Disclaimer: S. Myer owns all, but what I wouldn't give for a Jasper of my very own-sigh.
A/N- Again, Mapquest and Google were my friends, so please forgive any creative licenses taken with the actual road trip part of the story, apologies in advance to those living anywhere near where J/B visit. Also, my apologies for the filler chapter, but at least they are finally across the Texas border!
Can I just say that the fact that there are 400 people on alert for this story scares the shit out of me? That's possibly 400 very disappointed readers. *bites nails*
Huge thanks to C Me Smile for her quick turn around on this baby!
Huge hugs and thanks to Dannie, as always, for the encouragement, the hand holding, and the love.
More author notes at the end.
To those that have read, thank you! I appreciate it very much.
"**~~**"
Keep You by My Side
Location: Seattle, WA (Loyal)
"**~~**"
You called me strong, you called me weak,
But still your secrets I will keep
You took for granted all the times
I never let you down
You stumbled in and bumped your head,
If not for me then you'd be dead
I picked you up and put you back
On solid ground~3 Doors Down
"**~~**""
"Take the next exit." Bella leaned forward, her fingers pressing the screen of the GPS. She hadn't left my side more than a few inches since we had gotten back into the truck. In the darkness of the cab, she had foregone her seatbelt and had curled up into my side, careful not to lean any of her weight on me.
"Why?" I practically whined, one of my arms wrapped around my stomach as I drove hunched over.
"Just do it," she sighed. I could sympathize; I was too fucked up and too tired to argue. "After the exit, take a left, then go about a mile." She paused, glancing at me, "And you should have let me drive."
She was right. I should have, but at the time, my first thought was getting the fuck out of Dodge.
Less than ten minutes later, I was pulling into a Walgreens. After parking the truck, Bella grabbed her bag and hopped out with a quick "Wait here," before she darted into the store.
Slouched over, I picked the cactus up off the seat and pressed the button. After three cycles of the chorus, Bella was opening her door and climbing in, two white plastic bags in her hands.
"Now, find us a hotel," she ordered.
Had she always been so demanding?
"Bella, it's nice enough to stay outside and camp," I tried to reason as I turned the key.
Frowning, she slid over the seat to her spot next to me and played with the GPS again.
"Oh, okay. You going to set everything up in your condition?" she asked as she hit the 'select' button.
I fucking hurt. A lot. And honestly, a hotel sounded pretty God damn good. Hot shower, room service…a bed.
Or two.
"Good point," I caved quickly and easily. Normally, I would have put up more of a fight, but there was none left in me. I could see her smiling as she took the cactus from the dash where I had laid it and held it in her hands.
A few miles and a few turns down the road, we were pulling up to a small motel. Given what had happened earlier in the night, the fact the neon sign was blinking on and off and the place fucking closely resembled Bates Motel made my stomach grow nervous.
"Ah, Bella, I don't know about this place," I said warily as I parked and leaned forward, looking the place over through the windshield. "Not exactly getting a very friendly vibe. More of a 'chop our customers up into little pieces in the shower' vibe.
"Come on, it's fine, you're just keyed up from earlier. Wait here, I'll go get us a room."
"I'm going with you." I put my hand on the door.
"Jasper, you really need to take it easy," she said, glancing at my side. "Besides, you will scare the shit out of them, and they'll never give us a room with you looking like you just finished the KFC."
It hurt like hell, but I laughed, hard. "You mean UFC?"
"Whatever. I think I can handle getting a room." She went to open the door, but I put a hand on her arm, gripping her far tighter than I had intended and she jumped. Realizing too late I had grabbed the same arm Demetri had held, I let her go immediately.
"Sorry," I apologized, "I just…I don't want to let you out of my sight."
"Jasper, I went into the drug store. I was out your sight then," she reasoned, her door now opened.
"Yeah, well, Walgreens didn't look like they kept their dead mother up in the attic either." I glanced back at the so-called 'office', which looked more like someone's really creepy living room.
"Jasper, I'll be fine," she said, patting my hand before getting out and heading inside. As soon as the door closed, I looked at the clock on the dashboard. I was giving her five minutes, if she wasn't out by then, I was going in, bloodied face and all.
Minute one. I picked up the cactus and played the song.
Minute two. I switched radio stations, trying to find something that wasn't complete static in the middle of fucking nowhere.
