Turning Tables (Paul LaHote)

Sixteen

Jazmine sat in the idling truck while Jacob helped Billy into it. She was dropping them to the airport so they could go visit Becky for a week.

Jazmine wasn't able to go for obvious reasons but she made her dad go because it might be a while before they get a chance to see her again.

Jacob wasn't happy but Billy couldn't go on his own so he had no choice. He was still angry with Jazmine because it had been two weeks and Paul still refused to come around.

They had just entered June and Sam was getting antsy that Paul hadn't phased yet. He didn't want him going off to California so he was under pressure.

The airport was steadily busy and Jazmine got the luggage while Jacob helped their dad from the truck. When they go into the airport Jazmine walked them as far as customs before handing Billy both passports and tickets.

"Becky will meet you on the other side. Make sure you let them know in time about the chair so there isn't a panic to board you before anyone else." Jazmine warned and Billy laughed.

"We'll be fine, see you later Jaz." Billy shook his head and she sighed but kissed his forehead. She looked to Jacob but he was stubbornly ignoring her so she rolled her eyes.

"I love you both, be careful." She warned before leaving.

The house felt empty without her Dad and Jake at home so Jazmine kept the radio playing. By the time her patrol came around that evening the house was spotless. She had an inability to sit still when she was alone.

Patrol was a welcome break and when she took over for Sam he offered for her to spend the week at his so she wouldn't be lonely but Jazmine figured she'd have to move out sometime soon which meant she'd need to get used to it.

She ran patrol with relative ease and noticed that everyone else had begun using the detour that ran by Paul's house. She paused in the trees and looked to where his room was.

His light was on and he was pacing his room, a habit he had when he was over thinking things. He ran his hands through his hair and from what Jazmine could see he had filled out.

It wouldn't be long.

She didn't know if she was happy or sad about that fact. Ever since the incident, she had tried to think rationally but it was hard to that with an imprint in the way.

Jazmine loved Paul. He was the only thing tying her to the Earth. It was hard to not be biased when he was your sole reason for breathing.

"Baby, I'm heading into Forks, you need anything?" Joy, Paul's mother called loudly. He shook his head and then smiled to himself when he realised she couldn't see.

Jazmine was happy with the smile and took off running her patrol again. She thought about random things, her family. Rachel was working this Summer so she didn't come home much.

Rebecca and Jazmine were still a little cool towards one another but they were trying to move past that. She had no doubt Jacob would go over to Hawaii and make that situation worse.

Jazmine wasn't going to worry about things like that anymore. The more she bottled things up the more her anger got on top of her and she really couldn't afford that.

Her thoughts were beginning to head towards the other kids who might phase when the sound of metal bending caught her attention. She changed direction and began running only to find Joy's car bent around a tree and a dog running away.

Jazmine phased and pulled on her clothes quickly before running towards where Joy was. She froze at the sight, her heart pounding in her ears. She didn't think she was strong enough.