Hello! I hope everyone is doing well and staying safe. I know it's been awhile and I'm sorry about that. There's been a lot that's happened in RL.

Fran, Mr. G and me, and Monica03 are the best at listening to my rants and fixing my mistakes. (Any mistakes you see are my own.)

A lot of you weren't very happy with Jasper ... and I'm afraid this chapter won't change your mind. Just give him a chance. He's a stupid teenager. LOL ;)

SM owns everything Twilight.

Despite our begging, pleading, and demanding answers, Jasper doesn't utter a word.

After double-checking the locks and peering out the window, he paces across the floor in between the living room and the kitchen, chewing on his thumbnail. Every so often, he'll pause and look toward the door, mumbling under his breath and shaking his head.

I stand back near the couch, crossing my arms, wondering what could have happened. He seems okay—apart from the intense panic and fear radiating from him—there's no visible bruising, and he's not bleeding, something that relieves me immensely.

I'm still curious, however.

What had happened at the Cullen house?

The questions and possibilities are endless, but there won't be any answers until Jasper opens his mouth.

Rose finally steps in after the third pause, her hands firmly on his shoulders as she looks him in the eye.

"Jasper, brother, talk to us. Tell us what happened." Rose shoots me a quick, nervous look. "If you want, the two of us can go chat, too. I think I might be able to provide a good insight."

"Hey," I protest, reaching forward to lightly push her and immediately regret the decision as, the wound on my shoulder pulls. I hiss through my teeth but continue. "Why couldn't I provide a good insight?"

"Not now, Bella. Jasper?" Rose continues, inclining her head toward Jasper's room.

He's shaking his head before she's done speaking, his eyes wide. "No. I can't. It's too—" he trails off with a heavy sigh, forcing a hand into his hair, pulling at the roots. "Just trust me, okay? It's best if we all stay away from the Cullens and stick together."

Groaning, Rose steps away, throwing her hands in the air and glares at her twin, her face reddening from his cryptic words.

Sensing her frustration, I step in between them and look toward Jasper. "Will you stop being cryptic? What happened at the Cullen's?"

"I can't tell you. Just trust me."

"Of course we trust you, but we're also not going to let you dictate who we can and cannot see. Not unless we're given a good reason."

Irritated, he huffs, his arms flailing wildly as he screams. "Why isn't my word good enough? I'm your family! I'm the one you should trust, not them!"

"Hey, don't shout at me," I reply just as loudly, stepping into his face. "I'm just trying to figure out what happened. You come in here, ranting like a madman and expect us to listen? You've never acted this, Jasper. Never. Now, let's just sit down, be calm and rational, and discuss this—"

"And I told you, I can't tell you. You're just going to have to trust me. The Cullens aren't … good people."

Rose and I exchange confused glances. I don't know about her, I'm sure as hell wondering why and how Jasper jumped to this conclusion. I'll be the first to admit a few of the Cullens get under my skin—Edward, mostly—but they're good people.

They're different and strange, but that doesn't make them bad people, and nothing I've seen makes them appear to be. Hell, Dad respects the hell out of them, so that tells me something right there. He wouldn't associate with them if he thought otherwise.

"Okay," Rose starts slowly. "How did you get to the conclusion? What did the Cullens do to you?"

Her gaze sweeps down his form from head to toe, looking for any signs of injury. There are none, not that I can see, and Rose comes to that conclusion as well. Sighing with relief, her head hangs down, her chin touching her chest.

"I'm not hurt," he tells us, albeit a little begrudgingly. "They didn't lay on a finger on me."

"Okay," I reply, drawing out the word. "Then what happened? As you said, we're your family, and you can trust us. Whatever you have to say, we'll believe you. Trust me, I know there's a lot of freaky shit in this area."

Rose casts me an inquisitive look, but she knows now isn't the time for questions. Instead, she turns back to Jasper, nodding seriously.

His eyes frantically shift between us, an internal debate raging within him. His facial expression moves from fear to worry to acceptance. Finally, he blows out a long, slow breath and allows his head to hang back on his shoulders, his eyes focused on the ceiling.

Rose and I wait perfectly still; my inquisitiveness is simmering, threatening to boil over, but for some reason, I can't move. The feeling of being forced to remain still freezes me in place, almost as if there's a bubble around the three of us, trapping us in a pocket of stillness.

Slowly, Jasper raises his head and looks us each in the eye, taking in another steadying breath. Rose squeezes his hand once, smiling in support.

