I want to take this time to thank you to all the people that have reviewed. It makes me smile evry time that I read one. I am also sad to say that there is little left to this story, and that soon things will be ending. Hope you enjoy this chapter and drop a review.

I do not own Twilight.

CHAPTER 6

BPOV

Time seemed to drag by slowly after Jasper confessed to joining the Confederate Army. He gave up on the idea of trying to save his father's oil company, everyone well aware that there was nothing to be done to stop the bank's impending possession of their properties.

We spent every moment together, constantly talking about everything and anything that came to mind. I had still not come to terms with Jasper's future departure completely, and he, sensing my conflicted emotions, avoided the topic as much as possible. To take both our minds off the subject, we spoke, trying to fill in every gap of silence that occasionally fell upon our encounters, conscious of the direction our thoughts would inevitably take if we let them wander.

As much as we tried to veer off that certain path of immeasurable pain, we both knew that it was only a matter of time before he had to officially proclaim his new position as a soldier.

It was hard when he informed me of his decision, but it was even harder when the time came for him to speak with his parents.

When the he told his father the news of his new army position, there were no words that could describe the look in the poor man's face. A haunted look overcame the weathered features, a sort of desperation underlying the fear that dominated his blue gaze. He was speechless, and after a few minutes of awkward silence, he later shared with me, he asked to be left alone, isolating himself for hours in his thrashed study. Without further explanation to be said after Mr. Whitlock's request, his only son, his joy and pride, silently walked out of his ravaged room.

His mother, on the other hand, did not take things as sedately as her husband had.

Jasper informed me with a pained look in his eyes that she had gone hysteric. She began to cry inconsolably, pulling at her immaculate hair, the carefully applied makeup smearing and mixing with her haphazard tears. She begged him to stay, to not go to his certain death; she threw herself at him, hugging him fiercely in vain attempts to force him to remain by her side. She cursed to war with profound sincerity for taking away her only child, wildly trying to fight an unseen foe like a lioness in a fight to keep her cub safe. The broken hearted look he sported after that conversation made my own wounds sting in reminder of the separation to come.

We were sitting in the parlor of Aunt Josephine's house, drinking tea and eating sweets while we had our daily conversations. The sun was bright and unforgiving as it shone through the large windows of the pasty room. Things had gone silent as a lapse in our conversation settled.

"My departure is tomorrow; I have to leave to Fort Meyer at dawn." Jasper informed me in a nonchalant voice.

Though we had tried to avert this certain topic, we knew that we could not evade it for eternity.

I was shocked, to say the least; his departure was supposed to be in four days.

Sensing my surprise, he further elaborated.

"They sent me a telegram. The army needs as many soldiers as possible, and has decided to push ahead my leave. It seems they are more desperate than everyone thought." He said, fixing his gaze to a point beyond my head.

The delicate china teacup that I had gingerly held shook uncontrollably as he continued to explain. My nerves were more than slightly shaken; he was leaving tomorrow. He was going to take the train that would separate us, more so than his actions had.

Tears began to sting my eyes, my breathing becoming rapid and shallow. No, he couldn't leave so soon; I had planned to prepare myself for the separation in the next few days he had left, to create a sort of barrier in a cowardly attempt at keeping the unbearable pain away. He was leaving, going, never coming back. The burst of sorrow and fear that pulsed through me at that moment were strong enough to bring forth the tears I had managed to keep at bay, a strangled sob escaping my constricting throat.

I was falling apart at that instant, barely able to keep myself together in the hurricane of emotions roiling through me.

And like a beam of light breaking through darkened skies, I felt the warmth of another near me, enveloping my shivering body.

"It's alright Bella….I'm not gone yet. I'm still here with you." Jasper's voice rang out, clear and calm through the choppy seas my tears formed in my eyes.

"But…y-you'll…le-leave me. I-I-I c-can't…t-take that. I'll d-die, Jasper." I blubbered, my voice resoundingly thick with the gripping pain of sadness.

I chanced at that moment to look at Jasper, wanting nothing more than to see his reaction; and instantly regretted it.

He had not truly shown his emotions throughout the turmoil his announcement had wrought. He was, for the most part, the most calm and collected of any of us through everything that had happened up until that moment. His carefully constructed façade was good enough that it had fooled me only in the surface; the flashes of anguish that flickered into his eyes told me that under the calm demeanor he was suffering more than I could possibly imagine.

"Don't, Bella. Please, this is hard enough as it is. I don't think that I can do this anymore if you…: he trailed off, the lamentations pronounced in his now husky voice.

