Bella MacLeod's Twilight Fanfiction

The Road Back

By Mama4Dukes

Chapter 05:

Time seemed to drift by, leaving Jasper behind. He filled out an application for Admission by Motion to practice law in Washington State. This waived the necessity of having to re-sit the Bar Exam. After receiving approval, he sent off a few job applications but had not received any replies yet. He was beginning to think that he might have to branch out a bit farther to Olympia, or maybe even Seattle, to find opportunities. He didn’t mind moving, but he realized the advantages of staying at home while paying off his remaining student loans and car payments. In fact, his parents encouraged it.

He spent the time perusing job listings, reading, and hitting the gym. He also helped his parents out at their businesses-usually at the bakery because, according to his father, he had plenty of help at his place. Peter always worried about Charlotte before himself. Jasper’s father finally got to have both his cast and shoulder brace removed. His father was now down to twice-weekly physical therapy sessions with Emmett and was able to repair vehicles again.

This evening, he was at the gym, having missed his usual morning workout because his mother needed him all day at the bakery since she had a wedding cake to work on. He was in the middle of repping out bench presses when Bella suddenly greeted him.

“Finish up, Jasper. I shouldn’t have interrupted you in the middle of your workout.”

He stopped what he was doing. “Bella, it’s good to see you.”

“Good to see you, too. How have you been?”

He shrugged his shoulders. “I’ve been okay. I’ve been working on my mandatory continuing legal education hours since I can’t seem to find a job. Most places won’t even respond to me.”

“Hmm… No jobs for lawyers, huh? What was your last position?”

“Um, I was an associate at the largest legal firm in Texas.”

“Ah.” Bella smiled. “Was it one of those places that do the cheesy commercials on TV?”

“Actually, yeah. Mr. Brandon does do commercials – both on the radio and TV.”

“Interesting. Well, keep looking. I’m sure you’ll find something.”

She was so positive and easy to talk to. And then Jasper had a thought. Maybe he could spend some time with her. He really needed a friend. “I was wondering, do you want to get something to eat after this? We could go to Sully’s.”

“Sully’s? No, I’ve had enough of greasy burgers. Do you want to try that new Mexican restaurant in Port Angeles instead?”

“I’ve been craving enchiladas ever since leaving Texas. Where in Port Angeles is it?”

“It’s on Front Street. You drive. Oh, and I’m not showering for you, so you’ll have to deal with me all sweaty, ponytail, and all. I didn’t bring a change of clothes.”

Jasper laughed. “Neither did I. We’ll both be sweaty together.”

---

They arrived at the restaurant an hour later but had to wait for twenty minutes to be seated. For a Thursday night, there was quite a crowd.

“I guess we weren’t the only ones who wanted to try this place,” Jasper noted.

“Yeah, I’ve wanted to come here since they opened four months ago, but they’ve been packed every night. Sam and Leah were here a few weeks ago, and they had to wait for over an hour. They said the food here is phenomenal.”

“That’s a good recommendation. Leah is picky about her food.”

“She certainly is. She says it’s because, more often than not, she ends up having to eat at the hospital for lunch.”

“Does Leah work at the hospital?”

“I keep forgetting how long you’ve been away. But, yes, they both work there. Leah is the newly registered dietician at the hospital. Marlene Bradley was finally able to retire. Sam is an orthopedic surgeon. In fact, he operated on your father when he was in the accident. It was horrific, Jasper. Your father’s truck was mangled. The airbags deployed, and they had to get him out through the passenger side door.

Fortunately, my father came out of the diner and witnessed the accident. He radioed in for emergency services, then raced across the street to help. He arrested Tucker on the spot for a whole ton of violations. Dad estimates Tucker was going seventy miles per hour at the very least.”

“In the center of town?” Jasper asked, appalled. “What’s the speed limit, thirty?”

“It’s not posted, so it’s twenty-five. Tucker’s license was immediately revoked.”

“I should hope so. But, wow! Not only did Tucker hurt my father, but he endangered the public.”

“Exactly. It’s a good thing we’re a close-knit town. Carlisle had the day off, but he rushed to the scene to stabilize your father and then hopped in the ambulance with him. He called Sam, who rushed over from La Push to operate immediately.”

“Wow! I had no idea. Where was my mom when this happened?”

“She was at the gym with my mom, which was a good thing because my mother kept your mother from becoming frazzled.”

“So, all of this happened at the end of December?”

