A/N: Thanks for the great reviews, guys! I would just like everyone to notice that I CHANGED THE RATING TO R, for obvious reasons. Well, apparently, my author's notes were *ahem, Amanda* too long in the first chapter, so, that's it for my note!
"Susannah…" Father Dom was practically crushing his cigarette pack. "Are you positive it wasn't a dream…?"
Poor Father Dom. He looked terrified. Well, there were demons we were talking about here.
Jesse chose that time to come out from the shadows where he had been brooding. He hadn't said a word since he materialized, just went and sat in the corner, which was odd for him. He usually had too much input in matters like these. As he came towards us, his arms were folded over his chest, and he had an unreadable expression on his face. God, he looked so hot when he was brooding. I was contemplating jumping him when-
His head snapped down to look at me where I was sitting by Father Dom's desk. And I had to suppress a shiver. The look in his eyes was so cold and distant…I was suddenly losing myself in them…
What the hell?!? It felt like I was slipping out of my body!
*Susannah…
It was the same voice…his voice…oh, *shit…
*Susannah…I want you…
Jesse smirked, and whatever spell I had been under suddenly broke in that moment, leaving me sitting there, totally shocked.
What just happened?
"Susannah, Jesse…" Father Dom looked hard at us both. "Are you two alright…"
When Father Dom looked at Jesse, he visibly paled and dropped the cigarette pack. I looked back of at Jesse, almost afraid of what I would see…okay, alright, terrified…
And stood up in shock. Jesse had this crazy, maniacal glint in his eyes. His scar was glowing, and he had this creepy grin on his face. He was twitching-
Okay, it's officially time for a freak out.
"Jesse?" I tried, and touched his arm.
He started. All at one the creepiness fell out of his face. He looked really confused. "W-where am I?" He looked down at me, and some kind of realization seemed to dawn on him. "Nombre de Dios…" he murmured, starting to back away from us…
And Father Dome pulled something out of his pocket-a rosary.
Ladies and gentlemen, the *shit has hit the fan.
"Our Father, who art in heaven-"
Jesse's eyes widened, and as he backed up, he stumbled and fell-
"Hallowed be Thy name-"
Jesse looked terrified. "Quit it, Father D!" I shouted, and ran to Jesse's side. He didn't seem to notice me as I grabbed and shook him.
"Thy kingdom come-"
"STOP!" I bellowed. Jesse looked up at me, and Father Dom finally stopped his weird exorcism. Time seemed to stop as Jesse whispered, "Stay away from me, Susannah." And he disappeared beneath my fingers.
"Oh my god!" I whispered, gripping at the air where he had been only a second ago. "What's wrong with him…"
Father Dom lowered his rosary and sat back down at his desk, massaging his temples. "Susannah, you better listen to him when he tells you to stay away from him."
"Father D," I said, containing my anger. Why can't people ever tell me things straight up? Why do they always have to be so damn arcane? "Tell me what's wrong with Jesse, right now. I know you know."
Father Dom sighed. "I'd recognize the symptoms anywhere, but I didn't know it could happen to ghost…Susannah, he's…possessed."
I didn't notice the tears that were welling up in my eyes as I screamed, "What do you mean? By what?!?"
Father Dom gave me a look that said, "Are you stupid or something?" And there it was.
Paul had possessed Jesse.
Paul had possessed Jesse.
Paul had possessed Jesse.
I wiped at the tears that were now trickling down my face, being annoyingly prickly. "No way," I told Father Dom steadily. "No freakin way."
And I ran out of the office.
*Susannah…Susannah, please, wake up…we need to talk…
I opened my eyes, slipping reluctantly out of the first nightmare-less sleep I'd had in weeks. After running out of Father Dom's office, I had torn out of the school, running the two mile trek home in record time, thinking over and over to myself, "Jesse is not possessed. Jesse is not possessed." The last thing I remembered was falling to the floor and falling asleep. Noticing it was dark out, I wondered briefly who had put me in my bed…
And then a glow registered in the corner of my eye. I turned my head, and there was Jesse, sitting in his favorite spot. Only he wasn't reading any big boring book. He wasn't playing with Spike.
He was looking at me.
No, staring was more the word. It was downright creepy. He wasn't even blinking. Not that ghosts really need to blink, but whatever.