Minute three. I took a drink of water and counted the change in my pocket.
Minute four. I started tapping my fingers on the steering wheel, the butterflies in my stomach no longer attempting to settle down.
My hand was on the door when I saw her bouncing back to me, her hair swaying from side to side as she came back to the truck and got in.
When she looked at me, she knew.
"You were going to come inside, weren't you?" she sighed, giving me a 'don't bother lying' look. Guilt prevented me from answering. "How long did you give you me?"
"Five minutes."
Her sigh told me she had accepted, and was even perhaps grateful, for my concern. "Pull over there," she pointed to our left. "Room five."
We parked and I tentatively got out of the cab. It was my first major movement since climbing into it after the fight, and my body was not pleased.
"I'll get the bags," Bella offered as she went to the bed of the truck and grabbed both our duffel bags. I waited at the door for her, chuckling as she stumbled over the nonexistent obstacles in front of her. After unlocking the door, we entered the dark room and I flipped on a light.
Oh shit.
"Bella," I actually did whine that time. "What the fuck?"
Walking by me, she shrugged and dropped our bags on the floor. "It was all they had."
There was a small table with two wooden chairs, and a tiny television complete with bunny ears sat on the small dresser. The dark wood paneled walls warped from the walls they should have been attached to.
Against the ugly walls was a bed covered in the tackiest bedspread I had ever seen.
One fucking bed.
"You've got to be fucking kidding me," I sighed, wanting desperately to just flop down on the bed and sleep for about three days.
"Strip and sit down."
Excuse me?
"I said strip and sit down," she repeated when I hadn't moved, her hands on her hips.
"What? Why?" I flustered.
Exasperated, she tossed her plastic bags on the bed and started pulling supplies out.
Bandages, ointment, tape, ice packs, swabs, cotton balls, and a book on first aid.
"What's all that shit?" I asked, finally taking a step toward the bed, pointing at the packages.
"It's for you, now, please, go take off your clothes." She nodded toward the world's smallest bathroom.
"All of them?" I swallowed hard.
She thought for a minute, shuffling through her goodies, which looked a bit torturous to me. Smirking, she looked up at me. "Well, did you get kicked in the balls?"
Instinctively, my hand went to my crotch, either in protection or to check to see if I had. "No."
"Then the boxers can stay," she said, once again nodding to the bathroom. "Now go."
With slow, achy steps, I headed to change, but stopped right at the door and looked at her over my shoulder. "Wait, how did you know?"
"Really, Jasper? We've lived together how many months? I think I know what kind of underwear you prefer."
"Oh." Blushing, I walked into the room and closed the door, glancing around. There was no tub, but rather a small shower stall. The porcelain sink used to be white but was now a shade of gray with rust stains leading from the faucet down to the drain. With a deep breath, I dared to look in the mirror.
I was seriously fucked up.
Shorty had definitely been a righty, because the left side of my face bore the brunt of the injuries. My bottom lip was puffy, crusty blood at the corner of my mouth where it met a purplish bruise that lined the swollen left side of my jaw from the repeated hits. Almost completely shut, my left eye socket was covered in black and blue that spread up toward my hairline. Crimson lines of dried blood led from the several superficial cuts that littered my cheeks, nothing that required stitches, but they still stung like a bitch. The worst cut was above my right eye, traveling from my brow into my forehead.
Slowly, I undid the buttons on my shirt, my hands stiff as I pushed the tiny buttons through the holes. Sliding it off, I was almost afraid to look at myself.
It was as bad as I expected.
My entire chest was one purplish-reddish bruise, with smaller blue and black splotches throughout it. Even if I couldn't feel the pain with every breath, just looking at it hurt like hell. Feeling the need to get it over with, I gently undid my jeans and let them fall to the floor, toeing off my boots before stepping out of my pants.
The longer I stood there staring at my battle scars, the more I realized how lucky I had been that the clerk had come out when he did. While I had gotten out of Demetri's hold and stunned him with a punch, it was probably only a momentary freedom before they had the advantage again. If they had been able to get me unconscious, who knows what would have happened.
And if either of them had had a weapon…
As if on cue, my body began to tremble with relief as it washed through me. The adrenaline rush having slowed down, I suddenly felt weak and limp, my mind becoming a mess of jumbled 'what if' scenarios that did nothing but scare the shit out of me.
