and another chapter. yes, I know, this is meant to be a Bella and Jasper story, and it's going to be one, so you're going to see some interaction of the two in the next chapter, but for now, bear with me (and don't kill me: I going to need everything that happens in this chapter later, yes, everything!)

twilight still belongs to Sm

5

Edward' POV

That was a really close call. Jasper had been good all week, and maybe that was what made us careless today.

He had been straining to change his gym class, as there is a boy in mine who keeps getting nosebleeds – not good. Alice's was no option either, as she is in an all girls dance class, so we agreed to have him in the volleyball group on his own.

Shortly after the last period I heard Alice in my head, desperately telling me to get to Jasper as fast as I could. I made a decision to do that and could see what the danger was at once: He had taken a girl – that silly Jessica creature – for a walk to the woods and wanted to drain her. Knowing that Alice would text Emmett as well, I tore off in the direction I had seen them disappear.

Damnit! We had all seen that she had been flirting wildly with him all week. She had even shamelessly pretended to stumble going to the cafeteria once so that he would be obliged to steady her, and she could end up in his arms. If anyone had behaved like that in my time, their reputation would have been ruined once and for all, but unfortunately things have changed quite a lot since then.

As soon as I was out of the public eye, I ran at full speed, and soon I could hear her talking in that annoying voice from afar – at least she was still talking. Then she stopped. Oh god! I ran faster and came to a clearing where Jasper had her pressed against a broad tree trunk, his face buried at her neck. Too late – only, I could smell no blood yet, strange. And she wasn't screaming either. Jasper had his hands up her short skirt and was rubbing himself against her. Her thinking was incoherent though while her breath came in short gasps, and I could hear my newest brother moan with pleasure. So soft and warm, yes, just like that, more, oh, you're killing me. Yes, yes…ah…

I simply didn't know what to do or how to react in that situation. Suddenly Emmett and Rosalie whisked by me, and Rosalie cleared her throat right next to Jasper. "Eh – Jasper?"

When he turned to us, we could all see his excited black eyes, and his expression mirrored his thoughts completely: How am I going to attack and get rid of them all quickly? He was growling under his breath so quietly that only we could hear him.

Emmett and I went to Rosalie's side at once, but before we could say anything, Jessica hissed at us to get lost. "Can't you see we want to be alone?"

Rosalie made an exasperated sound and looked at the girl as if she was a slightly disgusting bug. She took hold of Jasper's arm and turned him to her. "Excuse us, Jessica, but my brother has a very important appointment in Olympia, and we're already late."

I certainly admired my sister's courage in touching a vampire who was so clearly going to fight for his meal, and Emmett was thinking the same, because he took her arm away at once. "Hey, bro, we really need to get on the road if you want to be on time with your parole man, come on."

Jessica's colour changed when she heard the word parole, and I could hear her chastising herself for falling in with the bad guy. "Eh – Jazz, I'll be …like… leaving then if you have to be somewhere else, right?" With that she took herself off straightening her clothes on the way, her face by now beet red with shame at having been found making out by her boyfriend's siblings.

Emmett stopped Jasper from going for Rosalie and me by planting himself firmly in his way. "No! If you have to fall off the wagon, you have to do it elsewhere, man, not with the greatest gossip of our school. Now calm the hell down!"

Jasper's growling stopped, and he turned away in shame. "I… I'm sorry, I need to be alone." With that he took off running just seconds before Alice appeared in the clearing with us.

"You don't need to go after him, he's not going to hurt anyone", she panted breathlessly. "Sorry, I couldn't get out in time."

"Are you really sure about him?" Rosalie asked.

"Yes, Rose, I need him, and think: he has been so good all week. We just need to go hunting on the weekend, and then he will be fine. We all know it gets easier."

Rose still looked doubtful, but Emmett nodded. "At least a little and you're right, with all those females making eyes at him all week he was bound to slip."

"What a wonderful prospect", Rosalie scoffed, and inwardly I agreed.

Alice however was still unfazed. "I have a solution for that already, and I'm going to convince him of it." With that she skipped away in the direction Jasper had gone minutes earlier.

"What's she got in mind now?" Emmett asked me.

I shrugged. "She wants to get him to play her boyfriend from next week onwards. That might actually stop people like Jessica; I don't think they are all that comfortable with getting in our little sister's way."

Emmett grinned. "Absolutely, the pixie is one tough little fighter. She would probably tear any girl to bits who so much as glanced at him."

"Like that's going to save us here", Rosalie said in a grave voice. "OK, folks, let's go. I think the show is over for now."

We got into my Volvo and went home.

Jasper's POV

School had been harder than I cared to admit to my new family. I had not been in such close proximity to humans since I had been turned, and I think only the time I spent around Bella and the prospect of her arriving in a few days made this possible.

