Disclaimer—I totally own Twilight! Oh, wait…no vampires. No Mary Sues (or Marty Stues!). And I believe I see the resemblance of a plot. This isn't Twilight at all! Damn it.

Chapter 14—Bella P.o.V.

Bella's good mood passed quickly that day; Alice seemed to be in a bad mood, which she blamed on Edward, and when they got to art class Edward was just as angry as, if not more than, Alice. When Bella had asked him how he was, he had ignored her, scoffing and turning away. Bella had been hurt, but she had tried to not let him get to her. She had not been very successful, however, and she had soon found herself fighting tears.

Jasper realized, of course, as he always realized when she needed him, and so he had taken her hand under the table, where nobody else could see, and had traced circles and waves on it with his thumb. At the end of the class, he pulled her aside. He took her to the very same closet they had been in when he had been so worried about her, and simply hugged her for a while. She relaxed onto his warm, comforting hold, letting the tears that had been building up peek out of the corner of her eyes. She blinked them away, but a few traitorous tears escaped.

"Bella, it's alright. He's not angry at you. Alice said he was angry at her, right? He was just being a jerk. Don't listen to him."

Bella nodded, trying to smile, but the result was not at all convincing. Besides, Jasper had always been able to tell how she was feeling and he would have known that her smile was not sincere. He hated it when she tried to hide her real emotions; he thought repressing her emotions would backfire on her. That reminded Bella of the previous night, when she had finally put James on his place. She smiled again, this time sincerely.

"Oh, Jasper, guess what happened last night?" Jasper looked at her expectantly, not sure if he should be worrying or not; her tone told him not to, but the situation left him unsure, "when I got home, James had been drinking. He started screaming at me—you're a stupid, ugly whore, you're not worth it, you know, the usual," Jasper tensed, nodding curtly. The fact that Bella considered it to be usual and unimportant did not make it any better in his eyes. If anything, it made it worse; how could Bella think that it was normal to be told those things? How could she have ever believed that they were true? In fact, Jasper was sure that, deep down, Bella still believed those words. He let Bella continue, however. "—but then he started talking about Mom, and I got so angry! So I screamed back. I told him never to talk about her, or you, like that. He was so stunned, he didn't even have time to react before I locked myself up in my room. It was amazing."

Jasper's hold on Bella's arms tightened. Bella winced slightly and he released his grip, but his eyes were angry.

"Bella, why would you do something that stupid?" he asked, obviously upset. Bella watched him, confused, "don't you realize what he could do to you? And you say he was drunk… you can't just do that, Bella! What if he hadn't been stunned? What if he had hurt you? Don't you realize what could happen? I am the first person who will tell you to stand up to him, but not like that! Your memory of your mother and your image of me, they are great, wonderful things to have, but they were not worth being hurt. Do you understand?"

Bella nodded, tears falling down her cheeks once again. Jasper pulled her into a hug again, placing his chin on top of her head and rubbing her back gently.

"I'm sorry, Bella, I don't want to hurt you, and I love the fact that you were brave enough to stand up to that animal, but I just…if something were to happen to you, I…You're like my sister, I love you; I don't want anything to happen to you. Promise me you won't risk yourself like that again?"

Bella nodded and Jasper sighed, pulling away and kissing her forehead. He smiled at her and she wiped away her tears and smiled back.

"I love you too, Jazz."

"Alright. Let's head to lunch now, OK? Come on, poor Alice is bound to be wanting to strangle her brother by this point."

Bella laughed and followed Jasper out of the closet and towards the cafeteria, where Alice was, indeed, busily avoiding Edward's eyes. They sat across from them, facing the doors. Rosalie was sitting next to Bella, excited about their getting to spend the weekend together. Their relative calm—relative, because the silence between them was not the most calming they'd ever had—was interrupted by Edward, who finally burst out angrily about their ignoring him.

Bella felt hurt beyond words; after his ignoring them so rudely earlier, he was angry that they were leaving him alone? When she tried to explain, however, he only lashed out at her. She winced, trying to not let his words get to her. She heard similar things every day at home, she should be used to it, but it hurt much more when it came from somebody she had not expected it from.

