name of this story!
Besos.