Chapter Four – Hanging Out

JPOV

I kept my word with Bella. I didn't move the entire time she was asleep. The dark room, illuminated only by moonlight through the trees, was just light enough for me study her face when it wasn't pressed against my chest.

Listening to her breathe was nerve wracking. It seemed like my Bella had a bit of sleep apnea, occasionally holding her breath and allowing her heart to slow down. When she did this, I gave her a small nudge, as if to remind her she wasn't dead yet, and to keep breathing.

Her sleep was mostly neutral, except for when she was dreaming. I could tell she was dreaming because I could hear her eyes flutter behind their lids quickly, and her body tensed up into a board-like state, paralyzing her. Her emotions ran wild, though suppressed by sleep. This was the first night I had spent with her, and I had never before watched a human sleep. I grabbed my cell phone out and texted Carlisle:

Jasper: Carlisle, would you come up here quickly? I think something's wrong.

Less than ten seconds after I sent the text, Carlisle was in the room, at Bella's side. "What's wrong, Jasper?" He looked worried, and felt confused. "She's stiff as a board, Carlisle. Surely that's wrong?" He just smiled, and gave a small throat laugh.

"It's perfectly normal." He checked her vitals anyway, before giving me an explanation, "Human bodies paralyze themselves during REM sleep. Their brains are running wild and want to act out their dreams- which, as we know, would be dangerous. It's just a safe guard, promise. She's doing fine, besides her sleep apnea, of course. That's not terribly bad, though. She seems to recover herself well."

I thanked him and he quietly left, leaving me to watch my mate sleep once again. The sun started to rise and Esme knocked quietly, "I'll start preparing her breakfast. What should I make?" I was at a loss with this question, I didn't know. I shook my head, "I-I don't-" Edward appeared behind Esme, and sighed, "You really gotta get to know her better, Jazz. She likes coffee, with cream, and pretty much any breakfast food you'll make. Bacon is a special treat." Esme turned to me, and I shrugged and nodded, I guess that was okay.

When Esme retreated downstairs, Edward came in, closing the door quietly. I no longer hated him, instead respecting him and trusting him for the most part with Bella. Edward walked over and sat in a chair next to the bed, "Scarface." He said. I looked at him, "Wha-" "Her favorite movie. Scarface. She has others but that's her all-time favorite. She likes small coffee shops and diners, not really a fan of chains. If you need to know anything else about her, in case she doesn't tell you… I'm here."

I looked at him, grateful that he told me her favorite things, but disappointed I didn't already know them. He left a moment later and I was once again alone with my mate. It was perfect.

BPOV

I stirred earlier than usual, to the sound of a plate dropping in the kitchen below. With a groan, I tried to roll over to silence what I thought was my alarm, only to hit a brick wall that was Jasper. I startled myself awake, orienting myself with my surroundings, "Whoa, darlin', you're okay. Wake easy, doll." Jasper's soothing voice coupled with his hand rubbing my back helped me to realize where I was.

He helped me out of bed and picked out clothes for me, "Outdoor gear? You've gotta be- no way, we're going outside today?" I looked out at the sun shining through the window, illuminating his skin into a million fragments of diamond. "Not to worry, little lady," he started, talking in a thick southern drawl I hadn't heard before, "We're staying well off the trails." "What's with the voice, Jazz?" I asked, cocking my head to the side as he tossed my clothes toward me. "Ah, sorry 'bout that, Peter brings out the Texan in me." I giggled and stood up to change, motioning him to leave the room. As he was half out the door, I whispered to him, "I like it." The rush of air that left his nostrils let me know he had heard it, and was amused.

After dressing in designer outer gear- a nice jacket and undershirt with yoga-pant looking things that actually helped insulate your legs, I made my way downstairs. Charlotte was the first to see me, and gave a half wave when I walked past her, "There's the woman of the hour!" I blushed and stepped into the kitchen, where Esme was just finishing up my breakfast. "Oh, thank you, Esme!" She looked behind her and nodded to whoever she was looking at, "Jasper told me what you'd like."

I grabbed the plate, which included scrambled eggs, eggs benedict, a few slices of bacon, and fresh cut fruit, and took a hold of my mug of coffee before shuffling to the couch and plopping down in front of the TV. Some black and white film was on, and all the men were watching it intently. "What are we watching, guys?" I asked, but Emmett just shooshed me. "This is my favorite part!" Carlisle let out a chuckle and put his hand on Em's shoulder, "Just answer her, son. She'll just nag if you don't." He gave me a small wink and Emmett turned to me, "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. The 1941 version. The older version is just dumb."

