Homecoming

○●○ Homecoming ○●○

"Stay close." Jasper whispered to me as we traveled down the long hallway. I nodded my head and huddled closer into Jasper's side.

"We're clear, just move quickly." Alice said in a serious tone, walking beside us.

Jasper nodded and we walked as quickly as possible down the long hallway. Alice sighed and glanced at me with a grim expression.

"Too late." She whispered.

As soon as the words left her mouth a tall women with mahogany hair turned the corner and into our view. Behind her was a line of human people; tourists by the looks of it. There were maybe thirty to forty, from children to the elderly. They were all of different ethnicities, and some where speaking foriegn languages. They all seemed at ease, except for a pair in the back, who where nervously exchanging words I couldn't understand. The tall woman leading them smiled at us and continued down her path. I was confused at first, but the realization hit like a train. Those innocent people were the Volturi's meal. I felt like I might faint or be sick, perhaps both.

"Move." Edward demanded in a growl, pushing Jasper forward. Which didn't exactly help matters.

"It's going to be okay, Bella." Jasper whisper, holding me closer than before. I looked up at him. How could he say that? Those people were about to be murdered.

"No." I whispered.

Jasper grimaced and nodded his head in agreement.

"There was nothing we could have done. It's just how the Volturi live." Alice said and gave me a small, sad smile. I grudgingly accepted that fact, although it didn't make it any easier to swallow. I continued on, like Alice said, there wasn't anything I could do.

That is until the screaming started.

I stopped dead in my tracks. I turned around, and for a moment contemplated going back for those people and... doing something. Anything to save them. Jasper cupped my face and turned it so we met gazes.

"We have to do something." I stated without meaning to.

"We can't." He responded. His eyebrows were furrowed and he had a frown on his face.

"We can't just leave them to die!"

"If we go back they'll kill us as well. We can't help them. I'm sorry." He whispered, sounding dejected. My emotions seemed to fade in intensity. Maybe Jasper was under to much strain to really help me with my emotions too much, but it was enough to get me moving out of the hallway again.

"Their fate was sealed as soon as they entered Volterra, Bella. Nobody could do anything except for the Volturi themselves." Alice added darkly as we walked.

We ended up back in the the reception area. I had a sudden resentment towards the woman standing behind the counter. She was part of the Volturi's killings. She wanted to be part of this. Jasper guided me over to one of the couches, my feet felt like jelly beneath me. He stood next to the couch, holding my hand. His eyes were locked on Edward, clearly on edge.

Edward met his gaze, "I can't attack you in here, we barely escaped as it is. Unlike you, I would never put Bella in danger." Edward scoffed.

"I've never put her in danger. I'm not the one who left her with Victoria." Jasper countered.

"That's rich, coming from the one who attacked her." Edward scoffed.

"That was an accident, you're the one who pushed her!"

"I was pushing her away from you! Not to mention, the first time I told you about her you wanted her destroyed!"

They were both yelling now.

"That's how I was raised! I changed my mind as soon as I met her!"

"That doesn't excuse the fact-"

"Stop!" I demanded. I couldn't take the yelling anymore. They both turned to look at me. Jasper took a step backward.

"Sorry." He whispered.

Edward sighed and went to sit on the couch across from us. As soon as he sat down he looked away. Jasper retook my hand, this time sitting down next to me. I glanced over at Alice, who had been unusually quiet, her eyes were glazed over and she was staring at nothing; looking at the future then.

"Good luck protecting her from crazed, leaderless newborns." Edward mumbled, a smirk coming across his features.

Jasper went rigid next to me. He was staring straight at Edward. I could feel his nervousness coming off him in waves.

"What?" He asked in a solemn tone.

"Oh, did I forget to mention that?" Edward asked, his smirk growing in size.

"What did you say?" Jasper repeated, more urgently this time.

Edward snickered, "The Volturi are going to go hunt down your ex-girlfriend, or whatever she was. Aro saw her in your memories. The only reason they left you alive at all, was because they wanted to stay in good terms with our family in hopes that me or Alice would join them."

Jasper's face was marred with terror, and he ran a hand through his hair. He stood up and began pacing the room like a caged tiger. He stopped and looked at Edward. "If you are lying to me Edward, I swear to god I will kill you." Jasper threatened.

Edward put both hands in the air, "I'm not lying." He promised.

Jasper inhaled a sharp breath and continued to pace. I tried for hours to get him to calm down, but my efforts were fruitless. Once the sun set we made our way back to the airport and booked the first flight back to Washington. My eyelids were growing heavy as the night went on, but I didn't dare sleep. I didn't want to leave Jasper alone.

We sat next to each other in the plane. Jasper was still nervously fidgeting. I had never seen a vampire fidget like Jasper did. He hated sitting still, especially when he was nervous, that much was clear. He was constantly scanning the plane, looking for threats I assumed. I took his hand in hope of calming him down. He looked down at it then back up to me. His expression softened when we locked eyes.

"Bella, you look tired." He observed.

I tried to smile at him without looking too sleepy, "I'm fine."

"You can sleep, I'll wake you up when we land." He promised. I hesitated for a moment. "I'll be right here." He assured me.

I was too tired to protest. I nodded my head and soon drifted into a light sleep. It wasn't long, or at least it didn't feel too long, before Jasper was gently shaking me awake.

