A guest reviewer asked how the updates for the story would work, since the stories already written. To answer your question, the story is already written but the chapters still need a ton of work. I only just started revising them last week, so I haven't gotten far. Basically what you can expect is that whenever I finish revising a chapter, I'll update. Hopefully I can update frequently, though!
Disclaimer: I own nothing related to Twilight, only the OC's.
Chapter Two
Danielle was running through Forks High school, pushing and elbowing her way through throngs of students, her eyes wide with fear and her breath coming hard and fast. She looked behind her and saw a flash of golden hair, then let out a cry of fear. Turning forward again, Danielle ran even faster, all but barreling over people in her haste to escape. Her frightened gaze searched wildly for an exit, every instinct in her body telling her to get out of the school and run to the safety of her house. Her mother would be there to protect her, and Bella's father, the police chief who lived across the street, would surely keep away any harm that might come to her.
Her eyes landed on an exit sign. There it was. Her salvation. Determined now, she sprinted for the double doors up ahead, feeling relief flood her more and more with each step that brought her closer to her escape.
But then…there he was. Jasper. Standing up ahead, planting himself between her and the doors. Danielle skidded to a halt, practically hyperventilating by now, unsure what to do. He was glaring at her and clenching his fists, his whole body tense as he waited for her to make a move. She couldn't go past him – she would never make it. Glancing behind her, she saw that that path wasn't ideal either. There were too many students in the way, none of which seemed to notice her state of panic, none of which seemed to care that Jasper appeared to be hunting her. If she tried to run that way, she'd get caught in the crowd. Then Jasper would catch her.
Danielle looked at Jasper again and gulped when she saw him grinding his teeth, his eyes as black as midnight as he watched her every move. Finally, in a moment derived either from stupidity or desperation – she wasn't sure which – she turned on her heel to run back the way she had come. But before she could even make it two steps, a hand with impossible strength closed around her arm, pulling her to a halt.
Danielle cried out, and then the world spun as Jasper whipped her around to face him. She trembled with fear as she met his darkened gaze, feeling as though she could feel every ounce of his loathing washing over her skin. "Please!" she cried, tears beginning to stream down her cheeks. "Please don't hurt me!"
Jasper said nothing in response, just scowled even further, his handsome face distorting with pure hatred. Then, with a vicious growl, he picked her up and threw her through the air. Danielle sailed across the hall until she crashed into the locker with a loud BANG. Then she fell to the ground, pain resonating from every inch of her body as she lay whimpering on the floor. And all Jasper did was stare at her, his eyes black, his expression showing no remorse, before he came rushing at her again.
Danielle jerked awake, breathing hard and feeling sweaty as she struggled to focus on her surroundings. It took a few seconds, but she finally remembered that she was at home, not at Forks High. She was in her bed and she was safe, and there was certainly no Jasper Hale around.
With a groan, Danielle rubbed her face, willing her heart to stop pounding so hard. It was just a dream, she told herself. It wasn't real.
When she finally calmed down, she dropped her hands from her face and stared up at the ceiling, noticing only then that there were some glow in the dark stars stuck to the ceiling, which had obviously been put there by a former inhabitant of this room. Sucking in a deep breath through her nose and releasing it slowly, she finally pushed away the covers and sat up, swinging her legs around so that her feet rested on the floor.
Danielle thought back to the dream she had had, then shook her head. As if fretting about Jasper all day hadn't been bad enough, now she was dreaming about him, too? Even she could admit that this was beginning to get out of hand. Jasper might be rude, maybe even a little deranged, but nothing about that dream was even remotely possible. He was not hunting her, and he certainly wasn't strong enough to throw her like a ragdoll.
Still, whether it was possible or nor, the dream had scared her. Even now, she still felt a prickle of unease in her spine as she thought about the way Jasper had looked. The expression on his face in the dream hadn't been all that different from the way he had looked when he'd grabbed her outside their English class, and as she thought about facing him again in just a few hours and possibly seeing that same, frightening look on his face, she couldn't suppress a small shiver of fear.
Get ahold of yourself, woman, she chastised herself, running a hand through her hair. It was just a dream. That would never happen in real life.
Her thoughts were interrupted by a knock on the door. "Sweetie, are you awake?" Lynne asked through the door. She hadn't gone to work yet, and as silly as it might have sounded, just knowing her mother was in the house and that she wasn't alone immediately made her feel better.
"Yeah," Danielle called back. "I'm about to start getting ready for school.
"Okay. I'll start getting breakfast together," Lynne responded.
As she heard her mother's footsteps disappear down to the first floor, Danielle firmly pushed thoughts of Jasper aside and started getting ready for school. She went to her attached bathroom so she could brush her teeth and wash her face, then put on just a touch of makeup like she had done the day before. Her curls were wild and frizzy after tossing and turning all night, so she decided against even trying to fight them and quickly put her hair in a messy knot on the top of her head.
Danielle stepped back into her bedroom and went to the closet to find something to wear. Knowing it would be cold outside, she quickly decided on a long sleeved shirt and jeans, then grabbed some boots from the bottom of her closet to top off the ensemble.
She pulled off the shirt she had slept in, then paused and frowned, her eyes turning down to her arms. There were bruises on her skin, dark blue marks in the exact places where Jasper's fingertips had dug into her arms the day before. She had noticed them when she had changed for bed the previous night, and just as she had done when she had first spotted then, she cringed as she gently ran a fingertip over the marks on one of her arms. Normally she wasn't one to bruise easy, so the fact that he had left such noticeable marks on her was the proof of just how hard he had been gripping her.
Sighing, Danielle finished changing, feeling better when her long sleeved shirt completely concealed the bruises. She already knew she was going to wear long-sleeved shirts until they had faded some. She didn't want anyone to see the marks, nor did she particularly want to see them herself.
When she finally went downstairs, her mother was waiting for her with a smile and a plate of bacon and eggs. "Morning," Lynne greeted, giving her a kiss on the cheek. "Here you go," she then said, passing her the plate.
"Thanks," she said, before taking a seat at the table. "I'm surprised you're still home," she said, watching as her mother went to the fridge to retrieve a carton of orange juice.
"I felt bad, not being here yesterday to see you off to school," Lynne said as she poured two glass of orange juice and joined her at the table. She set one of the glasses in front of Danielle and kept the other for herself. "I thought I'd go into work just a little bit later so I could be here when you leave. Besides, I'd like to meet Bella," she added. "I'd also like to thank her for taking you to school."
Danielle just nodded her understanding.
"What do you have planned for the weekend?" Lynne asked conversationally as she dug into her own breakfast.
Danielle shrugged. "I hadn't thought about it, to be honest," she admitted. "But I guess it'd be nice to go out and explore a bit. Maybe I'll see if Bella wants to go check out the town or something," she mused aloud.
Lynne smiled approvingly. "I think that's a great idea. If you're gonna live here, you might as well get to know the town, right? And a little bonding time with Bella certainly won't hurt," she said with a nod. "What about Sunday?"
Danielle shrugged again. "Dunno. Why, did you have something in mind?"
"I was thinking maybe you could come help me around the shop," Lynne suggested. "We're short-staffed and there's still a lot of things that need to be done before I have it the way I want it. And I'd pay you to work, of course," she explained with a smile. "You interested?"
Danielle thought about it for a moment, then nodded. "Sure, I'll come help," she agreed. "But you don't have to pay me," she told her mother pointedly. "Just agree to let me borrow the car sometime and we're even," she bartered.
