Chapter 551) Here Kitty

“Nothing in the world is single;
All things by a law divine
In one spirit meet and mingle.
Why not I with thine?—
And the sunlight clasps the earth
And the moonbeams kiss the sea:
What is all this sweet work worth
If thou kiss not me?”
~P.B. SHELLEY

Mount Komorebi City
Senbamachi Region 

Turning back to Iris as they walked away from the snack stand, Jasper’s polite, but fake smile faded when he leaned in.

“What did he say?”

“Said you have a nice ass.” Iris told him.

“WHAT?! That’s a dude and I am a dude and clearly here with a girl, so clearly I don’t swing that way! Daheck’s wrong with him?!”

Jasper’s facial expression changed as he glared at her, then looked backward, where the stand attendant smiled and waved at him, as Jasper stared back at Iris.

“Wait, so what did you say?”

“Gave him your number.”

Jasper’s wide-eyed stare made it impossible for Iris to keep up the charades, she burst into laughter and started running, which was when Jasper caught on that he had been had, and he took off after her.

Finally, he caught up with her, grabbed her and tickled her till she begged for mercy.

“You lil beast! What did he REALLY say?”

“How am I supposed to know? I don’t speak Komorebian either, you know that!” she laughed.

“You said you took classes.”

“I said I took ONE class, which was about 5 minutes of online learning until I got bored. For what it’s worth, I think you have a nice ass.” she giggled.

“Glad to hear that, cos you can kiss it. Where are we?” Jasper looked around.

“I have no clue. Generally speaking, we are in Komorebi, more specifically we are lost in Mt. Komorebi. Haven’t we been here before? With the tour guide? Looks familiar. Then again, somehow, everything looks the same when you’re lost.” Iris shrugged, looking around also.

“How would I know? I wasn’t paying attention to her words or the environment, I was staring at her tits.” Jasper told her plainly.

“Duude!” Iris shoved him and turned.

“Hey, I tried to flirt with you, and you went full on bitch on me, so I am shopping around. A guy’s got needs.” Jasper tried not to openly grin.

“Oh, shopping around for need fulfillment, are we now, huh? Didn’t know THAT was what we were here for. Good to know, guess I’ll start shopping too. Those Komorebian men are hella cute!” Iris told him.

“Yeah, sure, you can go find yourself a local fuck boi then, while I go get signed up for the mountain climbing. That’s what I came here for, sex and adventure. So, I am not leaving here till I scaled that big bitch over there. And also the mountain.”

“You are such a dung beetle! I don’t know why I bother with you!” Iris turned and started walking back the way they had come.

“Cos you’re a bitch and nobody else can stand being around you.” Jasper told her, following her.

Mount Komorebi
Yukimatsu Region
Jasper and Iris Vacation Rental

By the time they had found the way back to their rental place, they had barely talked.
Once inside, she suddenly turned to him.

“Are you really gonna go out looking to get laid?”

“Why you think I am here? Heard those Komorebian chicks are next level in the sack. Time for me to collect some experiences. I will give you my honest review.” he grinned; clearly aware he was pushing her buttons.
Fully intentional, mind you. It’s what they had always done, since they were kids. Bri had always been the gentle, sweet, cuddly one of the twins, the quick-witted dreamer who would know how to manipulate anyone, Iris the brave and adventurous one with a no-nonsense attitude, short fuse and dry, sarcastic sense of humor, the one Jasper bickered with and play-wrestled and was competitive with. And the one he ultimately fell in love with.

What he didn’t expect was her eyes welling up, a sudden turn and for her to run up the stairs and disappear in her room, slamming doors and all, as he followed her, he heard the key turn in the lock.

“What just happened?! Iris? Hey, what is this about now? It was a joke. Come on, girl, where’s your sense of humor?! You know I am ripe for the taking, if you really wanted me, all you have to do is say so. I tried, many times, since Sulani, but you shut me down all the time. How am I supposed to take that? Iris?” he called through the door, knocking.

He kept trying and was relieved when he finally heard the door being unlocked, but every tiny hope she’d greet him in lingerie – or less – was busted when she was in full ski gear.

“Excuse me, I am gonna go hit the slopes.” she said, pushing him out of the way.

All Jasper could do was watch her leave. He was too flabbergasted to even try to stop her.

“Dafuq?!” he said out aloud as watched her walk off towards the nearby ski lifts from the front door of their rental.

