everything i wanted

Hayden had never thought that this day would come and if she was honest even now it was still pretty difficult to believe that Jasper was alive after all. She hadn’t wanted to believe that he’d died, she had still had the feeling that he was out there somewhere but she had let herself believe what her eyes had showed her and now she couldn’t help but feel guilty for that. If she had just trusted her heart then perhaps Jasper would have been returned to them sooner but she knew that she couldn’t think like that, no matter what happened she couldn’t undo the past so all she could do was be there for him now. Jasper had been on his own for such a long time and Hayden couldn’t even begin to imagine what that must have been like for him but he didn’t have to go through that any longer and she knew that she wasn’t going to let him forget it.

“They broke their word to you but I can’t say I’m surprised,” Hayden admitted. “I don’t really remember anything before I woke up in Mystic Falls but in my dreams I sometimes hear a voice saying that I’m a genetic chimera and that’s why they wanted me. I think it might be a bit of a memory from when they took me,” she explained. Whether or not they had intentionally broken their promise to Jasper she wasn’t sure but they had seemed interested in that aspect of her and she knew that had to be the reason why. Her kidney transplant when she was younger had made her different and if it really was a memory then at least she knew the reason. “The same goes for you. I’d do anything to protect you too,” she assured him, knowing that she would fight tooth and nail to keep Jasper with her now if she had to. As Jasper questioned what she’d said, Hayden couldn’t help but laugh. “Yes, almost as much,” she said as she rolled her eyes playfully. “You’re my twin, of course I missed you most.” So much had changed since they had last seen each other and there was so much about the person Jasper had become that she still didn’t know but she knew that she wanted to find out now that she had the chance. “That’s perfect, you can come straight home with me today then. Val has the day off so she should be there when we get back,” she said, not wanting to waste any time.

JASPER ROMERO

This all still seemed so surreal to Hayden. She had seen Jasper's body with her own eyes, or at least she had felt sure that she had done, but deep down something had never quite felt right. She had always felt like Jasper was out there somewhere just beyond her reach but as time went on she had learned to ignore that feeling and now she regretted it. Not only was Jasper alive but he was actually in Mystic Falls and Hayden knew that she didn't want to be separated from her twin like that ever again. She knew that it must have taken a lot of courage for him to reach out and let her know that he was alive but it meant a lot to her that he had done. Now their family would finally be whole again as much as it could be.

As Jasper said that the fact that she would do anything to protect him made her a dummy, Hayden rolled her eyes playfully. "Hardly, you never used to argue with me looking out for you," she teased. They always used to look out for each other and even though she knew that a lot had changed and Jasper had been through so much, she still hoped that much hadn't changed. They had a lot of lost time to make up for but she was so happy to have her brother back. Hayden was a little surprised when Jasper pulled her in for a hug and she hugged him back tightly. "Of course I am, it hasn't been the same without you," she admitted even though she knew that he was only teasing her before studying him carefully for a moment. "How are you feeling about seeing Val again?" she asked. "She knows about the supernatural so she'll understand."

JASPER ROMERO

Hayden had only learned about the supernatural world after she woke up in Mystic Falls but ever since then her life had changed completely. Now she knew that there was so much more out there than she had ever even let herself consider but it had still never occurred to her that Jasper might be out there somewhere too. If she had then she knew that she never would have stopped searching for him. It had been such a long time since they had last seen each other, Jasper was only twelve when he was taken from them, something that she remembered vividly since they were only in the sixth grade at the time, and she could hardly believe what he was telling her but her heart knew that it had to be true. He knew things that only her twin would know and Hayden knew that wasn’t something that anyone else would be able to fake so slowly her head was starting to catch up with her heart.

“You might have a point there,” Hayden grinned. She knew that Jasper was right, the two of them had always looked out for each other and that was the way she had thought that it would always stay. Now they had so much to fill each other in on but she couldn’t deny that she was glad that he was going to be moving in with them because now they would have all the time in the world to do that and Hayden also hoped that by keeping Jasper close she wouldn’t have to go through the pain of losing him again because the truth was that she wasn’t sure she would be able to survive losing her twin a second time. Jasper’s question as he pulled away was enough to have Hayden nodding. “I had to tell her, I couldn’t keep it from her,” she confirmed. “She was actually really understanding about it and I know she’ll be the same with you,” she assured him gently. “Have you met anyone else like us here?” she asked, not sure whether he had anyone to help him like Liam and Scott had been doing for her.

JASPER ROMERO

For a long time Hayden hadn’t known about the supernatural world and she couldn’t deny that her life had been much easier before she had found out about it but the Dread Doctors had made sure that she was thrown into it anyway. She knew she was lucky that she’d had Liam and Scott there to help her through it all, she was awful to Liam in the beginning because she had blamed him for what had happened to Jasper and their parents but she had soon seen the error of her ways. Now she knew that she would have been lost without him and even though things were changing again now that Jasper was back this time it was an amazing change and she knew that she would fight to keep Jasper with them where he belonged if she had to.

“You can joke about it all you want but there really were times when I felt like you were there with me. If I hadn’t seen your body then I wouldn’t have believed you’d died because I’ve always been able to feel it when something happens to you. They tricked me,” Hayden admitted. She felt guilty about that now but she knew that there wasn’t anything that she could have done about it anyway. She and Jasper were twins, they had always been close and she had never lost the feeling that he was out there somewhere but she had believed her eyes rather than her heart because she hadn’t known that it was even possible for someone to fake his death like that. She had thought that her heart was just telling her what she wanted to hear but now she knew that it had been right after all. “I’ll definitely fill you in on everything though and you’ll have to do the same.” They had missed out on so much time and Hayden knew that they had a lot of catching up to do but she was certain that they would manage it now that they had the chance.

