"Alice." Jasper said softly, drawing my attention away from my magazine. I glanced at him and smiled. "I want you to do me a favor, darling."
I raised an eyebrow seductively at him. "Whatever you need, Jasper." I purred.
He shook his head and knelt next to me on the couch. "Alice," He said seriously as he caressed my cheek. "If I ask you to do something, will you promise to do it?"
Panic rose up in me. What could this be about? Jasper was never this cryptic with me. What was wrong? What could he want me to promise? What if he wanted me to promise not to follow him? What if he was leaving? The last five years together had been bliss – for me at least. We never fought. Never argued. He put up with my eccentricities with an enduring smile. Or had he endured enough?
Reigning my startled thoughts, I chided myself. He hadn't said he was leaving. I'd simply jumped to that conclusion because it was my worst fear. Anything other than that, I would promise him. "So long as it's not to let you go."
"Never that." He said quickly and kissed my hand softly.
"Then yes."
A devious smiled crept upon his lips. "Then, Alice, today, I don't want you to look into your future. Or mine. No, I want you to focus very hard on . . ." He glanced down at my magazine. "his future." He finished, pointing to a pin up of Elvis.
I chuckled to hide my confusion. I had promised to do what he asked, so long as it wasn't to let him go. I glanced down at the picture with a frown. Elvis probably wasn't going to be very exciting. He wasn't my favorite, despite trying to take an interest in popular music.
"Okay." I agreed.
He kissed my hand again before standing up and walking straight out the door without so much as a look back. Right then, before he had crossed the threshold, I was already tempted to cheat. What if he was leaving? What if this was a clever diversion to keep me from pursuit until he could lose his trail in the ocean?
But I had promised.
A deep frown creased my features as I blinded myself from my future and Jasper's and looked down at the photo in front of me. Elvis. I focused on the man with all my ability and was rewarded with a running commentary of mundane human choices.
What would he eat for diner? What clothes should he wear the next day? Should he request some company for the night? Should he try to see how many girls would kiss him in the next twenty four hours? How many father's he could enrage? No, bad idea. Should he talk to his manager about his financial assets? Should he go the long way back to his house so he could drive past the bar he'd first played in?
It was so boring. I didn't even like Elvis. Sure, he had flare and a certain disregard for societal norms, but I couldn't listen to the scratchy gargling that came out of Edward's record player. Maybe if I witnessed him sing in person? I had tried on a number of occasions to come t terms with today's music. Edward had sat patiently and listened to my thoughts recoil as soon as the record player began the songs he wanted to show me. It reminded me far too much of all those diners I'd sat in.
Ah, Elvis had decided not to detour on his way home. How life altering!
It was just after dark when Jasper finally returned. I was still laying, sprawled across the sofa with the magazine, though I had taken to doodling on Elvis' picture. Ha. He now had a twisted mustache like an evil cartoon villain and a beard as thick as Santa Clause's. I tossed the magazine to the floor when he entered, relief flooding me. He hadn't left. He wasn't unhappy with us. In fact, he looked rather pleased.
"Will you come with me?" He asked gently as he offered his hand to me. "And keep thinking about whoever that was. No peeking." He chided.
"Elvis." I grumbled as I took his hand. "You would think that being a famous musician would make his life more interesting."
He smiled at me, his arm draping around my shoulders as he brushed a kiss against the crown of my head. I grinned. This was good. Ever since I'd finally convinced him to stay, since I'd let him play the gentleman, he'd shied away from signs of affection like this. He hadn't kissed more than my hand since that day and had kept an annoyingly large distance between us at all times.
At first, I had been worried he was using it as an excuse to not be with me. I was afraid that he didn't really care for me. But two years ago, Rosalie had confronted me, hoping to make me seduce him. Jasper had been unintentionally projecting lust and desire into her and Emmet's room. She'd given me an ultimatum. Either I went in there and relieved him, or she would.
I wanted to kill her then and even more so later when she realized I wasn't going to act. I was going to honor his wishes because it was the only thing he'd asked of me. I had been worried; Rosalie presented him a tempting offer. Physical release without emotional attachment. Emmet had agreed with Rose, he just wanted her to "end the poor guy's suffering".
My worries had been unfounded though. Jasper had been furious with Rosalie and had thrown her bodily from the room and had professed that gentlemen didn't condone those kinds of actions. They didn't speak to each other for almost a year after that.
It made me smile, and now my gentleman seemed to have finally broken through the first wall of his gentlemanly charade. I'd missed this comfortable closeness more than I could have imagined possible. It reminded me of our journey to find the Cullen's, when it was just Jasper and I alone together.
He led me at a gentle jog through the forest that surrounded the house. It was nice out, the summer breeze rustling through the trees. I heard birds and crickets going about their business in the woods around us pause when they sensed us pass, leaving a wake of silence behind us. The quiet forest was soothing; comforting.
It wasn't long before I realized where we were headed. He was taking us down the same path I had fervently chased him five years previous. Toward the clearing where I had been tortured by the guilt he'd made me feel. The same clearing where he'd begged me to let him be a gentleman.
