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whotfatemywaffles · 2 years

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Haunted

Request- Jasper Hale + Haunted (Taylor swift)

JasperHalexFem!Reader

wordcound: 1.5K

TW- Drowning, Blood, Vampires, Bella Swans personality

A/N: I'm scared

Taglist - @nikkitc0703

Not my Gif (But he is hot)

You And I walk a fragile line, I've known it all this time,and so have you….

Jasper and you had been dating a while now, you met Just before Edward and Bella took the spotlight.

And you started dating two months prior.

You were relatively close with the Cullens, some more than others. For example, you were closer with Alice, Rosalie, and Emmet than Edward, but that was how it was for everyone other than her, Bella Swan.

Bella and you had been somewhat close, well not really you thought she was bland and lacked personality, luckley you had found a way to block out Edward cause he would not take lightly to them.

But alas you had Jasper, and you were happy, for now.

One day after school you were sitting at your desk with your elbows resting on the tables and your fingers rubbed your temples when you heard a knock at your front door, you were home alone, who was here?

You got up slowly, leaving the comfort of your room heading for the door.

When you open the door you see Jasper standing there, with a smile you pull him in for a hug, when you leave his cold embrace he smiles down at you.

“Hey” You said softly greeting him “whats up?” You ask still looking up at him with a smile

“Well” he says while taking in a breath even though he doesn't breathe “Its Bella’s Birthday, and Alice is throwing her a party and she wants you to come with me” He explains as you let him into your house

“What do you say?” He asks hopefully “Sure, why not?” You say with a small smile as you walk into your bedroom “But I'm Going to need something In return” You say to him as he raises his eyebrow in confusion

“I'm doing a project on the civil war for history class” You start “And since you were there i figured you could help me” you explain, Jasper was more than happy to help you, he always was, hell he would have done the project for you.

“Oh I Suppose i could,” He sarcastically groans, “or I could have had Edward read the teachers mind and do the project for you” He says reaching into his bag grabbing a folder.

“You did not” you say “Sighted in perfect APA format and no grammatical errors” he smiles he did your work

For you, before you knew about it.

“So, now that you have what you want what do you say?” he asks, referencing the party, “I already said yes Jas” you reply.

“Great i'll pick you up at 6” he smiles as he leaves, as you watch him pull out of your driveway you look at the folder in hand “God, He really did it” You mumble to yourself.

—--

Time skip

—--

It was around 6 when Jasper pulled into your driveway again, he walked to your door and knocked again as he did before but this time your mom answered “Oh, hello Jasper '' She greeted with a smile, your parents always loved Jasper, He’s charming, thoughtful, respectful, Honest, endearing, and you couldn't ask for anything better.

“She will be out in a minute, would you like something to drink?” Your mother asked Like she always did

“No, I'm good but thank you for the offer” Jasper denied as he always did, suddenly you walked out amd he smiled at the sight of you. You had just been wearing some old faded blue jeans with a black sweater, but in his mind you were the picture of perfection.

“Okay, you two get closer together” your mother requested as she got her camera snapping a picture of the two of you. After your mother is finished taking your pictures Jasper walks you to his car,

Then he opened the door for you to get in.

And you were off to the Cullens house. Eventually you pulled into the driveway and waited with Jasper in the living room with the other Cullens. Eventually Alice went upstairs to get Bella and Edward, and a few seconds later the three came downstairs.

Alice had been leading Bella around the room, but eventually she went off on her own finding a spot next to you as Jasper went to check something

“Happy Birthday” You told her, sure you had not been fond of her but that wasn't an excuse to be rude.

“Thank you” she mumbled Before Alice dragged her away once again to receive gifts.

Everything was going fine, until she got a godam papercut. You wouldn't call yourself a vampire expert vut you knew Jasper had not been ‘vegetarian’ as long as the others and he was more sensitive to blood, so when a drop of Bellas blood had fallen Jasper shot up from the couch he had been sitting on with you. Pushing you Off. you had ended up hitting your head but it was ok.

Jasper made a rush for Bella. Edward pushed Bella backwards into a table. He then proceeded to push Jasper into the piano.

Eventually Jasper got out, Edward looked back to see Bella on the ground bleeding from her tricep, he looked at her with a look of hurt, this is what he feared. Then Rosalie came out. “Here I'll drive you home,” She said as you followed her out the door.

“Is he okay?” You asked Rosalie in the car “Y/N Jasper is fine, how's your head” She asked

“It's fine” You replied as you pulled up to your house

“Thanks for the ride Rose” You told her as you stepped out of the car as he gave a small smile in response.

The next day The cullens weren't at school, Without Jasper by your side the day felt far longer than it should have.

Whenever you got home Jasper was sitting on the front step of your house “Hey” You greeted hi with a smile, unlike the day before he didn't smile back he looked at you his eyes full of sorrow.

“What's wrong?” You asked worriedly “We need to talk” He says his voice full of sorrow as he stood up walking over to the forest

“We have to leave,” He said while looking to the ground “Im Sorry” he said sincerely

You and i walk a fragile line, you know it, i know it, but i never thought ide live to see it break

The sun was starting to set, neither you or Jasper said anything. “You can go on with your life, as if i was never a part of it” Jasper spoke up walking closer to you, hugging you one last time.

You didn't want to let go, but you knew you had to…

Come on, Come on dont leave me like this I thought I had you figured out, cant breathe whenever your gone

When you let go he left, Just like that, you had felt all kinds of pain in your life but never felt this kind of pain well never this much.

—--

And that's how it happened, that's what led to this point, standing on top of a cliff about to jump into the water, in the middle of January. The past few months without Jasper had made it hard to breathe, as if you were swimming in water and then suddenly started drowning, you couldn't breathe. You couldn't feel anything anymore.

So you Jumped into the water, but the current was too strong. You were pulled under what started as a figurative metaphor became reality. You were underwater drowning, till you felt someone drag you out a familiar pair of cold hands as the world went black.

