Lol, okay maybe those were a little bit more than 24 hours, but finally, here it is!

Declaimer: I do not own Twilight.

Hello, love. I'm back.

The hoarse, eerie voice of her dreams tormented Alice over the next few days. She imagined someone whispering in her ear with that creepy voice, but this time, her panic had made her imagination run wild, and the voice was now accompanied by a rancid breath and wandering hands running up and down her back.

Jasper had suggested her to go see a psychologist, but she had refused. It hadn't helped her when she was ten, what difference would it make now? So she decided to keep quiet about it. Maybe it was some sort of relapse, and it she would be over it in a week or two. She was safe now, the story wouldn't be repeated again.

Hello, love. I'm back.

It wasn't damn it.

She walked down the hallway, looking for Rosalie. What had happened three days ago, had been kept between her and Jasper. Well, obviously, seeing as only the two of them knew about her kidnap, and she intended to keep it that way.

"Rose?" She knocked on her best friend's door.

"Coming!" Rosalie's voice came muffled from the other side of the door. A few seconds later, the door opened and the long-legged blonde stepped aside to let her in.

"What's up?"

"Nothing. I'm just bored" Alice flopped down the bed and buried her face on the pillow.

"I heard Jasper left this morning with daddy to take care of some business abroad" Rosalie commented as she sat on the bed.

A sudden flash of Jasper's dead eyes crossed her mind, but she shut her eyes closed and forced the image away. He was fine.

"Yeah..."

"When are they coming back?"

"Two days." She shrugged. "Could be three." She sighed, rolling around to rest on her back.

"Why so sad?"

"I don't know, maybe I'm PMSing."

"Cut the crap, Alice."

"What?" She lazily stretched the word. "For real, I don't know what's happening to me."

"So this sudden depression of yours has nothing to do with my brother?"

"Oh, please! He's only been gone for a few hours! I think I can manage to do without him for a couple of days, Rose."

"I'm not talking about today! This past days you've been quiet and sulking, and it's so not you! Did something happen between you and Jasper?"

Alice smiled sadly, remembering that Jasper had kept close to her since the day of the nightmare. She had pretty much agreed to start a relationship with him (a real one), and this was the first time they were going to be away from each other. She would miss the feeling of his bigger body laying next to hers, making her feel safe.

And by God, she needed that now, with that horrible anguish making her heart heavy. But it had been just a stupid dream, why couldn't she get over it?

"Hello?" Rosalie rolled her eyes. "Earth to Alice."

"Something did happen" Alice smiled a little. "But it's not what you think." She felt like giggling when she imagined Rose's reaction to what she had to say.

The blonde girl raised a questioning brow. "Might as well start with your verbal diarrhea."

O.O.O

"I knew all that hate was just sexual attraction." Emmett commented during dinner. Alice's eyes widened as she almost choked with her food. She stared at Emmett with her mouth hanging open, her brain unable to process how was it that he knew… and then the answer came.

Her eyes narrowed when she saw Rosalie elbow Emmett harshly on the side while coughing simultaneously into a napkin, having choked with a piece of chicken.

Silently plotting revenge, she quickly turned to look at her mother in law, whose hand was midair, clutching a fork, mouth open to take a bite.

Cue for the mental facepalm, Alice.

"I-Wha-When did you-…WHY GOD WHY?" She almost wailed, blushing madly and avoiding Kate's eyes as much as possible.

"God, Emmett" Rosalie sighed. "Can't you be more subtle?"

"It's okay, Alice" Kate intervened, gently touching Alice's arm with a compassionate touch. "Whatever it is, I'm glad you and Jasper sorted it out. He needs peace."

Alice slowly meet Kate eyes and understood perfectly all that they were saying. They were telling her about Jasper's past, all his suffering. Of course he needed peace.

And she would give it to him.

She smiled reassuringly at the queen, and placing her hand gently on top of hers, she squeezed her mute promise sealed.

O.O.O

She tossed around in bed again and again, desperately trying to at least begin to feel drowsy. Yet, sleep never came, and she sat up, giving a frustrated huff as she crossed her arms and wished for Jasper to have the same problems with sleep as she was.

Sighing, she resigned herself to a sleepless night, seeing as it was almost 3 am. Suddenly, the darkness of the room became suffocating, and her heart started beating faster, her body tense, alert…all because of that stupid voice. Near panic, she launched herself across the bed and blindly groped for the night lamp on her stand. Finally she reached it and light bathed the whole room, casting weird shadows in every object, and she felt like the room was too big for her alone, too dark for her alone, too scary for her alone.

Clutching her pillow tightly, she scooted up the bed until her back hit the headboard, closing her eyes tightly when she heard the voice again.

Hello, love. I'm back…

But then he was in front of her, a faceless man with a cruel laugh and rough, calloused hands. He kept touching her, but not in a depraved way… He touched as if she was going to break. He touched her cheeks, her shoulders, her neck…he took a long time touching her neck, but even though it was a gentle touch, she was far from feeling good.

She was repulsed. She kept crying and telling him to stop. But then, his grip on her delicate neck became forceful, and her sobs couldn't escape her throat anymore…her tiny hands came up to try to release herself in vain, because there was nothing a 10 year old could do against a man like him.

