Disclaimer again: They ain't mine!
.~*~.~*~.~*~.~*~.~*~.~*~.~*~.~*~.~*~.~*~.~*~.~*~.~*~.
I fell next to Jesse and ran a hand across his cheek, which was covered in rotting flesh. Paul had given Jesse a body--Jesse's own body. I felt the sting of tears rise up to my eyes. I closed my eyes and looked away. I had seen Jesse's body once, and I had hoped never to see it again. Just then, I remembered what Paul had said. 'Oh, no, this is your own image of your loved one'. Which means that this isn't the real Jesse. Paul's just trying to scare me...and he's doing a damn good job of it. I'm going to kill Paul when I wake up. I'm going to KILL HIM!!
I fell asleep in U.S. history the next day. Ever since last night, I had stopped having nightmares about the hallway. I started having nightmares of Jesse's decaying body in the hallway, instead. I woke up with a scream caught in my throat. I was glad that I hadn't screamed, because when I woke up, I saw Paul grinning at me from across the room. I glared at him and went back to studying, which was what I was supposed to be doing at the moment. I found myself staring at the study sheet as if it were blank. I could see Paul staring at me out of the corner of my eye.
As soon as the teacher's back was turned I picked up a pen and chucked it at his head. Bullseye--right between the eyes. Paul gasped as the pen flew. Apparently, he hadn't been expecting it, because he didn't duck. I flashed a sarcastic smile at him and turned back to my paper. Now that I had, at least, got to hit Paul with something, my mind was a lot clearer. And so was the voice that came on the inter-com a second later.
"Susannah Simon, to the office, please. Susannah Simon to the office."
Usually when I get called to the school's office, it has nothing to do with school. Usually my meetings with the school principal consist of ghost-busting. I grabbed my books and stepped out of the door, glad to get called away from Paul. I was half-way down the hallway when I heard the inter-com again, ringing through the hall.
"Paul Slater to the office, please. Paul Slater."
Oh, God. I slammed my fist on the wall beside me just before he came out. He jogged to catch up with me, then walked beside me. I hurried my pace...and he hurried his own. I slowed down...and he slowed down. I stopped. He stopped.
"Will you get away from me?" I said. It wasn't a question. It was an order.
"Did you sleep well last night?" he asked with a broad smile.
"Oh, yeah, thanks for reminding me--" I hauled off and punched him in the stomach. "I've been dying to do that for a while now. Maybe you should stop at the nurse on your way to the office," I said, immitating the smile he had been wearing before I slammed my fist into his gut. I turned my back on him and headed down to the office. Paul was following me, but wasn't very eager to stand right next to me at the moment.
"She punched me," Paul Slater told Father Dominic.
"Well, you'd want to punch him, too, if he went inside your mind in the middle of the night and made your already re-ocurring nightmares worse!" I said to Father D.
Father Dom raised his eyebrows and looked at Paul, who was looking at the ground. I wondered what he was thinking. Paul, I mean. Probably 'haha'.
"Nevertheless, Susannah, you can't just go punching people, whether they're living or dead," Father Dom told me. Of course, I had heard this many times before. But, I guess he just never gets tired of saying it. Each time he said it, I hadn't listened, but this time, I was mad. How dare he tell me that I can't punch the one who now haunted my dreams, forcing me to look at the dead body of my boyfriend. Oh, yeah, and there's also the fact that Paul had tried to kill me. So, comparing death to a punch, what I did was nothing bad at all.
"Father Dom, you weren't there. You didn't see what he did!" I exclaimed. "What was I supposed to do? Say "Oh, it's okay, Paul, that you show up in my head and torture my boyfriend in front of me as a punishment for my wanting to sleep instead of you teaching me things that'll kill me"?!
"Your boyfriend? Ha...a boyfriend that no one can even see or talk to or even touch. Well, except for us of course," he said with a sneer. I prepared to slug him again, and as soon as I lunged, Paul sheilded himself with his arms, but Father Dom caught my arm just before it hit Paul's face.
"See that?!" yelled Paul to Father Dom.
"Susannah! Take a deep breath and count to ten," he said.