Lynne took a moment to consider the offer, then nodded. "Deal," she said, sticking a hand in Danielle's direction so they could shake on it.
Danielle grinned, shook her mother's hand, then went back to her breakfast.
About ten minutes later, just as Danielle and Lynne were finishing up their meals, a knock on the door signaled Bella's arrival. Lynne went to answer the door while Danielle quickly put their now empty plates in the sink. After washing her hands, she went to grab her jacket and her backpack before heading toward the door.
"It really is just so nice of you to take Dani to school," Lynne was saying as Danielle walked up behind her, still in the process of shrugging on her jacket. "It's nice to know we've got some friendly neighbors around here."
Bella blushed and smiled shyly. "It's really no problem. I'm just glad to have someone normal to hang out with," she added with a small laugh.
"Dani? Normal?" Lynne asked with exaggerated skepticism. "Are we still talking about the same girl?" she added, feigning confusion.
Bella laughed again, while Danielle just rolled her eyes. "Thanks, Mom. You're so sweet," she said with sarcasm. While Lynne laughed and patted her back, Danielle raised her brows at Bella. "Ready to go?"
Bella nodded. "Ready when you are."
Danielle pulled on her backpack and turned to her mother. "Will you be home at the same time tonight?"
"Probably," she said with a nod. "I'll let you know if anything changes, though."
"Okay." Danielle then pulled her mother into a hug, which Lynne happily returned. "I'll see you later."
"Yep, see you later," Lynne said, squeezing her tight. "I love you."
"Love you, too," Danielle said in return.
They parted ways after that and Danielle stepped out onto the porch to join Bella. "It was nice to meet you, Bella," Lynne said, giving her a big smile. "How about you and your father come over for dinner sometime soon? We'd love to have the both of you," she invited.
"It was nice to meet you, too, Ms. Clark," Bella said politely. "And that sounds nice. I'll be sure to talk to him about it."
"Wonderful," Lynne said, looking pleased. "You girls have a great day at school," she said.
"We'll try," Danielle said with a smirk. "Bye, Mom."
They finally turned and headed across the street toward Bella's truck. Bella glanced back at Lynne, who was watching them go, before smiling at Danielle. "I like your mom," she said. "She seems really nice."
Danielle smiled proudly and nodded. "Yeah, she's one of a kind."
Just like the day before, they both threw their backpacks into the bed of Bella's truck before climbing into the cab. As the engine started with a loud roar, the knowledge that she'd soon be back at Forks High and facing Jasper Hale again made her stomach fill with nervous butterflies. It'll be okay, she told herself encouragingly. You've got this.
Bella finally put the truck in drive, then, with one last wave to Danielle's mother, they were off.
When Danielle walked into her Calculus class about twenty minutes later, it was with her head held high and shoulders squared. She was determined not to let Jasper see the way he had affected her, determined to show him that she was not someone he could walk all over. Despite the fact that, deep down, she actually was afraid of him, she refused to look weak in front of him again. And if he came anywhere near her, she definitely had some words for him.
But as her eyes immediately jumped to the seat that Jasper had occupied the day before, she stopped dead in her tracks.
The seat was empty. Jasper wasn't there.
She let out the breath she had been holding, feeling both relieved and a little annoyed at the same time. On the one hand, she was glad he wasn't there so that she didn't have to see or talk to him. On the other, she was irritated because she felt she deserved one damned good apology from him, and he couldn't very well apologize for acting like a Neanderthal if he wasn't there, now could he?
Her eyes were suddenly drawn to the person sitting next to Jasper's empty desk, and with a start, she realized it was another Cullen. Rosalie was in their class too, only she'd been so distracted by Jasper the day before that she hadn't even noticed. When they locked eyes, the beautiful blonde scowled at Danielle with blatant dislike, not even bothering to attempt to act friendly. Danielle took that as her cue to hurry up and take her seat. She quickly pulled her gaze away from Rosalie's as she scampered to her own desk in the back of the room. She could feel Rosalie's eyes on her back the entire away.
Danielle sat down and quickly pulled out her book as the bell rang. Awesome. That's two Cullen's that hate me now, she thought to herself when she chanced another look in Rosalie's direction and saw that the blonde was still glaring at her. Way to go, Danielle. You're off to a great start, she added pessimistically.
With Jasper absent and her fear of seeing him instantly gone, the rest of class was uneventful. After her initial glaring, Rosalie eventually seemed to decide that Danielle wasn't worth her attention and began to ignore her, which Danielle couldn't say she minded. She focused on her school work, firmly ignoring Rosalie's presence, and hung on to every word her teacher said. Before she knew it, the bell was ringing and it was time to go to English.
Her next class was uneventful as well, and passed by pretty quickly. In what seemed like no time at all she was walking into her History class, which she had with Emmett Cullen. As she eased into the chair she'd sat in the day before, she glanced at Emmett's empty desk and frowned a bit, wondering if perhaps he was absent as well. Only a few moments later, however, Emmett came striding into the room. He sat down at his desk, his amber colored eyes flickering to her, and gave her a friendly smile when he noticed her watching him.
"Sup?" he asked with an upward nod of his head.
"Hey," Danielle said back.
She tapped the eraser of her pencil on the desk, her eyes narrowing just the slightest bit as she continued to look at Emmett. She wanted to ask about Jasper and find out why he wasn't at school, but she also didn't want Emmett to run home and tell him that she been asking about him. The last thing she wanted was for Jasper to think she was interested in him…and she supposed on some level she was interested, but not in that way.
"I couldn't help but notice your brother isn't here today," she finally said, unable to stop the words from tumbling past her lips.
Emmett quirked a brow. "Jasper wasn't feeling good this morning," he said evasively, one large, muscled shoulder shrugging upward.
Danielle eyes narrowed further. Emmett was lying, she could tell. "Well, I guess if I was the jerk manhandling complete strangers for absolutely no reason I wouldn't wanna show my face around school, either," she commented.
Emmett gave her a sharp look. "Easy there, tiger," he said with just a hint of warning. "I know you're mad at him, but that's still my brother you're talking about."
Danielle pressed her lips together, then let out a heavy sigh. As mad as she was, it wasn't like her to badmouth people, and especially not to their family members. "Sorry for being snarky," she apologized, "I just…haven't been able to stop thinking about what happened," she admitted. "I don't understand why it happened, or what I did to piss him off so much."
"You didn't do anything," Emmett said quickly. "Like I said yesterday, Jasper was just having a bad day," he repeated.
"And I still don't believe you when you say that," Danielle countered. "The second he laid eyes on me, he looked like he hated me. And when he grabbed me, he honestly looked like he wanted to hurt me," she insisted. "I may not be the smartest person who ever lived, but I am someone who listens to their gut instinct. And yesterday, before you showed up, those instincts were screaming at me that something was seriously wrong. That something was dangerous and that if I didn't get away, something bad was going to happen to me."
Emmett was very quiet after that, neither his gaze, nor his expression, giving away whatever was going on inside his head. Finally he let out a massive sigh, his eyes turning elsewhere for a moment before jumping back to hers.
"Look, Danielle," he said, leaning closer and dropping his voice a bit. "I know you don't believe me, but what happened yesterday was a fluke. Jasper's not just my brother – he's my friend. And believe me when I say that that is not what the real Jasper is like," he insisted, his expression serious. "You wanna know the real reason he's not here today?" he then asked, raising his brows. "Because he hates himself for how he treated you yesterday. We talked about it for a long time last night, and he could hardly even stand himself because of the way he acted. He feels horrible, Danielle. I've never seen him so guilty or ashamed," he said, shaking his head. "He didn't come here today because he knew he'd see you, and he just didn't have the guts to face you after what he did. Not yet, anyway."
