MC: Evening everyone! *waves* Back for another dose of Alice-ness.

PT: I bet everyone's glad Alice and Jas finally met huh? We were, too *smirks*

MC: Yup, didn't you just love the last line?

PT: Anyway...onto this chapter *smiles*

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DISCLAIMER: We are still not Stephenie Meyer, therefore we do not own the Twilight Saga nor anything in it *grumbles* We just like playing with the characters!

I hadn't realised I'd fallen asleep until I was gently shook awake and blinked as my eyes adjusted to the morning light.

"Morning, sweetie." Rosalie smiled at me. "I didn't want you hurting your neck, being like that." She added as she motioned to how I was slumped on the side of Emmett's bed. I quickly looked up at him worriedly, thinking maybe there had been some change, but there he still lay in the same position not having moved at all.

"Why's he so still?" I asked Rosalie as I stretched all the kinks out of my body after my restless few hours of sleep.

"It's just the sedatives, they'll have an effect on him for roughly 12 hours, he should be coming around pretty soon." She said, glancing at the clock my eyes following hers as if looking at the clock would will time forward so Emmett would wake sooner.

"That clock's wonky, you know" I told her, she just looked at me oddly. "It's hung on an angle." I verified, she titled her head looking again.

"Huh, I guess it is."

"Sorry, you probably think I'm going crazy..."I mumbled.

"No, Alice, it's hard having someone you love so much here." She smiled and then left the room after checking over Em. I let my eyes wander back and forth between Emmett and the clock wishing something would happen to either of them.

That clock hanging above the door had been the only thing that gave me any idea of time. The seconds ticked on and turned into minutes, and as they ticked on they turned into hours. And despite the constant tick tick tick grating on my mind as the hands of the clock moved effortlessly around it's face, I still couldn't have told you how long I'd been sat here. I read and re-read Emmett's heart-wrenching letter until I could take no more, and my eyes finally seemed to run out of tears to cry, leaving them puffy and irritable. But something as little and as un-important as that didn't have more than a few seconds space in my over-run mind.

In the time I'd been there, I hadn't seen Emmett move once, which was a frightening thing for me to watch. Though, I was glad he was in a pain-free state it was still controlled and un-natural, especially for Emmett.

After so long of just sitting there waiting you would have thought I'd get bored, but my mind wouldn't possibly let that happen, instead at some point in the night I started to feel stupid. Stupid that I was an optimist, positive existentialism was a big part of who I was, but it was during times like these I wondered if I was just fooling myself. Say I was just getting my hopes up for no reason and I'd have them dashed, and I knew that would hurt even more. But then, I'd think about all the wonderful times Emmett and I had shared ad I'd look at his peaceful face, and I knew I would never give up on him, I never could. After all, if Emmett was gone, what else would I have to live for?

Without really thinking I began to say what was on my mind, whether it was to Emmett or for my own sake I didn't know, but as Emmett had needed his emotional out in his letter, I felt I needed mine now.

"I don't know what I'd do if I ever lost you, Em. It hurts too much just thinking about it." I sighed and felt the tears begin to wet my cheeks once again.

"You're the only person I've ever felt I could truly be myself with, and without you I wouldn't be who I am; I wouldn't be me. You're not quite you at the moment, and I feel lost. My heart aches to be back in that little world that you and I created. I so desperately want to be back in that little bubble of ours, feeling safe and secure and more content than words could tell. I want to back there with you, in all that was you and I. I want to feel like me again."

" It's like I've fallen down a big dark like the Alice in Alice Wonderland, except without you as my White Rabbit I'll never find my way. Or like I'm trapped in a dark tunnel, I know there should be a way out, but I need the light that is you to guide me, without you there's nothing but the darkness closing in on me. "

"I feel as if my own thoughts are even closing in on me, like claustrophobia in my own mind, as if my head is closing in on me, or at least tricking me into thinking that's what's happening and it's pushing me closer to paranoia that I'm still here, that I'm still real, and this isn't all my imagination playing a sick joke on me."

"I need you, Em, please don't leave me..."

"I promised you a long time ago I'd never leave, Ali, and I thought you'd know me well enough by now that I don't go back on my promises." My head flew up but nothing seemed to register as I stared at my brother.

