Chapter Fifteen
As soon as Bella and Charlie left I made quick work of washing dishes. Time was running out quickly and I couldn't wait to see Bella again; especially after seeing her in that dress. And particularly because I didn't want to leave her alone with the dangers after her. I stored the leftovers in the fridge and decided to just go over and wait for Bella. I opted to drive to the Swan residence, parking at the end of the block so as not to be noticed.
Bella and Charlie were already home when I reached the house, and I took no time in scaling the trees to reach Bella's window, letting out a sigh of relief that they had made it home without any interruptions. The window was closed, but Bella entered the room a moment later, hanging her jacket on the hook behind her door. I tapped lightly, startling her.
"Jasper," she smiled as she threw open the window to let me in.
"Hello darlin'," I drawled, once again taking in her appearance. I knew there was a reason I was so insistent she buy that dress. I picked her up and twirled her in my arms, inhaling her scent.
Bella giggled when I set her back down, holding onto me for balance. She sobered up quickly as she looked at me though. "I really missed you," she told me softly.
"I know," I responded in the same soft tone. I opened my arms and Bella stepped forward for another hug. For several minutes we stood there quietly just reveling in the feel of one another until Bella stepped back.
"I'm going to change and get ready for bed," Bella told me, wiping her eyes. She excused herself to the bathroom to go through her nightly rituals while I waited impatiently for her return. I kicked off my shoes and grabbed an extra blanket from her closet, noting the neat pile of clothes that I usually left at her house waiting to be picked up and leave forever. This small reminder of our parting nearly undid me. I walked slowly back to the bed, feeling for all the world like giant weights were dragging me down.
But then Bella stepped back into her room dressed in her sweats and sweater and I smiled again. She wasted no time in climbing into bed and turning off the light. Bella settled under the covers and grabbed my hand squeezing it lightly.
"Thanks for dinner," she told me quietly. "Charlie really enjoyed himself. I think you've won him over."
I laughed. "Well they do say the quickest way to a man's heart is through his stomach. I'm just hoping he asks me on a date soon," I teased.
Bella punched me lightly, grinning. She moved from her position against the headboard to lie against my chest. "I like you in a vest," she said after a while. I raised my eyebrow at her and she shrugged. "It's kind of sexy."
"I wish I'd known sooner," I told her, running my hands through her hair again, "I'd have worn a vest every day." Bella sighed and leaned into my touch. "Have I told you yet how amazing you looked tonight, darlin'?"
"Only about a million times," she replied, eyes closed.
"Not nearly enough then," I declared. Bella smiled but didn't reply. "You can sleep sweetheart," I told her after a while.
Bella bolted upright, catching me by surprise. "Sleep!" she cried in a hushed whisper. "Why would I waste my time doing that? Besides it's only…nine o'clock."
"Alright then, what is it you plan on doing exactly?" I asked her, grabbing her hand once more.
"Reveling," she said, bringing our hands up to her face and rubbing her cheek on the back of my hand.
"That does sound like a good plan," I conceded, bringing our hands to my lips to kiss her hand in response. I reached over to click off the light as Bella relaxed once again. I carefully lifted Bella closer to me, inhaling her scent. My throat was constricted with emotion; this would be our last night together.
"I'm sad too," Bella told me quietly, pressing closer to me.
"Sorry darlin', I didn't mean for you to know," I told her, trying and failing to put up my usual barriers. "It's just so hard."
"I don't want it to end," Bella whispered and I could smell the salt of tears.
"Me neither," I responded, rubbing circles on her back.
It was quiet for a while as we both tried to get our emotions under control. Soon Bella began to fidget. "Can we go somewhere or do something?" she asked. "I can't stand just lying here letting time tick by."
"What would you like to do?" I asked, glad now that I had decided to drive.
"I don't know. Let's…stargaze or something. It doesn't matter really." Bella sat up, swinging her legs over the side of her bed. She grabbed her camera and turned around to face me.
I grabbed the two blankets off the bed and a pillow before motioning Bella to me. I wrapped her in the blankets and handed her the pillow before lifting her in arms. "The mountain?" I asked, heading toward the window. It would be a lot easier to jog up there than take the car. I paused to consider for a moment. It would probably still be quite chilly to Bella despite her two blankets. "Do you have any matches?" I normally carried a lighter around with me, but matches would be better to start a fire.