She lowered her eyes, looking down at her hands, on her lap. She felt Jasper tense up next to her and she put her hand on his leg to try and calm him down, but it did not work. Everybody else at the table was glaring at Edward as well, and Bella felt guilty; Edward had probably just woken up in a bad mood that morning, and now everybody was angry at him because of her. That was not what he needed, she was sure. Edward, however, looked repentant.

Look, Bella, I, but, as he said those words, Bella caught sight of James walking towards their table. His face was twisted into what was supposed to resemble a smile, but Bella knew better than that. She did not see that smile often; James reserved it for when he was truly angry. She froze with fear. She knew James would probably be incensed by her speaking back the previous night. She had expected him to leave her alone, though. At least until Monday, when she returned home. She never thought he would approach her in school.

Mr. Carper wanted to come talk to Bella, Edward signed detachedly, he decided to come sit with us at lunch. I forgot to mention it. Bella could not believe her eyes. Edward had invited James to lunch. James was going to come…would he tell Edward and Alice the truth? Would he tell them that she was not a Hale, that she was not anybody, and that she was just the worthless daughter of a dead adulterer? Her fearful eyes turned to Jasper, her protector. He looked angry. No, angry didn't cover it. He looked ready to kill.

You randomly decided to invite somebody to sit with us? he asked while getting closer to Bella. He felt her beginning to shake in fear, and put a hand around her waist, to try and calm her down. He knew her well enough to know she would not like for others to see her shaking in fear. On her other side, Rosalie, ever her older sister, wrapped her arm around her shoulders, lending her some comfort, you realize you are new to this group? You have no idea about anything. How could you invite him? Who do you think you are?

Bella closed her eyes for a second, hoping this was all a nightmare. She opened her eyes and, then, James was standing behind Edward, his eyes trained on her. She did not miss the evil glint in them, or his self-satisfied look.

Well, this is a lovely gathering, he signed, his expression sickeningly sweet, reminding Bella of that one night, the previous year, when he'd…no, she would not think about that. Not now. You don't mind if I join you, do you? Bella wanted to cry, to scream, to get up and run away, but she knew she couldn't. Not only would that give her away, but James would be angry. He would be very angry indeed. Edward, you must introduce your little friends to me. It's such a pleasure.

He was lying! He was acting as if he didn't know her. Why? He was playing with her, the evil look on his eyes and the fact that his eyes never left her, told her as much. But, why? What was his plan?

This is Bella. Next to her are her sister Rosalie and her brother Jasper. Next to Rosalie is Emmett, and next to me is Alice, my sister, Edward signed. Bella's eyes shot to Jasper's in terror when Edward introduced her as a Hale. What would James' reaction be to that? What would he say? Jasper tightened his hold on her waist, letting her know he was there. James did not show any reaction to the introduction, however, besides a raised eyebrow.

Well, how nice. It is so very nice to meet you, he signed, his eyes never leaving Bella's face. What was he thinking? What was he going to do? Bella was beginning to hyperventilate, I suppose I will see more of you soon. I just wanted to drop by and say hello. I have to go now, and, with that, he left.

Bella tried to calm herself down, but she was not doing very well. She needed Jasper, but just then he unwrapped his arm from around her waist and signed angrily at Edward, telling him off for inviting James over. Bella knew Edward hadn't meant anything by it, he didn't know the situation, but she could not find it in herself to speak up. Thankfully, Jasper seemed to realize that Bella needed him more than Edward needed a scolding, and he turned to take her in his arms.

Finally feeling somewhat safe, Bella allowed her emotions to take hold. She hid her face on Jasper's neck so that nobody would see her cry. She did not want to see the rest of the students, either. She wanted to be in her room at the Hales', calm, without James, without anger. She wanted, above anything, to be a Hale. She grasped Jasper's shirt tightly, trying to collect herself. She could not let herself lose all control. She had to calm down. She had to…

The bell rang, and Bella stiffened once again. She didn't want to go back to class. She couldn't. She couldn't be alone. Jasper understood her without her having to explain anything, and he tightened his hold around her, kissing her cheeks, her forehead, her nose…He pulled away for a second,

"Rosalie, can you go to the office and tell them that Bella and I are sick? We're going home."

