Author's note:

Hello lovely readers! I apologize I couldn't post the chapter last Sunday but for some reason, FanFic was down, and before I knew it the week just flew by.

I love each and every one of you for the excitement you all show for this story! And though I can't respond to all of you, please know I read each and every review you leave me! If you want to follow me for updates or ask me a few questions regarding The Eyes That See feel free to follow me on Tumblr!

I hope you enjoy this chapter x

Chapter 13

"What's troubling you?" Jasper asked Carlisle as he stood in the doorway of his father's study.

Carlisle was leaning over his desk, brows furrowed as he looked over the results of a patient who'd been diagnosed with diabetes. But that was not why the doctor seemed perturbed. His emotions have been in turmoil for days now and the empath had a feeling he knew what caused it.

Looking up from the files on his oak desk, Carlisle met Jasper's calm stare with his solemn one before he sat back down in his chair, hundreds of years of stress and life etched across his immortal face for once as he placed his hand over his mouth.

"Alice hasn't returned yet. It's been weeks now and I haven't caught a single scent that belongs to her in the air."

"Did you check in with the Denali's? She may be staying with them for the time being."

Carlisle shook his head but appeared to take his advice into consideration, "I'll call them and see if they've heard anything."

Jasper walked into Carlisle's study and took a seat by the window where he could see Eve in the backyard with Bella; the latter had brought Esme two blue jangles to plant in the garden - an excuse to get Eve outside and to spend time with her most likely. It was a great way to distract them from any other worries they may have for a moment.

He could feel Bella's hesitance whenever she approached Eve but wasn't surprised when the newest member of their family never rejected Bella's offer to have dinner or spend the evening reading in Carlisle's library.

Eve always made an effort to help Esme with her garden, sometimes even taking an interest in the architectural plans Esme had to work on. Now it became a routine for the two, as every morning Eve would have tea with Esme and they'd sit together in comfortable silence on the patio.

Today was a good day he noted as Eve's emotions were always at peace. Of course, there's an influx of other emotions throughout but none that were too concerning. Most days, Eve would barely get out of bed until either he or Esme would come to check on her. Other times, Eve would stay in the living room with Emmett watching him play video games to no end or sit in Edward's music room to hear him play the piano. The entire time, however, she appeared to be somewhere else entirely, absentmindedly rubbing her scarred arm. At times, Eve seemed to be in the room and yet too far away for Jasper to reach her, occasionally his own gift wasn't enough to bring her out of her thoughts.

He was thankful for the days like today when Eve was present, truly spending time with him and the others and not back in that shed, reliving her nightmares. Jasper knew she had enough memories to relive the horrors of that night as it was inevitable when sleep took her away into those very nightmares she could not escape.

"How is she feeling?" Jasper's brought out of his observations as Carlisle came to stand next to his son, looking out the window. A feeling of warmth washed over Jasper and he smiled slightly at his father's unconditional love for all of his children, Eve included.

"She's having a good day. I think spending time with Bella does her well, she needs a human companion."

Carlisle nods, "I'm glad. Edward says her thoughts are safe so I'm assuming I don't have to worry too much then."

"You'll worry, either way, Carlisle. Like always." Carlisle gave a soft snort in response. Jasper's amused golden eyes shined as he looked towards Eve again, unable to take his eyes off her for too long without searching for her emotions.

When Bella stumbled away out of the garden, Jasper grinned as he noticed Eve's amusement grow slightly — having noticed her friend's clumsiness as well. She shook her head before focusing back on the hydrangeas the two girls had just planted.

"I'm proud of you, son," Carlisle admits as he turned to face Jasper.

"Proud? Why?"

"I've noticed a change in you lately. You've become much...stronger since Evelyn discovered you in the woods that night. I can see now, you're here. There was a time when I wondered if we'd lost you after what happened with Bella. After everything happened between you and Alice..."

Jasper shrugged his father's kind words off, not wanting to show just how much they meant to him. For the longest time, Jasper had been the weak link in the family. He'd been the most unpredictable out of all his siblings. Jaded and bitter towards the world and the humans around him for making him want the one thing he couldn't have. Jasper had never hated what he'd become more than when he first joined the Cullens. When Alice had convinced him to enroll as a high schooler and blend in with a crowd of emotional, fragile humans.

You hated all of it. All of them.

Yes, he had. Until Jasper shut it all away, or at least he'd thought he had by keeping a distance from all humans as much as he could. Until Bella's birthday, that is.