Danielle felt some of her previous anger slip away. She supposed it was a good thing that Jasper knew he had been wrong and regretted what he had done – at least now she knew he wasn't some unstable psychopath who wanted to do her serious harm. But still…he should have sucked up his pride and come to school today to apologize for what he had done, not hide away from her and let his brother do all the talking for him.
"So what's he gonna do then?" Danielle asked, crossing her arms over her chest. "Is he just gonna hide from me for the rest of the school year or something?"
"No. He wants to talk to you so that he can apologize and explain himself. He just didn't have the courage to do it today," he told her. "But he's going to talk to you soon and make this right," Emmett added with a firm nod. "That I can promise you."
Danielle considered what he had said, then slowly nodded her head. "Alright then."
The bell rang after that to signal the start of class, so she and Emmett ceased their conversation and turned their attention to the teacher as she began the lesson for the day. After class was over, she packed up her things and headed for the door, not overly surprised when she noticed that Emmett had hung back so that he could talk to her again between class periods.
"I'd walk you to your class again, but I've heard some rumors making the rounds after yesterday and I know a few people who wouldn't be happy if they heard we were getting too friendly," he told her, glancing around as though keeping an eye out for someone.
"I'm assuming you're talking about Rosalie, which would explain why she was giving me death glares this morning," Danielle commented, remembering what Jessica had said the day before about the two being a couple. "Tell your girlfriend not to worry. You're not my type," she added with a smirk.
Emmett quirked a brow, as if he was surprised that she knew he and Rosalie were together. "Wow. Didn't take you very long to start digging up all the dirt on us Cullen's, huh?" he said with a snort.
Danielle blushed a little. "I wasn't digging up dirt," she said defensively. "You said it yourself – this is a small school. Word travels fast."
"Uh huh," Emmett grunted, looking and sounding thoroughly unconvinced. He gave her another look, then shook his head. "Look, I just wanted to say that everything between you and Jasper is going to be okay," he told her, quickly changing the subject. "He's going to make it right, and he's gonna do it soon. Until then, just…don't worry, okay?"
Danielle pursed her lips. "I'll stop worrying when he proves to me he's not someone I need to worry about," she said firmly.
"Fair enough," Emmett said with a shrug. "See ya later, Danielle," he then told her.
"See ya."
Emmett left after that, and, once again, the crowds parted to make way for his huge frame as he went. Danielle watched his retreating back for a moment or two, then headed off for her next class
The rest of the school day turned out to be pretty boring. They had a substitute teacher for Spanish, so they ended up watching a movie instead of doing any work. Danielle spent most of that time talking quietly with Bella, since neither of them were really interested in the movie, and she took the opportunity to see if Bella was interested in exploring Forks with her the next day. She hadn't been sure whether Bella would want to hang out outside of school or not, but was pleasantly surprised when she said yes. They agreed to head out around noon and left it at that.
Lunchtime was spent with the same group as the day before, who all had plans to hang out at some nearby diner after school and invited both of them to join – according to Mike, it was tradition for the upperclassmen to go to the diner after school on Fridays to celebrate the end of the school week with food and milkshakes. Bella politely declined, claiming she already had plans - Danielle was pretty sure she lying through her teeth and just didn't want to go. Since Danielle didn't particularly want to get stuck hanging out with a bunch of people she barely knew, she made up an excuse of her own and declined the invitation as well. The group was disappointed at first and did not shy away from vocalizing it, but eventually they dropped it when Danielle and Bella, after sharing a meaningful look, promised they'd join them another time.
Gym was next, and this time the teacher made Danielle participate. Danielle, wearing her long sleeved shirt under her gym shirt so no one would see the bruises on her arms, played volleyball with the rest of the class and it actually went pretty well…that is, until, Bella spiked the ball and it hit her square in the back of the head. Bella apologized profusely, looking mortified as she rushed over to make sure Danielle was okay. After assuring her she was fine and joking that she would just dock off some of the gas money she owed to make up for it, Bella went back into her position and the game resumed. Everyone decided to try to keep the ball away from Bella after that, though, and the rest of class passed without any more accidents.
When school was over, Danielle and Bella climbed into Bella's loud truck and headed home. They chatted about their plans for the next day, making sure to keep their eyes open as they drove to look for any places that might be interesting to check out. After they had parking in front of Bella's house again, they grabbed their backpacks from the bed and said their goodbyes. The rest of the day passed quickly enough - Danielle finished all her homework so that she wouldn't have to worry about it for the rest of the weekend, then cooked dinner again so there would be a hot meal waiting for her mother when she got off of work. After Lynne came home, they had dinner and cleaned the kitchen, then decided to have themselves a little movie night. The picked out their favorite romantic comedies, grabbed some popcorn and ice cream, and settled in the living room to watch their movies. They finally went to bed when they couldn't hold their eyes open anymore.
Danielle slept in the next morning, not waking until it was nearly eleven in the morning. Because she had woken so late, she was not at all surprised by the fact that Lynne had already left for work. She was surprised, however, to find a note with a hundred dollar bill attached to it.
Dani –
I know this move hasn't been easy, but I'm glad you seem to be adjusting well so far and that you're making an effort to get to know the place a little better. Here's some money for your outing with Bella today. Spend it on whatever you want – my treat! I'll see you later! Love you!
Love, Mom xoxo
Danielle grabbed the money with raised brows, then grinned and nodded her head. Her mother was never usually this generous when it came to giving her money to do stuff. This was certainly a pleasant surprise. "Thank you, Mom," she said aloud to herself, before going to her bag to put the money in her wallet.
After taking a shower and getting dressed, Danielle waited until the clock struck noon before heading out to meet with Bella. She stepped outside and locked her door, then went across the street to knock on Bella's door when she saw that her new friend was not outside yet. Danielle walked up the driveway, eyeing the police car that belonged to Bella's father along the way, then finally stepped up to the front door and knocked twice.
The door opened to reveal a tall man with dark hair and a mustache. He had a stern look to him, his brows furrowed together seriously as he gazed at Danielle. He glanced around at her feet for a moment, as if looking to see if she was someone who was coming around to try to sell him something, then raised his eyes back to hers.
"Can I help you?" he asked politely enough.
Danielle shifted under his intimidating gaze, understanding very quickly why he had been picked to be the police chief. He looked like he wouldn't have any problems putting criminals in their place. "Hi," she said, clearing her throat. "I'm Danielle Clark. I just moved in across the street?" she said, motioning toward her house.
The expression on his face eased as his eyes lit with recognition. "Oh yeah. Of course. You're Lynne's girl." Danielle nodded in confirmation. "Charlie Swan," he said, offering her a hand as he introduced himself.
Danielle quickly shook his hand, trying not to wince when he gripped her hand a little too hard. "It's nice to meet you."
"Likewise," Charlie said in response.
When Charlie released her hand, she shoved her hands into her pockets. "Is Bella around? She and I had plans to hang out," she said, glancing behind him into the depths of the house to see if Bella was anywhere nearby. She didn't see her anywhere, though.
"Yeah, she's upstairs. I think she's on the phone with her mother," Charlie said. He stepped to the side and motioned for her to come in. "Why don't you come in and make yourself comfortable in the living room while I grab her?" he suggested.
