Before we progress into the chapter I just wanted to write a little side note for a few readers who were curious to know a few things about our characters. I've been getting a lot of reviews and PMs with questions and I thought I better answer them once in a while since it is hard for me to find time to respond to everyone. I want to thank all of those who have left reviews and expressed your support for this story!
1. Are you going to include any of the Underworld characters or are you keeping this a strictly Twilight AU version?
I will not be including any Underworld characters in this story. I've thought about writing a UW story before but Twilight just seems to hold a special place in my heart at the moment.
2. Why do their eye colors change when they see blood?
So whenever vampires see human blood their eyes glow a bright red, just like when nomads drink human blood it's in their system. I wanted it to be the effect of their bloodlust even if it is controlled. Bella's eyes glow blue because of the experiments she went under but she is the only one who has that trait.
3. Is this story going to be about Bella and one of the boys or both of them?
I love JasperxBellaxPeter stories so I will be keeping the ship for all three of them as a whole. One thing to take into consideration here is that Bella is mentally and physically scarred from what happened at the labs. If she leans more towards one of the boys it's just because she seeks to feel safe and reassured but she doesn't trust either yet.
It will be a hard long road before she begins to trust them fully.
often will you be updating?
I'm set on Friday or Saturday's for this story with my other two stories taking the rest of the weekend or weekdays. It's a bit of a work in progress so bear with me please!
If you have anymore questions you'd like for me to answer please leave a review! xoxo
maybe.
Bella
My eyes open and all I see is an endless darkness around me, an empty cold feeling consumes me as I look around. Looking down at my body I see a white gown covering me down to my knees. The gown I had to wear whenever I was to be examined. The material was so rough against my skin, it made thousands of goosebumps rise up on my arms and legs.
When I look back up I see a figure moving in front of me from afar. I call out to them but my voice doesn't come out. It's just an empty echo of what should be there.
Bella...
A whisper sends chills down my spine.
It gets louder, I hear footsteps getting closer and I step back, my foot sinking into something thick and wet. Water? When was there water here?
Bella...Isabella...
The voice was taunting me now, the S from my name coming out in a thick slither like a snake when it's about to attack its prey.
Isabella!
I flinch, stumbling back until I fall down, my whole body falling into the water until I sink down under the cold liquid for a second. I only see darkness, I can't breathe and I desperately swim to get back up to the surface. I wander aimlessly until I see a light above me, I push my body to swim up until I'm pushed out of it causing the water to move in harsh waves around me. I gasp for air until I taste a strange metallic liquid in the back of my throat. I'm on my hands and knees on the floor down but I can see the dark water underneath me, waiting for me to fall again. I place my hand against the marble floor until a red stain fills my vision. Raising my hands up to my face I see they're covered in a vibrant red I try to wipe them away on my gown but its not white anymore. Everything is red, my gown, my hands, my legs even the floor.
Blood...
I stand up, panting uncontrollably as I whip my head in every direction to search for something, someone who can get me out of here. The walls were white until drops of blood started creeping down the crevices and it quickly turns into a stream onto to the floor. I clutch at my gown, staring at the darkness where the blood disappeared until I heard the voice again.
Isabella...what did you do?
I scream when the blood begins to rise up from the darkness, a gradual flow starts going back and forth like the water on the beach's shore.
"St-stop...please..." I beg in a frightened voice that I didn't recognize as mine.
The water grows bigger an bigger until it forms a wave that grows until it towers over me. As it comes crashing down on me I give one last shriek before I'm in the darkness again, sinking farther down.
Murderer...was the last word I heard before I was swept away under the current of blood.
"Stop! Please! Stop!" I push and pull against the arms around me, my eyes shut so tight I see white spots fill the dark in dizzying motions.
"Bella! It's okay! We're here, open your eyes darlin'!"
A voice I barely remember hearing before shook my resolve to shake away whoever was holding me down. Their hands holding mine and one on my leg, neither were restraining me or hurting me in fact their touch was disturbingly gentle. I stopped squirming but didn't open my eyes while I panted uncontrollably.
"Bella...it's okay, open your eyes. You're safe."
