Disclaimer: I do not own anything from the collective works of Stephenie Meyer's Twilight Saga
Chapter 38: Swords and Cups
As the school year drew to a close, Louisa found herself spending an increasing amount of time sitting at the kitchen table, surrounded by college applications. Most weekends, Louisa could be found flipping through pamphlets and comparing her SAT and ACT scores to university websites. Her father had been dropping none too subtle hints about her attending his alma mater, Stanford. Which would've been fine if her boyfriend hadn't been a vampire and the school was located in California.
Jasper rolled his eyes when she mentioned it to him one rainy afternoon in early June. "Choosing a college based on me is a very poor way to plan for your future," he said. "Besides, it's not like the sun doesn't set in California."
"You'd be limited to night classes," she pointed out.
"I generally am," he replied. Then he dropped a bombshell on her: whilst he would follow her wherever she went, he had no intention of adding another degree to his collection. "I was thinking about working again. I don't need the money, but it gives me something to do when you are in class."
Louisa hummed in thought. Although the thought of attending university without Jasper seemed daunting, she could understand why he didn't want to. "You wouldn't be able to live on campus with me," she pointed out. Not that she could picture him living on campus anyway.
"I could buy a house nearby, and you could commute."
That brought Louisa up short. It hadn't occurred to her that he would expect her to stay with him, although she probably should have. As Dottie once had so eloquently put it: she and Jasper were already up each other's asses. It only made sense for them to live together. She wasn't even opposed to the idea either.
"Or not?" Jasper said when she didn't respond. "Forgive me. I assumed—"
Louisa reached out and grabbed his hand. "It's not that," she said with a reassuring smile. "There's just a lot of… stuff that it entails."
His brow furrowed in confusion, looking very much like a confused puppy. "Like paperwork? You needn't worry about that. I have a lawyer on retainer."
Louisa couldn't help but giggle at his obliviousness. She rose from her seat and slid into his lap, wrapping her arms around his neck and pressing their foreheads together. "More like my father," she corrected. Her father was generally accepting of Jasper's presence in their household, even going so far as to allow him to sleepover on the weekends (not that Jasper did much sleeping, but it was the thought that counts). But allowing your teenage daughter's boyfriend to spend the night was very different than allowing them to move in together fresh out of high school.
"Ah." The furrow deepened and Louisa tilted her head up to press a kiss to his forehead.
"Plus, a lot of colleges require first-years to live on campus," she continued.
"We could get married," Jasper replied.
Louisa sat back so fast her head spun. "What?"
His skin turned paper white, his face stricken. She could tell that he was equally as surprised by his suggestion as she was. A moment later, Louisa found herself sitting on a chair, deposited there by her boyfriend who was standing stock-still on the other side of the kitchen. His back was towards her, bracing himself against the counter. His fingers trembled as he resisted the urge to reduce the granite countertops to dust. Panicked energy permeated the room (Jasper's influence, no doubt), and Louisa was torn between interrogating him and giving in to the feeling. Marriage, after all, was… kind of a big deal. She loved Jasper dearly, but what the hell? Where was this coming from?
When he didn't respond, Louisa slid off the chair and inched towards her tense boyfriend. "Jazz," she said in a soft voice, rubbing a hand across the tense muscles of his back.
"What do you mean by that?"
His jaw worked and his eyes were fixed on the microwave as if it was the most fascinating thing in the world. "Well, generally," he mumbled, still refusing to meet her eyes. "That means we go to a chapel and get hitched."
"And that's something you want?" She asked, her mind reeling. He had never brought up the topic of marriage before (though, to be fair, they'd only been dating for seven months), and Louisa wasn't sure how to react. In fact, she was more at peace with the idea of being changed into a vampire, than becoming a bride. Though that might be because she couldn't comprehend vampirism, being a human. But marriage, she knew what that was, and for some reason, it sounded like a much bigger deal than changing her species.
Priorities, right?
She shook her head, trying to clear away her thoughts and feelings on the matter. She could sort through those later. Instead, she focused on her distressed boyfriend, who looked like he wanted nothing more than to throw himself off the nearest cliff. Discomfort and awkwardness were radiating off him in waves— literally considering he was an empath— which was concerning.
