Strings || Jasper Hale

When It's Just Us

By mid November, Creed was exclusively eating lunch with the Cullens, which was more terrifying than anything. He wasn't sure yet if they liked him because they could, or they were pretending to for Jasper and Alice's sake. Even so, he didn't ask. It was a question he would rather not find the answer to, if at all possible.

     Nick had been in contact, talking about work, of all things. He ended up being forced to pass the phone to Tom, who annoyed him by speaking French, but all the same, it was worth it. And then, he got a text from Bella, just before leaving for school that Wednesday morning.

     It was odd, because they never talked much. When they were at home, they avoided each other at every cost, which was much easier when the house was large, and they had their own en suites. Bella had insisted; Creed hadn't cared so much. It was a bathroom.

Bella, 07:37
I'm moving to Forks in
January

Creed, 7:37
What???
Why???

Bella, 7:38
Mum & Phil are moving for
baseball
Told her to go to Florida

     In all honesty, Creed couldn't have cared less about his mother moving. It wasn't as if he loved the house in Phoenix with all of his heart. Of course, growing up there gave him a certain sense of nostalgia, but it was nothing in comparison to the love he had for Forks. And now, that would be ruined too.

     How dare she just decide to move in?

     For once in his life, Creed was moving into a comfortable place. He had friends who cared about him, his grades were climbing steadily, and he was sleeping like a baby. Moving away had done him the world of good, but Bella's appearance would only disintegrate his progress.

It was already hard to be the youngest of four, but this was just some horrid joke. There was very little left for him in life. Nick and Tom both had success in their fields, and Bella was the daughter their mother had always wanted. As the unwanted and unplanned child, Creed knew his place in the family.

He couldn't have been gladder it was a Saturday, because Creed didn't know how he would have coped in school if he'd received that message. Though, one quick text to Jasper, and the boy was already driving himself over. Charlie wasn't home. He'd gone fishing with Harry Clearwater for the last time before the crisp winter air froze over the lake.

     For the first period in his life, Creed didn't want to be alone. He didn't want his hardest moments to be spent by himself, and that was a conscious decision. He knew these things, more than he had ever known them. This time, climbing the stairs into his room was much less of a challenge, and Jasper followed him up swiftly.

They sat side by side on his bed; there was little shyness between them anymore. It was refreshing. As they sat together, Creed found himself taking Jasper's hand, absently. His cool skin was relaxing, but then again, everything about him was. When he played with the blonde's fingers, he let his mind stop for a minute.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Jasper mumbled; when his voice was low, it often slipped into the southern twang. It itches a place in Creed's brain he didn't even know existed.

"It's Bella." He grumbled, resting his head back, against Jasper's shoulder, looking up. "She's moving to Forks."

"And... you don't like her?"