"Yeah, in the bathroom," Bella replied. She paused after I let her down. "Is Charlie asleep?"
"Yes, he's been asleep for about ten minutes," I told her. "As long as you're quiet he shouldn't wake up." Bella nodded and tiptoed out of the room to retrieve the matches. When she returned she let out a sigh and I smiled at her before picking her back up. "Very stealthy. Quite unlike you," I teased and Bella rolled her eyes. "Are you ready then?"
Bella nodded, anxiety welling up in her once more. I kissed her forehead as she closed her eyes then jumped out the window and began the trek up the mountain. Bella's heart rate soon returned to normal and she had even chanced a look around by the time we arrived at the mountain. I set her down and laid out one of the blankets on the ground for Bella to sit on.
"I'm going to grab some wood for the fire," I told her. I quickly gathered some dry pine needles, not the easiest thing to find in rainy Forks, small twigs and lastly had to break off some large branches. Bella was staring at the sky by the time I returned and began to set up the fire. I cleared an area and set some rocks around as a precaution before setting up the dry tinder and twigs in a teepee fashion, before lighting a match and sticking it under. The flames licked up easily and when a nice sized flame was going I went ahead and added the larger branches.
Once I was sure the fire would survive I walked back to Bella and lay down next to her. She reached over and grabbed my hand as we stared up at the black skies, littered with a sea of stars.
"The clouds make them kind of hard to see, but they're still beautiful," she told me. "And they make me feel very small and insignificant."
"You're definitely not insignificant," I told her.
Bella turned to look at me. "But I'm small?"
I grinned at her. "Maybe a little."
Bella huffed. "Well we can't all be six foot three Greek gods," she grumbled.
"You a six foot Greek god? Now that doesn't sound attractive at all," I told her.
Bella blushed, turning back up to stare at the stars. "Mr. Whitlock, I daresay you're coming on to me," she breathed.
"Well Miss Swan," I drawled, "I do believe you were the one who insisted she needed help decorating the other side of her neck. What's a poor boy to think?"
Bella opened her mouth to respond but the scarlet face she sported hinted at her inability to speak. Instead she hastily whipped her face back up to the stars.
"Sorry," I chuckled.
"No you're not," she told me.
"Not one bit," I conceded. When Bella didn't respond I got a bit worried. "Bella? Are you mad at me?" I asked, sitting up to lean on my arm and stare down at her.
Bella's eyes fell to the fire, now crackling merrily but not giving off quite as much heat as I wanted. "No," she said after a while. "Just…conflicted."
"Hmm?"
"Well, I do want to kiss you," she explained, refusing to look at me while blood pooled in her cheeks again. "But I don't know if I'll be able to handle all of the…consequences."
"Edward? Alice?"
"Oh! That too," Bella began, rushing forward to her explanation. "But I'm just worried that if I kiss you now I won't be able to stand seeing Alice kiss you and I wonder if I'll think about it all the time, and it might hurt too much later on." Bella took a deep breath, sitting up and letting the blanket fall off her shoulders. "And then I wonder if maybe it's cheating, even though we asked for one more day to be together even though we know we'll be going back to Alice and Edward soon, but I really want to, and to hell with all the consequences!" she declared, making up her mind as she ended her tirade and surprised me with her lips.
I reacted instantly, snaking my arms around her and pulling her closer. The kiss was charged with need and want and urgency. A desperation that we were both feeling at this being one of the last times we would ever kiss, ever hold each other. Bella broke off the kiss long before I wanted it to end and for once I cursed her human need to breathe. Once she caught her breath I leaned in again to kiss her, but this time it was sweet and not rushed; I wanted to take whatever time left I had to explore whatever part of her I could.
Bella wound her fingers in my hair, puling me closer to her as she deepened the kiss, her tongue going on its own exploration voyage. When Bella ran her tongue across the roof of my mouth I moaned as my lust returned full force. I broke from her mouth with the determination leaving my mark on the other side of her neck and possibly other places.
I suckled at a spot on the right side of her neck, careful not to graze her with my teeth. That was one mark that I'd really rather not leave her with.
"It's not fair," Bella moaned when I finally moved to another spot on her neck. I made a questioning noise, unwilling to leave my current occupation. "I can't give you a hickey, can I?"
I finished off leaving my mark before I pulled back to grin at her. "Probably not, but I won't stop you from trying darlin'," I told her, my voice rough.