Danielle nodded. "Sure. Thanks."
She stepped into the Swan house, which wasn't much bigger than her own home. While Charlie headed upstairs, Danielle slowly made her way into the living room, observing the old looking furniture and the few decorations placed sporadically around the room. It was glaringly obvious as she looked around that until Bella had come back around, there hadn't been a female living in this house in quite some time. Everything about the place, from the sports memorabilia scattered here or there, to the hunting magazines on the coffee table, to the lack of anything even remotely feminine, basically screamed BACHELOR PAD.
The sound of two pairs of feet coming down the stairs caught Danielle's attention a short while later. She turned and saw Bella first, followed quickly by her father. "Hey," Bella said with a friendly smile. "Sorry about the wait," she apologized. "When my mom gets to talking, it's hard to get her to stop."
"No worries," Danielle said, waving off the apology. "You ready to go?" she asked.
"Yep." Bella turned to her father, who had his arms crossed over his chest. "We're gonna head out for a bit and explore Forks," she told him. "I'll probably be back in a few hours, maybe more."
Charlie nodded his understanding. If Danielle wasn't mistaken, he seemed a little pleased to hear that his daughter was getting out of the house and making an effort to hang out with someone. "Alright. Do you need money?" he offered, already reaching for his wallet.
"Uh, sure," Bella said with a nod, looking surprised that Charlie was offering. "Thanks."
Charlie fished some bills from his wallet, then handed them to Bella. "Keep your phone on," he said. "Call me if you need anything."
Bella nodded, took the money, and stuffed it into her pocket. "Okay," she said. She then looked at Danielle. "Let's go."
Danielle nodded and followed her to the front door, offering a quick smile to Charlie as they walked past him. "It was nice to meet you, Chief Swan," she said politely.
"You too, Danielle," he said with a nod and a close-lipped smile. "And be sure to tell your mother that I'd be happy to take her up on her offer to have Bella and I over for dinner. A nice, home-cooked meal sounds like a God-send," he added, following them toward the door. "Why don't we try for next weekend?"
Danielle nodded. "Sure. I'll pass the message along."
Charlie nodded, but didn't say anything more.
They said their goodbye's to Bella's father and headed out, shivering against the cold wind as they hurried to Bella's truck. Soon enough they were pulling away from Bella's house and driving toward the heart of Forks, listening to music and chatting about what they had done the night before. She found out that Bella had pretty much done the same thing that she had – she'd done her homework, had dinner with her father, then hung out in her room.
"So when you told Mike and the gang you had plans, really you were just trying to get out of having to go to that diner," Danielle said as they drove along, her lips pulling into a knowing smirk. It was what she had suspected the day before, but now it was confirmed.
Bella smiled sheepishly. "Don't get me wrong, I think they're nice and all," she said quickly. "It's just…the thought of being packed into that diner with a bunch of people that would just stare and point sounded like torture," she admitted.
"I know what you mean," Danielle said with a small smile. "That's why I didn't go," she confessed. Bella nodded, her expression hinting that she had already suspected that. Danielle looked at her for a moment, then turned her eyes to the window. "Mike likes you, you know," she commented casually, eyeing a few people that were biking along the side of the road. "I can tell."
Bella was blushing when Danielle glanced over at her. "Maybe he does, maybe he doesn't," she said with a shrug, her tone evasive. Danielle didn't think there were any maybe's when it came to Mike's feelings toward Bella, but didn't bother trying to correct her. "Either way, he's, uh…not really my type," she said, shaking her head. "He's nice, but…"
Bella trailed off after that and didn't finish her sentence, but Danielle didn't need her to in order to get the point she was trying to make. Danielle nodded her understanding, then turned her gaze back to the window.
Their first stop was at a little antique store that they had driven past the day before. They parked the truck and went into the shop, stopping to briefly talk with the old lady who owned the place before taking a look around the store. They pointed out a number of cool things to each other and 'ooh'ed and 'ahh'ed over old, sparkly costume jewelry, but in the end, neither of them purchased anything. They only had so much money on them, and they wanted to wait until they found something good to spend it on.
The next shop they went into was a small clothing store, and Danielle actually did end up spending some money there. With how much colder it was in Forks compared to Houston, she felt like her wardrobe was in no way equipped to combat the cold. She purchased a few sweaters, a couple scarves, and several pairs of thick, warm socks, hoping it would be enough to keep her warm against the unforgivably cold winter weather outside. She put on one of the scarves before leaving the shop, then immediately celebrated her purchase when she stepped outside and felt how much more protected her neck was from the chilly wind.
They went into a few more places that seemed interesting, until Danielle's stomach began to rumble hungrily. She hadn't had time to eat breakfast, and between all the roaming around and shopping they were doing, she had worked up quite an appetite. They ended popping into a diner that Bella said she and her dad went to quite a bit. Danielle strongly suspected this was the diner that Mike and the lunch gang had wanted them to hang out at the afternoon before.
The hostess showed Danielle and Bella to a table by the window, and after ordering cokes and burgers, they settled in and started chatting about whatever came to mind. When their food was delivered, Danielle immediately dug into her burger, sighing contentedly once she had some food in her belly.
"This is a good burger," she commented, before taking a drink of her coke.
"Yeah, the food's not bad," Bella said with a nod. "That's probably why we come here all the time," she added with a smirk and a shrug. "Well, that and my dad couldn't cook to save his life."
Danielle laughed, then took another bite of food. She noticed that Bella kept watching her in the moments that followed, though, her brows creased with thought and her teeth gnawing periodically at her bottom lip. She seemed to have something on her mind, something she was contemplating saying. Finally, after one more moment of hesitation, she seemed to decided to just come out with it.
"Danielle? Can I ask you something?" Bella asked, tilting her head a bit.
Danielle swallowed her food and raised her brows. "You just did," she joked.
Bella offered a brief smile, but then frowned with uncertainty again. "I've been wanting to ask you about something for a few days now, only I wasn't really sure how to bring it up," she told her, fiddling with her one of her utensils.
Danielle realized this was something serious and stopped eating. "What is it?" she asked, her previous joking tone replaced with uncertainty as her mind began jumping to conclusions. Had she upset Bella at some point in the past few days? Had she done something to offend her? She really hoped not.
Bella hesitated, then leaned forward. "The other day, you told me you thought Jasper Hale was a jerk," she said, which caught Danielle completely by surprise. "When I asked why, you said it was a weird story and that you didn't wanna talk about it. Then Jessica said someone had seen the two of you together, and that whatever was happening looked intense." Bella paused, her brows furrowing together again. "So…what happened between the two of you?" she asked intently. "Was it…bad?"
Danielle wasn't sure how to answer at first. She hadn't planned to tell anyone what had happened between her and Jasper unless she absolutely had to, and that was for two reasons – one, she didn't want to accidently start spreading rumors, and, two, it had been so weird that she just wasn't sure if anyone would understand or even believe her. But now Bella was asking her what had happened and looking almost desperate to know. Why did she want to know? Could she trust Bella? Would Bella understand? Or would she just end up thinking she was crazy?
Danielle sighed, then finally decided to just go for it and see what happened. "Well, it wasn't exactly good," she admitted. "Jasper is in my first two classes, and right from the beginning, right from when we first saw each other, he was just so…strange," she began to explain. "During both classes he just stared at me. It wasn't the same kind of staring that I was getting from the other kids at school, though," she quickly clarified. "He had the most intense expression on his face. It was almost like he wanted to do something to me and was trying to determine the best way to do it."
