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It really makes me sad not to get feedback, so pleasepleaseplease let me know what you think!

Please enjoy this chapter in sequence with the previous one! It's a long one to make up for how I made you wait. I've been traveling and I got tons of writing inspiration.

Review to make me update faster!

Notes on future chapters: I'm writing more in depth about Emmett and Rosalie's visit to Vera's. I'm also writing some background of Rosalie and Alice's friendship and what's going on back home, some sneaking around and a chapter about them being newly married and some dialogue for Robert and Rosalie and Camille and Rosalie, and some more things I don't want to spoil yet heheheh. Big things are brewing!


Drive You Mad - Amy Shark

Running away

Oh, I felt like this yesterday

And if there's a problem, you'd want to know

Who's in my shadow

Even though you say you won't lie down

I'll ask every night to wear you out

Make me believe one day

I'll be great

Keep me in your heart for old times' sake

I need love

I'm enough, I'm enough

I'm enough to drive you mad

Sleep on the grass

You take my hand, I take you way too fast

You said you feel like there's nothing you can't say

And I felt that yesterday


Alice: Pardon my French

Five Years Ago; Mardi Gras

I pretended like I didn't hear them, and caught onto her arm.

"So how was my French earlier?" I asked perkily, sliding into the round booth first and leaving just enough room for Rosalie and Rakim to take the seat next to mine.

"Trés magnifique." Rosalie smiled down to me, shaking off whatever just happened between she and Emmett.

Emmett and Heidi would have to take the seats to my right.

Rakim though, politely took the seat next to me so Rosalie wouldn't have to slide in the booth.

She smiled and gracefully took a seat at the end.

Emmett put his hand on Rosalie's shoulder.

Her eyes shot up to him, her brow furrowed angrily and she flinched away.

"Alice, would you be a dear?" Emmett smirked down to Rosalie even as he addressed me.

Rosalie audibly groaned, rolling her eyes to express her displeasure, but ultimately scooted over.

So, Rakim and I did the same.

He made a face, not being inconspicuous about it.

No one paid mind.

The most disappointed of all though with Emmett's seating choice was Heidi, who took the seat on my other side as intended.

But, he didn't even look her way. All of his attention was on Rosalie.

Poor Rakim. He was frowning, and began to search Rosalie's face for signs. He was examining the air between she and Emmett just like I was.

Heidi though was still oblivious and centered only on the task of getting Emmett into bed with her.

I don't mean to throw any shade at Emmett, but usually she wouldn't have to try this hard. She was gorgeous and he was here alone. That was usually all it really took.

But, if I didn't know any better, I'd say that the tension between Emmett and Rosalie was romantically motivated and he wasn't going home with anyone any time soon…

"So Heidi, why don't you tell us how you got into social media influencing?" I prompted conversation, willing there to be something to break the tension in the air.

Heidi started a story that none of us were really listening to, but we all nodded every so often at appropriate times until Jasper returned.

"Two Sazeracs, one Vieux Carré, and… uh Rosalie, I brought you a lime soda?" Jasper tested as he set the drinks down on the table.

Heidi exited the booth so Jasper could slide in.

"Perfect." Rosalie said softly, taking the drink with a half-smile.

"Oh my God. This Sazerac is to die for." Heidi exclaimed.

"Man, this is real good." Rakim nodded.

"Jasper knows what he's doing." Emmett said with a grin, but was seeming to speak to Rakim only to let him know who the alpha was.

Men…

"Rub it in everyone, it's fine." Rosalie grumbled, twirling her soda straw.

Emmett laughed a full-bodied laugh and she allowed herself some leeway as she gave him a little smile.

In the very swift moment their eyes met, it seemed like time stopped.

If I didn't know any better, I'd say they were in love.

No way. Absolutely no way.

I tilted my head to put it on Jasper's shoulder and he just chuckled modestly.

"It's in my blood." Jasper shrugged, and I kissed him on the cheek.

We launched into a conversation about the restaurant which then had us transitioning into us all talking about our work. I loved conversation about work because I loved my job and I found so much fulfillment from it.

