"I said I don't want to go to school!" Jasper snaps at Esme. She shoots him an agitated look.

"Excuse me, young man?"

"I don't want to go!" He huffs again and sinks down in his chair at the table. Rosalie looks at her brother questioningly.

"Well you're not sick, so you're going." She says firmly. He glares at her and pushes his plate of eggs and toast away from him. "What's gotten into you? You haven't given us a hard time about school before."

"I just don't want to go! Why is that so hard to understand?" He groans and stands so quickly that he knocks his chair backwards. Without pausing to pick it up, he stomps out of the kitchen. Rosalie stands to follow him, but Esme stops her.

"I'll handle this, Rose." She tells her. Rosalie reluctantly sits back down.

Esme follows Jasper out of the kitchen, up the stairs and to his room. He slams the door shut, but it doesn't slow her down. She flings it open and follows him right towards his bed.

"Stop right there, Jasper." She tells him. He stops, but throws his head back and groans dramatically.

"Hey!" Edward calls from the other side of the room. He yanks his shirt over his head. "Ever heard of knocking? This is my room, too!"

"Hush, Edward. Go downstairs. Breakfast is ready." She instructs before turning to Jasper. Edward huffs and angrily leaves the room. "What's wrong, Jasper? Are you being picked on again?"

"No." He mumbles.

"Are you having problems in any of your classes?"

"No."

"Then what is the problem?"

"I just want to stay home! Why is it so hard for you to get through your head?" He snaps angrily. Esme pushes her lips together and shakes her head.

"Carlisle is downstairs in our room. Go talk to him." She demands. Jasper rolls his eyes. "Now, Jasper!"

"Fine!" Jasper huffs and stomps out his room.

He hurries downstairs. Esme walks calmly behind his path. Once he reaches the bedroom door on the lower level, he shakes off his angry face and replaces it with a pitiful one before knocking. Carlisle opens the door while still buttoning up his shirt. Jasper looks up at him through his eyelashes.

"Can I stay home? I don't feel good." He murmurs pathetically.

"Do you have a fever?" Carlisle asks and puts the back of his hand to Jasper's forehead.

"Cut the act, Jasper Lee." Esme says. Jasper groans again.

"Just let me stay home!" He shouts.

"Knock it off," Carlisle scolds him. "Why don't you want to go to school?"

"I just don't!"

"Carlisle," Esme sighs. "He's been acting up all morning."

"Is that so?" Carlisle says, looking at Jasper with one raised, questioning brow. "In my office. Now."

With another groan, Jasper follows Carlisle through his room and to the office. He plops down in the seat in front of the desk as Carlisle starts lecturing.

"You know better than to take that tone with us. If Esme says you're going to school, then you're going to school. No arguing, no complaining, and definitely no yelling. And that behavior is exactly why you're grounded for a week, starting today. Give me-" Carlisle starts to say, but is quickly cut off by his ringing cell phone. Sighing, he pulls it out of his pocket and answers in a professional tone. "Dr. Cullen speaking. You need me there now? I'm suppose to be there in an hour. Right now? Okay, fine. I'll be there in fifteen minutes."

Jasper glares up at Carlisle as he hangs up. He shoves his phone in his pocket and goes to leave the office, pointing at Jasper as he walks.

"That phone better be on my desk as soon as you get home from school." He commands. Jasper rolls his eyes, but stands and follows Carlisle out. As Carlisle hurries to his coat and shoes, he explains to Esme that a ten car pile-up on the expressway had been reported and the injured drivers were coming to the hospital, so he has to leave early. Emmett comes running down the stairs, asking for Carlisle's credit card to fill up the Jeep. Jasper pushes past them and stomps up the stairs to get dressed for school.


"You guys go in. Jasper and I will park the Jeep." Emmett tells Rosalie and Edward as he stops his vehicle as close to the high school's front doors as possible without the principal calling the cops on him. Again.

"It takes two to park the Jeep?" Rosalie questions from the front passenger seat.

