Traditional. [Jasper Hale]

ix. In the Neighborhood

"Oh, this old thing?" Florence joked pointing to the floor, "Found it at an antique shop, nothing to fuss about."

Florence let the joke breath for a second before she spoke up again, "I'm afraid I've been a bit rude. Mother wouldn't approve of welcoming a companion with a lamp to the head. Can I make you any tea?"

"Tea would be nice, thank you," Jasper stated politely as he watched Florence stand up from her place on the floor and enter the kitchen to put the kettle of water on the gas range. Florence stood by the cutout window in the kitchen, so she could peek through to the living room where Jasper sat, looking back at her. 

"Any particular reason why you were just in my neighborhood? If you could call these desolate woods a neighborhood," Florence attempted to make conversation.

"Uh, not particularly," Jasper began, "You just have a very scenic neighborhood. I was enjoying a walk before I decided to drop in on you, and when I realized you weren't here, I was about to turn around and leave out of gratitude. However, my curiosity got the best of me, and I tried your door. Sorry for letting myself in."

"Oh, don't worry about it," Florence brushed it off, "Sorry for attacking you with a lamp."

"No big deal," Jasper stated nonchalantly like being hit in the head was a normal occurrence. With Emmett living around Jasper, Florence wouldn't be surprised if it was a normal occurrence.

"But, in my defense, I did think that you were an assailant," Florence rationalized.

"Point taken," Jasper stated before the tea kettle started to whistle, cluing Florence off to the fact that the water was boiled to perfection. She took the kettle off of the burner and proceeded to pour the water into two separate tea cups before she put two tea bags of Earl Grey in each cup.

Walking over to Jasper after putting creamer and sugar in both cups, she handed him his tea before taking a seat next to him on her plush couch. They both took small sips of their tea awkwardly, trying to forget about the small moment they shared before.

Jasper was the one to break the awkward silence, "This - uhm - this is good tea."

"Yeah," Florence uttered out dumbly, "So, are we just going to ignore the whole Maria mishap, or are we going to actually talk about it?"

"Whichever you prefer," Jasper cleared his throat.

"Well, I prefer the former, but I know that the latter is probably best."

"I - I was under blood lust, you know," Jasper began explaining, "I know that you aren't her, and you don't remind me of her at all, I promise you. You're so much better for me and to me, but I wasn't thinking straight. All I could think about was the blood, and I hadn't felt that out of control since Maria. It was my mistake. One I'll be sure to never make again. Maria? She never made me feel the way you do."

"And how's that?" Florence inquired.

"What?" Jasper asked.

"You said: 'She never made me feel the way you do.' Right?" Florence began as Jasper nodded in confirmation to her rhetorical question, "Well, how do I make you feel?"

"Like...like my heart still beats," Jasper began, his pupils growing wide as he talked about the love of his life, "Like I'm still alive or - or human. Like I'm not a monster."

"Oh, J, you were never a monster, even on your worst days," Florence assured.

"That's not how it feels when I lose control," Jasper began standing up from his seated position, "I think I've overstayed my welcome."

"That's not possible," Florence said, still leading Jasper to the door since it was obvious he had somewhere to be.

"Well, I have to help Edward with some Bella crisis anyways, so I should really be heading out. I didn't plan on staying so long, but time seems to escape my mind whenever I'm in your presence," Jasper smirked, knowing he was charming.

Florence opened the door for him as he stepped out onto the threshold that was covered by a small awning to keep the pouring rain off of guests. Jasper leaned in the doorway, digging his hand into his pocket and coming out with a wad of cash. After taking two twenties from the pile, he returned the rest to his front pocket once more.

He handed the money over to Florence as she smiled at his childishness, "You know I was joking about the money."

"Well that's unfortunate since I wasn't joking about the kiss," Jasper smiled.

"Oh, you think you're so cheeky, huh?" Florence yanked the money out of Jasper's hand before kissing him on the cheek quickly, "That'll cost you later in life, J."

"We'll see, Flor," Jasper smiled before saying his goodbyes and driving off.

Florence slowly closed the door after making sure Jasper really left. Knowing that she was alone, she let herself break out into the contagious smile she had been holding in before talking to herself, "You keep coming back to him, don't you?"

***

(WORD COUNT 1,301)

(UNEDITED)