For as long as she knew him, Jasper was a steady rock. His actions, even when he was stressed, were nothing short of calculated and methodical. He never did anything without extensive forethought and planning, so for him to more or less propose to her was odd. Jasper wasn't one to just say things, not in the spur of the moment. Which meant that marriage was something he had been thinking about a lot.
"Babe, talk to me," she murmured, pressing her forehead against his back. She threaded her arms around his waist, her hands rubbing comforting circles into his chest. He slumped against her as much as his stuffy Victorian mannerisms and strict military background would allow (which wasn't much).
Jasper let out a sigh before twisting in her arms and dropping his head on her shoulder. "I don't know," he replied at last. "Alice would be mighty angry if we took off to Vegas."
His answer only served to confuse her more. "Is that what you would rather do?" she asked, reaching up to card her fingers through his blond waves.
"I don't know," he said again. "The Cullens keep asking about it."
Again, his answer didn't make a lot of sense. Why would the Cullens keep asking about them getting married? Were they pushing for it? And why did Jasper sound so miserable about the idea? Did he not want to get married? She tried not to be offended at the thought and focused her attention back on her boyfriend.
"Jasper, look at me," Louisa murmured, stroking his hair while she waited for his dark eyes to meet hers. "I don't care what the Cullens want. I don't care what Alice wants. What do you want?"
"I don't know," he admitted after a moment of silence. Louisa continued to stroke his hair, waiting for him to continue. "I don't understand the appeal of it. It's a piece of paper."
Louisa hummed and pressed a kiss to his forehead as the pieces slowly started to fit into place. "Do vampires not get married?"
"Carlisle and Esme did. And Rose and Emmett get married every decade or so."
"Yes, but they're hardly the paragon of vampiric lifestyles," she pointed out. "What about your friends? Peter and Charlotte?"
Jasper drew back and gave her a funny look. "Why would they? They're mates."
"So are Emmett and Rose," Louisa said with a laugh. "And your parents."
"They're not my parents," he corrected.
That wasn't the first time he had said that either. Although he and Alice had been with the Cullens for the same amount of time, he held far less attachment to the family than she did. Jasper had always been the odd man out in his family, even going so far as to call them domesticated once. It was almost like… well, he was a vampire. Unlike the Cullens, who desperately clung to the last vestiges of their humanity, Jasper had no such desire. He probably didn't even know how to. What made him human was damaged somewhere on the road to Galveston in 1863. What was left was destroyed in the intervening years he spent as Maria's puppet.
He wasn't like he was repelled by the idea of marrying her. He didn't see the point. By the sound of it, marriage wasn't something that vampires tended to do, so in a way, it made sense that the concept was foreign to him. His discomfort most likely stemmed from the Cullen's pressure, more than anything else. Louisa couldn't help but laugh at the situation she had found herself in.
"Tell them to piss off. It's your life," she said before pressing a kiss to his lips. Then after a moment of consideration, continued with, "Or death. Or whatever is the politically correct term."
Jasper rolled his eyes before giving her a fond smile.
The conversation was put on the back burner, to be discussed another day. They had more pressing matters to deal with, after all, such as Spanish exams to sit and history oral presentations to give. Louisa was supremely grateful that her boyfriend had been through secondary school and university several dozen times since the 1950s, as he made for an excellent tutor. By the time finals week rolled around, Louisa was one of the few (human) students that were getting a full eight hours of sleep a night and wasn't prone to breaking down in the middle of the hallway. Tensions were running high, so it came as no surprise to anyone when it came to a catastrophic head in a way only high schoolers were capable of.
It started innocuous enough. It was so subtle, that it wasn't until much later that Louisa was able to pinpoint where it all started to go wrong. Of course, it wasn't Dottie's fault, or Alice's either. It was inevitable, bound to happen. It was lunchtime, and the canteen was a hive of nervous energy. Students flipped through flashcards and reviewed SparkNotes of books they were supposed to have read. Louisa was sitting in her normal spot at the Cullen's lunch table, tucked under Jasper's arm as she reviewed her Spanish notes. Edward was brooding and listening to music loud enough that even her dull human ears could hear it (Brahms, by the sound of it. What a nerd), whilst Rosalie was pretending to quiz Emmett for his impending biology final. Alice had given up all pretences of acting like a stressed student and was working on a colouring book (flexing her 120 count box of crayons, no less).