Emmett was cricking his neck the same as he always did when he woke up, though this time I didn't flinch as usual. His eyes were still fluttering a little with tiredness, but it was at that moment that I knew I hadn't lost my Emmett; I could see the life in his eyes.

"Ali, breathe, don't want to have to admit you too, 'cause you stopped breathing on your own do we?" He chuckled.

"Em..." I breathed as I flung myself at him making him chuckle. "God, you...DARE do that to me again!" I warned as I took a step back just to look at him and beamed as I saw his bright eyes smile back at me.

Emmett and I spent some much needed time chatting like old times. I loved the fact that nothing would ever change between us; nothing could break our bond. We settled into a comfortable silence after a good while, having exhausted our voice-boxes. And, despite some frowns from two of the nurses, I stayed snuggled up next to him on the bed, holding onto him tightly the whole time, it was as though I felt like he would disappear at any moment, and I knew I wouldn't be able to handle that.

"Sooo, how about we talk about some stuff that never made it into the letters?" He suggested after a little while, though there was a little too much nonchalance in his voice, if you ask me.

"What did you have in mind?" I asked, raising my eyebrow at him, he smirked.

"Oh, I don't know, how about....your love life?"

"What about it?" I asked as I narrowed my eyes, foreseeing where this would be headed.

"I'm intrigued to know how many guys you pulled under your spell while I was away. I mean, surely if it was only one he'd have been mentioned at some point, and I am your brother after all." He shrugged.

"So, you think that gets you instant access all areas to my personal life, huh? "

"Pretty much. Anyway, it's not exactly personal if you go brining them home or spend hours talking to them running up our phone bill. He chuckled."

"Aw, come on I'm not that bad...Am I?"

"I'm gonna stay safe and say no comment to that one, sis"

"Cheek." I muttered as I slapped him on the arm. "Sorry!" I then said repentantly as I remembered why it was we were having this discussion on a hospital bed in a foreign country in the first place. He gave me an exasperated look for a moment and then ruffled my hair.

"You're okay, it's only the leg you need to be careful with."

"I'll remember that for the next time I need to give you a whack, brother."

"Is that a threat, sister?"

"It just might be. Anyway, no matter what you say, I am not that bad."

"Pfft"

"Oi!"

"Seriously, Ali, think about it. You're only 18 and in the past few years you've been with how many guys?"

"Em..."

"No, really. Lemme tell you. There was Mike..."

"Douche bag, idiot and desperate loser all in one."

"So, you called it off. There was Quil."

"Too clingy"

"So, you called it off. There was Embry; really nice guy, pity about that one..."

"He was crap in bed."

"Ali! TMI! Anyway, so, you called it off. Then there was Jared"

"He was a pansy"

"So, you called it off. There was Ben."

"Who wanted Angela over me the moment he met her."

"So, you called it off. Oh and then Sam came along....well that was something else, almost old enough to be your dad and married I might add!"

"Hey now, nothing ever happened there. It was just a bit of harmless flirting..."

"I've heard about your so called harmless flirting, believe me, it aint harmless Ali, when you can get every guy in the room's attention with a flutter of those eyelashes of yours."

"Shut up." I mumbled. "Anyway, I apologized as soon as he told me he was taken."

"There's another guy toy that didn't get hurt by you calling off the relationship, then."

"It wasn't a relationship!"

"If ya say so... I'm not completely blind, though you know, Alice or deaf for that matter. I see how guys look at you and talk about you, and I see how you react around them, too."

"Em, I'm 18, I'm allowed to live my life and have fun."

"I know, Ali, but you know you can have fun outside the bedroom." He mumbled. "Think about it from my point of view. I'm not completely blind, but I'm not happy thinking that you stated having sex more than a year ago, and that's a lot of guys in a year. So, tell me how many since I've been away."

"You really wanna know?" He nodded, with a smirk and I suspected he didn't believe one thing I was telling him. "Fine, well if I'm being completely honest, James was the last person I ad sex with, and we officially called it off less than a fortnight after you left. Firstly, because you were gone, he thought Id' want to spend all my free time with him, and I mean all, having sex I might add. And, secondly, apparently I'm no fun when I'm constantly mopey and cry all the time."

"And, then Jake and I got together, but that didn't last long at all; there was just no spark between us. We didn't even get to third base, and seen as you think of me as such a slut, that must come as surprising news to you.... No, Em , lemme finish" I said as he went to interrupt.