"Bella, darling, we're landing." He whispered.

I blinked my eyes open, and smiled at the beautiful man sitting beside me. He smiled back, but there was still an anxious look in his deep, golden eyes. I noticed he had been holding my hand maybe this entire time.

We didn't say anything while the plane came back to the ground. I could feel his love wash over me, and I focused on my love for him hoping that he could feel it in return. We walked off the plane hand-in-hand. Surely Edward would have been mad, but I was too drowsy to really care. I leaned against Jasper as we exited the plane.

Everyone was rushing down the hallway into Sea-Tac airport, but I wasn't paying much attention to them. My thoughts were consumed by Jasper. I didn't like it when he was anxious.

We were walking towards the metal detector line when I spotted Carlisle and Esme. Esme expression changed to a smile as we got closer, and you could see a small one forming on Carlisle's lips. She quickly moved to wrap Edward in her arms.

"Thank God you're okay." I heard her whisper.

Edward didn't respond. I turned my attention to him, and the look he gave me reminded me of the night he saved me from those men during our first few weeks of meeting. It was hostile, and quite frankly terrifying.

Carlisle hadn't missed it, "What's going on?" He asked quietly.

"I'll explain later. Can we get her home? The jetlag's hit her hard." Jasper said softly.

Carlisle looked more confused now, but despite that he nodded his head.

I was startled awake when Esme hugged me tight. It took me a moment to process what had happened but I managed to hug her back.

"Thank you Bella. You've done more for us than you could ever know." She whispered.

"It.. was no problem." I responded awkwardly.

"Understatement of the century." Jasper mumbled, retaking my hand and pulling me close once again.

Esme hugged Alice, and Edward once more for good measure, then we were walking towards the parking garage. Rosalie and Emmett were standing by their Mercedes.

Esme spoke up, "Bella and Edward can go with Rosalie. I know she has some things she wants to say."

"I'm going with Bella." Jasper stated. His tone implied that he would not negotiate it.

"Jasper, it would be best-" Carlisle began to say but he was quickly cut off.

"I'm going with her." He stated again. He looked down at me, and tilted his head in what I perceived as him asking me if this is what I wanted. I nodded my head, which was slowly becoming heavier with fatigue.

We walked over to the black Mercedes. Everyone was watching us as Jasper opened my door and we both climbed in. I had always hated attention, and this was making me highly uncomfortable. I was glad that Jasper was next to me, otherwise I'm not sure what I would have done.

Rosalie and Emmett climbed in a little while after us. Rosalie started the car, the engine creating a quiet pur. We slowly made our way out of the garage and into the street.

"So what's going on? Did you really steal Eddy's girl, Jazz? That's kind of a dick move." Emmett chuckled, breaking the silence.

"Emmett." Rosalie chastened.

"Come on, Rose aren't you a little curious. I mean there is some serious shit going down."

Rosalie looked back at us using the rearview mirror, "I don't understand what you see in her... who am I to stop you. You're a stubborn ass through and through, so I'm not even going to try." She mumbled to Jasper.

Emmett scoffed. "Since when! Is this like a twin thing? What am I missing?" He asked.

Rosalie didn't answer, she continued driving. The car fell into silence. Jasper wrapped his arms around me and kissed my head. We sat that way for the rest of the way.

We pulled into the driveway of the Cullen's house in Forks. Me and Jasper made our way into his room.

"You can call your dad, or get some sleep. If you need me just call, I'll hear you." He promised handing me his phone.

"Where are you going?" I asked, trying not to sound too desperate for him to stay.

"I have a lot to explain." He said with a small shrug. He bit his bottom lip. "I could stay until you fall asleep." He offered.

I sighed in relief and nodded my head. He smiled slightly and climbed onto the bed, patting the spot next to him. I felt my face flush as I layed down next to him.

I knew that I should probably call Charlie, but I was frozen in place. I watched Jasper and he watched me. We didn't move for what could have been minutes or hours. I slowly moved my face closer to his. I inhaled his scent, which I couldn't quite place, it was just distinctly Jasper. His lips met mine softly. I liked this kiss much more than the one in Volterra.

The kiss slowly escalated. We seemed to be getting better at this the longer we did it. The kiss deepened and our hands began exploring each other's bodies. His tongue flickered over my lips. I parted them slightly giving him deeper access. I pulled him as close as I could by his hair, desperate for a closer connection. The kiss was long and passionate. I had limited experience in this area, so I was going purely on instinct at this point. I slipped my hands under his shirt and up his chest. The heat coming from my body was the complete opposite of his cool skin. The glimpse I caught of his chest was incredible, he was sculpted perfectly and I was suddenly very aware of my impurities.

I tried not to get into my own head so instead I continued. I was gasping for air as I tried to undo the button of his pants.

"Bella. Not tonight." Jasper whispered grabbing both of my hands.

My stomach dropped and I looked up at him. Did he not want this? Did he not like me in this way?

"I do want to, just not here, not tonight. Not with Edward around. I don't want any interruptions when we do that." He whispered.

I nodded my head in understanding, although I was very disappointed. He gave me a small peck and snuggled close to me.

"I love you." I whispered and shut my eyes. I tried to rid my mind of the more exciting activities and tried to sleep.

"I love you too." He whispered back.