Jasper's POV
I pulled into the driveway at Bella and Charlie's and parked the car. I was there for dinner with her and Charlie. Alice was supposed to join us, but backed out at the last minute. She'd told me that our futures would disappear, which only seemed to happen when one of the Pack from La Push showed up. So it stood to reason that one of them, probably Jacob Black, would be making an appearance at Charlie's.
Alice had advised me to cancel the dinner entirely, but I refused. I didn't cancel any plans last minute unless it was an emergency, let alone a family dinner, and certainly not for someone as insignificant as Jacob Black. I didn't blame Alice for canceling though. Her presence might very well make things worse. The dogs didn't like us. They tended to to be disrespectful at the least. If it was just me, I wouldn't care. I'd said similar things about them. But no would speak badly about Alice. I would not tolerate it. So, yes, it might be good for her to stay home.
I got out of the car and headed for the door. I heard Edward's voice as soon as I hit the porch.
"Jasper's here."
"Great, let's get this catastrophe over with," Bella said before hoping the door before I could knock.
"Hello, Bella. I see you are looking forward to dinner," I said with a smirk.
She didn't appear amused. "Shut up, Jasper. This is partially your fault! I know Alice let you know that her visions of us disappeared, and that that means one of the pack will be here! Why didn't you just cancel?"
"I don't cancel plans with family for anything less than dire reasons. The Pack far from qualifies," I said before stepping inside.
"Hey, Jasper," Edward greeted.
"Are you joining us, Edward?" I asked. I wouldn't have thought Edward would be invited because Charlie was not fond of him, but I couldn't think of another reason for him to be here at the moment.
"Charlie invited me and I accepted," Edward said.
I caught the glare Bella sent to Edward, as well as her annoyance at him and his excitement. It had me a bit perplexed. "What's going on?"
"What's going on is that this is going to be utterly terrible! Charlie invited the Blacks to dinner!" Bella said loudly and with doom in her voice.
I was mildly surprised to hear that. I assumed it would be as simply as the Black kid stopping by for a few moments. This would be a bit more complicated, and definitely more uncomfortable, but it was still manageable. "I can see why you're a bit anxious, Bella, but it will be alright. Where is Charlie anyway."
"Right here. Hey, Jasper," Charlie said as he entered the room.
"Hello, Charlie. I hear it won't just be us for dinner," I said.
"Yeah. Listen, I know you guys don't get along well with the Blacks, but I hope you will be civil tonight," Charlie said in a tone that made it clear he wasn't making a request.
"You have my word that there will be no trouble from Edward or myself," I promised.
"Great," Charlie said. "I ordered Chinese for dinner. It should be here soon. I hope that's okay with everyone."
I nodded that it was fine. I soon caught another wave of excitement and a bit of smugness from Edward. I immediately narrowed my eyes at him. 'I don't know what you're planning, Edward, but I suggest abandoning those plans. You will not make this night worse just so you can one up Jacob Black.'
Edward looked at me innocently and spoke at a quiet tone that the others wouldn't be able to here. "I will be on my best behavior, Jasper. But I guarantee that he won't"
Ah, so that was it. Edward wasn't looking for a chance to fight with Jacob Black. He wanted to see the kid put in his place. A part of me couldn't blame him. From what I'd heard, Jacob was going out of his way to try to undermine Edward and Bella's relationship. This was his chance for a little payback. Of course, I was also annoyed that he was so happy about this when Bella's stress was evident. 'You may want to remember that Jacob Black is your girlfriend's friend. This situation has her stressed.'
My words were rewarded with a bit of guilt from my brother.
Just then, I heard the Blacks pull up and get out of the car. Jacob Black's angry voice came.
"The leech is here, and he's not the only one!" he snarled.
"Jacob relax. I'm sure they're just dropping Bella off," Billy Black assured his son.
"They shouldn't be near her at all," Jacob said.
