The First Time Contest

Title: Waiting for the Sound of Thunder

Word Count: 5505

Rating: M

Pairing: Jasper/Edward

Summary: When two children meet they each find the best friend they've been missing. Years later, one family tries to destroy their dreams for the future, but dreams and friendships are powerful, refusing to simply fade away with the summer sun...

Disclaimer: All recognisable characters are the sole property of Stephenie Meyer.

~ 0 ~

It was one of those long, hot summers that seem to last forever.

I grew up in the country and had no real experience of big city life. If I was honest, I wasn't really keen on rectifying that situation either.

So there I was, aged eight, out playing in the fields near my house, when I heard a truck pull up to the big old house next door that had been empty forever. The place was run down and pretty sad looking and I pitied the folks moving in and all the work they had ahead of them. What I didn't know was that they had a son who was my age, an only child like me since my big brother had left home two years before.

It wasn't until I heard a woman's voice carry across the quiet field that I realised the implications this could have. I liked my own company and this kid could be really lame and follow me around like a bad smell all summer. Worse - he could be a bully and make my life hell. All in all I wasn't happy about this new development.

"Honey – why don't you go explore and your father and I will start unpacking your room. Just don't go too far and make sure you can still hear us, okay?"

I grinned to myself and wondered if he'd even have the guts to leave the front yard, let alone come out into the field. So I was pretty surprised when I heard cautious footsteps coming towards me, following the flattened path I had made as I hid from the world.

When he stumbled onto my hiding place he looked surprised for a moment but then he spoke.

"Who are you?"

I looked him over, seeing smart, city clothes and shoes already covered with dust. His hair was neatly combed and from what I could see, his hands were clean. He couldn't have looked more out of place if he'd tried.

I sat up and shaded my eyes.

"I'm Jasper. You moving in next door?"

"Yeah; my dad lost his job and we had to leave the city and buy somewhere cheap, mom said." He looked down for a moment and then back at me. "Mom and dad used to talk after I went to bed and I managed to listen in on some of it." He looked me over curiously. "You're all dirty."

"So?"

"Mom goes mad if I get dirty." He looked down at his feet, saw the dust and rubbed the shoes with his hands.

"Don't you have any old clothes to wear? I wear my brother's old stuff to get dirty in. You can't stay clean living here, it's too dusty."

He looked awkward.

"Uh, no; mom gets rid of anything that's a bit worn as she says I look untidy."

I grinned then. "She'll change her mind when she's been here for a few days and you come home covered in grass stains and mud from the creek."

His eyes widened, whether in fear or excitement I couldn't tell, but I was kinda looking forward to helping him loosen up a little. We had no airs and graces out here in the middle of nowhere, North Dakota, and he would soon learn that. I hoped his mom did too.

"So – can I hang out with you?"

And that's how I met Edward.

~ 0 ~

It was blisteringly hot. While I helped with the move as much as I could, my folks eventually sent me out to play when I got bored and distracted. Edward was sent out with me and we sat on my front porch, drinking cold sodas and finding out more about each other. Over the next couple of days my mom and Mrs Cullen cleaned house and made new curtains for the big windows while my dad and Mr Cullen repaired the roof, the walls... everything.

Their water supply wasn't great and it turned out the main pipe was cracked. My dad had had plenty of practice and Doctor Cullen was a quick study, learning what to do and being a real help rather than getting in the way. My folks were really happy to have a doctor living next door and invited them over for supper that first night. It felt a little awkward at first, with them being strangers, but Edward and I were already discussing my plans to take him to the creek the next day and didn't realise they had stopped talking to smile at us as we chattered on, full of schemes for the day ahead.

Looking back, I think our parents became friends because we did.

The next day I showed Edward the creek, the water cool and inviting as it shushed over the stones in the shallows. He looked nervous and I wondered if he was scared of the water.

"Edward – let's swim! The water will feel so good!"

I pulled off my shirt and threw it into the long grass at my feet. He looked uncomfortable, looking from me to the water and back.