Rosalie agreed. She ran her hand through Bella's hair once, comfortingly, like a mother would to soothe her child, and then set off, Emmett behind her. Jasper stood up, carefully bringing Bella up with him. She hated to be carried, hated to be treated as a child, but right now she was too worn out and too in need of comfort to pull away. In fact, it felt comforting and safe. She snuggled into Jasper's chest as he picked up her bag and led her out into the parking lot. She suddenly realized something.

"Wait, Jasper! I have to tell Edward something. Go back!"

Jasper tightened his hold on her, looking rather reluctant.

"I don't think…Bella, I don't like the way he's talking to you. Maybe you should just let him cool down?"

Bella smiled at his worry, but shook her head. For one, she would not let him dictate her life. The more important reason, however, was that she simply thought she owed Edward the chance to allow him to tell her the truth. If he was angry at her, and if he really thought what he had said, he probably did not want her in his house. She would not impose her presence on him, and she said as much to him when Jasper took her back into the cafeteria.

Edward, Bella signed, I know you invited me to dinner last night, but if you don't feel well…I mean, if you'd prefer that I didn't go…I don't mind. In truth, of course, she minded. She had been excited about meeting his parents, about being invited to meet a family such as his. She had been looking forward to the chance of being with the Hales and the Cullens, without worrying about going back to James. If he didn't want her, though…She could just meet Alice the next morning to go shopping, she didn't have to sleep over.

Bella, you and your family are still invited to my house. Alice and Mom would kill me if you didn't come just because I was being stupid. Bella felt her heart tighten; he didn't want her to go, he just didn't want his family to get angry at him, And, besides, I want you to come. Please. Forgive me for being so rude. She brightened up a bit, still hurting from his previous words and from James' visit. Edward didn't hate her, though. He really did want her to go to his house. She smiled weakly at him.

Alright, Bella signed back, we'll see you at seven, then.

With that they went back to the car. Jasper was silent, obviously upset. Bella felt guilt biting at her. He probably didn't want to leave school early. He was bound to want to spend some more time with Alice, if only in Phys. Ed. He was always doing things for her, she realized with despair. She brought her legs up and rested her chin on her knees. Jasper saw her do this out of the corner of his eye and sighed. Realizing that she was stepping on the upholstery of his beloved car, she put her feet back down. Jasper groaned and pulled over, even though they were only a block away from his house.

"Bella, I can practically feel the guilt rolling off you. It's suffocating me. What do you have to feel guilty about?"

"It's just that you're always doing things for me, and I feel so bad! Like now, you probably want to be in school, with Alice, but you're not. And it's all because of me. You don't have to do that, you know? I don't…I can take care of myself. I don't want you to have to give up on anything because of me. And I just feel so bad about being so weak and so stupid, and worrying you all the time."

Jasper cut her off. He looked angry again. Really angry. She turned to look at her feet, but he grabbed her chin and forced her to look back up at him.

"Bella, I love you, alright? You always come first. I want to help you and be there for you, I'm not just doing it out of some messed up sense of pity, alright? Because I know better than to feel pity for you; you deserve respect. Because, no matter what anybody says, least of all that fucked up excuse for a man that the law calls your father, you are worth it all, and some more. You are not weak, and you are not stupid. You are the most courageous girl I know. If I were in your situation…if I were in your situation, I would have broken years ago. I would never had had the balls to stand up to him like you did last night.

"You are amazing, Bella. Never let anyone tell you otherwise. And, as long as I can, I will protect you and help you and be there for you. Alright? We are family. I don't care what the law says, what we have, what you, and I, and Rosie, and Emmett have, that is family. And we will always be there, through the good and the bad. And we want to be there. So don't feel bad when you need us. Don't feel bad when we help you because, God damn it, we want to do it, alright?"

