A/N: SM owns Twilight and I own- an 8 month old puppy…anyone need a puppy?

Wonderful super duper thanks to heavyinfinity for beta'ing this even with Father's Day in the way. Thanks kitten!

Previously in Chapter 5:

The things we do for Bella.

Chapter 6:

Jasper's POV (always)

On Tuesday Bella and Jack only had one class together and then Bella and I had one class. It seemed to go well and Jack essentially passed her off to me as we went from one class to the next that morning. It was nice not to have afternoon classes, but not for Bella. It was only the second day of college but she was quickly realizing the work involved and she didn't have the ability to remember everything like we did.

By the time Thursday came around, Bella was feeling the strain of the first week of school and I was able to give her a wonderful massage after lunch.

"What's up, Jasper?" She was too smart for her own good. As I rehooked her bra and pulled her shirt down I couldn't help but play stupid.

"What do you mean, Bella?"

She huffed and turned to glare at me. "Well, first off, you've never given a massage that didn't have a happy ending and secondly, I can feel your anxiety. Now what's up?"

I nodded and sat down next to her while she sat up and arranged herself next to me.

"I want to talk to Jack." I didn't look at her; sure she'd think I was jealous.

"Okay," she answered with a shrug.

I looked over at her in surprise, "Okay? You aren't going to ask me why? Or get upset with me?"

"Nope. It's a guy thing. I think he'd like to talk to you too."

"Why do you think that?" I couldn't help but wonder what they'd talked about.

"Just that, I talk about you a lot and he seems, well…" she chuckled, "I think you're his hero."

I couldn't help but laugh with her at that. I decided I'd just go and she could finish her school work.

"I'll be back in a bit."

I gave her a deep and lingering kiss before setting off to find Jack's dorm. I stopped in the student center and was looking him up on the computer when, suddenly, I heard him call my name.

"Jack," I said standing up and extending my hand to him. Again, he took it with a smile but his emotions said he was confused. "I was just going to see if I could find you." No need to tell lies.

"Oh, why? Is everything okay?"

"Oh ya, everything is fine. I just thought maybe we could talk." I turned and walk towards a table and sat down. Jack sat down across from me, nervousness and curiosity radiating from him.

"Listen Jack, I'm not the jealous boyfriend type. I'm not going to attack you or tell you stay away from Bella: Unless she asks me to, of course." I smirked at him and he relaxed infinitesimally but still didn't trust me. I could also feel his respect for me and in a way I think there was some hero worship in there. Bella was right.

"So umm, what did you want to talk about then?"

"Well, really I'm just curious as to why you are so interested in Bella?"

He smiled and let out a sigh of relief. "Is that all? She's really nice. I don't make friends easily and I have a weird roommate who is into all things Star Trek, which just isn't my thing. I don't really know many people here and well… I feel close to her, she's easy to talk to. She seems to enjoy my company and it doesn't have to get weird between us because she already has a boyfriend. If that makes sense?"

I just monitored his emotions which seemed nothing but honest and sincere and happy. He was happy to know Bella.

"I think you're a nice guy too, Jasper. Really, I don't want to take Bella from you or hurt her or you. If anything though I'd love to learn how you did that thing with her the other day in the library. That was awesome!"

I chuckled, "It's all in the touch. But really it's about knowing that the other person will respond to it too. There was a time when Bella didn't respond to much." I frowned with the thought of her darker days.

"Ya, she told me that you saved her. I just don't know what you saved her from?" He gave me a questioning look but wasn't going to push.

"It's her story to tell, but I guess I can say I saved her from herself." Jack appeared very confused but satisfied that I wasn't going to say anything else. It wasn't my business to air Bella's dirty laundry, so to speak. We left the heartache behind us, literally. Edward was still working at Newton's under Mike's management. I'm sure if Mike ever thinks about our interaction Edward will get a good laugh at Mike pissing himself for saying that Bella was ruined and useless.

I smiled a bit too widely at that thought when I felt a spike of fear come from Jack. "Sorry," I muttered covering my pearly whites with a more human smile.

