𝗗𝗘𝗠𝗨𝗥𝗘 ━ JASPER HALE

chapter one

The silver gray mercedes s600 cruised down the road, traveling south. Oskar was sitting in the front passenger seat with so much soft leather around him that he could barely hear the 389 horsepower, 6-liter engine. At twenty five miles per hour the engine was only idling. but oskar could feel the power of the car. One hundred thousand pounds worth of german engineering. It was his uncle's favorite car. it also happened to be the same car he came to pick him up in.

He was there ready and waiting for Oskar the minute he stepped foot outside the airport. Oskar couldn't remember the last time he saw his uncle, but from what he could see it looked as if he didn't age a bit even though Oskar knew that wasn't the case. He was most likely in his thirties but looked as if he was in his twenties. Age was a weird thing, wasn't it?

Oskar glanced out the car window, watching as the world outside passed him in a blur of oranges, browns, and yellows. Those dull colors did nothing to stand out against the gloomy weather outside. When he first arrived in Forks, Washington - Oskar was expecting the warm rays of sunlight to fall upon his skin, but instead he got the complete opposite.

"So," his uncle began in an attempt to break the silence between the two. "What do you think?"

"I'll have to stay a bit longer before answering that question. Does it always look like it's going to rain?"

"Pretty much. The town's surrounded by the olympic rainforest which is considered to be an oceanic climate, but it's also the temperature rainforest climate which is what brings the high levels of rainfall that the town experiences. Even during the summer when the city experiences a drying trend, the rainfall is still abundant. Forks usually has an average of two hundred and twelve days of the year with a measurable amount of precipitation - most of which being rain."

Oskar hummed. as the car came to a slow stop, he caught sight of the house. It was identical to it's neighbours right down to the shade of paint on the iron balconies, but Oskar knew which one was his uncle's right away. It was box-shaped with it's front door dead center, four small windows near each corner and constructed of the same red brick. A path made out of leftover bricks made a shallow s-shape between the gate and the front door.

As his uncle put the car in park, Oskar unbuckled his seatbelt and opened the passenger side of the door. He slid out of the car and closed the door behind him; his uncle following his lead. The raven haired male gave him an awkward smile as he held his duffel bag of clothes in his right hand. Oskar strechted out a hand to grasp the straps, but his uncle maneuvered the bag out of reach.

"You go ahead and go inside, I'll carry your bag for you," he offered.

"I prefer to carry my own things but thanks," Oskar replied, taking the bag from his uncle.

The older man held up his hands then made his way towards the house. He dug into the pocket of his jeans and pulled out his house keys - unlocking the front door which allowed both men to shuffle inside. Oskar closed the door and locked it before removing his shoes, not wanting to dirty the clean floors.

"Let me show you around."

Oskar trailed behind his father's brother, mentally making a map within his head as the man gave him a brief tour of his cozy home. They then made their way up a flight of stairs - locating an empty room down the hall to their left.

"Ths is where you'll be staying," the man scratched the back of his neck. "I know it isn't much. I figured you'd want to decorate the room to your liking so i left the walls and work desk bare."

Oskar stood in the middle of the room, taking it all in. It's been awhile since he's been in a bedroom. Oskar has spent most of his time in hospitals and rehab facilities. So the thought of him having his own room - his own bed, his own space in general was a lot to wrap his head around. It was going to take some getting use to that's for sure.

He was so use to hearing the same old crap about the state of his mental health and ways to fix it, but all he heard in this room was silence. The feeling of loneliness slow washed away his excitment that he previously had. The realization of him having no one but his uncle finally registered inside his head. At least at the rehab facilities, he was able to connect with people who were in the same situation as him - mentally speaking that is.

Sure he had his parents, but they weren't together anymore. that didn't prevent them from agreeing to send him away. Claiming that it would be best for him to get away from the city for a while.

However, Oskar knew that wasn't the case. He wasn't stupid nor was he blind. He could see it clear as day - the real reason why his parents sent him to live with his uncle instead. They were both too busy to properly take care of him. Even when they were together, the two who brought him into this world barely spent time with him during his childhood.

Always hiring a nanny to watch over him, to take him out or spend time with him instead of his own two parents. And on top of having to experience the two getting a divorce - they still hadn't come to terms with who gets custody over him. Oskar didn't think any of this was fair. Did anyone care to hear what he had to say about this? How he felt?

"Sorry about the bed covers," his uncle continued. "Dark blue is the only color I had but if you want to change them out for a different color then we can head over to the store-"

Oskar turned to face the man who was now taking care of him and shook his head, offering a small smile of reassurance.

"That's okay uncle Giovanni, I like the covers. thank you."

A dissenting frown fell upon the other's face. "From now on just call me Giovanni. The whole uncle thing makes me sound old."

"And here I thought you didn't look a day over forty five," Oskar joked.

"You've grown into a cheeky little brat since the last time I saw you," Giovanni announced with a small chuckle. "I'll let you get settled. If you need anything - anything at all just let know."

"Thanks."

As he left Oskar to his own devices, the teenager couldn't help but notice how his uncle felt like a second father to him. Growing up, he spent most of his childhood with him. The bond he shared with his uncle could not be so easily severed. For Giovanni was - and has always been Oskar's protector.

━━━━━━━━━━

Note; I decided to rewrite the
whole book. I really wasn't
satisfied with the direction it
was going so I'm hoping
you like this new version.