"It's in the past now, Carlisle. Besides," Jasper trailed off as he noticed Eve stand upright when a monarch fluttered around her in a playful dance. His gaze softened as she reached out towards it and a small tug pulled at her lips when the butterfly danced around her hand before flying away. Then, whatever sliver of a smile, of happiness, that lingered on her face was gone in an instant, replaced by the usual loneliness she'd grown up knowing. Guilt masked in sorrow. "I owe it to her."

Jasper wished he could see a genuine smile on the girl's lips, or to hear what Eve's laugh would sound like. He knew it had to sound like a cool breeze brushing through windchimes and would make him feel warm like the fleeting sunlight in the middle of winter.

As if sensing his gaze, Eve turned and noticed him and Carlisle by the window of his study.

Carlisle waved at her, "I've never seen the girl afraid of any of us. Not even when she sees Rosalie's hostile side around Bella or when Emmett charges towards you or your brother. Have you felt that form her?" Jasper shook his head in response and Carlisle breathed out, "She truly is remarkable."

Eve waved back at them for a second, hesitantly raising her hand over her head. The entire time, however, Eve's hazel eyes were on Jasper's, and that strange pull he always felt around her, made his chest ache. Jasper clenched his fists to reign in his turbulent emotions and hoped he hadn't conveyed them towards anyone as Eve looked away, her hair a wave of dark umber shielding her face.

Then Bella came back and called to Eve in to have lunch together. The feeling of pure tranquility flooded him as he watched Eve duck her head down as she walked quickly towards the back porch.

Once she was out of his sight, Jasper finally answered his father in a hushed agreement, "Yes...she is."

No matter how much he wanted to deny it, to himself or to whatever pulled him towards Eve, at that moment Jasper knew that he cared for this strong, remarkable human girl — more than he could comprehend.

He still couldn't however, decide if he hated it or not — whatever this girl had awoken inside his dead unfeeling heart.

Eve was washing the dishes with Bella after they both spent what felt like hours in the kitchen looking up recipes in Esme's cookbook to figure out what they wanted and settled for baked ziti pasta and an Italian salad. In the end, Eve insisted Bella choose since the girl was honestly happy with a bowl of bland soup or a sandwich for dinner since that was what she'd been used to for so long with Hendricks. Having a plate full of steaming pasta or any homemade food seemed to be a blessing to her.

"Did you like the food?" Bella asked casually as she finished drying off the last of the plates.

Eve nodded, "It was really good, Bella. Thank you."

Bella shook her head as she began putting the dishes away, "Don't mention it. Next time you pick what you want to eat and we'll make that!"

The silence stretched out between them and once all the dishes were cleaned and put away, Bella stood at the edge of the island, fidgetting nervously while Eve moved to sit on one of the stools.

After another heartbeat of waiting in this awkward silence, they both spoke at the same time.

"Eve, I wanted to-"

"Did you hear anything about-"

Bella's cheeks flushed pink as they usually did but Eve shook her head, "You first."

Bella took a seat next to her friend and turned in the stool to face her as she looked warily at Eve.

Eve in return tried not to squirm under her cautious gaze.

"Eve," Bella started, "I wanted to say, I'm sorry I wasn't there for you...before. There's no excuse for how I distanced myself from you after Edward left."

"Why did you?" The question came out before Eve could stop herself and she knew, there was no avoiding the conversation now that she felt there needed to be some sort of closure in order for the two to breathe easy if they were to spend as much time as they have been. More than anything, Eve wanted to know if she had meant absolutely nothing to Bella and her other friends if none of them noticed she'd stopped going to school.

Bella seemed to be just as surprised by Eve's question but she answered, "I...don't really know how to describe it really. I guess, I lost myself after he left. It wasn't like a breakup, or what I think I would have felt if an ordinary boy had broken up with me. It was much stronger than that. I stopped functioning completely and I only went to school or ate because I felt I had to, not because I wanted to. Eventually, I felt nothing but emptiness, and then I hated everything around me and the hope that he'd someday come back...it was always there."

Eve nodded, not sure if words were needed at all.

"I found a friend in Jacob Black, one of the boys on the rez and he made everything bearable. The pain was less but still there until Edward came back to me," Bella admits through a wavering voice and when she looked at Eve, there were fresh tears in her eyes, "I didn't think...I didn't know that you..."

Eve placed her hand over Bella's and moved to sit a little closer to her friend, "It's okay. You had no way of knowing. It was my burden to bear."

