Once again, Bella's a bit different. Chapter two, I hope you enjoy!

Still not mine.

Bella's strange day did nothing to help her sleep that night. She was plagued by restless dreams, filled with old faces she had buried deep in her unconscious. Bella awoke several times that night, breathing heavily, only to realize that it had been a dream.

So much for that meeting, she sighed as she fretted over the large bags that were beginning to form under her eyes. Bella applied a generous layer of concealer, hoping to diminish the effect. It didn't work.

Agitated, but trying to calm her nerves down, she picked out a silky blouse with a rich blue hue. Leaving the top two buttons undone, she tucked it into a long pencil skirt. If her face couldn't look good, at least the rest of her would. Her mood started to improve as she located a pair of simple black pumps and slipped them on. Tousling her hair, she gave a backward glance into the mirror. Not too bad, Miss Swan.

Bella always gave better presentations when she knew she looked good. A silly thing to gain confidence over, maybe, but nonetheless it helped. Who knew that the right outfit was the key to her being able to give a speech to hundreds of people in a crowded lecture hall? In high school, she would never have imagined herself being able to do that without getting physically sick. Sure, she didn't like it any more than she had back then, but at least she had the ability now.

Bella mentally snapped at herself. She had to stop reminiscing about the past. Thinking back to her recent sleepless night, she knew just what those memories did to her. Nothing good, and you know it. But it was so hard to stop when she got started.

She got a taxi to work, and went over her notes mentally on the way there. The speech wasn't going to be hard; she was just talking to a bunch of editors on how to write a good column. It was mainly a simple list of "dos" and "don'ts" that all fledgling editors should be aware of.

First, never make a statement without evidence to back it up. Yes, you're writing your opinion, but you have to qualify why you feel the way you do about something. Why was the movie terrible? What made the restaurant service good? Why-

"We're here, miss," the cab driver said, interrupting her mental preparations. "Seven-fifty, please,"

Bella handed him a ten. "Keep the rest," she said hurriedly. She needed to get inside quickly so she could go over the other points she wanted to make.

Even though she sometimes had nights like last night (and some that were much, much worse), Bella always pulled it together for work. Yes, she was talented, but nobody got anywhere on talent alone. She had known from an early age that hard work was the way people got to the top of their respective career ladders. Work hard, play hard was a motto Bella had no problem living by. She led a fast life; she kept company with those who could keep up.

That was one way part of her high-school persona had stayed with her through the years. She had fun, which was somewhat of an understatement, but she never went to a single meeting or speech unprepared. Deep down, she was the same old bookworm. Very deep down.

Bella glanced around, to observe her surroundings. She was giving a speech in a hotel, so there would be no problem of space. Bella's speeches were unusually crowded. She liked to think it was because of her easy way of speaking to people, her good preparation that led to good, no-nonsense speeches. Not because of more shallow reasons.

If such things could still stun Bella, she would have been taken aback at how beautiful the hotel was. The floor was cool, marbled granite. Heavy green fabric hung from the ceilings in large draped patterns. She heard a faint rushing sound, and saw that the back wall of the hotel had a miniature waterfall. Wealthy men and women dragged designer suitcases behind them. People were speaking in a flurry of hushed voices, and Bella could pick up English, French, and a language she couldn't place.

Just past the reception area was a large room with high ceilings and many comfortable looking couches. Several business people lounged on these couches, no doubt waiting for her. Some colleagues that she knew by acquaintance only paused to greet her in the lobby. She exchanged courtesies with them but her mind was still going over her notes. Bella walked quickly towards the lecture hall door, but connected with something solid before she got there.

"Oh!" she cried as her papers spilled all over the floor. She had been so distracted that she ran straight into a man with his back turned to her. That is so embarrassing, she thought, with a little irritation directed towards herself.

The man turned around. Bella started to apologize profusely. "I'm so sorry," she said quickly, adding the same charming smile that had gotten her out of trouble so many times before. Strangely, a wave of calm washed over her agitated state of mind.

She looked up, into the stranger's face (who had yet to say anything). The blond curls, the statuesque stance, the strange expression of surprise in his deep, amber-colored eyes. She recognized, and she knew. Before he could say anything, a wave of black swept over Bella's eyes. His arms reaching for her were the last things she knew before she descended into the darkness.

………

Bella awoke quickly, just a few moments later. She knew because she was still in Jasper's arms. She started to panic, and struggled against him to stand up. He helped her obligingly. Bella could faintly detect the calm that pervaded her (and probably everyone else in the room's) senses. She glanced around quickly. To her surprise, no one was looking at them.

Bella opened her mouth to try to speak, but couldn't think of anything to say. Jasper looked at her with empathy.

"Bella," he said, slowly, musically. She hadn't heard a voice this beautiful in such a long time. Six years, her mind murmured to herself. It's been six years since I've heard a voice like that.

"Jasper," she forced her mouth to speak, finally. Her voice sounded harsh, grating, raspy even, next to his. "What- why?"

"We just moved here," he said simply.

"We?" Bella asked, seemingly only able to formulate one- or two-word sentences.

Jasper sighed, but Bella knew it was only out of habit. "Carlisle, Alice, all of us," he said gently.

For one tiny second, Bella's heart was ecstatic. It threatened to soar out of her chest. She knew whom "all of us" entailed.

But in the proceeding seconds, she remembered everything. Her last year in Forks, and all the years and miles she had struggled to put between herself and the Cullens since then. Going to college in New York, and subsequently living here, had been part of that decision. She could think of no place farther (and more opposite) than from small-town, rainy, dreary, green, forested Forks.

Bella bent down to retrieve her scattered papers, and Jasper mimicked her, gathering them more quickly than she could.

"Thanks," she muttered.

"Would you like to come up to our room? No one's there, I promise, and you don't look so good. You could rest…"

"No," Bella snapped, suddenly angry. How could he be so nice to her, after what that family had done? Hypocrite. "No, I have a speech to give."

Jasper sensed her anger, and seemed confused by it. "Bella, I need- someone needs to explain…"

"I'm going to be late," she said, with clipped tones. "Excuse me." She could feel Jasper desperately trying to calm her down, trying to make her stay and listen to him. "Stop," she said coldly, and Jasper knew exactly what she was talking about. The calm feeling left her immediately.

Bella gathered her things together, gave him a brief nod, and Jasper stepped to the side graciously. "Bye, Bella," he said. Her hands trembled but she didn't look back.

Gripping her things tightly, she went to the stage. Her hands where shaking, stretched white over her knuckles. It took a Herculean effort for her to set her papers down. They were crumpled up from her grabbing them so strongly.

People were filing into the room, chattering excitedly. Bella felt like she was looking at them through a telescope. Normally, she might have walked around the room, mingling and visiting everyone, trying to warm them up to her before her speech. But today, she couldn't think, she could barely breathe. A few people approached her, but her face was pulled in a way that told everyone to stay a few yards back. Bella went to the side, grabbed a cup of water from the table, and gulped it down greedily. She walked slowly, deliberately, up to the stage, taking deep breaths. After a few minutes, she seemed calm again. The back of her mind questioned why she felt so calm, but she pushed the thought away angrily.

Walking up the steps, she got on stage and smiled at her expectant audience. "Hello," she said. "I'm Bella Swan. You might know me from my column…"

So I just read over that, and I realize it might look a little strange. I'm not shipping Bella/Jasper, just trying to explain that they had a close brother/sister relationship in the past. I've always liked Jasper, so I want him to be a part of my story.

Thanks for reading. Chapter three will hopefully be up soon!