Then, without warning, Dottie appeared at her side, dropping into the vacant chair between Alice and herself. Louisa could feel Jasper stiffen, and wondered idly if it was because of her sister's scent or the emotional turmoil that was written plainly across her face. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Edward pause his music and furrow his brow ever so slightly. Emotional turmoil then.
"What's up?" she asked, setting down her notes and giving Dottie her full attention. Her sister was shuffling a deck of tarot cards in her hands, her lips set in a pout. "Worried about your English final?"
Dottie's face contorted as if the thought hadn't occurred to her. Her hands stilled before setting the tarot cards onto the table and flipped the first three over. She hummed as she surveyed the cards, tapping her chin dramatically. "I'll be fine," she said after a moment of consideration. "Maybe."
Louisa rolled her eyes, but it was Alice who responded. "Do you even know what to do with those things?"
"Not really," Dottie admitted. "I take it you do?"
"Amateur," Alice huffed. She snatched the deck up and gave it a quick shuffle, before instructing Dottie to pull out five cards. Louisa watched in fascination as Alice began to arrange Dottie's cards in a 't' pattern on the table. A blank expression fell over her face as she worked, her eyes growing hazy and distant. "Huh, interesting."
"I generally am," Dottie replied in a breezy voice. "But please, elaborate."
Alice blinked, her pupils returning to a normal size. "You've got the Death card," she said, pointing to the card in the centre. "Change is coming for you. You'll need to let go when the time comes. The rest you drew were swords." She leaned forward towards Dottie, her eyes narrowing in concern. "You feel trapped by him. You'll have to make a tough decision soon."
Dottie sat frozen for a moment, her face contorted in surprise. When she finally moved, she let out a nervous laugh. "Saying I aced my exams would have been fine."
Alice hummed, her gaze darting around the canteen. "Yes, well, I can't see everything. Listen, can I keep these?" Alice asked, waving the cards for emphasis.
Dottie shrugged with indifference. "If you want. I stole them from Jessica Stanley," Dottie said as Alice collected the cards and began to shuffle them again. "So if you end up cursed, that's on you."
"She's already cursed," Edward said in a solemn voice. He left the 'we all are,' unspoken, much to Louisa's relief. There was only so much of Edward's melodrama she could handle during one lunch period.
"I'll take my chances," Alice said, ignoring him.
Edward reached forward to steal the cards, only to grab at air when Alice snatched them away, holding them to her chest protectively. He fixed her with a disapproving look. "Dad won't like it."
"Then don't tell him," Alice snapped as she tucked the cards away in her purse.
Dottie watched the two siblings with a mixture of amusement and confusion. She wasn't alone. One glance around the table told Louisa that the other Cullen siblings had no clue what was happening either. It was uncommon enough to witness a spat between Alice and Edward. It was even rarer that one of the Cullens openly went against the wishes of Carlisle.
Aside from Jasper, the family viewed Carlisle as their leader and patriarch. Edward was the Golden Boy, the favourite and first child of Carlisle and Esme, no matter how much they denied it. It made sense: he was still a boy, after all, frozen forever at seventeen, and in desperate need of guidance and parental love. After him, Alice was the closest to their parents. Whilst she was the same physical age as Rosalie, Alice had a childlike innocence to her that drew adults in and want to protect her. Alice was more than happy for Carlisle and Esme to fill that role. Emmett, despite being the oldest of his adopted siblings at twenty, was closer to their parents than Rosalie. His relationship with Carlisle was more fraternal, but he allowed Esme to dote on him, on occasion. Rosalie respected her adoptive parents and had grown comfortable with them over the years, though she, like her husband, was an adult who neither wanted, nor appreciated, being coddled. In comparison, Jasper marched to the beat of his own drum. He respected Carlisle, though he hardly viewed him or Esme as parents or leaders. Despite this, even he was reluctant to do something he knew either of them disagreed with.
So whilst Louisa wasn't entirely sure what the issue was, she knew that something was wrong. Alice wouldn't go against Carlisle's wishes for no reason. She'd seen something— and something important at that. The only thing she could think of that would make her react like she did was… well, Louisa wasn't supposed to think about that if Edward was within a five-kilometre radius of her. The boy in question shot her an irritated look at that thought.