"No, but now is not the time to get into that. Just let them leave peacefully. Don't make a scene in front of Charlie," Billy said.
It was only a few minutes before there was a knock at the door. Charlie immediately went and opened the door to let them in. "Hey, guys, come on in."
"Thanks for having us, Charlie," Billy said as he wheeled his chair in.
Jacob came in next and started glaring at Edward.
"You both know Edward and Jasper, right?" Charlie asked.
"Right," Billy said tightly, but civilly. "Don't let us keep you, gentlemen. I'm sure you have places to be."
"Oh, no. We were invited to dinner," Edward said with a smile before putting an arm around Bella's shoulders.
"What?" Jacob asked angrily.
"Listen, guys, I know there is some animosity between your two families, but maybe it's time to let that go, especially considering your all friends to my family," Charlie said.
"Charlie, I really don't think this is a good idea. Maybe we should go and come back another night," Billy said.
"No, why should we be the ones to go? They're the ones that don't belong," Jacob said while glaring between me and Edward.
"I believe that's Charlie's decision, isn't it?" I asked. I was polite, but I wouldn't let this boy's disrespect fly. He had no business deciding who did and didn't belong in someone else's home.
"That's right, it is?" Charlie said before stepping right in front of Jacob. "Listen, kid, I know you guys have some issues, especially you and Edward, and I even understand some of them, but you don't get a say in who I invite into my house.
"Charlie, they're not good people. They shouldn't be around Bella," Jacob argued.
"That's not your call, Jake," Bella spoke.
"Alright, everyone needs to calm down. Jake, I get that you don't like them, but they are guests in my house, so are you, and I would like you all to get along while you are here," Charlie said.
"Charlie, you're asking a lot. You don't know everything," Billy said.
"You're right, I don't," Charlie said as he gave his friend his attention. "I don't know what this insane grudge you have against the Cullen family is really about. You don't seem to want to share that information. That's fine, unless you bring it into my house. Now, I would like us to all sit down and have a nice dinner, but you can leave if that's what you want. I'll tell you know though, I'll lose a bit of respect for you. Are you honestly going to tell me you can't sit around the table and be civil for one meal?
I was impressed with Charlie. He was really good at emotional manipulation. For some reason, he wanted us to sit down together. I had to admit that it intrigued me. 'Edward, why does Charlie want this so much?'
"He didn't at first. When he asked them to come, it was innocent. When Bella was so troubled by it though, it troubled him. He's determined to see how deep the grudge goes and maybe try to put an end to it. He doesn't want to see Bella have to choose between her friends," Edward said at vampire speed and volume.
I almost snorted. It was a nice thought, and I sort of agreed with Charlie. I didn't want to see Bella have to choose either. Unfortunately, there was nothing that could end this feud.
"Uh, I don't see why we can't all sit down for one meal together," Billy said grudgingly.
"Dad!" Jacob exclaimed appalled.
"We're staying, Jacob, and you'll behave yourself," Billy said. It was obvious that he didn't like it either, but apparently he'd do it for Charlie.
"Great. The food should be here soon. Let's sit down," Charlie suggested.
We all went over and took a seat at the table. Billy and Charlie sat at the two ends, Bella sat next to Edward, and Jacob and I sat on the other side. Things were quiet for a few minutes, no one wanting to say anything to make the tension in the room even worse.
"How are your folks doing, Jasper?" Charlie asked, finally breaking the silence.
"They're well. They're actually away this weekend. They decided they needed a few days to themselves," I said. It was true. Carl isle and Esme had gone hunting for the weekend.
Charlie chuckled. "With five teenagers, I can see why they'd need a weekend to themselves. Hopefully you guys will leave the house standing for when they come back."
I laughed. "We're well behaved for the most part.
Jacob snorted next to me, but was mostly ignored.
"Well, I know you definitely are, Jasper. I'm sure you'll keep the others in line if you need to," Charlie said.
"Jasper is usually in charge when our parents are away," Edward commented.
