Evelyn stood across the street from her childhood home, the heat from the flames radiating onto her skin in waves. Beads of sweat were already starting to drip from her temples to her chin.

"Mom! Dad! I'm coming!" She shrieked, breaking into a run towards the front door. The sounds of the wood crackling and the roaring fire were deafening, but even above that she could hear the heartbreaking wails of her mother and father who were trapped in their bedroom. Her heartrate quickened along with her legs as she pushed her body harder.

But as she ran, the house seemed to be moving further and further away from her; the faster she ran, the faster her home retreated. She started crying as she realized that she would never make it in time, but still, she kept on running. Please! I have to save them!

"Evelyn, stop."

Instantly recognizing his voice, she did as he said, and slowly turned around. Jasper stood a few feet behind her, but he looked... different. He was not the kind-hearted man she had come to love. This man resembled an emotionless statue, his arms crossed over his chest and his face frozen in a frown. The multitude of scars along his body seemed to glow menacingly in the firelight as if they were burning, too. She took a hesitant step towards him, but when she saw his eyes she faltered; they were black and cold, not a trace of sympathy in sight.

Still, she knew she needed him. "Jasper, please, I have to save them. You have to help me!" She pleaded, but all he did was shake his head.

"You have to let go, Evelyn. It's time."

She was starting to panic now. Here he stood, unconcerned, while her parents were dying in a house that was impossible to reach. "Let go? I can't! Jasper, they're my parents!"

He shook his head again, his black eyes flickering from the flames behind her. "I'm not talking about them."

It took her a moment to fully grasp what he was saying, but when she did, she instantly felt deathly cold. She turned, and the burning house was no longer behind her. All that was left was a dark, empty road that seemed to stretch on for eternity. When she whirled back around to face Jasper, he was walking away from her towards the dark forest beyond.

Again, she began to run. "Jasper, don't go! Please don't leave!" She screamed, fresh tears streaming down her cheeks. "Please, I love you!"

He didn't stop or look back. The trees seemed to reach out towards him, the branches like crooked fingers pulling him into the tree line. In seconds, the forest had swallowed him up completely. Evelyn ran harder, ignoring the sharp claws of twigs cutting her face as she flew through the trees. Somehow, she knew he was gone, but still she pressed farther into the forest.

"Jasper, wait! Don't do this!" She yelled, but by the echo around her she knew that there was no one to hear her. When she finally reached a clearing, she was met with complete silence. There was no wind, no sounds of wildlife, nothing. The air around her seemed to be caving in on her, suffocating her lungs and crushing her skull. Evelyn shut her eyes tightly, her hands gripping her head as she fell to her knees.

"Please don't leave me," she begged, but in her heart she knew that she was completely alone.

Just when she thought she couldn't take it anymore, everything vanished. She felt as if she was floating in nothingness; there was no pain, no worries, no suffering. She wished that she could just stay there for the rest of eternity.

Evelyn blinked, and she felt the ghost of soft fingertips running through her hair. Though she didn't see her, she knew that it was her mother.

"Let go, my darling," her mother whispered.

"Let go."

***

Evelyn's eyes flashed open, her heart pounding from the odd dream. Everything had felt so real; even now, her face still felt warm from the flames in her mind. Or perhaps it was a fever? She didn't know for sure.

The room she was in was dark, with all of the curtains drawn and the lights off. The soft hum of an AC unit under the window was the only sound in the room. She glanced down at her legs. She recognized the bedding as the same set from the hotel that she had been in a few days before — or had it been days? Weeks? It was impossible to know, and she had no idea how long she had been asleep. And maybe she hadn't even been asleep at all... maybe she had died that night at the ballet studio, and this is where she had ended up. Why would I be in a hotel if I was dead?

Evelyn rolled onto her back and attempted to push herself up into a sitting position with her arms. However, as soon as she tried to move her left arm she realized that her upper arm, where James had broken the bone, had been wrapped in gauze and a metal brace, and was now resting in a sling across her body. There was also an IV pole situated on the right side of the bed, and she noticed the catheter taped onto her hand. The memories came flooding back to her, and she groaned when her head started throbbing in pain from the multiple collisions with the floor.

"You're awake," a soft voice observed from the other side of the room. Evelyn turned her head to see Rosalie gracefully unfolding herself from an armchair in the corner of the room. The human girl tried to sit up, but the pain still radiating through her head and body made it exceptionally difficult.