“Yes, it had finally stopped raining that day, but the temperature had plummeted to below freezing, so the roads had iced over.” Then, turning to Jasper, she continued, “And then the prodigal son returned three weeks later.” Bella tilted her head and smiled. “I’ve heard a lot of hearsay about why you’ve come home. Why don’t you tell me what really happened?”

Jasper shrugged his shoulders. “Where do you want me to start?”

“How about from the beginning?”

“It’s a tale that spans eight years.”

“I’ve got time to listen. We haven’t even been seated yet.” Just as the words left Bella’s mouth, the hostess seated them in a cozy, corner nook at the far end of the restaurant. It was nice and quiet.

They didn’t talk while they perused their menus, and after placing their orders, Jasper began his tale. He told Bella everything, from how he met Alice while tutoring her in history to how she persuaded him to become a lawyer. He explained how he started as a summer intern at Alton Brandon’s office and then quickly moved up the ranks to associate and soon-to-be junior partner before being fired and broken up with him on the same day.

“And through all of this, Alice didn’t say a word while her father broke up with you?” Bella asked.

“Yes, that’s exactly what happened.”

“And you were okay with their actions? Because it seems to me, you left without protest.”

Jasper shook his head and raked his hands through his hair. “Bella, I don’t know what happened. I was so shocked that I just acquiesced.”

“Did you have a contract? Can you sue for breach of contract?”

“No, that’s the thing. I had reached the end of my contract as an associate and thought I was going in to sign a new one as a junior partner. Instead, I was released from my position with eighteen months severance pay, health insurance, and references. I was also told I had forty-eight hours to leave the apartment I shared with Alice and that the housekeeper was already packing my belongings. The movers showed up that afternoon and asked me where I was going. The only place I could think of was my parents’ house. I realized I was homeless and jobless, so I got into my car and drove. I didn’t even know where I was headed until I found myself in Elma. Since I was already on the 101, I drove the rest of the way home.”

Bella patted his hand from across the table sympathetically. “I’m sorry, Jasper. You worked hard to become an attorney, put in your time at the office you worked for, and were unceremoniously pitched from your position. Your girlfriend broke up with you on the same day. Unfortunately, it seems to me that there were no contractual laws broken. In fact, since you reached the end of your contract as an associate attorney, your boss simply chose not to renew it. It wasn’t even termination of contract since you reached the end of it in good standing. You left on good terms; otherwise, he wouldn’t have provided you with eighteen months of pay and health insurance. The fact that your girlfriend broke up with you on the same day, even if her father chose to speak to you instead of her, is incidental. He knows this, and you, as an attorney, should know it, too.”

“Geez, Bella. You should be a lawyer. You broke everything down succinctly for me.”

“Well, I have my moments. The point is you need to put the incident behind you and move on with your life. It took me a long time to realize that dwelling on the past does you no favors. You need to learn from the lessons of the past, but it’s important to live in the now.”

Before Jasper could say anything, their food finally arrived. Bella swapped out one of her street tacos for one of his enchiladas, which was a good thing because they ended up switching plates. Bella had two margaritas because she wasn’t driving. “You can just drive me home. I’ll leave my car at the gym; they won’t tow it.”

It was true. There was no such thing as towing for parking violations in Forks. Everyone knew who drove which car and where they lived. It was probably for a good reason if a vehicle was in a parking lot overnight or even for the weekend.

---

A few weeks later, Jasper ran into Bella again at the diner. She was reading a book while noshing on a sandwich. He slid into the booth across from her. “Hi, Bella.”

“Hey, Jasper. What are you doing here? It’s already past eight pm. The diner closes at nine.”

“I had a job interview in Seattle. Then, I just got home.”

“Ah, that explains it. Did you get the job?”

“Most likely not. The firm was looking for someone with a little more experience than just two years as a junior associate and two years as an associate.” He chuckled, shaking his head. “It’s funny. I am just now realizing that I was extremely fortunate in my position at my last job. If it weren’t for me dating my boss’s daughter, I probably would not even have been an associate. I should have been a junior associate still, slaving away doing most of the grunt work.”

“Now, don’t go dismissing all you’ve done. I know you, Jasper. You’ve never shied away from hard work.”

“No, I guess not.” After taking a sip of his water, he asked, “Bella, something been on my mind since our last chat. You mentioned that it took you a long time to realize that dwelling on the past does you no favors.”

“Oh, that…” She looked down at her lap and bit her bottom lip, a habit she’s always had when she was nervous. Then, she took a deep breath before speaking. “I didn’t always live in Forks, Jasper. In fact, I only returned three-and-a-half years ago.”

