empathy

FIFTY

Watching her hand sparkle as she holds it in the sun, she quickly retrieves it again. 

Jasper is watching her sadly from a few steps away. He figured she'd want some time to get used to really being a vampire, to realize it fully, and took her out on a quick walk. 

Quite literally, a quick walk.

"You need to let it out, darlin', please," he makes his way over to her, his hands lying on her face as he stares into her eyes. 

He misses the green, it might not have been as warm but it was one of the first things to come to mind whenever he thought of her. Yet, in a weird way, the red suits her. It's like the colour is hugging her, adding to her appearance. 

Anastasia just stares at him for a moment. She hasn't talked much over the last two days, in fact, she barely muttered a word and while he does understand it, he is getting worried. 

"Come on," he gently takes her hand and starts running. She quickly adjusts to his pace, more focused on running slow instead of sprinting ahead. 

Jasper takes her up the mountain, a cloud of fog stopping the sun from shining through and allowing them to look down on it, blocking the view of every person, house or whatever there might be. 

"Scream," he asks more so than orders, his voice nearly begging her to do it. 

It's what helped him whenever it got too much, he screamed. At himself, at the major, at the world. And of course, it didn't go away after that but it helped him feel better. He just hopes it will help her as well, should she try it.

"Why?" she looks over at him, her eyes as empty as he's never seen them before. Like she's completely given up. 

"Please."

Anastasia leans into his hand when he lays it on her cheek once more, his thumb wiping over her cheek. 

"Please," he leans in to kiss her forehead, his lips moving against her skin.

He steps back once more and watches her as she is still uncertain before a small scream leaves her lips. 

Her hands curl into fists, fingernails at the edge of breaking against her skin, her eyes flutter close and her scream gets louder and more powerful, eventually forcing her to her knees. 

Jasper steps back in surprise at the cloud of black appearing around her, seemingly tearing out of the air in thin stripes before turning into a mist clouding his view, hiding her completely. His gift frantically reaches out for her, only to reach into nothingness, it's like she isn't there at all. He can't see, hear, smell or feel her. 

As though she disappeared into a void. 

Her scream dims down and he gets pushed back by the black stuff shelling out when she falls completely silent. It builds a layer over the ground, circled around her, and seeps into the ground, disappearing completely. 

"Ana," he breathes in relief and rushes over to her, kneeling down next to her to pull her into a hug as she sobs silently into his chest. The lack of tears frustrating her even more. 

His fingers comb through her hair and he whispers silent nothings, kissing her temple every now and between in an attempt to calm him down. 

She's gonna be okay. They're gonna be alright. 

They sit like this for at least half an hour until she finally pulls away, her hands coming up to wipe her tears just to be reminded she's no longer able to truly shed them. Jasper watches her sadly, her head turning to look at him and his brows knit together for the split of a second as he sees the black thread-like lines meddling into the red of her eyes. 

"What was that?" she asks him, her voice still quiet and yet stronger than before. "Your gift, I believe. But we can figure this out later," he replies honestly. "Are you feeling better, darlin'?"

Anastasia nods a little and he offers a short smile in return. 

Jasper pulls her into another hug and Anastasia wraps her arms around him, glad for the comfort he is offering. 

"Do you want to head home?" he asks her. Feeling her shake her head against his chest, he pulls away for just a moment to sit down and Anastasia takes this time to lay down, her head resting on his thigh, one hand beneath her cheek and one resting just above his knee. 

Yeah, they're gonna be alright.

--- -- -

So, this is the end of 'Twilight'

and therefore the end of part one of this book. Thank you all for reading and voting for this book! 

:)

What did you guys think?

And what do you think will happen during 'New Moon'?