Dead | Jasper Hale | Book 2

1. New Life

IMPORTANT NOTE BEFORE YOU READ: So I went back and changed who turned Hollie. Instead of Carlisle, it was Alice. Because, you know, she wasn't technically there when they made the treaty.  Also I'd like to apologize profusely for taking forever to write this chapter up. I'm not promising quicker chapters but at least I'll have a handle on how this'll story go on from here. Thank you so much for being impatient guys. It means a lot.

Everything felt disorienting. There were so many new things to look at, new details I would have never imagined I would be seeing. My eyes darted around the room, taking in each new detail. My eyes were full of wonder, so much that I didn't notice there were other people in the room until a breathy laugh caught my attention.

As I sat up, I realized I was laying on the couch in the living room. That's where I was this entire time. I don't quite remember being moved from outside. But then again, I was too distracted with the amount of pain I was in.

My eyes darted across the six members of the Cullen family, taking in their features. They were all still gorgeous, inhumanly beautiful. But now I was able to see them much clearer. My memory of them through human eyes made it seem like I was looking through a dark veil or muddy water. Totally unclear.

Then, as soon as my eyes landed on Jasper Hale, everybody else was in the back of my mind and barely even in the same room. I didn't notice them when my eyes were taking in Jasper Hale.

I felt like I was seeing someone for the first time. Though I knew who he was and he was the Jasper I remembered – only now he was much clearer to me – he looked like someone new.

Jasper's most dominant feature was the half-crescent shaped scars. They were spaced most thickly together on his neck and jaw, but they covered his entire body. They were all over his arm. Not as many but still enough to make me gasp and flinch back for half a second. His curly, blond hair was still barely brushing his collar bones. His blazing dark eyes were on me. He was lean, muscular, and still taller than me. Most of all though, he was still inhumanly beautiful.

I stepped towards him, the curiosity burning brightly inside of me. As I was in front of him, I saw the questions forming in his mind. His eyes were easy for me to read, to see what he was thinking and feeling.

My eyes moved to his arm. I only glanced at him to make sure it was all right as I reached for him. He didn't seem to mind. Gently grasping his wrist, I took my hand and slowly traced one of the marks.

Vampires did this. Vampires that were fighting with Jasper. That much was clear to me. But the number of half-crescent shaped marks that marred his skin made me wonder what happened and how these marks came to be. Why would vampires bite him?

I let go of his arm and my hands travel up towards his throat. Gently, I traced one of the marks there, and another just below his jaw. Eventually, I pulled my hand back and let it drop to my side.

Then, my eyes met his.

A strangled sound left my throat as I saw my reflection through his eyes. Shakily, my hands touched the corners of my eyes. The reflection did the same. It wasn't an illusion. It was real.

"What's wrong?" he murmured.

"The eyes," I whispered, horrified. "How long?"

Suddenly, I was no longer alone in the room with Jasper anymore. Alice was the one who answered me.

"Well, that kind of depends on your diet," she said.

My eyes narrowed at her. "I am not going to have red eyes for the rest of my existence. No way. Looking at my reflection is terrifying."