empathy

FORTY-THREE

Sitting with Antonina in Jasper's room on the sofa that seems to be rather old. But they don't mind, they're playing memory while Jasper is sitting on the lean next to Anastasia, reading a book. 

He played with them earlier but the sisters cut him out after he won three times in a row without even trying. They were rather sick of it. 

"They're here," Jasper speaks up eventually, closing the book. Looking over Anastasia's shoulder, he gives them a small squeeze. "You gonna be alright?" she asks him while finishing the game with her little sister, who won easily. 

Whatever it is with kids and memory, they kind of always win. It's like they can look through the cards. 

"I got you," Jasper retorts, holding his hand out for her. "We'll be right back. Are you alright on your own for a few minutes?" Anastasia turns to her sister, her fingers intertwining with his. He presses a kiss to the back of her hand as they make their way downstairs.

Jasper stops at the bottom, pulls her against his chest and kisses the back of her head. 

"You're not wearing perfume, are you?" he observes, too low for the human to hear. "Hm, I forgot," she hums, her fingers tracing over his hand that's laying on her stomach. 

"Hello, Bella," Jasper speaks up after a slight glare from Edward. Not that he minds, he honestly just wants to get this over with. "Hello, Jasper," Isabella replies and Anastasia raises a brow at the shy smile. 

"Anastasia," Edward turns to look at her. "Mind-rapist," she gives him a flat look. Bella scowls at that but is ignored by most.

Tilting her head, Anastasia grins at Edward, her mind wanders to the last make-out session she had with Jasper. The one in the parking lot. And really, his reaction, his expression, is making the memory much more pleasant. 

Feeling Jasper's hold tighten around her, his nose burying itself deeper into her hair, Anastasia turns to look at him as best as she can. 

"If you'll excuse us, we got better things to do," she tells them. "Oh, we're taking Antonina with us. You don't mind picking her up once she's gone, do you?" she turns to look at Rosalie, her eyes swaying to Isabella when she mentions her. "Of course. See you later," Rose sends her a barely noticeable smile while Emmett straight out grins a toothy smile at her. 

He's glad they're getting along. Kind of. 

"Come on, let's go," Anastasia slips her hand into his and leads him upstairs, stopping when he tenses up the closer they get to his room. "Maybe I should go ahead," he goes to make his way for another window. 

"Jazz," she grabs his wrist before he can jump out. "You did great. You are doing great."

Watching him leave, she turns to his room and gets Antonina. She's rather glad Edward and Bella have gone off to somewhere she doesn't really care about. Brushing past Jasper's truck, she sees the keys he left on its hood and quickly buckles her sister up. They don't have a seat for her, so she just puts her in the front. She'll drive carefully. 

Jasper isn't there yet when they arrive and Anastasia takes a wild guess in saying he's out hunting. 

So, busying her sister and herself, the two of them cook lunch together. Something the two of them have missed deeply. They missed each other. 

"Hey, sorry for running off," Jasper appears at the door when they are already eating. "It's alright. Are you feeling better?" Anastasia looks up at him. "You want Lasagna. Ana makes the best," Antonina offers, some food falling from her mouth when she offers her plate with a smile.

"Peanut, table manners," Anastasia scolds her. 

"I'm good, I actually just ate. But thank you, that was very kind of you to offer me some," Jasper tells Antonina. He feels much better being around her now that he did indeed go hunting. 

Sitting down next to Anastasia, she looks at him, still waiting for an answer, and he sends her a reassuring smile.

"Can we do nap time now?" Antonina eventually asks after finishing her plate. "I'll be right with you. Your room or mine?" Anastasia agrees. "Yours."

Putting the dishes in the sink, Anastasia follows after her sister and tugs her in. She breathes a kiss on her forehead and just watches for a moment until she has fallen asleep. 

Joining Jasper back in the kitchen, she leans against the table, her arms crossed as she watches him clean up the dishes. 

"Jasper," she grabs his attention and he dries his hands before making his way over to her. "You did good," she tells him. It isn't hard to figure out what is going on inside of him. Not for her, at least.  "I nearly lost control," he argues.

"You're empathetic. You don't only deal with your own thirst but that of your family. And from what I gathered, Bella is to Edward what human flesh is to Hannibal. What killing Harry is for Voldemort, I don't know. The point is, this would not have been on you. And you did manage to control yourself, you didn't hurt anyone," Anastasia reaches up, her hands holding his face and her thumbs rubbing alongside his cheekbones. 

Jasper sighs, still not fully convinced but convinced enough to let it go. 

"You're too good for me, darling." "I know."