The voice that belonged to a man sounded smooth and gentle near my face as he soothed me. I slowly do as I'm told and open my eyes, blinking the pool of tears that obscured my vision. Once I do however, I see a beautiful face that made my heart beat faster. If it was out of fear or something else however, I couldn't tell. Then I recognized him.
Peter.
It takes me a minute to gather my bearings until I comprehend where I am.
The room where Peter and Jasper put me in that was too beautiful for me to comprehend.
"You're ok." Peter repeats in a manner that seemed to be more for him as I distinctly heard him breath out in relief. I must be wrong, he has no reason to worry about me. He doesn't have a reason to feel that way towards me. My eyes look back at him warily, I was holding his hand in a vice grip but he made no indication that it was hurting him. I let go nonetheless and instantly sat up, leaning my back against the headboard to bring my knees up to my chest as I hug them tightly.
Peter looks down at his hand that I held like something was missing now and it made my stomach tighten again and my heart to pound louder with every minute that I was with him. Looking ahead of me I see Jasper resting against the wooden post at the edge of the bed, his eyes dark with whatever thoughts he had going on in his mind. I should be more guarded, I thought and the rational, smart part of me was completely terrified of them yet that other part that seemed to be so shaken by their mere presence in the room, not out of fear but out of the magnetic pull I felt with them.
"How are you feeling? Want us to get something for you?" Peter asked me but it was Jasper I couldn't take my eyes off. Out of the two of them, Jasper was the one I couldn't read at all.
Sensing what I was feeling he leaned away from the post and turned to walk towards the door, "I'll go see what I can find for you to eat."
Then he was gone.
I ignored the part of me that seemed to miss him being in the room with me. That's nonsense, Bella, you can't feel that way about anyone. Especially not for a man - no - for whatever Jasper was.
"Do you want to talk about the nightmare you had?" I flinched when Peter spoke involuntarily. I was relieved to see that he hadn't moved at all from his spot on the bed since I woke up.
I shook my head at his question. He wouldn't want to hear about my nightmares, I didn't want him or Jasper to ever find out what I dreamt about. They'd see me as a monster. A messed up thing that can't be repaired.
A murderer.
"Alright, do you want to take a bath while I go bring you some clothes to change into? They're soaked," he pointed out with a kind smile but when I looked down the dark blue shirt I had fallen asleep in was partially stained from the blood that soaked through my bandages and my own sweat from the nightmares I had. I blushed instantly in shame, nodding quickly to his offer. "Ok, come on I'll show you where everything is."
I flinched when Peter raised his hand up thinking he would hit me however, he was just offering to give me his hand to help me out of the large bed. The sadness in his eyes didn't escape me and it only made me feel even more embarrassed as I hesitantly took his hand in mine. I closed my eyes from the warmth that radiated into me the moment our skin came into contact.
Strange yet comforting...
Once Peter began running the bath and showed me where all the shampoo and towels were in the cabinets, he excused himself which I was grateful for. I knew I was completely useless when for the better part of those first five minutes that Peter left me alone. I only managed to stand in front of the bath and stared blankly at the door as if waiting for him or Jasper to burst back in here to beat me or worse...
Looking at the steaming hot water that gradually filled the bath I sighed. I couldn't remember the last time I took a shower without being watched by someone and it's been years since I've taken a bath like this. Taking in my surroundings I admired the bathroom I was in.
The tiles underneath my feet were a black marble that allowed me to see a clear reflection of myself through its clean surface. There was a large ceiling to floor window next to the bathtub where I could see the forest around us. It was shocking how green everything was and how beautiful the night sky could be. Hoping I could trust Jasper and Peter, I slip out of the t-shirt and underwear I had on. Taking a quick glance at the mirror I saw myself clearly for the first time in years.
I was a lot thinner compared to when I was taken, my hair went down to my thighs and looked unruly at the ends, my eyes...they weren't mine anymore.
The difference wasn't big but I could see it, the usual dull brown I once had was gone and replaced with something...odd. They looked lighter now, almost a reddish amber.
I felt the bandage around my shoulder and peeled it off expecting to see a red gash on my neck. If it had been my first time seeing how quickly my wounds healed I would have been shocked, mortified even.
Now all I could do was stare at my body with an uncaring expression on my face.
The monster I became because of those things.
