Author's Note: Well, I said that I'd make up for the previous short chapter, and I think that I did, because this is a long one! I'm sorry if it's boring with all of the dialogue. Read and review! I hope you like it!

Jim waited in Melinda's room while she was taken to the Radiology ward for a CAT Scan. He had taken Dr. Burns aside earlier to tell him about the memory loss Mel had experienced; the doctor told him to try not to worry about it until they got the results of the scan back, as it could be a number of things causing it.

Fifteen minutes had passed when Jim heard quick footsteps approaching the room. Beth Gordon rushed in, looked at Jim, and looked at the empty bed worriedly.

"Where is she?" She asked.

"They took her for a CT scan." Jim replied. "Well…. Another one." He added.

Beth shook her head with mild frustration. "How bad is she?"

Jim stared at her, trying to find the words to say. Understanding his silence, Beth just nodded and sat down in the second chair beside the hospital bed. They sat in silence for a moment before Jim spoke.

"You know, I used to think that I could protect her. That I could keep her safe; keep her from getting hurt like this. But I'm not so sure anymore." He said, looking at the floor despondently. "Stuff like this just keeps happening more and more, and it's out of my power to do anything about it."

He looked up at Beth, his eyes full of pain and fear, his voice wavering. "I'm just so scared that one of these days… I'm gonna lose her. I mean, really lose her. And I know I couldn't live with myself if that ever happened. I couldn't take it."

Beth sighed. "Jim." She said. "Melinda has been dealing with things like this since she was a child. That's why I hated that she has this… gift…. so much. But I've realized - especially recently - that Melinda seems to have someone watching over her and protecting her. Maybe it's because of what she does, and how important it is. Maybe it's just because she's loved by so many people. But it seems like no matter what happens, she always pulls through. I don't think that will ever change."

Jim nodded and smiled weakly. Beth stood up and went to his side, putting her hand on his shoulder.

"Remember a few years ago when Melinda fell in the woods and went into a coma?" Beth asked.

"Yeah." Jim whispered.

"After she got out of the hospital, she told me that the thing that kept her from going into the light was you. She heard your voice, and it brought her back." Beth said with a small smile. "I know you feel like you can't protect her; but you do. You do it every day. I couldn't ask for more for my daughter than what you bring her. I think you're the reason she always pulls through."

Jim patted Beth's hand, which was still resting on his shoulder, and looked her in the eyes.

"Thank you." He said softly.

"Thank you." She replied.

Melinda returned from Radiology a few minutes later. The nurse pushed her into the room in a wheelchair, and Jim helped her get back into bed. She spoke with her mom for awhile, assuring her that everything was fine, and insisting that she really didn't have to make the trip to Grandview to see her.

"What kind of mother would I be if I didn't come to see my daughter in the hospital?" Beth said.

"I'm just saying, it's a long way to drive to see me when I'm perfectly fine." Melinda stated.

Beth chuckled. "Perfectly fine?"

"Oh God. Here we go." Melinda mumbled quietly. Jim couldn't help but laugh at the mother-daughter bickering.

"Perfectly fine?" Beth repeated. "Look at yourself!"

"Kind of hard to do when I'm not allowed to get out of bed." Mel pointed out.

"You look like you've been through the wringer!" Beth said.

"Thanks, Mom."

"They wouldn't be keeping you a week if you were 'perfectly fine'" Beth finished.

"Okay." Melinda barked. "I get the point."

Beth's face softened. "Anyway, I've missed you. I haven't seen you in weeks." She said.

Melinda said nothing. She was too annoyed with her mother's insistence on being there to be moved by her nice words. Jim knew exactly what Melinda was thinking, and took it upon himself to deal with the situation properly.

"Beth, you've got to be tired from the drive. Why don't you go back to our house for a while? I'm assuming you'll be staying there for few days?" Jim said.

"Yes." Beth answered. "And you're right, I am sort of tired. I'll take my stuff there, rest for a while, and I'll be back in a few hours." She got to her feet, and bent over to kiss her daughter on the head. "You need your rest too, dear."

Melinda forced a polite smile.

"Jim, is there anything you need at the house while I'm there? Clothes, food, anything?" Beth asked.

"Actually, if you could grab me a change of clothes, that'd be great, Beth. Thanks."

Beth nodded and left the room. Jim turned back to Melinda, who rolled her eyes. Jim smiled and chuckled.

"What?" He asked.

"She is so difficult!" Mel exclaimed.

"Hmm… Kinda sounds like somebody else I know." Jim said jokingly.

Melinda playfully slapped his arm, and he grabbed her hand and held it.

"I just don't like her dropping everything to take care of me. It's bad enough when you do it…" She said with a smile.

