A/N: I think this might be my favorite chapter yet… Please don't be spoiled by my quick updates…I won't always post three chapters in one day!

Disclaimer: My brilliant (if I do say so myself) plot, but they are SM's brilliant characters.

(APOV)

I spent the rest of lunch hour chattering away, desperately trying to get some show of emotion from Jasper beyond the occasional frown. This is ridiculous! The more I talked, the more upset I got. Why wouldn't he just say something?! I was ready to give up when the bell rang. I definitely don't like this guy. I don't care how ridiculously good-looking he is, or that his voice feels like velvet on my skin. If he never talks, that doesn't do me any good anyway. I shot out of my seat and headed to my next class. "It was nice to meet you," I threw over my shoulder as I walked away. Go take a long walk off a short plank, I added in my head. At least if Carlisle grills me, I won't be lying when I say I made an effort.

I have no idea what happened in my afternoon classes, I was too busy fuming about Jasper. I mean, really?! Would it have killed him to pretend to be interested? Seeing as how Carlisle and Peter are already BFF, we'll probably have to spend some time together. I growled low in my throat. The more people I have to fool, the harder it becomes. Not to mention I just wasted almost three hours stressing about why exactly he doesn't like me. I feel like one of these hormonal teenagers that surround me in school every day.

When the final bell rang I kept my head down and walked to my car as quickly as possible without using vampire speed. I definitely did not want to run into Jasper, or have to talk to anyone, for that matter.

I jumped into my car and spun out of the parking lot. I took full advantage of the fact that Charlie would never write me a speeding ticket and raced home, unconcerned with speed limits.

I pulled into our driveway and barely had the car in park and turned off before I leapt out and started running. I ran for hours, until I knew I was miles away from civilization.
I slammed my fist into a nearby tree and it buckled under the force. I threw my head back and screamed my rage into the dying daylight. Why did he have to be so beautiful? Why did he immediately dislike me? Why did I care? I stood there, chest heaving, breathing in gigantic gulps of unnecessary air. I wanted to cry. I wanted to punch his perfect face. I wanted to run away and never look back.

Who cares what he looks like, Alice, he's an additional complication you don't need! I scolded myself internally. I haven't displayed my emotion so openly in years, and I don't like it. I sat down, determined to regain my composure. I don't know how long I sat, but it was fully dark when the vision hit me. Carlisle and Esme were following my trail, and they were concerned. Shit! The last thing I wanted to do was raise their suspicions. Now that I'm the only one in the house with them, they pay a lot more attention to me. I'm living in a house of cards and all it would take is the slightest bump to make it all topple down.
I shot up and took off running in the direction of home. A lone mountain lion made the mistake of crossing my path and I took a moment to pounce on it and drink my fill. Perfect, now I had an excuse for Carlisle. I met up with him and Esme about an hour from the house.

"Alice, where have you been, I was worried!?" Esme demanded.

"I went hunting and lost track of time," I answered her, smiling sweetly.

Carlisle eyed me, disbelieving, but let it go.

"We met Jasper, he told us you two met at school today," Carlisle stated as we headed towards home.

"Ummm, yes," I stated slowly.

"He's such a gentleman," Esme sighed, "It's a shame about his face, he'd be so handsome."

"What about it?" I asked her, confused. I thought back to when I met him today, trying to remember any glaring deficiencies.

"Are you sure you met him? There were scars all over his face," Carlisle frowned at me.

"I guess I just didn't notice," I shrugged. Carlisle and Esme shared a look so quickly I never would have noticed it if I wasn't also a vampire. I could already sense the matchmaking in the air. I've been a part of it enough times to recognize the signs. Fantastic.

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(JPOV)

Alice kept up a steady stream of cheerful conversation while her mood got blacker and blacker. I'm sure part of the reason was my total lack of response, but I couldn't help it. One, I was afraid if I opened my mouth to speak, I would say something incredibly stupid, like: "Hey, why are you pretending to be happy when you really feel like shit?" Not the best conversation starter. Two, in my defense, the girl never even took a breath; I'm not sure when I was supposed to talk anyway. And three, it was taking every ounce of will power I possess to stay this physically close to her. It was painful. The bell rang and relief washed over me, both mine and hers. She popped up and headed away to her next class. She threw an "It was nice meeting you," over her shoulder, followed by contempt. So, I guess I did not start out on her good side. Crap. Maybe it's for the best, her emotional turmoil would make a friendship difficult, to say the least.

