I Don't Bite, I Swear by .o.O.o.Emmett.Is.Mine.o.O.o.
Chapter Seventeen… Strip
"Oh, oh, oh!" Alice squealed. "I'll go first, I'll go!" She began bouncing again, more excited than earlier.
"Alright…" Kristina mumbled, tapping her chin and trying to think of something she wanted to know about Alice. "How long ago were you changed?" she finally asked, deciding to start out easy.
The pixie rolled her eyes. "1920," she stated simply. There was a strange look in her eyes. It disappeared as fast as Kristina had noticed it, however, and she asked her question. "Kristina, is Emmett your first boyfriend?"
The human blushed a bit. "No," Kristina answered, keeping it as short as she could. She really didn't want to think about that kind of crap. It was bad enough just staying in her memories, she wouldn't bring it to the surface as well. "So," she began, facing Jasper. "How did you meet our little Alice here?" she asked, grinning.
Both of their faces lit up, obviously signaling a great story. "We met in a diner in Philadelphia. I had been running away from people who only wanted control. I walked into the diner to shelter from the rain and immediately saw this beauty sitting there. I walked over, and she told me she had been waiting for me. I bowed and apologized for the wait, and we've been together ever since." He put his arm around the pixie-girl, as he finished, and she nestled into his side.
Not fair... Kristina found herself thinking. Right after the thought passed through her mind, however, she nearly slapped herself. It wasn't like her to be jealous of people like that. But she couldn't help thinking how much more romantic their meeting had been than hers and Emmett's. She had only dreamed of something like what had happened to them in that diner.
"Kristina?" Alice asked, looking at the girl, worry furrowing her brow. She had been told to keep her happy and fed, and so far she wasn't doing too great on one.
Kristina looked up at her and smiled a fake smile. "So, Jasper, what do you wanna know?" she asked in a cheery voice, ignoring Alice.
"Hmmm," he thought aloud. "Why did you start dating Emmett?" he asked plainly to hide his interest.
Kristina sat in silence, thinking and thinking. Why had she started—"Wait! We're not dating!" she yelled, startling herself.
The two vampires grinned at her. "That's what you think," they said in unison, making her give them strange and confused looks. What the hell were they talking about? Jasper pretended to clear his throat, interrupting her thoughts. "You haven't answered the question yet, Kris."
She stiffened at the sound of her nickname. There were very few people that she allowed to call her by 'Kris.' Jasper was not yet among them. Though she wasn't worried. Surely Jasper could feel that, right? He could feel that she was uncomfortable with the name, that she didn't like it. Hopefully.
"Oh, y-yeah," she stuttered, getting back to the boy's original question. "Well, I—" she stopped and thought harder for a moment. "Wait, I can't answer that. I told you before: we're not dating." The boy opened his mouth to protest. "My turn, you got your answer." She turned to Alice. "Who turned you?"
The smaller girl's eyes took on a strange look. "Oh," she mumbled quietly. "A man named Will changed me." (A/N: I don't know the real man's name, I just know she was changed by a man she met when she was in the asylum.)
Kristina had the feeling she had asked something that should have stayed quiet. Damn. Alice looked up at the other girl. "Yay! My turn!" She thought for a moment, a blank look coming to her face, mostly her eyes. She shook herself out of it and smiled widely. "Kristina, would you ever ask Emmett out, and if so why haven't you?"
"Hey! Not fair! That's two questions!" Kristina cried indignantly.
"But she worded them as one," Jasper pointed out, smiling.
"You could do that with any questions!" the girl pointed out. "And not only that, but you could ask any number of questions! Totally unfair!"
Jasper opened his mouth to protest in defense of his wife, but Alice gently placed a hand on his arm. "It's ok," she told him, then turning to Kristina again. "Would you ever ask Emmett out?"
That, Kristina was not willing to answer. Knowing what they would say when she refused, she reached down, untied her shoe, and took it off.
Alice stared at her, mouth hanging open. She hadn't predicted that Kristina wouldn't answer any of the questions her and Jasper would ask. She was slightly confused now. Why wouldn't the girl answer? Was she afraid of making Emmett's family mad, or something? The pixie-like girl couldn't think of an answer, nor could she see one. Her brows furrowed.