When you woke up you felt a hand around yours, It was Jasper. Sitting there the whole time. “Jasper” You mumbled while sitting up.

“Hey” He said while pulling you into a hug, as if he had just lost you, technically he had but that's not the point.

And for a while you sat there as Jasper held you and you held him. He was back. You could breathe again.

“How did you know?” You asked him “Alice saw it, and Edward heard it '' He said honestly. You let your guard down and they knew otherwise you wouldn't have Jasper back, and Edward wouldn't have Bella, well there not as important but that's ok.

#jasper hale #jasper cullen #twilight x reader #y/n #team edward #twilight #alice cullen #kristen stewart #jasper whitlock #Jasper x you #imagine #twilight imagine #oneshot #twilight oneshot #newmoon

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mikaharuka · 1 year

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Hi, can you tell me more about We Need To Talk About Rosalie please?

Heyo Iris! Thanks for the ask~

So, this fic started off as the result of a crack/joke prompt on Discord ("watching paint dry"), but then it sort of evolved into a serious off-screen scene/moment within the main timeline~

The story is mostly Carlisle and Mike being extremely awkward during this second time they meet and talk, and Rosalie is the topic of conversation (and makes her appearance in the story too~). I'll have to back-track a bit into Apricity for this to make sense. In short, Mike and Rosalie formed a strange connection before Apricity began.

From Sapphire (Apricity, Ch 12):

Rosalie Hale had been alone in a quiet corner of the library, surrounded by books. [...] Mike had taken one of the empty seats nearby and began reading, occasionally looking up from his book in mild curiosity - and often found the girl returning his neutral gaze. They remained in a comfortable silence until they left for the day. That experience repeated itself a couple times until a half-year later, when their psychology teacher announced a term-paper and Rosalie asked Mike to be her project partner. He wasn’t sure why she asked him, but he had no reason not to accept. [...] They weren’t really ‘friends’ in the classic sense. In fact, they hardly spoke to each other or interacted in person, outside of required classwork or projects. But every now and then, she’d text him a link to some random article or thought that usually got his interest, or he’d text her the title of some random novel that she usually ended up liking. They reached an understanding of sorts, a new kind of equilibrium over the past year.

Basically, Mike and Rosalie are idiots who are definitely friends and talk about stuff way more than either would admit to... and Mike gets called out on this bs when he meets Carlisle for the first time.

From Midnight (Apricity, Ch 14):

“Rose and I don’t interact too often outside of school-related matters.” “Interesting. She regularly corresponds with you. Do you not consider her a friend?” “A friend…” ‘Friend’ wasn’t the first word that came to mind. He and Rose worked well together in the few classes they shared. Group projects often had them meeting outside of school hours… and a few personal things probably got mentioned every now and then… and they did text each other random stuff… and there was her warning from that morning… Huh… maybe they were friends of a sort after all? “You’ve come to a realization.” [...] “I didn’t think of it that way before, but I suppose we are. Friends, that is.” “I would agree, based on what Rosalie has told me.”

I'm not going to spoil the rest of this chapter, but basically this first meeting between them is very tense, awkward, but also weirdly wholesome every once in a while... which brings us to this fic.

Carlisle has... a lot of stuff going on and is also redecorating a certain space (including painting a certain space). He remembers the chaotic messes his siblings (especially Edward) often make... then he remembers Mike, his calmer/analytic demeanor, and his way with observation, design, and colors in general. He also feels bad for the first meeting and wants to make up for it... and Rosalie is the odd common ground of conversation. So really, this is one huge pile of weirdly tense, wholesome awkwardness that goes out rather well.

You can find the original post and links to other answers here :)

#my ask games #ask game #wip ask game #mizuka's ask games #winter light headcanons #mizuka's rambles

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rosaliehale · 2 years

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Rosalie Hale's flashback outfits

#twilightsagaedit #twilightsaganet #fyeahmovies #bbelcher #eclipseedit #movieedit #moviegifs #the twilight saga #eclipse #ch: rosalie hale #mine #500

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dramiones · 4 years

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THE WOMEN OF THE OLYMPIC COVEN.

#twilight #twilightedit #litedit #lit: twilight #edit: mine #edit: graphic #ch: bella swan #ch: alice cullen #ch: rosalie hale #ch: esme cullen #reposting bc i made a mistake lmao #thank u to the angel that saved my life <3 #every moment queue forever

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andboneofmybone · 6 years

Conversation

edward: my soul is intertwined with bella's. our love could level a thousand mountains and conquer a million cities

rosalie:

edward:

rosalie: ok but… are you two even… like….. friends????

#source: ofools #twilight crack #crack: twilight #brenda speaks #series: twilight #ch: rosalie hale #ch: edward cullen #crack: rosalie hale #crack: Edward Cullen #all magnetism no friendship #twilight #twilightsaga #twilight renaissance

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notquitetwilight · 3 years

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Midnight Sun via the #Edwardless group chat: Chapter Five

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hcathens-archive · 4 years

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@scottymccalltrue said: “You look confident for someone that’s going to lose.”

(from this meme | accepting)

— ❛ i could ask if that was a challenge, but coming from you ?? it’s never a true challenge ❜ — there was as smirk in rosalie’s lips as talked to the boy. she had fun with that rivalry, afterall.

#scottymccalltrue #ⁱ ᵏⁿᵒʷ ᵗʰᵉ ˢᵒᵘⁿᵈ ᵒᶠ ʸᵒᵘʳ ʰᵉᵃʳᵗ //. ch. rosalie hale. interactions.#ⁱ'ᵐ ᵃ ᵇⁱᵗᶜʰ ᵃⁿᵈ ᵃ ᵇᵒˢˢ ⁱ'ᵐᵃ ˢʰⁱⁿᵉ ˡⁱᵏᵉ ᵍˡᵒˢˢ //. english.#ʷʰᵉʳᵉ ⁱˢ ᵐʸ ᵗⁱᵐᵉ ᵗᵘʳⁿᵉʳ? //. queue.