"What's wrong? Can't you swim?"

"Of course, but I don't have a suit."

I laughed.

"Is that's what's bothering you?"

He nodded.

"You don't need a suit. There's no one else here but us. Our folks can't see us and mine wouldn't care anyway – they know I swim here. Come on!"

I pulled down my shabby shorts and kicked them off before sliding down my underpants and leaving them in a tangled heap in the grass.

Edward's eyes goggled.

"You swim nude?"

"Well, yeah! I don't want to get my clothes all wet. Are you coming in?"

Turning my back, I walked down the bank and jumped in where the water was deeper, feeling the shock of the cool water on my body. It was bliss in the heat. Rolling over onto my back I sculled my hands, looking to Edward to see what he would do. He set his face as if having a stern inner conversation with himself before pulling off his shirt. His jeans were next and then he was standing uncertainly in his jockey shorts, looking at me with trepidation. I saw him bend over and then heard a splash as he joined me in the creek with a muted scream of shock.

Swimming up to me, he grinned.

"This is great - feels weird not to have a suit on."

"You don't wear one in the bath do you? Think of it like that."

I splashed him with water and he spluttered before retaliating by sending a wave over my head. All around us the only sounds were the wind whispering in the wheat fields and our laughter. Later, we lay in the long grass, drying off under the hot sun, Edward telling me about his old home in Florida. It sounded amazing and I understood why he could be unhappy moving here. Surprisingly though, he seemed to be adjusting well, finding the wide open spaces more to his liking. He appeared to be a loner, not missing anyone in particular from his old home.

The more we talked, the more there seemed to be to Edward Cullen. I felt a little like a country hick in comparison and wondered if he and I would have been friends if we'd met in Florida. He was intelligent, scoring 'A' grades with ease, whereas I got by in most classes with a respectable B minus. Edward loved books whereas I loved horses; we couldn't afford to keep them so I spent time at a neighbour's place a couple of miles away. They let me ride whenever I wanted, and in exchange I helped out with feeding and mucking out. I wondered if Edward would think my pastimes were dull, but he seemed to be really interested when I told him and so I offered to take him with me the next time.

We became really close and went everywhere together. I taught Edward to ride and he took to it easily, so much so that my friends let us borrow horses and go for a ride whenever we came over. While it was exhilarating, galloping with the wind in our hair, pretending to be Wild West cowboys, it was the quiet time afterward when we were tack cleaning that I felt said most about Edward. He thought a lot, only tending to speak when he had something to say rather than babbling about something and nothing like some of the other kids in school.

He was smart as a whip, and although I failed to understand his reasons, he was fiercely loyal to me.

~ 0 ~

The owners of McKenna's stables were happy with how well we looked after the horses we rode and the tack we used, and when we turned thirteen they offered us paid work in the holidays when they were short handed. It was a big deal for us as it meant we had our own money to spend, money we earned ourselves. It was a bonus that we got paid to do something we both loved anyway.

My parents were proud of me. Edward's seemed a little... disappointed. I overheard them one evening after we got home, and shortly afterward there came a whistle – our signal.

Edward was sat waiting for me on the old oak stump at the bottom of the field. He looked beaten. I sat down next to him.

"What's up with your folks? I could hear your mom through my window."

His shoulders were slumped and I put an arm around his shoulders in support.

"Mom doesn't want me working at McKenna's anymore. She thinks my school work will suffer if I waste time there." He face twisted at the word 'waste'.

I could feel the repressed anger in his rigid arms; I simply couldn't understand why they weren't proud of him, out in the world earning honest money. I asked my question, worried about the answer.

"So aren't you coming with me anymore? It's a lot of work for just one person to do."

He sighed and I thought quickly.

"Perhaps you could do all your homework in study hall and then you'll be free for weekends? She can't be mad at you for having a job, can she?"

He shook his head.

