The Desires of The Heart

~1863~

The Civil War wages on throughout the small country, pitting brothers against each other, death becoming a daily occurrence in even the smallest of towns, but yet, love manages to find a stronghold.  

In a small town in Texas, two betrothed have found their time together is growing short, but the universe will always find a way to bring together what is always meant to be.

The young, eighteen year old solider, smooths down his new uniform in nervousness, knowing that this will be the hardest thing he's ever had to do. As much as he secretly wanted to fight on the front lines for what was right, he knew she would worry, and that breaks his heart the most.

His Scarlette is his everything. Nothing could come close to how she made him feel. He wishes they could've married before he left, but that just gives him more reason to come back home to her.

Walking the short distance to her estate, he tries to think of the best way to tell her, in hopes she won't worry for him-too much anyways. He stops and grabs her a small bouquet of lilies, her favorite, hoping this last gesture will last while he's away.

With a last fix of the gray lapels of his suit, he rings the bell of the grand white house, and waits for Thomas, the doorman, to let him in.

"Mr. Whitlock, Sir." Thomas opens the door with a slight nod in his direction making the soldier smile around his nervousness and enters.

"Hello Thomas. I apologize my visit is unannounced, but I need to speak with Miss Harris rather urgently." Jasper begins to look around the foyer, but knowing his love, she'll be in the garden on a day like this.

"Of course Sir. The Lady is in the garden." He smiles sending the young man on his way, but it falters once he realizes where he recognized his uniform from.

"Little Lottie thought of everything and nothing,
Like a butterfly she flew about in the gold of the sun.
In her bronzen curls she wore the crown of spring,
And her gaze was like the heavens, so bright blue and clear."

With a smile, Jasper recites the poem he wrote for her, the day he asked for her hand, and watches as she turns in excitement, those blue-green eyes lighting up like the summer sky.

"Mr. Whitlock! What a pleasant surprise!"

His Scarlette, jumps from her seat making him chuckle as he watches her try and be proper for the sake of things, but her excitement wins and she embraces him.

"I've missed you Jasper." She whispers to him, smiling until he pulls away placing a hand on his heart.

"What would your mother say if she heard you using my Christian name?" He gasps in pretend shock before smiling, as she laughs and rolls her eyes.

"Well its a good thing my mother isn't here." They smile and he grabs her free hand, placing a kiss on the back of it, presenting the flowers.

"For you, my Love." She takes the flowers, delicately raising them to her nose to inhale the sweet aroma.

"They're beautiful. Thank you." They sit back on the stone bench, surrounded by an array of colors and smells and simply enjoy this moment.

"What's going on Jasper?" She says quietly, knowing there must be a reason for his visit. He sighs, his shoulders suddenly slumped by the weight of what he must do.

"I...I signed up for the war..." He doesn't look to the beautiful woman at his side, but he can feel her emotions running rampant.

"Jasper."

She whispers sadly, and his heart breaks all the more. He steals a glance, to already see her watching him, tears welling in her beautiful eyes.

"I know, I said I wouldn't, but I've been thinking a lot about the future. About us." He gently grabs her hand, smiling slightly at her in hopes she'll understand.

"And I want us to live happy. To have a nice house, and–and if I do well with the Army, they pay nicely. We wouldn't have to want for anythin'."

She knew he was upset by how prominent his accent would get, but she didn't think they needed more than each other. She had everything she ever needed in Jasper. She didn't need all the fancy dresses and estates that she grew up with. She looked forward to a simple life with Jasper. One full of love.

"We don't need money. Having you by my side is all I'll ever need." She trails off to a painfully silent lapse, and she drops her head, knowing her betrothed has made up his mind.

"You will come back to me, won't you?" She asks grasping his hand in her two smaller ones.

"I wouldn't think of anything else." He proclaims with his famous half-smile making her heart melt, and going against the rules, they steal a kiss.

But her Jasper never came back to her. Too afraid to show her what he had become, and afraid Maria would hurt her in a jealous rage. Jasper was prepared to spend eternity alone, but his heart would never heal, knowing he would never see his true love again.

~1948~

That is until he meets a beautiful stranger in 1948, in a diner in Philadelphia. Jasper sits alone at the bar, pretending to nurse a cup of coffee, when the bell chimes and a lithe figure sits on the stool next to him.

"Hello, I'm Alice."

She chimes sweetly, extending a hand which he attempts to ignore, looking at her briefly before staring back into the java obis.

"Jasper, Right?" At her question, his head snaps to her, wondering how she knows his name.

"I'm sorry, do I know you?" With a slight glare, and a twang in his voice, the little pixie-like girl realizes this is the man she's been seeing.

"Not yet, but I'm like you, and so I've seen this encounter for a while now." She smiles slightly, and he just looks at her like she's crazy. Maybe she is, he doesn't need to sit here and listen—

"What if I told you, you would see her again?"

This simple phrase stops him in this tracks, part of his mind immediately thinks of Scarlette, but he knows that isn't possible....but it's still enough to gain his attention.

"Then I'd say you were crazy. She's been dead for years now."

He says angrily, mumbling the last part, his ancient heart breaking again at the revelation that he never got to see his true love again. Alice gently places a hand on his forearm, and with a sad smile, she reveals to him the reason for this meeting.

"Come with me to Forks, Washington. There's other people, like us, who can help you. And the story with your soul mate isn't over, this place will hold many surprises for you."

*Hello! 8/25/18 I'm going to be rewriting this in 1st person, because I'm getting too mixed up with 3rd! So be prepared for notifications! Thanks for sticking with me! You're all amazing!!