Bella's mouth fell open with shock. "What did he do?" she asked. "Did he…" She paused to glance around, as if checking to make sure no one was listening. "Did he hurt you?"
Danielle thought back to what had happened, and goosebumps raised on her skin. "Well, I was leaving the second class that I had with him when I realized that I had forgotten something. I turned to go back into the class and ran right smack into him," she explained. "Jasper grabbed me, and he wouldn't let me go. His hands were so tight and he looked so angry and frightening…I seriously thought he was going to try to do something to me," she admitted. "I tried to pull away, but he only held me tighter. He was trying to keep me from going anywhere."
Bella was shaking her head in disbelief. "How did you get away?"
"Emmett showed up and intervened," Danielle told her. "If he hadn't been there, I honestly don't know what would have happened." Danielle sucked in a deep breath and shook her head. "It scared the hell out of me, Bella," she admitted. "That's the most scared I've ever been in a long time."
Bella leaned back in her seat, her expression one of shock, while Danielle glanced around, unable to meet her gaze now. When a few more moments passed and Bella still didn't say anything, Danielle began to feel uncomfortable and wonder if maybe she had said too much. Did Bella think she was overreacting to this? Did she think she was jumping to conclusions about Jasper's intentions? After all, why would a guy in their high school want to hurt her for no good reason?
"Maybe it's not as bad as I'm making it out to seem," Danielle finally said, hoping to salvage the situation before Bella labelled her off a nutcase. "Maybe I overreacted, or maybe – "
Bella shook her head quickly though, making Danielle fall silent. "No, I don't think you're overreacting at all," she insisted. "He shouldn't have done that. I understand why you'd be scared."
Danielle breathed easier, feeling relieved to know that Bella was on her side.
Bella hesitated for a few moments, her fingers idly twiddling with her napkin. "The same thing happened to me," she quietly revealed, which made Danielle's eyes go wide. "Well, not the exact same thing, but something similar," she added quickly. "I mean…Edward, when I met him –"
Danielle's brows shot in surprise. "Edward? Jasper's brother?" she asked, which made Bella nod in confirmation. "I thought you got a bit tense when Jessica mentioned Edward the other day, but I wasn't sure," she said, thinking back to Bella's reaction at lunch that first day of school. "What happened with him?" Danielle asked, wanting to know what was going on.
Bella sucked in a breath, then started talking. "Edward is in my Biology class. I saw him at lunch on Monday, which was my first day of school, but I didn't talk to him or anything. After lunch I went to Biology and he was there. The moment I walked in and he caught sight of me, he just started acting so strange. So…hostile," Bella admitted.
"Hostile?" Danielle asked, feeling a sinking feeling in her stomach. So it wasn't just Jasper that had a nasty streak to him? It was him and his brother? "How so?"
Bella gestured with her hands for a moment, as if struggling to find the right words to describe what had happened. "It was just like you and Jasper. He looked at me with such…hatred. Like he wanted to hurt me. And his eyes…" She trailed off, her expression hinting that she wasn't sure if she should continue on or not.
Danielle had a feeling she knew exactly what Edward's eyes had looked like. "Were they black?" she asked knowingly. Bella seemed surprised at first, then nodded, which made Danielle sigh. "So were Jasper's," she told her.
Bella gnawed on her lip unsurely. "Are you sure? It wasn't just a trick of the lighting or something?" she asked, sounding almost like she hoped Danielle had been mistaken.
Danielle thought about it, then shrugged. "I don't know," she admitted. "I mean, they couldn't have really been black, right?" she asked with doubt. "It's not possible. Maybe it was just a trick of the lighting."
Bella didn't say anything, just nodded slowly. She looked like she wasn't sure which option to believe, that Jasper and Edward had impossible eye colors, or that maybe she and Danielle had both been so caught off guard and so swept up in fear that they hadn't been thinking straight.
Danielle shook her head to clear her thoughts. "What happened with Edward after that?" she asked next.
"Well, after class I found him in the counselor's office. He was trying to switch out of biology, but he couldn't. That made him mad," Bella said with a frown. Then she shrugged. "I didn't see him for the rest of the day, and when I came to school the next day, he wasn't there. He's been gone ever since."
They fell silent for a long few minutes after that, each lost in their own thoughts as they mulled over the conversation they'd just had. What could it all mean? Why were both Jasper and Edward behaving so peculiarly? And why did they seem to have it out for her and Bella? Danielle shook her head, feeling completely lost. She didn't know what to think about all of this, and if the expression on Bella's face was anything to judge by, she didn't know what to make of it either. It was all so confusing and it all seemed so…strange.
They stopped talking about the Cullen's after that. In fact, they pretty much stopped talking altogether. After a conversation like that, neither of them seemed to know what to talk about. Danielle had to wonder why Bella had brought it up, then decided that maybe she had just been wanting to compare the two encounters in the hope that it would help her understand her own encounter with Edward. Whole lot of good that did, Danielle thought herself. Knowing Bella had had a similar experience with Edward had only confused her further. And she was sure Bella felt the same.
Finally, when they finished their meals, they paid the waitress and then headed for the truck. Bella asked Danielle if there were any more places she wanted to see, but Danielle, feeling in a bit of a funk now, declined. Bella seemed relieved. They drove home, listening to music and making small talk, carefully avoiding the subject of the Cullen's. Once they had parked in front of Bella's house again, they said a quick, slightly awkward goodbye, then went their separate ways.
Just before eleven the next morning, Danielle went to work with her mother. They drove the same route that she and Bella had taken the day before when they'd gone exploring, making their way into the heart of Forks, until they eventually parked in front of a small shop entitled Much Ado About Books. Danielle paused to study the building, admiring the displays and cute decorations in the windows, before following her mother inside. They spent the hour before opening moving things in the backroom around and reorganizing certain areas of the store. An employee named Patricia showed up just before noon, then, as the clock struck twelve, they opened for the day.
She really hadn't known what to expect in terms of how busy it might get, but was pleasantly surprised when a steady flow of customers came in over the course of the next few hours. Danielle let Lynne and Patricia deal with any customers who needed help, choosing instead to keep herself busy by organizing books, cleaning various shelves, and tending to any displays that might've gotten out of order. After a quick, crash-course lesson of how to run the register, she eventually took up position behind the checkout counter and helped ring up customers.
"I'll tell you what," Danielle said around four that afternoon, when there was a lull in customers and they had a bit of downtime. Patricia had gone on a break, leaving just Danielle and her mother to run the store. "This place is way busier than I thought it would be."
Lynne, who was putting back some children's books that had gotten moved around earlier, nodded and smiled. "The lady who used to own this place said that it was always pretty busy," she told her. "It's been around for so long that's it become a bit of a cornerstone around these parts. Kind of a home away from home for a lot of people in town."
Danielle quirked a brow. "I didn't think a bookstore would be that important," she said, not really seeing the appeal. She loved to read and she had plenty of books at home, but the places in which she purchased those books had never meant anything to her. Why would the people of Forks be so attached to this store? What made it so special?
Lynne shrugged. "The previous owner was very involved with the community. She always held fundraisers and book-drives, and there was always something going on here. Saturday morning read along's for kids, book club meetings for adults, so on and so forth," she explained. "She really wanted to make sure that the community felt welcome and taken care of here. The people loved her for it."
"I take it you're gonna try to carry on the tradition?" Danielle said, moving toward a kid's table to straighten up some of the chairs.