He let out a sigh of frustration, then decided to put on his ski gear and go after her, unfortunately, even after almost two hours of looking all over the slopes, he soon realized he didn’t have the proverbial snowball’s chance in hell of finding her. Just too much ground to cover and she could be anywhere. Literally. Maybe she left the slopes to have a hot drink somewhere, there were countless little places for that around.

He went back home, waited and waited, sent her a bunch of texts, which he could see she read, but responded to none, so he called her and was clicked away.

It really upset him, fuming, feeling rejected, he got dressed up and went out looking for a place to dance away his frustrations. Ever since they first discovered they liked each other as more than just friends they had tried and failed so many times to level up. Something ALWAYS came up, and while they loved spending time together, had a lot of similar interests and world views, had kissed and made out their fair share by now, somehow, they just couldn’t seem to further it.

Komorebi City
Wakaba Area
Hazakura Lounge

Dancing his soul out, Jasper just started dancing with some girls who kept smiling at and flirting with him, so he flirted back, making them squeal and giggle with his moves.

Eventually one of the girls and he ended up outside in the dark alley outside the club, making out. Jasper barely said anything, she babbled nervously in between kisses, kept slipping back into Komorebian, even though she spoke perfect English, and she was gorgeous, but Jasper suddenly froze up when she handed him a key.

“My house, this way.” she said sweetly.

“Oh wow! Umm, thank you SO much, but no! I am …. I gotta go. Sorry. You’re beautiful. Stunning. Ummm … bijin – at least I think that was the word, hope that was the right word for beautiful and I didn’t accidentally insult you now.” he told her, then almost literally ran off.

Walking the streets, never really dark, but always noisy and bustling despite the late hour, he felt down, and the same old questions kept surfacing. Wasn’t it just better this way? Did the world really need another kid of Chase and Hailey’s dating another kid of Colton and Maddie’s?

Probably not, that had been done before by Connor and Keira and felt like a novelty concept now. A repeat would bear the aftertaste of it being a lame attempt to remake a successful show.

Not to mention Bri’s reaction when he had come to her for help while being chased by Sulani police and the frog-monger dude, when Jackson got suspicious of them pretending to be a couple, and Bri dismissed his worries by telling him “don’t be silly, Jasper’s practically my brother’. That last word echoed back in his head. Brother. Brother.

Was that what was holding Iris back too? Did he feel too much like a brother to her? Odd, cos when Jasper looked at Iris, he saw a beautiful girl, lips he enjoyed kissing, and her body felt so right in his hands, there was nothing sisterly about it for him. He barely ever as much as hugged his own sister and definitely never once thought about Keira the way he thinks about Iris. Eww.

He felt his phone buzz in his pocket, pulled it out and cursed when he saw he had 14 missed calls and 17 missed messages by Iris.

Rather than filter through it all he called her, when she picked up, her voice sounded occupied, as if she had been crying.

“Iris, you okay?” Jasper asked, alarmed.

“Where are you?” she sniffled, clearly crying.

“I don’t know. Out. Somewhere. Where are you? What’s wrong? Are you hurt?” he asked.

“I am home. I mean, at the rental. I thought you were hurt. Or with someone else. It’s dark.” she sniffled, then he heard her choke up and sob.

“Iris! No, don’t cry! I am coming home. I am on my way. Be there shortly!” he told her.

“Why did you leave?” she sniffled.

“Cos you left!” he told her.

“I thought you’d come too!” Iris pouted, still sniffling.

“Well, you didn’t seem to want me to. Of course I did anyway, but I couldn’t find you.” Jasper told her honestly.

“I don’t know what I want!” she sniffled hard.

“No shit!” he huffed.

“Are you mad at me?” her voice sounded so vulnerable, it broke his heart.

“No. Of course not! Why would I be?” Jasper didn’t even have to act confused; he was. Very much so. He could handle bitchy Iris, but was at a loss with vulnerable Iris.

“I don’t know.” she sobbed harder and her next words were unintelligible.

“Iris, chill! I don’t know what’s happening here, but I am on my way home. I can’t fly, so keep your panties on.” he told her, then had to chuckle at the fact that in reality, he’d prefer them off, but felt it wasn’t the time for a joke.

“You’re an ass, you know that?!” she sobbed.

“I am well aware. What did I do now to deserve hearing it again?”

“I heard you giggle. I KNOW what you were thinking! Pervert!” Iris sounded more like herself again.

“Men don’t giggle, Iris, at best we chuckle. And if you really knew what I was thinking half the time, I’d be dead already. Plus, no thinking required, I TOLD you I’d love to see those panties come off, playing with open cards here. No perversion, just honesty.”