"And, that all happened before you'd been gone seven weeks. And, since then, nothing. No having sex, no making out, not even a single kiss. At first, guys tried but I just wasn't interested any more, I didn't really have a reason why at the time. And, then, I stopped noticing guys all together and so in time, I guess guys just stopped noticing me, too. To be fair, it's not as if I gave any guys much of a chance, or my self, nor myself for that matter. I went to school and practically ignored everyone, including Angela who I haven't properly talked to in around a month now. I went to work and stuck on a smile for the customers and Billy, but really, I was glad that I'd never see most f the customers again and that I didn't have to try o hard to show them I was okay, because they didn't know the usual me. They talked to me because it was my job to be polite, it wasn't because they felt sorry for the mess I was most if the time, they didn't know anything about the sad existence I was calling my life.

And then at some point in this miserable time, I started to realize why everything had turned out like this. It was because, no matter how alone I felt, I still didn't want anyone else, I didn't want anyone else in my life. There was only one thing I could have possibly wanted, and how ironic is it that was the exact thing I couldn't have. So, how about that for some information while you were away, huh? Happy now. Oh, and while we're on the subject, I may as well tell you why it what it was that was so bloody important that I put my whole life on hold for? Well, it was you, Em....It was you." The last part came out almost in a whisper, but by the single tear that left Emmett's eye, I knew he'd heard, and no matter how horrible I felt, a part of me still felt glad that he knew some of the suffering I'd endured.

"Ali..." He murmured.

"No, Em...Just, no." I said and then turned to leave, I always walked straight into Rosalie who was about to walk in the room the moment I flung the door open.

"Emmett McCarty, you aren't going anywhere..." I heard Rosalie say quite sternly as I walked away, glad she wouldn't let him hurt himself so I was free to go.

I didn't know where I was going, I just walked. I was stopped by one of Emmett's nurses who asked if I was okay, but I pulled away from her without answering and tried to get away again. I felt as though I was in the way as I dodged everyone walking down the crowded corridor and decided to slip into one of the rooms so I could both be alone and stay out of the way.

I ducked straight into the first room I came across that I thought was empty, and let myself slide down the back of the door, burying my head in my hands. It was just all too much for me to take in, my system had exhausted itself with the emotions in the past months, and this new onslaught had me working over-time.

When I lifted my head not needing any more of my clothes stained with my tears I gasped and leapt to my feet, only to put my hand on my heart, that I hadn't in fact made a fool of myself by having a breakdown in front of someone. Mind, whoever was in the bed behind the drawn curtain probably would have heard me anyhow, especially now.

I don't know where my courage came from, as I usually would have just bolted in the hope not to chance making a spectacle of myself in this state. Step by step I got closer to the curtain and then took a quick peak.

My heartbeat instantly started to accelerate and my breath whooshed from me as I looked at who was lying on the hospital bed. He was by far the most gorgeous person I'd ever laid eyes on. And, though, I knew I'd never seen him before in my life, because believe me I would not have let him go, he still seemed familiar. It was and odd sensation that had little butterflies fluttering around in my stomach. I felt like I was drawn to him, and not only in the sense that my feet were carrying me to his bed. I let myself fall into the chair beside the bed and let my eyes roam over his wonderful face.

Gorgeous was the only word that would come to mind trying to describe his beauty. I felt myself wanting to run my fingers through his short yet tantalizing golden locks, and though they were closed right now, I could only imagine that his eyes would be striking and could easily hold my own gaze and would light up when he laughed. This thought had my eyes wandering to his lips and I tried to imagine how he'd sound and how they'd mould around his words as he spoke.

Even though I thought I probably shouldn't be in here, or maybe I was going to get caught by someone, my eyes stayed on him, and I found myself glued in the chair by his side.

I didn't want to leave.

It felt right being with him.

I walked back into Emmett's room to see he was fast asleep, however it wasn't bothering me, now he wasn't perfectly still and silent as had scared me when I'd first got here. He was snoring gently, and though it wasn't his usual rumble, I was sure it was something. I sat down in the chair in the corner of the room and picked up one of the magazines I'd got earlier.

"Still asleep, then?" Rosalie said as she walked into the room. I gave her a smile and a nod, I don't know why as one look at Emmett was enough to confirm that, mind, I'd never truly seen the point of rhetorical questions, though I seemed to be well acquainted with them lately. She checked on Emmett's drip and took his blood pressure though he didn't even stir which almost made me laugh, I wanted him up and being his usual chatty self yet I was glad he was getting some rest, seen as I knew he needed right now.