Rosalie walked in silently, putting her hands on his shoulders, "I quite like the one from '31." I took a bite of one of my strips of bacon and spoke up, "neither are that similar to the novel, which was by far the best story telling experience." They all stared at me, blinking, "What? Am I wrong?" Peter cleared his throat, "Absolutely not. You're completely right… I think we're just surprised you're so… Cultured in the older cinema area." Jasper snorted and moved from his original seat to sit beside me, "Yeah right, I knew she'd like these types of things." Edward just laughed, "You were just as shocked as all of us, your thoughts aren't safe from me, Major."

The movie was good, still not as good as the novel, but I could definitely stand to watch it. When it ended, they asked me what I wanted to watch, and I thought for a moment, "Hmm… Do you have Ferris Bueller?" Carlisle nodded and put it in, and I realized I had ruined everyone's old movie marathon by requesting it, "Hey! It's practically an antique of a movie." Rosalie snarled playfully, "What, are you calling us old!?" I looked at her straight in the face and nodded, which got an eruption of laughter from everyone, including her.

Jasper had me pulled close the entire movie, and a few scenes proved nostalgic from the vampires in the room. When the credits rolled, Carlisle turned to all of us, "I'm sure Jasper will agree with me here- this movie is not to be played out in real life, like I know you have done in the past," he stared knowingly at Emmett now, who got a slap to the back of the head by Rosalie. He just laughed.

Charlotte and Alice accompanied Esme to the living area, where they suggested we get on with the day's activities. Everyone nodded in agreeance, and one by one they sprinted at full speed out of the back door into the woods. When it was just Jasper and me left, I turned to him, "I hope you realize I'm significantly slower than all of you. You'll have to wait up for me." Jasper smirked and leaned against the door frame, "Now I don't think any of us want to wait for you, darlin', which is why you'll be hitchin' a ride."

I was about to ask what he meant when I was suddenly floating in the forest, held on the back of Jasper. I grabbed around his neck for support and noted how much easier our bodies fit together than mine and Edward's. "You comfortable, doll?" He asked, catching up quickly to the others. "Mmhmm," I managed to get out, not talking for fear of bugs getting in my face. Jasper followed closely behind everyone else, who made a point not to stop and kill the various hikers and animals that surrounded us virtually everywhere.

I rode on Jasper's back for what seemed like an hour. It was probably about 15 minutes at the most, but I would have been perfectly fine with an hour, too. There was a clearing and we came to a halt, Carlisle pulling out various items from a bag he had carried on his back.

"No baseball, today, folks. Seems the weatherman got it wrong, it's a sunny day. That will not stop the fun, though! We're going to play a fun game instead." I climbed off of Jasper's back and stood next to him, lacing my fingers in his, curious. "Now, gentleman… And ladies, of course," Jasper started, "We're going to wreck a mountain." Emmett gasped, as if this was his dream come true, and Jasper clarified, "This is definitely not something we will do on the regular, Emmett. In fact, this is the first time- and last- we will be doing it. That mountain over there," he pointed to a foothill, "is giving the local and state PD a lot of hassle. No longer safe for climbing, it would be easy to get away with wrecking it up and passing it off as merely a landfall."

Everyone seemed excited, the girls obviously less so than the men. "I do need someone to stay back with Bella, of course." Alice and Rosalie happily volunteered, not caring much for the prospect of ruining a mountain. Jasper kissed me on the forehead and handed me my phone, which I had forgotten at home, "May not get much signal, but if you guys run into any trouble, give me a call."

-\-

Alice and Rosalie were great company, we talked about the history of the coven a bit more, and I learned that Carlisle had turned Rosalie after a rather horrific experience. Charlotte joined us but didn't delve much into Jasper. "Come on, Char. I'm sure there are plenty of Major stories." She gave a hearty laugh and looked to watch where she was walking, "Oh yes, there are. I would rather keep my life though, so I'll leave them up to Jasper to tell." Everyone got quiet for a while, Rosalie shifting from my right side to my left, and they made a point to stay on the right side of the meadow.