As Jasper said he didn’t think the conversation with Val would go well, Hayden reached over and gave his hand a gentle squeeze. “Val loves you just like I do and she knows about all of this so we’ll explain it to her together and she’ll understand. She’s a lot better with all of this than you’d expect,” she said, offering him a smile as her eyes met his. Val had been great at supporting her through everything that had happened and there wasn’t a doubt in her mind that their sister would be happy to have Jasper back as well. “I’m so sorry you had to go through that,” Hayden said, her expression softening as she looked over at her brother. “At least you have the chance to change that now. There are some really nice people around here,” she explained, knowing that she would have to make sure that he got to meet Liam, Scott and the others. As he said he had his suspicions about some people he’d come across, Hayden’s expression turned thoughtful for a moment. “Really? Who do you suspect?” she asked, unable to deny that he was curious to see whether he had managed to figure out any of the people she knew.

JASPER ROMERO

Hayden wished that things had worked out differently but she couldn’t go back and change it now no matter how much she might want to. First she had lost Jasper and her parents, then her grandparents until Val was the only person she had left. She loved her older sister but the last thing she had wanted was to end up becoming a burden on her. That was why she had gone to live with her grandparents in the first place while Val had gone off to college but after they’d died it had just been the two of them and Val had stepped up even though Hayden hadn’t expected her to. She had pretty much put her own life on hold to an extent so that they could stay together and Hayden was always going to be grateful to her for that but she was always going to feel a little guilty too. Over the last couple of years she had been doing what she could in order to help out with her medication and the other expenses they faced but it never felt like enough to Hayden. She hated the fact that she and Val had both missed out on the chance to be normal kids and it had been the same for Jasper. He had been ripped from his home and the people who loved him and he had stayed away to try and keep them safe. He’d had to grow up too quickly but he was here now and Hayden was determined not to lose him again.

“It’s okay, I get it,” Hayden assured him as he said he was just trying to keep it light hearted. “I wouldn’t be surprised if you were, I always felt like you were still with me,” she admitted. She really had believed what she had seen when the doctor had shown her Jasper’s body but she had still felt like she carried him around with her the same way she did her parents and grandparents and that had never changed. “I’ll hold you to that,” she nodded as Jasper said that they had a deal. She really did want to know everything that had happened during the time they had been apart so she knew that she wasn’t going to let him get away without telling her.

As Jasper said that he didn’t think the conversation with Val would go well, Hayden shook her head. “It’ll be a shock for her just like it was for me because she was there at the morgue that day too but she’ll understand. We’ll make sure she does,” she assured him gently. “I can’t keep this from her Jas and you belong with us.” She never had been able to keep anything important from her sister and the fact that their brother was alive after all was as important as it got. She knew that it would take Val time to get her head around it but she knew her sister and she didn’t doubt that Val would want to keep Jasper with them too. “I guess I’ll take your word for that but I’m glad you’re away from them now,” she admitted. She still hated the thought of Jasper being involved with them but he wasn’t with them any longer and for that she truly was glad.

“Give it time and you’ll see it too, I promise,” Hayden said gently. She wasn’t sure whether Jasper would really want to make friends but she hoped that he would give it a chance. She had met some pretty great people during her time in Mystic Falls and there were so many old faces from Beacon Hills around too although she wasn’t sure whether Jasper would actually remember any of them. As he explained about the people he thought were like them, Hayden’s expression turned thoughtful for a moment. “I’m not sure who either of them are but I’ll keep an eye out. I know my friends are trying to figure out who has been taken as well.” Scott and the others wanted to help as many people as they could and Hayden knew that she would help with that in any way she would.

JASPER ROMERO

“You’d better,” Hayden grinned as Jasper promised to be as open about what he had been through as he could. She knew that things weren’t going to go back to the way they used to be over night, in fact she wasn’t sure if they would ever be able to get back to that, but she loved Jasper and Val did too so she hoped that together they would be able to find a new normal. It was still surreal that Jasper was actually standing before her right now, she had wanted to see him again ever since the day he’d died. She had seen his body with her own two eyes along with those of her parents but the truth was that even though she had felt like her parents were gone, she had never felt that way with Jasper. In the end she had just put it down to being a twin thing and feeling like he was always with her but now she knew that it was more than that and she knew that she wanted to know everything about what he had been through since then, no matter how difficult some of it might be to hear.

As Jasper said he didn’t want to send Val into a huge panic over his return, Hayden shook her head. “Don’t underestimate her Jas, she has been a huge support to me with everything that happened with the Dread Doctors. She might not be supernatural like us but she’s learning about the world and I know she’ll be happy to see you,” she assured him, not wanting him to feel like he had to keep his distance. It would be a shock at first, that much was true, but she knew that Val would see his return as a good thing. “She’s missed you too Jas. Not as much as I have of course but still,” she added, a smile touching her lips as she shrugged. It had just been her and Val for such a long time but now Jasper was back with them where he belonged and she knew that their sister would never turn him away. “Besides, there’s a couple of people in my pack who died and came back and Val knows about that,” she added. That had taken some time for Hayden to get her head around that at first but apparently it was a thing and Jasper had never actually been dead in the first place so that made it a little easier. As Jasper said that she might even know the people he was talking about, she nodded. “Perhaps. Let me know when you see them again and we’ll soon find out.”

JASPER ROMERO