I loved talking about what I was doing and the goals I was setting. I just loved being a busy bee, and I loved surrounding myself with ambitious people.

The group of us were all pretty ambitious, and I was thriving and so inspired! I wished for this group of people to start hanging out regularly, but I didn't know if that weirdness between Emmett and Rosalie would ever fade. Either way, having them around did wonders for my own drive because they were both such passionate and driven people themselves.

I focused though on the conversation at hand and I learned Rakim really was a brilliant artist. He talked about the creative process with confidence and it was intensely interesting.

He put his arm around Rosalie as he talked about wanting Rosalie in the music video for his new single and being inspired by that diamond ad.

Naturally. I thought and I rolled my eyes to myself.

"I mean, didn't she look hot as hell in those diamonds?" He squeezed her tight and she smiled just as tightly as she wriggled out of his grip.

One thing about Rosalie that hadn't changed was the fact she absolutely hated to be touched.

I watched Emmett finish his drink with record speed, keeping his eyes down even though Rosalie looked directly at him.

My eyes narrowed with suspicion.

Her cheeks turned a faint scarlet, but I saw the determination in her eyes.

Emmett was a man; no doubt he'd seen those pictures of her.

Everyone with eyes had seen Rosalie's recent photo shoots.

But, the look in her eyes as she looked over at him…

It'd make any person think that she took those pictures just for him.

I shook my head to shake the thought.

But… it'd make sense why she seemed to be doing things out of character…

"What'd you think?" She asked Emmett confidently as she turned to him.

It confirmed my conspiracy.

Emmett's eyes shot over to her.

Jasper and I exchanged a look.

I wasn't making this up. There was something going on between them.

Rakim seemed angry about this finally and grabbed Rosalie's arm pulling her back by him.

Rosalie frowned, flinching away from him.

"I think you'd do a wonderful job creating a collection for Tommy Hilfiger." Emmett smirked in her direction, obviously toying with her by referring to something else entirely and not her internet-breaking photoshoots.

She was rumored to have a Tommy X Rosalie collection in the works. It was obvious Emmett was following news on her with a comment like that.

His eyes darted over where Rakim held on to Rosalie's arm, obviously not liking that very much.

"Thank you. I hope you're right." She smirked right back, not finding his redirection amusing.

Jasper and I exchanged another look, then I remembered I was a reporter and I perked up.

"So wait… it's true?!" I squealed.

Rosalie's eyes went wide.

"Whoops." Emmett laughed heartily, and Rosalie chewed on her bottom lip.

"Is it too late to say it's off the record?" Rosalie couldn't help but giggle now and her eyes met Emmett's as she smiled.

The electricity between them was undeniable.

Then, just as quickly as it came, her smile disappeared like a shooting star - fleeting and if I'd blinked I would've missed it.

Her eyes darted down to her lap and she laced her fingers together nervously.

"When can I get you to confirm it on the record?" I pushed, bouncing my knees.

"Friday." Rosalie looked back up at me, trying to relax.

"You're welcome for that story, Alice." Emmett winked in my direction.

"So, Friday morning, can we do a phone interview?" I squealed.

Rosalie agreed to have me over for coffee at her family's loft so we could talk in person and I was happy to get to break the story. I was also sensing she wanted some girl talk too.

Of course, I was happy to oblige.

"I know Robert's been missing me at poker on Thursday nights, so I might see you again in a couple days too, Rosalie." Emmett seemed to be taunting her with his tone and sickly sweet smile.

"He asked me why he hadn't seen you in a month." Rosalie said with an accusatory tone.

"What'd you tell him?" Emmett seemed to challenge her.

For a long, hanging moment their eyes burned into one another's with a passionate emotion that was teetering the line between hatred and love.

"You've been busy gracing the cover of Forbes obviously." Jasper began to tease Emmett about his recent Forbes cover.

He was the cover of the 30 under 30 issue and he didn't mind the attention of course. And rightfully so, he should be very proud of that. I mean, that solidified him as a powerhouse of our generation.