“Did you have sex?” she managed to shock him a little with her bluntness.

“I wish. You?” he retorted.

“Of course not. As if.” she groaned as it that was the silliest thing to think.

Mount Komorebi
Yukimatsu Region
Jasper and Iris Vacation Rental

He was now unlocking the cabin door. Everything was dark inside, so he rolled his eyes, flipping on the lights.

“I am home. Where are you hiding? Everything’s dark up in this bitch and I am not a bat.”

“My room.”

“You coming out?”

“No. I cried. I don’t want you to see me like that. So, you can come in, but no lights.”

“Oh, for fuck’s sake, Iris, you are killing me! Fine, I am coming up!” he told her, hung up the phone, ran up the stairs to her room and tried the door handle. Locked. He groaned for frustration and banged on the door.

He was just about to yell through it when he heard the key turn, but it remained shut, so he opened it, stepped inside, shut it again, leaning against her door.

“Since when do we lock doors now? We have NEVER done that, unless it was the crapper. Were you shitting in here, woman or what gives?! I know you can’t really see me, but this isn’t my amused-face!” he ranted.

His eyes had to adjust to the darkness, until he made out her silhouette. Somehow everything felt different now, his heart began to pound hard, different feelings emerged. He didn’t know what to do with all that, so he did what he always did in such cases, made a joke.

“So, is this how I am gonna die? Some weird game of hide-and-seek with the crazy girl I pissed off somehow by just living my life?” he heard himself say in a voice that sounded too rough, too husky to be his own.

She didn’t respond, he felt her near him more than he could see her, he smelled her signature perfume, a fragrance heavier and darker than the floral scents Bri liked to wear and lightyears away from Jasper’s ex-girlfriend’s sickeningly intensely sweet body sprays.

He felt her hand on his waist, and it sent a jolt of electricity through him, waking up his manly side, right as she brushed up against him, her hips hitting him right where the stirring in his pants occurred, so he knew she had to feel it. Oddly, it didn’t deter her, instead she wrapped her arms around him and leaned into him, so almost in a reflex, he folded his arms around her.

“Thanks for coming home. I was going crazy without you, imagining you with another girl. I don’t want that, Jas. I want you to myself. I missed you. I need you. Stay with me. Please.” her vulnerability, the unusual softness of her voice and words felt strange to Jasper, bringing out his protective side.

He kissed her, gently, she returned his kisses, but more demanding. This was when it dawned on him it this was happening. Now. Tonight. Here. Showtime.

And then it all just progressed as if following a script for a very intimate movie. She pulled off his coat, his shirt, he reached for her right as she pushed herself up against him and he felt she was naked aside from some tiny pieces of lace underwear. Inhaling air sharply, he had to fight the surprise before passion took him over. Somehow they ended up on the bed.

This was the prelude to what would become the night they both had been waiting for, longing for, trying to get to. The night it finally happened.

Lying next to each other in the dark, recovering after the passionate moments had reached their peak, Iris broke the silence first.

“No way back anymore. It happened. It’s done. Finally. And – WOW. Feels so surreal. I literally feel like a different person.” she said, her tone gentle, her voice soft.

“Thanks for the analysis of events. Yeah, finally and I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to go back. I like us right here where we are. No buyer’s remorse whatsoever.” he said, then felt her hand slip into his.

“Me neither. That was more than I ever imagined. The missing piece. I was so afraid it would be like it used to be with Sterling, something always felt off, missing, but this was so different. Complete. Perfect. Jas, I love you.”

He looked at her, relieved, as he had been wondering if it was the right moment or if saying it would ruin it.

“Love you too, Iris. And thanks for the rave review, straight back at ya. You really are a firecracker in every sense of the way, but who knew you could also be so sweet and gentle.”

“I guess now we know. I mean, where we stand.”

“Now we know.”

“I am sorry I was being a bitch earlier. I was about to crawl out of my skin, feeling so strange, not sure what to do or say anymore.”

“I didn’t notice a difference.” he said, chuckling, receiving the expected slap, which sounded painful on his bare skin, even though it wasn’t. She hit him a lot, and it always seemed worse to others than it really was, she had always been gentle with him. Secretly. They playwrestled for a second.

She looked at him, her eyes reading in his.

“I didn’t mean it. I couldn’t help feeling totally off today, it was worse than ever, that’s why I had to get away. If I had stayed, I would have started a fight or something or maybe I would have just raped you, somehow, cos I had to know. I HAD to know.” Iris reaffirmed.