"We're here for you."

He nods and starts to speak, but just as he does, noise at the door distracts him. The door opens, and my parents come through, their clothes wrinkled, and hair mussed. The heavy scent of smoke trails after them, making me wonder where they were and what they were doing.

Ordinarily, I would automatically wrinkle my nose in disgust and playfully complain about their obvious activities, and probably never go near their car again, but one look at them has me pausing.

Serious eyes meet my own, both of them looking very displeased. Schooling my expression into a blank mask, I straighten my posture as Dad raises an eyebrow at our stances, exchanging a quick look with Mom. Jasper shifts behind us, stepping in the direction of his room.

"What's going on, kids?" Dad questions, shutting the door firmly and locking it.

Smiling tightly, Rose shrugs a shoulder. "Just having a sibling meeting."

Dad raises an eyebrow. "Hmm. Everything okay?"

"Fine," Jasper rushes out, shifting us out of the way as he releases a nervous laugh. "I'm tired. I'm going to go to bed. Night!"

Racing to his room, he slams the door behind him. Seconds later, there's a loud clatter of noise and the sound of metal scraping against wood. The parent's exchange raised eyebrows, wide eyes, and secretive frowns.

Dad chuckles, unamused, under his breath, looking toward Rose and me. "You two know anything about this?"

I want to know more about what happened tonight, and if anyone can get the information out of him, it's my parents. However, I also know he wasn't t supposed to leave the house past curfew. If they find out he disobeyed their orders, he'll be grounded for sure.

While having him here would be great for me and my quest for answers, I can't do that to him. I need to have his back, just like he would have mine.

And, of course, blackmail him for an unforeseen amount of time.

I shrug, rocking back on my heels and shoving my hands in the pockets of my sleep shorts. "No."

Skeptically, Dad tilts his head, keeping his gaze on mine unblinkingly. A knowing twinkle shines in his eye, but he says nothing, turning his attention toward Rose. "Rosalie?"

I expect her to rapidly deny any knowledge of Jasper's strange behavior, but she doesn't utter a word. Indecision is clear on her face as her gaze shifts between my parents, her mouth opening as if she's going to speak.

No doubt feeling my stare, I subtly shake my head when he turns to look at me.

"I hate to break up your little pow-wow, but may I interject something?" Dad inquires, stepping close. "We already know Jasper was out past curfew, and he's upset about something, so … does anyone want to think about their response? Change their mind, perhaps?"

Briefly, I close my eyes and push away the heated mortification slithering its way up my chest. Taking deep breaths to calm myself, I shift, hoping to appear uncomfortable, rather than guilty.

Knowing anything else I say will just get me into further trouble, I opt for an alternative; something that won't get me into too much more trouble, but that's not an outright lie.

"That's weird, because he was here when I went up to change after we got home."

"Really?"

"Yep."

Silence and unblinking stares stretch on into the minute mark. The urge to fidget is strong, and thanks to the earlier events of the evening, I can't seem to keep my hands from shaking or my feet from shuffling, side to side.

In support, Rose wraps an arm around my shoulder, holding most of my weight, which I'm extremely thankful for. Maybe she can keep my frustratingly fidgeting body from getting me grounded.

Surprisingly, Dad and Mom's lips ease into humorous grins. He chuckles lowly, his fingers rubbing his mustache while Mom giggles, shooting us a wink.

"Okay," he finally says, casting a look toward Jasper's door. "We're going to go talk to him. You okay?"

Meeting his eyes, I nod. I don't feel completely great; the injury in my shoulder aches like a bitch, and I still feel extremely weak, but I'll be okay. I always am.

"I'll be okay."

"Doctor Cullen will be here soon to look at you," Mom murmurs. "He's with Jessica right now, but he'll be along soon."

"Is she okay?"

My parents exchange a look. "We don't know," Dad replies. "But it does look good. Carlisle is a fantastic doctor; he'll fix her. And you."

"I'll be okay," I repeat.

Dad says nothing for a long while, simply staring at me in silence. When he's satisfied with my response, he nods once, pointing at Rose before moving his finger in my direction.

"Do my job and watch out for her," he teases.

Rose squeezes my shoulder. "Of course."

Nodding, he and Mom head toward Jasper's room, knocking with a firm hand. He doesn't open right away, which doesn't please my mother very much.

"Jasper Whitlock, if you don't open this door in the next second, heaven help me, you will regret it. Understand?"