I was a little jealous though because I really wanted my own name to be part of 30 under 30… But, I was still happy for him. It stung a little to see how proud Jasper was of him because of my own irrational desire to monopolize success and accolades.

Then, Heidi mentioned he should ask Rosalie for some modeling tips because the social media petitions and hashtags for People to nominate him for Sexiest Man Alive this year were really gaining traction and attention, and he laughed so hard I thought he was going to fall out of the booth.

I laughed too, absolutely unable to imagine that just because I knew him and what a goofball he was.

"What?! Who votes on this?! Do they even have eyes?!" Jasper joked.

"I mean, I may have chimed in too." Heidi seemed like a vulture as she laughed with us, but Rosalie was stone still, her eyes down at her hands.

"Ouch, Jasper." Emmett's booming laughter was contagious and I found myself laughing.

"And hey now, I don't need any tips. I already got a magazine cover." Emmett jokingly posed, laughing with Jasper.

"Oh my God, no stop that right now." I cringed and covered my eyes with a laugh. "And whoa whoa whoa, Rosalie is two covers away from holding the record for the most VOGUE covers ever and she's only seventeen. You could learn a thing or two from her."

Rosalie blushed bright red, rolling her eyes.

"I'm sure I could." Emmett was obviously in good humor, catching her gaze again.

Something about him now seemed on edge, and far removed from the humor of his previous tone.

"I need another drink." Rosalie mumbled, ripping her eyes away and looking over to Rakim.

She expected him to offer.

He eventually did, but not before his eyes darted over to Emmett.

"Okay…" Rakim narrowed his eyes, but smiled at her, ducking to kiss her on the cheek.

She shied away from him, turning her face even more so he could barely reach her to brush her skin with his lips.

Before Rakim was even out of earshot, Emmett went for Rosalie.

"You don't have to-" He started.

"Get out of here." She growled under her breath.

If I wasn't sitting right next to her, I wouldn't have heard her.

"I want to be here." He said defiantly, absolutely not understanding the concept of whispering.

"Well, I definitely don't want to make small talk with you." Rosalie hissed at him harshly.

"We can be friends, Rosalie." He protested quietly, his eyes wide.

"I don't want to be friends with you." She gasped.

"I can't be friends with you." She said now, more tenderly.

He looked at her with tragedy in his eyes, but nodded.

"Please?… Please leave. I'm trying. I'm trying so hard, Em. Please. I can't do this with you here." She whispered and when she turned away from him I saw how her eyes glistened like she was going to burst into tears.

"But, I don't want you to…" He started, but seemed nervous to finish his sentence, something he never was.

"Em, please." She begged again, her violet eyes on fire.

"Okay…" He said, right as soon as Rakim came back with Rosalie's drink.

Emmett stood to let him in the booth.

The break in conversation seemed like a cue to Heidi to try her luck with Emmett.

"So, you wanna go grab another drink?" Heidi asked him, nodding to his now empty glass and how he stood.

"No, I shouldn't." He dismissed.

"But, it's Mardi Gras." She insisted, reaching for his hand.

I willed him to take her with him, to make things less awkward for everyone, but he didn't, and even worse, he retracted his hand, making it obvious he was rejecting her advances.

Heidi was persistent though.

"Mardi Gras will end up getting me in trouble." He smiled lightly, but spoke quickly to put the subject to rest. "I was actually just about to…"

He was obviously nervous and in his head because his accent came out and his consonants disappeared into his breath more obviously. Usually, he took special care to pronounce his words and tighten his loose sentences, unless he was drunk, really relaxed or on the other hand if he was overthinking and nervous.

"Oh my God, I loooove your accent." She raved, leaning forward on her elbows, batting her long black eyelashes and tucking her dark curly hair behind her ear in a blatantly suggestive manner. "What is it, like Spanish or something right?"

I grimaced. They didn't have a chance in hell after she commented on his accent.

Well, I say that… He'd gone home with much worse before…

Heidi wasn't giving up. She was going to keep flirting with him until he offered to take her with him.

