*mushu gif* I LIIIIIVVVEEEE
holy. shit. you guys
it has been AGES waahh i'm so sorry! i'll keep rambling in a second, but first:
BEFORE YOU KEEP READING, READ THIS!
i have EDITED ALL PREVIOUS CHAPTERS and updated them as of 04/04/2022! there have been some minor plot/world-building changes, so i HIGHLY RECOMMEND YOU GO BACK AND READ THEM AGAIN! now! before you read this one! and THEN you can come read this one and it'll be great and totally worth the wait :)
some of the changes involve switching around the timeline (no longer are we set in the olden days of yore, 2003, but instead: the shining new future! 2020..ish...without the plague), and adjustment to my description of vampire physiology, and some other superfluous edits!
speaking of plagues, how fare ye all? it's been a rough one, my dudes. two years and i am much, much different and also exactly the same. whoopsies. since my last update, i have: dropped out of high school (stay in school kids), gotten my GED, been diagnosed with two chronic illnesses, bought a horse, and enrolled in community college! and in like a month i turn 21! shit is bonkers!
(don't tell anyone but i'm totally posting this on campus, and i 100% finished this chapter instead of working on my history paper)
it has been a very, very long time, and i can't promise speedy updates, but please believe me when i say that i think of this story frequently, and that it's never far from my thoughts. i have other spin-offs planned for this series, too! and a post-canon story that's definitely going to be happening, whenever i eventually make it to breaking dawn. whew... three and a half more books. good lord. i hope my turnaround time increases quick here
if you've stayed here with me through all this time, i very sincerely thank you. i hope you enjoy all 7.3k words of this chapter :)
Guin woke up alone.
Her week passed slowly. Much of it was spent with her laying in bed, doped up on painkillers. By the third day she had finished her mock-up (with probably some of the worst stitch work she'd done in ages), leaving her to dig out one of her knitting projects to work on instead between sessions of Pokemon Emerald on her Gameboy and Twilight Princess HD on her Switch. When Bella got home, Guin strong-armed her into telling Guin about her day - anything to break up the boredom while they worked on schoolwork together.
Jasper visited every night.
It was one of those nights, later in the week, when they were cuddled up in bed together. Guin was curled into his chest, his chest rumbling with a purr while they spoke. Jasper told her about his family, what they did to fill the endless nights, and she told him stories of her childhood.
They avoided the conversation about his turning. She had a feeling that it was a bit much, considering the whole world-shifting-revelation of the fact that vampirism is, in fact, a thing.
There was a lull in the conversation, and Guin felt his fingers tangle in the hair at her scalp, cool fingers rubbing at it. She let out a pleased little hum, eyes closing as she settled into his chest more.
"I'll take you to visit my family soon."
Guin shifted, blinking up at him sleepy and confused, "Huh?"
Jasper's lips twitched upwards fondly. "I'll take you to visit my family soon. Esme still wants to meet you. As soon as you can walk properly again, I'll bring you over there."
"You're gonna make me wait that long?" Guin asked, pouting.
Jasper chuckled into her hair. "Mmm… I guess we can go once you're off bedrest. Give you a few days to get used to moving around on the crutches."
Guin let out a pleased "yes!", snuggling closer into his chest, and he grinned into her hair, purr resuming.
The next Tuesday came slowly, but when it did finally come, Guin was practically overwhelmed with her excitement. For all Guin loved her alone time, at heart, she was a social butterfly, and being stuck at home with no one to talk to or nothing especially interesting happening, she felt like her brain was melting from her ears. She was so bored that she was starting to get invested in the afternoon soap operas, and was willingly doing homework, which was unheard of up until that point.
Jasper picked her up that morning. He had asked Charlie permission the night before when he stopped by under the guise of dropping off some of her homework. Charlie, ultimately charmed by Jasper, had said yes. He was helped along by the fact that Guin wouldn't easily be able to get in or out of Bella's truck on her own.
He woke her up early, before Bella woke up, pressing kisses to her cheek and jaw. She smiled at him, sleepy and barely there, batting at his face, and he chuckled into her ear. "Stop, Jazz," she muttered, and he pressed one last kiss to her cheek.
"I'm going to go get my car. You," he hums, tapping her waist pointedly, "should start getting up."
He had come to learn that Guin did not like to be awake early in the mornings, and knew that she'd need time to push herself out of bed. Guin just grumbled a little, even as they both sat up. She dropped her head against his neck for a few moments, and Jasper rubbed his hand up and down her side, pressing his lips to her hairline.
After a few more moments, he tapped her side again, standing up. Guin pouted up at him as he walked towards the window, making grabby hands, and Jasper chuckled again. "I'll be back in thirty minutes. Try to be ready by then."