I tried to calm myself down as much as possible, angry with myself for making him feel so awful. Taking deep, calming breaths, I reigned in the raging emotions until I felt relatively empty, a sort of relief washing through me.

If there was any way that I was going to survive without Jasper, then this would have to do fine.

I managed to get my sobbing to subside, hiccupping a little now that was considerably calmer. At that moment, Jasper began to speak.

"You cannot possibly imagine how difficult this is for me Bella. I have to give up everything that I know, walk away from the people that love me to kill my countrymen.

They may not be Southern, but we are from the same America , are we not? Even if we all have different views on the issues that are plaguing our society, we do not need t resort to killing one another.

I simply wish that there was an easier way to find peace instead of shooting at one another, killing innocent people." He stopped here, breathing deeply as I remained transfixed on his every word.

I mulled over it as he gathered his thoughts, thinking over what he had said.

It was true. He was right, and it was such a shame that not everyone could see things in such clarity as Jasper did.

"Then why do it? Why sign up to fight in a war that you don't believe in?" I whispered, knowing that he was anticipating this very question as he had given that little speech.

He looked from that point above my head that he had been staring at while I had given his words thought.

Still staring at me intently, he continued.

"Yes, why fight in a war I find pointless and bloody. Why risk my life for a cause I do not support. There's one simple answer to that: money and pride.

You know of the current situation that my family is in, unfortunately. The day my father told me about them, I was desperate to do anything to help. In my haste I walked by the recruitment offices and saw that they were paying the soldiers money to fight."

I held my breath as he confessed this; it had been the only explanation I had ever wanted to know.

"And as I mentioned, pride also played a part in my decision. I'm a Southerner, through and through no matter what. I felt it a responsibility to aid my country in any way possible, even if it means that I might die in the process.

Not only that, but the guilt that consumes me at the sight of the pain that I'm causing is...unbearable. My parents are trying their hardest to act brave and keep me from seeing them die a bit more everytime they see me. They don't want me to see the extent of their pain at losing me. Especially you, Bella. It tears me up inside when I see you cry because I made the choice to fight. I can feel it." He whispered, barely loud enough for me to hear.

I sighed deeply, aware the pain he must have been feeling and of the finality in his last few words. He wanted to speak no more, and now I had all the explanations that I had wanted.

I wrapped my arms tightly around his neck, feeling the need to comfort him in any way possible. In a sudden impulse, I traced my lips across his jaw, kissing his neck, his cheeks, and his eyelids as they dropped. I held him as he slowly gathered the fringes of his composure.

"Are you alright?" I whispered, lightly brushing my mouth against his.

"I am. But I still feel a ridiculous amount of guilt." He said, pressing his mouth closer to mine. His sweet breath and hypnotizing eyes mesmerized me, propelling me to unconsciously lean in closer to him, to more firmly kiss him.

It was a sweet, sad kiss to say the least. There was barely any room for anything else to be felt at that moment.

We sat there in the parlor and talked through the entire day, never stoping as we occasionally had before. The knowledge of Jasper's imminent departure only brought with it a sense of urgency to spend as much time possible with my personal angel. As the blanket of night overcame the now quiet city, he announced that he had to go home and prepare.

"I still have to finish packing. I told my parents about my earlier leave, and my mother has been running around, packing this and that into my luggage." He said as we walked to the door.

"It must be very difficult for her. She's just trying to mother you as much as possible before heading off." I commented, saddening at the mental image of Mrs. Whitlock frantically shoving shirts and socks into his bags.

"I know. It only makes me sad." He whispered as he began to head out.

Sighing, I turned around, feeling the bottled up emotions close to spilling from the tight grip that I had managed to keep on them after my sudden outburst when I fel his warm hand gently wrap around my wrist. Turning me, he gently put his hands on wither side of my face and kissed me.

"You'll be there when I leave, will you not?" He asked as we broke apart.

"Of course. I'll always be there, Jasper." I whispered as I looked into his eyes, feeling very helpless at that moment.

Without another word, he kissed me forehead and waved as he rushed down the street.

I had no sleep that night. The moment that I closed my eyes nightmares plagued me, emotional pain bursting through me. Fatigued by the recurrent horros my mind played behind closed eyelids, I resorted to reading by candlelight as the dawn approached.

Before the first rays of sunlight tinged the dark sky, I was ready to leave. I had told my mother of Jasper's immediate call by the army, and she had agreed to acompany me to the train station.

As the sun climbed higher I tried to continue reading, but my mind wandered elsewhere. Giving up my efforts, I began to pace the length of my room, impatient. The relief I felt when I heard my mother's knock on the door was palpable.