Bella bit her lip, self-conscious but then, after a small deliberation with herself, shrugged and leaned in to kiss me. I was fully ready to deepen our kiss, but Bella surprised me by moving her lips to my jawbone then slowly making her way down to my neck. I shivered when she found the spot she wanted to try and began her ministrations, lightly sucking at the spot then moving to grazing it with her teeth. When she nipped the spot I couldn't help but moan, encouraging her to continue.
At last, after several minutes of no result, Bella pulled back, huffing at the spot. I moaned again at the loss of her mouth and opened my eyes to see her looking slightly annoyed. I pulled her back closer to me, kissing her gently.
"Trust me darlin', even if you haven't left a physical mark, I won't forget that for the rest of my life," I whispered.
This had the unintended effect of causing tears to spring to Bella's eyes as the reality of our situation seemed to crash down on her again. Furthermore, it effectively killed the mood.
"Sorry," she mumbled, wiping at the tears that were escaping. "It's just that every time I think about it I can't help myself."
I pulled Bella close to me so that we were both sitting facing the fire. I wrapped the blanket around her when she shivered and readjusted my arms around her as she leaned back against me. "Don't be sorry," I told her. "I only wish I had the same outlet as you. Sometimes I honestly miss crying."
Bella hugged my arms closer to her, kissing one of them. We watched the fire for a while as it popped and cracked, sending its heat towards us and casting Bella in a gorgeous light.
"Oh!" Bella cried, "let's take a picture." She reached over to grab her forgotten camera and I took it from her hands.
"One, two, three," I counted off before clicking off a picture. I set the camera off to the side and wrapped my arms around Bella once more. For the next couple of hours we alternated between light conversation, stargazing, and sweet kisses.
After yawning for the millionth time Bella tilted her head to look at me. "Don't let me fall asleep," she requested.
I shook my head and smiled at her. "I like watching you sleep," I told her. "It's interesting. And besides, you have school tomorrow."
Bella groaned. "You've got to be kidding me. I totally forgot," she complained.
"What are you dreading so much?" I asked her after a moment.
"I just remembered; everyone knows you're back in town. They're bound to ask me questions. And now your story has changed; the family is moving back in."
I groaned internally. Bella was right; I now had to fix my story, 'deliver the good news' if you will. And not to mention, there went all my plans of being public with Bella. The Stanley women also wouldn't be too happy to learn that Alice and I were back together the day after I tell them we've broken up. What a mess.
"No wonder you're dreading school," I agreed. "But you should still sleep. I'll carry you back."
Bella jutted her chin out stubbornly. "I don't want to," she said firmly.
I just smiled at her. "Anything you say darlin'," I told her, resting my chin on her shoulder.
Despite her adamant protests, Bella was slowly slipping into sleep. She fought it off for another hour, but around two-thirty she couldn't keep her eyes open any longer. I held her for a while, listening to her steady heartbeat, perfect in its rhythm, and just held Bella for a while longer. After a while she began to mumble in her sleep, just bits and pieces, mostly from our events today. Every time she said my name was pure bliss and utter agony. Her face contorted at one point and I smoothed the hair from her face. It had the effect I wanted and Bella relaxed into a smile.
At about three thirty the fire died out and Bella began to get cold. I gathered her in my arms and shook out the other blanket before wrapping it around her. I sandwiched the camera and pillow between us and began a light jog back to Bella's house. She slept peacefully enough the entire way and only woke up when I tucked her back into bed, getting a fresh blanket from the closet to replace the one covered with leaves.
I lay down next to her and she turned towards me, curling up. She opened her eyes and blinked blearily before smiling.
"I love you," she sighed.
I felt my throat constrict and sadness wash over me. "I love you too darlin'," I told her. Bella smiled and snuggled closer to me, promptly falling back to sleep. I wished time would slow down, grant me this one moment of happiness to last a little longer, but it was cruel. The minutes ticked by in less than sixty seconds each and each hour turned after only ten minutes, or so it seemed. Because one moment Bella was mumbling about strawberries and rain, and the next her alarm was ringing.
Bella groaned, turning over to hit the snooze button. She snuggled back in the covers and sighed contentedly. It took her twenty-seven seconds to bolt upright and whip around to look at me.
"I fell asleep," she moaned, upset.
"Good morning to you too," I said, opening my arms.