What I had been completely unprepared for, was the reactions of the human girls. I sensed some curiosity and ultimately resentment from the boys at the school, but from the girls I got nothing but interest and in the worst case unadulterated lust. Ok, I know we are attractive to humans, it helps us hunt, but it's just one more problem with being an empath that you have to deal with these feelings as well.

Being in a gym class with Edward didn't help either, just the opposite, because most of the girls there had been making eyes at him for some time it seemed, and those who didn't want me, were drooling about him. I got out of that class, only to find myself in a group with Jessica Stanley, a girl who had been flirting quite aggressively already all week. By Friday afternoon I was weakened enough to give in to her. The predator part of my mind had taken care to get her away from school, and had it not been for the others' timely arrival, she would have met her end right there.

I was deeply ashamed and frustrated when I realised what I had done. I had no idea how they were going to cover up my gaffe, I had put my new family, who had taken me in and trusted me, in danger of exposure, and I could feel disappointment coming from Edward and resentment from Rosalie. Emmett only gave off pity, which was worst, so I ran – my usual response to stress. I was sure I would be running out of the country, I had no idea how to ever face them again.

Soon I could sense another vampire following me; I heard small feet lightly touching the ground as the pursuer ran to catch up with me. Right now I did not need anyone confronting me – I hated myself and the world to boot, I was sure that I was no good to anyone, especially not the nice people who had taken me in. Becoming involved with Bella, that sweet human girl who was my mate, was completely out of the question for a monster such as me, so the best I could do was take myself away from her as far as possible. I turned aggressively and growled a warning.

"Shh, Jasper, it's me, please don't run!" Alice was next to me the next second, holding up her small hands to me in supplication. When I didn't say anything she came closer and started stroking me carefully, radiating desire. That was the last straw. I gave in and took her right there on the forest floor, again and again.

When I came to my senses again after a couple of hours I was mortified, completely disgusted with myself. "Alice, I'm… I don't know what to say…"

"Shh, it's ok. That was really nice." She was smiling and running her hand through my hair, and I could feel nothing but satisfaction and happiness from her.

Oh no. Better get this over with as soon as possible. "Alice, I'm really sorry, but I am not your mate, I do not love you." Now she could start tearing me apart.

"I know, but I still liked it. You definitely needed some loving and…" She was still cheerful about the whole thing.

I scowled at her. "I was using you. Everybody was throwing lust at me, and I needed release. I'm despicable. I'm an animal. I better leave at once before I end up tearing Esme apart for having a loving nature."

"Hey, can you stop beating yourself up? You didn't exactly hear me screaming for you to stop, did you?"

No, she hadn't been, but I knew the perks of being an empath, my female kills had never protested until the very last moment. "Mm, but your whole family is in danger of exposure because of me."

She got up and pulled me with her. "Don't worry, we'll deal with it. Besides, Jessica is not going to blab her mouth about making out with you after only knowing you for four days. She's going to keep her distance because she's scared, and because you and I will turn up together from now on."

I got dressed and wrapped my shirt around her small shoulders. Her clothes had not survived my attack. My face must still have been registering scepticism at my ability to stay with the family, at which she shook her head. "Do you honestly think that that was the first slip-up in our arrangement?" She frowned at my shirt which was going almost to her knees. "You're going to have to do something about your dress-sense, though, or no one is going to believe I'm with you."

I swallowed. "Alice, I love someone else…" I did not want to go into detail, not sure what would happen if this high-strung vampire found out I loved a human, but she interrupted me again.

"I know. Jasper, as long as you stay with us, I'm fine with that."

"I'm not going to play your boyfriend to the family."

She shrugged. "No problem. I can deal with that." With that she took off for the house at top speed, and I followed, hoping I'd still have a chance at a life with the Cullens. I was sure now that Alice had some kind of hidden agenda she was not telling anyone, and that that was what made her so eager to keep me with her – not a confidence-inspiring prospect, but as Bella would be arriving on Wednesday, there was not a lot I could do about it if she wasn't willing to be frank.

Emmett was grinning broadly when we came into the house together, and Esme too seemed quite elated by what she supposed to have happened. Edward and Rosalie were still sceptical and Carlisle asked me into his study for a talk.

Alice came along and talked Carlisle into giving me a second chance easily. Apparently he is as susceptible to her charm as all the other males in the family, and I have to admit that I'm affected by that as well. Caught between revealing my human mate and endangering her or feigning to have feelings for the woman I had been making love to for the past two hours, I took the easy way out, hoping to be able to set the record straight at some point in the near future.

What still had me very uneasy though was the thought that I still did not know how much about my future plans Alice knew, and how much she was prepared to do to get them to agree with hers.

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