Disclaimer: None of the characters are mine, and neither are the lyrics I used in the past chapters. In this one, "Taking Over Me" by Evanescence does not belong to me either.

A/N: Hey, everyone! Wow, thanks for all the reviews on the last quick updates! You guys rock! This chapter is back to its normal length, so there's a lot more to enjoy. It's a bit more lighthearted, even though Jasper isn't in it. Before I got to this part, I was afraid that from here until Jasper comes back was going to be really hard to write. But, I'm actually having a lot of fun with it, especially with Sam and Emily's characters. I really like exploring them more. I think you guys will like it too. So, shall we go to La Push then?

Chapter 7- Fun and Danger at La Push

I slowly opened my eyes when soft sunlight hit them through my curtains, and I took a deep breath as I sat up and stretched. After my vision cleared, I glanced at the glowing clock beside my bed, and I saw that it was half after nine. You had to love spring break.

With a sigh, I climbed out of bed and picked up my cell phone off my dresser. I had started leaving it on all night in case I got any calls or texts from anyone in hopes that maybe, just maybe, Jasper called me. It had been four months since he left. There had been no calls. There had been no contact whatsoever. And it appeared this morning would be the same as all the others. There were no voice messages. There were no texts.

I placed my phone back on the dresser with another sigh before leaving my room, not even looking at Edward or Emmett's empty rooms as I passed them and went downstairs. I had avoided looking into these rooms, ignored them even. Otherwise, the memories would be too painful.

My grandmother was sitting on the couch watching the morning news, and she glanced back at me when I entered the living room. "It's good to see you up, honey, even though you are still in your pajamas," she said.

"Yeah, well, it's spring break, Grandma," I replied with no feeling as I trudged into the kitchen.

I heard my grandmother sigh. I realized that I had changed a lot over the last four months since Jasper left, and she was getting worried about me. "Well, I left some scrambled eggs on the table for you. Just heat them up if you need to, dear."

"All right, Grandma. Thanks." I absently picked up the bowl of scrambled eggs that she had left out and put it in the microwave, setting a time before pushing the start button. I then pulled a fork out of the drawer and set it on the table before going to the refrigerator and pouring myself a glass of milk. The eggs were done a couple of seconds later since they didn't need to be there long, and I took them out and sat at the table with them, taking a long sip of milk before beginning to actually eat them.

I sat in silence for a while, merely staring at the clock on the wall ahead of me as I watched time continue to inch forward. It was an amazing thing, really, how time continued to move on when my world felt like it was standing still.

My grandmother cautiously came into the kitchen then and sat down in the chair beside me. "Alice, honey… are you all right?" It was a rhetorical question. She knew what my answer was going to be, even though it was a lie.

"Yeah, I'm fine," I muttered as I finished off my eggs and leaned back in my chair.

"Alice, it's spring break," she said, rubbing my back. "It's not good for you to be sitting around the house doing nothing all day. Why don't you go out and do something with your friends?"

I sighed. "I… I guess I could…"

"That's my girl." My grandmother gave me a smile as she stood up and took my dishes from me. "Getting out will be good for you."

I smiled and nodded to appease her, but I still wasn't too sure. But, I was willing to try anything to distract myself from the constant memories of him…

"It's a shame that the Cullens had to leave. Do you know when they'll be coming back?" I could hear the sadness in her tone for the departure of Edward and Emmett also.

My grandmother's words brought back an onslaught of painful memories, but no tears fell this time. I wouldn't be surprised if I had wasted the rest of my life's supply of tears over the past four months. "I don't think they'll be coming back, Grandma," I told her quietly as I stood up from the table. "It was something about Carlisle's work…" Before she could respond to this, however, I left the kitchen and hurried back up the stairs. I didn't want to talk about the Cullens anymore…

But as I passed Edward's room on the way to mine, I gasped and stopped when I thought I saw something out of the corner of my eye. I turned to look back into the room, and I saw that Edward and Emmett were sitting on the bed, looking back at me with concern in their golden eyes. I rubbed my eyes to make sure that I wasn't just seeing things, but when I opened them again, my brothers were gone.

Great. Clearly, Jasper wasn't the only one I was going to be imagining…

When would these hallucinations stop? I didn't know the answer to that, but I hoped it would be soon. I didn't know how much more of this I could take before I completely lost my sanity.

