Blood Mates

The Reservation

Jasper hadn’t remembered the excuse his mom had given them that week. But he knew for their annual family fun day, he was supposed to have both his parents and they were supposed to do something. All day, just them. At first it had been a kid thing, to make sure he knew he was special in their eyes.

When he was thirteen, Jasper had found it incredibly lame. Having to be forced to hang out with his parents when he’d rather read or play video games.

But at fifteen, a sophomore in high school, Jasper was starting to appreciate spending time with his parents. Even if for the last few months his mom had been MIA, he still loved her and was glad when she did spend time with him.

So even though she didn’t go with them to the movies, park, and then to dinner, Jasper was happy to go home and tell her about it. But when they got home William hadn’t recognized the car in his drive way with his wife’s.

So he got out first and told Jasper to stay. But of course Jasper followed him not three seconds later and as William went first seeing Yasmine in her predicament with another man, he pushed his son back roughly and slammed the front door loudly.

William had taken Jasper back to his truck and both had sat there for a moment in silence. Jasper had to watch his dad cry and break as he punched his steering wheel over and over until his hand was the size of a pumpkin. After he was all spent out and his hand was hurting, William pulled himself together, cranked up, and drove away from their house. All while Yasmine packed her things…

The Battle Star Reservation was a beautiful place. With it’s sunny skies and high temperatures, it was a beautiful small patch of heaven from the real world. With the water glistening with promise, even though it was cold people still were flocking towards it in wetsuits with boards in hand.

Others sat with blankets and binoculars watching for whales. As the seagulls cried overhead, Jasper knew as he drove into the scenic space he should feel relaxed. But of course, his mother appeared as he pulled up in front of the house, a five-minute walk to the private beach on their lands.

Standing in front of the large two-story house that had at least five bedrooms. The soft yellow was faded, the grass overgrown to the calf, and with bikes in the front yard, a black pick up parked crooked in the driveway, it screamed family home.

But it wasn’t his family home.

Jasper got out of his truck with his duffel and Yasmine smiled at him widely so happy he was here. But Jasper’s blank face had her smile falling as he barely said two words to her as she asked him how the drive was.

Yasmine thought they’d be able to talk and catch up, but Jasper was shown his room and promptly vanished inside. Sitting on his bed texting Alaia and checking on his dad, Jasper was relieved seeing both AJ and Stella had been by to check on him.

And promised to see him Thanksgiving and make sure he didn’t eat alone. Which was all Jasper wanted.

Jasper was facetiming Alaia when his mom knocked and came into his room, “Oh sorry, um Seth and Lucy are home. I thought you’d want to meet them, officially.” Jasper started to tell her the harsh truth then.

He’d rather eat broken glass then go downstairs and meet his stepsiblings.

But with Alaia staring at him, Jasper didn’t want to disappoint her by being rude to his mother in front of her. So, he sighed aggravated, “Fine here I come.” Yasmine started to awkwardly hang around but when Jasper sent her a look, she got the hint and took off down the stairs.

Looking at his girlfriend who looked at him knowingly as she laid in her bed, Jasper admitted, “I’m trying babe, it’s not easy.” Alaia nodded sympathetically, “I know.” After telling each other how much they missed the other, Jasper went downstairs finally.

He found a twelve-year-old boy talking with his mom, and his female duplicate texting ignoring them both. Yasmine looked up as Jasper came in and smiled, “Jas, this is Seth. He’s twelve and in middle school. And Lucy, sixteen and a sophomore.”

Jasper looked them, “Hi.” He said plainly. Lucy looked at him for two point five seconds before going back to texting. Seth however came over, “Nice to meet you big bro. I’ve seen you in pictures…you’re a lot taller than I thought you’d be.”

Jasper felt uncomfortable with the nice kid eagerly wanting to accept him into the family fold. To be honest he hadn’t thought about the stepsiblings his mother had mentioned in the court hearing the first time.

And he hadn’t been interested in getting to know them.

“Nice to meet you too.” He said after a minute. Seth smiled a little and then the front door opened, and Davon came in holding a little girl in his arms. No older than six months, the little blonde girl cooed as he bounced her towards Yasmine.

“Sorry babe, she was missing mama.” Yasmine accepted their daughter and looked to see Jasper’s reaction. Only to find him texting not giving an F as he told his girlfriend about the surprise half-sister he’d just obtained.

Looking up, Jasper watched Davon approach him, “Look Jasper I’ve known we’ve had our problems in the past.” Jasper watched Davon as he looked at Yasmine and their daughter Yvonne.

“But let’s try to make this work, for your mother’s sake.” Jasper pretended to consider it, “Let me think about that.” And then he rudely shoved past Davon and walked out the house, “I’m going to go look around. And hopefully get murdered.” He told a protesting Yasmine.

Yasmine worried about Jasper wondering off, but Davon waved her off, “It’s fine, I talked to them. Let him simmer down.” Yasmine nodded and as Jasper stalked down the beach, he was honestly ready to go home.

He didn’t think a week and a half with his mother would change anything.

How he felt, or how he saw her and her husband.

When William took them back home, both were surprised both cars were still there. William was sure he was in his own personal hell, and he was doomed to keep living his ultimate heartbreak in front of his son.

But when he went into the house, he found Yasmine waiting for him with her lover beside her.

Her bags were packed in her car, and she was shaking as she met William’s eyes. And when she looked at her son, she saw he wouldn’t look at her. “Jasper give me and your father a minute.”

Jasper didn’t budge an inch. He wasn’t leaving his dad’s side, not with him shaking a little as Yasmine seemed to look through him. His pain.

William put a hand on his son’s shoulder and told him to do as told and when he was gone, he looked at his wife breaking. “You couldn’t have at least gotten rid of him before I brought our son home?”

Yasmine winced at the hurt she heard, but steeled herself to be strong, “I didn’t realize you two were coming home so soon…but I’m glad it happened.” Yasmine hadn’t held back with ripping the band aid off.

After omitting to cheating with this Davon character for seven months, Yasmine laid out the hard truths.

She hadn’t been happy in their life for a while…she wanted out…she didn’t want to take Jasper from him…she was leaving with Davon, and she wanted a divorce. Stat.

Jasper hadn’t talked to his mom before she left. She’d come into his room, sat on his bed, and tried to get him to understand she wasn’t the bad guy. That life wasn’t black or white, and that things beyond his understanding had happened.

But Jasper hadn’t wanted to hear it then, and as he stood on the beach of her new home three hours away from where he wanted to be, Jasper knew he still didn’t.

After walking around aimlessly for hours, Jasper went back to the house and found three extra people there. When he walked into the house, Davon called out to him and then directed his attention to a man two feet taller than him and built for war.

With a small female who was laughably smaller in comparison, the man grunted looking Jasper over as another male looked at him confused. “Who’s he?”

Davon faced Stephan Black, “He’s Yasmine’s son from her first marriage. This is Jasper.” Jasper watched the three of them look at him for a moment like he was an alien before the huge man in league with Shaq looked at him closely, “Stay out of the woods at night.” He warned in his deep voice.

Jasper looked at him with a raised eyebrow, “Why? The boogie man hiding out there?” His wife laughed at Jasper as her husband barked, “No. We have wildlife that’ll run you down and kill you in minutes.”

Not at all fazed by his obvious aggression, Jasper laughed darkly, “Oh don’t tempt me.” Walking away as they all stared at him alarmed, Jasper grumbled, “I’m going to bed.”

And as he did so, all four sets of eyes watched him go curious about the young man with so much pent up anger. Because they all knew about pent up anger, and how volatile it can get when it explodes. 

So, they all prepared for when he popped his lid.