Lynne smiled broadly and nodded. "Absolutely," she said without hesitation. "Knowing how special this store is to the people of Forks makes me want to work extra hard to keep it the way everyone loves it. And you know what they say," she added with a smirk, "if it isn't broken, don't fix it."
Danielle just smiled and nodded her understanding. As unsure as she had been of this whole situation, it was easy to see now how happy her mother was here. She was positively glowing as she moved about the store, a look of pride in her eyes as she surveyed her shop. Living in Forks, running the shop, being involved in the community…Lynne was thriving and seemed happier than Danielle could ever remember her being. It was enough to make Danielle think that maybe coming to Forks hadn't been a mistake, after all.
"Here," she said, moving to Lynne's side when she noticed her mother picking up a stack of books. "Let me."
"Thanks," Lynne said, nodding gratefully. "Could you carry them to the counter for me?"
Danielle nodded, picked up the books, then carried them to the counter while Lynne moved on to another section to straighten the books there. She had just set the books down by the cash register when the door to the shop opened, making the bell attached to it jingle loudly. Danielle turned to see who had arrived, a smile still playing on her lips as she thought about how happy she was for her mother.
But as she caught sight of the person who had just stepped inside, her smile fell and her heart jumped in her chest.
There was a tall guy with blonde hair standing just inside the doorway, his posture stiff and his expression guarded. It was Jasper Hale, and though he looked uncomfortable, perhaps even a bit frightened to be in the same room as her, there was no denying that he looked just as handsome as he had looked the first time she had seen him. Danielle gulped as their eyes held, only barely noticing when the large, dark-haired Emmett walked into the store next. Her eyes briefly moved to him and he gave a small wave, before moving past Jasper to go inspect some books on the nearest shelf. Danielle saw him not-so-discreetly nudge Jasper along the way.
Danielle looked at Jasper again, who was staring back at her with uncertainty, as if he wasn't sure what he should do next. The clearing of a throat made her pull her eyes from his to glance at her mother, who was looking back and forth between Jasper and Danielle with curiosity. Lynne jerked her head toward Jasper, silently telling Danielle that she should go talk to him. Danielle's heart jumped in her chest again, but finally, after discreetly wiping her now clammy hands against the fabric of her jeans, she made her way over to Jasper.
The memories of the first day she'd seen Jasper replayed in her mind as she slowly stepped closer to him. It made her feel nervous and more than a little wary. What if something set him off again? What if he got angry with her again? But as she finally came to a halt a safe distance away from him, she could tell in an instant that the Jasper standing in front of her now was not the same Jasper she had interacted with that day at school. He didn't seem comfortable or relaxed in any way, shape, or form, but he didn't look angry or predatory either, like he had when he had grabbed her.
Danielle still crossed her arms tightly over her chest, as if trying to shield herself. She shifted on her feet as his eyes gazed at her intently, studying every inch of her face. It didn't escape her notice that his eyes were a pretty amber color now. They weren't black, like she had thought they were that first day. Maybe she had just been seeing things, or maybe it had just been a trick of the lighting.
"Can I help you?" she asked, her tone guarded and lacking friendliness.
Jasper blinked, then cleared his throat. "I was hoping we could talk," he said gently. Her heart instantly began to beat faster, a pleasant warmth unexpectedly filling her chest. It was the first time he had actually spoken to her, and the sound of his deep, smooth voice was more pleasing to the ear than she cared to admit. "Assuming you're not too busy, of course," he added, giving her the option to turn him away if she wanted.
She had gotten so caught up in the sound of his voice that she had momentarily zoned out. Danielle blinked herself back to the present, blushing a bit at her own reaction. "Uhm...alright," she agreed.
He started to speak again, but paused and glanced to the right, where he saw that her mother was watching them like a hawk. Danielle looked that way as well and started to ask her mother to maybe go find something else to do while she spoke to Jasper. Before she could, however, Emmett came to the rescue by asking Lynne to help him locate a certain book. Once the two had disappeared between some shelves, Danielle and Jasper looked at each other again.
Jasper took a steadying breath, then stood a bit straighter, his shoulders squaring. "I came here today because I wanted to apologize for my behavior at school on Thursday," he told her. "I was completely out of line, and I am truly sorry if I hurt or frightened you."
Without really thinking about what she was doing, Danielle hands slid to the spots on her arms where he had grabbed her, which were still covered in bruises. The sleeves of the t-shirt she wore were just barely long enough to cover the bruises Jasper's fingers had left behind, and she knew that if Jasper caught site of them, he'd know immediately where they had come from. She didn't want him to see them.
"You're right. You were out of line," Danielle said, which had him looking down to his feet with what seemed like shame. "What even happened that day, Jasper?" she asked, her brows furrowing together. His eyes lifted back to hers at the question and she thought she saw something flash through his eyes when she said his name, but she wasn't sure what that something was. "Did I do something wrong?"
"No," Jasper told her immediately. "It wasn't anything you did, I swear it," he insisted. "I was…having a hard day that day," he then said, his expression a bit pinched. "I was struggling with my own problems and feeling very…unlike myself. When you ran into me and when I…grabbed you…I wasn't thinking clearly." Jasper sighed and shook his head, his lips frowning now. "It isn't much of an excuse. Speaking honestly, there isn't an excuse in the world that could justify how I acted toward you," he said. "Where I come from, putting your hands on a woman is one of the worst things a man can do. It's cowardly and disrespectful and just…wrong. I don't expect you to forgive me – if you ask me, I don't even think I deserve your forgiveness," Jasper went on to admit. "But I wanted to apologize anyway and tell you how absolutely horrible I feel about what happened. In time, I hope I can prove to you that I'm not the monster you met that day."
Danielle blinked as she stared into Jasper's remorseful eyes. There was a part of her that agreed with him when he said that he didn't deserve her forgiveness – her mother had always told her to stay away from men who hurt women, because any man who hurt a woman once could, and would, do it again. Jasper had scared her, had hurt her, and as far as this stubborn side of her was concerned, he didn't deserve the time of day, let alone her forgiveness.
Yet, at the same time, there was no denying that Jasper honestly and truly felt horrible for what had happened. She liked to think that she was pretty good at being able to read people, and as she considered everything he said and looked deep into his eyes, there was no deceit present anywhere. She knew that the words he had spoken had been nothing but sincere and truthful. He was genuinely sorry for what had happened, and he wanted to make things right between them.
As scared as she had been of him, as doubtful of him as she had felt in the days following that incident, Danielle suddenly found herself wanting to give him a second chance. People made mistakes all the time, right? Was it fair of her to judge him for one momentary lapse in judgement? Didn't he at least deserve the chance to prove that he was better than the guy who had grabbed her outside that classroom?
Danielle made up her mind fairly quickly. Jasper had put himself out there to apologize, had come to beg her forgiveness even though he himself didn't even think he deserved it – the least she could do was give him another chance to show her who the real Jasper Hale was.
"Well, I agree with you on one thing - you probably don't deserve my forgiveness," she finally said. Jasper instantly looked disappointed, though not necessarily surprised to hear her say it. "But I'm gonna give it you anyway," Danielle added after a moment, which made Jasper's eyes brighten with hope again. She tried to ignore the way her heart thumped in response. "I don't like what happened. Not one bit. But the fact that you came here today and took a chance by explaining yourself and apologizing…that took guts, and it means a lot," she said with a nod. "So...I forgive you, Jasper."
He flashed a small smile and nodded, looking relieved. "Thank you, Danielle."