I took a deep breath. Instead of counting to ten, I counted from ten. Ten...seconds until I kill Paul...nine...seconds until I kill Paul...eight...seconds until I kill Paul...seven...seconds until I kill Paul...six...seconds until I punch Paul...five...seconds until I think about Jesse...four...seconds until I miss Jesse...three...seconds until I run home to see if Jesse's there...two...seconds until I see that he's not there...one...second until I cry....
I sat in my chair, eyes glazed, staring blankly at the floor. I didn't care about Paul anymore. All I wanted right now was for Jesse to be here.
"I did not call you two down here to fight," said Father Dom, glaring at both of us. "Now, what was the last thing you said?"
I looked up, suddenly angry again. "I said I hate Paul," I said, glaring daggers at Paul.
"Susannah, I'm serious. What was the very last thing you said...about punishment," he said. Ah, he caught the part of Paul trying to kill me again and taking himself along with me.
"What Paul is trying to 'teach' me is going to kill me..." I began.
"My grandfather told her that..." Paul added. Fortunately, I had the floor and Father Dom held up a hand to quiet him. It didn't work, though.
"It'll kill both of us if he continues doing anything..." I continued.
"My grandfather didn't know what he was saying," Paul said.
"Your grandfather knows what he's saying. He said he was just like you when he was younger," I said to Paul.
"And he's not dead, is he?" Paul countered. This thought hadn't occured to me. If Paul's grandfather was 'just like Paul', then why isn't he dead if he did the same things that Paul did?
I opened my mouth to say something else. Both Paul and Father D. were looking at me. I closed my mouth again and decided not to continue.
After a few seconds, Father Dom started talking again. "Now, Paul, what is it exactly that you are trying to teach Susannah?"
"I'm trying to teach 'Susannah' just what I did last night--how to get inside someone's mind. She's not a mediator, she's a shapeshifter, meaning she has the ability to do that," Paul answered. He emphasised my name, as if making fun of it. "And, if you think about it, I'd also be teaching you a very good way to get payback on me," he added to me.
Hey, that's a pretty good idea. Have him teach me how to do all that crap, then use it against him. But, why was he telling me this? Maybe just so I'd let him teach me how to do it. And that wasn't going to happen anytime soon.
"Look, Paul, I don't need you to teach me how to get revenge on you, ok?" I said, standing up and turning to face Paul. I, then, turned to Father Dom. "Father D., can I please go? I'm really sorry, but I can't stand being in the same room with him anymore."
"Don't go, yet," said a voice. I knew it wasn't Father Dom's and my heart skipped a beat. Jesse walked though the door to the office...which was closed. He looked at Paul with murderous eyes. "I will not allow you to teach Susannah anything that will harm her."
Paul stood up and walked over to Jesse. He had better not start a fight. Not here. Not right in front of Father D. "Protecting your little girlfriend, are you?"
Jesse narrowed his eyes. I could see that his fists were clenched...probably trying to resist the urge to jam one into Paul's face. "That's exactly what I'm doing."
Hey, I, of all people, definately did not need a body guard. I can take care of myself. I don't need someone to--wait...did he just call me his girlfriend??
Paul sneered at Jesse. "She promised to let me teach her, Jesse. She promised and she can't go back on her word."
Jesse turned his head to look at me. Yeah, I hadn't mentioned that part to him, yet. "Susannah, you...promised to let him...'teach' you?" he asked disbelievingly.
"Yes, Jesse. As long as he promised not to try hurt you anymore," I said hesitantly. I wasn't sure how he'd take this. He'd probably either be happy that I did it to save his soul from Paul, or he'd be mad about it because I practically traded my own for Jesse's. Knowing Jesse, I expected the latter possibility. "Which means, Paul, that you have to get away from him right now and keep your mouth shut."
Sure enough, I could see the fire in his eyes, but I couldn't tell who it was specifically directed at, me or Paul. Probably the both of us. I sensed that he was angry with me, but he truly wanted to kill Paul for getting me into this in the first place. "Susannah. Your life never comes before mine. Do you understand me?" he said. "You have a life to lose, I don't."
"You don't have a life to lose, but you do have a soul to lose. We're both even. If anything happens to either of us, we're gone, get it?" I said to him. I mean, normally, he would be right. But, we're dealing with Paul here. And Paul could kill and exorcise, which is a danger to both Jesse and I. And nothing was going to happen to Jesse as long as I could help it.
