Jasper McQueen (_resistance) wrote in light_of_may, @ 2011-03-04 17:52:00 |
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Entry tags: | 2009-08-11, erin |
What a mess a little time makes to us when time and place collide
Who: Jasper and Erin
When: Late afternoon
Where: Erin’s house
A lot of the time since the attack was a blur for Erin. She hadn’t had to spend much time in the hospital, and mercifully, the doctor had sent her home with something to knock her out. She’d taken full advantage of that, but now that the drugs were wearing off... the nightmares were filtering through. She wasn’t so sure she was looking forward to that whole ‘sleep’ thing anymore. After waking up about an hour ago and figuring out what day it was, she’d managed a shower and a bowl of soup, and had promptly crawled right back into bed. She was taking a mental health day.
To say Jasper was a nervous wreck wasn’t even putting it lightly. In fact, that barely scratched the surface. The poor guy was petrified of losing Erin. Yeah, she was alive and well, but that didn’t mean things between them were alright. Jasper was still plagued by what happened last time he tried helping out a girl he cared about. He didn’t want to lose Erin. So once he composed himself enough, he picked up a little something for her and went over to her house. Hopefully flowers and a plushie in hand would at least win her mom over if Rosemary answered the door. Swallowing hard, he knocked on the door and waited. And oh my god, if he was sidetracked with coffee and pancakes again, he was jumping out the window for reals this time.
Perhaps luckily for Jasper, having a child recovering put Rosemary in a more subdued mode. She was definitely in her element, but not exactly in the right mindframe to traumatize someone for shits and giggles. She just had a warm smile for Jasper when she opened the door. “Hi, Jasper,” she greeted, ushering him in. “Erin might be sleeping, but go on up.” He knew the way, after all.
Being the ever charming southern boy, he gave Rosemary a polite nod with a smile. “Thank you kindly, ma’am.” For both letting him in and being such a loving mom to Erin. Seriously, the girl had it good in that respects, even if the woman nearly drove him insane last time. Better to have a mother than none at all. He made his way up the stairs quietly, knocking gently on Erin’s door before slipping in. She looked so comfy curled up in bed and he hoped he didn’t disturb any sleep. “Hey you.”
Erin looked up at the sound, and smiled softly when Jasper opened the door. “Hey,” she replied, waving him in. She probably should have called him, huh? Her brain was just... not on. She tried to remember if she might have said anything she would regret, but... it was such a fucking blur. She remembered the shit that was happening to her body and inside her brain. That was about it. “They gave me the good shit. I just woke up a bit ago.”
He couldn’t help but let out a little chuckle. She was herself through and through, even when sick in bed. “Glad to hear I’m not wakin’ ya up,” Jasper smiled to her while walking over to her bed. “These are for ya, sleepin’ beauty.” He placed the flowers on her nightstand and handed the teddy bear to her before taking a seat on the bed. “A lil’ somethin’ to cheer ya up.” He hoped it worked and wasn’t cheesy or anything.
She moved over a little for him, and despite the rise of nerves, took the teddy bear with a smile. The visions she got were still a little bothersome - not as painful as they had been yesterday, but it still felt... off. Like all the channels were still healing, maybe. She never knew the inside of your brain could feel sore before, but that was the only way to describe it. “Thanks,” she said. “I’m sorry I haven’t called.”
“No need to apologize,” Jasper reassured her. “Kinda hard to do that when the doc’s got ya on enough shit to knock an elephant out.” Hell, Jasper had been in the hospital not too long ago himself, so he knew that drill. Picking up a phone and calling people up was always the last thing on your priority list when you were in zombie mode. He paused for a second, looking over Erin and taking in the sight before going on, “...how ya feelin’? Any better?”
Erin took a breath and ran her hand through her hair, thinking before answering. “I’m okay,” she decided. “Good as could be expected, I guess. My brain still hurts a little. Like it’s freaking recovering from being really overworked.” The answer still felt lame. She’d honestly believed she was going to die, and that might not have been such a bad thing (at the time), but she was okay? Meh. “Don’t ever let one of those fucking things touch you,” she warned. “It’s awful.”