"I don't know, Jas. She was okay when I just went to ride, but now I have a job she doesn't like it. She said I was wasting my summer doing work anyone could do when I should be trying to better myself."

So it's okay for me, but not Edward?

I didn't dare say the words out loud because I knew that Edward didn't think like that, but it hit me that perhaps his mom thought I wasn't good enough for him, that I had led him away from her chosen path.

I set my jaw, determined to fix this.

"I'll ask my mom, Edward. She'll talk to her for you. Mom loves you and I'm sure she can talk her round! It'll all be okay – I promise!"

He looked at me with hope in his eyes, and I wondered even then why he wasn't good enough for his mom just the way he was.

I went straight home and sat down to talk to my mom and dad about it. They were shocked when I explained that Edward wasn't supposed to work because of his studies. My mom's opinion was that if we wanted to do some hard work in the holidays and earn an honest day's pay then she wasn't going to tell us not to. I went to bed that night hearing them talk quietly downstairs and hoped it would help Edward in some way.

Surprisingly, Edward's mom had a change of heart before my mom could say anything. She gave him the go ahead to go work with me, but only if he promised to study for a couple of hours each day too. Edward was super smart and knew that he could learn enough in one hour each day to convince his mom he had done much more, and in the end we got to spend the summer together after all, working, riding and swimming. We bought bikes with our money and were able to get to and from the stables quicker, giving us more time for fun and to spend our money.

We didn't work every day and often we would take a lunch and go off on foot into the fields and amuse ourselves for hours, speculating on how our lives would turn out. We planned it all; we wanted to own horses of our own one day and maybe breed them or look after famous racehorses for rich clients. We had wild dreams, our whole lives ahead of us to make them happen.

Edward spoke of his mother often, and I learned that she wanted him to make something of himself, to escape North Dakota for a successful, high profile career. I guessed she had ideas of him becoming a doctor like his dad or someone important in the city. Edward let it all wash over him, studying hard and doing well in school, but deep down believing that his life was his own to live, his choices his own to make.

That was why we never really saw it coming.

~ 0 ~

The year we turned 18, Edward was sent away to his grandparents' in Florida for the summer to intern at his uncle's advertising company.

I didn't know how I felt about it. I mean, I knew I would miss my friend but there was more to it than that. It was hard to imagine him not being around when we had spent almost every day together for the last ten years. My best friend was leaving me and I was feeling pretty darn low. I wondered if he would even come back if his uncle offered him a job.

The day before he was due to leave, we went out into the fields to spend some time together. Walking along the well used pathways through the grasses, we were uncharacteristically quiet, unanswered questions hanging in the dry, dusty air. The weeks ahead stretched before us, devoid of fun and laughter. I knew it was only a few weeks but the thought of summer without him was painful. Edward was reticent, not wanting to talk about it; I guessed he was happy to be going, to perhaps make a career for himself in his hometown. Trying to talk about him leaving made it real and we were struggling to express the difficulty in the simple act of saying goodbye.

Under a bruised sky, out of sight of everyone with only the birds and the insects to bear witness, I stopped walking and pulled him into a tight hug. It was spontaneous and impulsive and I held onto him like a drowning man who may never see land again. He didn't resist, and I closed my eyes and just allowed myself to feel. When arms found their way around me I held on tight, struggling to hold back shameful tears. I could feel the loneliness encroaching and knew I had to endure it along with the very real possibility that he might not return at all.

"It's only three months."

It might as well have been three years.

His voice sounded choked. Neither of us broke the embrace.

"I wish you weren't going."

"And I wish you were coming with me."

He pulled back to look into my face.

"I'm coming back, Jasper. I promise."

Gazing into his eyes, I reached for his hand. He took it, looked down at it before lacing our fingers together, and so we made a slow retreat home, not speaking, neither willing to break the spell. When we reached his house he released my hand somewhat reluctantly before meeting my eyes.

"I'll be back September 1st. Meet me in the meadow at sunset? Promise me, Jas?"

I gave him the best smile I could muster and swallowed hard.