I could see Paul smiling at us. And I wanted so bad to smack that smile right off of his face. And if Father D. wasn't there, I would have. "Aww...are the love birds having an argument?" he sneered.
That's it!
"Father Dom, can I please leave now? No matter how hard you try, your not going to get me and Paul to get along," I said to Father D. I needed to get out of here. I needed to get away from Paul. I needed some time to think about when I'm be able to talk to Jesse. Maybe I could call him when I get home. I wasn't very happy about discussing with Jesse how willing I was to put my life nefore his right there in front of Father Dom. In front of Paul, maybe, but not Father Dom. If the conversation carried on in front of Paul, maybe it would actually get it through his thick skull that I love Jesse, whether he's dead or alive, and not him.
I saw Father D. rummaging around in his desk drawer. I knew exactly what he was looking for. Well, he might not have even been looking for them, it might have been subconsciously, but anyway, he was trying to find his pack of cigarettes. I knew he doesn't smoke, but he keeps them around as a stress reliever just in case. Apparently, he was having some trouble finding them.
He sighed and removed his hand from the desk drawer. "You may go, Susannah," he said. Then, he looked at Paul. "You may also go," he said. Oh, yeah, I'll have to go abck to the same class with him. I'm such an idiot. Father D. nodded in Jesse's direction, which also dismissed him.
"We'll speak later, Susannah," Jesse said severely, but quietly, and dematerialized.
I stood up, and so did Paul. We left the office, leaving Father D. and his little pack of cigarettes alone.
"Heh, it must really suck having a dead boyfriend, doesn't it, Suze?" he said, eyeing me. It was just after his stupid comment when I had the highlight of my day. I tripped Paul and sent him face-first into the floor. I gave him an extra little push on his way down, which made the collision even more pleasing. I don't even think Snickers could have made a more satisfying crunch. He rolled over onto his back, clutching his nose. To my pleasure, I could see that his eyes were watering from the pain.
"Heh, it must really suck having your face plowed into the ground, doesn't it, Paul?"
.~*~.~*~.~*~.~*~.~*~.~*~.~*~.~*~.~*~.~*~.~*~.~*~.~*~.
I fell next to Jesse and ran a hand across his cheek, which was covered in rotting flesh. Paul had given Jesse a body--Jesse's own body. I felt the sting of tears rise up to my eyes. I closed my eyes and looked away. I had seen Jesse's body once, and I had hoped never to see it again. Just then, I remembered what Paul had said. 'Oh, no, this is your own image of your loved one'. Which means that this isn't the real Jesse. Paul's just trying to scare me...and he's doing a damn good job of it. I'm going to kill Paul when I wake up. I'm going to KILL HIM!!
I fell asleep in U.S. history the next day. Ever since last night, I had stopped having nightmares about the hallway. I started having nightmares of Jesse's decaying body in the hallway, instead. I woke up with a scream caught in my throat. I was glad that I hadn't screamed, because when I woke up, I saw Paul grinning at me from across the room. I glared at him and went back to studying, which was what I was supposed to be doing at the moment. I found myself staring at the study sheet as if it were blank. I could see Paul staring at me out of the corner of my eye.
As soon as the teacher's back was turned I picked up a pen and chucked it at his head. Bullseye--right between the eyes. Paul gasped as the pen flew. Apparently, he hadn't been expecting it, because he didn't duck. I flashed a sarcastic smile at him and turned back to my paper. Now that I had, at least, got to hit Paul with something, my mind was a lot clearer. And so was the voice that came on the inter-com a second later.
"Susannah Simon, to the office, please. Susannah Simon to the office."
Usually when I get called to the school's office, it has nothing to do with school. Usually my meetings with the school principal consist of ghost-busting. I grabbed my books and stepped out of the door, glad to get called away from Paul. I was half-way down the hallway when I heard the inter-com again, ringing through the hall.
"Paul Slater to the office, please. Paul Slater."
Oh, God. I slammed my fist on the wall beside me just before he came out. He jogged to catch up with me, then walked beside me. I hurried my pace...and he hurried his own. I slowed down...and he slowed down. I stopped. He stopped.