"What are you talking about? I don't have an accent." He said in good humor, his dimples showing. "I really should be…"

She just giggled just thinking he was joking around and flirting with her.

"He's just leaving." Rosalie's face looked white and pale as bone as she stared up at him harshly.

"Don't go!" Jasper said naively. "What is wrong with you?! You're usually a party animal! You just need another drink"

"Please, stay a while!" Heidi pleaded. "Por favor."

Emmett made a face at her disgrace of the Spanish language, but seemed to give her a break and chuckled. I slapped a hand over to my face having to disguise my snorting laugh of judgment as just clearing my throat.

Rosalie shot Jasper a look then Jasper made a face over to me and I shrugged as we communicated through just a series of glances.

"Yeah, stay a while. Where you from, man?" Rakim asked Emmett at the mention of an accent, and something about his tone seemed confrontational.

Emmett slid to sit next to Heidi and she was obviously happy about that.

"Hunts Point." Emmett sighed exasperatedly, but knew it wasn't that Bronx twist on his words that he was referring to; that was obviously recognizable to Rakim.

"No, I mean… Wait, Hunts Point?! I grew up in Castle Hill…" Rakim nodded, obviously trying to like him or connect with him even though there was obvious tension.

Major kudos to Rakim just for trying, but Emmett wasn't having it that's for sure.

"Talk about a small world." Heidi inserted herself into the conversation but obviously didn't know what they were talking about. She was from California.

"You're one of those fancy folks across the bridge." Emmett snorted cheekily, denying the connection with him.

"No one's ever called me fancy." Rakim cackled, tossing his head back.

Rakim seemed to take offense, deciding that there was no hope in trying to like him.

Rosalie was tense as she watched the exchange happen between them. It was obvious their personalities repelled each other.

"Well, if you've ever crossed the bridge you know why I'd have that perception." Emmett shrugged with a little laugh, but his expression was odd.

"You're leaving." Rosalie reminded him.

"Hunts Point's rough as hell, man. Even to me." Rakim shook his head, ignoring her.

"I liked it enough to move back after law school." Emmett chuckled darkly, and suddenly his nice clothes seemed like a disguise.

Something in his dark laughter seemed offended though, and I worried. I knew from my own journalistic research that he spearheaded lots of initiatives to clean up the area and get kids in school and worked especially tirelessly to get the women of the area more educated and empowered.

But, he would never talk about any of it for more than a sentence or two.

At first I thought it might have been just because he was modest…

"Your folks didn't get out?" Rakim asked with an odd look in his eyes.

His phrasing, 'get out' was not lost on me, nor was it lost on Emmett.

"They're in Queens now. Maspeth." Emmett nodded carefully.

"Nobody gets out of Hooker's Point alive." Rakim was visibly impressed. "It always sucks people back."

Rakim was speaking lightheartedly, but Emmett wasn't having any of it.

His jaw was clenched and he was stoic.

"Hooker's Point?!" Jasper asked with a laugh, making it obvious he wasn't from New York.

"Jasper…" I warned.

"Sorry, I mean I didn't…" Jasper said under his breath.

Emmett seemed for the first time taken aback and at a loss for words.

He was very proud of living in the Bronx, very proud of moving to Queens with his family, and loved going back to the Bronx after law school, and obviously now he loved living in Manhattan, but it was hard for him to leave the Bronx. He wasn't reticent about his time in the Bronx as far as details, but that was the first big indicator of how gritty his neighborhood really was growing up.

I knew a little about the drugs and sex and addiction of Hunts Point, and assumed its truth when that's where Emmett told me he was originally from and the fact he never had invited us over when he lived there the entire time we'd known each other, but I naively never thought about how it affected him growing up or if it even did. He seemed so far removed from it that it seemed to be a moot point.

"Hunts Point's a red light district. Hos, Pimps, Addicts, that stuff everywhere you look." Rakim explained to Jasper. "There's even a movie about it. It's the real deal."

"Yeah. My neighbor, Lucille, was in that incredibly trivializing and short sighted excuse of a documentary." Emmett nodded sourly.