Guin scoffed, sliding her legs off the bed. "Okay, that's just begging for a miracle. It takes me thirty minutes to get my damn hair to behave."
Jasper just laughed again, dropping down to the ground.
Guin let out a little groan again, falling back to stare at her ceiling through the canopy above her bed. She wanted to go to school, but…
She also wanted to sleep more.
The true trial of her generation - to sleep, or not to sleep?
Snorting at her own ridiculous thoughts, Guin pushed herself up from the bed, balancing on her good leg as she grabbed for her crutches. Her hip truthfully felt much better than she had thought it would only a week into healing. She was still being careful not to put too much weight on it, but the sharp pain had already become less sharp, softening into something more dull.
Guin deliberated for several moments on what to wear. Her routine for the past few days had been totally disrupted, and even now she couldn't do her normal routine. Generally it wasn't as big of an issue, but it seemed even more momentous than usual.
She wanted to wear stockings, but she didn't think she could put them on with her hip all messed up. Her usual routine consisted of undergarments - whether historical or modern - then stockings, a corset, if she was wearing one, then whatever required skirt layers, and her top layers - a blouse and skirt, a dress, whatever.
Finally, she pressed her lips together. Undergarments first, then?
Eventually, she managed to get herself dressed. An orange-and-cream knit sweater, with a fox motif along the yoke, tucked into a brown-orange tartan skirt that fell to her mid-calf over two of her warm wool petticoats. Snagging a pair of hand-knit socks in a similar brown-orange-red colorway, she hesitated some.
Guin debated with herself for a few moments, lips pressed together. Hearing some shuffling in the other bedroom, she called out cautiously.
"Hey, Bella?"
The movement stopped, and her bedroom door opened a moment later, Bella poking her head in.
"Hey, Guinny. Need something?"
"Can you help me get my socks and shoes on? I don't think I can bend over like that yet," Guin asked, sending her a somewhat dramatic pout.
Bella sent her an indulgent smile, laughing a little. "Sure, Guin, I can help you. Which shoes?"
"The black flats, please."
Bella carried both of their bags downstairs. She had offered to help Guin get down them, too, but both girls had decided that, between the two of them, they'd only end up more injured. Once safely on solid ground again, Guin exhaled and limped her way over to the dining room table, dropping into one of the chairs.
She had only been awake less than an hour, and she already felt exhausted.
"You're getting a ride with Jasper today, right?" Bella asked, trying to sound casual but failing.
Guin narrowed her eyes at her twin a bit. "Yeah, he should be picking me up soon. Is everything alright?"
"It's fine," Bella said, sending her a smile, although it looked forced.
Guin frowned a little bit, but let it go. Bella would tell her when she wanted to.
Bella shifted the conversation, asking Guin if she's hungry, although Guin refused any food. She felt vaguely nauseous, actually. Bella made sure she'd taken her pain meds and that she had them with her just in case, and asked if Guin wanted any help with her hair she'd left loose.
Guin refused again — she wouldn't let Bella within twenty feet of her hair, no offense meant. Not after the time she burned one of Guin's curls off with a curling iron.
Bella ate a quick meal of cereal, asking one more time if Guin was hungry. Guin didn't have time to answer before the doorbell rang.
For a strange, ridiculous moment, Guin and Bella stared at each other, both looking like deer in the headlights.
Guin broke first, breaking into a giggle, and moving to stand up and lean on her crutches again. Bella let out a laugh, grabbing Guin's long black coat and her grey scarf and passing them over to her. Much to her despair, Guin's cloak had been ripped in the incident, and she hadn't had a chance to patch it up yet.
They moved over to the door together, and Bella opened it.
Guin smiled when she saw Jasper and she felt that same bubbly, golden champagne feeling in her stomach. He smiled back at her, hands held behind his back.
It was Bella who spoke first, smiling in amusement when Guin and Jasper were both too absorbed in staring at each other. "Good morning, Jasper. How are you?"
"Fine, thank you. And you?" he responded politely, glancing over at Bella with the smallest twitch of his lips. Bella just smiled at him a little, and Jasper turned back to Guin.
"Ready to go, darlin'?"
Guin nodded excitedly and Jasper smiled at her a bit, stepping forwards into the house in order to take her bag from Bella and toss it over his shoulder. Polite as ever, he helped her into her jacket as well, before opening the door for her properly.
Guin called out a goodbye to Bella, and Bella called out a goodbye of her own, waving a little.
Later that week, Guin sat in companionable silence with her family at dinner.
She and Bella had made meatloaf together, with baked potatoes and broccoli because Guin had decided their dad didn't eat enough vegetables.