Just then there was a knock at the door.
"Looks like the food's here," Charlie said before getting up to get it.
"What do you leeches think you're doing?!" Jacob asked in a harsh whisper when Charlie left the table.
"Jacob, please don't start a fight right now," Bella pleaded.
"I am being forced to eat with bloodsuckers! What did you think would happen?!" he asked angrily.
"You'll not speak to her that way. She didn't ask for this," I told him in a calm, but strong manner.
Jacob glared at me. "Why are you even here? Him, I sort of get," he said as he pointed to Edward. "But you are just another leech he runs with. Why are you interested in Bella and Charlie?"
"That doesn't sound like it's any of your concern," I replied.
"Well it is!" Jacob growled.
"Guys, stop," Bella begged. Her stress level was becoming very high, so I sent her some calming waves.
Bella took some deep breaths and began to relax. "Thank you."
I nodded.
Jacob noticed the exchange and glared at me. "What did you do to her?"
Before anyone could answer, Charlie came back with the food. "Alright, I hope you're all hungry because I ordered a lot.
I stood up and helped him take everything out of the bags. Once it was all on the table, we took turns putting food on our plates and began eating. I had to try not cringe and so did Edward. It all tasted like cardboard to us.
"So, Jake, how are you doing?" Charlie asked.
"I could be better," Jacob grumbled before glowering at Edward.
"Bella says she's been calling you, but you haven't been picking up," Charlie commented.
"I've had a lot on my plate. So has she. Her boyfriend takes up a lot of her time." He spat out the word 'boyfriend' like it was poison.
"Like my dad said, I've called you. Don't blame Edward because you don't want to talk to me," Bella said.
"Maybe I don't want to talk to you because I know I'm going to lose you," Jacob said.
"What do you mean, Jake?" Charlie asked.
"Don't you know that the Cullens are leaving again and that Bella intends to go to? We'll never see here again," Jacob said.
"Jake!" Bella exclaimed.
"He's referring to us going away to college," Edward said.
"Yeah, I'm aware that Bella will probably go with Edward wherever he goes to school. I'm not thrilled about it, but it doesn't mean we'll never see her again." Charlie said.
"Trust me, we won't," Jacob said.
"Jake, that's enough," Billy said. Even he could apparently see that his son was going too far with the things he was eluding to. "Charlie, you catch that baseball game last night?
"No, I had to work late last night, but I've got it taped," Charlie said.
"Gotcha. I won't say any more about it. I wouldn't want to ruin it," Billy said.
Charlie turned to Jacob. "How's school going for you, Jake?"
"Fine," Jacob said tensely. He was very angry. I was going to need to keep a close eye on his anger, just in case it became bad enough that he would phase.
I looked over at Bella and saw that she wasn't touching her food. "You're not eating, Bella."
"I'm really not hungry," she said. She was still kind of stressed and very nervous. She seemed to be waiting for an explosion.
"Is it like this every time you all are around each other?" Charlie asked. I could feel that he was getting annoyed, probably because he could see the stress Bella was under. It wasn't exactly hard to see.
"We never are. If Bella would see reason, there wouldn't even be a problem," Jacob said.
"Perhaps if you stopped trying to tear her from what makes her happy, there wouldn't be a problem," Edward said with a bit of a sharpness in his tone. I had to give him credit. His resolve lasted much longer than I expected.
Jacob stood up angrily. "I could make her happy than you ever could, leech!"
"Jake!" Bella exclaimed with panic in her voice.
"Alright, calm down guys. Jacob, that was uncalled for. No matter how you feel about Edward, there was no need to start calling him names," Charlie said.
"Charlie, she doesn't belong with him! You know that. You agreed with me," Jacob argued.
"Okay, neither of you get to decide who I'm going to be with," Bella said irritably.
