Dangerous - Jasper Hale

CHAPTER THREE

CHAPTER THREE
The boy stood still in the doorframe, staring between the girl and his family. He then smiled, although the expression was fake and it was obvious that he was uncomfortable.

"Hello."

Is that all? Alex felt slightly surprised that he spoke at all, but she'd at least hoped for some kind of introduction.

"Jasper, this is Alex. She's working on a project with Emmett in history." Alice sounded so bubbly and happy; Alex could safely say she had no idea where she got all the energy from since she herself was only weighed down by the awkward tension. The redhead lifted her hand and did a small wave, deciding to go with the most awkward introduction she could think of. Yeah, great move, she thought to herself. She could hear Edward chuckle from his place behind her, she instantly started to curse in her head for acting strangely. What she didn't know was that Edward caught every single one of her thoughts, making the laughter even harder to contain.

Alex was then pulled into a discussion with Rosalie, Jasper was not really paying attention to what exactly they were discussing. He just focused on the emotions radiating out from the girl. He was confused at first, as he felt a wave of sadness hit him, lowering his own mood that the successful hunt had managed to bring up just a few minutes ago. Then came the emptiness, weighing him down even more. The most confusing part though, was when the affection hit him. He could feel that she was already sharing bonds with his family, even after just knowing them for a day. The girl was a mystery for the empath. How could a girl who felt so much sadness sit there and smile, looking like everything was just fine towards the outside world?

His reading was interrupted when a voice called his name. "Jasper, stop creeping now please," Rosalie said, smirking at her brother. She was very well aware of the fact that he was reading their guest, but Alex didn't, so she decided to tease him just enough to get a rize out of him. He just sent a glare in her direction, feeling slightly embarrassed.

"So, Jasper. Can you help me and Dexter over here out? We're writing about the civil war, and we need to be done pronto." Emmett said, starting to play with the ends of Alex's hair as he called her by her new nickname. Alex looked at Emmett with a raised eyebrow, before deciding to go with it. Jasper had heard his brother call her that out by the jeep the same day, he assumed that the girl had grown to like the nickname by now.

"What he means is, could you exchange Emmett as group partner, since the only thing he has really accomplished so far is to drive us from school and to here." Her voice surprised him, in a positive way. It was slightly hoarse, with a beautiful ring to it. Jasper soon realized that his thoughts weren't safe in the room when he got a knowing look from Edward. He didn't really mind in all honesty, but he knew that everything could be used against him in the end. That's why he focused his mind on a white brick wall, making Edward realize that it was no use. He was not going to be let in again. He then remembered that the girl had asked him a question and was expectantly waiting for his answer and had been for a little bit too long, creating an awkward silence as the Hale boy was staring at Edward.

"Well, why not. The civil was interesting." 

She smiled in the direction of Jasper. "Thanks, Woodhead over here doesn't really contribute much." Alex could see the blonde boy gulp, before stiffly nodding his head in her direction. Emmett "lightly" slapped her shoulder, which actually hurt her quite a bit, but she didn't say anything. She was fragile and easily got bruises from the smallest impact, but she didn't want Emmett to know that. He seemed like the guy that would tease her about it, which she did not want at all.

"At least I'm funny and nice to look at," Emmett said, grinning at her. 

She shrugged her shoulders, looking at him with half a smile. "Keep telling yourself that."

"Well, I was planning on going hunting with Rose, Alice and Edward tonight, so I guess we'll head out now, seeing as I've been replaced as partner," Emmett said while smirking in the direction of Alex, who sighed. She didn't really feel comfortable with Jasper, who still seemed extremely stiff around her - she couldn't tell if the vibes he gave her was the "I'm going to kill you slowly"-kind, or the "I want you out of my sight"-kind, and it made her uncomfortable. Then she decided to not be so judgemental, seeing as he was probably just nervous - the Cullens rarely talked to people outside their own family, and he was probably trying as hard as he could. 

The family left the room after bidding her goodbye, Emmett smirking in her direction before closing the door almost soundlessly.

"Let's get started with this project shall we?" Jasper looked at her deeply, before heading over to her and sitting down next to her on the couch. She scooted over a little bit to make room for the tall boy. She noted he sat at a moderate distance away from her, mostly looking in front of himself and avoiding her gaze. "Okay, so what do you know about the civil war?"