Guin poked at her food, trying not to frown. She had never had an especially great poker face, especially not with her twin. But she had a question to ask, and she knew Bella wouldn't like it too much.
"Hey, daddy?"
Charlie looked up from his food, swallowing his bite and letting out a questioning hum.
Guin paused again, nudging her food around on her plate. She swallowed, and began hesitantly.
"Um, would it be okay if I went over to Jasper's house this weekend to hang out?"
Bella snapped her head up, looking at her twin in surprise and frustration, and just a hint of underlying jealousy. Guin cringed internally.
Charlie wrinkled his brow some. "Will his parents be there?"
"Mmhm. His entire family, actually," Guin says, and looks over at Bella in time to catch her frustrated expression.
"Hmm," Charlie hummed, "the Cullens are good folk. I suppose it would be fine for you to go, as long as you promise to stay off your leg."
"Absolutely, I promise!"
Saturday morning at 10 o'clock, there was a knock on the front door.
Truthfully, it was excellent timing, because Guin was starting to vibrate in her spot on the couch, staring at the TV playing football almost too intensely. Even her dad was getting uncomfortable, watching her near-buzzing form from his spot at the kitchen table.
As soon as the knock sounded, Guin all but leaped from the couch. In a shockingly graceful move, she nabbed her crutches and moved them to help support her, turning to the door.
"Okay, Dad," she started quickly, locking onto where her bag was sitting on the table, threateningly close to where Charlie had just set down his newly-cleaned shotgun. She loved her dad, but dear God, she did not want him to try and intimidate Jasper.
They hadn't even gone out on a real first date! It's not like Charlie and his rifle would've intimidated Jasper anyway, but it would definitely be a little embarrassing on Guin's part. She had a feeling that her dad would try to make it worse, too.
Charlie didn't even let her get anything else out before he jerked his head towards the dining room table.
"Why don't you sit, Guinny? I'll go get the door."
Guin grimaced, and slowly limped over to the dining room table, sliding into the chair. This was what she really, really wanted to avoid.
Charlie opened up the front door, and Guin's embarrassment fled as soon as she caught sight of golden curls and warm, amber eyes. She felt her heart flutter in her chest, felt butterflies in her stomach, felt a rush of warmth flood her and end in her cheeks.
She saw him just last night, and still, it felt like seeing him for the first time after a very, very long trip.
She missed what was said - watched Jasper reach out to shake Charlie's hand firmly, a polite smile on his face. Charlie stepped back and opened his arm, wordlessly inviting Jasper into their home. He stepped inside, moving past Charlie into the dining room/kitchen area, sending Guin a lovely, sweet smile when he saw her.
"Guinevere," he said, in his low, slow, soft voice, and it took everything in Guin to not melt into a puddle on the floor right there.
"Jasper, hi," she gasped, a little breathless. For some reason, this little game they were playing - pretending like he hadn't just spent the last two weeks sleeping in her bed every night, pretending like they really were just two teenagers crushing on each other, it thrilled her.
The smile never left his mouth, even as his eyes flicked around the room. He caught sight of the shotgun and had just enough time to raise his eyebrows at Guin, before Charlie came back around and slid into his seat again, one hand resting casually on the butt of it.
"So, Jasper," Charlie starts, and Jasper turns to him, shoulders straightening under his gaze, arms held behind his back. Charlie seems to notice Jasper's entirely-too-formal posture, and Guin desperately hopes it somehow endears Jasper to him. "Guin tells me you're going over to your house?"
"Yes, sir," Jasper responds, voice steady and warm and Guin has to forcibly sit on her hands to keep them to herself. "We planned on spending some time with my siblings, and then working on some school work together."
"And your parents will be there?"
"My aunt, sir. Carlisle is working today."
"Esme, right? I think I've seen her around town," Charlie mutters, and Jasper takes a step forwards, extending out a slip of paper held between his thumb and forefinger.
"My aunt wanted me to make sure you got this, it's our house phone, and her and Carlisle's cell numbers. I know that Guinevere has a cellphone, but just in case, she thought it was prudent."
Charlie's demeanor changes as soon as he inspects the numbers written on the slip of paper, and Guin knows that Jasper's successfully on Charlie's green list. Jasper's lips twitch up just barely at the sides, and Guin isn't sure how she catches it, but she does. She has the feeling that this was very much on purpose.
Between what happened after the incident and this small display of just how much Jasper cares, and how much he respects Charlie as Guin's father, it seems that he has firmly cemented himself on Charlie's good side, and it brought Guin unimaginable relief.
If Charlie hadn't liked Jasper, she wasn't sure what she would've done. Died, probably, or wasted away where she sat.