“Works for me, I was hoping to get laid tonight by any means necessary and here we are. Is this your version of sexy talk? Are we ringing in round two?” he snickered, still cracking jokes as he didn’t know how to handle the new situation either.

Iris was about to respond as usual, clearly, he was pushing her buttons on purpose, but instead she just smiled. Gently, tenderly.

“I know what you are doing, Jas. You don’t have to. It’s not awkward. This feels perfect. I should have known. It was you all along. It was always you. I think I only dated Sterling because I was so frustrated after you moved away. I knew it would be rough without you, but man, I had no idea what a huge a part of my life you already are. I seriously had moments where I screamed hatred for your mom into my pillow and underwater in a bath, I love Maddie, she’s like a bonus mom, but I literally hated her sometimes for moving you guys away. Couldn’t she have waited till you’re in college?” Iris sighed, her words went down like honey for Jasper.

“Tell me about it. It was rough for me too, losing you and Bri, but I was also the new kid in the new town, among all those pretentious kids our age. Bruh, I am not subtle or shy, but that was a seriously reality check for my confidence.”

“Okay, now here’s the real struggle: you still live in DSV and I still live in the Bay. Thaaaat is a problem.” Iris sighed

“Nope, cos come Fall, we are both living in Britchester. Your grandpa okayed me living at the Cameron campus house, even though I am not related. So, we get to be quasi-married for 4 years.” Jasper said.

“Some quasi-marriage, with two other people living with us, not to mention we’ll have separate rooms on campus.” Iris frowned.

“Which come with doors, like we managed to get into this room by here tonight. I have faith we will be able to manage the dorm house doors too.” Jasper shrugged.

“Yeah, but what after? I don’t know if I want to move to DSV. I like the Bay. But it has Sterling Covington. Ugh. Then again, DSV has your ex. Even more UGH.”

“You should look at a map, it will shock you how big DSV really is, and wait till you realize a lot more people than just the ones we know actually live there. In other words, chances of us running into Oakley may not be zero but are pretty slim. Besides, I gotta go back there after college, just so much easier being local to start my acting career. My parents seem to think me going to college will open doors, I mean, having a degree will be nice, but in reality I need to have the right charisma, find and nail auditions cos waving a degree is only gonna get me laughed at. Maybe I can move elsewhere once I am established, like Blake and his entire family did, they are all still relevant in acting, but spend their time laying around beaches and working on their tans until they have to show up for a shoot, but I need some time to show what I got, proof myself, until people start calling me the next Chris Hemsworth, but better in every which way. You can be my personal lawyer, on permanent retainer. For any and all services you are willing to provide.” he grinned at her, knowing she couldn’t help but react. And she took the bait.

“Umm, misogynistic much? I want my own career, thank you very much. I don’t really care where that will be, but it’s gonna be in my own name not as the latest box office hit’s legal clean-up crew like Jenson Camore has been for my DSV family since his former boss, Uncle Liam, moved back to San Myshuno. I mean, good for him, he will never hurt for work, but nobody really knows his name as a lawyer in his own right, and his son is following in his footsteps, my cousin Cai told me he’s in the same classes as I am. That is not for me, I want to win some big, notorious cases and get my own name out there. So, you can be my personal entertainment, Jas. Dance, monkey, dance.” she shot back.

“Girl, if you make enough money to afford me, I’ll be your trophy husband in a heartbeat. Fuck the movie career, I just want the cash and the luxury and the fancy parties.” he snickered.

“Husband. Right. Another problem: I don’t want to give up my Cameron name for some random bullshit, and no offense, but I really don’t want to be just another one of those somebody’s Mrs. But I want to be an attorney, so my name is going to be on a lot of things, hopefully one day my own law firm, so it has to be good and something meaningful, special. And changing my name the second the ball and chain are on is just so lame and pedestrian. Hmm …” Iris sighed.

“Yo, woman! We’re not even out to everyone as officially dating, we literally just boinked for the very first time ever, FINALLY, and not for lack of trying, yet here you are breaking out your wedding scrapbook, planning our married name and picking out the curtains!? We are still only 18, Iris! Seriously! Hit the brakes, Kathy Bates! Now I am REALLY scared of your special kind of crazy. You are SO disturbed, woman! But since it already came up, joking aside now, there’s something I have been meaning to talk to you about, I wasn’t sure how to weave it into the conversation until now. I mean, I get it, I am only a Hargrave because my grandpa Riordan was sick and tired of that whole Vannucci stigma and took Grandma’s name when they married otherwise you’d be a future Mrs. Vannucci. Personally, I thank Grandma and Grandma, cos I think Jasper Hargrave has a real ring to it, much better than Vannucci, I can imagine Jasper Hargrave on movie posters and theater marquees for my future film career. So, try that on for size for a sec. Iris Marie Hargrave, that sounds like you could win any case – while looking hot – in a good way.”