"It shouldn't have been! I should have been there to get you away from your father. I was supposed to be your friend and I wasn't there. If I hadn't been so absorbed in my own problems and paid attention when you stopped coming to school, maybe you wouldn't have had to suffer so much."

Bella quickly wiped away at a tear that escaped her right eye and composed herself, however, Eve felt her emotions stir uneasily inside her.

She looked out towards the window.

"Maybe...but what's the point in wondering about all that now?"

She knew that she needed to stop this conversation soon before she lost herself to whatever darkness lurked closeby before she could hear Robert's voice taunting her again.

Bella bit her bottom lip, hesitating before admitting, "There's something else you should know. When I asked around for you, to figure out if you were sick with the flu that had been going around at the time, one of the teachers told us that your father agreed to send you to live with your brother...away from Forks."

A sinking feeling in her stomach made Eve sink further into her seat. Her heart beating painfully against her chest as if it wanted to give out.

Of course...

"Oh..."

Of course, that had to be it. Hendricks had been a liar and a monster but he was never stupid, he'd known what to say to the school all along. It was never been a temporary thing, Eve not attending high school.

Hendricks was never going to allow Eve out of that house.

Bella tapped her fingers nervously against the edge of her seat. Eve stared blankly at the blurred reflection of herself on the marble counter. She closed her eyes and sighed, the truth was she didn't want to think about why or how a father could be as cruel as Hendricks had been towards her. It was enough to know he'd been capable of beating her every night, of doing more than that to her mother and brother.

That was enough.

Ultimately Eve brought herself back from the dark place she'd wandered into for a moment and faced Bella.

"Bella, I'm not mad at you for any of that. My fa-," she took a deep breath, not being able to mention him out loud, "What happened to me...It wasn't your fault."

It was my father's...

It was mine...

"After Edward left, I'm sorry you had to go through something like that," Bella shakes her head as if to say that it had been nothing compared to what Eve had been put through her whole life, what horrors she had to endure that night in the shed. Eve squeezed her friend's hand gently before smiling at her the best she could, "Thank you for telling me. I know it must have been hard for you to relive those memories."

Bella let out a breathy laugh, "I was supposed to be the one supporting you and yet, I'm the one who's emotional and a mess."

"I'm pretty sure I cry enough to make up for both of us," Eve said nonchalantly and the two girls smiled at one another, feeling a weight being lifted off both of their shoulders. Closure and healing. "So, you're dating a vampire, that must be nice."

Bella laughed at the sudden light-hearted joke Eve made and it somehow made the air around them exponentially better. Calmer.

"Something like that."

Eve was sitting on the couch when the boys stumbled into the living room, Emmett with his muscular arm wrapped around Edward's neck as he smirked in victory. Edward was standing next to his brother hunched over, like a little boy who has had enough playing for one day.

And Jasper, silent as ever, was behind them with an amused grin on his lips. As his calm gaze found hers though, Eve quickly looked down at the book on her lap.

"Bells! You'll never believe what Eddie boy here said during our hunt," Emmett began as he struggled to keep his grip on his brother and finally gave up, slumping down onto the couch next to Eve.

For a split second Eve almost shied away from him since merely having a man graze her arm as they pass would make her skin crawl but with Carlisle and the others, she didn't feel that way. With Emmett, she felt safe and warm even if he was made of cold stone. It was...nice to feel so safe.

But if a complete stranger attempted to touch her...Eve couldn't bring herself to imagine it.

"What did he do now?" Bella mused while gaining a pointed glance from Edward as he tucked his hands in the front pockets of his jeans.

"Don't encourage him," Edward muttered.

"You'll never believe it! He actually cussed at me when I beat him home! I'm honestly so hurt, brother. Didn't know you had such a dirty mouth."

Eve's amusement grew the more Edward and Emmett bantered along with Bella's own witty quips here and there.

She kept her focus on the three the entire time in order to keep herself from looking to the blonde young man who sat across from her on the couch. But as much as she didn't want to give in, Eve couldn't help but steal a glance at the same time the steady rhythm of her heartbeat slipped for a second.

When she finally saw what Jasper was doing, he watching her with an unreadable expression on his chiseled face, and Eve couldn't look away from him. Lost in this man's mysterious stare that spoke volumes yet not enough to tell her why she felt this...pull towards him.

As if feeling the same thing she did, Jasper tilts his head slightly, resting his chin on his fist while his full lips pulled slightly into a grin.

