the soul searcher.

Hearing her brother compliment her, Haven smiled a little wider. "Thanks, Jazz" she exhaled, though the words hit her harder than she'd expected and a second later she was blinking back tears. She knew that this moment was a rarity and even though she didn't like to think that way, there would never be a part of her that regretted having her brother back in her life. She left it at that, only letting herself speak again at the question about dinner. "Depends on what you want." she smiled. "Though we should probably cook; I've already eaten out three times this week and Lake's diabetes will thank me if I make something on the healthier side." @jasperxsinclair

Jasper's expression softened as he watched his twin blink back tears. It wasn't the first time he had ever seen her do that. In a moment like this, he had to swallow hard to fight the bubbling of overwhelming emotions in his chest. At her question, his shoulders lifted into a shrug. "I'm not picky." Jasper had long learned to eat what was given to him and while he was in a lifestyle now that he didn't have to do that, it was almost second nature. "Whatever is good with me, honestly, Haves." He smiled faintly at her. "I'm happy to lend a hand in the kitchen too." @havenhawthorne

Jasper's laughter was a quiet huff at his brother's question. "Yeah, I guess that's what you're hearing." The younger Sinclair didn't feel like he spent much time at the rental home in Driftwood Haven and yet, was he really getting out? At Noah's recollection of him tending to Haven as kids, he dipped his gaze back to the table. "Yeah," he breathed the word, "always had to insist on being the one to do it, too." Mostly, because it was his twin. However, what caught him off guard was Noah saying that he thought he had always been good at tending to people. There was a large part of Jasper that didn't believe that was true. "How're things with you and my favorite niece?" @noahsinclaxr

"Most likely." she admitted, a puff of smoke escaping her lungs before she flicked the cigarette into the middle of the street where it conveniently landed in a puddle. Though as the last words escaped his lips she knew at this point he was just trying to get under her skin. "Fuck you." she groaned, rolling her eyes as she crossed her arms, clearly offended even if she knew he had a point. If there was anything Marin had learned in her time that people didn't stay, especially when she was involved. She didn't know what kind of hex was put on her when she was born, but whatever it was it sure as shit had worked. "I'll have you know I make an excellent care giver." she added, shifting so she was looking at him more directly now. "There's a reason the regulars at the bar used to tell me I'd have made an excellent nurse - if you take out all the bed side manner I was lacking but, that's not the point." @jasperxsinclair

Jasper wasn't phased by her profanity. They were two words she had flung at him often enough in the past. They didn't phase him then, either. They were simply words at this point. "Yeah, sure." He shook his head, not entirely believing her. "I'm going to head out because I can tell you that's not why they thought you'd make an excellent bed nurse." Jasper's gaze lingered on her, a moment longer than it should have. "See you around, Marin." Jasper stood up from the curb, not taking a second look back at her as he headed back into the bar to finish out his night. @marincole

Haven felt her breath catch in her throat as she heard her brother admit that he'd made their Mom's recipe. Cooking was something Haven had learned to enjoy through the years, but cooking their mother's recipes was something she rarely did. Not because she didn't want to, but because it hurt too much to do it even after all these years; not to mention Noah had more or less perfected it enough she'd leave it to him. Even something as simple as making a pitcher of a drink they'd all shared in their home back in Boston. "I'm sure it's just as good." she nodded enthusiastically, taking a seat. It took a second for his question to register, though she nodded, smile widening. "It took JJ a little longer than Jesse but they're both finally out." she nodded. "They'll be down for at least the next hour, gives us plenty of time to catch up." @jasperxsinclair

Jasper looked up as Noah came out with the pitcher and some glasses. His breath caught in his throat at the thought if it being their mother's recipe. He hadn't even attempted to do something of the likes because he knew that he would never be able to do it justice. Plus, he didn't feel like it was something he should attempt to do considering how he abandoned the family. "Thanks, Noah." He told his brother, listening to Haven as she spoke about getting the boys down. "How's wedding planning going, Noah?" @noahsinclaxr