"No, I just want to chat with the little bro." Emmett whispers and winks at her. She sends him a flirty smile before unbuckling her seat belt. She loves how Emmett's taken to Jasper. He actually tries to get closer to her 'little bro', unlike Edward, who just pouts next to Jasper in the back seat. Once she's out of the car, She pulls the front seat forward so Edward can jump out. Emmett looks at Jasper in the rear-view mirror. "Get in the front seat, Jazz."

"Why do I have to come with you? The snow is three inches deep! I don't want to walk through all of that." Jasper complains as he climbs out of the car.

"Dude, just get in!"

Grumbling to himself, Jasper does what Emmett told him. Emmett pulls the Jeep away from the sidewalk and points it to the back of the parking lot. Instead of filling a parking space, however, Emmett takes the back exit and pulls onto the road.

"I heard you complaining about not wanting to go to school. I don't want to go either, so this can be our day off." Emmett explains with a crooked grin.

"Carlisle is going to be pissed if he finds out! I'm already in trouble."

"Don't worry, man. Once he finds out what I've done, anything you do will pale in comparison." Emmett sighs. That catches Jasper's attention.

"What did you do?"

"Why don't you want to go to school today?" Emmett asks in a pathetic attempt to change the subject. Jasper shakes his head.

"No, answer my question first."

"Fine." He agrees. "I dropped out."

"You did what?" Jasper asks with wide eyes. His jaw drops. He's heard Carlisle yell at Emmett for twenty minutes before for not turning in homework. He can't imagine the screaming that will come from this.

"I'm going to be twenty next month. I already look too old to be in high school." He explains. "I mean, if I haven't figured out the material by now, then I'm not going to get in any time soon."

"What do you think Carlisle is going to say?"

"He's gonna yell. A lot. But I got everything figures out. Remember my plans for dinner with my biological parents?"

"The plans that made Esme cry?" Jasper grumbles.

"Yes." Emmett sighs again. "I talked to him on the phone. I'm not actually going to dinner. My bio dad set me up an interview at the factory he works at."

"Why did you write it on the calendar? You made Esme cry." Jasper asks harshly. "She was so upset."

"You know how Mom and Dad are. They have that big list of rules, they have to know why you're leaving the house, when you'll be back. If I tried to just leave without an alibi, I would be pounded with questions."

Jasper looks down at his lap as Emmett points the car north. They drive quietly and Jasper tries to understand Emmett's reasoning, but he can't shake the image of Esme's tear stained face.

"Why didn't you want to go to school?" Emmett finally asks, breaking the silence. Jasper shrugs, earning an eye-roll from Emmett. "Seriously, dude? I just spilled my guts about my biggest secrete and you can't tell me why you don't want to go to school?"

"If you really must know," Jasper spits back. "Alice and I had a fight."

"Oh? But you guys seemed so happy last night."

"Yeah, well," Jasper sighs. "Listen, if you want to know so badly, you have to promise to keep your mouth shut. I won't tell about you dropping out if you don't tell about what happened between me and Alice."

"Deal."

"I sneaked over to Alice's last night and," Jasper starts to explain, but simply trails off.

"And?"

"And we slept together." He admits.

"Alright," Emmett smiles and holds out his hand for a high-five. He lowers it once Jasper shakes his head.

"It didn't end well. I kind of ruined the night."

"Did you call out another girls name?"

"Kind of. Once we were all done, I told her that I'm still in a relationship with another woman from my old foster home. Alice didn't take it well. She kicked me out in just my jeans and socks. My shirt and shoes are still in her room. I tried to apologize, but she just called me an asshole and smacked me a few times."

As Jasper's story goes on, Emmett's expression grows more and more somber. Jasper's heartaches seems to engulf his whole chest. He screwed up with Alice, he can't get to Maria, and he has no one but Emmett to talk to him.

"Man, let's just fill up the Jeep's tank, find an old field and tear some shit up." Emmett says. "This Jeep is made for this kind of weather, and some rough driving always makes me feel better."