The bubbles had dissipated, and the water was now cold. I rang out my hair and stepped carefully out onto the comfortable mat just outside of the tub. I reached to the extra soft and feathery towels Jasper had laid on the ottoman.

I wrapped myself tight and inhaled the towel deeply. Everything had smelled so fresh and clean, like nothing had ever been dirty in this home.

I dried my feet carefully and made my way back to Jasper's bedroom. I was nervous to pad around the upstairs in only a towel, but I made my trip quick. I peered into his room and was gracious that it was empty. I slowly closed the door behind me and walked to the closet to find another outfit for today.

As I rounded the corner around the large door-frame, I saw him. He was frozen in the middle of the closet, and if I hadn't known any better I would have thought him a Greek statue; ornate, perfectly chiseled and lean.

I carefully examined each band of muscles under his almost translucent skin. He was facing me, but hadn't yet seemed to notice. I clenched my towel to my chest tighter now, insecure and uncomfortable. Something was wrong, he seemed…almost as frightening as he pretended to be.

I took note of the silvery marks adorning his body, disappearing even into his waist band. He was more than likely a horrible sight for any vampire. Each scar a battle he had won, ending in the others demise no doubt. They overlapped over his skin, an impossible number of them. There must have been at least a hundred years' worth of battles represented there. My heart ached for him.

His hand rose to his tousled hair. His once golden locks seemed as if they were tinted a crimson, but I dismissed it for the lighting in the closet. He finally shifted, but only his eyes. They darted to the mirror aside of me.

He turned his gaze slowly, scanning the clothing around me before he finally rested his look on me. Something shifted in him then. Recognition and fear took over and filled the space.

He was equally as frightening as he was attractive. I walked towards him then, abandoning all modesty and self-consciousness.

Before I could move within five feet of him, he turned from me in a blur. A sound comparable to a distant thunderstorm boomed around the closet.

I continued towards him, hand reaching out to prepare him for my contact. The moment my hand collided with his skin a shock-wave pulsed through my body. The sharp cold feeling, paired with the ridges of his marks; it was addicting. I trailed my hand over his shoulder and to his perfectly defined chest as I made my way in front of him.

My eyes trailing closely to my hand. I tucked myself under his ducked head. My heart still aching, drawing me closer to him. I gave in, embracing him as tight as I could manage; arms barely encompassing his waist.

Having released my towel to hold him, I could feel more contact between my chest and his abs. It was intoxicating. The contradiction of his cold, hard, and icy skin with my soft and warm body. The beads of water almost sizzled and froze at the same time between us.

Jasper was the first to draw away. While it was only a small fraction, the distance left a stinging sensation on my skin. His face pulled together in what I could only read as confusion. He seemed as if he wanted to let himself go, to be vulnerable to me finally.

I reached for his face as encouragement, tilting my head sideways to look closer at him. I felt under intense examination as his eyes raked my presence. I hushed him gently, bringing him further into my possession. I almost had him where I needed him.

I extended my hand out even closer toward him now, issuing a soft murmur of comfort. I made contact and guided his face towards my awaiting gaze. I wish I hadn't.

In that instant he froze again, a hiss rising low in his throat. He grabbed my wrist hard and I shrieked from the sudden tightness and shock. He held it up to his view now.

"What the hell is this Alice?" he growled a terrifying warning, but his grip only tightened.

I tried to pull away from him then, my instincts telling me I was taking my last breaths. Tears of fear burning in my eyes.

"I.." I started but couldn't find the words that would convince him to release his grip. It was obvious what this was about now but it made no clarifications in my mind. I had thought he would be happy. I had thought this would illustrate my care and adoration for the man.

His gaze shifted then, eyes darkening before me. It was as if he was losing hours of sleep a second. Circles appeared under his eyes in moments, followed by an instinctive parting of his lips.

He began, "You think this is all a silly game don't you Alice. You think that this is the game of life where we all can have happy endings? Is that it?" he roared.

The tears flowed freely now. "No…I just…I didn't think you,"

"No! You absolutely didn't think! I'm not to be trusted Alice!" he interrupted my explanation. It was hard to figure why he was so angry. Was he angry that I could cause harm to the symbol of our past, was he unwanting of me, was he scared that I wanted him?

"I think of killing you Alice. You want to know more about me…about my past?" he was taunting me now, pulling me closer by my wrist. "You think you do, but you can't fucking handle it! I can't…"

When he turned from me I felt some semblance of relief, but he didn't loosen his grip on my hand. His rage seemed to turn inward now, but I was far from in the clear.

Something changed as he shot back around, inches from my face. He had made his decision to continue this…what ever this was. Annoyance and rage of my own was bubbling in my chest, consuming the tears and fear.

He lowered his voice into a threatening whisper, "Even now Alice, the family is outside of that door right now…because I can't fucking be trusted Alice! You want this happy family, with a loving and protective husband. Well guess what, I wanted our forever! I wanted you every single night since the moment I knew of your existence. But you were selfish. You made the choice to leave me…You made the choice to do everything on your own."

A blur of motion followed by a crack and crumble left the nearby surface ruble. "Now look at you…A fragile little pathetic human."

The words stung and a whimper escaped my lips, but I could see through him now. My head cocked to the side as I examined his responses closely. I knew exactly what this was about. I straightened myself under his scrutiny now, making myself appear larger than life. Even now, I affected him and I could see it plain on his face; in the emotions that swirled in the air from him now, I could taste his own fear, not my own.