But instead, Charlie leveled Jasper with a serious expression, but Guin knew it was just for show. "You bring her home by 7 o'clock, understood?"
"Understood, sir."
Then, Charlie nodded at Guin, and she jumped up from her chair, grabbing her bag. She doesn't even bother to put it over her shoulder - just passes it on to Jasper who takes it immediately. Guin hobbles over to where her father is, leaning down to press a kiss to his cheek.
"I'll see you tonight, daddy. Love you."
"Love you too, Guin."
Safely outside and away from her ever-protective father, Jasper turns to her on the porch, squeezing her hand in his and sending her a sweet, fond smile. Guin flushes, and giggles a little when he brings her hand to his lips and presses a kiss to her knuckles.
"I missed you, darlin'."
"Oh, God, Jasper, I missed you so much," Guin murmurs, staring at him like he's the entirety of the universe, collected into one being. Jasper drops her hand, pausing to brush his fingers along her cheek with a soft smile.
"Alright darlin', let's get going, before Alice comes and gets us herself."
Guin laughed, and turned to look at the sleek black Mercedes in the driveway. Guin raised an eyebrow, glancing at Jasper. "That's a pretty fancy car, there."
"It's Carlisle's - if I had brought mine, your dad wouldn't have let me take you anywhere," Jasper said as he helped her down the drive, and opened the passenger-side door for her. Guin slid in with a playful smile.
"Oh? And why is that?"
Jasper shut her door, and then loped quickly around to the other side of the car, sliding into the driver's side with a sharp grin - all teeth.
"Because it's a motorcycle."
"O-Oh," Guin looked at him in surprise, sucking her teeth with wide eyes and flushed cheeks. Jasper's grin grew wider as he pulled out of the driveway smoothly. Guin could see his reaction when she whispered out a quiet, breathless, "that's hot." She watched his grip tighten on the steering wheel and how his shoulders flexed under his button-up.
"Be careful what you say, darlin'- I'm not so tame as you think."
The Cullen home was a large, soft white Edwardian mansion in the middle of a large clearing hidden deep in the forest outside of Forks.
The clearing was surrounded by six towering cedar trees that Guin could imagine having been here, in this same place, towering over this clearing since the beginning of time.
The house itself had a wonderful, timeless sort of grace to it. The wraparound porch was made somewhat obsolete due to the long reaching shade of the cedar trees, but she couldn't even comprehend the idea of the house without it. It was three stories tall, rectangular, and Guin was pretty sure that the windows and doors were original, and if they weren't, they were an absolutely stunning reproduction.
Jasper slowed the Mercedes to a stop in the round driveway in front of the house, looking over at Guin. She let out a nervous, giddy little breath, and Jasper chuckled, squeezing her hand gently.
"Darlin', you've already met most of my family. You don't have to be nervous - you know they like you."
"Ugh, I know, it's just… This is different. This is all formal, meeting-the-parents stuff, and I've never done this kind of thing before," she blurted, shaking one hand out nervously, anxious.
Jasper let out one of his soothing, rumbling purrs, and she slowly began to relax, leaning her head against his shoulder.
"You don't need to worry about anything, darlin'. I'll keep you safe, I promise. If you get overwhelmed, we can go to my room, or come outside. Nobody will be offended, I promise."
Guin swallowed, looking up at him with wide eyes. "You promise?"
"I promise. And we can wait here in the car until you're ready to go in," Jasper says, looking down at her and squeezing her hand again. Guin stared up at him, lips trembling and tears pooling in her eyes. Nobody had ever done something like this for her - had never been so accommodating of her needs, and she was suddenly realizing what she had missed out on all this time.
"You'll really just… Leave with me? If I get overwhelmed?"
"I'll always take care of you, darlin'."
Guin swallowed again, nodding, and Jasper reached up to brush off the tears that had overflowed, smiling at her gently. She took several deep breaths, and then nodded once, firmly.
"Okay, I think I'm ready to go in now."
Jasper leaned forwards to press a kiss to her forehead, before pulling back and opening his door.
"Stay there," he commanded, before sliding out and moving quickly around to the passenger side - too fast to be human, but not so fast she couldn't see him. He helped her out of the car, and helped her get situated with the crutches (frustrated, already, about how terribly human and fragile she would look going in there).
Jasper led her inside, dutifully helping her up the steps to the porch, before opening the door for her to go in first.
The inside of the house was brilliant, and all too shocking. It wasn't what she would've expected at all. It was very bright, very open, and very large. Guin figured that the lower level must have originally been several rooms, but the walls had been taken down from most of it to create one large, wide open space. The back, south-facing wall had been replaced entirely with glass, and you could see the open meadow stretching out to the river.