I found myself blushing in spite of myself. Well, you'd be blushing too, if you had Jesse looking at you as if he were studying your very soul-
"Nice to see you awake, Susannah," Jesse said suddenly, smiling. There was something different about his eyes…but hey, at least he was blinking now. I still had that the feeling I was talking to a stranger, though.
"H-hi," was all I could manage to stammer out. Smooth, Suze. Real smooth.
Jesse didn't say anything. Instead, he started his staring act again. That's the only thing to call it. Just staring at me with absolutely no emotion on his face, not even blinking. I looked back at him, not necessarily scared but with a growing sense of unreal ness. It just didn't feel right.
"Jesse," I said softly. "You're freaking me out."
He chuckled and finally looked away. He stood up then and stretched luxuriously. My eyes subconsciously lowered to his chest, where the rippling of his muscles was clearly visible through his sleeveless tee-
Whoa, wait just a minute! Where were his cowboy clothes? Jesse was dressed in black jeans and a black sleeveless tee that showed off his biceps perfectly. The clothes only accentuated his already haunting good looks (pun intended). I didn't know how I missed it before. But I couldn't overlook the fact that there's no way he could have possibly changed his clothes, being a ghost.
I shrank in my bed until my back was against the headboard and watched him warily. He didn't notice. He was perusing my bedroom, observing all the pink frills and satins with something that resembled amusement.
"Very…girly," he commented, grinning at me.
My mind reeled. That was the same thing Paul said…(see Sleepless in California, one of the earlier chapters, I'm too lazy to look up which one) Did he realize that or was he just playing stupid?
"Uh, yeah…" I muttered, wondering if I could jump out the window without him grabbing me.
Jesse walked over and sat beside me on the bed. I mentally cringed, but on the outside, remained the image of innocent ignorance. Father Dom was right. But I couldn't bring myself to exorcise him, because Jesse would go, too. But I wanted more than anything to feel Jesse's arms around me now…
As if he had caught that stray though, I felt strong arms wrap around me. I gasped as I was drawn into Jesse lap. I swallowed and forced myself to remember that he wasn't really Jesse…
But it was so hard as Jesse brought his mouth down on my neck, nibbling the sensitive skin there.
Dammit! Why was it always the evil guys that wanted me! And why couldn't the real Jesse act like this more often!
"Stop it, Paul," I whispered. I realized my mistake a split second too late as Jesse stiffened.
"What did you just call me, Susannah?" he said, seething.
"Uh…" I tried to get off his lap, but he had an iron grip on me.
"Susannah-" he turned me around and looked into my eyes, looking like a barely controlled madman. "Has Paul come back?"
I squinted at him suspiciously. "What?" he said, his eyes widening in surprise. "Is there something on my face?"
"No," I murmured, studying his face. He looked back at me blankly, and then his eyes squinted in suspicion as well, mirroring my own.
"Susannah, you're acting strangely-"
"So are you," I told him curtly.
He opened his mouth to say something, then closed it up again. His face suddenly contorted into something that looked like utter rage, only scarier. I backed away from him, or at least tried to, but he wouldn't let go. I knew my eyes were betraying my fear.
He wasn't Jesse.
He was Paul.
"How dare you," he shouted rather loudly at me, "insult me, the one whom you belong to!"
My eyes widened. I was suddenly very pissed off. "I don't belong to you, you freak! Let go of me-" I struggled to get out of his strong grip, but he wouldn't give. "I will never be your wife! I will never be owned by anyone!"
He laughed cruelly. "Woman, you're already mine. And we will seal our eternal bond with a kiss…"
He started lowering his head to mine…oh, crap this was just like in all those nightmares…only it was Jesse's noggin coming at me, but it was still Paul…
"NOOOOO, YOU *ASSHOLE!!!!!"
A quiet laugh rumbled in his chest as his lips finally touched mine.
And I knew it was all over. I waited miserably, my lips pressed against his, waited for those final bonds to come, like they always had in my sleep…
And then I opened my eyes, realizing that nothing was happening. Jesse met my eyes with his own, which were only an inch from mine considering we were still lip-locked. His eyes were filled with mirth.
"You…mother…I hate you…" I pushed away from his chest with both hands, and fell to the floor on my butt as he let me slip easily out of his arms this time. I could only sputter in shock as Jesse burst into uncontrollable laughter beside me.
"Ah, querida!" he was saying in between laughs. "You-you actually thought that-that I was possessed?" More laughter. "That I was-PAUL???"