And she woke up.

Panting, sweating, crying and gasping as her own hands had found their way to her throat and clasped tightly. She looked at the hour, and it was 4:15 am. The light was still illuminating the room, and she couldn't believe that the dream had lasted a whole hour. Still gasping for breath, she quickly jumped out of bed and made her way to the bathroom.

Her eyes were swollen and red, face blotchy and to her upmost horror, her finger's red marks were all over her neck, in addition to some scratches. She covered her mouth when a cry threatened to escape. She couldn't be alone tonight. She needed someone with her.

O.O.O

Rosalie groaned when the insistent knocks on her door never stopped. Muttering curses under her breath, she groggily stood up and opened the wood surface with a frown and a death threat hanging on her tongue.

But when she caught sight of her small sister standing in the middle of the dark hall, clutching a pillow to her chest and looking up at her with big, watery doe eyes, she couldn't do much beside stepping aside and immediately questioning her, sleepiness forgotten.

"What happened, Alice?" She turned on the light and both girls winced at the sudden illumination. "What's wro—"

She stopped herself midsentence, having witnessed the damage that Alice had caused in her neck.

"What is that?" She gasped. Seeing as the other woman couldn't even begin to form an answer, she grasped her by the shoulders and shook her lightly. "Alice! What the hell happened, why are there choking marks on your neck?"

"I-I had a nightmare." The small girl answered.

"A nightmare? A nightmare made you this?"

"It was awful!" She hiccupped and wiped the remains of the tears that were on her face.

"Let me see." She forced her to tilt her head back and examined the mottled neck with a critic eye. "It's okay, they're only scratches and a few bruises."

"I don't want to be alone."

"You can stay here."

Rosalie was staring at Alice in a way that made her believe that she was doing some quick thinking, but the blonde seemed to suddenly snap out of a trance and quickly shook her head.

"I'll go downstairs and see if we've still got ice. You seem to be hoarding all of it."

O.O.O

Alice woke up the next day and she felt confused. Her eyes were burning, her face felt sore and her temples were throbbing. She slowly raised herself off the bed, and blinked a couple of times, trying to adjust to the light.

"How are you feeling?" A quiet voice whispered beside her.

She froze, her heart beating erratically as she casted a panicked look to the person who spoke.

Jasper.

She let out a relieved breath, seeing as it was him and not another person in the room with her.

"You scared me." She managed to croak. It was then that it hit her. Her eyes widened. "What are you doing here?"

He grinned and scooted closer to her on the bed. "Rose called me last night."

"What?"

"She called me. She was scared." He frowned as he took sight of her neck and grasping her chin, he kindly forced her head back for a closer look. "She told me that she noticed the way your mood has changed in the last couple of days and that last night you came into her room after almost strangling yourself."

"Well, it sounds horrible when you say it like that." She murmured, averting her gaze. "It's not like I was willingly squeezing the life out of me."

"I know." He said softly. They stayed in silence for a few moments, and in those precious seconds she realized that he had come back for her, and only her.

'Take that skanks!' She smiled widely at her thought and mentally fist pumped.

"What?" He said slowly as he narrowed his eyes.

"You're here."

He blinked and stared at her, a small smile tugging at his lips.

"Yes, I am." He leaned forwards and closed the distance between them, pressing his lips against hers. She sighed softly into the kiss, thanking him for the mere act of being there, where she needed him the most.

"Are you leaving again?" She whispered, her lips grazing his as she spoke.

"No." He whispered back. "Dad can manage without me."

"Good." She pulled back and rested back on the bed. He followed. "I couldn't sleep without you. How lame is that?"

"Don't try to make jokes about this, Alice." He was serious. "I still think you should go see a psychologist."

"It doesn't work." She shifted to lay on her side, so they were placed face to face. Her hand reached forward and traced a line on his chest to distract herself.

"But you are not okay right now."

"Jasper, I was alone last night. And I had the nightmare, what, two, three days ago? Of course it's too soon. But it'll pass." She shrugged, continuing tracing lines on his shirt.

He frowned, looking a little guilty.

"What?" She asked.

"I shouldn't have left you." He grimaced.

"It's not your fault."

"How was it last night?"

"I don't know… I felt so alone. You're the only one that knows what happened. I couldn't confide in anybody, not even your sister." She stopped her drawings on his shirt and hugged herself, trying to recall her feelings from the night before. "Out of nowhere I felt trapped in the room. Suffocated, afraid of the dark, as if…" She paused and her forehead crinkled in concern.

"What?" He coaxed her to continue.

"As if he was there." She looked into his eyes, knowing that he'd understand who she was talking about.

"He isn't going to hurt you anymore, Alice." He said.

"I know." She smiled sadly. "But he took 10 years away from me…I know it sounds ironic, but it's hard to forget."

"I know." He scooted closer until their noses pressed together. He suddenly smiled playfully. "I couldn't sleep without you, either."

*Nervous* So...how was it? Fell below your standars? :c I've lost my abilities? :3 I never had them in the first place? xD review to leave your thoughts! :D

*Takes a bow* Thank you all wonderful readers, for waiting. This is for you