I couldn't have lived with myself if something had happened to her. Had I really done all I could have to protect her?
Looking down, I was surprised to see a few red marks covering my thighs as well. I hadn't remembered getting hit anywhere below the waist, but things had happened pretty quickly. Not even bothering to pick up my clothes, I opened the door.
She was sitting on the edge of the bed, her supplies readily handy next to her. When she looked up, the look of pity that crossed her face hit me before I heard the gasp as her hand went to her mouth.
"Oh my God!"
Biting my lip, I made my way to her and gingerly sat on the edge of the bed next to her, pulling one leg up so I was facing her.
She made no attempt to hide the tears as they fell from her eyes, her hand reaching for my face, soft fingertips brushing over my bruised eye. "Those fucking bastards."
I couldn't help but laugh at her feistiness. "Yeah, too bad you weren't out there with me, I know you could have taken them both," I joked.
"Well, it wasn't exactly fair odds was it," she scowled at me, reminding me I had made her stay in the car, stopping her attempts at distracting them.
"No, but they weren't exactly the fair-fighting type of guys." I licked my chapped lips, tasting the blood on them.
Shaking her head, she stood up and went into the bathroom, only to return with a damn cloth. Sitting next to me again, she diligently went to work, gently holding my chin with one hand as she dabbed the spots of dried blood, the warm moist towel felt rough against my face. Occasionally hissing as she pressed a bit too hard on the cuts, I would attempt to pull my head away but her grip on my chin would tighten and pain shot through my jaw.
"Jesus, Bella!" I grumbled. "Take it easy, will ya."
Smirking, she dropped the towel and picked up the book, flipping through the pages. "Such a brave guy when getting the shit beat of out of you, but not so much now, huh?" Opening a tube of some sort, she squirted ointment onto her finger and started spreading it around some of my deeper cuts. Anticipating it to sting, I was surprised when it felt cool and I relaxed a bit.
When she was done, she scoured through the packages until she came across some bandages. Unwrapping one, she used both hands and placed it over the harsh cut on my brow, pressing down hard to make it stick.
"OUCH!"
"Sorry," she apologized, opening another for a cut on my cheek. Next she took my hands, cleaned them with the towel, applied more ointment and then went back to her book.
"What is that?" I asked nodding to the thick white cream.
"Just some antibacterial cream to keep the cuts clean. Does it hurt to take a breath?" she asked, her eyes trained on the book in her lap as she fingered the pages.
I inhaled and felt a sharp pain radiate through my chest. "Yeah, but it could be worse."
"Well, you probably didn't break any ribs, but they are probably bruised, considering the amount of hits they took and the bruises on your skin. I could wrap them with this." She held up an ace bandage. "But it probably won't help much where they aren't cracked or broken. The book says ice and rest are the best treatment. I have ice, and you can certainly rest."
She was suddenly a wealth of first aid information.
"All this knowledge from this, doc?" I chuckled, picking up the first aid for dummies book.
"Well, some, but all those years of watching ER reruns with you and Edward certainly didn't hurt." She smiled as she opened a bottle of pain medicine, pouring two into her hand. "Here, take these," she directed, handing them to me with a bottle of water.
After I took the pills, she began putting her stuff back in the bag, and I just watched a bit stunned.
"You realize you have enough supplies to treat an entire emergency room, right?"
Shrugging, she replied, "I just wanted to make sure I had everything I might need. Besides, never know when we might need them again."
Groaning, I shook my head. "No more fights, please." Reaching up, I touched the bandages on my face. "How bad does it look?"
"Well, GQ won't be knocking on your door tomorrow, but Sports Illustrated might, declaring you the largest weight champ."
With pain, I furrowed my brows. "You mean heavyweight?"
"Whatever," she mumbled, cracking an icepack open and handed me one. "Put this on your eye. Do you want one for your ribs?"
I shook my head, "No, I just want to sleep. " I stood up, very fucking slowly, and grabbed a pillow from the bed. If I pulled the chair out, I could put my feet up on the table and lean back. It had to be better than the floor. Walking over to the chair, I tossed the pillow down.
"What are you doing?" Bella asked, tossing the bags on the floor and standing up.
"Following doctor's orders and getting the rest part of my prescription."