Rosalie was next to her immediately, her cold arms wrapping around her shoulder and injured arm expertly. "Let me help you," she said, gently lifting Evelyn up with one arm while adjusting the pillows with the other. "You're still very weak."

Evelyn watched the blonde vampire in silent incredulousness. Why was Rosalie being so nice to her? She had made it perfectly clear that she did not want anything to do with her before they had come to Phoenix.

When Rosalie seemed satisfied that Evelyn was comfortably situated and stable, she retreated to the foot of the bed and sat down. She offered her a tight smile. "You must have a lot of questions."

"What happened after you showed up? I don't remember anything after..." She trailed off, her fingers absentmindedly going towards her right shoulder, where there was multiple layers of gauze under her t-shirt. Her eyes widened again, suddenly realizing that she was still alive after James had bitten her. "Am I still--"

"Yes, you're still perfectly human," Rosalie laughed, the sound like music coming from her mouth. "I was able to remove the venom from your bloodstream quick enough so that you didn't lose very much. You blacked out from the pain of the bite rather than blood loss."

Evelyn studied her face, still shocked and a little suspicious. "Why would you save me? You said  yourself that I meant nothing to you."

Rosalie averted her eyes to the covered window, a little annoyed that the girl would want to have such a conversation immediately after waking up. Her tone was sharper than necessary when she spoke. "I meant what I said that day, Evelyn. You don't. At least, you didn't." She met Evelyn's gaze then, a soft smile on her face. "But Jasper is my brother, and he loves you, and I knew I could never forgive myself if I had done nothing and just let you die."

"But how did you even get to Phoenix? I thought only Edward and Jasper were coming?"

"It was only supposed to be Edward, Jasper, and Carlisle. Esme and I were going to stay behind to watch over Charlie and your aunt, but I was feeling angry and useless. I was worried about Emmett, and Esme knew, so she told me to come. I took the next flight out of Seattle to follow the others."

Evelyn swallowed hard, remembering that Jasper had not been able to come in and save her because of her blood. "Where is he?"

Rosalie averted her eyes again, shifting uncomfortably. "He and Alice went back to Forks. They're smoothing over the story with your families."

Evelyn did her best to keep her face straight, but she knew that the hurt she was feeling right now must be clear on her face. He didn't even bother to stay until she woke up. She knew that he probably blamed himself for what happened, and he was probably also upset about not being able to do anything to help her, but his absence still made her chest ache. All she wanted right now was for him to be here with her, holding her close and telling her that everything was going to be okay.

She shook her head once, deciding that she would worry about him when they got home. "And what story is that?" She asked, wanted to be prepared for when Marie would unavoidably ask questions.

"Bella fell down the stairs and through a window in the hotel. You were walking down the stairs in front of her, and she knocked you to the side as she fell. You landed on your arm, hence the brace, and she broke her leg from hitting the ground. Alice had way too much fun creating the evidence." Rosalie chuckled to herself as if she was remembering a private joke.

"So she's alive? Bella is okay, too?"

Rosalie nodded, frowning slightly at the mention of Bella. "Yes, she's fine, but she she was in a lot worse shape than you. Carlisle took her to the hospital since she lost so much blood. He and Edward are there with her now."

Relieved, Evelyn nodded, thankful that everyone she loved had survived. However, she was still slightly confused on the events from that night. "Rosalie, Alice said something that night... about you. She said that you've never—"

"Never tasted human blood? She was right, I hadn't. Not until you." Rosalie leaned towards the nightstand, flicking on the bedside lamp. Evelyn immediately saw that her eyes, which were usually the token Cullen gold, were a strange shade of burnt golden orange. It was unsettling, to say the least, but somehow Rosalie still managed to look breathtaking.

Evelyn frowned, wincing at the sudden pain in her head from the yellow lamplight. "If that's true, then how were you able to stop? I mean, wouldn't it be impossible if it was your first time?"

Rosalie chuckled darkly, shaking her head. "Everyone in my family always underestimates my self control. I've had a lot of experience with human blood, you know, and I was quite proud of being the only one to have never tasted one drop. Just so you know, Evelyn, I felt perfectly in control with you. You don't exactly appeal to me the way you do to Jasper."

Rosalie's eyes flicked to Evelyn's arm. "As I was saying earlier, you blacked out from the pain. Once the venom was gone, I was able to splint your arm until Carlisle could take a look at it and find a brace for you. He didn't think the hospital was necessary for you, so Emmett and I brought you here so I could take care of you. It was easier this way; people won't ask too many questions."

Evelyn felt her lips part in shock. "Carlisle let you take care of me?"