“Oh, yeah? Where did you live?”

“Boston. I had a fiancé, Riley. I loved him. He loved me, and for a while there, everything was perfect. We both worked hard at our jobs and were happy. And then, one day, we were out having dinner when he said he was feeling dizzy. We started heading back to our apartment immediately, but his nose started bleeding, and he started shaking on the way home. I ignored him when he said to just take him home and headed straight for the emergency room. He never left the hospital after that.”

Bella was in tears when she looked up at him. “He was diagnosed with Stage Four Leukemia, and it took him less than a month to die. I sat in the hospital room with him day and night-watching him whiter away. And then, one day, he simply stopped breathing.”

“Oh, Bella, I’m sorry.” Jasper had no idea she had gone through the sheer hell of watching a loved one die. He knew it took a toll on people emotionally, mentally, physically. He had been involved in many wrongful death and malpractice lawsuits, and the survivors were almost always traumatized.

“I fell into a deep depression, barely functioning. My daily routine consisted of going to work, coming home, and crawling into bed. My parents flew in from Washington, worried about me. I tried to put on a solid front in their presence, but they saw right through me. Then Jacob came. He stayed with me for three weeks, giving me enough time to resign from my job on good terms. We packed up my belongings and drove home together to Washington.

After I returned home, I received some much-needed grief counseling. It also helped that I was home in such a familiar place. You know, as well as I do, that everything gets aired out in public in our small town. Our friends wouldn’t let me be alone. Someone was always with me. Your father would stop by and tell me he needed help in the shop, just to get me out of the house. Our moms would take me to yoga, and our dads would force me to go fishing and hunting with them. Eventually, the counseling combined with all of the intervention worked, I realized that I couldn’t live in the past, wondering what could have been. Hence, I pulled myself together and started living again.”

“I didn’t realize how tough it has been for you, Bella. I’ve been wallowing in self-pity this whole time, but in comparison to you, what happened to me was no big deal. My boss didn’t renew my contract, and my girlfriend booted me from our apartment; that was it. I didn’t even suffer any grief from Alice breaking up with me. I was more upset about my job.” He voiced a realization that came to him just then. “Had I been in your shoes, Bella, I don’t think I would have mourned Alice at all. I realize now that it was my ego that took a big hit when I lost my job and relationship at the same time.”

“Honestly speaking, I’ve only met Alice that one time you brought her home, but I didn’t understand why you could be with someone like her. She spoke insultingly about Forks and everyone in town, especially your parents. I wanted to smack her across the mouth when I heard her saying that she and your father did servant’s work.”

“You heard her?”

“I did. I happened to be on your back deck when Alice had her meltdown. The sliding door was ajar. So, I kind of hid and listened in. I’d say I’m sorry, but I’m not.”

“That’s the best part about you, Bella. You are unfailingly honest.” Jasper laughed and then took a few bites of his sandwich. “You mentioned that you didn’t understand why I was with someone like Alice. I’ve been thinking about that myself. All I can say is that being from a small town like Forks, where everything is simple and uncomplicated, I was awed by the influence and the wealth that I thought she possessed. But, in hindsight, I think I was her little plaything, someone she felt she could mold into the image she wanted, and then she grew tired of me and simply replaced me.”

“Really? You never told me, or anyone, that part.”

“No, I didn’t. It was too embarrassing. His name is Royce King. He’s a few years older than we are, maybe in his mid-thirties. The week before our break-up, she said she was going away on vacation with her girlfriends. Royce had the same week off. I suspect they went away together. They couldn’t keep their eyes off of each other. The weird thing was, I simply didn’t care. I realized while I was driving home to Forks that I just didn’t like Alice anymore.”

“So, the main thing you’ve been upset about is your job.”

“Yeah. I put so much into the company. If you count my summer internships, I’ve been with them for seven years.”

Bella placed her elbows on the table, dropped her chin into her cupped hands, and smiled at him. “I told you not to discount your own efforts. It’s upsetting to you because you genuinely put in the effort, and this Alton Brandon guy just let you go to appease his daughter.” She nodded in satisfaction and then posed a question, “Do you really want to be working for a guy who accedes to every demand of his daughter? One day, that law firm will be in a big heap of trouble if he continues in that direction. So I think you should look at your recent trials as an opportunity for change.”

“You make everything seem simple, Bella.”

“It’s not. I know this. Believe me, when I say, it’s a long journey, but it’s a way to point yourself in the right direction on the road back.”