"Man, that was one scary look. I hope you weren't thinking about doing something to me." He laughed but his discomfort was palpable.

"Nah, just thinking about a guy back home that I did have to warn off Bella. I made him piss himself," I chuckled and Jack boisterously laughed.

"Oh man, how'd you do that!? That's awesome! You're awesome!" He was slapping his knee and nearly hyperventilating.

"I may have threatened him with a rather large hunting knife." I grinned happily at the thought and Jack's wide eyes before he continued to chortle loudly.

"Awesome!"

"Yeah, it kind of was," I smirked.

Jack and I settled down and talked about that incident for a bit and he agreed that it needed to happen after hearing that Mike commented about Bella's "usefulness". Turns out I really do like Jack. Not to say that I'm not still a bit concerned; we shouldn't let humans get too close to us. But he does kind of idolize me, especially after that story, and he seems to have nothing but good intentions towards Bella. He didn't even question me further about her past. I suppose he may question her, but he knew I wasn't going to tell him anything. I don't know if Bella will either. She wanted a fresh start where no one knew what kind of zombie she used to be.

Jack shared some of his life stories from high school playing football and being popular, but feeling very lost around here. No one knows him here and of course his reputation didn't follow him. I figured out that he hooked up with the "beautiful people" at college. But he doesn't know that we don't really socialize.

Even just sitting talking with him for a little over an hour was honestly a new experience for me. I had to be very careful with what I said and honestly I have never sat and had a conversation with a human other than Bella. But Bella is different because she knows what we are.

I left Jack with another handshake and returned to Bella's room where she was studiously doing homework.

"How was your talk?" she inquired, pushing away the stuff in front of her, indicating I had her full attention.

"It went well. I do like him. I am nervous about him getting too close to us though."

Bella thought for a moment, "I would like to have a friend, not that the others aren't great, but they are family. This is my last chance for friendship for a while. I understand what you mean though so I'll try to keep him away from the rest of you. Is that okay?"

"Whatever you want to do, darlin'." I grabbed her and pulled her off the bed and into a hug. "I want to take nothing from you. But if he gets too suspicious or does something wrong, we may have to change our plans. Okay?"

Bella wrapped her dangling legs around my waist and snuggled against my body. "Just fine, Jazz."

Her complete acceptance about our situation always amazes me. Knowing that we have to move around a lot sometimes does not seem to upset her one bit. Our travels over the summer helped us to both see that being a nomad does have its fun aspects. I thoroughly enjoyed having her with me constantly and viewing things through her eyes. She was excited and awed by the simplest things.

My Bella helped me to see a beauty in nature that I never noticed before. She helped me to see that man's creations, even the silly ones, like redneck Ferris Wheels made from old car seats and a couple of boat motors, could be fun. I guess her point was to enjoy things the way they were meant to be enjoyed. This coming from a girl who just months before had no joy, no happiness, no emotion, in her life. I'm very happy with the way things have changed.

I placed Bella back on her bed so she could continue to work and told her I'd be across the hall.

I passed Rose who was also studying at a very human pace, which I found odd. I didn't say anything but kissed her head as I passed, earning me a bright smile.

Emmett, Peter, and Charlotte sat in the living area of our dorm chatting about their recent experiences in their new classes.

"So you talked with Jack, huh?" Emmett inquired as I sat in a chair facing them.

"Yeah, we spoke for about an hour. It's weird talking with a human for that long…just chatting."

"Anything we need to be worried about?" Char was no dummy- she was careful about her human interactions.

"Well, I know he knows there's something off with my skin when we've shook hands but he hasn't said anything. He likes Bella and as far as I can tell it's just as a friend. He even said it was nice that she was taken so things couldn't get complicated between them." I furrowed my brow as I restated that.

"Isn't that weird for a college guy? I mean who wouldn't want a hot chick like Bella?" Peter asked as he furrowed his brow in response too. I felt his concern which didn't help me to feel any more comfortable with this situation.

"Not all men are about sex," Char shook her head at us and we looked at her like she had grown a third eye.