"Carlisle isn't the only one with medical experience in the family," Rosalie quipped, a proud smirk on her lips. "I've earned a few medical degrees of my own as we've moved around to help Carlisle keep up to date with the latest healthcare practices. I'm perfectly capable of taking care of you. I've been monitoring your IV fluids and changing the dressings on your wound. It's going to scar, by the way, but it will heal. Your arm should be fine in a few weeks, it was a relatively clean break."

Evelyn stared at the vampire in shock. Had she really underestimated her that much? She had known Rosalie wasn't as cold as she wanted her and Bella to believe, but she never would have dreamed that Rosalie would have been the one to save her life and care for her as she recovered.

"I— I don't really know what to say, Rosalie. I— well, thank you. I know that we barely know each other, but I am more grateful than you know."

Rosalie grinned, her perfect white teeth flashing. "Consider us even, then, from that day you helped me clean up the glass in the kitchen."

"That's hardly a fair trade," Evelyn scoffed. "Helping clean is not the same thing as saving someone's life."

"No it isn't, but when do you think you'd ever have to save mine?" At the blank look on her face, Rosalie nodded. "Exactly. We're just going to call it even. You helped me, and now I've helped you."

"Fine. We can be even," Evelyn agreed, a grin playing on the corners of her mouth. Rosalie smiled softly, standing up and turning off the bedside lamp.

"You also have a pretty bad concussion, by the way, so I'll leave and let you get some more rest. Don't be surprised if Emmett comes in at some point. He's been dying to come in and check on you for two days."

Rosalie checked the wound on her shoulder as well as the IV pole before leaving the room. As the door shut behind her, Evelyn felt like she and Rosalie had come to an unspoken understanding over the events of the past few days, something like a truce. She knew that they weren't best friends, and they probably never would be, but she had to admit that it was nice to finally have Rosalie on her side.

***

After another two days of constant bed rest enforced by Rosalie's death glares and Emmett's endless chatter, Evelyn was finally deemed well enough to go home. She, Rosalie, and Emmett would be flying back while Bella, Charlie, Edward, and Carlisle would be coming back once she was well enough to travel.

Marie had called nonstop over the two days that she had been blacked out, and when Evelyn had finally managed to call her back it was nearly impossible to get a word in because her aunt was so frantic. Eventually, though, she was able to assure Marie that she was fine and that she was coming home. Surprisingly, Marie didn't question their falling-down-the-stairs story at all. She knew Bella was clumsy, and it seemed only natural to her that her clumsiness would eventually have affected Evelyn, too, since they were together all the time.

"You just make sure you're careful around her from now on," Marie had told her. "That girl is a magnet for trouble."

Oh, you have no idea. But Evelyn had kept that thought to herself.

Two days after she had arrived back in Forks, Evelyn found herself sitting on the front porch steps of her house. It was a cloudy March Saturday, and she was home alone while Marie was working at the diner. She wrapped her uninjured arm around her knees and closed her eyes. Today was the day he would come. She didn't know how she knew, but rather than pace around the house all day waiting for him to show up she decided to sit outside and focus on the air around her to calm her down.

She breathed in deeply, savoring the aroma of wet pavement, rain, and the evergreen trees that surrounded her house. A soft breeze blew loose tendrils of her hair from her ponytail, and the strands tickled her cheeks as they floated in the air. Every once in a while she heard a car drive by, and she smiled softly at the soft sound of birds chirping deep in the trees around her. For the first time in the last few days, she felt something close to peace. Only one thing was missing now, and all she could do was pray that he was not gone for good.

It did not take long for Jasper to show up. She didn't hear him come up the steps, and she barely felt his shoulder brush hers as he sat down next to her. She did not open her eyes, but she felt her heartbeat quicken as his skin just barely brushed hers.

They sat in silence for a few moments. Jasper was watching her, not quite believing that she was really there in front of him. Despite her arm brace and the scabs dotting her face and neck, she did not look to be in pain. She was just as beautiful to him, maybe even more so now because of what she had survived. He suddenly felt like a coward. How could he have left her alone after what James had done to her?

"You left," she suddenly spoke, opening her eyes and looking into his. "Why?"

"I was afraid," he admitted. "I didn't want to see the way you'd look at me after I couldn't do anything to save you that night."

Evelyn nodded, gathering her thoughts for a moment before speaking. "I'm not expecting you to be perfect, Jasper. I never have. I'm not mad at you for making the right choice for you in that situation. But I am upset that you left me alone afterwards. I needed you there. You left me wondering what I did wrong to make you leave without a word."

