Collarbones || J.W.H.

Chapter Three

January 29th, 2005

Jasper had been extremely punctual of course. He had paced back and forth so many times that night he had practically worn lines into the floor. It was times like these that he really did miss sleeping. The promise of seeing Camila once the sun arose had the night dragging on much slower than he would've even thought possible. He wasn't exactly sure what they would be doing, but he knew it would be with her and that was all that mattered really. So, there he was standing on her doorstep, knocking his fist lightly on the front door of her home, not one second after the agreed time of 11am.

He of course knew before the door swung open, that it would be her that would answer his knock, having smelt the abnormal scent of her blood, but that didn't stop the fluttering in his stomach as she came into view. Like usual, it was as if his breath had been stollen from his lungs as he drunk in the sight of her. As if he needed that air to live. Her eyes flickered up from the toes of her warn out boots to meet his. She sent him a small, bashful smile. "You're very punctual." She teased.

Jasper's golden eyes seemed to glimmer as a smile broke out across his face. "Didn't want to keep you waiting, darlin'." He said. The word as usual, sent Camila's pulse quickening and she scolded her heart. He had called her that countless times, yet the word never failed to get a reaction out of her. She really needed to get a grip on herself, and she hoped that he was unaware of the effect that he had on her.

She shook the thoughts from her head, gesturing him inside of the small house. "Sorry, my mom wanted to meet you before I leave. She's a little protective if you could imagine." She said, letting out a light laugh.

Jasper sucked in a breath. "Yeah, of course." He said, smiling politely to the girl in front of him as he stepped through the threshold. Slight panic filled his chest as his eyes scanned the small living room directly in front of the entrance to the home. The room was mostly bare, save for a plush worn looking sofa, two arm chairs, and few boxes in the corner that had yet to be unpacked.

He wished Alice would have warned him of the girl's mother. He hadn't exactly been prepared to be in close proximity and direct conversation with a human today. Of course, he was spending the day with Camila, but the only thing that made that possible was the lack of hunger that followed the scent of her strange blood, and he knew, of course that the same would not hold true for the girl's mother.

Floorboards whined under his feet as he stepped into the tight space. He tried to focus on the steady beating of Camila's heart for comfort, but that didn't stop the rigidness of his shoulders as the fire in his throat lit ablaze with furry. There, on the sofa in front of him, sat a middle aged woman, an almost perfect reflection of her daughter. He steeled himself, swallowing the burn and mustering up his best manners. "Hello, Ma'am. I'm Jasper Hale. I'm here to pick up your daughter for the day." He said, flashing a bright smile at the woman.

She came to a stand, looking at him, seeming to almost size him up. Of course she would be protective of her only daughter. It was only natural for her to want to make sure that she would be in safe hands, especially given her sickness. It was expected, and really if he had been thinking straight, he would have realized that he would be meeting at least one of her parents and prepared himself.

Seeing his kind smile and hearing his polite greeting seemed to ease a bit of her stress as the tension in her shoulders loosened slightly. She returned his smile walking closer to him as she stuck her hand out for him to shake. "I'm Camila's mother, Michelle. It's a pleasure to meat you." She said.

Jasper's eyes flickered over to Camila quickly, and back to her mother. May as well lay it on thick, he figured. He stuck out his hand in front of him, gently taking the woman's warm palm into his own. He knew he could blame the cold weather on his chilled skin if questioned, so he leaned fully into his southern charm as he delicately shook the woman's hand, lingering longer than he would normally dare. "The pleasure is all mine, ma'am." He said.