“Seriously? That’s gonna be tough, but I guess your dad picked a good time since he and my dad are about to disband and instead of retiring, as planned, both are looking into solo careers. It’s gonna be so weird though, all my life you have been Jasper Vannucci, but I have to admit, I am not hating the idea. Jasper Hargrave DOES sound really good, and Iris Marie Hargrave isn’t shabby at all, sounds fancy and would look great on the outside of my very own law firm, Hargrave Law, LLP, oh yeah, me likey! And no, you weirdo, I am not talking about getting hitched next week, DUH! I am doing college first, at best you can be my boyfriend, but that is IT! I am just planning ahead. Just mapping out all eventualities.”

“But since when does an Iris Marie Cameron by any potential future last name dream about weddings?! I would have expected this maybe from your sister, Bri’s always been the all-in kinda hopeless romantic, but never in a million years would I have thought an Iris Marie Cameron would go straight into nest-building mode the minute I nailed her. I must really be amazing in the sack to make such an impression on you. I am gonna take a shower now, and start drinking heavily, cos I realized I am in love with a total psycho. Can’t wait to have my legs broken so I can’t run away, cos yo crazy, woman. Certifiably so.” Jasper decided, thinking she’d probably flip out on him, but she surprised him, remaining mellow.

“Say what you will, but I am gonna marry you one day. I have decided that I do want that. Despite your crazy-ass family ties, your mom moving you far away out of the blue and those whole name issues. I know we Camerons aren’t your typical run-of-the-mill family, but yours isn’t much better either. Kinda funny too, if you think about it, your grandpa being the illegitimate child of that awful Caterina and some Komorebian rando born several lifetimes ago, and now here we are, in Mt. Komorebi, the cradle of your heritage, where we FINALLY closed the deal and became a real couple in every sense of the word. So, if you wanna bust someone for not knowing Komorebian, I think it should be YOU anyway, seeing how you have some heritage here.” Iris giggled, hugging Jasper from behind.

“Girl, I am about as Komorebian as your blue-eyed, blonde mom would be, namely not at all. And don’t ever say this to my grandpa, unless you wanna see what Riordan Hargrave ex Vannucci turns into when he’s not stoically calm. That whole crap gets him upset in no time flat. He hates his mother and while his sperm donor has been dead forever now, I think 170+ years at least, he still hates him and the way he abandoned him, even denied paternity and DNA tests were still unheard of then, Caterina would just leave and not be heard of for months, leaving her infant at anyone’s mercy, so Cesare raised him, which my grandpa is grateful for, but the last name Vannucci had too many bad memories attached, and he wanted a clean slate new beginning with Grandma, and that is the ONLY reason he and my grandma took Hargrave as their name. Grandpa is still Cesare’s right hand, so his name is on a lot of vampire stuff and since our beloved Fangs still don’t believe in electronic data, it’s all hand-written. Oh well, enough of that. So, we really are official now? As in, people can know about us? Knowing you, there was this chance to still wanted to keep us a secret, but that you go straight from sneaking around to wedding plans is seriously extra again but makes me think you are good with people knowing. Also, thanks for asking if I actually ever want to get married, now or down the line, psycho. Cos honestly, I never even thought about any of that until tonight. I feel like a bug in your spider’s web, about to be rolled up in a tux and dragged of to be wed. Hopefully I’ll be fully conscience during our vows, I feel it just looks better in the wedding pictures when both my eyes are focused in the same general direction.” he grinned back at her over his shoulder to see her flip him off.

He went into the shared shower down the hallway, the moment he stepped under the hot stream of the water, he cheered

“Yes! She loves me! She REALLY loves me! I KNEW it! Cat’s out of the bag now, and that kitty FINALLY retracted her claws and purred up a storm, cos she LOVES ME! YES!” he exclaimed, dancing to his own words, letting out occasional cheers.

Author's Note:
Probably stating the obvious, but even the scenes that technically take place in the dark were shot in the light as otherwise, no matter which tricks I employed, that made the facial expressions too hard to see. I normally stick with the script, but was already fighting having to shoot so much on uneditable lots (meaning no teleporters) and I didn't feel like fighting this anymore. Use your imagination.