"Like you can rest in the chair, Jasper," she chided, sounding very motherly. "Sleep in the bed."
I wanted to argue, but the words were buried under the bruises, pushing on the sore parts of my body, reminding me of just how much pain I was in. Nodding, I grabbed the pillow again and went back to the bed, drew back the polyester blanket and climbed under it. Lying on my back, I put the icepack over my left eye while attempting to ignore the ache that coursed throughout every single fucking muscle.
I vaguely heard Bella say she was going to change as my mind began to release me from my day. The noises of her moving around the bed woke me, I opened my one good eye and saw she was making her own 'bed' on the floor.
"What are you doing?" I asked sleepily.
"I thought you were asleep," she sighed, bending over. Reaching out, I grabbed her arm, tenderly this time.
"No, here. With me." It was all I could get out.
"Are you sure?" She stood, facing me, but in the dark I could only make out her silhouette.
"Very. I need it."
Quietly, she walked around the bed and slid under the blanket next to me. Shifting the icepack, I carefully rolled so I was facing her, close enough that I could see her clearly. She appeared to have a dark tank top on, and her hair was down, falling in thick waves around her almost bare shoulders. Idly, my mind briefly wondered what she was wearing on her lower half. Even in the dark and my impaired vision, I could see every detail of her face; each individual freckle across her nose, the dull sparkle in her chocolate eyes, the thick lashes that framed them and…her lips. Full, pink and pouty.
A sudden clarity hit me and my words began to form. There was so much I wanted to say, and there in the dark I felt oddly safe, as if whatever passed between us, the quiet whispers of honesty would not exist the next morning.
"What is it?" she asked, concerned.
How could she tell?
"Earlier tonight, I promised Edward I would keep you safe and I won't let him down. I just wish…."
She took one of my hands in hers and held it between us. "You wish what?"
"I wish you had just left, taken the truck and driven away. You shouldn't have stayed. Why didn't you leave?" I asked quietly, looking down at our hands, which she brought to her lips to kiss my bruised knuckles.
"Jasper, I would never leave you. Even if you told me to, I would never leave. Don't you know that?"
No time like the present. I felt like I was sitting down to play Russian roulette, and it scared the shit out of me.
"If you marry Jake, you're leaving me…us."
"Us as in you and me, or us as in you and Edward?"
Both.
My heart constricted with the possibility of Jake taking her out of my life completely. It was my own choice, my own fault even, that I had partially removed myself from her life once Jake had walked in, but there was no way in hell I could handle her walking out of mine. At least with what I had done, I had the ability to see her on my own terms and not just when he allowed her to spend time with us.
The fingers of her left hand were now entwined with mine and I glanced down at them. In my head, I saw a band of gold engraved with declarations of eternal love on her left ring finger, while mine remained naked, empty of the promises a ring held.
Edward would eventually find someone and leave me as well; our friendship demoted to occasional summer barbeques and family picture Christmas cards with letters bragging about how wonderful life was without me.
"Jasper?" she prodded for an answer.
"Edward and me." It was the truth, right?
Shaking her head, she confirmed, "If I marry Jake, it won't change the friendship between you, Edward and me."
"And you can guarantee that?"
"Of course. Jake has no say in who my friends are, and he certainly knows better than to come between the three of us."
But he already had.
"Promise, Bella?" I whispered, denying the urge to lean over and touch her lips with mine. Letting go of my hand, she reached up and gently cupped my cheek, the side of her thumb stroking back and forth over the bruised flesh.
"Yes, I promise."
I wanted to ask her what, what did she promise? To not leave me, or Edward, us both…or was there more behind her words. My mind reached out in its tired, hazy fog searching her words and her tone in any attempt to read the meaning behind the three simple words.
I had to know.
But before I could speak, she whispered, "Thank you, Jasper."
"For?"
"For tonight, for everything…for saving me." The small stream of moonlight that peeked through the break in curtains glistened on the unshed tears as they welled in the corner of her eyes. My lips ached, not from the cuts but from the urge to kiss her wet worry away.
No, Bella, thank you for saving me.
"I will always save you. No matter what, I will always do what's best for you."
"I know, and thank you for that."