"Don't you ever get lonely? Surrounded by people who don't converse back? Or are asleep half the day and awake half the night, like Em?" I asked absentmindedly and then looked up wondering if maybe I'd offended her with her lack of instant response. However, she didn't look taken aback just thoughtful.

"No." She answered. "Actually, I really don't. That's one of the things I like about my job, there's always someone willing to talk whether it be a patient, staff or a family member, this place is never empty. But then, sometimes I guess it is nice to be able to have a bit of calm after some of the hectic times, the crazy patients and hysterical families. It's a good balance, and I honestly can't think of anything else I'd want to be doing." She said pensively.

"See, when I was nine my mom died, and it was then that I decided to be a doctor, I thought that by becoming one, I could do some good by helping to save lives and also to save children from having t go through what I'd had to. Because her illness was cancer, she was ill for a long time, and so was in and out of hospital for a good few years as the cancer wouldn't leave, and so I spent a lot of time at the hospital too."

"I came to notice that we saw a lot less of the doctors than we did of the nurses. Like mum to the hospital, there was always a nurse in and out. We got to know a few of them really well, and I liked the relationship they had with the patients; it was a lot more personal. At the time I didn't really have much respect for the doctors themselves, they only ever seemed to come every now and again, checked mum and then seemed too busy to stay and chat like the nurses did or explain all the medical terms and what not. Of course I've gained a hell of a lot of respect for them now, but Is still thin it's us nurses that keep the place going, without the nurses, all the doctors would be stressed and grumpy instead of just a few of them.

When my mom actually died, it was the nurses I felt I wanted to thank, they'd been the ones I'd been relying on, the ones who I thought would have saved mom if they could have."

I felt like getting up and giving her a hug but it seems Emmett beat me to the comforting as Rose jumped when he took her hand and lightly kissed it.

"Must have been awful watching her die." Emmett sighed. "I'm sorry you had to go through that."

"Thank you." She said sincerely. "Yes it was awful, but I've had a lot of time since then, and it's got a lot easier to deal with it, especially now I know I'm helping prevent the same thing happening to others."

"Yeah, I know, my mom died of cancer, too." He admitted and Rose seemed to look a little confused.

"I thought your parents died in a car crash? Gosh, I think I'm loosing my mind." She muttered. Em and I both let out a laugh and I made my way to sit on the other side of Emmett.

"My parents did die in a car crash, and Emmett's mom died of cancer." I told her.

"So you're not...?"

"Brother and sister?" She nodded. "In every way except blood." He smiled as his arms encircled me and I nuzzled into his side. Emmet held his other arm open and raised his eyebrow at Rose. She smirked but shook her head.

"I actually do have work to be doing. I shouldn't really be telling my patient and his sister my life story while I'm on duty." She said, looking a little embarrassed as she stood up.

"Well how about you come back when your shift ends and we can continue the conversation?" He suggested. "I mean, it's not as if I'm going anywhere." He added under his breath. Rose raised her eyebrow obviously having heard.

"Who's the patient and who is the person medically trained to know what's best for said patient Mr. McCarty?" She asked, hands on hip and an expectant expression on her face.

"Believe me, Rose, you make a far sexier nurse than me any time." He said with a wink. She playfully shook her head and then left with a little wave.

"You do know you're in hospital and not on a date, right?" I joked.

"What? She's hot." He admitted unashamedly with a shrug, causing me to shake my head at him, too.

"You'll never change, will you?"

"That a bad thing?"

"Course not, you wouldn't be the Emmett I love if you changed."

"Love you, too, lil sis." He smiled and placed a kiss in my hair. "You know, I'm sorry for earlier. I honestly don't think of you as a slut, Ali, I just haven't been doing as much joking lately, you know, it just felt nice being with you, it was only meant as a joke, I didn't mean to hurt you."

"I know, Emmett, I understand. I know you've had to endure hell, and nothing I've e had to go through compares, but it still hasn't been easy."

"And I understand that, Alice. I've hated every moment away from you, it's like I can't completely explain my reasons, but I felt as if I needed to do it, to join the army I mean...It was like I was drawn to doing it..."