I slowly entered my room then and shut the door, sighing as I collapsed onto my bed. Mina jumped up onto it a minute later and curled up on my stomach, purring softly. I scratched her head absently as I stared blankly out the window. She had been a lot more at ease now that Jasper wasn't there.

Suddenly, I gasped and quickly sat up, scaring Mina away from me, when someone appeared on the tree branch outside of my window. My heart began to slow back to its normal rate when I recognized who it was as I got off the bed and opened the window.

"Jake, what are you doing?"

The smiling face of Jacob Black was looking back at me. He had called a few times over the year, and I had seen him a couple of times, but this was the first time he had made this kind of entrance before. "I came to check up on you to see how you were doing," he answered from where he was perched on the branch. "You okay, Ali?"

I tried to smile back at him as best as I could as I nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine," I told him. "I'm okay."

But Jacob didn't seem to believe me. "You're in pain, Ali, I can see it clearly in your eyes," he muttered gently. "It's that bloodsucker's fault…"

"I'm fine, Jake," I repeated firmly. It had been four months already. I had survived this long…

"All right, Ali. I believe you," Jacob said, though I could tell he didn't. "But the other reason I came here is I was wondering if you were doing anything today."

"No, I'm not," I replied, wondering why he hadn't just called like usual. "Why?"

Jacob smiled again. "Sam's getting married today," he explained, and I couldn't help but smile myself. I remembered Sam well from the camp also. "I was wondering if you would like to spend the day at the reservation with us. You know, take a look around, get to meet everyone… That kind of stuff."

"Sure, that sounds fun, Jake." I'm glad that Jacob seemed to be past his imprinting thing that was prominent at the camp and that we were just good friends. "Just let me get changed. You should probably head downstairs to talk to my grandmother so she doesn't get suspicious. I'll be down in a minute." I didn't wan my grandmother to know that the majority of my friends had unnatural abilities.

"Okay. See you soon, Ali."

I watched Jacob jump off the branch with a slight shake of my head as I went to my closet to pick out an outfit for the day. What to wear for a wedding? I wished I could have had more notice since I had absolutely nothing that I could wear. I would just have to go with a nice shirt and mid-length pants, I guess… It was the best I could do with such short notice. And spending the day with Jacob and the rest of the wolves should keep my mind off the thoughts that now refused to leave my mind.

At least, I hoped it would.

"All right. Take a left here. That will take you to the reservation."

I was sitting behind the wheel of my Porsche with Jacob in the passenger seat beside me, guiding me toward the Quileute reservation. We had been on a road that was winding through the trees for a long while, and now the road was beginning to take us downhill. I was glad that Jacob knew where we were going because I had absolutely no idea where we even were.

But I was marveled by the sight that was now before me. The high cliff that we had just passed overlooked a rough ocean where waves splashed up along a small beach. I slowed when I came to the bottom of the hill, looking left and right down the street I had come to. "Which way?" I was really liking this reservation…

"Go right," Jacob told me. "Sam lives toward the end of the street."

The house that ended up being my destination was slightly larger than some of the ones I had seen, but it still seemed just as "homey." I parked on the street since I didn't feel comfortable parking in the driveway- though Jacob told me I could- and locked the car up before we headed toward the house.

"The wedding actually isn't until this evening," Jacob said as we walked on the narrow path that led up to the door, some flowers beginning to bloom on either side of us. "But, I figured I'd bring you here early. You know, to show you around the reservation a bit."

"I'm glad you did," I replied with a smile as we stepped up onto the small porch. "This place is incredible!"

"You really like it?" Jacob returned the smile when I nodded as he reached out to knock on the door. But before he actually could, the door opened to reveal four darker-skinned boys on the other side, all wearing swimming trunks and had a towel resting over their shoulders.

"Hey, I'm glad you guys made it!" Sam greeted cheerfully. "It's good to see you again, Alice."

"You too, Sam." I smiled broadly as I shook his hand. "Congratulations, by the way!"

"Thank you."

Then, my eyes widened in shock when another of the boy's arms wrapped around me in a tight hug, and I couldn't help but smile as I laughed a little. "It's good to see you too, Seth."

Seth smiled broadly as he released me before he turned to the other two boys behind him, who I recognized from the camp but didn't know by name. One was tall and skinny while the other was shorter and slightly larger set. "Alice, this is Embry," he said, gesturing to the taller boy first. "And this is Quil."

