Gently // jasper hale [Completed]

01.

3rd May, 2001.

"if i knew then, what i know now,
       i would have loved you even more."

It was early in early May when Jasper Hale saw her for the first time. She was tucked away in a quiet corner of the school library, reading a heavy novel he never learnt the name of. She was sitting where he usually did, to get as far away from the pungent smell of human blood that had him on the constant edge of a frenzy. At first, he was angry; his small sanctuary had been invaded. Then, he actually took notice of her, and the animosity washed away.

She was a small, delicate thing, with hair that looked to be spun out of golden silk. Her pale skin was decorated in hundreds of freckles, dotting across her cheeks, nose and over her eyelids. She was concentrating hard on the words on the page, worrying her rosy lip between her teeth while her brows scrunched together, causing a crease between them. She was dressed in a black sweater and blue jeans that were rolled up at her ankles, a pair of wore tennis shoes on her feet, the laces barely staying knotted together.

Jasper wasn't blind, he knew she was beautiful, and he didn't have the never to approach her. So, he found an empty table from where he could observe her discreetly. He didn't know what it was, but he felt like she was important. His chest ached and his emotions were fuzzy, seemingly drowned out by the strong flood of serenity coming from the girl in the corner. In fact, he couldn't feel anyone but her.

It was a welcome feeling, one he only ever felt when he was truly alone, deep in the wilderness and far from humanity. He wondered how he never noticed her before, her effect on his inhuman ability should have alerted him to her existence much sooner.

He must have been lost deep in his thoughts, because the warning bell shrilled and almost made him jump in alarm. Almost. He was quick to his feet, desperate to ask his best friend, Alice, if she had seen anything pertaining to the strange girl. In his haste, he ushed is seat out too quickly and tripped someone.

On instinct, he reached out to steady them, his arm snaking around their waist and the other darting out to catch the book they had dropped.

"Oh!" Jasper was now face-to-face with the mystery girl, their bodies pressed together and their faces dangerously close.

He finally got to see her eyes; a deep whiskey gold that seemed endless. He wanted to know what they looked like in the morning sun, he imagined them being like bright pools of fresh honey, warm and comforting. He could drown in them, gaze into them for the rest of his eternal life. She felt like home.

"I'm so sorry," they both apologized at the same time, her voice breathy and his accent strong. There was a brief pause before she laughed, the sound like a gentle breeze through the trees, light and airy.

He couldn't fight off his smile, the first genuine smile he had adorned in decades. The scent she carried, of flowering lavender and pink peonies, encompassed him like a cloud, the last inkling of his burning thirst replaced with a humming satisfaction.

Reluctantly, her steadied her on her feet and let her go, his hand deliberately lingering a moment. He handed her book back to her, her small hands taking it from him, her fingers brushing against his much larger ones. She held the novel to her chest, both arms crossed over it.

"Thank you," she said softy, unable to meet his intense gaze again. It felt like his aureate eyes were seeing directly into her soul.

"I should be apologizing, darlin'. That was my fault," his southern inflexion made her insides giddy.

"It's alright, I wasn't really watching where I was going."

Another lull. Jasper was completely captivated by her, how had he never noticed her before?

"Um, I should get to class," she mumbled, taking a step backwards and motioning towards the library doors and the crowd of students making their way to their next lesson.

"Wait," he reached forward and clasped her shoulder, just as she went to turn and leave him. "Can I at least get your name, sweetheart?"

She blushed furiously at the term of endearment. Jasper could see the blood rising to her cheeks, and when the expected rush of thirst didn't hit him, he got to admire the flustered girl a little longer.

"I'm Daisy," and with that she left him there, in the middle of the library, dazed and relaxed. He could hear her faintly humming a song he didn't know, the tenor of her voice already seared into his mind.

The rest of the monotonous school day droned on for what seemed like forever. He hadn't seen or heard Daisy since he embarrassingly tripped her, and he was getting a little antsy. The lack of other's emotions didn't last long after their encounter, and his thirst was back to crawling through his throat. To make it worse, he also hadn't had the chance to question Alice about her.

He used his imagination as a distraction. Of course, Daisy was the centerpiece of his vision. He imagined what she'd look like sprawled across a checkered picnic blanket, nibbling on fresh fruits as she read a book in a bright summer dress. He imagined her on the beach, sandals in hand while she danced on the warm sand, the setting sun casting her in rays of orange and red. What she would look like waking up in his bed, her warm eyes tired and her smile peaceful, stretching out under his sheets like a basking feline and her hair fanned around her like a golden halo.

"Alright, that's enough," his brother, Edward bumped his shoulder as they meandered down the hallway, doing their best to avoid the waves of students rushing off home.

Of course, Edward had heard his thoughts a mile away, and in honesty, he was quite surprised at how realistic his daydreams were. Though he still found it mildly creepy. For his brother's sake, he spent his last period delving into the minds of his fellow students, trying to discern any information about Daisy.

"She's new, kind of," Edward spoke lowly, too low for human ears. "Apparently, she dropped out at the end of last year, just before we arrived. Today was her first day back. She's not behind in her classes, perhaps she home-schooled for a while."

Jasper's eyebrows crinkled in confusing. "If she's been here before, where are her friends? Why was she sitting alone, hidden away in the library for lunch?"

Edward just shrugged. He didn't want to tell Jasper what her old friends thought of her. They didn't seem to like her anymore, because she dropped out without a word to them. He was sure she had her reasons, but it was odd.

"I need to talk to Alice alone," Jasper insisted when they arrived at their vehicles, joining the rest of their siblings. Rosalie eyed him strangely, but complied, nonetheless. Edward tossed his keys to his brother, before joining his other siblings in Emmett's spacious four-wheel-drive. Jasper and Alice slide into the silver Volvo before peeling out of the car space and leaving the lot.

Just as the tires hit the road, Jasper spotted Daisy from the corner of his eye, riding a baby blue bicycle, equipped with a white basket that she had filled with books. She looked stunning, her hair flowing behind her as she rode at a casual pace, in no rush to get anywhere.

"She's pretty," Alice caught him staring, a knowing smirk that Jasper had seen many times before on her lips.

"Pretty is a bit insufficient, don't you think?"

a/n: i don't have a schedule for this book yet. i'll just upload whenever i can.