"I mean, you're not getting any updates because there's really not nothin' for me to update you on." Jasper said with a shrug of his shoulders. Life for Jasper, since moving to Kismet Harbor, had become relatively mundane. "I mostly stick to myself if I'm not hanging around the two of you." He told Noah, "Work's been treating me good. I've got a few residents that are requesting me when I'm on shift, which is a good feeling." One that Jasper was trying to let in and not run from. @noahsinclaxr

"I still can't believe I'm a mom of three." she emphasized, exhaling as she looked over at her twin brother. She'd spent so much of her life looking up to both Jasper and Noah that sometimes she had a hard time accepting that she was a grown adult with her own responsibilities. Ones she adored and cherished, but there were days she had to remind herself she wasn't a teenager anymore. As she asked Jasper his stance though - digging deep into the soul of her brother - she found herself smiling at his words. "Uncle Jazzy is a great title for you." she smiled, knowing that not only did her own kids adore him but Ines as well, something that warmed Haven's heart as it had been a long time coming. Having Jasper back in their lives was never something she expected but something she was grateful for. "I know you'll handle it well." she nodded. "Whatever life throws at you." she admitted, clearing her throat before she let her gaze meet his again. "In case I haven't told you lately, it's good to have you back." @jasperxsinclair

"And a great mom, at that." Jasper assured, though he wasn't sure she needed it. It was obvious, at least to him, that she was a great mom. Haven had always been nurturing. "Yeah, I think it suits me." Jasper said with a huff of laughter, shaking his head after he spoke. The Uncle Jazzy person that he had become was not someone he expected to be, not ever. "Thanks, Haven." His cheeks grew warm with the words that she spoke to him. Part of him didn't think he deserved it, but he was learning to accept that was just part of the process for him. "It's good to be back." He smiled faintly in his sister's direction. "Are we cooking or ordering in tonight?" @havenhawthorne

At this point Marin had already shifted again, another cigarette pressed between her lips, flicker of a lighter as she lit it. Sure, she didn't need it, as she'd often been told by the older people in town, however, Marin wasn't someone that cared. She'd do what she wanted, and if these things 'sent her to an early grave' she wasn't so sure she cared. "I actually completely forgot about that." she smiled softly, attention shifting to Jasper as she exhaled the smoke from her lungs. "You probably don't care to know, but, one of those squirrels came back almost every day for months after they were rehabilitated." she admitted. "They stopped coming at some point, probably around the time they realized you were gone." she added the last part casually. Unneeded, sure, but, maybe she was feeling petty enough to make him realize how much that entire thing had hurt her even if she wouldn't say it out loud. "You know me. Menace in disguise." she admitted. "Exactly the kind of person to raise a cat that somehow is a bigger pain in the ass than I am. That's something I bet no one ever expected." @jasperxsinclair

Jasper almost let his guard down around Marin and just as he started, she said something that had his jaw tightening once more. He knew she was trying to pass it off like it was nothing, but he'd be a fool to miss it. "They probably just found something better to do." He added, though the words didn't carry as much weight behind them as hers had. "I wouldn't blame them." His gaze lingered on her for a second and then he shifted it back to the street ahead. It was barely illuminated by the streetlights, cigarette smoke filling his lungs from her smoking. "A menace in disguise?" His brow raised and he actually let out a soft chuckle. "That's something that most people had to have seen coming. But the cat? Well, that one might catch people by surprise. It did for me." @marincole

"It's the weirdest feeling, right?" Haven asked, taking the opportunity to snap a candid photo of her brother and her son, phone forgotten into her pocket as she looked back at him. "I birthed them and I still sometimes find myself feeling all teary eyed whenever they climb my leg like that." she paused, looking over to make sure JJ was content before she returned her attention to her brother. "He has to. Or Caleb." she shrugged, the foreign name of Lake's biological father slipping off her tongue. While the time Lake had spent with him had been short lived, the two had had a lot more similarities than she cared to admit sometimes. "Actually, take it back. Definitely got it from Noah." she laughed. She watched as she looked over at Jasper, eyes focusing on her brother, trying to take in all of his facial features. Almost as if she were trying to memorize his face in the off chance he disappeared out of her life again. "You think you'll just be Uncle Jazzy forever?" she questioned, referring to the nickname that their niece had given him. "Or do you think you'd ever want to be upgraded to a dad some day?" she questioned, eyes shifting for only a second. ""There are some days you remind me a lot of him, you know." she spoke. If the moment between them had been wholesome "No pressure, just curious on how you're feeling now that you've been back for a bit." @jasperxsinclair