Wanting to get into the bath already, I slowly settled into the bath. The water was hot against my skin and it burned slightly but I liked it, I wanted to feel all of it. For the longest time I rested my head against the edge of the tub, staring up at the sky to see the thousands of stars the shined endlessly.
I reached for the soap and washed myself until my pale skin turned to a shade of vibrant pink the longer I stayed in the tub.
After washing my hair and rinsing it, I finally stepped out and let the water drain.
As if knowing the exact moment I would finish, I heard a knock at the door that startled me.
"I'm going to leave the clothes on the bed for you and I'll be in the hall if you need anything else." I heard Peter call out from the other side of the door.
Out of my fear that he'll walk into the bathroom and find me naked, I wasn't able deny or confirm that I understood him.
At the sound of a door closing I slowly looked through the small gap at the door and after five more minutes of waiting I eased into the bedroom, holding the towel closely to my body, to find a pile of clothes neatly folded on top of the bed.
Seeing a light blue colored shirt at the very top of the pile, my fingertips gently graze the soft material first, then, I picked it up and examined it closely. It was a long sleeved shirt made of a light material unlike the suffocating white clothes I was forced to wear everyday at the facility.
Everything I could ever need and more was laid down on the bed with an odd delicateness to it. A knot formed in my throat when I put my new clothes on and they fit me perfectly. The dark grey sweatpants I was given, the white converse shoes and even the fresh set of underwear that I recognized to be new due to the clean, plastic packaging they were in.
When I heard a knock at the door I backed up against the wall and kept my head down as the door opened and someone walked in.
"It looks good on you." I looked up, surprised to see Jasper was standing in the room by the wall where I could see the door was wide open. "The clothes, I mean. That color suits you." He gestured at the lavender colored shirt I had on.
For some reason I felt my cheeks flush at his compliment. Looking at the door behind him, I didn't see anyone passing by. In fact the only ones I've seen were Jasper and Peter.
If he tried to do anything I wonder if I could run out in time before he could catch me...or maybe it would be Peter that would catch me.
"I promise you if I wanted to harm you, I already would have done so the moment I found you." Jasper's cool words shook me out of my brainstorming on how to escape. Seeing the look on his face I could tell the beautiful man in front of me wasn't one to let his guard down therefore, escaping would be useless anyway.
A wandering question entered my mind then.
Why?
"Why what, Bella?"
I looked up at him with wide eyes in confusion and shock. Did he hear my thoughts just now? The only person I was truly able to share my thoughts with was Jacob. But he's gone now.
"Bella?"
"How did you...hear me?" I asked in nothing but a whisper, too scared to sound stupid in front of him.
"I'm confused with what you mean. You asked me 'why' but I don't know what you're asking me. Do you mind telling me what you're thinking?"
I straighted myself out, wondering if I just imagined that he heard my thoughts and actually spoke.
I looked back down to use the way my wet hair fell to the side of my face, a curtain to mask how embarrassed I was.
"Why...haven't you harmed me yet?"
Taking a deep breath, Jasper moved to sit down on the loveseat in the corner by the window. The moonlight was shining down on his pale skin and creating a blue hue against his neck and face.
"How could I ever harm someone that means so much to me already?" He said so quickly I almost didn't hear him. His eyes were practically shinning blue when the moonlight reached them though it was just for a split second. Turning his gaze went over my face with a tenderness in them and when they reached my eyes I looked away.
My heart was beating harder again now and it made me nervous how much his words affected me. Not wanting to imagine something that isn't there I hug my sides.
"I haven't meant anything to anyone for a very long time." I admitted.
"Then how about we take it one step at a time?" He said, walking over to the door and looking back at me. "Want to take a look around the house and get acquainted? If you're not tired after that I can take you to the garden as well."
Excitement courses through me then.
To be outside again, to breathe in the fresh air, feel the grass under my bare feet or look up at the stars when I had given up ever stepping foot outside again.
The mere thought brought tears to my eyes.
Not wanting to stay trapped inside another moment longer I nod, crossing the room to meet him by the door. I left enough space between us in case he decided to lash out although I've started coming to the strange notion that Jasper wouldn't be capable of doing that to me either.
Then the most important thought I kept forcing myself to focus on.
I needed to find a way to escape. If I had a chance to get my freedom back...
I would get out of this place no matter what.
Soon.
