Embers [Completed]

{Realisation}

After my mini breakdown outside the school, Jasper stayed with me throughout the day, and gave very pointed glares to anyone whispering.

His presence makes me feel safe, and can calm me down better than anything.

I did not go to La Push with Bella, because I wasn't lying when I said I don't like beaches.

Instead, I spent the time sitting at my desk drawing and painting. I keep all my artwork in my drawer, because no one knows I do it.

I must have spaced out, as I've just refocused on what I'm doing and found myself staring at a very lifelike portrait of Jasper.

Well. That's weird. But it is good, so I put it in the drawer.

I wish I could listen to music, but I don't have a record player here. I brought my records, but not the player because it wasn't mine.

Thinking about that, I write myself a note so I remember to buy one the next time I'm in Port Angeles.

Charlie is coming up the stairs. He's not hard to hear due to his loud footsteps.

"Jordan, can I come in?" He asks.

"Yeah," I say, turning so I'm blocking the view of my desk.

He comes in and sits on my bed, glancing around the room awkwardly.

"Is everything okay?" I ask.

"Huh? Oh, yeah. It's um, Bella told me about the kid at school," he says.

"Ah," I say.

"Why didn't you tell me about him?" Charlie asks.

"I don't generally talk about that stuff, Charlie," I say.

"What he did is abuse," Charlie says sternly. "I could have him arrested and charged."

"Oh, no, Charlie, don't!" I exclaim.

"Why not?" He asks. "That...boy, treated you atrociously."

"Yes, yes he did. But if you stir up trouble with charges, you're going to piss of some very important people. Johnny is what you would call a Modern day mafia boy," I say.

He makes a frustrated noise. "I don't like it."

"Neither do I. But, Jasper has made his point quite clear that he's by my side. So if I have any problems, I'll talk to him," I say with a smile.

"He's a nice boy, huh?" Charlie says.

"Yeah. He is."

I pick up on the way Charlie is looking at me; the half smile and twinkly eye. I quickly shake my head.

"Oh, no. We're just friends."

"Jordan, he risked his life for you, then insisted on taking you to the hospital because of your headache."

"Friends do that for each other," I point out.

"True." He nods and stands, thrusting his hands deep into his pocket as he smirks at me. "But do friends look at each other like that?"

I wet my lips nervously. "Like what?"

"Like you'd stop breathing without the other," Charlie says, and leaves the room.

I feel like he's left me with a massive bombshell. My head runs through several interactions at once, looking for what he meant.

Slowly turning around in my chair, I stare out the window.

"Just friends," I assure myself.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

When Bella comes back, she's a little on edge, and tells me about a story Jacob Black told her.

A Quilege legend about the origins of their enemy tribe. You see, they claim to be descended from actual wolves, and this legend speaks about how they met.

Jacob's great great grandfather found them hunting on Quilete land, but they claimed to be something different.

So they made a treaty. As long as they kept off of Quilete territory, they wouldn't expose what they were to the pale faces.

She seemed quite shook up, and managed to let slip her suspicions about Edward.

"Do you get anything like that with Jasper?" She had asked.

"No," I said, even though several instances had run through my head at once.

I've locked myself in my room. I don't want to be disturbed while I look into this.

My shitty old laptop takes it time with loading my search, but eventually brings up a list of books on Quilete legends.

I find one and look at the index through page preview and scan it for anything promising.

My eyes fix onto one in particular.

Legend of The Cold One

I type it into the search bar and wait. A whole pile of answers come up, but I choose to go through a more reliable site.

Gears in my mind start kicking on as I read, things starting to click into place.

Inhuman speed and strength.

Uneasy around blood, for it is their main source of sustenance.

Ice cold skin.

Superhuman senses and reflexes.

I get up and pace in my room. Thoughts swirl in my head, fighting between logic and experience.

I've seen Jasper do amazing things that I can't explain. But how can he be one of the creatures these pages discribe?

He's caring and kind, and when he laughs it's wholesome. Never crude, nasty or vicious.

I know he has a deep anger for some reason, but he's never taken it out. It's something he guards very carefully.

But the way he stopped that van, and the way his body is. His 'condition'.

A deep sigh heaves from my chest as I let myself drop onto my bed.

Jasper's a vampire.