Rosalie looked over at Emmett now, but he didn't meet her gaze.

"What?!" Jasper was trying to mend the tension in Emmett's voice. "You're kidding! Look at you now, on the cover of Forbes."

"Well…" Emmett's face changed and I saw something odd in his eyes. "She was a great woman, but they got her at Rikers. I tried working on her case last year, but the judge wasn't budging. She's got parole though coming up for good behavior, but it's been close to ten years already."

He seemed to be defending this woman's honor in a way.

He hated the "Cinderella story" narrative that seemed to follow him everywhere. As a reporter, I knew that was the most obvious angle for him though and people ate it up. He was an immigrant, grew up in a rough neighborhood, but defied all odds for the American dream. He paid his way through school working about a thousand jobs, and loved his mama so the first time he had any money, he bought her a good apartment. That was a story that just wrote itself!

People loved stories like that…

"What did they say she did?" I asked now, the journalist in me wanting to know.

"Heroin and prostitution is illegal if you're caught by the wrong cop." Emmett shrugged, desensitized to things like that. "She was just doing the best she could though… Her parents died when she was young and she had a kid on her own at fourteen. Then the kid died of leukemia. It was all pretty dark stuff…"

It became obvious he was taking the conversation personally, and really wanted to make sure the people of "Hooker's Point" were humanized and not thought of in such a surface level way. He was fighting for his "hometown" and making sure to defend its honor too.

"Oh, wow, I'm sorry" Rosalie's cheeks flushed obviously not reading into context clues, but was also sensing what I had in Emmett's face and not wanting Emmett to feel cornered.

He shrugged and looked over at her.

Even in the smallest of exchanges, it became apparent when they addressed one another that they were meant to be.

Their eyes met and it was magnetic.

Rosalie's fingers seemed to inch toward him across the table, but she put her hands back in her lap to stop herself.

"Lucy lived down the street and knew enough Spanish she could help us with our homework."

"That's so nice." Rosalie agreed, and it became obvious that she seemed to desire to fill the gaping holes she sensed in the nostalgia of his heart on the matter.

He went on, evidently sharing information hungrily to open himself up for her.

"She'd make dinner for me and my sister sometimes when my mom'd be working late at the diner." Emmett said to expand on the subject, partially because Rosalie had been interested.

It was obvious he was still trying to humanize her and the people now, and had taken this whole conversation very personally.

"Behind the diner." Rakim snorted and made a face, making it obvious he was instigating something between the two of them.

You didn't have to be a genius to know Rakim had just insinuated that Emmett's mom had been a Hooker's Point prostitute.

Jasper looked over at me, wide-eyed.

Emmett, sunshiney, happy go lucky, never hurt a fly, Emmett transformed before our very eyes. He was a big guy, tall, broad shouldered, and would most likely terrify anyone he came into contact with if it weren't for the eternal smile on his face revealing the fact he was really just a big teddy bear.

But now, his eyes were dark and vicious, and he absolutely undoubtedly terrified me. A chill ran down my spine at just how monstrous he could look at just the flip of a switch.

"Do we need to step outside?" Emmett bowed up and my mouth hung open as he stood over Rakim.

I didn't want there to be a scene and I panicked.

Jasper rose from the booth and put his hand on Emmett's shoulder obviously not wanting a scene either.

You can take the boy out of the Bronx, but you can't take the Bronx out of the boy. Emmett had joked with Jasper about how much fighting he did growing up when they would wrestle around like children, but it felt so hard to believe because Emmett was just a ball of light and sunshine.

Now though, it was evident that it didn't matter how scrappy and fiery Rakim was, Emmett'd kill him.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa. Man, I don't got a problem with you or your five dollar crack whore mother." Rakim fired back, standing to meet his gaze.

"Why don't you watch your mouth?" Emmett was absolutely feral then, but Rosalie was fast and stood between them.

"Em, stop!" She said intensely, reaching for his face to guide his gaze toward her.

He shrugged her off, lunging around her.

"Hey, stop. Look at me." She said softly as Jasper wrapped his arm around Emmett to hold him back just in time to pull him off of Rakim before anything real happened.