He heeded Erin’s warning, giving her a nod in reply. What was he suppose to say in reply to that? It wasn’t like he actually knew what she was going through, so he couldn’t exactly sympathize. Even the vampire blood didn’t seem to heal her 100%. Either way, he took Erin’s word for it. No touching demons - done. Speaking of touching, his hand moved for a second, wanting to reach out and hold her hand, but he stopped midway and decided against he. Erin had told him not to touch her the other day and if she was still recovering from that, it was probably best to keep honoring that request of hers. So back to his lap his hand went. “I’m sorry if I didn’t get there in enough time to stop that thing from touchin’ ya.”
Erin noticed the abandoned attempt, and had to wonder what that was about. She frowned as she thought, and shook her head at his apology. “Dude. I was there early. It’s a miracle that you showed up in time at all,” she pointed out. Without them, she would have been up shit creek. She sighed and held a hand up. “I don’t think you’ll see what it did, but it’s up to you if you want to take that chance.” More likely he’d just see her doped off of her ass and sleeping for a good twenty-four hour stretch.
She had a point, yes, but it still didn’t make Jasper feel any better. And when she extended her hand up to him, Jasper looked at it for a moment. His eyes flicked to hers briefly before he removed a glove from one of his hands, then gently reached out to lock hands with Erin. If anything, he was just happy to hold her hand, feel her skin, her warmth. Far more than anything. Even the visions he received were mostly all of her in the hospital. He did get one image, which had to last all of a second, where Erin had been back at Anywhere But Here, just sitting on the floor post-demon attack. Now that made Jasper flinch, even if it wasn’t exactly the demon attacking her. Just reliving that moment made his skin crawl. But a few more seconds and all the images dulled out and he could focus again. Jasper refused to let go of her hand, slowly bringing it up to his lips to kiss the back of it before he glanced back to Erin. “I just wanna be here for ya.” He paused briefly. “If you’ll let me.”
Erin had to deal with the fact that her own glimpses into Jasper’s life were still a little painful. She wasn’t used to the sense of dread she now had when it came to touching people, or even things. It was much better than it had been yesterday, and she was hopeful that it’d be gone completely in a day or so. She managed a weak smile, and squeezed his hand. “I haven’t kicked you off the bed yet,” she pointed out. “I think I’ll be okay in a day or two.” Though she didn’t imagine the nightmares going away any time soon.
There she went pointing out the obvious that was lying right in front of Jasper. He smiled back at her, content knowing that she wanted him here. That would have just broken his heart all over again. “I hope so. And if not, don’t be afraid to call me up if ya need anythin’.” He would totally be Erin’s bitch just to make her smile. Ice cream runs 24/7, whatever he could do just to help a little. “Ya really scared me back there. Thought I was gonna lose ya.”
Well, that makes two of us. Erin sighed and closed her eyes briefly at the thought. “I felt like I was having an aneurysm,” she finally said, shaking her head. “Fuck, maybe I did. Since I took the vamp blood, we’ll never know. It was miserable. A lot of it’s all blurry now, and maybe that’s for the best.” As shaken up as he seemed to be, she was guessing she didn’t need all those memories.
It pained him to hear Erin reminisce about all of that. Jasper didn’t have an answer for her, sadly. At least the demon was dead now. He made damn well sure of that. He frowned a bit, stroking a thumb idly over the back of her hand as he shifted on the bed to move in closer. “I’m sorry, Erin.” What else was he suppose to say? Jasper felt so useless right then, unable to make her pain go away or make her laugh like she usually did. He just wanted to see Erin happy. Part of him was wondering if he was even good at this whole ‘being there for the girl’ thing. Elsie did a good job at reminding him how much he sucked at it.
Erin shook her head, not being the sort of person who liked to hear apologies at a time like this. Still, growing up where she did, she knew that the expression was often said more for the person saying it. In a situation like this, what more could you say? Erin knew that. “It’s okay,” she told him. “I’m sure I’ll be back to normal in a day or so.” God, she hoped she was. “I don’t want you to worry about me. The worst is over.”
Jasper nodded slightly before letting out a heavy sigh. But he wanted to worry about her. He wanted to be there for her and let her know she cared. Or maybe she preferred if he didn’t interfere at all. Jasper didn’t know and quite frankly, dwelling on it was starting to give him a headache. After a slight pause, Jasper spoke up softly to Erin, even if his eyes were fixed elsewhere in the room. “...kinda hard to stop worryin’ over a girl that’s already constantly on my mind.”