"'Morning," Bella said sheepishly laying back down and allowing me to envelop her in my arms. We were quiet for a long while as we waited for the inevitable to come.
Right on cue Charlie came knocking on Bella's door. "Bells? You awake?"
"Yeah Dad."
"All right then." His footsteps shuffled down the stairs.
"I guess I should get ready," Bella said reluctantly.
"I'll be here," I told her.
Bella bit her lip and nodded her head, jumping out of bed and grabbing her toiletries bag and a change of clothes. While she got ready for the day I stretched out across her bed, hugging a pillow to me. It smelled of her, but nothing compared to actually holding Bella in my arms. Edward was one lucky guy.
All too soon Bella returned, her face heavy. Neither of us said a word as Bella gathered her bag and put on her jacket. We waited until Charlie pulled out of the driveway before heading downstairs hand in hand. I took one last glance around as I left, walking over to Bella's truck. I made to get in the passengers side but Bella shook her head.
"I don't think I can drive right now," she whispered, tears making her eyes glisten.
I nodded and helped Bella in before heading over to the other side. We didn't speak the entire way but held hands. I drove slower than normal, probably even slower than Bella normally drove. Our arrival at school marked the end of…everything. By the time school was out Edward and Alice would be back and Bella and I would no longer exist in that sense. It took all my will power not to purposefully crash the truck or somehow break it down. Delaying our arrival wouldn't stop the inevitable.
All too soon we arrived. Bella and I sat in her truck quietly as students milled around us. We just stared at one another until the bell rang, an ominous sound. It sounded more like a knell than a school bell. I reached up and wiped some tears from Bella's face, and she leaned into the touch.
I kissed her once more, and she clung to me desperately. I pulled back quickly, unable to handle everything.
"I love you darlin'," I told her helplessly.
"I love you Jasper. I love you," Bella replied, her eyes closed in an effort to stem the flow of tears. She took a deep breath and looked at me one more time, her eyes roaming my face, searching my eyes, before she opened her door and stepped outside. Bella glanced back once just before she entered the school, and then she disappeared, swept away by the sea of students forcing their way inside in a rush to get to class.
But I understood the question in her eyes, the uncertainty in her face. I'm sure it was reflected in my own demeanor. As I stepped outside into the downpour of rain I let the question we were both thinking hit me as mercilessly as the rain.
Had we made the right choice?
**
I felt as though I regressed back to last October. Stalking Bella from afar really sucked. I climbed to my old vantage point in a tree that usually gave me a good view of wherever Bella would be. I focused in on one room, craning my head to see through the window to where Bella usually sat and was surprised to find she wasn't there. And neither was Angela. Alarmed, I focused on trying to hear her voice.
At last I located it. I jumped to another tree to get closer to the faint sound and in doing so felt an overwhelming wave of sadness and sympathy.
"Bella, what's wrong? What is it?" I heard Angela say, worry lacing her voice.
Bella, however, was quite incapable of speaking, as evidenced by her quiet sobs. I imagined Bella with her face in her hands, trying her best to stop her tears. After ten painful minutes of listening to and feeling Bella's heartache, Angela mercifully tried again.
"It's alright Bella. Do you want to talk about what happened?" I figured that Bella nodded because Angela continued, "Was it something at home? Charlie?" A rustle as Bella shook her head and sniffed. "Your mom? No? Uh...is it a guy? Really! Is it, um, Edward?" There was another muffled sob from Bella. "No? Someone else?" Angela's voice was incredulous and I couldn't blame her; Bella hardly interacted with her friends, let alone potential love interests.
Bella cleared her throat and sniffled. "Jasper," she managed to get out as another wave of pain emanated from her general direction.
I knew I really shouldn't be eavesdropping, but I couldn't help it. I dropped down and ran to sit against the building,not 10 feet away from Bella. I was again grateful for the downpour, as it assured me protection from being spotted by human eyes.
"J-Jasper?" Angela spluttered. "As in Jasper Hale? Edward's brother?" Angela's curiosity was getting the better of her now, but she fought to keep it reigned in. "Do you want to talk about it?"
There was a few moments of silence before the words gushed out of Bella's mouth.