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theseqceens-a-blog · 7 years

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@thecarnival ( rosalie sc )

“I may hate the dog, but Dracula two really is a fitting nickname for you.”

#thecarnival #*:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧ ch; rosalie hale ( interacting )

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imbumkyung · 4 years

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I Saw It In A Movie One Time- Ch. 8

————

Chapter 1 // Chapter 2 // Chapter 3 // Chapter 4 // Chapter 5 // Chapter 6 // Chapter 7

The lights in Bella’s house stood dim. Tiny specks of light shone through the window carried by the moon. Riley didn’t need any lights, however. His vampire abilities perfectly capable of providing him sight through the dark. He picked up a red blouse, inhaling the scent like he’d never taken a breath before. Maybe it was just that— he didn’t have to breathe anymore.

Charlie lay asleep on the couch downstairs, unsuspecting to the “killer animal” who also happened to be the missing boy he had been working so hard to find.

Upon hearing the door open, Charlie stood to greet Bella, unhappy that Edward brought her home way past dinner time

“You know,” Charlie rounded the corner, “Edward could at least respect meal times,” He gruffed, despondent that he spent dinner by himself.

“I was just with Jake,” Bella refuted lightly.

Charlies face lit up approvingly, until he heard Edwards knock on the door, leaving them to have privacy.

Edward was worried for Bella’s safety, ranting to her that he had almost broken the treaty to make sure she was okay. Mid-sentence, he caught a scent unfamiliar to him.

“I didnt recognize his scent,” Edward explained. The Cullens stood attentive– shocked that an intruder of their kind roamed the spaces of Bella’s room.

Esme’s eyes stuck to the floor in concentration, “A nomad passing through.”

“A passerby wouldn’t have left Bella’s father alive,” Rosalie refuted

Jasper and Emmett entered the living space of the Cullen’s home, unsurprisingly composed considering they had just travelled about fifteen miles just to track the intruders scent.

“His scent disappeared about 5 miles south of Bella’s house,” Jasper informed.

The Cullens agreed that it had been orchestrated. Rosalie was correct— any other vampire wouldn’t have left Charlie alive. But somehow, he was important enough to let live by the intruder. It was clear that the intruder did not want to leave any traces of his visit behind. They just could not pinpoint who was behind it. Alice didn’t see Victoria in her visions, nor did she see Aro make any decisions regarding this issue. Carlisle’s only solution was to keep guard around Bella’s house at all times.

“Another protection detail?” Rosalie asked.

“Rosalie,” Carlisle warned.

“No— she’s right,“ Bella agreed, “You can’t protect me, my dad, and search for the intruder.”

“And for Victoria,” Rosalie pressed.

“And keep yourselves fed.” Bella finished.

Alice sighed, “We’ve also gotta watch Kai... I invited her over for dinner tomorrow.”

Rosalie let out a scoff, “Perfect.” She whispered under her breath

“I’m not gonna let you be here unprotected—,” said Edward.

“—and I’m not gonna let you starve,” Bella responded strongly, “And besides, I wouldn’t be unprotected. I have...”

“Who?” Edward asked.

“That’ll be $4.25” Kai said to the little boy who was currently scrambling his pocket for an extra dollar, though huffed when he could only muster $3.00.

The boy placed his $3.00 sheepishly on the counter while searching for change with his other hand. Kai smiled softly to herself, shook her head and handed him his bagged items anyway, “don’t worry about it,” she whispered to him with a soft grin. He thanked her gratefully and skipped out of the store to his friends waiting outside. She watched as they celebrated the snacks and candies with a fist bump, riding away happily on their bikes and scooters.

“That was nice of you,” said a voice behind the counter. Kai jumped, almost forgetting there was another customer, thought relaxed as she looked into the eyes of Seth.

She shrugged, “He’s young.”

Seth agreed with a soft “yeah,” as he placed his items on the counter.

“So uh...” he started, scratching the back of his neck nervously, “when are you off?”

Kai chuckled to herself softly, “Umm.. about 10 minutes from now... why? What’s up?” She asked

“Oh! Nothing I just— I mean— I just wanted to know if you wanted to hang for a little bit... that’s all,” Seth asked, prepared for rejection as he recalled the conversation they had just days before.

“Yeah uh...” she agreed, tucking a strand of hair behind her hair, eyes focused on the screen that calculated the total, “I can meet you outside in a little bit— that’s $12.76 by the way.”

“Okay! Yeah I’ll just be out there,” he said while swiping his card, eyes also focused on the machine in front of him. Their efforts to avoid eye contact were evident.

Kai nodded, lips pressed into a tight line awkwardly, “Alright... I’ll see you in a bit,” she said while swiftly bagging the receipt and handing him the bag. Their fingers touched upon the small exchange, but they both decided not to react as Seth left the store.

She heard a scoff from her co-worker who was restocking Trolli snacks in the aisle in front of her, “C’mon dude,” she shook her head, laughing at the cute yet awkward encounter.

“What?” Kai questioned astoundingly.

Her co-worker, Joanne smiled at her, “that was cute.”

Kai only shook her head, “no” while smiling softly to herself.

“Have you tried these?” Seth asked, holding up a brightly colored bag of orange chips, the Chinese characters bolded with cartoon pictures of little kids.

Kai shook her head, “Nah, what are they?”

“They’re like... cheese chips. Here try one they’re amazing,” he offered, opening the bag to her. Kai took a single cheese ring between her fingertips.

Her eyes widened, “Dude, they’re really good— what the heck!”

Seth laughed, “I told you!”

“It’s cheesy but like...” Kai’s brows furrowed, trying to find the words.

“Sweet too, huh?” Seth finished. Kai agreed enthusiastically.

They sat for a few moments just enjoying each others company, finishing lots and lots of snacks, and playing paper football with what used to be the receipt.

“So if you don’t mind me asking,” Seth began, his eyes concentrating on the goal created by Kai’s fingers, “where are you from?” He flicked the paper and watched it fly right in the middle of the goal.