His response is muffled, but my parents hear it just fine.

"You're on the fast track to losing your allowance and being grounded for the rest of the year," Dad warns. "Watch your tone and open this door. I'm losing my patience."

Once more, Jasper answers, but it's too low to hear.

"Of course not!" Mom replies, appalled. "What has gotten into you? Open this door right now; I'm done talking to you through it."

My eyes widen, and my mouth drops open, thoroughly shocked at what's happening. I've never seen Jasper act this way before. At my side, Rose appears to be in as much disbelief as I am. Her eyes are closed, and the corner of her lip is tucked between her teeth as she slowly shakes her head.

More inaudible words are exchanged, and I lean forward even further, trying to make out what they're saying.

Surprisingly, Rose doesn't berate me on my attempts to eavesdrop. In fact, she seems to be trying to listen in as well, leaning forward on the couch with her head tilted, much like I am.

After a minute, the door opens, with Mom leading the way inside.

"I see Hurricane Jasper came through. Good job, son. It's impressive you did this in such a short amount of time," Dad remarks. "You're not taking anything I should know about, are you?"

"You're so cleaning this up," Mom tells him, completely unimpressed with what they've found.

"Renee, shut the door. I think Bella and Rose have heard enough."

"Hey!" Rose and I shout indignant.

Dad's laughter fades as the door closes, plunging the downstairs in silence. Now that we're alone, I turn toward Rose, my mind running rampant with possibilities as to what exactly happened tonight. I have some theories, but I want to hear Rose's first before I go shooting my mouth off.

"What do you think happened over there?"

She pensively purses her lips as she looks up from her phone, hiding the screen from view. I raise an eyebrow at this, having a feeling I already know who she was texting. "I don't know. Maybe he got into a fight with one of the Cullens."

Frowning, I absently tap my fingers against the arm of the couch, the soft drumming kind of comforting. Initially, I had thought he fought with one of them, too; however, his reaction is a tad extreme for someone who simply fought with one of his friends.

Then again, Jasper can be a tad emotional sometimes, especially when he's taken off guard by things. If something rattled him enough, he jumps to conclusions and thinks about things later, rather than taking that time in the present.

"What do you think they fought about? You and Emmett?"

Rose's head whips toward me, her eyes wide and mouth falling open. "You know?" she hisses.

I smirk. "I wasn't completely sure until now."

Rolling her eyes at her outing herself, she's muttering under her breath. She sighs heavily, collapsing back into the cushions with a defeated look. "How did you suspect?"

"Well," I tease, turning to face her as I tuck my left leg under my right one. "You weren't bad-mouthing him all the time for one. Two, I overheard your conversation outside of my art fair. Three, you've been in a really good mood since my birthday and … I kind of saw you two holding hands outside the Halloween store." I pause, letting that sink in for a moment. She looks away, a small, fond smile on her face. "So, how long has this been going on? How did it start?"

Inclining her head, she blows out a breath, rubbing her hands over her thighs. "It wasn't easy. He admitted he liked me, but wouldn't ask me out. I mean, you heard what he told me," she says with a false glare. Her expressions softly as she fingers the hair hanging over her shoulder, twirling a lock of the golden tresses around her finger. "At first, I scoffed at what he said about me not being happy and loving myself. I thought I did. When I talked to Vera about it, I realized the truth. I wasn't happy, not really. I was dyeing my hair because Royce like my blonde hair and I wanted to spite him. Truth is, I was never happy with brown hair; I love my natural color but I never admitted it to myself. I just thought it was something I needed to do to put the incident behind me. I was also comparing everyone and everything to my experiences with Royce and Lauren …" her soft voice trails off, her focus on her fingernails scratching at the fabric on her legs.

I wince at Lauren's name, recalling Laurent's words about her. Despite her nasty behavior, I hope she's okay and not another victim of his.

Pushing those thoughts away, I nod in acknowledgment, having suspected most of this already. It wasn't that hard to figure out when she nagged me about dyeing my hair. Plus, it was easy to see she wasn't completely over what happened during her attack. However, I didn't realize how deep it went until now.

I didn't realize she trapped herself in a box, pushing everyone away, so history wouldn't repeat itself. I should have seen that she was struggling, and I wish I had noticed things sooner, so she could have been helped long before it got to this point.

Grasping her hand, I squeeze once. "I'm sorry, Rose. I should have—"

"You're not at fault, Bella," she interrupts. "I hid it well. Even from myself." She laughs lightly, though it's not in humor. "I guess I needed someone who wasn't that close to me to point it out."