"How dare you Jasper," I started with a whisper of my own now. A threatening smirk on my lips now, the taste of salt reminding me of his initial intentions. I knew exactly how to approach him now, how to break this wall he was trying to build around himself. "You know exactly what the hell I went through for you. Even I know, and I have only a partial glimpse of what happened. You think I'm this doll. Something to be handled and coddled so gently. But then you talk to me like that? That's not you Jasper…" I paused, thinking best of my next move. I let my vision slip for just a second, and I saw. "I'll prove it…Not for me, but for you Jasper. I'm not fragile…nor am I pathetic." I informed him sharply.

It was then that I noticed we were no longer alone, I felt naked not just in circumstance but it was then I remembered how indecent I was. Wide eyes stared at me, solely out of fear for my safety and readiness to take action on my behalf. Bella moved to me first. I had seen her intentions in my flash, I knew what she was asking before she even started. I wrapped my arms around her cold and slender neck as she lifted me to her. In a motion too fast for comprehension, we were in an unfamiliar area.

She had made her way through the woods all too fast. We were in front of a delicate cottage before she set me down.

"It's Edward, Ness, and I's house. No one's home, I hope you don't mind." Bella was by far the odd one out in the family. It was obvious she was newer to their world. She maintained a sort of human element to her vampiric beauty.

I shook my head, all walls falling away now. As she guided me into the house to the couch, I curled in upon myself. I felt no need to any longer be strong. She started a fire and brought me the fluffiest blanket imaginable paired perfectly with a soft set of flannel pajamas.

"It's safe here." She whispered as she sat beside me, legs folded under her as I quickly moved to dress.

"Why Bella?" I whimpered into the blanket now. "I know he didn't mean any of that…I know that he's just trying to push me away, but why?" I looked into her kind eyes. They were a soft shade of amber, not intense like the other's eyes were normally.

"Model behavior?" she huffed with a gentle laugh. "It's all Edward did in the beginning… Not that that turned out in his favor either."

I furrowed my brows in thought, pinching my lips into a tight grimace. The thought of Bella being put through this, Jasper having witnessed and felt the effects, and still imploring the tactic on me…It didn't make sense.

Bella took my left hand and played with the ring. The humanness of the actions…it was relaxing. I really did feel safe. I looked up to her eyes and brought myself to her chest. I hugged her thin frame tightly before wincing.

She had noticed and pulled me back away from her. Her eyes conducted a through examination of me before she reached gently to take my wrist in her hand. She delicately and slowly pushed my sleeve up my arm before I heard her growl. I let my eyes fall from her face to my hand then.

Purple and black rings swirled around it in definitive finger patterns. Tears found there way back to my eyes now.

"Depending on how you want to go about this…could be ammunition ya' know?" she lightheartedly jested.

"Was everything this hard for you?"

"Arguably? Jasper is actually more open and honest about the situation than Edward could have ever dreamed of being. Edward literally almost sacrificed him to the vampire Hitler to escape his problems."

A giggle rose from me then as a confused look knit itself into my forehead.

Bella had given me the entire run down and several cups of tea before the rasp on the door. The tap was so gentle, I hadn't even heard it. It was when Bella broke her chain of events that I knew. "You up for the best company you've probably ever had?" she chimed.

"I thought that was what I was already having?" I issued. "Who?"

"The biggest teddy bear himself?" she softly smiled. It was obvious who she was talking about and that she cared for him intensely. They had an envious relationship. Something that fostered chaos but also trust and comfort.

"Sure…" I shimmied in my spot, cuddling deeper into the couch and blanket. Closing my eyes and relaxing into the comfort.

She turned her head to the direction of the door, not breaking eye contact with me. I hadn't heard or saw her say anything, but the door opened. Emmett peaked his head in slowly and gently "All clear in here?" he whispered before entering.

Bella nodded and moved closer to me on the couch to give him room. Emmett ignored the gesture and kneeled in front of me, "You okay kiddo?" his eyes shone with concern and adoration.

Fresh tears welled in my eyes at the gesture. Having a family or even close friends who cared was an entirely foreign concept to me. "Are men stupid?" I choked with half of a laugh and the other half a cry.

"One hundred and ten percent…You handled yourself masterfully ya' know." he smirked before directing his gaze to my wrist. He looked to Bella now, speaking aloud only for my sake I gathered. "Carlisle is gonna' wanna look at that…" he looked to me for permission before taking my wrist into his massive hands. "Esme is gonna kill him…That is if Rose doesn't find out first." His look of concern grew into genuine worry for Jasper's well-being.

He closed his hand ever so gently around my wrist without adding any pressure. The chill of his skin felt incredible on the wound. "He didn't mean any of that Ali-cat…I can promise you that." He said making direct eye contact with me. He had so much confidence in his statement that he didn't waiver once.

"What the hell got into him anyway? Jasper never speaks to anyone like that…" Bella adjusted her position, prepping for a full rundown from Emmett. Emmett's eyes came back to me before giving into Bella.

"He saw something while we were out by the ravine…I'd never seen anything like it before…Not even when we fought those newborns."

Bella's head tilted then. "Like?"

Emmett looked to me again, judging if this was a conversation I should be present for. "I don't know…There was a tom, and he was…furthering his bloodline willingly or not." He shook his head. "The way Jasper tore into him…played…instilled the fear that he had previously been giving. It was…natural for him."

"…He saw himself." Bella murmured to herself then and Emmett nodded.

"I guess…and I'm assuming when he saw that ring on her finger…it brought it all back." He turned to me then, "I'm guessing he thinks he's forcing you into this, not giving you a choice."

"So, Rose got into his head after all huh?" Bella conferred.

"Yeah , she has an annoying Han bit of doing that." He laughed gently while lowering his head and shaking it side to side only once.