"Yes they are!" Emmett boasted with a laugh.

"No, really. I know you all think that is the case, but I mean people around here first of all are pretty smart, that's how they got here. Second, it's the first week of school and I see a lot of people trying to find where they fit in because they don't know anybody. I think Jack just wants to fit in with us."

"That is pretty much how he put it." I nodded in agreement with Char.

"See, the only problem is we can't really be friends with him, can we?"

"No sweetcheeks, it wouldn't be a good idea," Peter answered wrapping an arm around her. I guess he knew she was going to be upset with the idea that she couldn't really have friends outside of our family. Her feelings turned melancholy as she nodded and leaned into him for support.

"I'm sorry. Bella wants this friendship and I won't deny her of it. She knows that if he gets too suspicious or nosy we'll probably have to move. She's willing to take that risk. So for now, Jack and Bella are officially friends, but as I'm sure you heard, she'll do her best to keep him away from us for the most part."

"I hope this all works out. I can't say I'm happy about all of this, it's so much different than how we normally do things, Jazz. I just don't want the Volturi coming down on us." Emmett was very serious before he got up and left to go be with Rose.

"Well, it's official, we're screwed," Peter announced and I looked at him wide-eyed.

"Why?!" I nearly yelled.

"Bella, has us all wrapped around her little fingers. We're risking much more than we normally would because of our love for her," he answered with a smile.

I smiled back and Char returned it though she stayed firmly against Peter.

"We do love our little human; she is my everything." I got up, giving Peter and Char some privacy and went to lie on my bed and just contemplate everything that has happened this week and how we'll continue to make this work in the long run. Living this close with people is dangerous for us.

The next couple of weeks we developed a schedule which involved a lot of Bella and Jack study time in the library, sometimes we joined them, more so Rose than anyone else. She really seemed to be taking this school thing seriously.

It was a Thursday afternoon, a normal study day for Bella and Jack while the rest of us sat in the man cave we'd developed for ourselves, full of games and books and computers to keep the vampires occupied. I was shocked to hear Bella's voice coming down the hall towards our rooms. Everyone was, we knew her first test was tomorrow and she was extremely nervous about it.

"Just over here, sorry I forgot my book," she said to someone.

"No problem. I haven't been over here since that first week when we all watched movies," Jack replied.

Jack- she was bringing him to her room. But she forgot her book. Everyone remained still and quiet as we listened to her key into the room across the hall.

"Wow, looks really nice in here."

"Thanks, Char and Rose did the decorating. Let me grab my book- it's in my room."

"Sure."

We heard the footsteps move together, he was following her and I narrowed my eyes slightly, listening harder.

"Where is everyone?" Jack asked

"I don't know, some are probably across the hall, but I'm not sure. Not my babysitting day." They both chuckled.

"Nice room. Wow a king bed. How did you manage that? And no roommate?"

"Well, since I don't have a roommate we pushed the beds together and it was easy. It's nice to have so much room."

"Yeah, I bet Jasper spends the night a lot, huh?" he asked nervously.

He was getting a little too nosy for my comfort. I heard Bella shuffling things around and noticed she wasn't going to answer his question.

"Weird, I can't find it. Can you look under the teddy bear for me, while I look in the closet?"

I heard the closet door open as Jack uttered his, "sure".

"Cute bear. Valentine's gift from Jasper?"

He was being nosy and I didn't like it but his feelings were mostly just curiosity and a little longing. I'm not jealous, I'm really not. I trust Bella but I don't trust other men and he was becoming just another man.

"No, it was a gift from Emmett." She answered muffled, I'm guessing with her head in the closet.

"Emmett? Why did he give you a Valentine's bear?"

At that point everyone's head whipped over to look at me. I shrugged, what did they want me to say? It was a get well gift from Emmett when he returned after we left Bella. But, I didn't know what she was going to say to Jack.

"He bought it for me when he came back to be my brother again," she sighed heavily. "I still can't find the book. Was it over there?"

"No sorry. He came back? Why did he leave?"