"I'll be there. I promise."

~ 0 ~

When morning dawned, sadness weighed heavy on my heart. He would be leaving while I was at work tending to the horses; last night had been our own private farewell. We had agreed to email whenever we weren't working, but our schedules were very likely to conflict, not to mention our less than reliable internet connection at home. If it didn't work, he said he would write.

When that first postcard arrived, Esme brought it round to show my mom. She was beaming with delight at his words and I hoped for a message of my own soon.

A postcard addressed to me arrived the next day:

'Jasper – it's hot and noisy here in Florida and you have no idea how much I miss the creek. The people are friendly enough but there are so many and I don't remember their names. I'm working hard and keeping busy. Give Zeus a carrot for me and tell him I miss exercising him every day. Don't work too hard – remember to relax sometimes, okay?

Edward'

My mom read it and handed it back to me with a shrug.

"Sounds like he's settling in well, baby."

That night I cycled home, exhausted and aching from hard yard work and thinking of my bed. Before turning in, I tried my connection and found it to be working with a reasonable signal. Logging on to my email, I saw a message sent two hours previously.

'Jas,

I don't know if you got my card, but I wanted to make sure you understood that I can't write what I want to on something our moms will read. It's so hot and crowded here and I miss swimming in the creek with you. There are just so many people here and no one I can call a friend. I might be from the city but I swear I'm a country boy now! The girls at the office are so obvious and I'm finding myself keeping more and more of a distance from them. They think I'm a challenge and I'm getting tired of it. As it is, I'm working long hours for little pay as I'm only a summer intern; being family counts for nothing when you start at the bottom. I pretty much just work and sleep as I'm exhausted when I leave. I swear I'd give anything to go riding with you and stretch Zeus' legs out on the exercise track. Just thinking of the fresh air and the smell of the wheat fields makes me homesick. Already I worry that I don't fit in here and I know my parents wouldn't understand how I feel. I can't disappoint them. I have to do well for their sakes. I'll just have to come home and spend time with you in my dreams.

Goodnight, Jas. I miss you.

Edward.'

Looking at the clock, I guessed he was probably in bed and so I resolved to answer the next day if the signal held out. I fell asleep, dreaming of when we were young and life made sense.

I wrote him often, telling him about work and the horses, trying to stay upbeat and encouraging. I told him about getting my licence and my new work because of it. My job prospects were improving, and I was able to save some money for the future. My mom took some for my keep, but not all of it, and I was squirreling away every cent I didn't need. I hoped this would make him happy, that maybe one day our plans might actually become reality. The last thing I wanted to do was to tell how long every day seemed without him.

I threw myself into work, keeping busy; idle hands meant my mind was free to brood. Every day I looked over at his house when I set off to the stables, hoping to see him waiting for me; every day I was disappointed. When harvest season approached, I found myself some seasonal labouring work, helping with straw baling and carting. I had passed my licence and could drive a tractor, making me useful to the farmers. It was long hours for low wages but even then, when I fell into bed at night exhausted to the bone, I checked for new emails. My heart sank on the days when my inbox was empty.

As time wore on his replies became less frequent. Each message betrayed his weariness, each starting to sound more businesslike and perfunctory. They were shorter now and focused on his new world and his responsibilities. He sounded like he was learning a great deal; of course, with his sharp mind that was no surprise. He still sent postcards with short, cheery messages and I put them up on the fridge, but it wasn't until Esme came around for coffee a couple of months after he left that I realised the extent of his parents' plan.

I was on the stairs when I heard them and she couldn't have known I was there. Esme's excited voice carried as she regaled my mom with details of Edward's progress. It transpired that he was a well respected intern, hard working and popular with everyone there.

No surprise.

Esme was overjoyed that her plan was working, and I frowned. My mom must have thought the same way as me as she asked Esme what she meant by that. Esme's bright, excited voice filled my ears as she spoke of her hopes that Edward find a nice girl there and settle down with a good, secure job in the company and his own home. The news from his grandparents made it clear that he could be successful there and was welcome to stay as long as he liked – they loved having him around.