"Do you even understand how much you're tearing her apart? Either of you?" I asked calmly. I couldn't exclude Edward because he did it too, though not to the same extent as this. Edward most likely didn't realize he did it, but he was jealous of Jacob and he was constantly trying to get Bella to stay away from him. The whole thing was hurting her very much.
"Who the hell asked your opinion?" Jacob asked me angrily.
"I think we should go. I'm sorry, Charlie, but this is just going to get worse," Billy said.
"Well, it certainly will with you not even willing to try to make it better," Charlie said.
"Come on, Jake," Billy said before heading for the door. Jacob glared at everyone for a minute before getting up and following his father out of the house.
Edward glared at Jacob's retreating back as he left and growled lowly. He apparently heard something in Jacob's thoughts that angered him.
"Sorry, Charlie. We did try," I told him.
"It's not your fault. You did try. Bella warned me that this would end badly. I should've listened. I didn't really think it was as bad as she thought, but the fact that she did made me want to try to fix it for her," Charlie explained"
"I can understand that, but we're never going to get along with the Blacks," I told him.
"What is the big issue between you all?" Charlie asked.
"It's complicated, Chief Swan," Edward said
"It's not, but it is farfetched. It has to do with a legend that's passed down through the people of La Push about something they call cold ones," I told him. I decided to give him as much truth as I could. He deserved a reason for all the hostility he'd just witnessed.
"Jasper?" Bella asked worried. I could feel her apprehension, but I knew what I was doing.
"What exactly is that supposed to be?" Charlie asked.
"A type of supernatural creature, I guess. They believe we are cold ones and can't be trusted," I told him.
"You're saying that Billy and Jacob believe this? That they're like this because of some old wives tale from their ancestors?" Charlie asked with a lot of skepticism.
"They believe something. They believe enough that they don't trust us. That's why they hate us and won't let us on their land. The fact that we're not exactly the normal family probably helps their beliefs," I said.
"It's crazy."
"Maybe," was my only answer.
"We should probably go. It is getting a bit late," Edward said.
"I'm sorry again about this, guys. I appreciate your effort to remain civil," Charlie said.
"Of course. Thank you for having us. I'll see you next week," I said before standing up.
"I'll walk you guys out," Bella said before leading the way out of the house. Then she rounded on me. "Why did you tell him all of that?"
"Because he deserved an explanation, a truthful one. I knew he wouldn't believe anything other than that it was an urban legend," I said.
"He'll confront Billy about it," Bella said.
"It doesn't matter. He won't believe him. We should head out. I'll see you tomorrow, Bella," I said before hugging her briefly.
"Bella, I just want to apologize for how I've behaved tonight. I was eager to see Jacob be taken down a peg either by Jasper or Charlie, and I didn't allow myself to see how it hurt you. I'm sorry," Edward said. I could feel his remorse. He clearly finally saw what he'd been doing to her.
"Thank you. I can understand why you've been so bothered by Jacob, but you have to know that I'm not interested in being with him. It's you I want to be with," Bella told him.
"I'm sorry," he said again before hugging her and kissing her briefly on the lips. "I will be back tonight."
I walked with Edward to our cars. "What did you hear from Black at the end that upset you."
Edward hissed angrily. "He's really angry. He plans to try to ask Sam to make staying away from Bella part of the treaty. I don't think Sam would agree to something like that, but he might, and even if he doesn't, Jacob has the right to usurp him as the true Alpha."
I could definitely understand Edward's anger. The little punk was trying to take his mate. Worse than that though, he would hurt Bella worse than he already was now. "You don't have to worry, Edward. That move would backfire on him. Bella is my blood, that makes her a Cullen. If he tries to make her part of the treaty, he'll be the one that has to stay away."
"I know, but it would hurt Bella so much," Edward said.
"It would. Look, the ball is in Black's court right now. There's nothing we can do until he makes his move," I said before getting in my car. I waited for him to get in his and drove away. As I drove, I promised myself that if Jacob tried to hurt Bella this way, he'd pay for it.