Kai huffed. He’d made about a hundred goals while she made maybe six.

“Hawaii,” she answered simply, eyes much more focused on the goal now made by Seths’ fingers. She squinted intensely, trying her best to finally made the goal. She flicked and—

“What the heck man?!” Kai exclaimed, arms flailing in frustration as she looked at him incredulously. Seth let out the loudest laugh, “I’m sorry! I just wanted to see how you’d react,” he cackled. Kai would have definitely made it perfectly in the center, but Seth moved the goal right at the last moment, making it another miss for her.

Kai stood up, “Alright. You know what?” She threatened jokingly. Seth watched as she walked around the table, a mischievous yet playful smile on her face, and wrapped her arms around his neck in a lock and swung him side to side.

“Ahh! Ahh! I surrender! I’m sorry!” Seth feigned defeat. Kai’s not-so-tight grip loosened, as they laughed together. Her arms still were around him, only they lowered to sit above his shoulders. Seth enjoyed the feeling for just a moment, holding onto her arms still— and it was gone the second he realized.

“Sorry,” Kai sheepishly went to sit back down.

Seth smiled brightly at her, kicking her feet daringly, “Don’t be.”

“Are you trying to play footsies?” Kai asked, an uncontrollable smile adorned her face.

“Am I?” Seth challenged.

Their toes making a ruckus as they tried to see who could scuff who’s shoes more, until the game eventually wore. Kai’s phone buzzed and she slipped it out of her pocket, her head cocked back confusedly.

“What is it?” Seth asked.

“It’s Bella,” she answered, “she wants to know if I wanted to hang out with her and her friend Angela... but I don’t know how she got my number.”

Seth shrugged, “maybe Alice gave it to her,”

Kai nodded, “maybe.”

AAAAAAAND We’re back!! Yes, I am back to writing this and although this chapter is short, I will have more up soon! I apologize to all the people who were reading this because its been literally a year since the last update! I know it’s not a lot, but I still hope you will enjoy!

@coffees-and-constellations @rosalies-hale @sunflowerspectre @snazzydobrik @hvitserk-ragnarssons-slave @buckysjuicyplums @britty443

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inclinat-blog · 7 years

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WHOOPS ! excuse the tag drop!

#∘ ⡊ ˚ REPLIES.#∘ ⡊ ˚ STARTER CALL.#∘ ⡊ ˚ ANSWERED.#∘ ⡊ ˚ CH: BELLA CULLEN.#∘ ⡊ ˚ CH: ALICE CULLEN.#∘ ⡊ ˚ CH: RENESMEE CULLEN.#∘ ⡊ ˚ CH: CARLISLE CULLEN.#∘ ⡊ ˚ CH: ESME CULLEN.#∘ ⡊ ˚ CH: EJ CULLEN.#∘ ⡊ ˚ CH: EMMETT CULLEN.#∘ ⡊ ˚ CH: EDWARD CULLEN.#∘ ⡊ ˚ CH: JASPER HALE.#∘ ⡊ ˚ CH: ROSALIE HALE.#∘ ⡊ ˚ CH: ACTAEON.#∘ ⡊ ˚ CH: RACHAEL BLACK LAHOTE.#∘ ⡊ ˚ CH: AGLAIA.

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jilyyall · 4 years

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Animal Magnetism - Ch 9.

Edward Cullen was not a normal teenager; of that I was certain. But knowing that did nothing to stop the pull I felt towards him. And if what he was saying was any indication, he felt some strange pull towards me, too. It was like we were magnets struggling against hope to stay apart. I only wondered what would happen when we inevitably collided.

Chapter 9. Iron Will. FANFICTION.NET / AO3 Intro/1/2/3/4/5/6/7/8/9/10/11/12/

I took my time showering, dressing, and brushing my hair the next morning, trying to avoid my parents until they both left so that I didn't have to endure more questions about the mysterious Edward who drove me home. I ran out the front door maybe two minutes after I heard Renee's car pull out of the driveway, my truck key in hand.

And stopped, heart hammering in the damp air that promised rain momentarily, when I saw a silver Volvo where Renee usually parked. In the blink of an eye, Edward was outside and holding the passenger door open for me.

"Would you like a ride to school?" he asked. He was watching me carefully like he was worried I would have changed my mind about being near him, alone with him, in the last ten hours and thirty-two minutes.

"Yes. Thank you," I said, and walked over to him, trying my best to exude confidence even though I knew he could hear my heart hammering.

I brushed by him, closer than was strictly necessary, and slid into the car. He closed the door softly and instantaneously was sitting next to me, looking at me with that same expression he had when he'd done the same thing in Port Angeles.

"You're not going to scare me off with that," I informed him as I buckled my seat belt.

"I could scare you," he said with a thoughtful frown.

"I'm sure you're capable," I allowed, and shrugged. "But it doesn't make a difference to me."

"Yes, I remember," he said. "As it happens, I like being able to be myself around you."

For some odd reason, it sounded like he was frustrated. With me for not running away screaming? Very likely. With himself for not wanting to hide who he really was from me? Well, that seemed pretty likely as well, given what I knew of his personality and considering the several warnings he had given me that I would be better to stay away from him.

"You were going to tell me how your family was formed," I reminded him as he turned the key in the ignition.

He talked me through it, speaking quietly, carefully, as if expecting it to suddenly become too much.

"Carlisle found me dying of the Spanish Influenza in the summer of 1918 in Chicago. He was lonely, you see, after so long on his own, and had been considering making a companion for himself since he was having no luck finding one. He had treated my parents, but wasn't able to cure them. My mother… it was her dying wish that Carlisle save me. He saw something in me – I think I was especially perceptive even then, and he could see it. He was fond of me, so when it was clear to him that there was no saving me conventionally, he took me from the hospital – it wasn't hard to hide, so many bodies everywhere – and he changed me."

