Hope

The longer Jackson stood with Hope the more at ease he felt about everything. He was so worried the other shifter would still feel as wary about her other side as she had before but the smile on her face told him otherwise. He knew in that moment that he wasn’t the failure he believed himself to be. Jackson was helping her, but in it’s own way this whole situation had helped him too. It was teaching him to put value in himself and see himself in a more positive light. His smile grew at the mention of needing him to help. “ Well I’m happy to be that person” Jackson added. 

His own declaration of his feelings being reciprocated by Hope was something he truly had expected less than being a genuine help. He kept to himself a lot and tried not to get involved out of fear of losing more, but when he met Hope he realized how much he was missing by not getting to know others.  She was helping him in so many ways as well. “ Have you?” He asked at hearing her own admission. His smile grew a bit bigger before he felt himself grow a bit nervous. “ So if I asked if I could kiss you, would that be okay?”

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Hope could feel her cheek getting hot, she never told someone how she felt before, in fact she never had a crush on anyone before, Hope used to have a boyfriend in high school, mostly because the guy asked her out and her friends started to tell her how lucky she was that he was interested in her, and Hope felt that if she said no, she would lose most of her friends, Hope spend time with him because it was the perfect excuse to stay away from her father, however this was different, since the first time Jackson went to the diner, and she brought him a plate filled with pancakes, there was something about him, she found herself looking at him, and even thinking about him when he wasn’t around.

 She smiled at his words, he was always so sweet, Hope was surprised that most people didn’t see this side of him. “That would be more than okay.” Her heart was beating faster, and she felt more nervous now than when they shifted, but all that she could think was how far he was from her and how much she wanted that distance to go away.

Jackson felt as though for once something was going the right way in his life. He had messed up so much in his past that he was genuinely surprised that something involving him hadn’t blown up in his face. He had been so nervous at first about the situation, even when he had shifted back he was scared that he wasn’t going to be able to help Hope at all. Seeing her expression though made him realize that perhaps he was doing something right in his life. 

He wrapped his arms round her with an easy smile on his face as soon as she ran to him. “No, that was all you Hope!” Jackson mused with a smile. Those butterflies that seemed to always appear whenever he was around Hope seemed to come flooding back at hearing her words. At first he was trying to stick to himself and hide from others, but the longer he spent on the island the more he realized just how connecting with others was important to him. He couldn’t shut himself off from the world. “You’re not stupid, you’re amazing. You just needed some support” He added before pulling away a moment to really look at Hope. “ I like you Hope. Like keep wanting to make excuses to see you at the diner, like you”

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Hope was over the moon, shifting wasn’t scary as she thought it would be, it felt like accepting a part of herself that was always there, maybe he was right, maybe all she needed was support, it might be a simple little word, but it wasn’t something easy to find, her mother that was a shifter, wasn’t around to explain how this worked, and her father was happy to call her a demon for it, no one else in the town she grew up seemed to be a shifter as well, so hope didn’t want him to sell himself short, he was more important than he realized, Hope shook her head and smiled at him. “I just needed you.”

“Good because I like you too, Jackson. Like, keep getting extra hours at the diner to be there when you’re, like you.” It was almost embarrassing to admit that out loud, she even worked on her days offs because there was a small possibility that he might be in the mood for pancakes. 

The blonde in front of him was someone Kane would usually hit on in a heartbeat, but considering the whole situation he was in he neither had the energy or for once will to do so. Cami was all that mattered at the moment, and even though her doctors were saying she could go home in a day or two he couldn’t stop worrying. A concussion could only be the beginning to some pretty serious head injuries that might develop as a result and while the percentile might be small he knew he wouldn’t stop worrying until she was back to normal. Food? He bit back a sigh and shrugged. “I guess. A burger or something?” he asked, not even glancing at the menu. The idea of scanning it for anything being more than he felt like he was up for. 