He seemed to find this particularly hilarious as he broke into fresh peals. I felt my face burning up and turned away from him, sitting Indian-style, muttering darkly.
I couldn't believe I had fallen for that stupid trick.
After a few minutes of hearing his annoyingly deep and sexy laughter, I decided to get up and go over to the bay window, where I sat and pouted immaturely. Hey, I had good reason to be pissed off at Jesse right now. He had almost made me wet myself.
Eventually, Jesse came over to me and crouched in front of me, looking up into my eyes, his eyes still showing his laughter. "Come on, querida, it was only a joke-"
"Yeah, butter me up!" I spat out at him. "After you scared the hell out of me a second ago-"
"Susannah," he said, his voice still sounding amused as he sat beside me and drew me into his arms. I stayed still as a rock, arms folded, completely unresponsive. "Susannah, I'm sorry for frightening you."
"Hmph," was all I could say. "Was Father D in on your stupid prank too?"
"No…" Jesse purred as he started stroking the small of my back. I gasped quietly. He knew I loved it when he stroked me there.
"How did you…change your…clothes…?" It was getting hard to speak. It felt too damn good.
"Do you like them?" He whispered into my ear, causing me to shiver. "I got them just for you…"
I trembled, finally leaning into him and forgetting my anger completely. You would too if you had this sexy guy right behind you, rubbing you so close to your-
"Oh, god, Suze, I love you…" Jesse whispered behind me, his breath tickling along my neck.
My eyes snapped open. I sat up, pulling myself away from Jesse. I narrowed my eyes at him as he looked back, his face full of confusion.
"What is it now?" he asked, sounding frustrated.
"You called me Suze," I informed him, starting to back away slowly. I may have been angry as hell, but I wasn't stupid.
"So?" Jesse said nonchalantly.
"So, you never call me that."
Jesse grinned at me. "Oh, you little minx," he said in a purr. He stood up, and stretched his arms high up over his head. "And I was so close to having you…willingly," he said with a sigh of regret.
My eyes widened at the last word…willingly.
"You…you wouldn't-"
"Wanna bet?" he said as he pulled off his shirt and threw it back on the window seat.
All I could do was watch helplessly as the bastard walked towards me, slowly, seductively…
A/N: Hmmmm, cliffie....review, now...oh, and thanks for NOT helping me, Amanda...
"Susannah…" Father Dom was practically crushing his cigarette pack. "Are you positive it wasn't a dream…?"
Poor Father Dom. He looked terrified. Well, there were demons we were talking about here.
Jesse chose that time to come out from the shadows where he had been brooding. He hadn't said a word since he materialized, just went and sat in the corner, which was odd for him. He usually had too much input in matters like these. As he came towards us, his arms were folded over his chest, and he had an unreadable expression on his face. God, he looked so hot when he was brooding. I was contemplating jumping him when-
His head snapped down to look at me where I was sitting by Father Dom's desk. And I had to suppress a shiver. The look in his eyes was so cold and distant…I was suddenly losing myself in them…
What the hell?!? It felt like I was slipping out of my body!
*Susannah…
It was the same voice…his voice…oh, *shit…
*Susannah…I want you…
Jesse smirked, and whatever spell I had been under suddenly broke in that moment, leaving me sitting there, totally shocked.
What just happened?
"Susannah, Jesse…" Father Dom looked hard at us both. "Are you two alright…"
When Father Dom looked at Jesse, he visibly paled and dropped the cigarette pack. I looked back of at Jesse, almost afraid of what I would see…okay, alright, terrified…
And stood up in shock. Jesse had this crazy, maniacal glint in his eyes. His scar was glowing, and he had this creepy grin on his face. He was twitching-
Okay, it's officially time for a freak out.
"Jesse?" I tried, and touched his arm.
He started. All at one the creepiness fell out of his face. He looked really confused. "W-where am I?" He looked down at me, and some kind of realization seemed to dawn on him. "Nombre de Dios…" he murmured, starting to back away from us…
And Father Dome pulled something out of his pocket-a rosary.
Ladies and gentlemen, the *shit has hit the fan.
"Our Father, who art in heaven-"
Jesse's eyes widened, and as he backed up, he stumbled and fell-
"Hallowed be Thy name-"
Jesse looked terrified. "Quit it, Father D!" I shouted, and ran to Jesse's side. He didn't seem to notice me as I grabbed and shook him.