"I'm going to Lauren's after school, so don't bother waiting for me," Dottie said, breaking the awkward tension that had fallen over the table. She beat a hasty retreat and disappeared into the crowd of students exiting the canteen. Louisa and the Cullen siblings followed suit and branched off at their respective classrooms. Edward gave a dramatic, long-suffering sigh as he drifted into his English class, clearly hoping she would pity him enough to let something slip. She shared an eye roll with Alice at his theatrics.
It came as no surprise that Alice was already waiting for her after she finished her Spanish final. The tiny vampire was bouncing on the balls of her feet, humming quietly to herself in what was most likely an attempt to keep Edward out of her head. Rose took one look at her sister and walked in the other direction, letting out a dry laugh when Louisa tried to call her back. Jasper swooped down and pressed a kiss to Louisa's lips before chasing after Rose. She glared at their backs as they disappeared into the crowd. The traitors.
With no excuse about why she couldn't, Louisa allowed a giddy Alice to bounce along beside her and climb into her Prius. Once she was sure Edward was out of eavesdropping range, Alice pulled out the stolen tarot cards and began babbling about… something. Alice spoke very fast and Louisa wasn't sure she followed. The moment Louisa parked the car, Alice tore out the car with a borderline inhuman speed and disappeared into the Collins' house.
"Remind me why we can't do this at your house?" Louisa asked, watching Alice flit around her bedroom, lighting candles to 'set the mood.'
"Carlisle is the son of an Anglican pastor," Alice replied. "The tarot cards will offend his delicate sensibilities. Besides, I don't want Edward to find out."
"About?" she asked, though she was fairly certain she already knew the answer.
"Bella!" she exclaimed, leaping onto Louisa's bed. "I thought she was just flighty and indecisive, but what if I'm not looking in the right places for her?"
Louisa pursed her lips. "What does she have to do with tarot cards?"
"They gave me a direction to look in. Why didn't I think to use them sooner?"
Louisa's face contorted in disbelief. "Right."
"You don't believe me?"
"It's confirmation bias," she said. "They're random cards that people see meaning in because they want to."
Alice shrugged. "For most people. I'm not most people. For instance," she began, shuffling the deck. She instructed Louisa to pick out three cards, which she placed on the bed between them. "The first card here represents your present." She taped on the card, which depicted ten cups. "This means something like 'happy relationship.'"
"Like Jasper?"
"Confirmation bias, see? You draw that conclusion because that's what's on your mind," Alice teased. "It could also describe me or Rose or your sister or anyone in your life. Now it's my turn." She tapped on another card. "Your six of cups is reversed. You're stuck in the past. It's something that holds you back."
Louisa huffed in annoyance. "Doesn't it do that for everybody?"
Alice gave her a knowing grin. "Sure. But not everyone can look into the past like you can." Her pupils dilated for a brief moment while she scanned the future. "It's going to catch up to you soon. A letter in the mail." She snapped out of her trance, only to send off a quick text message. "You'll want Jasper here for it."
Gooseflesh erupted across Louisa's skin and she had to fight back a shiver at her ominous tone. The foreboding feeling only strengthened when Alice wouldn't, or couldn't, elaborate. She was almost hesitant to ask for the last card.
"Two of cups," she replied, a smirk flitting across her face. "A loving relationship is going to change. Deepen. A union of souls."
"Is that why you've been pressuring Jasper to propose to me?" The words were out of her mouth before she realised it. She wanted to slap herself across the face. Jasper was stressed enough by the idea. He didn't need her going around and telling others about it. Even Alice, his best friend.
"He proposed?" Alice said, the smirk slipping off her face. "And he didn't tell me?"
"Alice, stop!" Louisa said, diving for Alice's phone, which she had whipped out again. "You'll upset him."
"Oh, he will be when I'm through with him," she growled. "That jackass! I'm his best friend!"
She succeeded in wrestling the mobile from Alice's grip. This was especially impressive given how strong and fast Alice was. Alice looked equally as surprised by her actions. "Enough," she commanded, her tone stony and firm. "He doesn't want to get married."
Alice's face crumpled at this revelation. "He doesn't?" she asked. She looked heartbroken as if it had been her partner that was reluctant to get married. To an outsider, it was an odd reaction, but Alice was nothing if not a romantic. A very excitable and pushy romantic, but a romantic nonetheless. With no partner of her own, Alice tended to live vicariously through other people, no matter how unwelcome her intrusion was. And she intruded a lot. From picking out prom dresses to inviting herself over without asking because she already knew the answer was 'yes', Alice lived in a world where she was the director and everybody else were her actors. In a way, it almost made sense. Her gift let her know someone's reaction before it happened. In Alice's mind, she was saving everyone the trouble. But in reality, it felt like she was depriving them the right to make their own decisions. It was tiring, and Louisa wondered how the Cullens put up with the behaviour. Especially Rosalie or Jasper, who hated being told what to do.