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Hope looked at him, giving him a sad smile. “If I bring you a burger, are you actually going to eat it?” she knew she was overstepping, he was a complete strange after all and a costumer, however she wasn’t trying to be rude, she was concerned. Stepping away, Hope grabbed a Gatorade before making her way back and giving him the drink, she would gladly bring him real food if he was going to eat, but liquids was better than nothing. “I know it is not of my business, but whoever you’re worried about it, I’m sure it would be worried about you too. And you need to be at your best, or they will be angry at you.”

West was a simple merman. He didn’t need a lot of make him feel joy. Ice-cream was going to go on his list of human things he liked next to skateboards. “Well I know what I like. And this is one of the best things I’ve ever had. Where I’m from, originally, we don’t have things like this.”” He savored the flavor on the tiny spoon while he waited for his bowl. He followed her after getting his own bowl to a table, taking spoonfuls with each step. “Yeah, I’m West. Thanks for showing me this place. I haven’t had a chance to look around the island since I got here. I have sort of been sticking to one area.” His bowl was almost finished. “I know I’m going to be coming here a lot.”

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Hope tilted her head. “You don’t have ice cream?” She asked confused it, sure she understood something wrong, from where she was from they didn’t have all this different flavors, it was basically chocolate, vanilla and strawberry, but she couldn’t imagine a place where they wouldn’t have ice cream. “What you like? Maybe I can suggest other places you might enjoy.” Hope had been exploring the island since she arrived it, it was the perfect excuse to avoid shifting after all.

In so many ways Jackson was starved for human contact. He had began to withdraw from society for a number of years and it only got worse when he had been the cause of his sisters death. Being around so many people again was a little hard for Jackson to deal with, because he wanted nothing more than to be the way he once was, but he didn’t know how. Instead of doing anything, Jackson smiled softly at Hope as she moved his messy hair out of his face. 

“ You didn’t get hurt at all did you?” The shifter asked as his brown eyes softened while scanning her features. He had been burned in the initial attack but things had quickly changed once he had been healed. “ You kept it?” He asked as his expression changed into another soft smile. “ Is he? I can’t believe he’s better at flirting with you than I am” Jackson teased, before realizing what he had said. He cleared his throat, knowing he couldn’t backtrack on the fact he had been flirting with Hope lately. 

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“I did.” Hope said, getting hurt wasn’t something unusual for her, so for her, it truly wasn’t a big deal. “I hit my head and lost all the action. Woke up a day later in the hospital, already healed up.” What she truly hated was that she was useless during the attack, if Hope was awake she could have tried to help others, instead she was the one that needed help.

“Of course I did, he was a gift.” A gift from you, but she decided not to say that part out loud, not wanting to make a fool of herself, with his next words Hope smiled it, she could feel her heart beating faster, maybe she wasn’t such a fool as she previously thought. “I don’t think he’s better.” She said looking at him, maybe the bear was better than both of them at flirting if he didn’t realize she was doing the same thing. “After all, I don’t give free pancakes for everyone, and I did invite you to shift with me.” She did need help, but it was also the perfect excuse to spend time with him.

He smiled back. He was trying to be more ‘friendly’ with the people here. If he was going to staying on this island for a while, he might as well get to know some of the locals. “Was that a smooth way to ask?  I’m sort of new at this sort of thing.” He joked around, mostly. Making friends wasn’t his best skill. He was learning something new everyday while up on the surface.  West followed her to the shop. It was nice to get a quick guide around. He hadn’t had a chance yet. He had to remember about this free ice cream samples for the future. “So basically unlimited free ice cream. That’s interesting.” Seeing all the options in front of him, he was a bit overwhelmed. “That’s a lot of ice cream.” He didn’t know where to start so he was grateful she started first. West took his tiny spoon and popped in his mouth. His face explored with delight. “Mmmmh. That’s amazing. You said that was salted caramel? I’ll take a bowl of that.” He knew there were other flavors but right now he was set on this one.