A massive, curving staircase dominated the western side of the room. The walls, the high-beamed ceiling, the wooden floors, and the thick carpets were all various shades of white. Guin was quietly terrified she'd dirty something, or break one of the delicate looking vases or glass decor set on pedestals or side tables around the open space.
Waiting there to greet them were Jasper's "parents". Carlisle sent her a kind smile when she met his gaze, and she returned it with a shy one of her own. Beside him was Esme, the only one of the family unfamiliar to her. Esme had the same pale, beautiful features as the rest of them. She had a heart-shaped face and billows of soft, caramel-colored hair. Guin was reminded of someone she would've seen in a silent movie, graceful and lovely looking. Esme was small, slender, but somehow less angular, softer than the others.
"It's a pleasure to see you again, Guin. How is your hip healing up?"
"Very well, I think. It hurts less every day," Guin said honestly, with a smile.
"Guinevere, this is Esme, my mother, for all intents and purposes."
Esme smiled kindly at her, hands held to her chest. "It's wonderful to know you, Guin. Jasper speaks of you so often."
"I'm equally glad to meet you, Esme," Guin said, and then her smile turned a little bit teasing. "Jasper talks about me, does he?"
Jasper lets out a quiet groan behind Guin, and she lets out a laugh that just makes him bury his face in her wild curls. Only moments later, Alice seemed to simply appear at the top of the stairs, smiling widely and practically buzzing with excitement.
"Oh, Guin, you're finally here! I'm so happy to see you! I was worried Jasper would never bring you around and he'd keep hogging you all to himself," she babbled as she loped down the stairs, coming to a graceful halt a few feet away from Guin. Guin smiled at Alice, her face relaxing from its slightly tense expression.
"Alice, it's so good to see you," she says, genuinely. "I'm sorry to have kept you waiting, it wasn't my intention to be hogged."
That pulled a laugh from everyone in the room, and a moment later, Rosalie appeared from a hallway off the kitchen. She looked around, and when she caught sight of Guin, she sent her a small smile.
"Guin, it's nice to see you again. How are you feeling?"
"Good," Guin said, honestly. "Happy to be back on my feet, even if it's more of a hobble."
Rose laughed, and Esme gestured to the couches. "Would you like to sit?" she offered, and Guin smiled a little awkwardly.
"If you don't mind," she said hesitantly, and Esme shook her head furiously.
"No, not at all! Please, sit, and we can chat for a bit."
"That sounds perfect."
Jasper stood quietly against the wall, watching over his mate — ever the quiet protector. He was filled with a soft kind of fondness, watching his Guinevere sit with his adopted mother and sisters. They were chatting easily, freely, about whatever interested them.
Looking at her now, he was certain - she fit perfectly. Slid into this coven - this family - like the perfect, missing little puzzle piece.
There had been a sort of… empty space in his life for so long. He thinks he felt it as a human, too, but his memories of that time were vague and fuzzy as best. Even as a vampire, he hadn't really recognized it - hadn't noticed it much until he stumbled into this messy, silly, wonderful girl.
Her bubbling laugh pulled him from his thoughts, a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. He took a moment to let himself curl around her emotions, let himself judge how she was feeling. A tinge of pain - to be expected, despite how it made him bristle inside - but mostly bubbling, giddy joy. However, there was a lingering tiredness to the edges of her, and Jasper strode over to her, inserting himself smoothly into a pause in the conversation.
He leaned down, pressing his lips to the top of Guinevere's head, taking a moment to breathe in the smell of her. Then, he spoke.
"Would you like to come see my room?"
The way her face lit up was answer enough.
"Yes!" she gasped, delightedly, and Jasper helped her up from the couch. Alice pouted at them, leaning her chin on the arm of the loveseat she was perched upon, staring at Jasper.
"You're stealing her away already?" she whined, and Jasper could feel the heady mix of giddy, delighted embarrassment swirl around his mate. Jasper sent his dearest sister a smile that was just barely collected enough to not be a baring of his teeth.
"I think Guinevere's had enough of you three for the time being, haven't you, Guinevere?" he purred pointedly, tilting his head down to Guin, whose face suddenly flushed red, heart stuttering in her chest.
"I.. That's not fair, Jasper," Guinevere squeaked out, and Jasper's grin turned a little softer, but much more predatory. Guinevere's cheeks darkened more, and Rosalie stifled a laugh, moving to rise from the high-backed armchair. She dusted her pristine hands off on the thighs of her overalls, and sent Guinievere and Jasper a smirk.
"Well then, I'll leave you two to it. If anyone needs me, I'll be in the garage," she said, turning smoothly on one foot and striding for the garage door, golden waves bouncing. Guinevere grimaced into his chest, and Jasper wrapped one of his arms across her chest, anchoring her against him.