Jasper glanced down at his nephew for a second, watching him cling. "Yeah, it is weird." Honestly, Jasper hadn't ever thought he'd get the chance to be around his family again. Not like this. Not integrated into their lives and spending time with their children. Laughter escaped his lips as Haven backtracked to saying that it definitely came from Noah and he nodded his head. "Yeah, definitely Noah." He agreed once more, a smile curling against the corners of his lips. "Uncle Jazzy is a pretty good title if you ask me." It was one that he'd loved from the first moment he heard it, only because it meant he was being accepted into the family. Her question, however, had caught him off guard. He exhaled slowly, through his nose. At first, he let his gaze drift away while he thought briefly about his answer. "I don't know. I'm not there, yet. Not even close." Jasper admitted, knowing he didn't have to fear judgement from Haven. "I'm good where I'm at for the moment. If that ever changes, I'll deal with it when I get there." @havenhawthorne

Jasper's attention was caught by that of the sound of older brother's. He hadn't expected to run into someone he knew in the ice cream shop, but he wasn't upset by the surprise run-in with his brother. "Yeah, somethin' like that." He muttered back to Noah. He stepped closer, taking the spoon that was offered out to him. Jasper eyed the ice cream for a beat, like he was still deciding. He stuck the spoon in it, to get a bite before plopping it into his mouth. "So are you offering this to be nice or just so you don't have to eat alone?" He chuckled, eyeing his brother with a playful glint. @noahsinclaxr

"You say that like I don't have my own fair share of keeping someone alive." she stated, shaking her head. No, to an extent Marin would agree there wasn't a bone in her body that was very motherly. Nor was she someone she'd even consider caring for most people. But, something about the cat - and animals in general - had always had a soft spot in her heart, and she certainly wasn't going to leave that cat in the storm drain alone. She'd become Marin's little companion in the last few months; to say the least. "You'd be probably less shocked to know that she's more of a menace than I am. You're really missing out." @jasperxsinclair

"You're right." Jasper grumbled the words, hating to admit that it were the case. "We did have to bottle feed those squirrels that were abandoned behind the bar that one time." The memory flashed behind his eyes, one he thought he had long forgotten. "Hm." Jasper didn't didn't lift his brows in surprise at her words. "It sounds like she learned from the best and then surpassed you just to be a shit." He stilled for a moment, "Sounds like somethin' you'd do anyway." His shoulders shifted like he was settling into the moment finally. @marincole

"I just feel so---so alone and everyone is moving on w---with their lives and am---am here still recovering an----and I know peo----people are tried of me----being like this, still re---re--ecovering and stuff." he sighed his voice breaking. @jasperxsinclair

Orion's words were messy, uneven and Jasper stood in front of him with a quiet patience, to the best of his ability. "I don't think that makes you a failure." Jasper finally said after Orion finished. "Shit catches up to people all the time." He knew that well and then he was shaking his head. "I don't think those people are tired of you." Not that Jasper could say he knew them, "That's the fucked up shit your mind is trying to convince you of." He tapped the side of his temple with a finger. "Feeling alone is not the same thing as being alone." Jasper went on, feeling himself repeating things he was once told. "Just means that tonight is hitting harder than usual." @orionxblakewood

Jasper nodded his head. While he wasn't the type of person to relate life with surfing analogies, he understood where the bartender was coming from. "Yeah, that's right." He agreed with a nod of his head. Jasper rubbed his hands against his jeans absentmindedly. "Got to get back to it." He added, "Great chattin' with you." Jasper added, finding that Kismet Harbor was in fact rubbing off him in general. He'd become a bit softer in the year that he'd been living there. @daxtonxhays