It was all so—

"Hey, Eve! You there?" Emmett shakes both Eve and Jasper our of their trance when he stands up from the couch and faces her.

"W-what?"

"You said the other day that I was your favorite out of all these suckers right?"

Eve tried to mask her embarrassment at having been so distracted by Jasper and failing to listen to Emmett, that she hesitated for a moment too long. She attempted to play it off nonchalantly by shrugging, "I don't recall ever saying that."

Edward chuckled, "I think she likes me the best, Em."

The amount of banter that passed between them was starting to get ridiculous, to Rosalie at least, because she suddenly appeared in the living room with a look of boredom as she watched her husband and brother banter.

"Ignore them, Eve. It's best to not let their idiocy influence you," Eve almost smiled when both boys turned to glare at the beautiful blonde woman. Almost.

Being with all the Cullens like this, watching them laugh and joke around with each other, it was nicer than any kind of freedom Eve could have wished to have. It was this kind of freedom, the subtle warmth granted by the Cullens she'd once found cold and distant beings — this freedom was the most unexpected one she never knew could exist — that granted her hope.

It's okay to live, you know?

That voice seemed to echo far away, not nearly as cruel and taunting as it had been a few days ago.

Looking down at her arm, Eve ran her fingers over the scarred skin underneath her sweater. She couldn't bring herself to see it again but the more she rubbed her arm, the more she learned every bump on her skin and every scar that indented in certain areas. A distorted ugly canvas that was hers now.

After everything, you can still live you know?

But could she?

It's been days since Eve was last startled awake by her nightmares. If it had been due to Jasper's gift or merely being at peace for once without the uncertainty of her place with the Cullens, Eve wasn't sure.

Though she couldn't remember what the nightmare had been about, too vivid yet happening too quickly for her to truly remember what she'd seen this time. Her heart however had been pounding against her chest hard enough for it to hurt, her hands were clutching the covers in a vice and her whole body trembled slightly as fear settled in around the darkness of her room.

Sitting up, Eve looked around and flipped the switch of the lamp on, creating a warm glow around the room.

She knew there wouldn't be anyone in here, at least the more rational part in her head told her, but the feeling that Robert or Hendricks could appear from the shadows at any moment still convinced the girl to be alert. Lightning struck outside, flashes of bright light illuminating the bedroom for a second, making her jump and completely shaking her awake.

Eve's throat throbbed with thirst so she slowly eased out of the bed and made her way down the hall, towards the kitchen. Some of the lights were on in the house, most likely kept for her since Eve was the only one in the house who didn't have keen senses to see in the dark.

The rest of the house was silent but not lonely as Eve had once thought it to be and now she's only grown used to this strange intimacy the family of vampires maintained in their secluded sanctuary.

The lights in the kitchen were off but the pale blue moonlight streamed through the wall of glass on the far end, easily allowing her to see as she reached for a glass and filled it with water. While Eve drank the cool liquid and savored every sip, she leaned against the counter. Her fingers tapped the glass as she recalled Bella's words this afternoon. She knew that if she dwelled on it too long she'd cry so shaking her head, Eve finished off her water and was about to wash it in the sink when she heard a man's voice somewhere behind her.

"Couldn't sleep?"

Whirling around, Eve gasps when she sees Jasper standing in the hall wearing a plain t-shirt and sweatpants, his hands in his pockets. For a moment he appeared the way a normal human teenage boy would.

"Sorry, didn't mean to scare you." He said as he walked into the kitchen and sat on the window seat by the glass wall, leaning against it while stretching his long legs.

"You didn't scare me," Eve offered, although when Jasper grinned slightly, she knew he wasn't all that convinced. "Did I bother you?"

Jasper shook his head, "No, you're surprisingly very quiet when you move about the house. It's a little unnerving at times if I'm being honest."

Eve finished washing her glass and set it to dry on the rack before walking around the island, her hands settled face down on the marble counter. She frowned, "Unnerving? How so?"

He nodded for the other side of the window across from him, "You're free to sit and we can talk for a bit if you want. I won't be sleeping anytime soon."

Eve tried not to smile as he shrugged indifferently, amusement in his warm eyes. She nodded once, making her way towards the seat and hugged her legs to her chest. Lightning struck once more, brightening the room for a split second again and coincidentally making Jasper's golden eyes shine.

He was utterly breathtaking. Jasper was...beautiful in a very primal, unexpected way and it was almost embarrassing how fast her heart was beating right now.