That was, by far, the longest speech Bella had ever heard Jasper give, and she found herself in tears again. She nodded and threw herself over at him, hugging him tightly, burying her face on his neck. He hugged her back, kissing her cheek and stroking her hair. He began to cry as well, and they remained in their embrace until they both had cried out all the tears they had in their bodies. When they had finally calmed down, Jasper started up the car again and drove them the rest of the way home.

Jasper's parents were at work, so there was nobody there to ask why they were home so early. They decided to just relax and watch a movie for a while. Bella had had a very emotionally taxing day, and Jasper decided she should unwind before going over to the Cullens'. That would be the first time she ever went to sleep somewhere other than her own house or the Hales' since her mother's death.

They settled up in Jasper's room, and watched Romeo and Juliet, the version with Leonardo DiCaprio in it, laughing at his acting through all of it. Jasper knew better than to make fun of Juliet and her flat, lacking, and undeveloped character; for some strange reason he would never comprehend, Bella saw a kindred spirit in her.

When the movie finished, and they had eaten enough junk food to last for a century, they cleaned up slightly and just sat around in comfortable silence. They did that a lot. Jasper was not very fond of words, preferring to judge people by their actions, and despite Bella's love for words, she much preferred the written word to the spoken one. So, quite often, their time together was spent in silence, reading, watching movies, listening to music, or just enjoying the sound of silence. The noise of the front door opening ended their quiet time.

"Bella? Where are you guys?"

It was Rosalie. Jasper groaned, but called out to her anyway. Rosalie was up in his room in the blink of an eye, enveloping Bella in her arms. Rosalie had always loved children; she could not wait to be a mother. When Bella had come into their lives, just weeks after losing her mother, Rosalie had undertaken the role of a mother in Bella's life. He realized that Rosalie probably wanted some "alone" time with Bella, so he lifted Bella off his lap, kissed her forehead one last time, and made his way downstairs, most likely to play some videogames.

"How are you doing, Bella? Please, tell me you didn't take Edward seriously. He was just being an ass, you know? Alice says she and her mom pulled him out of bed an hour early this morning so that they could prepare the house for you. Apparently, they even made up the guest bedroom for you. They are all just so excited that you are going to sleep over."

Bella nodded, a slightly worried smile on her face. She did not know what to think of the high expectations the Cullens seemed to have of her.

"And…Bella? Can I…it's just…Ugh, can I just speak plainly? I don't know how to say this subtly."

Bella nodded, confusion coloring her face.

"I'm worried about James. I'm afraid he might try something. He seemed…I don't know, like he was plotting something, today at lunch. So, can you just…be careful? I know you're spending the weekend with us, but you won't be spending every second with us. You're going to be shopping with Alice, and she doesn't know about James. What if you find him in town? If you go out on your own, just keep your cell phone with you? Alright? Be careful?"

Bella nodded, moved by Rosalie's concern. They chatted for a while, until Jasper came back up, knocking on the door gently.

"Can I come in?"

"Oh, Jasper, I didn't even realize we'd taken your room! Come in! I'm sorry!"

Jasper came in, laughing. He strutted over to Bella and kissed her on the top of her head, smiling.

"It's quite alright. Now, come on, it's four thirty already. If we have to give up our Bella in two hours and a half for who knows how long, we better get some enjoyment out of it now!"

Rosalie giggled, nodding her agreement, while Bella crossed her arms across her chest, faking anger. She would not lie, however; she enjoyed being "their" Bella, and knowing there was one place where she belonged and was wanted.

They spent the rest of the evening, until their parents got home and the left for the Cullens', playing D.D.R. Bella lost, as she had a tendency to do, but she only fell once. Rosalie, as always, was the uncontested champion. They were having so much fun, Bella almost forgot about the troubling events of the day. The fear, hurt, and concern that James' visit to their lunch table had produced, however, were very much still in the back of her head, bottled up along with the many other similar feelings she had encountered over the years.

Author's Note—I know I'm supposed to be drifting away from repeating scenes from both points of view, but I thought you'd like to see James' little "visit" from Bella's point of view. Anyway, today I got out of school early, because I only had one exam, so I was out of school by 9.30 (amazing, right?) so I decided I might as well write more than one chapter, to make it up for not writing for the past week. I hope you enjoyed it!