"Well, I guess it all really started in January. Jasper...showed up one night, and we got to talking. You know how much I miss them, I was more than happy that Jasper was back here. Well after that Jasper and I began to talk more and more. I...told him about what happened with Edward, and he told me that he and Alice had broken up, or taken a break, a few months ago. And-oh Ang, he's just really great. It just felt right, in spite of everything else. When I'm with him everything is perfect. I can't describe it; he makes me so happy." Bella laughed a little. "Ugh, I sound like Jessica."
Angela giggled. "You sound like you're in love," she observed.
Bella sighed. "I am."
"Then what's wrong?" Angela prompted. "He doesn't love you back?"
"He does," Bella whispered glumly, and I could smell the salt of new tears. "But we can't be together."
"Because he's living in Los Angeles?"
"No. It's...well, we only found out yesterday for sure, but the Cullens are moving back," Bella informed her friend quietly. I wondered if Angela would catch the double meaning.
"Oh," Angela breathed, comprehension dawning on her. "Alice and Edward will be back." There was a silence. "Are you getting back together with Edward? Or is Jasper going with Alice?"
"Both. It's really complicated. But we just decided that it would be best for everyone if we didn't see each other anymore. But now I don't know what's right and what's wrong."
"Why?"
"I still love Edward, and Jasper loves Alice," Bella explained. "I want to be with Edward. But...when I think about Jasper with Alice, think about life without him, I can't even...I just...Ugh. But if we were to stay together, how awkward would family dinners be?"
"Pretty awkward," Angela agreed.
"I said goodbye to him today. I don't know if I'll be able to handle seeing him for a while."
"Oh Bella," Angela sighed. "I know it's going to be hard, but try and be happy when Edward comes back. You two were really great together, and I know he makes you unbelievably happy too."
Bella sniffed again. "I know," she said, voice wavering. "That I can stand. Seeing Jasper with Alice is another story."
I left then, before Angela could go into all out "cheer-up-Bella-with-reasons-she-loves-Edward" mode. I walked slowly over to the protection of the trees and located my cellphone from within my jacket, flipping it open and pushing number nine on my speed dial.
It rang for a long time before anyone picked up. "Hello?" came the rough voice of Jacob Black. Didn't he go to school anymore?
"It's Jasper," I told him.
There was a shuffling as Jacob readjusted the phone. "What's going on?"
I opened my mouth to speak but the words stuck in my throat. I cleared it before trying again. "I just wanted to inform you that Edward and Alice have returned. The rest of the family are also moving back."
Jacob was silent for a few moments. "You didn't," he said at last.
"Didn't what?" I asked, confused. Jacob's vague attitude was doing nothing to help my mood.
"You and Bella. You're letting her go back to Edward? After everything?" I clenched my jaw. I knew Jacob was right, but it was complicated. And running over there right now to show Jacob exactly why he shouldn't be talking to me in that incredulous tone really wasn't the most strategic move.
"It's what was best," I said automatically. Because it was, wasn't it?
Jacob sighed heavily. "I guess I just can't win," he muttered. "How is she?"
I grit my teeth. "How do you think?" I asked acerbically. For as intelligent as Jacob normally was, he was acting really stupid.
"What bad huh. And how are you?"
"I-what?"
"How. Are. You?" Jacob reiterated.
"I heard you the first time. I just--" I let out a deep breath. "Terrible."
"I'm sorry," Jacob said quietly.
"Me too," I agreed. Silence reigned and ate away at me. "Don't you have school?" I asked eventually.
I could practically hear the grin on Jacob's face. "The elder's don't much care whether or not I go everyday. Just as long as I pass."
I shook my head but a smile found it's way to my mouth anyway. Leave it to Jacob Black to make even his natural enemy feel better. "Well look. I've got a couple more hours before Alice and Edward return, but then I'll have to meet with them. I don't know what Bella's going to do after school."
"Don't worry, I got it covered. We still on for tomorrow night?"
"Yes. But warn your pack; I have a feeling there will be more than one Cullen attending."
"As long as Edward keeps his distance I'll play nice," Jacob growled.
"I'll make sure he gets the message," I told Jacob. I hung up the phone, storing it carefully back in my jacket to protect it from the rain. I was still reeling from the fact that Jacob Black and I were having civil conversations. I guess it was true--the enemy of my enemy is my friend. And Jacob and Edward were definitely enemies.
But Jacob was right in his questions. Was it really the right thing to do, going back to our former mates?
I didn't know. The only thing I knew for sure was that every moment away from Bella was killing me more and more.