Erin sighed and smiled faintly. Again, what could she say to that? It was good to hear. She just had to stop being so overwhelmed by the shit in her head. “Alright, dork. Worry away,” she said, tugging briefly on his arm. “But if you overdo it I’m going to smack you and tell you to man up.” When all else failed, jokes for the win.
He couldn’t help but smile a bit at Erin’s words. Jasper liked to think he wasn’t that much of a wuss. Just damaged. He was getting used to this whole liking a girl again thing. He didn’t want to fuck up and hurt Erin even more. Upon having his arm tugged, he just leaned in some more and stared into her eyes. “If it counts for anythin’, you’re worth worryin’ over.” Then he eased in gently to kiss her forehead. Hopefully it wouldn’t be a bad touch. He’d accept a slap if it was.
Erin rolled onto her back to look up at him. It wasn’t a bad touch - her brain was sore, but it wasn’t unbearable. “I know I am,” she confirmed. “But it’s still good to hear.” Because it was. Erin just didn’t want to be fussed over too much. She was still trying to figure out how to deal herself. She hoped she wouldn’t have to stop and reassure Jasper every few minutes that she wasn’t going to die, or have a complete breakdown, or... whatever it was he was worried about. “Thank you for killing the fucker.”
Jasper would get over himself. If Erin didn’t kick him in the balls, his twin would. He had it covered in all areas. At least she still had her sense of humor. That meant she was stepping in the right direction. “Anytime,” he finally spoke after a bit of laughter consumed him. “Can’t put that degree in ass kickin’ to waste, right?” If she was going to joke around, then Jasper would give it a try, too, just to ease the tension. So far so good. It kept him smiling.
Erin liked it better when he was smiling and laughing. Nothing felt as funny as it normally would have, but it did help her feel more relaxed. Humor was her first defense in most situations, why should this be any different? “That’d be a horrible thing to waste,” she confirmed, relaxing back into her pillow. She put her hand on Jasper’s arm, briefly wrinkling her nose at the tension in her brain. That was getting real old, real fast. She wasn’t about to rely on gloves - and anyway, it wasn’t like they’d do her a hell of a lot of good. Everytime she rolled over she was getting a glimpse of her sheet’s magical adventure in the washer and dryer, anyway.
With her hand on his arm, Jasper brought up his free hand to gently rest on top of hers, idly running his fingers over her skin. She had nothing to worry about. Not only was Jasper willing to bend over backwards for her at this point, but she also had a loving family keeping a good watch on her. Hell, even that made Jasper feel at ease. “Speakin’ of fuckers,” he was going somewhere with this, “I dunno if Jamie affected you like he does with me back with the demon and stuff.” He paused. “Like... images floodin’ ya way more than they should.” For all he knew, Erin probably couldn’t remember. “Well, either way, he told me to pass along his apologies.” Then Jasper smirked a bit. “And he’s workin’ on your papayas and mangoes.”
That... made no sense. Erin’s face took on a puzzled expression, and she cocked her head to the side. What the hell was he talking about? “I don’t... know? Uh,” she frowned and sighed, taking a moment to bite her lip in thought. “The second the demon touched me I was flooded. It... it knew what I was. It was like... a pipe bursting with pressure. Only the pipe was my goddamn brain. I saw entire lifetimes in seconds.” And absolutely none of it was good. She tried to remember if it got worse at any point. “I think it did get worse at one point. I don’t remember.”
If it made Erin feel any better, Jasper had trouble explaining Jameson and his “powers” in general. At this point, Jasper was used to it, and that was still the understatement of the century. He always thought it was just him who experienced it, but Hannah had spoke about her powers spiking at one point, too. So maybe it was a psychic thing? Jasper didn’t know. Apparently bringing it up didn’t ring a bell for Erin, so he figured it was best to drop it. No need ripping out stitches to fresh wounds. “Ya don’t need to remember,” Jasper shook his head. “Just happy you’re safe and alive.”
Yeah, no. Dropping it wasn’t really an option for Erin. “Me too, but what about your brother? Can you make that part make sense for me?” That seemed an important thing to gloss over. She still couldn’t wrap her mind around what little he’d said about it. Erin liked to think of herself as a fucking expert as far as her powers went, even if there sure as hell weren’t any qualifiers for that.