Louisa sighed before pulling her into a hug. "You can't push him, sweetie."
"But he'll be so happy," Alice whispered. "I want him to be happy."
And that was why it was so hard to be annoyed with Alice when she acted like this. She wasn't doing it to be cruel or invasive. She truly did have everyone's interest at heart. She just didn't have the best way of showing it. Still, it didn't make what she did right, and one day someone would take offence to her making decisions for them. Even if they were decisions that that person would make.
"He is," she promised, carding her fingers through Alice's hair. "Be patient with him. He's had a hard beginning."
Alice let out a shaky sigh and cuddled against her chest. "Hard past, pleasant present, blissful future," she agreed.
When she finally pulled away, Louisa gave her a devious grin and tugged on a lock of Alice's short hair. "Now, why don't you try to convince me that those cards actually work."
"They do," Alice replied haughtily before pulling the tarot cards back towards her and giving them a good shuffle. There was no more talk of weddings or scary letters, much to Louisa's relief. They did discover that Chief Swan would be enlisting Louisa and Dottie in helping set up Bella's room in the near future. "Stick with warm colours. She's going to hate all the green."
But besides the glimpses she was able to catch, the afternoon was far less productive than Alice would have liked. "It's like trying to look at something that can only be seen in the corner of your eye. It's there, and you know it is, but you always keep missing it."
"Is there something wrong with her?" asked Louisa. "Like, I dunno... maybe she's ADHD and makes impulsive decisions."
"If that were the case," Alice said, rubbing her temples. "I'd never be able to see Emmett. No, it's almost like she's blocking me, somehow. I've never seen anything like this before. When I see her, it's because she's in the background of a vision. But when I look for her directly..."
Jasper arrived not long after, confused and windswept, having run the entire way. Alice slipped out Louisa's bedroom window after exchanging a heavy look with him. Her concern was needless, though. No ominous letters arrived that night, which was all for the best. Louisa had a calculus exam first thing in the morning, and she still didn't understand Riemann sums.
No Stone Left Unturned
The end was in sight when it happened. It was the last day of finals, and the vast majority of students had given up on academics and were counting down the hours before the summer holiday began. Louisa was amongst these students, with only her physical education exam left. Alice was explaining in vivid detail the Cullen's plans for the summer, which included a road trip to Alaska and a getaway to a private island with the Denali coven. Louisa had been invited, of course, but even a month in a tropical paradise wasn't worth being the only human in the group. Jasper had elected to stay with her and was entertaining the idea of introducing him to his friend Peter, and his mate, Charlotte.
"I said no!" The shout sounded over the din of the canteen. It was if the sound had been sucked out of the room, and a deafening hush fell over the students.
Louisa glanced over at the source of the noise and realised with a jolt that it was her sister standing at the epicentre. Dottie wrenched her arm out of Spencer's grip and dodged out of reach when he went to grab her again. Her arms were wrapped around her body as if she were trying to hold herself together, and even from across the room, Louisa could see how her chin trembled. She detangled herself from Jasper's arms and rose to her feet, unsure if she should intervene.
Spencer Garner, despite towering over Dottie, seemed to wilt under her sister's gaze. He looked lost and hurt, like a puppy that was told that it wasn't allowed to play anymore. "No?"
"Yes, Spencer. No," She repeated, her voice stronger than before. "I'm not here for your entertainment. I've got plans already and I'm not going to drop them just because you want me to."
A flash of anger rippled across his face at this before it was concealed under the hurt again. "You always have things to do," he whined.
Dottie regarded him, her eyes narrowed. "Yes, that's what you do in life. You make plans to fill it."
"You never make time for me anymore," he said. "You've been ignoring me all week."
"That's not true, and you know it," Dottie snapped. She turned her back towards him and began to shove her books into her bag. "Stop playing the victim. It's not a good look on you."