Once more, I nod. "So, you two are dating?"

Slowly, she nods, an ecstatic grin lighting up her face. "Yeah. We're talking things slowly, though. He's so nice, Bella," she gushes, laying a hand on my arm. "He treats me so well; like a princess. He's … always leaving me notes and flowers. Always texting me to see how I am. But he's not overbearing; he knows when I need space and when I don't. He … gets me," she says, sounding amazed. "It's almost as if he knows what I need before I do. I'm … I'm really happy."

Reaching forward, I pull her into my arms and hug her tightly, mussing her hair as I pull back. A noise of disgust leaves her as she pushes me away with a laugh, attempting to fix the mess I've made.

"I'm glad, Rose. You deserve it."

"Yeah, I think I believe that too."

I smile in response, feeling an overabundance of love and happiness for her.

Silence washes over us in a heavy wave, the only sounds coming from the ticking of the clock and the faint murmuring of parental voices as they speak to Jasper. I'm dying to know what they're talking about and even more curious to find out what happened tonight, but now isn't the time to find out.

"Hey, Bella?"

"Hmm?"

"That guy … the one that hurt you … do you think he really hurt Lauren?"

Everything comes crashing over me once more, like an avalanche ready to bury me alive. Swallowing through the thickness in my throat, I nod, unsure if I'll be able to speak.

Rose shakes her head, her eyes glassy with unshed tears. "I know she's not the best person but I—"

"I know. I feel the same way," I interrupt.

"Yeah," she mumbles, twisting her fingers together.

On the coffee table, my cell phone buzzes across the surface, the small device slowly moving toward the edge. Snatching it up, my eyebrows rise into my hairline, and my stomach flutters with comfort and surprise.

I accept the call, but before I can say a word, the person on the other end of the line speaks.

"Bella, are you okay?" Edward frantically asks, his words coming out slightly jumbled.

"Hello to you too."

He laughs, the sound a mixture of relief and frustration. "Well, since you're not answering my question and being a smartass, I'd say you're okay."

Rose rises from the couch, pointing toward the ceiling. I wave in understanding, and she goes upstairs, her cell phone at her ear before she reaches the first step.

"Being a smartass is what I'm good at."

"You'd certainly win an award for it."

"Finally! It's been my life's dream to get an award for my sarcastic prowess."

Lightly, he laughs, but it fades just as quickly as it came. "Seriously, are you all right?"

I hesitate, fingering the hole in the hem of my shirt. "I'll be fine," I murmur. "I've been through worse."

He hums. "Yeah, and you'll get through this too. You're strong and I won't—"

"You won't what?" I ask when it's obvious he's not going to continue.

"Nothing," he quickly replies, seemingly flustered. "You don't have anything else to worry about, okay?"

My answer is quiet and low. "I know."

I don't know how, but I know there's nothing else to worry about. I know that for now, I'm safe.

He doesn't comment on the matter further, leaving the line silent. The only sound I hear is his soft breathing gently drifting through the line.

The sound is calming, but my mind won't let me relax. All I can think about is Jess and whether she's okay.

"Have you seen or spoken to your father recently?" I question, enlarging the hole in my shirt as I wait for his response.

"Jessica is going to be fine," he tells me, correctly assuming my reason for the inquiry. "She's lost a lot of blood but my father was able to save her in time."

Blowing out a heavy breath I didn't realize I was holding, I tightly squeeze my eyes closed. I nod, even though he can't see me and laugh lightly, feeling some weight lift from shoulders. I feel like I should jump for joy and rush over to Carlisle, hugging him as tightly as I can.

With my still shaky limbs and the late hour, I know that trip won't be successful, so I'll have to settle for expressing my gratitude at a later time.

"Good," I mumble to myself, my cheeks starting to hurt from the force of my smile. "Good. And you? Are you okay? Things looked pretty intense between you and Alice."

"Yeah, we're good now. Just a sibling spat."

I bite my tongue against the retort wanting to come out, because I know it was more than that. Besides, I have more pressing things to delve into, like Jasper's odd behavior regarding the Cullens.

"How was the rest of your evening? Anything exciting happen?"

"I don't know about exciting, but Jasper came over," he admits, almost reluctantly.

"What happened?"

He's silent for so long I think he's hung up on me, but a quick look at the phone tells me otherwise. Waiting somewhat patiently, I twirl the fabric around my finger, bunching the material until my fingers throbs, only to release it and start the process over again.