"Bella, are you ready? It is almost time for us to leave dear. I imagine you would not want breakfast at this time." My mother said as she stood at the doorway. She had seen me mope around the house more than I would have liked, and knew of my distress.

"I do not want breakfast. Let's go." I said curtly, grabbing a shawl and rushing out the door, my mother screaming behind me to slow down.

I barreled out the door and climbed into the carrige, surprise registering only after I was seated at the fact that I had not tripped in my rush to get to the train station. Jasper certainly worked wonders.

The carrige ride was tense to say the least. My mother tried to make cheerful conversation, but I was not in the mood to hear her talk on and on about who was having an affair with who. I simply wanted to see Jasper one last time.

I practically flew out of the door once we stopped infront of the train station, and in my haste my foot got caught on one of the ladder's steps. Mentally berating myself for such carelessness, I closed my eyes, preparing myself for the impact to come.

As I felt the air swoosh around me, I was jerked back by strong, familiar arms. My heart began to palpitate in an unhealthy manner, beating too fast for it to be normal. I felt that treacherous blush creep up to my cheeks, even though I knew my savior was Jasper even before opening my eyes.

Sure enough, he was the one holding me up, gently setting me to my feet as I blatantly stared. I felt a need to memorize the sraight and defined lines of his face, his deep azure eyes, his honey blonde hair. At that moment there was a burning desire to memorize every detail I could.

"Are you alright?" He asked, worry laced with amusement evident in his tone. He had known I had been staring.

I managed to nod as I finished my scrutiny, blushing furiously at being caught gawking. He took my hand and gently pulled me along beside him, smiling in encouragement as we made our way to his platform.

"I'm leaving in five minutes. I was worried you wouldn't be able to make it." He confessed, looking down at his feet in a sudden dispay of shyness.

I felt something tug at my heart at his apparent distress.

"I made it Jasper. How could I not come." I said, looking down as well.

"I know. But it didn't stop the fear I felt at the thought of not being able to say goodbye." He said, locking eyes with me as I looked up to see his face.

The intensity of his stare was burning me, setting aflame evry inch of my being with the love that shone through them. I stepped closer, destroying the space left and clutched him tightly to me, burrying my face into his chest. I felt him wrap his arms tightly around me, smoothing out my hair and murmuring occasionally.

It seemed as if we had embraced for hours not minutes as someone tugged at Jasper's sleeve. I looked up and saw his mother give us a weak smile.

"Your train is going to be here in a minute, sweetheart." She said. The fears that I had managed to control a day before now let loose, bringing tears to my eyes now that the moment was finally here. Jasper did not relinquish his hold on me as I stared at him, knowing that my eyes would tell him of the hopelessness that was slowly killing me. With a sudden ferocity, he grabbed my face with both hands and made me look him straight in the eye.

"Listen to me Bella. I love you. Nothing will ever change that. I may be gone for months, but you can never doubt that I love you, no matter what." He said passionately. I managed to nod as heaving sobs coursed through me.

"When I come back, I'll marry you. I hope that you stay here long enough for that, and that I manage to return. I'll save up some money so that we can build a little home on the country, surrounded by nature and no one to bother us. We will live happily together, Bella. And even if I don't make it back, I'll always be there wil you. Always." He whispered as tears began to trickle out of the corner of his eyes.

My throat was too tightly closed up with tears as he gave me a last farewell kiss. It was so ful of feeling that it left me reeling from the intensity of it after we had seperated.

He stepped away and the knives thathad been stabbing my heart as he had said his goodbye plunged in deeper as he hugged his father and held his mother, who was crying and wailing made the pain only more accute.

I had not even noticed the other men that were saying similar goodbyes to their loved ones and the wails of thoe who were losing the man they loved. They shuffled into the train, which I had also not noted was there. The conducted blew the horn in warning for all the men to get in, and Jasper held my hand as he made his way in.

He let go and turned around as they were closing the doors. I stood, dumbstuck, as the train began to slowly pull away, my gaze fixated on Jasper the entire time. My heart felt like it was being ripped out of my body as the train inched farther away, gathering speed. Before I knew what I was doing, I ran after it, screaming his name is hopes he would come back, tell the conducter that he had to get off.

I knew deep down it was a useless thing to run after the locomotive, and slowed my steps as it got farther and farther away.

In mere minutes it was out of view.

This is a very sad chapter, but it had to be done. Don't worry, the hearbreak won't last long. They'll have their happy ending. And you'll be reading it sooner if you review!!