Spencer was undeterred by her cool treatment. "You've been refusing to hang out with me!" he snapped, smacking Dot's copy of Great Expectations of her hands. It landed with a dull thud! on the floor. It might as well have been a gunshot for how it seemed to echo through the impossibly still room. Louisa found herself weaving through the gawking students and stooped to pick up the book.
"It's finals week!" Dottie retorted, her high, nasally voice shooting up an octave. Louisa was familiar enough with her sister to know when the tears were about to start. "I've been busy!"
"You were so busy you couldn't text me?"
"I did text you," Dottie said. She shot Louisa a grateful smile, accepting the book from her and tucking it into her bag. "Multiple times. But I was studying."
"Is that what you call watching a movie at Lauren's house?"
"We were taking a break," she said, her voice growing faint as she trailed off. A look of horrified realisation bloomed across her face, her blue eyes widening and the blood drained out her face. "How did you know we watched a movie?"
"I—"
"Were you following me?" she hissed, her eyes narrowing.
"No. I—" he began again. "It wasn't like that."
"Really?" she asked, her voice acidic. "Because it sounds like you were stalking me. Tell me, what movie did we watch?"
"I guessed. I wouldn't know."
"Animated? Live-action?"
"No. No. I don't…"
"How many pizzas did we eat?"
"You didn't order any—" a look of horror crossed his face as he realised he had just walked into her trap.
A flush coloured Dottie's cheeks. "Stay the fuck away from me," she hissed before shouldering past Spencer. Gawking bystanders cleared out her way as she made her way towards the exit. The door slamming shut behind her did little to muffle her sob as she took off.
An awkward tension settled over the room, with nobody knowing quite how to react. Louisa herself was torn between chasing after her sister and beating Spencer to a bloody pulp. It was Tommy Garner, Spencer's twin and the school bully, who made her decision for her.
"What a freak," he sneered, his voice cutting across the room.
"Creep, more like it," Lauren Mallory replied, standing up from her seat and fixing Spencer with a look of abject loathing.
Louisa shot a dirty look of her own before chasing after her sister. She found her in the bathroom, crouched behind the row of sinks, sobbing in the arms of Rosalie, of all people. Though, given Rosalie's history, perhaps it wasn't that much of a surprise. Rosalie might not like humans all that much, but she wasn't a monster. If anything, she was more sympathetic in situations like these. As a human, Rose didn't have anyone to advocate for her. As an indestructible vampire, she had the power to defend those she thought needed it. Even if it looked like promising to castrate any male that hurt them. It was the thought that counted. Between that and Louisa petting her hair and whispering words of comfort, by the time the bell rang, Dottie had managed to get her tears under control. She slipped out of the bathroom for her last final exam, eyes rimmed red and jaw set with defiance without a backwards glance.
Louisa was fortunate that she didn't have to do anything more taxing than spiking a volleyball to Emmett during their PE exam. Her mind was otherwise preoccupied, worrying for her sister. Dottie's fight with Spencer seemed to be on the majority of the student body's mind as well. It seemed like it was all they could talk about for the rest of the day. Dottie, despite her rough beginning— courtesy of Tommy Garner— at Forks High (Home of the Spartans!) was generally well-liked by her peers. Whilst her friendship with Spencer confused people, it hadn't surprised anyone. It seemed that only Tommy objected, and seemed determined to do everything in his power to ruin it. Louisa wasn't sure if it was because he hated seeing his brother happy about anything or he just hated all of Spencer's friends on principle. Either way, the friendship had painted a target on Dottie's back.
For the entire year, Dottie had been targeted by Tommy and subjected to cruel taunts and verbal abuse. She tried not to let it bother her, Louisa knew. They used to go to an all-girls school and were all too familiar with the cattiness and bullying that took place during school hours. But back then, she had friends who were willing to defend her. Here in Forks, Spencer never said a word in her defence when Tommy harassed her. In the end, it was no surprise Dottie had cracked. Louisa just hadn't been expecting it to happen because of Spencer himself.
This new, troubling development left her her head pounding in fury. Spencer seemed to be under the impression that he had a right to Dot because of their friendship, and had taken advantage of her kindness. He clearly didn't understand boundaries and was willing to stalk her when she tried to establish them. What else was he willing to do? Was Dot in danger?