Alice doubled her pout in his direction, but Jasper ignored her and looked at Esme with a smile. "If you need us, we'll be downstairs, Esme."
Esme sent him a soft, sweet smile. "Of course, Jasper. Just call if you need anything, yes?"
"Thank you very much," Guinevere managed to squeak out, face still fire-engine red. Jasper didn't bother muffling his chuckle as he scooped her up off the ground, turned smoothly, and strode towards the stairs leading down to the basement.
At the bottom of the stairs, Jasper moved through the open door, kicking it shut behind him. Gently, he deposited Guin down onto the bed in the center of the room, and she looked down at it in surprise. It was nice - some kind of luxury mattress, clearly, fitted with cool grey sheets set into a solid, sturdy wooden frame. There were two pillows at the top, and a single blanket folded at the foot of the bed. It was very, very clear that the bed was unslept-in. "I thought you said you guys didn't really sleep?"
"We don't," Jasper agrees, smiling down at her, "but you do."
"You.. went out and bought a mattress for me?"
"You're surprised?"
"And touched, truthfully. I didn't expect something like that."
"Emmett and I had an interesting time putting the frame together, that's for sure. You'd think two vampires would be smarter than an IKEA instruction manual, but apparently not."
Guin laughs at that, leaning back on the comfy mattress. "It's honestly perfect, except.. I think it needs more blankets. And pillows. And some stuffed animals."
"Anything for you, dove."
"Dove? That one's new," Guin asks, sitting up and looking over at him curiously. She saw Jasper send her a soft, fond little smile, from where he was leaning against one of the dark wood bookshelves lining the walls.
"You're my dove. You are… my peace, my love, my devotion, my hope. You are everything good in this world, you make this world good by being you." Jasper says, stepping towards her."You bring me peace by simply being beside you, give me hope that there is more to my existence, you fill me with love like warm, golden sunlight," he murmurs, leaning down to hold her face in his hands, to brush his nose against hers, slowly leaning her back onto the mattress, "and I am, and will always be, devoted only to you."
And then he kissed her, mouth gentle, and she knew, from that moment, she'd never be the same again.
When she finally pulled away from him, dizzy from the lack of air, she couldn't stop the grin spreading across her face. Jasper pressed a kiss to the edge of her smile, across her cheek, and down her jaw, making her giggle.
"Ah, Jasper-" she gasps at the careful scrape of teeth along her neck, hand scrambling to latch onto his shoulder. He smiles, hums against her throat.
"Don't worry, my darling dove, I won't bite you," he crooned, pressing his lips to her throat again, and then his voice changed to something a little darker, "At least, not yet, I won't."
Guin flushed, giggling at the flutter of his mouth on her sensitive skin, her other hand coming up to his chest, fingers curling in his shirt.
She felt flushed hot, something warm bubbling in her, and when he hummed against her throat and sucked hard, she arched sharply up against him on a gasp. Guin was dizzy, head tipped back, and Jasper's wonderful, divine mouth latched onto the soft skin under her chin. He rumbled out a growl, his knee shifting to come between her legs, and she gasped. One hand came up to grab onto his bicep desperately, needing an anchor from the desire flooding her.
"Jasper, Jazz - your family can absolutely hear us right now," she breathed, head tipping back at his press of teeth and careful suckle.
Jasper paused, and growled something against her throat, pressing another sucking kiss against her skin. One more careful nip, and he shifted off her, one arm propping him up over her on the bed. Guin smiled at the sight of him - of his pretty eyes, pupils blown wide so that only a thin strip of gold was visible around the edges, of his plush lips, of his perfect golden curls falling down around their faces.
"My dove, you ruin me," he purrs, leaning down to press his mouth to hers again. "I finally have you to myself, and you get shy?"
"Jasper, please," Guin manages a flustered whine, face red. It seems he decided to take pity on her, because he chuckles, presses another soft kiss to her mouth, and then shifts so he's sitting beside her on the bed.
Guin exhales sharply and sits up beside him after a moment to collect herself back together.
Come on, Guin, get it together! You can't melt into a puddle on his bed, you goof!
"So," Guin managed after a moment, "Since I still feel like you want to eat me-" here, Jasper let out a low, silky-smooth chuckle, and Guin swallowed tightly, "- tell me something about your room?"
Jasper sent her a sharp, predatory grin, and Guin pointedly looked away, finally taking in his room for the first time. The room was lit softly with several lamps. The ceiling light was turned off, and Guin had a feeling that it didn't get much use. She didn't mind though - the low lighting from the lamps scattered around the room gave it a comfortable, soft feeling. There was a large, solid wood desk set in front of the far wall, facing towards the door. A desk lamp switched on, shining orange light down on the papers and books scattered around the thin, sleek black laptop resting closed on the desk.