"You're really not afraid of me..." Jasper observed.

"Is that unnerving too?"

Jasper grinned as he looked out the window. He was silent for a long moment but Eve did not mind one bit. If anything she enjoyed the safe stillness Jasper brought to a room.

"No, not unnerving. Just," Eve rested her chin atop her knees as he looked back at her, "different. I guess that's something we have in common though, right?"

They stared into each other's eyes for another long moment of silence — the only sound — the only movement around them being the lightning outside and the streams of water that rolled off the glass basking streaks of shadows streamed against them, marking Jasper's pale face and making him look like a perfect sculpture instead of a man. "Maybe it is."

Being different, isn't so bad is it?

No, Eve supposed it wasn't if it meant she could be a little like the Cullens. If she could be strong and remarkable like Jasper, then maybe Eve wanted to be different to him at least. She immediately looked away and berated herself for thinking such a thing.

"Tell me what you're thinking." He offered in his deep tone that sent shivers down her spine causing her to wrap her arms around herself.

At first, she thought about brushing it off, denying his offer to talk to the empath but...

"Wondering...why I'm here I guess. I mean, I'm not a vampire or related to any of you. We barely knew each other before."

She hesitated, "I guess I'm wondering what my role is in all this.

"Your role huh?"

Jasper leaned forward this time close enough that Eve could smell the sweet scent of cinnamon that belonged to him. Warmth rose up her cheeks before she leaned back against the wall and let Jasper take in her appearance, his eyes the color of the dawn sky. Vivid yet so unattainable they must be considered otherworldly. Always appearing as if he was searching for something she couldn't quite see in herself.

"Well Eve, what do you want your role to be? What do you want right now more than anything? It doesn't have to be something huge. It can be...insignificant or meaningful. But let it be something that you've been wanting to do."

Eve felt almost embarrassed to acknowledge that she had absolutely no idea what she wanted.

For a long time, she'd wanted to be free from her father's abuse. She'd wanted to find her brother even if that meant he wouldn't want the see her again.

She'd wanted...

"I..." She ran her hand over her face, trying to shake away the wave of fatigue, "Esme asked me the same thing before. I didn't know how to answer her at the time. But now, I guess all I want is to be...happy."

Jasper inched closer still and reached his hand out to cup Eve's face, the cold feel of his skin against her warmth was a turbulent storm inside her, shaking the walls down inside her heart and spiraling down to the pit of her stomach. She pressed the side of her cheek into his palm and closed her eyes as he swiped his thumb under her cheekbone.

"We can work on that."

Eve couldn't help but nod, even though she knew it wouldn't be that simple nor would it be up to Jasper to help her. But the fact that he said those words to her, gave her his undivided attention as if they were the only two people in the world — it stirred her.

"Okay."

For the rest of the night, they both stayed seated by the window, Jasper telling Eve about his time as a human, what he remembered the most. He told her about how he came about joining the Cullens with Alice and how he'd adapted to their new lifestyle through trial and error, Bella's birthday being brought up as an example.

The way he spoke of himself, it was as if he felt guilt for being a vampire. For being brought it in such a way that he couldn't help but be controlled by his natural instincts. His instinct to kill.

"Did you feel that way when I was-"

"No," he said with a surety that shook Eve for a moment. "With you, I didn't feel the urge to...kill. I didn't crave your blood."

"It's okay if you did, Jasper." She whispered as if she was admitting to something forbidden, something between the two of them that the others should not hear. "I understand if it's hard on you — me being here."

"No, Eve. I could never do that. Not to you, not ever."

This time she used her hands to move closer towards him, their knees touching as they sat face to face. A sliver of moonlight slipping between them like a veil.

At first, she was unsure but when a wave of confidence hit her she smiled slightly, "I feel safe with you. Is that strange to say?"

He considered, "No, it's not. But if there's ever a moment when I make you feel that you're not completely safe with me, you have to get away from me and find the others."

His long fingers brushed a loose strand of her hair from her face and she clasped his hand in both of hers. Jasper closed his eyes, his lashes were slightly darker against his pale skin like wheat dancing in an endless field. Beautiful in some strange sort of way that could only belong to this scarred man.

"Promise me." He whispered, his voice low and husky.

She didn't understand why this meant so much to him. Why Jasper cared for her safety when he fought so hard to restrain himself from harming her. It must cause him enough pain to have to fight it but she could do this much for him, for his peace of mind.

"I promise, Jasper."