**
A hunt was necessary at this point. It had been too long, and the oncoming stress would make me far more liable to attack a human. While Bella's blood didn't call to me anymore, that didn't exclude everyone else's. I couldn't be expected to act normally around humans if all I was thinking about was the sweet pulse of blood just beneath their skin.
Nope, it was definitely time to hunt. The only problem was that the rain drove most of the animals inside of their homes. I had to run fairly far North before I was lucky enough to come across a small herd of deer. Even my normal distaste for animal blood seemed amplified. Of course it could have just been my terrible mood exacerbating things.
After my second deer I stopped, despite knowing that I really ought to have one more. I would have just felt too nauseous by the repugnant taste had I still been able to feel it. All the same I discarded the bodies and began my run back to Forks. I was slightly worried, having left Bella for so long.
I stopped in my tacks. I couldn't be worried anymore. Bella wasn't mine to worry about.
But that didn't seem right either, so I compromised.
I wouldn't worry about Bella anymore....after we got rid of Victoria and Laurent.
A little voice added something about every other entity that was surely bound to find its way to Bella and want to cause her harm, but I ignored it. As Bella constantly said, we should focus on the present.
Which included my phone vibrating. I stopped near the edge of Forks and answered.
"Jasper." Ahh, Alice. Her voice was still one of the loveliest things I'd ever heard.
"Hello Alice. Are you back now?"
"Yes, we've just arrived at the house. We've got some things to unpack," she informed me.
"I'll be there soon," I told her. I couldn't help but stop by the school just to make sure Bella was doing as well as she could. She was doing slightly better. I could distinguish Mike Newton's voice among the rest doing his best to cheer her up. It seemed to be working a little, and I had to give him credit for that. Unfaltering Mike Newton. Maybe he wasn't such a bad kid after all.
I returned to the Cullen house to find Alice and Edward unpacking boxes from Edward's car and a rental truck. Alice danced her way up to me and grinned up up at me, her eyes searching mine. I smiled back down at her. She grabbed my hand and led me over to the boxes.
Edward, I thought as I passed him by. He nodded his head towards me.
Alice loaded some boxes in my arms before grabbing some for herself and leading the way inside. "Emmett and Esme will be here tonight," Alice bubbled. "Carlisle and Rosalie will be here tomorrow afternoon."
My mouth was moving before I realized it. "Do they know?"
Alice paused mid-sentence and her mouth puckered into a displeased circle. "As much as they need to," she clipped, continuing her walk up the stairs.
I shifted the boxes into one arm and tugged the back of Alice's shirt gently. "Alice."
"I didn't see the need to tell them now that it's done, and neither did Edward," she said, not turning around.
Didn't see the need because they figured that what Bella and I had wasn't real anyway. I could feel myself frowning but didn't bother to hide my displeasure. I started walking again, heading for the old room that Alice and I shared. I set down the boxes I was carrying and began opening them as Alice walked to the closet and opened her own boxes.
The clothes in my first box were unfamiliar. "I bought you new clothes," Alice called from inside the closet where she was hanging her own.
New clothes. My mind jumped back to the mall trip Bella and I took. The clothes were still at her house.
"You can pick them up when we're done unpacking," Alice suggested. "Bella decided to visit La Push after school."
I nodded my head, immediately feeling guilty. I wasn't making this easier for either of us, and Alice really was trying. I walked over to the closet and wrapped my arms around Alice's tiny frame. "Thank you for the clothes," I said softly.
Alice hung up the dress she was holding then twisted around to hug me back. "You're welcome." We embraced for a while, and I felt all the old feelings of love and hope begin to return.
"I missed you," I told her.
Alice stood on her tiptoes to kiss me. "I missed you too."
I smiled down at her. This was natural, easy. I could get used to it once again.
A/N: I'm so incredibly sorry for the long wait! I was in Hawaii and I didn't have any internet, which totally threw me off. But here you go! I hope you enjoyed the chapter.
Now I know there's a lot of anxiety and upset feelings when it comes to the fact that Jasper and Bella have broken up. All I can say right now is not to lose hope, because I am totally Team Jasper.
Thank you to all my reviewers, I'm sorry I can't reply to those not signed in/non-members, but I read all of them and appreciate all your feedback! JaspersBella, you know that without you I'd be a sorry mess. Til next time!