"I still, to this day, don't understand how he was able to stop from feeding on me. Mine was his first taste of human blood. I don't know how he's managed it, but in almost half a millennium, Carlisle has never fed on a human."

Half a millennium? I bit my lip, thinking of the young, attractive small town doctor, and trying to reconcile him with someone almost five hundred years old. It didn't seem possible, but how could I doubt Edward now?

"Do you remember it all from your own perspective? Or are they Carlisle's memories you have?" I wondered aloud.

"Some of both. I don't remember my human life very clearly, as I said last night, only small details that seemed important to hold onto. I remember even less from when I was dying. The fever was so intense…" he said, and I saw his grip on the steering wheel tighten. "Mostly, I just remember the pain."

"The pain? Of being ill?" I asked.

"No." He sighed and turned to look at me as he guided the car to a smooth stop at a red light. "The bite, and the subsequent transformation. It's days of agony, burning as the venom spreads through the body until the heart stops. And then, a different sort of burning when you wake."

"Hot iron down the throat?" I guessed, recalling the description from the night before.

"Something like that," he said with a wry smile, and his gaze flickered over me.

"Wait," I said, horrified. "Is it more painful now, with me? Even more painful than when you first woke up?"

"In some ways," he said, and shrugged. "When you first wake, it's different. It's… primal… the urge to feed… there's no fighting it. There's no caging the monster in. There is only the call of blood. Now, it's different. My body and my mind and my heart are constantly at war around you. You're lucky I'm a very stubborn being, Bella."

It was silent for a moment, one of those silences where I knew Edward was just waiting for my reaction. I looked at him, right in his eyes. "What about the others? How did they come along?"

He sighed and shook his head and I knew I hadn't given him the reaction he'd expected, the one he felt he deserved. Horror, I guessed. Or maybe repulsion.

"Esme was next. She fell from a cliff and was on the verge of death. He'd treated her in the hospital before, years earlier, had affection for her, and she for him. He couldn't bear the thought of her dying, so he changed her. They've been married for nearly a century."

"Then Rosalie. She was beaten and left for dead in the street. He brought her home and changed her. It was only two years later she found Emmett being mauled by a bear in Tennessee. She carried him more than a hundred miles back to Carlisle and begged him to change him for her. The amount of restraint she showed only two years after her own change was astonishing. To be able to resist all that blood when she was covered in it? It's not a simple thing, but she felt something for him and she knew he was going to be important to her."

"Did you see that in her mind?" I asked curiously. Somehow, I couldn't imagine Rosalie Hale sitting and talking with Edward about her feelings. But what did I know? I only saw the façade they put on at school. For all I knew, she was warm and inviting at home, and the stoic intimidating exterior in public was just a ruse.

"Yes. She used to be very annoyed with me that I could hear everything she was thinking," he told me. "She would try to block me out, but it didn't always work very well."

"And now?" I asked.

"There are no secrets in my family now. They are all free with their thoughts around me," Edward said, and scowled. "Too free, sometimes."

"You can't control it?" I asked. What must it be like to constantly have everyone else's thoughts in his mind when he didn't want them?

"I've learned to tune it out at times," Edward said dismissively. "In a crowd, it's almost like background noise. It's more difficult for me to tune out my family, though. The more familiar I am with someone, the stronger the connection."

"It must be terribly inconvenient," I said.

"Yes, it can be," he said, but he didn't sound inconvenienced. He'd clearly made his peace with the fact that he could so rarely enjoy true solitude. "They've each learned their own way of temporarily hiding their thoughts. Except for Emmett, who's never bothered to try. He's very open and honest and he doesn't see the point of trying to hide anything from me when I'll just find out anyway."

It all sounded very fascinating, and I wanted so badly to learn more about their family dynamic, but first I had to finish the story of how his family came together. "What about Alice and Jasper? You said they came together and found the rest of you."

"Yes. Jasper was changed when he was serving as a soldier in the Civil War, almost sixty years before me. He didn't have the same upbringing as the rest of us. He fed only on humans until he and Alice found each other in 1948. She helped him learn how to curb his instinct to kill humans, to control it after nearly a century of feeding on humans."

"Is that why he always looks like he's in pain?" I asked.

"It's part of it," Edward said. "It's more difficult for him to curb his nature. He struggles more than the rest of us."

"Why do you do it?" If it was so difficult, why did they bother to deny their instincts?

"We… have a fondness for humanity," Edward said slowly. "We respect the living; we see the people rather than the prey. And we don't… we don't want to be monsters."

"I don't think you're a monster, Edward," I said quietly. He looked dubious, as if he didn't quite believe me, but he didn't argue. "What's Alice's story?"

"She doesn't know," Edward answered. "She doesn't remember anything before she woke in the dark."

"Nothing?" I asked.

"All she remembers is waking up alone in 1920. She stayed that way until she and Jasper found each other, nearly thirty years later," Edward said gravely. "They haven't been apart since."

I pictured the smallest of the Cullens: flitting, pixie-like, fragile. Of course, that was just her appearance; I knew she wasn't defenseless, wasn't as harmless as she looked. All the same, I couldn't imagine the pain and loneliness she must have suffered waiting so long for her soulmate.

"It's so sad," I whispered, my voice breaking. I wondered, then, if it had been like that for Edward: lonely and sad. What was it like to be surrounded by happy couples, soulmates, to hear the force of their love in your mind, and have no one to share it with? I felt tears welling hot in my eyes and blinked quickly, swiping at a single errant tear. Embarrassed, I looked at Edward to see that he was staring at me again in stunned disbelief.

"Yes, it is," he agreed after a moment, his voice very gentle in the quiet space between us.

I realized that the car was no longer moving; we had arrived at school and parked close to the middle of the lot while he was speaking. There was a soft tapping on the hood of the car; the heavy clouds had finally produced the promised rain.