Emmett inhaled and sadness radiated off of him as he held his breath waiting for her answer. He never forgave himself for leaving her and her becoming so depressed she almost died. That only happened 9 months ago after all.

"Listen, I don't really want to talk about it okay? I shouldn't have said anything. I've forgiven him for everything and I love him dearly, that's all you need to know. Let me go see if the book is across the hall."

Jack said nothing further and soon we heard Bella open the door to their room. We scrambled to look like we weren't listening and being normal when she opened our door.

"Jasper is my accounting book in your bag?"

I got up and returned a second later with her book in my hand looking sheepish. "Sorry darlin', didn't know I had it."

"Uh huh. Hope you all enjoyed that conversation," she said thumbing towards the door behind her.

"I love you, Bells!" Emmett exclaimed and pulled her into a tight hug.

"Okay, Emmett, love you too. Need to go study now." She turned and left, taking a very quiet Jack with her.

I almost feel bad for the poor guy. He's trying to get to know Bella but she's a private person and doesn't trust easily. The stress of tomorrow's test is also weighing on her and Jack trying to pull personal information from her about drove her over the edge. She tries really hard to stay calm. We can't have any incidents here and she isn't in control of her bubble, should it choose to make itself known again.

Remembering the horrible emotions that she used to fuel it had me feeling angry and I excused myself to go for a hunt. I needed time alone. It was too much, remembering every detail of how Bella was when we found her after Fuckward left her. She was a zombie, a shell of a person, no intonation, no expression, no care for anything and the pain- the emotional pain was unbelievable.

After we made love for the first time everything changed. My protectiveness over her became so intense, I couldn't let another vampire look at her without growling. Her bubble made an appearance, proving to be useful as she could shield us and herself from physical attacks as well as make them sound proof. She almost destroyed the Cullen home in Forks with one though.

I'm able to control my bloodlust like never before and I'm able to turn emotions on and off at will. We were true soul mates, no matter how much I hated the term. I was her other half and she was mine. But since we had become mates and she had lost it on Fuckward, she hadn't had any strong negative emotions over the summer to fuel the bubble. Her annoyance and stress may get her there though.

We were going to have to discuss this. She couldn't just put Jack in a bubble if he annoys her with his questions. She's going to have to be more diplomatic than that. I found a doe nearby and her fawn. It was cruel in my mind to leave the fawn motherless, so I had a large dinner and headed for home. I wasn't about to tell the others my concern. We were already nervous as it was because we were never seen eating in the dining hall and we didn't socialize with others. We were in close quarters with humans and it made the thirst more difficult also.

By the time I got back, I sensed Bella was in her room, probably studying. I showered because even though I didn't get messy, I could still smell the deer and it wasn't a great thing to smell on yourself constantly.

I let myself into Bella's dorm room and went to her bedroom door. "Come in," she called before I could knock. That was the other thing that our "mating" did for us- we could sense each other easily.

"Hey darlin', how was your-" I stopped, looking at her with her bear held tightly in her arms, in her night clothes and dried tears on her cheeks.

"What happened?" I asked, rushing to her and taking her in my arms.

"This was a bad idea. I can't do it. I can't make you guys do this. I'm sorry," she sniffled and then began crying again in my arms. I still didn't understand what brought this on. I held her until the tears dried again and she was nothing but sniffles.

I reached for a tissue on the shelf over the bed and handed it to her.

"Now, tell me what happened?" I hugged her tighter then moved her to look into her eyes.

"Just Jack, asking all those questions and I can't answer any of them. I made Emmett look like a bad guy and now he's upset and keeps apologizing to me for leaving. I thought we were passed all this. I thought things were going to be okay, but they aren't. I shouldn't have made you guys live here. It's not working. Everyone is uncomfortable and the humans are too close. I'm sorry."

She began to softly cry again and I just held her. Not sure how to fix this, because everything she just said was true and what I had just been thinking about myself. So yep the million dollar question was, 'now what?' which is probably exactly what it was going to cost us to get out of this disaster.

AN: Okie dokie, so what do you think?