"I love dropping everything to take care of you." Jim said sweetly, returning the smile.

"Yeah, yeah…" Mel said, and then stopped, the smile fading from her face as her eyes grew wide. Lucas had appeared in the back corner of the room. He was sitting on the ground, hugging his knees to his chest. He looked so sad and scared.

Jim saw Melinda's abrupt change in expression and leaned forward worriedly. "Mel? You okay?" He asked.

Melinda didn't respond. She barely heard Jim, as she was struggling to listen to what Lucas was saying.

"You can't tell him." He said quietly. "He can't know I'm here…"

"Who?" Melinda asked. "Your father?"

Lucas looked up at her with dark intensity in his eyes. In a flash, Melinda found herself in a vision.

She was in a house. There were college-age guys all around her. Nearly all of them were wearing green tee shirts that said OPE in Greek lettering. 'A fraternity?' Melinda thought. She made her way through the crowd to a table of guys in a dining area. There were cans of beer, bottles of alcohol, and glasses covering the table. In the center was a circle of playing cards surrounding a tall glass filled with what looked like a mix of various hard liquors. She recognized Lucas among the guys. He reached out to draw a card from the circle and one of the other guys nudged his arm, making him scatter the cards. "Great job, Burns, you broke the circle!" One guy said. "You know what you have to do," another chimed in.

Lucas looked around nervously as the guys began to chant. "DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! DRINK!" With trembling hands, Lucas reached for the tall glass in the middle of the table. Before he took it, a few guys poured more alcohol into it, filling it to the brim. Lucas picked it up, hesitated, and then he began to drink.

Melinda gasped as she returned to reality. She slowly sat up. She could feel Jim's hand on her back; he was still holding her hand with the other.

"Mel?" He said with concern.

"He was in a fraternity…" Mel said distractedly.

"What?" Jim asked.

Melinda looked at him with glassy eyes and was suddenly hit by a terrible wave of nausea. "Jim?" She said.

"Yeah?"

"I think I'm gonna be sick." She said shakily, putting a hand over her mouth.

Jim quickly stood up and reached for a pink basin that was sitting beside her bed. He brought it up to her just in time; she began to vomit into it. He stood by her side, holding the basin with one hand and gently rubbing her back with the other. Tears were streaming down her face as she violently heaved and coughed.

"It's okay." Jim whispered.

After she was finished emptying her stomach, Jim placed the basin back on the floor, handed Mel a couple of tissues to wipe her face with, and poured her a glass of ice water from the pitcher on her bedside table. Melinda took the glass with shaking hands; Jim keeping his hand over hers the whole time, just in case.

"Take slow sips." Jim said.

Melinda took a few sips and handed the glass back to Jim. She let out a shaky breath, and looked at him apologetically.

"Are you alright?" He asked.

"I think so…" Mel said weakly. "I just felt so sick all of a sudden."

Jim moved her hair away from her forehead, and realized she was really warm, and there were beads of sweat gathering at her hairline.

"Lay down." He said softly. "I'm gonna call the nurse."

He hit the nurse call button, and raised the head of Mel's bed a bit so she wasn't lying completely flat.

"You don't have to, Jim." Melinda said hoarsely. "I'm really alright now."

"Shhh." Jim said. "You feel warm, I just want to make sure everything's okay."

The nurse came in a moment later and checked Melinda's blood pressure and temperature. Both were a little bit higher than they should be, so the nurse said she would tell the doctor. She explained that it was likely that Melinda was simply reacting badly to the painkillers, so a change in prescription would probably solve the problem; however, Jim wasn't so sure. After cleaning up the area around Melinda's bed, the nurse left. Jim continued to talk to Melinda.

"So you wanna tell me what happened before?" Jim asked "You completely zoned out on me for a few minutes."

"I had a vision." Melinda said.

"Same ghost as before?" Jim asked.

"Yeah. I think he was in a fraternity, or at least trying to get into one. He was at a party, playing some kind of drinking game, and the other guys made him drink a giant glass of all kinds of alcohol mixed together."

"Sounds like fun." Jim said, grinning. Melinda shot him a glare. "Sorry." He added.

Melinda sighed. "I just hope this ghost doesn't bother me when my mother is here, I'd like to be spared the lectures." She said wearily. "When is she supposed to get here, by the way?"

Jim looked at her with a mix of confusion and concern. "Mel…" He said slowly. "She was just here about 45 minutes ago. Do you not remember?"

Melinda searched Jim's face to discern if he was joking or not; she realized he wasn't. Nervously, she shook her head. Jim looked at her, an overwhelming feeling of dread was growing in the pit of his stomach. He tightened his grip on her hand and prayed that things weren't getting worse.