Here's the thing about Jesse: I am totally and completely in love with him. He can make me smile, no matter what. He makes me forget who I am, and where I am.
That's the problem.
Apparently, during our little scene outside, my entire family had been watching from the bay window in the den. I had just been too…distracted…to notice.
And, of course, they hadn't missed a thing.
We all stood in the foyer, facing each other (well, it was more them in a line facing me). Sleepy was the first say anything.
"Suze," he said, looking every bit as pissed off as he had been when he caught Brad stealing his Playboys from under the front seat of the Land Rover, "I said that I approve of Jesse. That does not mean I want or need to see him stick his tongue down your throat!"
"Jake! Language!" barked Andy, looking less appalled at Sleepy's vulgarity than he usually would have been. Then he looked at me. Crap.
I knew it was all too good to be true. I mean, former-ghost-meeting-the-parents-but-more-officially-this-time dinners are difficult at the best of times. The fact that Jesse was three (or 150, depending on how you look at it) years older than me? Forget about a recipe for disaster; this practically writes the cookbook.
Harry Price could write the intro.
So, anyway, I wasn't very surprised when Andy said, "Suze, don't get me wrong. I like Jesse, I really do. But I don't think…I mean, you're seventeen. You haven't even graduated from high school yet. Don't you think Jesse is a little intense for you?"
I was more than a little offended by this statement. "Hey! I can be intense!"
"Yeah, intensely weird," Dopey chortled. I elbowed him in the shoulder and he groaned.
"Suze, " my mom chastised. Then, she said, "Susie, I agree with Andy. We do like Jesse, be he's a lot older than you. And more mature. And going to college next fall. I just don't think you're ready for that kind of relationship yet. I know many teenagers these days are getting intimate—"
"Mom!" I whisper-yelled, mortified. She had given Gina and me the sex talk back when we hit puberty. That summer, every time we walked by a truck driver, he would honk at us and we would stop, thinking he was trying to warn us about some impending danger. One day, we were crossing Bleecker and this blind guy tried to feel us up, so I decked him right in the kisser. After spitting out a tooth (and a lot of blood), he threatened to sue. We threatened to call the sixth precinct. Gina eventually called my mom. On the way home, she talked to us about "Our Bodies" and how "Special Changes" were happening to us. She said we "Blossoming" into "Responsible Young Women". She also described the "Special Love" between two people who "Understood, Respected, and Loved" one another.
The most awkward part of this conversation, however, was my father, who had materialized when my mom arrived and was walking with us.
Much to my chagrin, that was not the end of the talk by a long shot. Because my mom was a reporter, she always knew the latest teen pregnancy rates and such, she considered herself an expert on the subject.
Hence, the abstinence policy.
"Mom, you've already gone over this. Years ago. Me and Jesse…we aren't…"
This was, by far, more awkward than the last talk.
"Honey," my mom tried again. "As people get older, they think they can do whatever they want and not suffer any consequences."
"Mom. Me. And. Jesse. Are. Not. Doing. That," I growled. Seriously? I bring home the perfect guy, and my family still finds something wrong with him.
"Suze, college boys often pressure girls into doing things that they would otherwise not do," Andy said calmly, ignoring Sleepy's outraged face.
I started laughing sarcastically. "Yes, of course Jesse is going to pressure me. Seeing as how he has proved to be so untrustworthy thus far."
I couldn't help but sound defensive. After all, this was Jesse. Jesse, who had saved my life more times than I can count. Jesse, who broke Paul's nose to help me. Jesse, who apologized after kissing me because he thought I deserved to live a normal life.
Well, okay, that last decision sort of sucked. But you get what I mean.
Jesse = the only person I could ever love.
And it was totally unfair that my family was completely discrediting everything he had done for me.
Even if they didn't know about it.
"Jesse's very old fashioned. He believes in waiting until marriage, and we've agreed to wait for each other until then," I said slowly, trying to show no emotion.
Jesse and I had talked about this particular topic just a few weeks ago, when I was helping him move. He assured me that his views had not changed, even with his new apartment being a couple of blocks from my house. I was welcome to spend the night, but any improper behavior on my part would end that.
In a way, nights in Jesse's apartment were like old times. Sure, there were no back copies of Cosmo or Stella McCartney tops hanging around, and all the sheets were patterned blue and brown plaid, and instead of a nightstand, he had a stack of encyclopedias and medical journals next to his bed, but I didn't care.
It was close enough.
Okay, maybe Mom and Andy were justified in thinking Jesse and I were regularly scoring.
"Mom," I said, gritting my teeth. "I really don't want to discuss this with you. And especially not with Andy, Jake, Dop—Brad, and David. Can't you all just be happy that I found this great guy who respects and loves me?" I whirled around and marched up to my room. When I got there, I stalked over to the phone, my eyes watering with tears that I knew would fall eventually, and I dialed the familiar number.
As the phone connected, I tried to take a couple deep breaths and willed myself not to cry.
"Hello?"
"Jesse, it's me. Can—can you come over?" My voice cracked.
"I'm on my way, Querida," he said, sounding concerned, "Are you all right?"
"I..I just need you right now," I whispered so he couldn't hear my shaking voice. We both hung up, and I sat by my window, waiting for him. I felt better now. I had stopped crying, at least. I knew it would all turn out all right.
Jesse always makes everything better.
So...I'm continuing this fic! But only for a short while. It's a threeshot, and the third (and final) chapter will be posted on Saturday. I know this chapter isn't as funny as the first, but Chapter Three ends everything nicely.
That being said, give me feedback! An amazing review from Bunnylass inspired me to write more here, so who knows?
Please enjoy the cover. It took me 11 hours on "Paint", which is a really poor excuse for Photoshop. [Another (in my not so humble opinion) great cover: my Princess Diaries story. Check it out!]
Oh, and one more thing: There's going to be a Book 7 for the Mediator! Meg's words:
*I don't have any new Mediator movie news, but I love that so many of you support this series. I know I've said I might do an epilogue to Suze and Jesse's story someday, but I just couldn't think of a book-length story for them.
Well, thanks to all of you endlessly asking about it and keeping it ever present in my mind, a shark finally bit me with a book length idea for a story for them (and the whole rest of the gang, including Paul Slater).
Now I just need to find the time to write it (please note: I still have to finish some other books first before I can work on it, so it will be a while before you'll hear any details).
*6) I do have other projects in the works, but none that I can discuss at this time. I can, however, mention that I'm working on a 7th Mediator book. It will include all the major characters from the series but will take place several years after the 6th book ended. I think it might be nice to get to the sex already, and we all know Jesse won't even consider that until he's married!
*"But if we were to take a vacation together (to, say, visit Carmel-by-the-Sea to do research for the next Mediator book),"
Gah, I can't wait!