Emmett was shaking, but he exhaled as his eyes found hers.

"Oh my God." Heidi gasped. I don't think my jaw could ever be picked up off the floor. My heart was racing as I took it all in.

"Calm down. It's okay." Rosalie brushed Emmett's hair behind his ear tenderly.

At this, Emmett grabbed Rosalie's wrist as if to make her stop, and his eyes danced over her face.

I noticed my eyes were as wide as saucers as I watched them look at one another with no veil of defense in front of their eyes.

He looked at her like he knew her, really knew her as he held onto her.

My eyes were fixated on the way he held her wrist. It was… reverent.

Only a millisecond passed before she ripped her hand out of his like his skin was scalding hot and she turned back toward Rakim.

"What is your problem?" Rosalie asked, her eyes wide and her tone full of defensiveness.

It was apparent where her loyalties were. The look in her eyes made it seem like she was going to fight him for Emmett.

Rosalie was not the most forgiving person in the world. You annoy her, or wrong her once, and she writes you off for eternity. It didn't take much to get on her list, but Rakim had suddenly gotten to the top of it.

"My problem is that he's been eyeing my girl all night." Rakim snapped, realizing she'd closed herself off to him.

"That's ridiculous." Rosalie rolled her eyes, but I noticed her cheeks turned scarlet.

"And you're over here treating me like I'm stupid." Rakim snorted.

"No, you're just delusional…" She rolled her eyes and crossed her arms over her chest, making it obvious she was closing herself off as he reached for her.

"Yeah, must be delusional because I thought you weren't just gonna be a prudish little tease…" He snapped back his hand.

"Don't talk to her like that." Emmett shot forward again as Rakim verbally attacked Rosalie, but she held her arm out, obviously capable of defending herself.

Jasper renewed his grip on Emmett, not letting go any time soon. He looked over at me with wide, confused eyes.

"Hey, maybe he gets Saint Rosalie to put out." Rakim threw his hands up like he was exasperated, seeming to taunt them both now.

"You're acting irrational." Rosalie insisted, narrowing her eyes and flushing scarlet.

"You're acting like a too good little virgin, when you're not." Rakim fired off.

Rosalie's face went bone white, and Emmett threw a swift left hook that barely missed Rakim's face as Jasper pulled hard on Emmett to get him to back off.

"Wow. You're almost half as crazy as she is. Good riddance the both of you." Rakim laughed now though.

This was obviously intensely emotional territory for Rosalie and I hated that he was fighting her with her weakness in the foreground. She didn't have any control over what happened to her, and that's no doubt a reason she was so uptight about her sexuality and boys and men in the first place.

I could see the relationship between he and Rosalie wasn't healthy or serious at all by this exchange, and now, it was going up in flames. They didn't stand a chance.

"Hey, let's calm down." Jasper said tentatively, still holding tightly onto Emmett like he could pounce on Rakim at any moment. "We're getting out of here. No need for any trouble. We're out of here. You guys enjoy your night. Please. We don't want any trouble. We're out of here."

"I'm not leaving her with him." Emmett snarled.

"She came with me." Rakim tried to outdo him, his eyes on fire.

"Emmett, come on." Jasper encouraged, pulling him back and away from the situation.

Rosalie stood taller, her chin forward in defiance and resolution.

Emmett's eyes darted over her.

Rosalie kept her eyes purposefully away from him, even though he desperately fought for her gaze.

I stood up and encouraged Jasper and Emmett in a mumble to get out of here.

"We'll leave you guys to it." I said, trying to stay pleasant. "Heidi, Rakim, it was lovely to meet you. Rosalie, I guess I'll talk to you Friday."

My voice shook as I tried to keep everything normal.

I smiled, but Rosalie was cold as ice, her eyes straight through me as Rakim sat back down next to her.

She wasn't over it, but she'd stopped fighting.

Heidi was wide-eyed and open-mouthed, and just perma-smiled back to me before trying to act like everything was normal. It was obvious she was still in shock.