Danielle nodded, then moved one hand to point at him. "But don't ever do anything like that again," she added warningly. "Because if you do, I swear I'll make you regret it," she threatened. "I'm not above kicking you where the sun doesn't shine."
Jasper smirked, and for a second she thought he might actually laugh. "Well, you don't have to worry. Because nothing like that will ever happen again. That's my promise to you, and I don't break the promises I make," he said with a firm nod.
"Alright, then," Danielle said with a note of finality. They stood there for a moment, just looking at one another, the air around them far less tense than it had been seconds before. Finally, Danielle took a step closer to Jasper. "Why don't we start over," she suggested, giving him a friendly smile now. "I'm Danielle," she introduced, sticking a hand in his direction.
Jasper looked at her hand for a moment, as if he wasn't sure if he should take it or not, until he finally, cautiously grabbed her hand. Danielle pressed her lips together to keep from gasping aloud as an electric shock shot up her arm. His hand was cold, but fit nicely around her own. "I'm Jasper," he said, and there was a different note to his voice now that she couldn't put her finger on. "It's a pleasure to meet you."
"Pleasure to meet you, too," she said, having to clear her throat to do so.
Jasper released her hand, then quickly shoved both of his hands into the pockets of his jeans. He glanced around the shop, then looked down at her. "While I'm here, I might as well see if there's any good books to take with me," he said, his tone calm and even now. "What sort of books do you have?"
Danielle shrugged. "All kinds," she answered. "What interests you the most?"
"I'm a fan of history," Jasper answered. "And I tend to prefer non-fiction over fiction books."
Danielle nodded her understanding. "Alright." She turned to glance around, scanning the markers at the top of the aisles that designated the type of books in each section. When she spotted the non-fiction section, she turned back to Jasper. "Follow me," she said, motioning him along with a wave of her hand.
They started off for the non-fiction section, Danielle in the lead while Jasper trailed a few steps behind. Once they were making their way between shelves, she turned back to face Jasper, walking backwards now. "What about history interests you most? Do you like books about Vikings? Ancient Egypt? World explorers? Or are interested in something a little more modern?"
"I've always been very into the Civil War," Jasper told her with a small smile.
Danielle nodded, but frowned a bit as she eyed the shelves. "I don't know if I've seen anything about the Civil War here, but we can have a look around," she told him.
"Alright," Jasper said.
They stopped and began to slowly search the shelves for anything that fit the description of what Jasper was interested in. They stood side by side, but they didn't talk to one another. Instead, Danielle would glance at him out of the corner of her eye every few seconds, while Jasper seemed to be doing the same thing. Finally, when the silence was too much for her to handle, she cleared her throat.
"So where are you from?" Danielle asked conversationally. Jasper looked at her questioningly. "Earlier you said, 'where I come from'," she reminded him. "So I'm curious…where are you from?" she asked again.
Jasper hesitated before answering. "I was born in Houston, actually," he revealed, which made her brows shoot up in surprise. "I lived there when I was younger, then left when my adoptive parents took me in," he told her.
"Wow," Danielle said, amazed by the coincidence that they were from the same place. "Emmett said he knew someone from Texas, but he didn't say it was you. What a small world," she commented, shaking her head. When Jasper seemed confused as to why she was saying that, Danielle explained herself. "That's where my mom and I are from. Houston," she told him with a smile.
Jasper seemed surprised too. "I had heard you were from Texas, but I didn't know you were from Houston," he said. He then smiled a bit. "I guess this is a small world we live in," he agreed. Danielle smiled and nodded, then turned her eyes back to the shelves of books to continue her search. "Do you miss it?" Jasper asked, drawing her attention back to him. "Do you miss Houston, that is," he clarified.
Danielle sighed, then shrugged. "Honestly? Yes," she said truthfully. "I miss my friends. I miss the warmth. I miss the sunshine," she added with a note of disdain. "I haven't seen the sun once since I got here, and that's kind of depressing." Danielle sighed again, before shaking her head. "But I guess Forks isn't so bad," she admitted. "I've met some nice people, and I kind of like the whole 'small town' aesthetic. Plus my mom is really happy here, so I think it kinda makes it all worth it, you know?" she told him.
Jasper glanced behind them, looking at Lynne and Emmett as they discussed a few books near the front of the store. "What about you?" he asked, looking at her again. "Are you happy here?"
Danielle pressed her lips together, unsure how to answer him. When she took too long to respond, Jasper frowned apologetically. "I'm sorry," he said. "That was a very personal thing to ask."
"It's fine," Danielle quickly reassured him. He seemed to relax after that. "To answer your question, I wouldn't say I'm unhappy here. I'm just…still getting used to it. It just takes time, right?" she added optimistically.
Jasper nodded. "Right."
They stopped talking and continued searching through the rows of books. While Jasper studied the titles on the spines, reaching out every so often to inspect something that caught his attention, Danielle found her gaze magnetized to him. She had thought he was handsome right from the start, but the more she looked at him, the more she began to think that handsome didn't really do him justice. Everything about him was perfect, from his slightly wild blonde hair to the line of his jaw to the graceful way his fingers trailed along the books as he searched for one that he might want. He smelled good, too, something she hadn't noticed when they'd first met. There was an earthy scent clinging to him, one that made her think of pine trees and left her wondering if perhaps he had been in the forest recently, because that certainly didn't smell like any sort of cologne that could be bought in a store.
Jasper Hale wasn't just handsome, she decided right then and there. He was breathtaking. He was beautiful.
When he suddenly looked at her and their gazes met, she blushed and quickly turned to continue down the aisle, cursing herself internally for getting caught staring at him. She heard him slowly trail behind her, but she didn't dare turn around to face him, not while her cheeks were still so red.
On the next aisle, she was relieved when she finally located a section of books dedicated to the Civil War. Being around Jasper was making her nervous for an entirely new reason now, and it was making it difficult for her to concentrate on acting like the normal, level-headed human being she liked to believe she was. Part of her was ready to help Jasper find a book and send him on his way, just so she could get her bearings again – the other part of her kind of wanted him to stick around, even if it was only so she could stare at him a bit longer.
"Here we are," Danielle announced, moving closer to the books and eyeing the titles. "We've got biographies about different generals, a few books focusing on just the battles, some more books about the president and politics at the time," she listed off. She glanced back at Jasper, but found that he had been looking at her, not at the books she was telling him about. When he realized he'd been caught staring, however, he quickly shifted his attention to the books. Danielle cleared her throat again. "Any of these sound interesting?"
"May I see one of the books about the battles, please?" Jasper asked with a nod toward the books in question.
Danielle nodded, grabbed the first one she saw, then placed it in his outstretched hand. She waited patiently while Jasper opened up the book and flipped through the first few chapters, his eyes quickly scanning the words on the pages. Danielle watched him closely, admiring the way the light bounced off his golden hair, resisting the urge to step closer just so she could get another whiff of the piney scent that clung to him. Danielle finally stopped staring when he glanced up at her briefly, as if he could feel her eyes on him. Instead she glanced back at her mother and Emmett, who were now sharing a laugh about something in the front. Emmett looked her way and raised his brows at her, as if silently asking how everything was going. Danielle just smiled and gave him a discreet nod to say that everything was alright.
"I'll get this," Jasper announced a moment later, closing the book as he finished his initial inspection. "I think it seems quite interesting."
"Alright," Danielle said with a smile. She held her hand out for the book, which he passed back to her, then motioned for him to follow her back to the register. "I'll get you rung up."