"Do you want your jacket back?" I said, feeling awkward; he was still watching me with that almost awestruck expression. I was wearing his jacket again, in part because I only had the one suitable jacket I'd left in Mike's car the night before, and partly because I'd been planning to return it to him as soon as I'd seen him anyway. That, and I couldn't get enough of the smell.

"No, Bella," he said softly, and there was something strange in his eyes. Hunger, I thought with a flush, but not the dangerous kind. "It actually serves its purpose on you."

He leaned over the center console, just like he had last night, and pressed his face to my neck and inhaled deeply again.

"Not that I mind," I said breathlessly as he began to run his nose along my jawline, just like he had done in Port Angeles. "But why do you do that? Doesn't it hurt you?"

"Yes," he murmured in my ear, but he didn't pull away. "It's enjoyable, though. And necessary. Think of it as if… I'm desensitizing."

He pulled away with a small, wicked smile. "That, and I like the way your heart races."

"Well," I said, swallowing thickly. He was still so close, his amber eyes inches from mine. I wanted him closer still. "I'm happy to help you desensitize. Feel free to continue."

"As much as I would love to – and, believe me, I would love to," he laughed ruefully, shaking his head, and then gestured out the window to indicate the full parking lot, "we have an audience, and they think we're doing something very different."

"Oh," I said, looking around in horror. I made eye contact with a couple walking in front of the car; the girl averted her gaze quickly, giggling to her boyfriend. I groaned. "Great."

"Are you ready?" Edward asked, reaching for the handle of his door.

"I guess." I sighed, though. I really didn't want to leave the confines of his car. I wished more than anything else that we could be alone again. I just had so many more questions for him.

Edward met me as I stepped out of the car, moving at a normal human pace, and shut the door for me. When he reached to take my books from me, I stepped back.

"What are you doing?"

He quirked an eyebrow, but otherwise didn't acknowledge my discomfort, taking the strap of my bag and sliding it off my shoulder.

"Bella," he said in a long-suffering voice. "Before the end of first period, everyone in this school is going to hear how we were just making out in my car. How would I look if I didn't even carry your books for you after that?"

"But, we weren't," I hissed, hurrying to catch up to him when he turned to walk across the lot.

"Would you like to tell them that, then?" Edward said. I could see the upward quirk of his lips; he knew I wouldn't say anything to anyone. "Besides, what we were actually doing is, in truth, much more scandalous. I'm only trying to preserve my reputation as a gentleman."

"It isn't 1918 anymore, Edward. You're being ridiculous," I said, then shook my head. I knew I wasn't going to win this one. "But, if I just think of it as protecting your reputation, I can bear it."

"I appreciate that. It's very noble of you," Edward teased.

I was aware of all of the eyes on us, but I couldn't find it in myself to care too much. I enjoyed being around Edward more than I hated the attention that came with it.

"Hey, where are the others? You usually drive them," I said, suddenly struck by the realization that his siblings were nowhere to be found.

He nodded to a bright red convertible on the other side of the parking lot. "Rosalie drove today."

"What does your family think about all this?" I asked. I knew I didn't have to explain that I meant us.

He was silent for a while. We were almost to the awning people usually crowded under when it was raining by the time he answered.

"Most of my siblings think I'm being irresponsible," he said carefully. "You have to understand that the entire family will be implicated if this ends badly. My parents just want me to be happy, so they're willing to support me in whatever decision I make."

"Is there something you haven't decided?" I asked very quietly. He had said I won't ever hurt you, Bella last night, and he'd said it more than once, so I was confident that he wasn't still deciding whether or not to kill me. What more was there?

"No, Bella," he answered. "I've made up my mind."

I still didn't think he was talking about the murder and blood drinking, but I knew it wasn't the time or place to push for clarification. "You said, most of your siblings?" I said instead.

"Yes," he said, his eyes narrowing in thought, like he was deciding how much to tell me. "Alice is very supportive."

"She is?" I said, surprised. I had never had any contact with any of the Cullens other than Edward and Dr. Cullen. I couldn't think of any good reason for his sister to like me, though I did remember her smiling at me the other day at lunch. "Why?"

"Alice can be strange sometimes," Edward said, still carefully choosing his words with a frown, and I remembered we couldn't speak freely here, not with so many people around. "She thinks you two will be the best of friends."

He glanced sideways at me, and smiled ruefully at what I was sure was the shocked expression on my face. "She has good reason," he added.

I filed that away for future clarification.

"Morning, Bella!" I looked up at Jessica's call to see her and Mike standing just ahead, under the awning several feet back from the light rain. Mike had my jacket folded over his arm.

"Hey, guys," I said when Edward and I drew level with them.

"Here," Mike said, handing me my jacket with a frown. "I thought you might need this."

"Thanks, Mike. You're a lifesaver," I said, swapping jackets as quickly as I could. Edward inclined his head when I handed him his jacket with a soft, "Thank you."

"Well, we'll leave you two to it," Jessica said with a sidelong glance at Edward. She gave me an expectant look that Edward pretended not to notice.

"See you in government, Bella," Mike said with a grumpy scowl.

"Yeah, sure," I agreed.

Edward chuckled when they walked away, stepping closer to me and lowering his voice. "She's planning to ambush you in Trigonometry."

"Yeah, I figured," I said with a sigh, then studied him speculatively. "What does she want to know?"

"She wants to know if we're secretly dating, or if we're just hooking up," he said at once. Then, after the briefest hesitation, "And if I'm a good kisser."

"But…" I stopped, and looked at him in panic. I didn't know any of the answers, except that we definitely were not hooking up. "What do I tell her?"

"I suppose you could tell her we're dating, if you don't mind. I think it would be easier than the alternative, since we'll be spending so much time together anyway," he said, grasping the handle of the door to the English building and holding the door for me.

"I don't mind," I said, then peered up at him shyly as we stopped outside my classroom. "I mean, it's kind of the truth… Isn't it?"

He looked at me with such tenderness, and stroked a single long-fingered hand through my hair. "Yes, Bella. You're right," he murmured, and then turned and began to walk away.

