A/N:
everyone: Thank you sooooooo much for all the reviews! They were really appreciated. I'm sorry if that chapter was confusing, (really, I'll write something understandable one of these days…)but basically they went back to the day that Jesse cheated on her, and she came face to face with herself. Does that clear anything up? I hope so. : )
the lovely people who have me on their fav's list: you guys rock. seriously. there is nothing else that needs to be said.
Disclaimer: I own nothing. Nada. Zip.
Mirror Image
Okay. This was so not cool.
I obviously knew it was me. You just can't be alive for that long and not recognize yourself. Unless your blind, or have never looked in a mirror. Both of which are entirely possible.
I, on the other hand, have looked in mirrors and am not blind.
Therefore, I recognize myself when I see me.
Which is a creepy experience.
You're like: whoa. Oh, god, is that what I really look like? My hair…it's so…frizzy.
And the other you is obviously thinking the same thing. Only I must have been thinking: why do I look so old? Even though in my early twenties, I am not that old.
"Oh."
That was all I said. The other me, I mean. The young one.
"Yah," This time it was the old me.
We just stared, for quite a long time.
Finally Paul broke in, "are you two…erm, yah, just going to stand there all day? Or are you going to do something? I believe we are on a very limited time Suze, so you better get cracking."
"Right." I ripped my gaze away from myself and marched back into the living room yelling, "He'll explain everything, but not too much!" over my shoulder.
Jesse smiled when he saw me, "I take it you met yourself?"
I nodded, still a little in shock, even though I should have expected it.
Still. You know.
"So what do we do now Susannah? Just wait?"
I looked at the stove clock, "we don't exactly have much time to wait, only like, ten minutes. You wait there, don't do anything. I'm going to go talk to…myself."
If we weren't back in time, that would have been so strange to say.
I walked into my old bedroom, Paul was still talking but I interrupted.
"I think I'll take it from here. Paul, go out with Jesse, keep him company, and make sure he doesn't do anything to alter this little escapade, okay?"
"Whatever you say boss," I rolled my eyes at him.
When he exited, I closed to door. Ten minutes. How to sum all this up in ten minutes?
"Okay. What's he told you?"
"Not as much as you just did."
"Huh?" Did I get dummer in the last few years?
"You're not wearing a wedding ring."
"Oh. Right." Right.
"Still, what's he told you?"
The young me sat on our bed, I leaned against the wall.
"Just that you came back to make sure that something really happened. And not to worry about it, because I'd know anyway."
"Yah, that's basically the jist of it."
"Do we…trust him?" I didn't have to ask who she meant.
"Yah. We do. He's not so bad, you know?"
"No. I don't."
"Trust me, you will. Paul's a good guy. He's just…Paul."
"Ah. Is Jesse with you?"
God, was I really that hung up on Jesse? Yes, I was. I still am…even if I don't particularly care to admit it.
"Maybe."
She stood up and charged past me, flinging open the door.
"Wait!" I trotted after her.
"Jesse!" The young me ran forward and flung her arms around Jesse.
"Querida? Oh, Susannah," Iguess I hadn't changed that much, I still looked like me from a distance, or rather close up.
She smiled up at him.
"Look, we don't have much time," the clock told me that we had about two minutes. If that, "you go back, just pretend we're not here, okay? I have to watch something for myself."
I ushered Jesse and Paul back into the living room and the other me went back into her room, but not before I added, "just…do what you were doing, okay?"
Like that made sense.
She/I seemed to get it though, and disappeared around the corner.
I walked into the living room and sat on the couch next to Jesse.
"So, what do we do now?"
He rubbed his forehead like he had a headache, did I give him a headache?
"Why don't we just wait here? That way—," but he didn't get a chance to finish.
Jesse and Shannon walked through the door.
I felt my breath catch in my throat. Oh. God.
I hadn't realized how much pain this moment would wake up. There seemed to be waves of anguish washing over my body and I tried desperately not to cry.
I peered around the corner.
"Thanks for agreeing to help me, I wish I could cook, but—," that was Jesse's voice. The pain stopped and I felt hope rise in my chest.
"No problem," Shannon interrupted him.
Jesse took off his jacket and turned to hang it up. He turned back and Shannon literally body slammed him into the wall, pulled his head down to hers and kissed him. I froze. Well, both of me actually. The other me had, right on cue, come out and seen it.
Only not everything that I'd seen.
I turned slowly to Jesse.
That's…that's really what happened?" I could feel myself shaking from humiliation. How could I have been that stupid? No, stupid didn't even begin to cover it.
"Yes Querida, I tried to tell you."
"Oh," that was all I could say. Three years had been wasted. Three precious years.
Gone.
Poof.
I ran into the front hall yelling, "stop! Wait, it's not what it looks like!" Shannon tried to flee, but I grabbed her and pulled her over into the middle of the room. I was so beyond pissed…
"You! Tell them. Tell them what really happened!"
"He didn't know, I just…" I didn't catch the next few words, "not his fault."
Bingo.
Paul walked out in the midst of the chaos.
It must have been a strange sight.
Two Jesse's, two me's, one Paul, one Shannon.
A strange situation for one and all.
I looked at me, "no, you have to believe us, it wasn't his fault…"
The young me stared me straight in the eye, "but how can I not believe what I see?"
"Because," I said sadly, "you didn't see everything."
A/N: Okay, what did y'all think? Review please!