The section of wall directly behind the desk was the only one (other than the section of wall taken up by the headboard of the new bed) not covered in bookshelves. All the shelves were filled with books, and the occasional decoration or knick-knack. She could see some kind of kitschy Texas souvenir, a wooden horse sculpture next to a ceramic bear standing on a log, looking like it was trying to fish in the wood of the shelf. There were lots of other small things like that scattered around, and Guin suspected they were gifts from his family. Off to the side was another break in the shelving, revealing a door that Guin figured led to his closet or something.
Behind his desk was a mostly empty wall, aside from a few framed photos hung up, perfectly straight, on the wall. One looked to be a photo of the family together, at what looked to be maybe Carlisle and Esme's wedding, and if Guin guessed her fashion correctly (which she did), it looked like it was taken some time in the 80s'.
The second one, hung on the opposite side of the wedding photo, was much, much older, worn and creased behind the glass. It looked to be a photo of some Civil War soldier platoon, and although Guin was extremely curious, she decided not to comment.
The last photo hanging on the wall was smaller than the other two, but by the way it was positioned, Guin guessed it had to be deeply sentimental for Jasper. It was hanging between the other two, and there were three people standing together. She recognized one of them immediately - Jasper was standing on the left side of the other two, and easy smile spread across his face, and his arm was tossed around the shoulder of the person beside him.
The man was slightly shorter than Jasper - an inch or two at most - and leaner, with long, white blond hair. Most of it had been pulled back into a ponytail at the back of his neck, but several strands had escaped, falling down to frame his handsome, pale face in a way that made Guin think of a model. They worked so hard to pull off that same slightly-messy look, and this man seemed to do it without even realizing. His eyes were bloody red, and he too was grinning, a sexy sort of grin that would've had any lady dropping her panties for him, one arm wrapped around Jasper's waist.
Beside this man was a small, petite girl, who reminded Guin very much of Alice and her delicate, bird-like appearance. She had long, slightly curly white-blonde hair, and a pretty, delicate face. Her smile was softer, but no less wide or happy than either of the men she was with, and the unknown man had his free arm wrapped around her waist, pulling her into his side. It was easy to tell they must have been mates.
Jasper caught her interest, and smiled.
"Peter and Charlotte, my original coven, before Alice found me."
"Do you still talk to them?" Guin asked, curiously, and Jasper walked over to kiss her head.
"Frequently, yes. That photo is actually only a few years old. They came by to visit me not long after we moved here to Forks."
"Will I get to meet them?"
"Yes. I'm not sure when, but Peter called me the day after I met you." Jasper smiled, fondly, staring at the photograph on the wall. "That bastard always seems to know what's going on, and I have no idea how he does it. Anyway, he had a feeling something major happened, and was checking in on me to make sure I was okay. I think they're going to try to travel up here soon, but vampires run on a different timescale than humans do. It's hard to tell what exactly "soon" means when you've got eternity to do things."
"It'd better not take eternity! I'd like to meet them before I die, you know. I'd be remiss if I couldn't meet my mate's family."
"Family, huh?"
"You have a framed photo of them on your wall, Jasper. You clearly must love them a lot to put them in such a high place of honor."
Jasper smiled down at her, giving her a sweet, gentle kiss.
"I like the way you think, Dove."
March came quickly, and with it, sweet, sweet freedom.
Or, at least, Guin got the green light from Carlisle to ditch her crutches, under the promise that she would be careful and take it as easy as possible. She had readily agreed, and probably would've agreed to sell her soul if it would've gotten her off the crutches.
Bella had met her outside her art class, Jasper pressing a kiss to her forehead before the two of them split up. Guin went with Bella towards lunch, and Jasper went off to find his siblings before they made their way to the cafeteria on their own.
Guin saw her immediately when she and Bella walked into the cafeteria.
She was tall and lean, almost lanky. She must have been almost as tall as Rosalie, but without the perfect, hourglass shaped figure. Her hair was chopped short by her chin and pitch black, with straight bangs that stopped at the middle of her eyebrows, and tanned skin, but Guin wasn't sure if it was natural or if she just spent a lot of time outside.
She was sitting backwards at one of the lunch tables all by herself, back slumped against the edge of the table with her long legs stretched out in front of her, crossed at the ankle. She wore all black - an oversized black band t-shirt (My Chemical Romance, maybe? Guin couldn't quite tell) and slightly baggy high-waisted black pants with chains hooked onto the belt loops. Her belt was black and studded, and her black boots (definitely Doc Martens, Guin knows her shoes when she sees them, and you can't mistake that yellow stitching) had thick platforms, only adding to her already tall stature.