"Will you get away from me?" I said. It wasn't a question. It was an order.
"Did you sleep well last night?" he asked with a broad smile.
"Oh, yeah, thanks for reminding me--" I hauled off and punched him in the stomach. "I've been dying to do that for a while now. Maybe you should stop at the nurse on your way to the office," I said, immitating the smile he had been wearing before I slammed my fist into his gut. I turned my back on him and headed down to the office. Paul was following me, but wasn't very eager to stand right next to me at the moment.
"She punched me," Paul Slater told Father Dominic.
"Well, you'd want to punch him, too, if he went inside your mind in the middle of the night and made your already re-ocurring nightmares worse!" I said to Father D.
Father Dom raised his eyebrows and looked at Paul, who was looking at the ground. I wondered what he was thinking. Paul, I mean. Probably 'haha'.
"Nevertheless, Susannah, you can't just go punching people, whether they're living or dead," Father Dom told me. Of course, I had heard this many times before. But, I guess he just never gets tired of saying it. Each time he said it, I hadn't listened, but this time, I was mad. How dare he tell me that I can't punch the one who now haunted my dreams, forcing me to look at the dead body of my boyfriend. Oh, yeah, and there's also the fact that Paul had tried to kill me. So, comparing death to a punch, what I did was nothing bad at all.
"Father Dom, you weren't there. You didn't see what he did!" I exclaimed. "What was I supposed to do? Say "Oh, it's okay, Paul, that you show up in my head and torture my boyfriend in front of me as a punishment for my wanting to sleep instead of you teaching me things that'll kill me"?!
"Your boyfriend? Ha...a boyfriend that no one can even see or talk to or even touch. Well, except for us of course," he said with a sneer. I prepared to slug him again, and as soon as I lunged, Paul sheilded himself with his arms, but Father Dom caught my arm just before it hit Paul's face.
"See that?!" yelled Paul to Father Dom.
"Susannah! Take a deep breath and count to ten," he said.
I took a deep breath. Instead of counting to ten, I counted from ten. Ten...seconds until I kill Paul...nine...seconds until I kill Paul...eight...seconds until I kill Paul...seven...seconds until I kill Paul...six...seconds until I punch Paul...five...seconds until I think about Jesse...four...seconds until I miss Jesse...three...seconds until I run home to see if Jesse's there...two...seconds until I see that he's not there...one...second until I cry....
I sat in my chair, eyes glazed, staring blankly at the floor. I didn't care about Paul anymore. All I wanted right now was for Jesse to be here.
"I did not call you two down here to fight," said Father Dom, glaring at both of us. "Now, what was the last thing you said?"
I looked up, suddenly angry again. "I said I hate Paul," I said, glaring daggers at Paul.
"Susannah, I'm serious. What was the very last thing you said...about punishment," he said. Ah, he caught the part of Paul trying to kill me again and taking himself along with me.
"What Paul is trying to 'teach' me is going to kill me..." I began.
"My grandfather told her that..." Paul added. Fortunately, I had the floor and Father Dom held up a hand to quiet him. It didn't work, though.
"It'll kill both of us if he continues doing anything..." I continued.
"My grandfather didn't know what he was saying," Paul said.
"Your grandfather knows what he's saying. He said he was just like you when he was younger," I said to Paul.
"And he's not dead, is he?" Paul countered. This thought hadn't occured to me. If Paul's grandfather was 'just like Paul', then why isn't he dead if he did the same things that Paul did?
I opened my mouth to say something else. Both Paul and Father D. were looking at me. I closed my mouth again and decided not to continue.
After a few seconds, Father Dom started talking again. "Now, Paul, what is it exactly that you are trying to teach Susannah?"
"I'm trying to teach 'Susannah' just what I did last night--how to get inside someone's mind. She's not a mediator, she's a shapeshifter, meaning she has the ability to do that," Paul answered. He emphasised my name, as if making fun of it. "And, if you think about it, I'd also be teaching you a very good way to get payback on me," he added to me.
Hey, that's a pretty good idea. Have him teach me how to do all that crap, then use it against him. But, why was he telling me this? Maybe just so I'd let him teach me how to do it. And that wasn't going to happen anytime soon.