"Wait," I said, glancing warily at the people walking through the hallway. "What about that other thing?"

"Well, Bella, I'm afraid you're on your own with that one" he said, pausing at the door to give me a taunting wink. "But I'll be curious to hear how you handle it."

And then he was gone, leaving me to endure English class with Eric moping in the corner, and then Government with Mike shooting me furtive, sidelong glances. I knew he wanted to talk to me, probably to try to discourage me from seeing Edward anymore, but I was too preoccupied with the upcoming ambush to care.

Jessica was waiting for me outside of building six after my government class. It was a testament to how eager she was for gossip that she barely spared Mike a greeting before she hooked her arm through mine and practically dragged me along towards building five, and our Trigonometry class.

"Spill," she said as soon as Mike was out of earshot.

"About what?" I asked reluctantly.

"Did you plan to meet up with Edward last night? What happened after you left us? Did you hook up? Are you guys dating? Is he your boyfriend? Is he a good kisser?" She fired questions off rapid-fire so that my head was spinning by the time we walked into our classroom.

"Um," I said once I sat down. "No, I had no idea he was going to be there. I was as surprised to see him as the rest of you were."

"Why did he come? Just to see you? Just because he knew you would be there?" she demanded, leaning across the aisle to whisper so that we couldn't easily be overheard.

I shrugged awkwardly and tucked my hair behind my ear, acutely aware that Edward would be paying close attention to Jessica's thoughts.

"I… yeah, I guess so," I stammered. "We just went outside to talk… only to talk. And he gave me his jacket because I was cold."

"Because you left your jacket in Mike's car," Jessica said with a nod. "Did he really just take you home after? Or did you go somewhere else?"

"Well he was concerned that I hadn't eaten since breakfast, so we stopped at that Italian restaurant near the theatre."

"Oh, how thoughtful," Jessica said. "So, are you planning to hang out again? Are you guys, like, a thing?"

"Y-yeah, I… I guess," I said, ducking beneath my desk to rummage through my bag for my notebook and pencil. It was a pretty obvious attempt to hide my blush, I thought, but Jessica wasn't the most observant person, and I could only hope it hadn't registered in her thoughts. "He's driving me to Seattle next Saturday."

"Oh… But you guys should go to the dance!" Jessica protested.

"No, definitely not," I said, shaking my head firmly. "I don't surf, and I don't dance. Trust me, it's for the best."

"I bet Edward can dance," she said dreamily. "Rich kids go through classes like that all the time."

"I bet he can." I doubted if there was anything he couldn't do.

"Have you met his family yet? Has he met your parents? Has your dad pulled the Police Chief card and scared the crap out of him?"

"I've only met his dad. Dr. Cullen treated me after the almost accident," I reminded her. "Apparently, though, he thinks I'll get along well with Alice. He hasn't met my parents, but something tells me even the Chief won't scare him."

Jessica snorted softly. "I wonder if he'll pull the whole cleaning his gun routine when it happens."

Thankfully, class started just then, affording me a short reprieve from her questions. Of course, the second the bell rang she was at my side with more.

"Well?" she said impatiently, as if I had failed to answer a question she had asked two seconds ago, not an hour ago. At my blank look, she made a 'tsk'ing noise and lowered her voice to a hiss in my ear again. "Is he a good kisser?"

"Oh." I bit my lip, and hugged my books to my chest, thinking over my options carefully. She just assumed that we had kissed; I figured it was weirder for me to say that we hadn't, but I wasn't confident in my ability to lie to her. I decided on some semblance of the truth. "Um, you know… it's really embarrassing, actually, but every time he comes near me, much less touches me, I feel like I'm about to pass out."

Jessica giggled. "W-o-w," she said, drawing it out into a three-syllable word.

"Anyway," I said, quickly taking advantage of her silence as we approached our Spanish classroom. "Bring me up to speed on what happened after I left last night. You and Mike are looking pretty cozy."

"I know, right?" She squealed, her brown curls bouncing on her shoulders. "He dropped me off after everybody else even though Angela lives closer to him, and he kissed me!"

"That's awesome, Jess," I said with a genuine smile. It seemed Mike had taken what I'd said to heart, and had decided to leap into it with Jessica.

"Yeah, I mean, I didn't almost pass out or anything," she said, rolling her eyes playfully. "But it was really nice!"

"Are you guys going out again before the dance, or what?" I asked.

"I think he wants to go see another movie this weekend. A slasher flick this time," she said. "Oh, you and Edward should come!"

I pursed my lips in an awkward smile as I slid into my seat. "I don't know, Jess." I shrugged and reached into my bag for a pen. "Mike really doesn't seem to like Edward."

"Whatever, he'll get over it." She rolled her eyes. "I don't think any of the guys here like any the Cullen boys. It's just because they're all super hot, though. Don't worry about it."

We took our seats in Spanish just as the bell rang and I was relieved, for once, when Mrs. Goff announced a pop quiz. Next to me, Jessica groaned with the rest of the class.

"Who gives a pop quiz on a Monday? Seriously messed up. Anyway, are you having lunch with Edward again?" Jessica asked me as we started putting our books away after class. She paused, staring at something out the window. Turning, I saw Edward standing under a tree, looking at me. Jessica laughed breathlessly next to me. "I guess that's my answer. I'll see you in Gym."

By the time I stepped into the drizzle outside, he was standing there at the door with an amused smile. Once again, he took my book bag without preamble. "How did it go?"

I glowered at him and didn't answer; he already knew, of course. Hadn't he basically told me he would be listening in on Jessica's thoughts? He laughed at me as we started walking to the cafeteria and the mesmerizing sound made it difficult to feel awkward about the stares we were getting again.

"You nearly faint whenever I get too close to you?" He held open the door to the cafeteria with a smirk.

"Please. Like you didn't already know that." Following him into the line, I rolled my eyes. Then, in a truly terrible impression of his smooth, melodic teasing earlier in the car: "I like the way your heart races."