He slowed before we broke into the clearing and took my hand gently in his. He gave me a sidelong glance and smiled at me, that same devious, mischievous smiled he'd used on me earlier. I liked it on him, it helped me convince myself he was happy here, with the life I'd chosen for us.
He took a deep, unneeded breath before pulling me into the clearing with him. My knees almost gave out when I saw what was in store for me. Of course, it shouldn't have surprised me this much. Jasper had taken me on romantic evenings before. We had gone dancing, to cinemas, on moonlit walks on the beach. But this.
I had seen it before.
The clearing was littered with hundreds of glowing candles, flickering their light across the evening grass. In the center of the clearing was a simple picnicking blanket spread across the ground. It was summer, there were wildflowers wafting their scent around. Next to the blanket was a small record playing emitting warbling trills of classical music. I recognized a piano through all the distortion and wondered if Edward had played any hand in this.
But that wasn't really important right now. What was important was what this meant.
"You peeked." He murmured with a discontented sigh.
I shook my head vigorously. "No. But I've seen this clearing like this before. Years ago. . . The first day I met you."
He cocked an eyebrow at me. "What else did you see?"
I grinned at him. "You love me." I said. It came out a little breathlessly.
"Is that all?" He asked as he tugged my hand and led me to the blanket. He sat me down on the blanket and knelt in front of me. "Yes, Alice, I love you."
In five years, he had never once said it to me. In five years he had never once said those three little words that could shake the very foundations of my world. We sat in silence for an entire second while my mind processed what he'd just said to me.
A giddy laugh erupted from my lips. "I love you, Jasper!" I cried.
He smiled contently and settled down beside me, one arm wrapped around my waist, he rested his cheek on the top of my head. I wrapped both my hands around his free hand and rubbed my thumb over the back of it.
We sat, utterly content with each other's company for hours as the sky continued to darken and the stars rose. Then he tilted my face towards his and spoke.
"Alice, when you found me that day, in that diner, I was more dead than alive. And I mean that in more than the obvious ways. I was lost. I was utterly discontent with life. I found myself picking fights simply hoping that I'd eventually find someone capable of ending my suffering. Thankfully, I never did find someone capable." He began, his voice hushed.
"When I saw you in that diner, you must have noticed that my first reactions were fight or flight." I nodded. "But when I felt you, when I felt the emotions you were experiencing, it was like you'd breathed new life into me. And you were feeling them because of me. I couldn't understand, I know my appearance is a bit . . . startling." He said with a bitter sneer.
"Mm, startlingly handsome." I said softly and kissed his cheek.
He chuckled. "Only you could look past everything I've been, past everything I've done, and see something worthy."
"Ah, Jasper, don't say things like that. You're a catch and you know it." I assured him.
He moved suddenly, one moment he was leaning against me, the next he was knelt in front of me on one knee. I stared at him, wide eyed. If my heart wasn't already dead in my chest it would have stopped.
"Mary Alice Brandon," He began.
I shook my head. "Alice Brandon-Cullen." I corrected.
He sent me a rueful smile. "Alice Brandon-Cullen," He began again and fished a small, velvet box from his jacket pocket. "You have become the very center of my existence. And I pledge that I will do anything in my power to ensure your safety and happiness for as many years as we both may live. Will you do me the very huge honor of becoming my wife? Will you marry me, Alice?"
I stared at him for a full second – two seconds – as I took in what he'd just said. Marry him? He scarcely needed to ask. He could have just slipped the ring onto my finger as we were sitting together. As if he needed my confirmation. He must have known what I would say. He had to have. That couldn't be real doubt and uncertainty beginning to creep it's way onto his face.
"Of course!" I all but shouted in my excitement. "Of course, I will, Jasper! I love you. I love you so much. Yes. Yes. Yes!" I cried.
A smile slowly settled on his lips as he took my left hand and slid the ring onto my finger. The ring was perfect, of course. Who would have thought that Jasper would have been attuned to me enough to know what kind of jewelry I liked. It was a simple ring, it kind of reminded me of him, a simple, delicate golden band. But faceted in the center was a large, flashy, diamond – a little bit of pizazz to represent me.
As soon as the jewel was in place, I tackled him. He let me overpower him, wrapping his arms around me as he tumbled backwards. Laying on his chest, I kissed him square on the lips before laying my head on his shoulder. He closed his eyes and sighed contentedly while a huge, goofy smile spread across my lips.
"Mrs. Alice Whitlock." I said quietly, relishing the way it sounded. I couldn't help the giddiness that rose up in me.
A fierce, possessive smile spread across Jasper's mouth. "Yes. My Mrs. Alice Whitlock. My beautiful, soon-to-be, wife."
If possible, my grin got wider. I was his. I liked the way it sounded. And I would be his for eternity, if we lasted that long, I thought happily. There could never be anyone for me but Jasper.
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A/N: And there it is, we've come to the end of my telling of Jasper and Alice's romance. I hope you all enjoyed it. Please review and let me know what you thought.
~Allora