"Look, Paul, I don't need you to teach me how to get revenge on you, ok?" I said, standing up and turning to face Paul. I, then, turned to Father Dom. "Father D., can I please go? I'm really sorry, but I can't stand being in the same room with him anymore."
"Don't go, yet," said a voice. I knew it wasn't Father Dom's and my heart skipped a beat. Jesse walked though the door to the office...which was closed. He looked at Paul with murderous eyes. "I will not allow you to teach Susannah anything that will harm her."
Paul stood up and walked over to Jesse. He had better not start a fight. Not here. Not right in front of Father D. "Protecting your little girlfriend, are you?"
Jesse narrowed his eyes. I could see that his fists were clenched...probably trying to resist the urge to jam one into Paul's face. "That's exactly what I'm doing."
Hey, I, of all people, definately did not need a body guard. I can take care of myself. I don't need someone to--wait...did he just call me his girlfriend??
Paul sneered at Jesse. "She promised to let me teach her, Jesse. She promised and she can't go back on her word."
Jesse turned his head to look at me. Yeah, I hadn't mentioned that part to him, yet. "Susannah, you...promised to let him...'teach' you?" he asked disbelievingly.
"Yes, Jesse. As long as he promised not to try hurt you anymore," I said hesitantly. I wasn't sure how he'd take this. He'd probably either be happy that I did it to save his soul from Paul, or he'd be mad about it because I practically traded my own for Jesse's. Knowing Jesse, I expected the latter possibility. "Which means, Paul, that you have to get away from him right now and keep your mouth shut."
Sure enough, I could see the fire in his eyes, but I couldn't tell who it was specifically directed at, me or Paul. Probably the both of us. I sensed that he was angry with me, but he truly wanted to kill Paul for getting me into this in the first place. "Susannah. Your life never comes before mine. Do you understand me?" he said. "You have a life to lose, I don't."
"You don't have a life to lose, but you do have a soul to lose. We're both even. If anything happens to either of us, we're gone, get it?" I said to him. I mean, normally, he would be right. But, we're dealing with Paul here. And Paul could kill and exorcise, which is a danger to both Jesse and I. And nothing was going to happen to Jesse as long as I could help it.
I could see Paul smiling at us. And I wanted so bad to smack that smile right off of his face. And if Father D. wasn't there, I would have. "Aww...are the love birds having an argument?" he sneered.
That's it!
"Father Dom, can I please leave now? No matter how hard you try, your not going to get me and Paul to get along," I said to Father D. I needed to get out of here. I needed to get away from Paul. I needed some time to think about when I'm be able to talk to Jesse. Maybe I could call him when I get home. I wasn't very happy about discussing with Jesse how willing I was to put my life nefore his right there in front of Father Dom. In front of Paul, maybe, but not Father Dom. If the conversation carried on in front of Paul, maybe it would actually get it through his thick skull that I love Jesse, whether he's dead or alive, and not him.
I saw Father D. rummaging around in his desk drawer. I knew exactly what he was looking for. Well, he might not have even been looking for them, it might have been subconsciously, but anyway, he was trying to find his pack of cigarettes. I knew he doesn't smoke, but he keeps them around as a stress reliever just in case. Apparently, he was having some trouble finding them.
He sighed and removed his hand from the desk drawer. "You may go, Susannah," he said. Then, he looked at Paul. "You may also go," he said. Oh, yeah, I'll have to go abck to the same class with him. I'm such an idiot. Father D. nodded in Jesse's direction, which also dismissed him.
"We'll speak later, Susannah," Jesse said severely, but quietly, and dematerialized.
I stood up, and so did Paul. We left the office, leaving Father D. and his little pack of cigarettes alone.
"Heh, it must really suck having a dead boyfriend, doesn't it, Suze?" he said, eyeing me. It was just after his stupid comment when I had the highlight of my day. I tripped Paul and sent him face-first into the floor. I gave him an extra little push on his way down, which made the collision even more pleasing. I don't even think Snickers could have made a more satisfying crunch. He rolled over onto his back, clutching his nose. To my pleasure, I could see that his eyes were watering from the pain.
"Heh, it must really suck having your face plowed into the ground, doesn't it, Paul?"