"Well what about what happened? I mean why you're here?" I asked hesitantly, I could tell I was treading on egg-shells by just bringing the subject up. Em was a proud person and if he had something he wanted to share, everyone knew about it; like joining the army for example. Of course, he told me first, but within a matter of days everyone was congratulating him, and boy was he loving it. But, he hadn't once brought this up, even when one of the nurses had told him he should be proud of his battle scar for the good he'd done getting it. But, I could tell by the look on his face that he thought differently, and so I'd kept quiet.

"It's okay, Em, we don't have to talk about it" I said as he froze up when I asked.

"But, that's just it, Ali, I want to be able to, I just...can't." He murmured, looking away in shame. I tilted his head back towards me and cuddled into him.

"Em, shhh, it's fine, you know you don't have to explain yourself to me."

"Thank you, Ali, and I know we've never had secrets, and I don't wanna change that, I'll tell you just give me time, okay?" I nodded.

"Take all the time you need. I'm not going anywhere." He sighed happily and settled his head on top of mine.

As Emmett's breathing started to even out I couldn't help my mind wandering back to that gorgeous man. It was as if he was consuming a big part of my mind and it was confusing me. Yet, right now, while I was sat here with Emmett next to me, knowing he was totally fine and himself, I couldn't truly be all that worried about him. Instead I found I was worrying about that man.

I hadn't really thought about why he was at the hospital while I was in his room, I'd been too mesmerized by his beauty and any other thoughts seemed to be irrelevant. But, now that I felt more coherent, I was starting to wonder why he was here. Before, I realized what I was thinking, I'd already carefully moved away from Emmett and gently closed his door behind me.

I was just as curious as I was worried.

I walked into his room with a slight smile as I once again saw him. He was exactly as I'd left him earlier, I only hoped his injuries weren't too bad, and that he'd wake up soon, or more so that he would wake up soon and would be joking within a few hours with someone who loved him.

I checked no-one was coming and flipped his chart open. Though I was far from being any sort of medical person, I'd seen enough medical programmes and was intelligent enough, that my heart sank as I read over the chart, and my breath got stuck in my throat I read the word coma. I gulped and looked up at him, as if willing for him to suddenly wake up in a moment of wonderful madness. Yet, I sighed as I set his chart back and went to sit next to his bed.

Jasper. His name was Jasper. A bit old fashioned, but it seemed to suit him. Jasper Whitlock. Again, that name seemed to set off a bell in my mind, but I couldn't put two and two together and come up with an answer, let alone come up with four. I felt sorry for him and felt sad that he was alone, though, I guess he could have dozens of friends and family here, maybe they were all just...getting coffee? I sighed again at the thought that maybe he felt alone too, who knows what was going through his mind in this state.

I jumped right out of the chair as the door swung open.

"Sorry, dear, didn't mean to startle you." A Hispanic nurse smiled as she came in and checked over Jasper's chart.

"I'm sorry..." I stammered out, "I shouldn't... I mean...I'll...go..."

"Oh, no dear, don't be silly. It's nice for him to have someone else here who's looking out for him. You sit your pretty self back down and see if you can get him to open those eyes of his, just talk to him like he's awake, it'll help." With that she left as quickly as she'd come, but, still I watched the door for a few moments before sitting back down.

See if I can get him to open his eyes....talk to him. I did want him to open his eyes, and I did want him to wake up but as I opened my mouth I felt silly and nothing came out. I know I'd done this with Em; talked to him while he wasn't awake. But that felt different. He was my brother, I'd known him forever and I could never feel uncomfortable with him, beside I'd had many conversations with his while he was asleep, albeit that it was a one-sided conversation, but Emmett sometime needed some stern words, even if I only said them to him when I knew he was sleeping too heavily to even notice I was in the room.

I reached up and gently set my hand next to his bandaged one. Then slowly inched my fingers towards him, as if I was afraid his eyes would suddenly flash open and he'd yank his hand away. However, even when I ended up with my hand laid on top of his, he didn't even flinch. I took a deep breath.

"Erm...hello Jasper...I'm Alice..."

MC: *jumping up and down* So what'd ya think? What ya think?

PT: Give them a chance *giggles*

MC: Fine...Reviews are better than being Emmett's sexy nurse...maybe...

PT: *laughs* Anyway, see you next time. *waves*

MC + PT: *Walking away daydreaming*