"It's a pleasure to meet you," Quil, the shorter boy, said while Embry simply nodded at me. He was friendly…

"The pleasure's mine," I replied politely. They both smiled.

"Jake, we're going to go cliff diving," Seth told us with excitement as he turned his attention back to us. "You and Alice should come along."

"Cliff diving?" I asked, looking up at Jacob curiously. I wasn't sure I liked the sound of that…

Jacob smiled. "Sure, that sounds like fun," he replied, and Seth, Quil, and Embry stepped outside with us while Sam stayed in the doorway. "I just need to stop home and get my trunks. Could Alice stay here with Emily for a bit, Sam?"

"Of course." Sam nodded into the house, and I followed him inside while the rest of the teens headed away from the house. He walked me through a comfortable, decent-sized living room before bringing me into the kitchen, where we were instantly met with the smell of chocolate chip cookies.

Sam smiled and laughed a little as he looked at a woman who was standing in front of the oven wearing oven mitts and an apron, her black hair tied back behind her head in a loose bun. "You shouldn't have to be cooking today, Emily. It's a special day."

"Well, these are for the reception after," the woman, whose name I guess was Emily, replied without turning around as she checked on her baking treats. "You know how everyone feels about my cookies.

"The finest on the reservation," Sam supplied, his smile still lingering as he looked at the woman with compassion. This must have been the lucky bride.

Emily laughed a little. "I thought you were heading out to the cliffs with the rest of the boys."

"I am. But we ran into Jacob and his friend Alice on our way out. Jacob has to stop by his house for a little while, and Alice is going to stay here until he comes back if that's all right with you."

"Oh. We have company?" Emily finally turned around, and my breath caught in my chest when I saw that there were four scars running across her face. I hoped that I hadn't made a big deal about it since she was still undoubtedly a beautiful woman. "Of course it's all right. I'm sorry, dear. I didn't realize you were here."

"That's all right," I said with a smile. "I hope I'm not intruding."

"Of course not. It's a pleasure to have you here, Alice. I've heard so much about you from my boys." Emily crossed the kitchen, taking off her oven mitts as she came over to us and hugged me quickly before she turned to Sam. "You be careful out on those cliffs. There's supposed to be a wedding today, not a funeral."

"I will. I always am, you know that." Sam smiled at his fiancée before meeting her lips in a light, gentle kiss. Then, he nodded to me. "I'll see you in a few minutes, Alice," he muttered before he turned and left the kitchen.

Once he was gone, Emily turned and smiled at me again. "Would you like to sample a cookie while you wait?" she asked.

"Sure," I answered with a nod. They certainly smelled delicious.

"Good. Have a seat at the table, dear."

I did as she told me, watching as Emily went back to the oven and turned off the heat before slipping her oven mitts back on and pulling out the pan of cookies. They looked just as good as they smelled. She set them on the counter, giving them a few seconds to cool as she went to the refrigerator to pour me a glass of milk. Then, she used a spatula to carefully lift one of the cookies off the pan and set it on a napkin before placing it and the milk on the table in front of me.

"Thank you," I said as she sat down in the chair across from me.

"Sure, dear," Emily replied. "Let me know what you think."

I nodded as I carefully picked up the cookie since it was still hot- but they were the best that way- and took a small bite. Sam had said they were the finest on the reservation. I certainly believed that claim. It was the best chocolate chip cookie that I had ever had. "These are amazing!" I told her truthfully.

Emily smiled. "Thank you. It's an old family recipe. I'm glad you like it. But tell me, why are you going cliff diving with the boys? You don't seem to be the extreme sports type to me."

"I'm not even exactly sure what cliff diving is," I muttered, taking another bite of my cookie. "I'm just kind of along for the ride, I guess."

"It's exactly what it sounds like, dear," Emily explained, a worried glint in her eye now. "You dive off the cliff at the edge of the reservation into the ocean below. Sam does it all of the time. Even though he tells me he's always careful, I wish he wouldn't. It's so dangerous…"

My face paled at the thought of the high cliff that I had seen while driving into the reservation and the crashing waves far below. "Well, there's no way that I'm going to do that," I told her, taking a sip of milk. "I'll just watch from the sidelines, I think."