He took a lunch tray, slanting an almost nervous look down at me. "Are you annoyed with me already?"

"No," I assured him, eyeing the tremendous amount of food he piled onto the tray dubiously. He couldn't honestly expect me to eat all of that. "What? Half's for you?"

"Of course," he said with a wink for me, and a smile for the lunch lady as he paid her. She stared after him when he turned away; even middle-aged women weren't immune to his charm, I realized with a small smirk as I followed him.

He sat at the end of the same long, half-occupied table we'd shared the week before, but this time I chose to sit in the seat next to him. I worried my proximity would alarm him, but he moved his chair closer still, so close that our arms would brush each time I reached for something from the tray. I wanted to ask him so many questions, but I was worried that we would be easily overheard. Correctly guessing the reason for my hesitation, he smiled softly and angled his body toward me, leaning in.

"The other students here aren't as curious as you," he reminded me. "Besides, it's incredibly difficult to be overheard in a noisy, crowded lunch room. We can talk."

"Is it difficult for you to pretend to be just like any other person?" I asked quietly.

"In what way?" Edward said. He leaned his opposite forearm against the table, and his torso hunched slightly as he leaned towards me. We looked, I was sure, very secretive, but I figured most people would likely attribute it to new love.

"Physically, I mean. Like your speed. I know you said last night that you hate going slow, but is it difficult for you to move at a more … normal pace, for lack of a better term?" I clarified. "And the strength. I know you're capable of massive shows of strength. Are you, I don't know, concentrating really hard right now not to crush that?"

I gestured to his hands. He was fiddling absently with my empty soda bottle.

"Regarding the speed," he began slowly, pausing when someone walked behind us, "it's not difficult, per se, to move at a normal pace. It's just boring. And the strength?"

In a flash, the bottle was a ball of plastic no bigger than a golf ball. He smiled at me and set it down on table between us.

"It's very easy to do things like this, and like … other things you've seen," he said cryptically as a boy I recognized from my Gym class walked in front of us. I knew he was referring to the day he'd stopped the van from crushing me. "But it's not difficult to handle delicate things. Your hand, for instance."

He reached over and took my hand in his, slid his fingers through mine smoothly. I marveled at the bold contact – he'd been fairly careful not to touch me too much last night. He turned our hands over so mine was resting on top of his on the table.

"I could very easily crush every bone in your hand, if I wanted," Edward said with a quick flash of a grin. "But it's not that I have to try not to hurt you in that way, it's that I would have to consciously expend the effort. Do you understand?"

I nodded. It wasn't like the bloodlust where he was focused nonstop on not killing me. He was like a regular boy in respect to his strength, unless he actively chose not to be. "Is it difficult right now? In the other way?"

He smiled serenely and shook his head. "No, Bella. Or, I should say, no more than I can handle."

"Is it… normal? The, um, the effect I have on you?" I said hesitantly. "Is it very strong like this, very often?"

He frowned, his eyes narrowing with some sort of internal debate. Finally, he sighed, and shook his head. "While not unheard of, it isn't common," he told me, speaking so quietly I had to strain to hear him. "Occasionally, there will be one person who is particularly enticing, but I've never heard of it being this strong before."

"Has it ever happened to you?" I asked. I hadn't yet asked him if he'd always followed his family's way of life, but it was on my list. I just wasn't sure how to word it, or how comfortable he would be discussing it. Something he had said in the car earlier made me suspect that he hadn't always had such a strong will, hadn't always rejected human blood.

I don't know how he's managed it, but in almost half a millennium, Carlisle has never fed on a human.

"No," he said. "But to Emmett. Twice, when he was still fairly new. Once stronger than the other, but nothing like this." He danced his long fingers lightly along the wrist of the hand he was holding, right over the veins there. "He tried, but ... couldn't resist. He's the youngest of us, it's more difficult."

Over his shoulder, I saw his siblings at their usual table. They weren't looking at us, but that didn't mean they weren't aware. Alice and Rosalie were on one side of the table with an untouched apple and a banana in front of them as they looked at their boyfriends... husbands? Across from them, Emmett and Jasper were playing a very ordinary-looking game of paper football on the tabletop. Shocked by the normalcy of the scene, I turned to Edward. "Can they hear us now?"

"Yes, they're listening," he said, watching me closely. "Does it bother you?"

I thought about it. Did it bother me to know that anything I ever said could be overheard? I didn't want to hide anything from Edward, and I wanted his family to know that they could trust me with their secrets. I couldn't lie to myself and deny that it was strange, knowing that I could only be certain I had privacy if I wasn't speaking, but nothing had changed. For the two months I'd been here, every conversation I'd ever had could have been overheard by any of the Cullens.

I shook my head, and shrugged. "It is what it is. It's the world I live in now."

Rosalie Hale turned suddenly, and glared at me so harshly that I flinched. She was the most beautiful woman I'd ever seen, but in that moment, her face was the stuff of nightmares. Edward stiffened and his free hand curled into a fist on the table between us. He scowled and hissed a low warning under his breath without looking up. Casually, Rosalie turned her head back to the other Cullens and shifted back into the ordinary illusion with ease.

"I'm sorry about her," he murmured and I remembered he had said that his siblings, save Alice, weren't very happy he was spending time with me so publicly.

"It's okay." I shrugged, but I was shaken. She'd looked so angry, almost as terrifying as Edward had been that first day. Now, looking at him sitting so calmly beside me, it seemed like a lifetime ago I'd been certain he wanted me dead. "I get it. This isn't just dangerous for me."

"I'm not going to lose this battle," he vowed quietly, and I knew he said it for his family's benefit, and maybe even his own, as much as mine. "I couldn't survive it if I did. Not after knowing you."

"That iron will of yours," I murmured.

"I get it from my father," Edward joked, and I knew he referred to Carlisle.

FFN/AO3

#twilight fanfiction #twilight renaissance #edward x bella #bella x edward #edward cullen #bella swan #i forgot to post these here again oops

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