"Yeah, I'm going to go find Marco and Julian downstairs." Heidi mumbled.

My legs felt like Jell-O as I rounded the corner and saw Jasper had pushed into the kitchen with Emmett who was still seething.

"What was that?" I asked, alarmed as I caught up with them.

"I'm… sorry… I…" Emmett exhaled as Jasper finally thought it was safe to let him go. He slid to sit with his knees up and his back against the wall.

Emmett ran his hands through his hair, stressed obviously as he vibrated with anger and pent up energy.

"Yeah Emmett, what the hell, man?" Jasper groaned, pacing along the kitchen floor.

He covered his face with his folded arms and I worried about him stressing so much today on his opening.

"I'm sorry. I don't know what… I…" Emmett stumbled over his words like he'd never done as long as I'd known him and bounced his knees nervously.

"I've never seen you act like that." I accused.

Emmett and I had a bond like brother and sister. I didn't let him get away with anything. I always kept him on his toes and called him on his crap, but he didn't deserve what was said to him, and I couldn't blame him for acting that way.

"Sorry, I…" He spoke through gritted teeth.

He looked down, swallowing nervously before he leaned his head back against the wall closing his eyes and cursing foully.

I sat down and took his hand, and it was shaking as it overwhelmed mine.

I looked up at Jasper, uncertain.

Emmett was actually… upset.

He was seething, trying to calm down for what felt like an eternity. Jasper had the time to make himself a drink and he brought Emmett a glass of neat whiskey.

"I'm sorry." Emmett mumbled, barely intelligible as he swallowed the glass in one gulp. "I just… God…"

He cursed again, this time taking his hand out of mine to pound on the floor, frustrated.

He was never out of his head. He was never like this.

I wanted to get the courage to ask about Rosalie, but now didn't seem a good time.

"Emmett, relax. It's not a big deal. Only a prick talks about another guy's mother." Jasper dismissed.

Emmett cursed, his knees bouncing as he put both of his hands on his head.

"I just…" He seemed to be at war about something in his mind.

I looked over at Jasper. I worried about Rosalie, knowing enough time had passed that I needed to check on her to make sure she was okay.

"How can she?…" He trailed off. "He's…"

"I know." I nodded, putting my hand on his arm before I stood to my feet.

"She can't…" He groaned. "Ugh, Jesus Christ…"

He was in rare form.

"He shouldn't talk to Rosalie like that." Emmett growled, obviously intensely upset.

"No, he shouldn't." Jasper agreed.

"She's… God…" Emmett groaned, in physical pain over this as his face twisted in anguish. "She can't…"

"She can take care of herself." I insisted.

"She doesn't deserve…." Emmett ran a hand over his face.

"What is going on with you two?" I finally asked, stepping out on a ledge, but by the look in Emmett's eyes, I was right.

Jasper shot me a look.

Emmett paused, vibrating with pent up energy and nerves.

"I don't know what you're talking-" He started to mumble.

"Don't give me that crap." I said, frustrated.

He paused for a long moment.

I groaned, rolling my eyes impatiently.

"For the love of God, Emmett…"

Emmett's gaze flashed with something I'd never seen in his eyes before…

Fear.

"I can't…" He breathed.

"Listen, I'm going to just look and make sure she's okay." I said, backing away slowly.

Emmett cursed again, running his hands through his hair, but didn't acknowledge what I said.

"Emmett will be fine." I assured Jasper, kissing him on the cheek before I slipped out the door.

As I looked over to the booth where we sat, I saw Rosalie was alone and her head was down.

I opened my mouth to call for her, but someone else did it before I did.

"Rosalie!" Emmett called out her name.

"Emmett!" Jasper called out after him, letting him slip through his fingers.

Jasper shot me a look before we both followed him right back out to where we had just pulled him out of a brawl.

"Rosalie!" He called again.

"She's alone." I noted to Jasper's concern and Jasper and I hung back now.

My heart was beating in my ears as I saw Emmett rip Rosalie out of the booth by her arm. She was more than a willing participant as he pulled her to stand in front of him, but she tensed up in his hands before he wrapped his fingers around her shoulders, molding her like putty.