We both knew there was more being said than a simple thank you. Wanting to push her more, I debated on if it was the appropriate time, my mind always returning to the fact that there was someone back in Seattle waiting for her, wanting to spend the rest of his life with her.
Someone who had asked a question she had yet to answer.
"Bella…" I hesitated before continuing, giving her just enough time to move her thumb to my lips, effectively quieting me.
"Shhh, get some sleep, Jasper. We've got plenty of time to talk." Her soft voice soothed my worries, even though my questione remained unasked, and unanswered, my soul rested with her reassuring words. Nodding, I closed my eyes again. She removed her hand from my face and slid closer to me so my chin rested on the top of her head while her warm breath washed over my chest, healing it far more than any icepacks or bandages ever would.
We lay there in the dark with nothing between us but the beating of our hearts, one of them swelling with relief at each breath she took.
I had come too close to losing her that night, and I wouldn't let it happen again. While the mattress was lumpy and the pillows flat, I had never felt more comfortable, and I finally let sleep claim me.
Hazy sun filtered through the curtains the next morning, waking me from the light sleep I had managed to fall into. Bella still lay facing me, one of my arms was draped over her waist loosely, the ends of her hair fisted in my fingers. Her cheek lay on my other arm and her face was burrowed into my chest with her nose pressed against me so hard it hurt. Soft breaths rhythmically dampened my chest, and her small hands were clasped under her chin. She looked so small, so innocent and childlike.
Stretching as much as I could without screaming out in pain and waking her, I flexed my feet and legs, working out the kinks from remaining in the same position for so long. As my body slowly began to wake up, I was reminded of each and every hit from the night before. It even hurt to yawn, my jaw felt like I had cotton stuffed in it, my cheeks puffy and stiff.
But my cheeks weren't the only thing that was stiff.
Bella stirred before she woke, and I placed a light kiss on her head, deeply inhaling the scent of her hair. Moaning, she opened her eyes slowly, leaning back from me and looked up at me with half-closed eyes.
"Morning," she murmured sleepily.
"Mornin' to you too. Did you get some rest?"
"Yeah, a bit. You?"
"Like a baby," I lied through my teeth. I was lucky to have caught an hour or two where I wasn't in pain.
"How do you feel?" Seeing the concern I her eyes, I sighed. I was supposed to be taking care of her, not the other way around. It's not like Edward told her to keep me safe and sound.
"Sore, but I'll live. Had great a triage nurse last night, treated me well."
This earned me a grin and her hand ruffled my hair, then she stretched as I had, pushing her breasts into me as she arched her back. I inwardly groaned, rocking my hips slightly back from hers, my morning wood ached as it was; I didn't need to worsen it by allowing it to continue to press against her. She turned slightly and my erection brushed her stomach. Immediately recognizing what it was, her cheeks turned scarlet and she quickly moved away, but stayed in bed.
"Aw, fuck, Bella, I'm sorry," I rolled onto my back and realized too late what a bad fucking idea that was as my boxers tented. I was already fucked, what difference did it make, it's not like she didn't already know I was hard as a fucking rock.
"No, it's okay. I mean, it's natural, it happens." She reasoned as she sat up in bed, pulling the sheet to cover her braless breasts pushing against the tank top.
Good idea, Bella.
The thought of those soft breasts with their perky nipples did nothing but feed my hard on. Little did she know I was not a frequent flyer of morning wood. Sure it had happened as a teen, but as I had gotten older, it happened much less often. There were only two people that had the ability to make sure I woke up hard…Bella was one of them.
"Do you need to…ah, take care of it? Like in the shower or something?" she asked, motioning to my hips with her hand but politely looking at my face instead of where her eyes were dying to go.
I guess I should have felt flattered she wanted to check out the goods, but at the same time, as any guy does, I grew paranoid that I failed by comparison to both Edward and Jake.
Groaning, I laid an arm over my eyes. "Jesus, Bella! No, I don't need to 'take care of it', thank you very much. "I paused and attempted a fat lip grin. "Unless you want to take care of it for me?"
When she didn't answer, I clarified. "Breathe, Bella, I was joking."
Actually, I wasn't.
Relief spread over her face as she left out a breath she had apparently been holding. "Listen, go shower, and after I 'take care of' my…er, problem, I will get our stuff together."
I don't think her eyes could have gotten any wider. If I had been her mother, I would have told her they were going to stick like that if she didn't snap out of it.