There was a rustling of the bushes and Alice looked to the right, gasping and stepping back. Rosalie pushed me behind her, "stay behind me, Bella." An authoritative voice, much like Jasper's. Something was happening. I tried to look over her shoulder, and finally saw what they were freaking out about.

Laurent, Victoria and James' partner in crime. He stepped out from the bushes, "I guess I've been ratted out, then." He chuckled. Charlotte gave a scowl, "Not hardly. We knew you were here. Who are you?" Alice placed a hand on her shoulder, and gave her a nod. She came back to me and grabbed my phone, punching in numbers, "Damnit, no signal. I'll be back." With that, Charlotte was running off toward the mountain that the men were destroying. "Why are you here, Laurent?" Rosalie hissed, now in a protective stance in front of me.

He shrugged, "Now you know how it goes. Separating mates is illegal. Perhaps I should tell the Volturi all about your killing of James." Alice spat at him, "That law doesn't apply if another mate was at risk. You know it." Laurent crossed his arms, looking at me directly, "If I understand correctly, the girl wasn't mated to Edward. She seems to have a different mate now." Now was my turn to speak up, "He was still in the coven, and if my memory serves me correctly, Jasper was the one who ripped your coven mate to shreds after he bit me." Laurent's cold stare pierced any sense of security I had, and he stepped forward. We stepped back.

He held up his hands, "Now now, I'm not here to alarm. Merely to get an eye for an eye. Tooth for tooth," he stared at me with more evil behind it now, "mate for mate. I'll make it quick and easy." I don't remember all of the small fight that ensued, but clearly remember him lunging at me, the girls attacking, and him sensing something and running off. Everyone else rushed to our sides, and Carlisle was the first to notice a trickle of blood down my arm. "Bella, are you okay?" He asked, rushing toward me. I looked down and saw it too. "Shit. It's just a small cut, I think I'm fine." Carlisle pulled out a gauze pad and bandage from his pocket, "Good thing I came prepared. After all, it's you we're talking about."

Peter and Charlotte quickly followed after Laurent, and I hoped they managed to find him. Jasper was at my side the next instant, holding my hand as I was being bandaged. Emmett was examining Rosalie and Esme was looking after Alice. Edward followed Peter and Charlotte, and I was glad everyone was accounted for.

"We better get back to the house and figure this out, Jasper," Carlisle said, having a look of serious concern on his face, "We're very exposed out here… I don't quite trust the environment, especially with Laurent's return." Jasper nodded in agreement, and scooped me up. I felt woozy. Even after having seen my own blood hundreds of times, I never had gotten used to the sickly metallic smell that accompanied it.

We were back at the house in what seemed like two minutes, the stress around the situation making its way to me. Jasper sat me down inside, and was followed by every vampire that hadn't gone after Laurent. I felt a lot less stressed when we crossed the threshold, though Jasper seemed a lot more affected now, pacing the room. He and Carlisle were talking in hushed tones, looking at me every few seconds. Rosalie sat next to me, "First- second, sorry, fight for your life." She moved a lock of my hair behind my ear, "You'll get used to it." She sighed and placed her hand on mine. Alice and Esme had moved over to talk to the men.

"I feel left out, Rose," I laughed, quite inappropriate for the time, "What are they saying?" She listened for a moment and then told me, "They're talking about the nature of the attack today, and Laurent's potential to come back. They don't think he'll strike soon, but he'll be back, no doubt." I looked down, "Are you scared, Rose?" She gave me a half smile, and nodded, "I'm afraid that you'll be hurt. You'll be hurt too bad and our efforts will fail to save you. I'm afraid mostly that you'll have to be turned in a situation a lot similar to mine. A man over you, hurting you, left for dead and a saving grace swoops in." She looked down, frowning, "It's not even really that I don't want you to become one of us. I'm just afraid of the circumstances that will surround your turn. It's not fun."

I had fallen asleep when the others returned, and awoke to their talking. It was close enough for me to hear now. "We didn't catch him. He ran east and we lost him in the bay." Peter looked over and saw me watching them, "She's awake now." Jasper moved over to me, holding out a hand, "Let's go to our room," he said, "We'll talk in there."

Foot Note: How did y'all like that? Now we're moving a bit into uncharted territory cannon-wise. I don't want to deviate too far from the original characters but also want to make them my own. What did you guys think of Rosalie's heart to heart with Bella? What do you think Jasper wants to talk to Bella about?