I went cold, my heart hurting as I sat there, fist pressed to my mouth as I took this in.

They wanted him married? And living in Florida full time?

Of course they did - it was every parent's dream.

I sat down on the stair, numb, trying to comprehend the fact that next time I saw Edward it could be Christmas...

... and he might not come back alone.

~ 0 ~

I worked hard all summer, taking work wherever I could find it. I didn't know for sure, but Esme's frequent progress reports on Edward must have made my mom wonder what went wrong with me. I had passed all my exams, but there was no denying I was better suited to outdoor work like my dad, and would never be a high flying boardroom executive.

The difference between Edward's parents and mine was that my parents were fine with this, accepting my choice without argument. I made my peace with this by bringing home as much money as I could to help with the house.

Deep down, I couldn't be mad at his folks for wanting the best for him.

I just wished that the 'best' included me.

~ 0 ~

It was humid, the air drier than the Sahara when I made my way to meet Edward. Even without the big old moon shining down I could've made my way there by memory alone. The wheat harvest had begun and the air was full of a fragrance unrivalled by any from a perfume house; the smell of cut wheat permeated the air where fields had been opened up ready for harvesting the following day. It was something both Edward and I loved to watch, and despite the flying dust and straw, we would lie in the grass for hours, watching those huge combine harvesters devour the golden grain.

My heart was thudding as I approached our place, terrified that he wouldn't be there, that he would have chosen to stay in the city and forget all about this dusty, quiet place where nothing ever happened and life was slow and predictable.

What was there to entice him back here?

I had dreams, dreams that were completely focused on spending my life working alongside Edward. The realisation that his future might not include me hit hard and I shivered, my steps slowing as I suddenly feared what I would find when I arrived. I was faced with the very real possibility of his absence - an unspoken statement of painful rejection.

As I forced my legs to walk, I could feel a storm approaching, the air thick and heavy.

Reaching the meadow, I saw the long grasses rippling like the ocean, fanned by the breeze of the oncoming storm. I set off towards the creek and then stopped.

Standing on the bank, dripping wet, was Edward.

I swallowed. He stood by the water, his clothes piled in the grass at his feet. Gazing at him in the moonlight I felt like a voyeur, looking at my friend with new eyes; eyes that could never again be closed to the magnificence before me.

Edward, you're beautiful.

The thought shocked me with its clarity even as my mind clouded.

I love him.

And not as a friend or a brother, I could see that now.

As I approached, he turned and saw me, his face alight with happiness in the silvery glow. Something was different and it took me a moment to realise what it was.

He's naked.

We hadn't swum naked since we were 12 years old when embarrassment at our changing bodies had made Edward want to cover up. After that I too had worn shorts when we came out here to swim, but looking at him now I felt no shame, no embarrassment, only a sense of rightness. I walked towards him, pulling off my shirt and dropping it heedlessly, unbuttoning my shorts I let them fall, kicking them free of my feet. My eyes never left his; my underwear were discarded without a second thought, completely comfortable in my nakedness. I saw his smile as I reached him and my arms pulled him into a fierce hug, almost drowning in my own feelings at being near him again. Without thinking, without speaking, I pressed my lips to his, overjoyed when I felt him respond.

All those times I had masturbated as an adolescent, it was only because it felt good with no real fantasy to drive the act itself. However, for the last few months more and more it had been Edward's smile I saw, his voice I heard. I hadn't wanted to admit it to myself, but he was the vision that propelled me forward, that both inspired and fuelled my pleasure, making me bite my lip to not cry out his name when I reached my climax.

Our lips moved, unpractised and clumsy, yet finding a joyous rhythm when he parted his lips to mesh with mine. The tentative touch of his tongue sent strong ripples of pleasure arcing across my flesh and unconsciously I pressed against him, his skin cool from the water.