Jasper froze in shock. He had assumed that the anger and hurt he sensed from her to be directed at him for not being strong enough to do what Edward had done for Bella. But the real reason seemed to sting him even worse; she had felt abandoned by him, and by leaving her he had made her question how he felt about her.

"I suppose that I childishly assumed that you would not want anything to do with me after what happened to you," Jasper said bitterly, averting his eyes towards the forest.

"Jasper, there is nothing you could do that would make me—"

He shook his head, cutting her off. "You don't understand, Ev. I should have been there for you, not Rosalie! I should have been the one to save you, but I was too weak. The minute I smelled your blood it was like I had gone back to the beginning all over again!"

Evelyn frowned, taking his hand in hers. She felt him tense, but she was glad that he did not pull away. "You're not weak, Jasper. You're the farthest thing from weak. You, and everyone in your family helped to save our lives -- my life-- and I can't even say how grateful I am to you because of it."

"You only see the good in me because you don't know the rest, Evelyn. I've done terrible, awful things. I've killed innocent people without batting an eye." His voice was bitter, and it broke Evelyn's heart to see how badly his past had affected him. "Like I told you before, I'm not good. I'm a monster."

"You're not that person anymore, Jazz. Please don't beat yourself up for things that happened centuries ago. Your heart is kind, and you care for people, and without you James might still be out there right now." She leaned closer, trying to get him to meet her eyes. "I might not have survived if you had not been there. Just because you didn't personally carry me out of the studio doesn't mean that you're weak or that you didn't save my life, because you did."

He met her eyes for a moment, feeling overwhelmed with her words. He didn't feel he deserved any of her praise. "But none of this ever would have happened had I just listened to Rosalie and Emmett and not gotten involved. You would have been safer that way. James would have never hurt you."

At his words, Evelyn felt her anger begin to bubble up to the surface. So now he thinks I'm a mistake? She dropped his hand and shot up from the steps, angrily walking down the path leading up to her house to regain her composure.

Jasper, suddenly realizing what he had said, stood immediately and jogged to catch up with her. "Evelyn, I'm so sorry, I didn't mean it that way --"

"Did you forget that a relationship takes two?" She said, cutting him off. "I chose to be with you just as much as you chose to be with me. I knew the risks and I still chose you!"

"I know," he answered, his face solemn. "All I want is for you to be safe, that's all I meant by it. You were never a mistake."

"And do you know why?" Evelyn continued, not quite listening to him as she poured out her frustrations. "I did it because I love you. I love you, Jasper Whitlock, only you, and I'm so tired of hearing you --"

Evelyn gasped in shock as Jasper cut her off with a kiss, his hands slipping carefully around her waist to avoid hurting her arm. She stood still for a few seconds before sighing in defeat, wrapping her free arm around his neck as she melted into him. She secretly reveled in the feeling of his lips on hers again; she had missed him so much, and even though she was angry with him she knew that she could forgive him in a heartbeat.

After a few blissful moments, Evelyn pulled away, breathless. Jasper rested his forehead on hers, listening to the erratic rhythm of her heart and her quick, shallow breaths fanning his face.

"I love you, too, Evelyn. More than anything in this world. I'm sorry for leaving you in Phoenix, and for every idiotic thing that I've said. I still haven't quite figured out how to act around you, yet," he told her, his crooked grin revealing the dimples that she loved so much.

She smiled softly, leaning back so she could better see his face. "I forgive you. But you can't just kiss me when I'm mad at you every time we fight."

"I know, but now you're not mad and we're not fighting anymore..."

She feigned shock, narrowing her eyes. "Who says I'm not still mad at you? I said that I forgave you, not that I wasn't mad anymore."

Jasper rolled his eyes, pressing a quick, soft kiss to her lips. "Empath, remember?"

"Yeah, yeah, I remember," she grumbled, smiling as her pulled her tighter to his chest. "I love you," she told him again, resting her head on his shoulder. She didn't mind his cold skin very much now; in fact, it had become somewhat of a comfort to her rather than something meant to push her away.

"And I love you, darlin'. Always."

Suddenly, the sound of a car pulling into the driveway made Evelyn jump. Oh no. She turned to see her aunt sitting in the driver's seat of her yellow bug, a knowing grin on her face.

"Jasper?"

"Hmm?" He answered, suddenly a little nervous because he knew what she was going to say.

"I think it's time that you finally met my aunt."