Word Count: 1670

¬Rosie

It didn't take us long to track down Jasper.

The day after we spoke to Death, Time discovered from other immortals that Jasper was in his original home in the Devotion Pack. Considering he has been brought back to life, I wouldn't have thought he would want to go back to his old life. However, Time quickly informed me that he has children, even if they are living their own, separate lives now, and that the Devotion Pack has always been his home.

So we are here, standing at the edge of his estate looking in. We have no idea how he is going to react to us. He could be explosively angry, or not be bothered at all. It's frightening to think about, but I know Time wouldn't let anything happen to me, if it did get to that.

"This is it. He should be here," Time says slowly, making no move toward the manor. I can't blame him for being reluctant. It's not easy to apologise to someone, especially when so much has happened between them.

Jasper's house isn't exactly decrepit, but it's hardly modern. With a wooden foundation and structure, it's swamped in vines sprouting wildflowers, half-dead trees leaning over the roof. Just looking at it makes me shiver. It's so dark and creepy, I can't imagine anyone actually living inside this full time like Jasper and his mate once did.

"What are you going to say to him?" I ask. The last thing we need is for this to end badly, in an argument or possibly worse. This is Time's last chance for redemption, so now it's fully up to Jasper to decide whether he wants to forgive him or not.

"We offer to help him find his mate. If she wants to be found," Time says uneasily, as if he suspects that she doesn't. The idea of that makes me very nervous.

"And if he actually wants to find her."

"Trust me, no male will willingly want to stay away from his mate," Time says, looking at me as if I've just said something completely absurd. "Especially after they confirm the bond."

"Okay. Just be nice, remember. I know he burned you, but you did something unforgivable to him," I remind him, grabbing a hold of his shoulders to turn his attention to me. His eyes are burning, far more golden than the light that glows around us. He may not want to admit it, but he is anxious about this. He hasn't faced Jasper in quite along time, and it's not going to be easy now.

"Trust me."

We walk toward the manor, the beauty of it masked by a sense of creepiness, the entire place bathed in darkness. Even from here, it doesn't look lived in, even if this has been rumoured to have once been a family home, before his children began doing their own things...like becoming mated to Fate.

I follow Time up the steps, as he knocks on the front door, giving me a way glance. The air has gone cold, making me shiver. Either it's the shadows, or even nature if anticipating how this is going to go.

When no one comes to answer, Time tests the door. Thankfully it unlocks, otherwise this would never have worked, since it seems Jasper isn't too keen on talking to us already. Instead of calling out for him at the doorway, Time steps in, the shadows of the inner hallway consuming him. I follow warily, my stomach starting to turn as my mind begins to change.

Is this really a good idea?

"Jasper?" Time calls out, the floorboards creaking beneath him. Still, there's no response. "I'm actually not here to hurt you, believe it or not."

Still, no response.

We emerge from the hallway and into a living room, where sure enough, Jasper sits there, lounging back against his couch, giving us an indignant look. "If you're not here to hurt me, then why come here and bother my peace at all?"

"Well, you've surely looked better off," Time comments sourly, looking around the room. He's not wrong. The space may be clean - although perhaps that's the fault of the fact there is almost no proper furnishings in here - but Jasper looks like a complete mess. "I'm here on peaceful terms."

"This must be your mate, then," the Alpha drawls, dragging his gaze over to look at me. His violet gaze is intimidating, I will admit, and I'm used to being around pure-blood immortals.

"I'm Rosie. I'm here with Time as he seeks to apologise to you," I tell him. I'm being straightforward as it doesn't seem as though Time is going to be without being forced to. I even give him a nudge in his side, feeling the taut muscles beneath his shirt.

"Apologise. I think it's a bit late for that," Jasper mutters dismissively. He's completely shirtless, which in the dimness, I almost didn't notice. I quickly cast my glance away, feeling uncomfortable with having him so bare so close to me.

Time falls down into a seat opposite Jasper, while I remain standing. "Where's Thea?"

"Even if I knew, you think I would tell you?" Jasper says, not even flinching. The amount of hate in his voice is poisonous, making my stomach turn uncomfortable. I can't blame him, though, even if it does scare me.

"So you're saying that you don't know where she is, then?"

Jasper shifts uncomfortably, jaw clenching in a way that suggests that Time's speculation isn't just that. It's a fact that he doesn't know where she is right now, which is why he has locked himself up in this dim, hopeless place, looking as though he hasn't showered or cared for himself in days.

"Thea is either dead, or has no interest in being with me," Jasper growls, raking a hand back through his dark hair, the strands falling messily across his forehead. "She's impossible to find."

Time shifts uncomfortably from foot to foot."What if we offered to try to find her?"

"If you think for one moment that I would ever want you near my mate again, you're insane," Jasper growls, that protectiveness still there, still deep inside him, despite being far apart from his mate.

Glancing at Time, I notice a flash of anger in his eyes, so I quickly talk over him, helping to salvage this."I don't expect you to forgive him, but we are genuinely here to make amends. If you want us to help you find your mate, and bring you back together, we can do that."

"I don't want you to look for her. It's not your job to try to find my mate. If she wanted to be found she would have been, so there isn't much I can do," Jasper mutters hopelessly, the dismissive wave of his hand suggesting he doesn't want to continue the conversation, and that he would much rather us leave, but I know that Time needs his forgiveness.

"You shouldn't give up, though."

"I haven't. I will always look for her, even if she doesn't want me to," he admits. Hope blooms in my stomach, as I brazenly step forward, slicing through the tension as I settle in next to Jasper, who doesn't even flinch, even if he does give me a wary sideways look. "I'm just so worried something has happened to her."

Time releases a slow, painful sigh. "I'm sure it hasn't, Alpha."

"You're the reason we are apart," Jasper hisses, even if the vigour in his tone has diminished a lot more than from earlier. Giving Time a sharp look, I silently motion for him to bridge the gap between them, to make up for all their terrible history.

"I'm sorry," he finally says. I let out a breath, grateful that he didn't allow his hesitation to become anymore obvious. "I regret everything that I did at that time. I was angry, wanting revenge for you taking my power. I shouldn't have reacted the way I did."

Jasper's expression is unreadable for a painfully long moment.

"Why are you coming to me about this now?" he questions, looking Time up and down, as if the sight of the immortal bothers him.

"Because I want to move on with my life. I want to move on with my mate, and finally be happy," Time admits, finally soften as he becomes more willing to let his dignity go to make amends with the Alpha. It makes me happy to know that despite all of this, Time really can be saved. "Even if I don't deserve it."

"I always held a grudge against you, Time. But now I'm tired. I think we both need to think about our mates, and nothing more," Jasper comments.

It's the one thing they have in common; mates. It's an understanding they can both come to, that they both feel strongly about. Jasper glances at me, his gaze softening, almost as if he is wishing that Thea, his mate is sitting here instead of me.

"Does that mean the air between us is cleared?" Time questions, trying not to sound desperate, but I can tell he wants nothing more than for this to be over.

"I suppose so," Jasper mutters with a sigh, violet eyes glittering. "I don't have room in my mind to hate you anymore. As long as you promise this will never happen to anyone else, ever again."

Time's expression settles into a gentle smile. "Never."

🤍••🤍

Hey guys! If you're enjoying the story, you can head over to Radish and read Time ahead of Wattpad!

🐇••🐇

I'm officially rewriting Alpha Jasper's story now on Radiah! It will be following the same storyline with the same characters, but with revised scenes and some new ones!

I love Jasper's story so much that I wanted to go back and rewrite it. I hope you guys will enjoy it, you can find it now on Radish (:

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~Midika 💜🐼