I spent the rest of the school day fluctuating between deciding I would avoid her whenever possible (which would interfere with my plan to figure out her secrets) and daydreaming about being the reason she actually feels happy (which, I reasoned, would not interfere). Ugh, I'm such a dweeb. I used to be cooler than this, I promise.

When I got home after school I could hear voices in the living room and knew we must have company. Probably Carlisle and his wife. I was planning on sneaking into my room and avoiding the inevitable awkwardness when Carlisle asked me if I met Alice, but I was foiled.
"Jasper, please join us," I heard Peter say, just loud enough for me to hear him. I steeled myself and entered the living room, leaving my school bag on the stairs.

"Jasper, this is Carlisle and Esme," Peter introduced the two people sitting on the couch, "Carlisle, Esme, this is Jasper."

"It's a pleasure to meet you," Carlisle stood and grasped my hand firmly. I decided instantly that I liked him. There was no artifice, he felt exactly like he acted. Happy, slightly curious, and totally in love with Esme.

"Same here," I replied. When he released my hand, I quickly grasped Esme's, raising it to my lips. "A delight," I added, kissing the back of her hand. She giggled and had she been human, I'm sure she would have blushed. She was as genuine as Carlisle. I wondered yet again how Alice's family, who seemed like such lovely people, could stand by and let her feel the way she does. Don't they realize? My question was quickly answered.

"Did you get to meet our Alice?" Esme asked me, her voice soft and loving, "She's the bright light in our family. The rest of us can be moody, but she is always so happy."

"Mmm, yes, I did meet her," was all I said, trying to be non-committal. Obviously Alice has them fooled about how she really feels. Peter looked at me sharply, but didn't question me out loud. "She is…" I trailed off, unsure about what to say.

"Don't worry, most people don't know what to say about her," Carlisle chuckled. After that the conversation turned to Peter's progress setting up his law practice in nearby Port Angeles. I excused myself and headed upstairs. I let Peter and Charlotte have the downstairs, but I had turned the upper floor into my own private domain. I had a study, a living area, and bedroom and a completely un-necessary bathroom.

I went into my study and closed the door behind me, not bothering with the light. I don't need it anyway. I sat in an armchair by the window and closed my eyes. I tuned out all the emotions I could feel throughout the neighborhood, surrounding myself with emptiness. This is the closest I get to sleep and I need to rest after today. I vaguely recall hearing Esme and Carlisle leave, but Peter and Charlotte stayed downstairs and didn't bother me. When I finally surfaced from my internal well of white noise the room was pitch black. I sensed Peter and Char's overwhelming curiosity coming from the living room downstairs. I hesitate to tell them what I learned of Alice. I have never kept my ability a secret and I've never not told Peter how someone is feeling, but for some reason I feel like that would be a betrayal. I don't even know her! Why am I worried about this? I sighed and made my way downstairs to join them, still unsure of how I would answer their inevitable questions.

"I know we don't need to ask…" Peter started immediately.

"I didn't lie, I did meet Alice," I interrupted, "But I'm having a hard time understanding her." Okay, so I'm not exactly lying. It is true that I don't understand her, it's just that it's because I can read her emotions and not because I can't.

"It's been a long time since you had trouble reading someone," Charlotte mused.

"I know, but I'm sure it was just a product of all the emotion I was feeling, first day and all…" I reassured them. Okay, so now I am lying. But I really just feel like I need to understand what's going on before I try and explain it to someone else.

"So tell us what she looks like," Charlotte asked me excitedly, "All Esme said was that she looked like a pixie."

Hmm, I hadn't made that connection. She looked more like a fallen angel to me, dangerously pretty and full of dark emotion.
"A pixie? I guess," was all I said out loud.

I could feel the two of them, hopeful, and excited, and still curious. They're probably already planning our wedding. I shot them an exasperated look and made sure they felt it too.

"So, did you ask Carlisle how he feels about football?" I said, changing the subject.
Peter let it go and launched into a detailed explanation of everything he and Carlisle had discussed. I focused on the conversation and put thoughts of Alice out of my head. Alright, lying again…but I did push them to the back of my mind, to ponder at another time.