"That would be the smart thing to do, honey," Emily murmured, seeming to be deep in thought. "Sam could never get me to go cliff diving either. It was just never my thing…"

I finished off my cookie in silenced and looked at her curiously. Though she was undeniably beautiful, I couldn't help but wonder where she had gotten those scars. Emily noticed my gaze and sighed heavily, seeming to know what was on my mind.

"I know they're not pretty…"

"Oh, no. I'm sorry," I muttered, feeling embarrassed as I took another quick sip of milk. "I didn't mean to stare. I mean-!"

"No, it's all right, Alice," Emily assured me with a slight smile. "I know they stand out so much…"

"I'm sorry…" That was all I could bring myself to say to her since I felt ashamed about being caught staring at her scars. I hadn't meant to. I just couldn't help but be curious.

Emily smiled again as she reached forward and placed her hand lightly on top of mine. I looked back up at her, surprised by the sudden warm action. "These scars have been a part of me for years," she told me, and the compassion in her voice caught me off guard. "In a way, these are a way of connecting me to Sam."

"What do you mean?" I asked quietly.

"Well, you see, Sam and I have been together for six years now," Emily answered, and I could tell that these were memories that she treasured. "Before I met him, he dated a girl named Leah Clearwater. I'm sure you met her at the camp in Montana."

I nodded. I remembered Leah all right. She was the only one of the group that didn't seem to like me for some reason.

"But then, he imprinted on me instead, and Leah has been… having negative feelings about the situation ever since," Emily continued. "Sam was one of the sweetest boys that I had ever met, and I loved the thought that I would be with him for the rest of my life. But the one thing you have to realize about young wolves is that their emotions get out of control, and they can change very easily into their wolf forms if they are angered. I guess you could say that I was around Sam in the wrong place at the wrong time."

My eyes widened with realization. "Same gave these to you?"

Emily nodded. "Yes, but I was never angry at him for it, even though nothing could be done to restore my face. It was not I that he was angry with. Instead, it was Leah, and I had tried to intervene to stop him from losing control at her. I was just a little too late. But I know that he would never have done this to me intentionally. It was just an unfortunate accident. But it proves just how strong our love truly is, and that is why I do not mind these scars."

I looked at Emily in awe. The love between her and Sam was definitely a force to be reckoned with. But yet, there was that risk in their relationship that he was a danger to her. They looked past that threat, and today, they were getting married and about to embark on their life journey together.

Why couldn't the same have happened to Jasper and I? Tears began to shine in my eyes at the thought- they were tears that had refused to form for the past four months.

Emily tightened her hand around mine when she saw my tears, and I was thankful for it. The comforting gesture was enough to make them disappear again. "I know it must be hard to lose him," she whispered. "I don't know what I would ever do if I lost Sam… But your memories of him will always stay with you."

I smiled slightly at her last statement, and I tightened my hand around hers as well. "They're the scars I have to bear," I told her quietly.

Before Emily could say anything, we heard the front door open, and Jacob appeared in the kitchen a minute later, now wearing his swimming trunks. "Ready to go, Ali?" he asked with an excited smile. "The cliff awaits!"

"You be careful out there, Jacob Black," Emily said before I could answer, squeezing my hand once before getting to her feet and taking the napkin and empty cup away from me. "And don't make Alice jump if she doesn't want to. That's the last thing she needs right now."

"Don't worry, Emily. I won't."

I smiled as I got to my feet and moved to stand next to Jacob, turning to look back at her as she threw away the napkin and rinsed out the cup. "Thank you so much for everything, Emily," I muttered. I knew she knew that I was talking more about than just the cookie and milk she gave me.

"Oh. Of course." Emily quickly dried her hands before she came over to us, kissing my forehead before she hugged me. "All scars heal in time, dear."

My eyes widened as she pulled away from me and gave me another smile. "All right. We'll see you later, Emily," Jacob said as he took my arm.

"Okay. Have fun, you two."

I looked back at Emily as Jacob pulled me out of the kitchen, watching her until she was out of sight. She seemed to completely understand what I was going through. But she still had Sam. She couldn't have faced this same situation.

But as I climbed behind the wheel of my Porsche, I knew that I had another, more potent thing to discover as I put on my seatbelt and started the car.

And that would be the horrors of cliff diving.