Well then... so much for that. Jasper should have known better when dealing with Erin Forsythe. That meet with her mother should have been a dead freaking giveaway that the whole family was persistent as fuck. So Jasper just let out a deep breath of air and combed his hands through his hair before beginning. “Well... he got into an accident of his own a few months back. Since then, my powers went into overload whenever I was around him. Doesn’t matter if I wear gloves, a jacket... goes right through it and it’s just... too much. I can’t hold a gun straight half the time when he’s around. I start seeing too much and my powers just won’t stop. I thought it was just me, but there’s another girl who works with us, also a psychic, and she said of somethin’ similar when around Jamie.” He looked to Erin, his eyes a bit apologetic. “I didn’t know if somethin’ like that happened the other day, and if it did and made things worse, he said he’s sorry. Christ, I dunno. It sounds stupid, but I can’t explain it. It’s... just the way it is.”
Well, fuck if that wasn’t a good thing to know. Erin knew she’d have to go digging for information there, once she felt even just a little less like ass. Raw, pounded ass at that. “I didn’t know something like that was even possible,” she admitted. Dammit, she was used to knowing everything. She was supposed to know everything! After thinking about it a few minutes, she zoned back in and shook her head. “He doesn’t need to be sorry. What the demon was doing was bad enough on its own, I wouldn’t have noticed any differences even if he did cause one.”
Jasper wouldn’t have been surprised if in a few days Erin wrote a new entry on Wikipedia over this due to the information she dug up. Girl was efficient and damn it, bitches get shit done. “It’s ok, I didn’t either until it started happenin’.” Jasper never claimed to be a know-it-all and just went off of experiences. The guy simply said it like it was. “But next time you’re around Jamie and something doesn’t seem right... then yeah, we’ll know it’s not just me it happens to. Don’t stress your pretty lil’ head over it. Not now, anyways.” He stroked her head slowly for a while before pulling it back. “No hurtin’ your head again any time soon.”
Were Erin able to read Jasper’s thoughts, she would have agreed. And been proud that he was catching on, but that was beside the point. Stressing over it wasn’t likely, but harassing Jasper’s poor brother into experimenting to figure out what the fuck was going on... well, that was just going to take a lot of restraint to avoid. She probably would have to hit the internet. Erin finally came out of her thoughts and looked up at Jasper, smiling faintly. “Well, if that’s the case maybe we should try fucking at your place next time. You know. Just to see.” Okay, she said it just to see if he choked. But it wasn’t like she wouldn’t follow through with it. Beside, she needed to entertain herself somehow. Her head was a dark place right now. This place with him was better.
Congrats, Erin, because now Jasper choked on his spit and what felt like his fucking tongue. Really, the girl had him twisted around her finger. And he really wasn’t complaining much. After he could, you know, breathe, he looked over to Erin and raised an eyebrow. “Only if ya promise to keep him up all night,” he responded with a wink. Because now it was payback time for all the hell his twin was putting him through for the past god knew how long. Either way, he was game with fucking at his place... or any place. As long as Erin was involved, he didn’t really care where and apparently, neither did she.
Erin smirked, rather pleased with herself. Mindfucked and I still got it. Aw yeah. She’d take any triumph today. “Well, apparently we already did just that with my brother. It’s only fair,” she pointed out. Evan had no right to bitch, he’d had a redhead in his room all night. It wasn’t her fault that A) she hadn’t known he was even there, and B) he hadn’t boned said redhead. She was allowed to make whatever noise she wanted to in her own damn house.
Jasper just grinned. “Guess we’re on a mission then? Scarring one brother at a time?” He had no issues with this at all. It was all in good fun, after all. Jameson would probably try to get back at him eventually... except oh wait, he currently didn’t have a girl. Hmmm, Jasper would probably have to play the wingman role several times to help him out in that department. He did, after all, help him out that one night out drinking. Jasper couldn’t remember, he was too drunk.
“What happens when we run out of brothers to scar?” Erin replied, grinning back. The expression wasn’t as bright as it normally would have been, but it was a good start. She was a fan of distraction. Without Jasper here, she would have just fallen back asleep, and the idea of sleeping again made her uneasy. She didn’t want to return to those horrible dreams.