She had a thick book flipped open in her lap, her head tilted slightly as she read. She seemed not to notice the fact that almost every single person in the cafeteria was staring at her. Either she didn't notice, or she just didn't care.
Either way, Guin admired her.
After she and Bella went through the lunch line, Bella started for their table with their - well, the only real way to describe them now was their friends. Guin hesitated, staring at the full table where her sister was headed, and then glanced over to where Jasper was sitting with his family. He never minded when she sat with her sister, of course, but today she caught his eye (which wasn't difficult, seeing as his eyes tracked her all around the room anyway), and jerked her head towards the new girl.
He raised his eyebrows at her a bit, but after a moment, shrugged,
It's your choice, she could almost hear him saying to her.
Bella paused when she realized Guin wasn't behind her, turning to her questioningly. "Are you coming? Or are you sitting with Jasper?"
"Actually," Guin said, "I think I'm going to go sit with the new girl. She looks like she could use some company."
Bella looked a little surprised, but shrugged a bit. "It's your head. Jessica was telling me earlier how she was kinda standoffish, or something."
Guin smiles wryly, "It'll be fine. …Probably. If I die, make sure my tombstone says something cool, okay?"
"How does "Guinevere Swan, Died While Trying To Pet A Bear, She Will Be Missed Dearly", sound?"
"Perfect. Make sure it was a really big bear when you tell people about it. I'll see you after lunch?"
"Yeah, absolutely."
With that, the two sisters went their separate ways - Bella to their usual table, and Guin into new, uncharted territory. Truthfully, she was a bit frightened by the girl - she was extremely intimidating. Guin figured it was on purpose.
She felt a sudden rush of confidence fill her, pulsing through her body, and she turned to smile at Jasper. That little kick forwards helped.
Approaching the table, and consequently the reading girl, Guin hesitated. Finally, she squeaked out a little, "Um, excuse me?"
The girl turned, looking up in surprise. She didn't say anything, just stared at Guin, so she took that as an invitation to continue. "Would it be alright if I sat here with you?"
The girl stared at her for a moment - looking at her head on, Guin noticed that she had a septum piercing, and her eyes were almost black and almond shaped. Finally, she shrugged carelessly.
"Yeah, sure, you can sit. I'm Mollie."
Guin smiled widely at her, and sat down beside her. "I'm Guinevere, but you can call me Guin. When did you move here?"
"How did you know I just moved here?" Mollie asked, an eyebrow raised, and Guin shrugged.
"There aren't that many people in this town, and there are even fewer who dress like you or I do. I tend to notice other people who dress alt, and since every single person in the school is currently staring at you, well… I made an educated guess."
Mollie let out a laugh, grinning at Guin. "Yeah, my mom and I moved here to Forks like a week ago. She got a job offer as a nature photographer and jumped on it, so here I am." Mollie shrugged carelessly, head tipping to the side again, and Guin nodded in understanding.
"How long have you lived here in Forks? Your entire life?"
Guin let out a little laugh, shaking her head, "No, my sister Bella and I just moved up here at the start of the year. We grew up in Phoenix with our mom, but moved up here to stay with our dad. It's a nice change, honestly."
"Oh, nice, that's pretty cool. It's nice to know that I'm not the only new person here in town."
"Oh yeah, it's rough being the new one. Everyone stares at you, in school and in town. Ridiculous, honestly."
Mollie grinned again, and put her bookmark in her book before snapping it shut, turning to look at Guin more head-on. "Yeah, tell me about it," Mollie said, and then raised her voice pointedly, glancing over at some of the kids still staring and glaring through her dark, heavy makeup.
"Don't you people have something better to do than stare at us weirdos? Honestly, the lot of you."
Guin laughed, and then the two of them just kept talking. They hit it off amazingly - they talked books, music, video games, literally anything that came to mind. Guin learned that Mollie was Japanese-American, that she loved horses and grew up in the Texas Hill Country, that her dad did tech work with some big company, and that Mollie loved some good trash reality TV and a crochet project. Towards the end of lunch, the two girls discovered that they shared the next period - Government - which was a delight. They agreed to walk together to their next class, and before they left the cafeteria, Guin caught the eye of Jasper, waving a little, and then found Bella and waved again, mouthing a 'See you in gym!' that Bella nodded at with a little smile.
As they walked together to their next class, Guin had a feeling that the two of them would become very, very good friends.
just a reminder to everyone: you can follow me on tumblr at .com ! i post occasional snippets, art, and some background info/research stuff i do occasionally! you'll be able to get ahold of me a lot better through there than here too! thank you so much for reading, i love you guys a ton :) *heart*