The Mediator : Showtime

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(A/N: yes, I finally updated. I actually had this chapter saved a year ago on my computer, and I just never posted it.

If any of you bothered to read my profile (probably not) you would have noticed that I made the decision to STOP THIS FANFICTION. Yeah, I'm not going to bother updating this story. I've lost all motivation and or ideas for this.

I also promised any chapters I might have written and not posted up. This happened to be the only one. So… yeah. Happy reading.

If you're interested, I'm working on Ghostly Magick (HarryPotterxMediator crossover).

For Harry Potter fans, I have a fanfiction called Of Mudbloods and Sex, rated M for obvious reasons. Pairing is Lily Evans and James Potter, set during their seventh year. Enjoy. I don't think I'm going to be around the mediator neighborhood much, nowadays…

I present, chapter sixteen.)

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Chapter 16

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Suze's POV

I dropped my stuff on the floor before launching out at Kelly.

Believe me, I didn't exactly wish to be within a two meter radius from her. I've heard that the amount of perfume she sprays on can knock out any foolish guy willing enough to go up to her, and I didn't want to take a chance.

But it wasn't as if I wanted her killed. I am only human, after all.

I watched as the door's lock started to shake.

Relief coursed through me. I'll be able to get to her before her skull cracked.

Well, that was what I was thinking until the doorknob exploded.

I tackled Kelly out of the way and then rolled before stopping a few meters away, but not before I held my breath.

As I said, not taking any chances.

Unfortunately, my leg got hit by the door. I winced as I tried to stand up.

Oh, great. I think I broke one of my leg bones.

Kelly stood up and turned to me angrily.

"What the hell was that for?" she started yelling.

Well, at least until she saw the door.

It had hit the locker behind it and exploded. There were splinters everywhere. If I hadn't knocked Kelly out of the way, she would have been squashed between the door and the locker, making a nice Kelly pancake.

Too bad the goodness in my heart prevented me from letting that happen. I'm sure Brad would like a decent helping of Kelly pancake.

She started trembling. She stood up slowly, her eyes looking far away. She stumbled over her books before making a break for it to the bathroom. Outside, people could hear her hyperventilating.

Why does everyone like to hyperventilate after accidents like this?

No, wait. Don't answer that.

I tried leaning against the locker but my leg just collapsed underneath me. Biting back a yelp of pain, I winced and tried to stand up again.

One of the novices must have seen what happened because Father Dom just magically appeared out of thin air. Hurrying towards me, he tried to help me up. I just winced and collapsed back onto the floor again.

"Can you call an ambulance, Jenny?" Father Dominic enquired looking over at me, concerned. The novice bobbed her head and ran to the office.

Now the pain started to make me giddy. I started grinning crazily then laughing as the pain increased. Father Dom looked worriedly at me.

"Susannah? Susannah, are you alright?"

"I'm fine," I managed to breathe out before I started laughing again.

I heard the sirens in the distance, and when the hospital people put me on a stretcher, I completely blacked out.

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I woke up to blinding whiteness.

Argh. They could put more color in these hospitals.

I looked around the room. Plain with one window that gave me the view of... a garden. And the parking lot beyond.

Not bad.

My door opened and a doctor came in. Looking up from his clipboard, he smiled at me and said, "Looks like your leg is broken."

I smiled politely at him, though a bit forcedly. No shit, Sherlock.

"Good news is that it's just a slight fracture. You can go home as long as you don't move around that much. Stay home, watch TV, do homework, and rest. Your mother is here right now. Shall I call her in?"

I nodded and he stepped back outside. A few moments later, my mother rushed in.

"Oh, Suzie," she cried, hugging me. "I was so worried – "

She stopped abruptly when I squeaked. She had just joggled my leg and that hurt.

"Oh, my. I'm so sorry!" she cried. The doctor stood behind her and smiled benignly.

"You can take her home Mrs. Ackerman. Here," he said, drawing a wheelchair behind the door. I stared at it incredulously.

"No way. No, no, no."

After a few minutes of arguing, they got me crutches. I mean, what's the most that I can do to my leg? It's in a freaking cast up to my knee. I can't even wear proper shoes on it now!

"Here, let me help you," my mom helped me up and gave me my crutches, me wincing the whole way. I sighed audibly in relief when I realized I could limp in relatively little pain.

"Thank you, doctor," my mother called to him as we made our way out of the hospital. It took half an hour for us to get into the car, drive home, and get out of the car. I made my way up the lawn and had to limp up the steps onto the porch before I collapsed on the couch. Andy looked up from the newspaper he was reading.

"Suze, what are you doing back from school so early?" Then he noticed my cast.

"Oh my… What happened?" He asked my mom who had just come in.

"Turns out her leg got crushed behind a door." Andy's gaze hardened.

"Do they know who did it?"

"No, they don't. Apparently, no one was found inside the classroom."