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“Very.” Hope answered, smiling it, inviting people to join her was almost her specialty, things were better when you did them with friends, if she had to work on something was doing things alone. “Yes, just don’t be a jerk about it.” She told him. “If there’s a line and a lot of people waiting, then you try 3 instead of 10.” By his words Hope was pretty sure they were going to stay in the for a while, since the place was empty he could ask for 20, 30 samples, it would be the perfect time to try most of the ice creams they had, and she was going to join him on this sample party, so she was surprised when he already made up his mind. “That was fast, I’m glad you liked it.” Hope said. “I will want a bowl of that one as well.” Getting the ice cream, she went to one of the tables nearby. “I’m Hope by the way.” she introduced herself to her ice cream friend.

As Jackson became aware of his surroundings, he remembered that he had fallen asleep in the diner. He had spent a few days working too hard and wanted to see Hope again. He never got to finish their conversation and he had been worried about her as soon as the chaos had hit the island. It was safe to say the shifter was fond of the other. 

“Hope, hi’ Jackson replied with a half smile as he realized how ridiculous he must have looked. He moved his hair out of his face feeling a sense of relief, knowing she looked like she had made it out of things okay. “ I can never say no to these” He noted before looking back at Hope. “ Sit down with me for a second?’

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Hope observed him as he tried to fix his hair, he looked so peacefully sleeping in the table that she felt bad that he had woken up with the sudden noise, without thinking she moved her hand closer to him, moving a lock of hair that was still out of place to where it was supposed to be. Realizing what she did, Hope moved her hand and gave a step behind, she was about to think of an excuse to why she needed to be in the kitchen when he asked her to stay.

Hope nodded and sat across from him, their conversation felt like it had been so long ago, her problems felt insignificant compare to what was happening now. “I’m glad to see you’re okay.” She spoke. “The bear you gave me almost didn’t survive.” Fur and fire wasn’t exactly a good combination, “His missing an eye, an arm and a leg. “ but she still kept it in her room like a treasure. “Every morning when I wake up, he’s flirting and winking at me.” She joked it, but waking up and looking at the bear did made her smile.

Cassian smiled over at her, impressed by how she’d managed to keep a smile even after being verbally assaulted. “Oh, yeah. I’m sure that’d be very ugly indeed.” He chuckled, glancing over to see the vampire shrinking in the distance. “Brings a whole new meaning to the word ‘hangry’.” 

He glanced back at her when she asked her question, and he’d admit it caught him off guard a little bit. “Oh, I’m not sure. People are working pretty diligently on it so I’m sure it’ll be up and running soon. Why? Anxious to get off the island?” A small smirk tugged on the vampire’s lips. 

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She chuckled as well, now she was feeling better, almost like the yelling never happened, it would be a little harder to forget if the guy had managed to slap her, so she was glad he appeared when he did.

“No, I have nothing there waiting for me.” She told him, coming to the island had been the correct decision, even with the attacks and all, it was still better than the world outside. “I know everyone is working extra hard and things are special tough on vampires. Just wondering when everything will be back to normal.” The island normal at least. “How about you? Are you rethinking your choice of staying on the island?”

He didn’t know if he would agree to that. He had swam in the some of the deepest waters in the world, and he mind the cold. The one thing he did have to worry about is the sun up on the surface. He learned quickly that the longer he was in the sun, the worst he felt. West looked at the shop. He had heard of ice-cream before. Unfortunately, he hadn’t gotten a chance to have some. “Ice-cream,” He paused nodding at the idea of getting some. But how embarrassing would it be to admit to never having some. “yeah that sounds really good.” He got an an idea that could save him. “I think if I had someone to join me, it might be even better. I would never know which ice cream to choose from without some help. There are way too many.”