Kristina pretended to brighten up. "Alright, my turn!" She paused in thought, looking back and forth between the two vampires while trying to decide who to ask. Finally, she decided on Jasper again. "Jasper… Emmett once told me you were obsessed with the Civil War. Why?"
Jasper grinned brightly. "I used to actually be a Major in the Confederate Army. The youngest Major, to be exact. Ever since then, it has just meant a lot to me."
Kristina was momentarily taken aback, but this disappeared as she realized she was merely fooled by his young appearance. All things considered, anybody in the house could be any age, and she wouldn't be able to tell until she asked. For all she could see, Carlisle could be the youngest one here, though she had been told differently. The whole 'vampire' deal was going to take a bit to get completely used to.
Jasper ran a hand through his hair quickly. "Kristina… why didn't you answer Alice's question?" Immediately after asking the question, he probed her feelings, judging her reaction. He felt an immediate swirl of emotion and set to trying to decipher and untangle them. There was definitely a lot of embarrassment, and confusion, and there was also quite a bit of hesitation.
She was blushing quite profusely as she untied and took off the other shoe, but she pasted on a 'happy' smile afterward, and went on questioning the two. In the next half hour, she figured out much about Alice and her husband. She figured out more about Jasper's power and past, along with Alice's past and a couple things she had seen in the future. All the while, they asked the same exact questions, trying to figure out why Kristina hadn't asked Emmett out, what she wanted from him, why she was with him. Why the hell she wouldn't answer the freaking questions!
Still adamant about not answering, Kristina was forced to keep taking off layers. She took off her other shoe first, then her socks, and last, her jacket. She was extremely nervous now. There was no more procrastinating now; if they asked her another question like the others one more time, she would end up thoroughly embarrassed, no matter if she answered or not. Nervously, she wrung her hands as Jasper stared at her.
Just as he opened his mouth to ask her the dreaded question, he and Alice froze at the same time. They tried to hide it, though, but Kristina noticed the small smirk on their faces. Something was up.
"So," the boy began, "why do you like Emmet?"
Kristina turned red again, but decided it was semi-safe to answer this question. "Well…" she began. "He's sweet, and thoughtful. He's obviously been hurt in the past, so I feel a bit sorry for him, and kind of want the chance to fix it. He's like a giant teddy bear. And… I kind of… I don't know." She paused and took a long, deep breath. "I'm not sure how to explain it."
Alice was staring at her, but finally she broke the silence and spoke. "I don't really know if that was a good enough answer…" she trailed off, looking to her husband. He shook his head at Kristina, indicating he agreed with Alice and was leaving Kristina to fend for herself.
The human girl's eyes grew wide. "I answered it just fine! That's not fair! I did just what you asked, so there's nothing wrong with my answer!"
"I don't know," Alice began slowly. "I think you left something to be desired." She paused dramatically. So… your choice. Looks like it's either your pants… or your shirt."
She began laughing quietly, though slightly hysterical. "No. That's not fair. Nice try." She backed up a bit, like she thought that would help her. It wouldn't; there was nowhere to go. They kept staring at her, Alice with a smirk playing along her lips. She shook her head again.
"You know," Jasper said, looking over at his wife, "I'm not quite sure who to side with right now."
Alice rolled her eyes at him, almost making the decision for him who to choose. "Fine," he collapsed. "Either your shirt or your pants."
Kristina glared at him, and Alice smacked him upside the head, glaring at him. "What?" he asked. She tilted her head, still giving him a sharp look. "Oh, come on! It's not as thought I actually want to see my brother's almost-girlfriend half-naked!" Alice rolled her eyes, shaking her head some more. "Sure," the boy mumbled. "First you want me to agree with you, then I get smacked for it…"
The two girls giggled. Then, Alice got all serious again. "Your choice, Kristina."
"Ugh…" she grumbled. "Fine." She sat up straight and, still blushing brightly, she peeled off her shirt and tossed it beside her into the pile of her shoes, socks and jacket. Now, she sat there, in front of Alice and Jasper, in her bra and pants. She felt… exposed. And a bit chilly.
Then she heard a slightly growling chuckle from behind her.
She spun around in utter shock, not believing what her instincts told her. They told her Emmett was standing just behind her, laughing at her and trying unsuccessfully to hide it. They told her she would be better off right now if she just crawled under a rock and hid for the rest of her life. They told her to be mortified.