"Thy kingdom come-"
"STOP!" I bellowed. Jesse looked up at me, and Father Dom finally stopped his weird exorcism. Time seemed to stop as Jesse whispered, "Stay away from me, Susannah." And he disappeared beneath my fingers.
"Oh my god!" I whispered, gripping at the air where he had been only a second ago. "What's wrong with him…"
Father Dom lowered his rosary and sat back down at his desk, massaging his temples. "Susannah, you better listen to him when he tells you to stay away from him."
"Father D," I said, containing my anger. Why can't people ever tell me things straight up? Why do they always have to be so damn arcane? "Tell me what's wrong with Jesse, right now. I know you know."
Father Dom sighed. "I'd recognize the symptoms anywhere, but I didn't know it could happen to ghost…Susannah, he's…possessed."
I didn't notice the tears that were welling up in my eyes as I screamed, "What do you mean? By what?!?"
Father Dom gave me a look that said, "Are you stupid or something?" And there it was.
Paul had possessed Jesse.
Paul had possessed Jesse.
Paul had possessed Jesse.
I wiped at the tears that were now trickling down my face, being annoyingly prickly. "No way," I told Father Dom steadily. "No freakin way."
And I ran out of the office.
*Susannah…Susannah, please, wake up…we need to talk…
I opened my eyes, slipping reluctantly out of the first nightmare-less sleep I'd had in weeks. After running out of Father Dom's office, I had torn out of the school, running the two mile trek home in record time, thinking over and over to myself, "Jesse is not possessed. Jesse is not possessed." The last thing I remembered was falling to the floor and falling asleep. Noticing it was dark out, I wondered briefly who had put me in my bed…
And then a glow registered in the corner of my eye. I turned my head, and there was Jesse, sitting in his favorite spot. Only he wasn't reading any big boring book. He wasn't playing with Spike.
He was looking at me.
No, staring was more the word. It was downright creepy. He wasn't even blinking. Not that ghosts really need to blink, but whatever.
I found myself blushing in spite of myself. Well, you'd be blushing too, if you had Jesse looking at you as if he were studying your very soul-
"Nice to see you awake, Susannah," Jesse said suddenly, smiling. There was something different about his eyes…but hey, at least he was blinking now. I still had that the feeling I was talking to a stranger, though.
"H-hi," was all I could manage to stammer out. Smooth, Suze. Real smooth.
Jesse didn't say anything. Instead, he started his staring act again. That's the only thing to call it. Just staring at me with absolutely no emotion on his face, not even blinking. I looked back at him, not necessarily scared but with a growing sense of unreal ness. It just didn't feel right.
"Jesse," I said softly. "You're freaking me out."
He chuckled and finally looked away. He stood up then and stretched luxuriously. My eyes subconsciously lowered to his chest, where the rippling of his muscles was clearly visible through his sleeveless tee-
Whoa, wait just a minute! Where were his cowboy clothes? Jesse was dressed in black jeans and a black sleeveless tee that showed off his biceps perfectly. The clothes only accentuated his already haunting good looks (pun intended). I didn't know how I missed it before. But I couldn't overlook the fact that there's no way he could have possibly changed his clothes, being a ghost.
I shrank in my bed until my back was against the headboard and watched him warily. He didn't notice. He was perusing my bedroom, observing all the pink frills and satins with something that resembled amusement.
"Very…girly," he commented, grinning at me.
My mind reeled. That was the same thing Paul said…(see Sleepless in California, one of the earlier chapters, I'm too lazy to look up which one) Did he realize that or was he just playing stupid?
"Uh, yeah…" I muttered, wondering if I could jump out the window without him grabbing me.
Jesse walked over and sat beside me on the bed. I mentally cringed, but on the outside, remained the image of innocent ignorance. Father Dom was right. But I couldn't bring myself to exorcise him, because Jesse would go, too. But I wanted more than anything to feel Jesse's arms around me now…
As if he had caught that stray though, I felt strong arms wrap around me. I gasped as I was drawn into Jesse lap. I swallowed and forced myself to remember that he wasn't really Jesse…
But it was so hard as Jesse brought his mouth down on my neck, nibbling the sensitive skin there.
Dammit! Why was it always the evil guys that wanted me! And why couldn't the real Jesse act like this more often!
"Stop it, Paul," I whispered. I realized my mistake a split second too late as Jesse stiffened.