I poured a summer's worth of longing into that kiss. The whole time he had been away I had been afraid that we weren't on the same page, that my burgeoning feelings would repel him and put an irreparable rift in our friendship. I hadn't dared hope during those long, lonely months that he felt the same way. Wrapped in his arms, I just knew this was how it was meant to be. My hands were in his hair, holding him close; I tried to remember to breathe as his lips moved with mine, his own breaths noisy and urgent as we stayed locked together.

I gave him my all; if this was all we could ever have, this one moment in time, then I had to show him how I felt. He broke the kiss, gasping, his eyes finding mine. I had been hard from the moment his tongue touched mine, and now, holding him close to me, I felt his erection against my stomach. When we were children we had compared our bodies, curious as to how and why we were different. Now, looking down, I saw no difference at all. Without thinking, I took both of our engorged erections in hand and stroked them from base to tip, using a firm stroke that I favoured. Edward hissed when our swollen cock heads kissed, his hand joining mine as we pleasured ourselves in unison, falling into desperate kissing as need grew ever stronger, breaking away to gasp for air before resuming, two magnets drawn inexorably together.

My legs were shaking, my orgasm threatening. Tearing my lips from his, only now able to breathe in harsh pants, I rested my forehead against Edward's, seeing pinched and desperate eyes gazing back at me. With a harsh cry, I felt my body contract, jets of come spraying over my stomach and trickling down our joined hands. My knees buckling, the only thing that kept me upright was my intent to make Edward feel good too. Seeing me come undone was evidently what it took as he pulsed in my hand before his come splattered both of us. Collapsing to our knees in the long grass, we rolled onto our backs and lay there, catching our breath.

My pleasure fogged mind tried to come to terms with what had just happened, how I had gone from fear of rejection to sexual fulfilment. When Edward spoke, his words surprised me.

"I wanted that to last longer. I got so excited just thinking about it that when you actually touched me it was..." He laughed in obvious embarrassment. "Let's just say that I want us to do that again."

I gazed at him, bathed in the glow of the moon, bright as day, and wondered how it had taken us so long to get here when it was clearly destined to be this way.

He propped his head up on his hand.

"I made a decision, Jas."

I looked at him with no small degree of anxiety.

"I can't be what my parents want me to be. I can't live a lie."

His thumb stroked my cheek as I looked at him, almost too scared to breathe as he forced out the words he needed to say.

"I really missed you. The longer I was away the worse it got until I didn't know what to say in my emails anymore. I was afraid the truth would have sent you running for the hills; pages and pages of 'I miss you'." He half laughed."I threw myself into the job to pass the time. So what if I'm good at it? I was also good with organisation and figures but I don't want a career in advertising. I want us to work towards our future, our plans. My folks don't know it yet, but I told my grandparents about you and they want to help us. Turns out I have a small trust fund that matured when I turned 18. It's not a fortune or anything but it would help us get started. We can start small, providing boarding stables for two or three horses, and maybe offer riding lessons too when we get a couple of horses of our own. I've worked it all out. This is it, Jas – our dream. Do you want to give it a go, for real?"

He sounded so hopeful; when I didn't speak, overwhelmed, he carried on.

"It'll mean a lot of hard work and long hours, but ..."

I kissed him then, capturing his sweet mouth and feeling him moan deep in his throat. Pulling him down on top of me, we surrendered to helpless desire. Finally, I broke the kiss and looked deep into eyes glazed with lust.

"It'd be ours," I finished. He nodded, his smile lighting my world brighter than that big old moon above us, and I knew that everything would work out because together we were unstoppable.

We pulled on our clothes, stopping once or twice to kiss some more, and made our way home, hand in hand, as the first raindrops fell.

The thunder rumbling overhead would perhaps prove to be an omen of the difficulties that lay ahead for us, but instead we chose to heed the whisper of the wind, softly sighing through the waves of grain as it spoke its message to us:

Yes.

Yes.

Yesssss.

~ 0 ~