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Hope smiled it. “If that was an invitation for me to join you, I will gladly accept it.” She said standing up, now she had talked about ice cream, she was already thinking of getting one anyway, the day was hot, and it would be a good way to kill some time, however he was right, having ice cream with someone else was always nicer than going alone. “If you’re not sure of what you want, you can always ask for a sample.” Hope suggested, a lot of people were embarrassed to ask for that, and she knew not to ask for them when there was a line, but the shop was empty, so she doubted they would mind giving a few samples away. Making her way to the shop, she looked at all the different flavors, Hope always tried to ask for something different. “Can I try the salted caramel?” She asked, and the woman placed a little in two spoons for both of them to try. “What you think?” She asked him, wondered what he liked it.

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Chandler nodded as she explained she was heading home from work. She even said the name of her workplace, which was a good sign he hadn’t creeped her out by asking in the first place. “Ah, yes, volunteering. How did this island come about again? Oh yeah, trillionaire vampires. They definitely can’t afford to pay people for their labor.” It was a nice thing that the Paradisians(? Unlike Minnesotans, he hadn’t really heard a word used to describe people from here) were offering to do. The camaraderie and refusal to back down against hunters were inspirational. But Chandler was far too cynical to buy into it himself. “Well….we’re standing outside a bar so I think you know what I’m doing right now.”

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Hope knew that technically he was right, but still she thought that the fact the island came together because they were looking after each other instead of the offer of money something wonderful, her own father would sell her for a dollar if someone offered,  so being in a place where people put each other first felt inspiring. “Right...”  Hope answered. “Well, enjoy your night at the bar, I won’t take more of your time.” 

In that moment where the woman tried to find her words, Cassian’s brows knit together in slight concern and confusion. Perhaps he was a little concerned that the other vampire had glamoured her into permanent silence, or that he himself was just that terrifying even when he tried to help. He wouldn’t blame her if that was the case, but the ghost of the thought couldn’t help but tug at the back of his mind for a moment.

“Right, well, there’s a time and a place to be an asshole. This, obviously, isn’t one of them. Couldn’t have him giving us a bad name.” He gave her a small smile, anything to lighten the mood at least a little. That’s one part he’d come to hate about historic and traumatizing events like these, the air tended to feel so thick and heavy he thought everyone might drown.

He looked down at her outstretched hand, bag of blood in her grasp. He frowned gently as his stomach panged with hunger, and he released a soft chuckle, the accent he’d subconsciously adopted from his decades in England a little thicker as he said,  “It’s my turn to thank you, darling.” He took the bag from her, weighing it in his hand as his eyes returned to her face. “Your kindness won’t be forgotten. Again, I’m sorry that asshole caused such a scene.”

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Hope never had a problem with vampires before, most of them were always nice to her when they came to the dinner, they were always in a good mood and like to joke around, so a vampire that was the double her size yelling at her face, truly made an impact, but she wasn’t going to blame all the vampires for one that was having a bad day, everyone was a little stressed after the attack.

“Is okay. Most aren’t exactly happy with the rations, and I would hate to see him when he’s starving.” She said, trying to make a small joke, she had heard that vampires lost their heads when they were hungry, but she wasn’t sure if it was true or just a rumor.

“Is okay, he’s not the first person to yell at me, and he won’t be the last.” Which might be a bad thing to admit out loud, but it was true. “Do you have any idea when the docks will be ready again?” She asked him, trying to make small talk

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Chandler took the object from the blonde and quickly lit his cigarette. He took a drag from it, exhaling slowly before he looked back at her. “Thanks, man.” He said, passing her the lighter again. He took a second to actually look at her…she wasn’t really dressed up for a night at the bars. “What are you doing out so late?” He asked, then frowned slightly. Yeah, great question for a strange dude to ask a girl he had just met outside a bar. He shook his head. “You don’t have to answer that. I’m just trying to make conversation.”

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Hoped grabbed the lighter back and threw it back in her purse, it wasn’t like she was going to need it again tonight, so it could get lost again. His question took her off guard again, but she tried to remember most people around the island were just friendly, so it was okay. “I just ended my shift at the daybreak, I normally work way later than this, but most people are volunteering, so the movement is weaker.” It was a little weird to go home this early, maybe she should go for a walk or something. “How about you?” She returned the question.