"Rosalie, listen to me." He commanded loud enough for us to hear.

Her lips parted slightly in a little gasp, her wide violet eyes searching his face rapidly.

"I don't want to see you with anyone else. Ever again." Emmett said, panting the words, shaking her shoulders slightly.

Rosalie looked taken aback but didn't shirk away from him as he held on to her. Her big purple eyes sparkled like I'd never seen them.

"I don't like it. I hate it." Emmett took her face now, his eyes intense and convicted as he looked her over.

She nodded again and again, her eyes wide and vast.

"You tell him to leave you alone for good. You tell everyone to leave you alone for good." Emmett told her, his voice strong as the words poured from his mouth without a filter.

"I… I j-just did what you told me to do. You t-told me to…" Her bottom lip trembled, and he exhaled a little nervous, strained laugh as he swapped to hold her face.

"Well, I made a stupid, awful mistake." He stroked her cheek with his thumb and my jaw dropped. "I thought I was doing the right thing but I was so so wrong and I made a mistake. I want you. I want you, Rose. I want to treat you right."

I looked at Jasper for the briefest of moments, but couldn't peel my eyes away from them for too long, afraid I was going to miss something.

This was the most bizarre thing I'd ever experienced.

"I hope you still think you love me." He said, his hands tenderly caressing her face, but also hungrily trying to memorize the way she felt.

"Rosalie, answer me." They left friendly a long time ago. He looked at her, touched her, and stayed near her like she was the last bit of oxygen and he wanted to breathe her in.

It was primal and natural and wild.

I gasped at the sheer rawness of it.

I had never in my life seen anything like it.

"I don't." Rosalie swallowed.

His face fell tragically, and I had to admit my heart did too.

"I… I don't think it. I know it. Don't treat me like I…"

"Rosalie, I…" He started, nervously running his hands through his own hair as he stood in front of her.

"I love you and I shouldn't have lied to you and tell you I didn't. I do. I do love you." Emmett redirected, gaining his confidence to just say it now.

"No." She closed her eyes shut tightly, pushing him away. "Don't tell me that."

She begged this of him, her eyes full to the brim with heartache.

"But, Rosalie, I do…" He started.

"Please, don't… Don't tell me that you…" She trailed off, and I saw Rosalie Hale start to cry for the very first time in as long as I'd known her when he kissed her forehead, his contact with her visceral and intimate. "Please don't say that to me if you don't mean it."

"Despite everything, I'm in love with you, Rosalie Hale." He said strongly.

I shot my gaze to Jasper and he was just staring, open-mouthed like I was.

"Then, why didn't you call?" Rosalie asked in a tiny voice, and I saw the painful aching and heartbreak in her eyes.

"Because I'm too damn stupid, Rosalie." He exhaled.

"And because I'm scared. I'm terrified of you."

"Why?" She questioned.

"Because the second I let you in, that's it for me. That's it. Because when I love you I know I'll love you with every single little fiber of my soul, and…" He raved, and my stomach jumped at the intensity in his voice.

"Jesus Christ, Rosalie, I know how much I can love you and… it's the scariest thing in the world. I'm not ever getting over you. I'm not ever loving anyone after you; I'm not living after you and that terrifies me."

She took a deep inhale, her eyes darting over his face and her bottom lip trembling violently.

"But, I don't care anymore. I wanna be terrified with you. I wanna pretend I was never not yours, and never not terrified of how much I can love you." He raved.

"Tell me you love me too." Emmett begged her, his hands on her in desperation. "Please, Rosalie."

I wasn't scared of his urgency. I was just taken aback.

"Oh. my. stars." Jasper whispered, just to me like we were witnessing some once-in-a-lifetime celestial event.

In the space between his words and the brilliant smile that spread across Rosalie's face, a universe was created with a cosmic, big-bang worthy explosion -

when he grabbed her face in his hands and kissed her before she could say a word.

But, the shock wasn't over because when she pulled away, she smacked him straight in the face.