"Again…joking," I reminded her, slowly pushing myself up to get out of bed. With my movement, Bella climbed out of bed at the same time and we ended up on opposite sides of the bed staring at each other. I had been right about the tank top, but was surprised to see she wore only panties with it. Standing there, her breasts pushing against her tight shirt and my cock pushing against my boxers, we both started breathing a bit heavier.
No longer could she resist and her eyes dropped sharply to my erection. I have to admit a bit of pride went through me when she unconsciously licked her lips. There was no doubt that I looked like shit, bruises tattooing my chest and sides, my face almost as bad, but at that moment, what I looked like appeared to be the least of her concerns. When my cock twitched under her stare, I saw her blink and then shake her head, fighting an internal battle. One I knew all too well.
Welcome to my hell, Bella.
Deciding to help her out, I spoke first. "Shower, Bella?" I reminded her, jolting her from the daze she was under.
"Shower… right," she blushed and grabbed the sheet off the bed, wrapping it around her waist.
Too late.
I had already seen the teal satin panties.
As soon as she had grabbed her bag and turned for the bathroom, I hung my head and exhaled heavily. At the doorway, she looked at me over her shoulder.
"Oh, Jasper?"
"Yeah?"
"It's cute," she chuckled before closing the door.
Cute?
"Seriously?"
"Completely," she challenged. Crossing her arms she leaned against her door and raised an eyebrow at me.
After Bella had insisted on redoing my bandages and ointment, we had left the hotel and ate breakfast at the local diner. Feeling a bit self conscious about being in public, Bella tugged on my hand, telling me no one would notice. The bell on the door had rung when we entered and I swear every fucking head turned and eyed us. Well, if nothing else, they would probably leave me alone, or think Bella had one hell of a right hook.
Leaving the dinner, we hit the road again, with about a seven-hour drive in front of us.
"Seriously?" I stressed again the importance of what she was confessing.
"Yes!" she stressed right back at me.
The highway was flat, practically barren of cars and anything worth looking along the sides. The singing cactus sat on the dashboard, his face smiling at us, trying to bring the peace between us again. Bella had named him "Sunshine".
I wasn't sure that was ever going to be possible.
The damage was done.
"That's it. Our friendship is over, Bella. I can't even have you in my truck anymore. I'm going to pull over and leave your scrawny ass on the side of the road," I threatened, glancing at her in time to the see the scowl on her face.
"You don't scare me," she challenged.
"It's just not possible." I shook my head, unable to grasp the severity of the situation.
Turning to look out the window, she sighed in frustration. "Yes, Jasper, it is entirely possible."
"Bella, it's not possible to say that the prequels were better than the originals. That's just sacrilegious or something. "
"Two words, Hayden Christinsen."
"Four words, Princess Leia's slave costume." My mind was already in overdrive imagining Bella in the same costume. Karma was a bitch though because as soon as I imagined it, I winced at a bolt of pain that shot through my head. Immediately, her anger changed to concern.
"You okay?" she asked, starting to slide over toward the middle.
"Yeah, I'm fine, just sore."
"I told you to take those pills this morning."
"Bella, I'm fine." I looked over at her as she tried to read if I was telling her the truth or not. "Really," I added for emphasis. Finally, she relented and moved back to her side, putting her arms across her chest again. "As I was saying, there is no way the prequels are better."
"What about the special effects? They were incredible!"
I had to give her that. "I agree, but you have to admit, for their time, the originals' special effects were pretty kick-ass."
Even she couldn't deny that and she shrugged. "Yeah, but… storyline was better in the prequels."
"You did not just say that!" I gasped, my eyes wide with complete awe at her ignorance. "And just how many people can quote your precious prequels compared to the originals?"
"When I'm around you, my mind is no longer my own."
Oh, she wanted to play.
"Aren't you a little short for a stormtrooper?"
She raised an eyebrow and smirked. "Use your feelings, Obi-Wan, and find him, you will."
And she was good, better than I had anticipated. Edward was a formidable competitor at this game, but Bella was proving herself a challenger as well.
"I suggest a new strategy, R2. Let the wookie win."
"Someday, I will be the most powerful Jedi ever."
"You are so...beautiful" Instead of telling me that I was quoting Attack of the Clones, she return the volley with one from mine.