Louisa hadn't come to a conclusion by the time her exam was over. The only thing she had decided on was that Spencer wasn't coming anywhere near her little sister. She didn't even bother to change out of her kit, grabbing her belongings and sprinting towards her sister's classroom the second she was released. The Cullens had the same idea and closed ranks around Dot the moment she stepped out of her history final. They escorted her to the Collins' car, where she climbed into the backseat without a word. Jasper slipped behind the wheel and drove the two of them home.
It was a tense drive that had Jasper tapping his fingers against the steering wheel in agitation. Louisa reached out and took his hand, though she wondered how much good it would do. Jasper's gift was heightened by physical contact and she was hardly calm. Fortunately, it was a short drive, with Jasper behind the wheel. Dottie slunk into the house the moment he cut the engine. Louisa swore she could hear her bedroom door slam shut from where she sat in the car.
"What a mess," Louisa sighed, grinding the palms of her hands into her eyes. "The last day of junior year and I feel like a senior citizen."
"I know the feeling," Jasper replied.
There was a beat of silence before they broke out into giggles, hers slightly more hysterical than his. Jasper reached over and picked her up, arranging her so that she straddled his lap in the driver's seat. Louisa let out an exhausted sigh and collapsed against him, burying her face into his neck. She knew she should get out and go comfort her sister. That's what a good sister would do. But Jasper's arms felt like a safe haven from the insanity that had happened and she allowed herself to be selfish, if only for a moment. They stayed in the car for an indecent amount of time, only moving after the postman gave them a confused look when he came to deliver a stack of letters and bills.
"At least it's over," she said, pressing a kiss to Jasper's neck.
His hands ran down her sides, giving her hips a gentle squeeze before opening the door and helping her out of the car. She didn't even complain like she normally did when he took her school bag from her and tossed it over his shoulder. She trudged up the front steps, ready to take a hot shower and curl up in bed.
"Will you stay tonight?" she asked. "We can watch another movie."
"Not another chick flick."
"Oh come on, you loved Easy A," she laughed.
"Well, yes," Jasper agreed, holding the door open for her. "But it's the principle of the matter. Emmett still hasn't let me live it down."
Louisa laughed again, stooping down to collect the mail that was scattered on the floor. "He's just jealous that he's not invited," she said, flicking through the stack of bills and junk mail. "I think he'd like the one I've got in mind for tonight. Call him up and—" she paused, icy horror flooding through her veins.
Somehow, her day had managed to go from bad to worse.
Her abrupt shift in mood caught Jasper's attention more than her unfinished sentence. "Love? What is it?"
Hands shaking, she tore open the envelope addressed to one Louisa J Collins, and extracted several sheets of paper. She could feel Jasper hovering over her shoulder as she scanned across the page. She tried to control her breathing, but the more she read, the more light-headed she became. Words jumped out at her through the fog, allowing her to piece together the letter.
By order of the Superior Court… hereby summoned to appear to provide testimony… the criminal trial of Lambe vs Washington…
And across the top, written in bold typeface and underlined to emphasise its point, the word 'SUBPOENA'. She was being summoned to provide witness testimony at the trial of Jason Lambe. In a matter of weeks, she would be in the same room as the man who murdered dozens of women. Whether she was ready or not, she would have to face her almost killer. Her past was catching up to her, just as Alice had promised.
"Light thinks it travels faster than anything but it is wrong. No matter how fast light travels, it finds the darkness has always got there first, and is waiting for it." –Terry Pratchett
A/N: Here's a fun fact for you: I'm not a lawyer nor do I live in Washington. Therefore, I have to take some artistic liberties with these next few chapters. Watching series 2 of Broadchurch can only get a girl so far.
Also, in regards to Spencer and Tommy, because continuity is NOT my forte (I wrote a Sherlock fanfic and one of the characters' names is always changing. I legitimately have no clue what his name is and I wrote the damn thing.)— Spencer and Tommy are twin brothers in Louisa's year. Originally, I think I had planned to write them as Tommy being a year older than Louisa and Spencer in Dottie's year but I'm a ding-dong and forgot. Just like I can't seem to remember their last name. It's Garner, in case you were wondering. Not Gardner or Gardener like I sometimes write. I'm sorry about that. Just roll your eyes when you see it and feel free to tease me about it. Heaven knows I laugh about it myself when I catch it months after it's been published.
Anywho. Let me know what you thought of the chapter! I love to read your reviews.
-CheckAlexa