It was a long way down.

I stood at the edge of the cliff as I stared at the waves far beneath me, their movements almost hypnotic to me as they crashed against the shore. For one moment, though I was terrified of the drop, I wanted to try jumping. The waves seemed to be calling to me, almost as though they were challenging me to try to survive the fall…

Suddenly, I screamed when a pair of hot hand grabbed my shoulders and made a pushing motion, and my eyes widened when I felt my body begin to go over the cliff's edge. But these same hands saved me from falling over, and I glared back at the laughing Jacob Black.

"Gotcha', Ali!"

"Jake, that wasn't funny!" I snapped, smacking his arm when he only continued to laugh. But I allowed him to pull me back a couple of steps away from the edge anyway… just in case.

"All right, Jake. You ready?" Sam asked, standing near my car back by the road. Quil, Embry, and Seth were standing next to him.

"Yeah, I'll be right there!" Jacob yelled back. Then, he turned back to me, the excitement still shining in his eyes. "You may want to move to the side, Ali."

"Don't worry. I'm planning on it," I told him with a smile of my own as I walked to my right until I was in a spot where I wouldn't be run over by the line of boys as Jacob ran to join the other four.

"All right, on the count of three," I could barely hear Sam say. "One… two… three!"

When the last number was out of his mouth, all five of them ran forward at an incredibly fast pace. They passed by me in a blur… and jumped right off the edge of the cliff without the slightest hesitation.

I covered my eyes with fear when they disappeared from sight, and I waited for a couple of minutes before slowly lowering them and hesitantly walking to the edge. What would I see when I looked down? Five bodies floating limply in the ocean?

Instead, I saw five perfectly fine boys laughing as they swam around in the waves far beneath me, splashing each other. Then, one of them- I assumed it was Jacob- waved up at me, and I smiled as I waved back. I looked down at the cliff edge at my feet thoughtfully. Maybe the jump wasn't so bad. Maybe it was even kind of… fun. I wasn't exactly sure why, but I could feel my left foot slowly begin to inch over the edge…

"Don't do it, Alice."

Snapped roughly out of my thoughts, I gasped when I felt icy fingers brush against mine, stopping me from making the jump. I knew that voice though it was only a whisper. I knew the feeling of those fingers running over my hand though it had only been for a second.

"Jasper…"

I quickly turned around to look at him standing behind me, but my eyes narrowed with confusion and I sighed with disappointment when I saw that there was nobody there. I looked down at my right hand, the one the fingers had brushed against. I could have sworn that someone- or should I say Jasper- had almost grabbed my hand to stop my attempt at cliff diving.

Jasper had been there to stop me, I was sure of it. But yet, I was now completely alone.

"Have you forgotten all I know

And all we had?

You saw me mourning my love for you

And touched my hand

I knew you loved me then…"

A/N: Was he there? I don't know… But, I hope you liked this chapter! As I said, it's more fun to write with the wolves than I originally thought, especially Sam and Emily. I hope you all feel the same! Don't worry. Even though Jasper isn't actually a character, per se, he still will have a major influence on the story until he comes back. That said, thanks for reading! Your reviews are much appreciated. Thank you! And, enjoy the preview (yes, there is one this time, lol)!

Next Chapter: Shadows in an Empty House

Everyone had found a partner since I guess it was a slow song. I could see Leah glaring at me out of the corner of my eyes, but I ignored her as I placed my hand on Jacob's shoulder while he put his hand lightly on my waist. I looked up into his dark eyes as the music stared and we began to sway together.

Xxx

Confused, I opened to a random page, seeing that I had landed on an illustration of the Cheshire Cat. There was a folded piece of paper marking that page, which was probably why it opened to that particular one. I took out the paper and set the book back down, carefully unfolding it to read what was on the inside.

Xxx

Instead, I got out of the car and slowly, almost cautiously climbed the porch steps and lightly pushed down on the door handle to test it. I was surprised to see that it was unlocked, and I hesitantly pushed the door open, almost afraid to see what I would find inside.

Xxx

Feeling weak as the tears finally began to fall from my eyes, I shut the door behind me before walking into the room and collapsing onto the mattress, staring blankly up at the ceiling. This wasn't Jasper's room. It couldn't have been. There was nothing left of him in it.

Xxx

"Grandma… how much do you know about the Cullens?"