Good question. “Hmmm... Don’t know. Can’t be too risque. I’d like to keep my job.” He chuckled lowly to himself at the thought. Too bad he hadn’t known Erin when he was younger. He would have so been game for all sorts of crazy shit that would have gotten them in trouble with the law.... Oh fuck it, maybe they could try a thing or two. Just for old times sake. Something like that.
Erin rolled her eyes at him. “I don’t intend to lose mine either, Mr. I-Suck-At-Staying-Undercover,” she replied. Not that she didn’t still do crazy shit on a regular basis. It was just a matter of not getting caught. Of course, if she’d met Jasper in her college days, she would have destroyed him. She liked to think she had still ruined him for other women.
“Hey you, if I sucked so much, I’d be outta work by now.” Besides, he had been doing this for years. He liked to think he knew what he was doing. Still, teasing with Erin was quickly becoming one of his favorite past times. “And if one of us is gonna be suckin’, I’d rather it be you.” For obvious reasons, but you know!
Rolling her eyes again, Erin made as if to push him off her bed. She didn't, of course, and she was smirking the whole time, but she could pretend. In truth, she welcomed Jasper vocalizing what he wanted. She had a feeling it wasn't an easy thing for him to do. "Not happening today, Officer," she replied, chuckling softly. "And even once I feel like myself again, it probably won't happen until you least expect it. I have to keep you on your toes, you know."
Jasper wasn’t going to demand fucking blowjobs from Erin any time soon, if not ever. It wasn’t his style. Then again, he had a feeling that she had enough tricks up her sleeves to keep him coming back and begging for more. “That’s perfectly alright,” Jasper informed her with a smile. “I like it that way.” At least he did when it came to Erin. Not so much in the past, but damn it, he liked those handcuffs out of nowhere. Something told him that every encounter with Erin would be one for the books. Girl was awesome like that. “But until then,” he leaned in to kiss the corner of her mouth sweetly, “I don’t wanna put that much strain on ya. No more injuries needed, right?”
Erin smiled up at him just as sweetly, and reached up briefly to run her fingers through his hair. At the last second she gave a little tug, then nodded as she released him. “For either of us,” she confirmed, with a look in her eyes bordering on devilish. Needless to say, she was looking forward to being better. She was betting the two of them could do some wonderful damage together.
Better was a good direction, for the both of them. She could recover from this attack while Jasper continued to slowly creep out of his shell. He couldn’t do it alone, that was for sure. “Should I be lettin’ ya get some rest, sleepin’ beauty?” As much as he wanted to talk her ear off, he knew rest was key to recovery. Jasper didn’t want to prolong that any further and sadly he couldn’t give her vampire blood to speed up the process.
Erin didn’t like the way her heart sped up at the mere suggestion of sleep. Her dreams were dark places, and she wasn’t used to being afraid. She didn’t like it. At all. “I don’t feel much like sleeping anymore,” she answered. “But that doesn’t mean you have to stay here and hover over me. I’m gonna be boring for a couple days. Shocking, I know.”
Erin? Boring? Shit, and that came out of her mouth. Still, he could sympathize with being a gimp after an attack. Jasper had been clearly useless after his car accident years ago for a good while. He didn’t expect Erin to recover overnight, but it would have been nice. “I like hoverin’ over ya,” he chuckled with a wink. “It’s a nice view.”
Laughing softly in response, Erin took his hand again and squeezed it lightly. “I’d flash you for that, but I don’t have the energy,” she said. Eh, she’d owe him one. She did manage to move over a little more though, in case he wanted to be more comfortable. “Hover away,” she said, waving her other hand before propping it behind her head. “I give permission.”
Jasper scooted in closer, unable to stop smiling at Erin. He liked being able to stay, even if it was in silence and just staring into her eyes. Sorry, but the southern boy was a bit of a romantic and wasn’t perfectly content with spending time with a woman, even if it was sitting on the side of her bed. Granted, now he had some more room to scoot in closer. Once he was comfortable enough, Jasper brushed some hair out of Erin’s face before leaning in to steal a soft kiss. “Thank you.”
Erin wasn’t really used to being with a guy like Jasper. It was a new experience, and one she was rather enjoying. She smiled against his lips, and found the slight pain of her brain working to show her another vision didn’t bother her so much at all. She was able to focus on him, and grateful for that. “Thank you,” she echoed. Corny, but nice. Not bad things.