"Why you stuck-up, half-witted, scuffy-looking nerf herder."
I laughed out loud, my chest hurting with the movement, but it was well worth the price. "Who's scruffy-looking?"
"I love you."
I knew the quote well, it was from one of my favorite scenes, where they encased Han in the carbonite, but I wanted to reply quickly so as to not make her think I was taking it for anything more than just a quote from a movie.
"I know." I quoted, glancing over at her and winking. Smiling knowingly, she blushed before looking out the window.
After a short time, she offered a compromise. "I will give you that the trilogies had better quotes, but the prequels are still better stories…and they had Hayden," she sighed dreamily.
"Originals all the way for quotes, story, and they had the slave costume."
"So you've said," she chuckled. "What is it with guys and that outfit?"
"Need you ask?" I snorted. Just as she was about to reply, her phone rang and she dug it out of her bag, smiling before she even said hello. I knew it was one of two people.
"Edward!"
I breathed a sigh of relief, not really in the mood to be subjected to a conversation between her and Jake.
"Yes, he's here, okay, sure." She pressed a button and then I could hear Edward's voice in the cab, like he was there with us.
"Hey, Jasper," he greeted, his voice sounding weary.
"Hey, Edward."
I could hear him yawn before he spoke again. "Bella, Jasper behaving?"
"Define behave?" she replied quickly while smiling at me.
"Come on, Edward, don't ruin all my fun. How's everything up there?"
"Fine, started at working at the hospital, the hours are going to be insane. I am beginning to think dealing with the two of you would have been less exhausting." He sighed and I could hear him shuffling around.
"Do you like it so far?" Bella asked him.
"Yeah, only been one shift, a fucking long shift, but it was good. It's going to be a great experience, but a tiring one."
There was something unidentifiable in his voice, something I hadn't heard in it before. I had heard Edward tired and overworked before, but this was different. Part of me wanted to ask him what, if anything, was wrong, but decided to wait until I talked to him alone.
"Where are you?" he asked, his voice picking up a bit of energy.
Before Bella could answer, I spoke up. "We stayed in Salt Lake the first night and a small town in Arizona last night. We should be in Abilene tonight."
I didn't look over at Bella; I knew I would see a disapproving look for leaving out the details of the previous night. Edward was worried enough about us both, we didn't need to compound it by telling him about my parking lot smack down.
"How's the drive been?" I heard him ask over some banging in the background.
Again, I answered before Bella. "Drive's been good, although I am about to leave Bella on the side of the road."
He chuckled. "What did she do now?"
"What do you mean, what did I do?" Bella chimed in her defense.
Again, I could hear him smile. "Well, we boys need to stick together, Bella."
"Fine," she huffed. "I just informed Jasper that I thought the prequel Star Wars movies were better than the originals."
I swear he fucking gasped. "Excuse me?"
That's my boy.
"See what I'm dealing with, Edward?" When I went to laugh, a sudden a wave of pain hit me and I groaned, a sound not missed by Dr. Cullen.
"Jasper, what's wrong?" he asked quickly, his voice now professional, but worry seeped through the collected veneer.
"Nothing, Edward, I'm fine. Really…." I looked pleadingly over at Bella for help, who gave me a sympathetic shrug but took over for me.
"Edward, everything's fine. Jasper's just sore. He's slept on a chair the past few nights and woke up a bit…stiff."
I kept my eyes on the road in front of me even though there was nothing within miles of us, as my cheeks flushed with heat. Although probably not visible under my bruises, I could certainly feel the warmth spread.
"God damn it," I muttered under my breath. Mentally, I briefly wondered just how much Edward would mind if I returned without Bella.
"Aw, Bella, why are you making him sleep in a chair?" he teased. It was her turn to blush. I knew she didn't want to tell him that we had spent the night before sleeping only inches from each other.
I could hear banging in the background, and even though Bella had embarrassed me, I was going to save her scrawny ass from the same fate.
"Edward, what the hell are you doing?" I asked, changing the subject.
"Oh, um…nothing," he replied hesitantly, his movements stilling to quietness. "Okay, guys, I should go."
"Everything alright?" I asked, looking over at Bella with a raised eyebrow.
"Yep, yep, everything's fine," he sounded a bit breathless. "Call me when you reach Abilene."