Jasper nodded, and with that they left the non-fiction area behind and went to the front checkout counter. She noticed when Jasper and Emmett shared a nod, and also noticed the way her mother looked Jasper up and down. As she went behind the cash register and began to ring Jasper up, he stood on the other side of the counter, his eyes watching her every move. It was a transaction that should have been quick, but the way he was watching her made her nervous feelings kick back up. Her heart began to pound against her ribs and her fingers shook a bit, which made her have to start over with the transaction process twice because she kept pressing the wrong buttons.
Finally, she was able to get it right. "That'll be sixteen dollars and fifty-seven cents," she said.
Jasper grabbed his wallet and pulled out a credit card. She ran the card, passed it back to him, then grabbed the receipt when it finished printing. "Do you have a pen?" he asked, since he needed to sign the receipt.
"Yeah, uh, lemme just…" She trailed off and glanced around, until she spotted a pen on the end of the counter. "There it is."
Danielle stretched her arm to the left to grab the pen, then offered it to Jasper. He didn't take it though, didn't even look at the pen. Instead, he frowned deeply and his jaw tightened as his eyes stared intently at Danielle's left arm, as if he was seeing something he didn't like. Confused, Danielle glanced down at her own arm, only to quickly realize exactly what Jasper had seen. When she had reached for the pen, the sleeve of her shirt had slid upward, exposing the bruises that she had been trying to hide. In an instant, she knew that Jasper had figured out exactly where they had come from. His gaze flicked to her other arm, then back and forth a few times, before finally looking into her eyes. She'd never seen anyone look as guilty or as angry with themselves as Jasper looked in that exact moment.
"I did that," he stated quietly, his eyes full of shame and regret. "I left those marks on you."
She didn't know why, but she felt her heart go out to him. "It's nothing I can't handle," she assured him.
"But – " he started to argue.
"Jasper," she interrupted firmly, placing a hand over one of his, which was resting on top of the counter. Jasper's eyes darted down to where she was touching him, then shot back up to hers. She thought she saw him gulp. "I'm fine. Okay?" she insisted.
Jasper finally nodded, even though he didn't look convinced. Danielle moved her hand away from his after that, then handed him the pen. After he signed the receipt, he handed it back. She printed out a second copy of the receipt, placed it and the book in a small plastic bag, then handed it over to him. "I'm so sorry, Danielle," he said quietly as he took the bag, his eyes full of remorse.
Danielle gave him a small, gentle smile. "And I already forgave you, remember?" she said pointedly.
Jasper just nodded again, then took a big step backward. "I…I should go," he said, glancing toward the door.
"Okay," Danielle said, half of her feeling relieved that he was leaving, but the other half not wanting him to go yet. "I'll see you at school tomorrow?" she asked.
Jasper nodded. "You will," he confirmed. "Goodbye, Danielle," he finally said.
"Bye."
Jasper turned and left after that, not even bothering to wait for Emmett as he quickly walked outside. Danielle let out a breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding once he was gone, then ran a hand through her red curls, her head shaking a bit. She finally looked away from the door that Jasper had just disappeared through when Emmett said goodbye to her mother and came walking up to the checkout counter. He glanced at the door, then raised his brows at her.
"Told you he wasn't a bad guy," he said knowingly, which made Danielle smile a bit. "Everything good now?" he asked hopefully.
Danielle thought about it, then nodded. "I think so," she said, though the uncertainty in her tone was obvious. "Guess we'll just have to wait and see."
Emmett nodded, then jerked her head toward the exit. "I should go. But I'll see you tomorrow, yeah?"
After Danielle nodded, Emmett made a fist with one large hand and extended it in her direction. Danielle looked at it in confusion until she realized he was waiting for her to fist bump him. When she did finally did so, he smirked and pumped his fist in the air in silent celebration. Danielle couldn't help but snort at him in amusement, despite the whirlwind of emotions still swirling through her after her encounter with Jasper.
"Later, Danielle," he said with a grin as he headed for the door.
"Bye, Emmett," she called back.
Once Emmett was gone and the door had shut behind him, Danielle sighed and leaned heavily against the counter. Barely two seconds later, Lynne came to stand on the other side of the counter.
"Okay, missy," Lynne said, making Danielle look at her. Her mother had her brows raised and was standing in the stereotypical 'mom pose', complete with her hands on her hips and her foot tapping against the ground impatiently. "Clearly you've been withholding information," she said accusingly. "Wanna tell me what that was all about?"
Danielle didn't really want to talk boys with her mother, but she also knew the look that was currently on Lynne's face – she wasn't going to let the subject drop until she found out what she was wanting to know. "They're just some guys I go to school with," she answered. When Lynne wasn't satisfied with that answer, Danielle heaved. "Jasper and I kinda got off on the wrong foot the other day, so he came to apologize and set things right," she told her truthfully. "It's not a big deal, honestly."
Lynne quirked a brow. "You said there weren't any cute boys at your school," she reminded her. "Emmett was cute. And that Jasper was a looker, too. And it certainly looked like there was something going on between the two of you," she added knowingly.
"There's nothing going on between me and Jasper," Danielle insisted.
"You sure?" Lynne countered.
"Yes, Mom," Danielle said impatiently.
Lynne narrowed her eyes for a moment, then finally held her hands up in defeat. "Alright. If you say there's nothing going on, then there's nothing going on," she conceded. Danielle sighed with relief and started to thank her for dropping the subject, but didn't get the chance to before her mother spoke again. "Not yet anyway," she added, which made Danielle roll her eyes. "Roll your eyes all you want, sweetie, but I can clearly see that you're interested," Lynne said, undeterred. "And I can see that he is, too."
She might have said more, but thankfully the door opened and a few elderly customers came walking in. Lynne shot her one last look, then went to go and help them, leaving Danielle by herself again.
Was Lynne wrong about her being interested in Jasper? No, she supposed she wasn't. The fact of the matter was that the Jasper she had met today was nothing like the Jasper she had met on her first day of school. Today he had been cordial, pleasant, friendly. It was such a drastic change from how he had been when they had first been around each other, so drastic that now she was questioning everything she had been feeling toward Jasper Hale these past few days. She had thought he was a jerk, that he was someone she didn't even want to attempt to befriend and who she had decided to avoid like the plague.
Yet, after today, he actually seemed…nice. All of her previous fear of him was gone, replaced instead by interest and curiosity. He'd shown a completely different side to her, and this new side was one that she liked, one that made her want to talk to him more and get to know him better.
But certainly her mother was wrong when she said that Jasper was interested in her in return, right? His only reason for coming to talk to her today was because he had wanted to apologize to her, like any normal person would do after they wronged someone else. There were no ulterior motives there, Danielle was sure of it. Besides, why would someone like him be interested in someone like her? He was insanely attractive, came from a family that apparently had a boatload of money, and could likely get anyone he wanted. So why would he even give her a second look?
Besides, did she even want him to be interested in her in that way? Danielle thought about that for a second, then decided that she wasn't sure what she wanted anymore. She couldn't deny that she was attracted to him physically, and this new, friendly side to Jasper certainly held promise…but she couldn't just forget what had happened between them so easily. There was clearly another side to him, one that was unpredictable, one that she needed to remain wary of no matter how friendly he was to her. Today might have been a step in the right direction, but he still had a ways to go before he proved that he was someone she could trust.
Danielle finally told herself to stop thinking about it. Jasper had apologized and they had agreed to a fresh start. Now, only time would tell what would happen between her and Jasper Hale.
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