"What did you just call me, Susannah?" he said, seething.
"Uh…" I tried to get off his lap, but he had an iron grip on me.
"Susannah-" he turned me around and looked into my eyes, looking like a barely controlled madman. "Has Paul come back?"
I squinted at him suspiciously. "What?" he said, his eyes widening in surprise. "Is there something on my face?"
"No," I murmured, studying his face. He looked back at me blankly, and then his eyes squinted in suspicion as well, mirroring my own.
"Susannah, you're acting strangely-"
"So are you," I told him curtly.
He opened his mouth to say something, then closed it up again. His face suddenly contorted into something that looked like utter rage, only scarier. I backed away from him, or at least tried to, but he wouldn't let go. I knew my eyes were betraying my fear.
He wasn't Jesse.
He was Paul.
"How dare you," he shouted rather loudly at me, "insult me, the one whom you belong to!"
My eyes widened. I was suddenly very pissed off. "I don't belong to you, you freak! Let go of me-" I struggled to get out of his strong grip, but he wouldn't give. "I will never be your wife! I will never be owned by anyone!"
He laughed cruelly. "Woman, you're already mine. And we will seal our eternal bond with a kiss…"
He started lowering his head to mine…oh, crap this was just like in all those nightmares…only it was Jesse's noggin coming at me, but it was still Paul…
"NOOOOO, YOU *ASSHOLE!!!!!"
A quiet laugh rumbled in his chest as his lips finally touched mine.
And I knew it was all over. I waited miserably, my lips pressed against his, waited for those final bonds to come, like they always had in my sleep…
And then I opened my eyes, realizing that nothing was happening. Jesse met my eyes with his own, which were only an inch from mine considering we were still lip-locked. His eyes were filled with mirth.
"You…mother…I hate you…" I pushed away from his chest with both hands, and fell to the floor on my butt as he let me slip easily out of his arms this time. I could only sputter in shock as Jesse burst into uncontrollable laughter beside me.
"Ah, querida!" he was saying in between laughs. "You-you actually thought that-that I was possessed?" More laughter. "That I was-PAUL???"
He seemed to find this particularly hilarious as he broke into fresh peals. I felt my face burning up and turned away from him, sitting Indian-style, muttering darkly.
I couldn't believe I had fallen for that stupid trick.
After a few minutes of hearing his annoyingly deep and sexy laughter, I decided to get up and go over to the bay window, where I sat and pouted immaturely. Hey, I had good reason to be pissed off at Jesse right now. He had almost made me wet myself.
Eventually, Jesse came over to me and crouched in front of me, looking up into my eyes, his eyes still showing his laughter. "Come on, querida, it was only a joke-"
"Yeah, butter me up!" I spat out at him. "After you scared the hell out of me a second ago-"
"Susannah," he said, his voice still sounding amused as he sat beside me and drew me into his arms. I stayed still as a rock, arms folded, completely unresponsive. "Susannah, I'm sorry for frightening you."
"Hmph," was all I could say. "Was Father D in on your stupid prank too?"
"No…" Jesse purred as he started stroking the small of my back. I gasped quietly. He knew I loved it when he stroked me there.
"How did you…change your…clothes…?" It was getting hard to speak. It felt too damn good.
"Do you like them?" He whispered into my ear, causing me to shiver. "I got them just for you…"
I trembled, finally leaning into him and forgetting my anger completely. You would too if you had this sexy guy right behind you, rubbing you so close to your-
"Oh, god, Suze, I love you…" Jesse whispered behind me, his breath tickling along my neck.
My eyes snapped open. I sat up, pulling myself away from Jesse. I narrowed my eyes at him as he looked back, his face full of confusion.
"What is it now?" he asked, sounding frustrated.
"You called me Suze," I informed him, starting to back away slowly. I may have been angry as hell, but I wasn't stupid.
"So?" Jesse said nonchalantly.
"So, you never call me that."
Jesse grinned at me. "Oh, you little minx," he said in a purr. He stood up, and stretched his arms high up over his head. "And I was so close to having you…willingly," he said with a sigh of regret.
My eyes widened at the last word…willingly.
"You…you wouldn't-"
"Wanna bet?" he said as he pulled off his shirt and threw it back on the window seat.
All I could do was watch helplessly as the bastard walked towards me, slowly, seductively…
A/N: Hmmmm, cliffie....review, now...oh, and thanks for NOT helping me, Amanda...