Just as Bella and I were about say good-bye, he hung up. Both a bit shocked, we were silent for a minute, processing Edward's odd behavior.
"Well, that was…." I began.
"Strange," Bella finished. Shifting her weight, she reclined against her seat and stuck her bare feet out her window, a smile appearing as soon as the wind hit them. Wiggling her toes, she closed her eyes and sighed. We were both still reluctant to turn on the air conditioner, although I knew eventually the heat would win and we would cave under the sweltering sun.
As much pain as I was in, it all went away when I saw the look of pure relaxation on her face, on her entire body, as she just enjoyed the moment. For a few moments, we drove in silence.
With her eyes still closed she asked, "What?"
Shaking my head, I turned back to the road, glancing at the GPS. About five hours left.
"Do you think he has someone there?" I couldn't resist asking, curious to find out what she was thinking.
"Edward?" she looked over at me, and I nodded. "Nah, probably just doing something. Edward would never bring someone home."
While my first instinct was to agree with her, I wondered why. Why would Edward have not brought someone home while we were both gone? In fact, why hadn't he brought anyone home since…
I looked over at Bella, her hair blowing, her face relaxed as she tapped her feet to the music on the radio.
My answer was sitting right next to me and I had never realized it.
"Roger Moore or Sean Connery?" she offered
That was how our little debate had started. A innocent little game of This or That, which had turned into a full debate.
"Moore," I replied quickly.
"You've got to be kidding?" she disagreed, pivoting her head toward me, opening one eye with a raised brow.
It was going to be a fucking long five hours.
It hadn't changed one bit.
In the setting sun, the wide streets were clean and lined with aging brick buildings. Empty storefront with "For Lease" signs littered the main street where there used to be small local businesses. Two boys walked out of a store, sodas in their hands as they climbed on their bikes and I couldn't help but smile.
Bella was sitting up, eagerly looking out her window as we slowly drove down the street.
"So what do you think?" I asked, glancing over at her.
"It's quaint, smaller than I imagined," she answered, staring at the buildings along First Street.
"It's not as small as it seems, just spread out. I spent most of my time on the base, but we came down here quite a bit. "
After a few turns, we drove by Oscar Rose Park and heard the small crowd of parents cheering on the baseball teams.
"Did you go to these schools?" she inquired as we drove by a small middle school.
"Nope, I was schooled on base."
"It must have been a different life."
"Definitely, but not one I would pass up. There is a certain atmosphere living on a base that you can't get anywhere else. The sense of family is overwhelming. Everyone looks out for everyone else, you are all living under the same circumstances. There is no real 'keeping up with the Jones' because there are none."
A few blocks later, I pulled over and put the truck into park. Looking around, Bella took in her surroundings. We were parked in front of a small, single-level white house. No white picket fence, just a small front yard with a small attached garage and truck parked in the driveway. Wicker furniture sat on the small porch, and a plant hanging looked dried from the heat.
"Where are we?" Bella asked as I put my hand on the door, and she did the same.
"You'll see," I chuckled, carefully getting out of the car. As we crossed the street, the wooden door on the front of the house opened.
Almost my height, he was a bit heavier than me, but his hair was as black as I remembered, although the shorter cut hid his natural curls. Grinning, he walked toward me, but as we got closer, his smile faded.
"Jesus, what the fuck happened to you?"
"I ran into some friends of yours." I answered, stopping a few feet from him, sizing him up.
"Aw, damn, I'm sorry, they weren't supposed to touch the face," he smirked, digging his hands into his jean pockets as he shifted back and forth on his cowboy boots.
"Dock the fuckers' pay then, because they definitely touched the face. My modeling days are on hold now."
He laughed. "As if that was ever an option, you ugly fuck."
At that, Bella giggled. Standing close enough next to me to be holding my hand, dressed in red tee-shirt and jean shorts, she looked radiant with her cheeks sun-kissed pink and her hair tied back.
When she laughed, my heart skipped a beat, and he gave her a Cheshire grin.
"This pretty little thing must be Bella," he grinned, turning on his southern boy charm for all it was worth. The 'aw shucks' ma'am routine always won the ladies over.
"Yes, and you are?" Dazed by his light gray eyes and sparkling grin, Bella blushed at his attentions.
"Peter."
Thanks for reading~