"There was a disagreement," he finally admits, albeit reluctantly. "Heated words were exchanged … and long story short, he didn't agree with us on something."

Unfortunately, this just brings up more questions than answers. "Mm-hmm. I don't suppose you're going to share what this disagreement was, are you?"

This time, he answers immediately. "No."

"I can keep a secret. Trust me, I have tons of secrets that I'm keeping under wraps."

"I find that very hard to believe," he says, dubious.

"Why is that, oh knower of all things?"

"You look shifty."

"Let's not bring our looks into this," I warn playfully. "I have a list for your looks."

A small squeak of rough fabric against leather comes through the line, and in my mind's eye, I can practically see him reclining back on a black leather sofa, looking smug as hell.

"Oh? Do tell," he teases, much like I thought he would.

"I would, but it's already been a stressful night for your father. I don't want him to repair your ego and self-esteem after I trash it."

He laughs, deep and rich. "Fine. I'll let it go. For now."

Rolling my eyes, I huff lightly, inwardly cursing myself. I have to get better control over what I say around him. Knowing that won't be possible any more tonight, I opt for the next best thing.

Avoidance.

"Is Alice around? I'm sure she's upset with everything that's happened."

"She's not taking calls right now," he tells me, his voice a lot more subdued than before. "I'll tell her to call you, though."

Disappointed, my head falls back, an intense feeling of worry for my friend filling me. Knowing how close she and Jasper have gotten recently, I know Jasper's new avoidance attitude won't be easy for her to handle. She's been happy lately, seemingly lighter, despite the heaviness that follows.

"Promise you'll give her the message?"

When he responds, his tone holds a mixture of false innocence that almost sounds sincere. "Don't you trust me?"

"Not at all."

Lowly, he chuckles, murmuring a snarky response into the phone, but I miss it completely as Jasper's door opens, and my parents filter out, followed shortly by Jasper. They look completely frustrated and slightly annoyed as he stalks toward me, his hand outstretched.

I jerk back with a glare, holing my phone tighter.

"Who are you talking to?" he demands, his face turning red.

"None of your business."

Annoyed, he reaches for my cell phone, leaning over me as I attempt to twist it out of his grip. He makes a move to snatch the phone away as it drops onto the floor but winces as I deliver a firm hit to his gut with my elbow.

Striding away from him, I come to stand near my parents, who look on with disapproval.

"I gotta go," I mumble into the phone.

"I gathered. Bye, Bella."

Without a farewell, I hang up the phone and plant my fists on my hips. "What the hell is your problem?"

Nonchalantly, he shrugs, though I can see the nervous flicker of his eyes as he looks from me to a random spot on the floor. "I told you earlier. I don't want you talking to them."

"Jasper," Dad warns, but it's Mom who steps up, bringing her hands up to her chest, palms resting together in a pleading stance.

"Jasper, honey, we talked about this."

"Yeah, we did, but I don't share your views," he spits. "I don't agree that they're good people."

Stalking off to his room, he slams the door, the pictures rattling on the walls.

Stunned at the hostile tone he's taken with my parents, I suck air through my teeth, waiting to see what my parents will do with this sudden and unexpected show of fury.

Much like myself, they're surprised, frozen with equal expressions of shock etched in their features. They stare at each other unblinkingly, and once what happened sinks in, Dad's face turns an odd shade of puce, the veins bulging in his neck. Mom simply looks disappointed, her eyes glistening.

"Bella," Dad says, his voice hard but controlled. "Go to your room. Obviously, we need to speak to Jasper again."

Without argument, I head up to my room, collapsing on my bed while a burst of dazed laughter erupts from my chest. I can't believe Jasper lost his cool like that; most of the time, he's calm and collected, but to see him so upset and so adamant in his silly beliefs that the Cullens are evil, makes me all the more curious to know what happened tonight.

My hand twitches toward my cell phone, eager to get some answers, but I doubt I'll get any from the Cullens. If I've learned anything about them, I know they'll remain tight-lipped about everything, so going that route is a definite dead end.

I could always try Jasper again, but right now, he's too upset and too hostile to answer anything. Plus, with the hard set of Dad's face, I know that right about now, he's being read the riot act.

I'll wait for Jasper to calm himself and then ask him.

I just hope his new attitude doesn't stick around.

I think Jasper needs a little more time ...

I hope you enjoyed the chapter! Stay safe!