I looked up at Andy, surprised. What is with the new protectiveness? I mean, I'm just his stepdaughter. Right?

I shook myself and slowly got up. My mom and Andy made a move as if to help me, but I told them I was fine.

"I'm going to go upstairs, Mom, Andy."

I limped up the stairs to my room and opened my door to find my room empty.

Looks like Jesse hasn't come back since last night.

I went over to my laptop and brought it over to my bed, plugging it in there. Then I proceeded to plop onto my bed and surf the Net.

After awhile, I turned on my music and just leant back, listening. I felt at peace… just me and my music.

At least I heard someone yell my name loudly.

"Susannah!"

I looked up. Jesse was standing there looking surprised. I cocked an eyebrow.

"What are you doing here, Susannah? Shouldn't you be at school?"

That was when I noticed that he couldn't see my cast. I moved my laptop off of me and flipped open the covers. He stared at my cast.

"Susannah!" I rolled my eyes. What is with the screaming of my name?

"Yes, that's my name. What's wrong?"

"What's wrong? What's wrong? What did you do to yourself, querida?"

That word again…

"I didn't 'do this to myself'," I retorted. "I tackled a girl out of the way of a slamming door and I got my leg crushed under it just before it exploded."

He just continued to stare at my cast. He shook his head.

"Nombre de Dios." He turned away.

I felt immensely sad, as if I had just let him down or something. I looked down at my laptop and tried not to look up at him.

"Is there… anything I can do to make you more comfortable?" Jesse asked hesitatingly.

I looked up, surprised. I thought he was disappointed in me. I looked at his face, but his expression was unreadable.

"No… not really…"

He nodded. But he didn't dematerialize.

Suddenly he blurted out, "What were you doing last night?"

My eyebrows shot up. "Last night? Nothing…"

"Nothing? Susannah, you were on your bed underneath a man!" He almost yelled. He looked furious.

"Well, you dematerialized before I could explain!" I retorted, glaring at him. He didn't say anything.

"You left and I was reading my magazine when he just suddenly materialized, okay? I slipped on one of my other magazines lying on the ground and I crashed into him. He fell forwards and we landed on the bed. That's when you came in!"

And then I remembered the kiss. My first kiss in Carmel. I decided that I didn't need to reveal this little detail to Jesse.

"He fell forwards?" His eyebrows furrowed, murmuring.

"Yes," I snapped. His eyes refocused on me.

"Sorry, querida. I guess I just thought that you were doing something inappropriate with that young man. But enough of that," he said, standing up.

"You need to rest. Who knows how long it will take for your leg to heal? Better to hurry it along quickly by resting so that you may move again."

I widened my eyes as he gently pushed me back onto my bed and pulled the covers over. Taking my laptop and placing it on the floor next to my bed, he stood up and smiled at me as my eyes drooped.

When did I get so sleepy? I was wide awake a second ago…

"Sweet dreams, querida," he said as my eyelids fluttered closed.

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I woke up a few hours later. Looking at the window groggily, I noticed that Jesse was sitting on the window seat, staring at the darkness outside. I yawned and Jesse turned around. Seeing I was awake, he smiled and pointed to some food on my desk.

"Your mother brought them up just now just in case you were hungry," he said.

I gazed at the food sourly. "Oh, yay, Mom," I muttered sarcastically. "You put my food halfway across the room from me. How is my leg supposed to heal faster if every time I sleep through a meal you put it all the way over there?"

Jesse went over and got the tray and put it in my lap. When I looked up at him, I could see he was trying not to laugh.

I guess he overheard me.

"Well, I guess I'm lucky enough to have a certain ghost as my roommate," I said, grinning up at him. He smiled back.

I gulped down all the food in five minutes and lay back on my bed, sighing.

Andy's a cooking genius.

Jesse took my tray away and placed it on my table while I clapped my hands, turning the light on. I was feeling a bit up after the whole incident. At least until I saw the pile of homework that had been left on my desk, probably from Brad.

I groaned. Jesse looked at me worriedly.

"Are you well, Susannah? Does something hurt?"

"No, no," I said hurriedly. "It's just that I still need to do homework. I mean, really. I have a freaking leg bone broken here! There should be a law not allowing teachers to give students homework when they're on sick leave. Do you mind bringing them over here?"

Jesse laughed placed them on my bed next to me. I took my laptop and started working on the essay for English. A couple of hours later, I finished all my homework except for my math. I guess I must have dozed off because the next thing I knew, I was lying down in my bed, my homework piled neatly on the floor beside me, and sunlight was streaming in through my window.

I tried jumping up but pain coursed through my leg. I lay back gasping before I remembered that I didn't need to go to school today. I mentally kicked myself before I hurriedly finished my homework. Doc came in and grabbed up my homework before leaving, saying that I should rest well and drink more fluids.

I shook my head as he left. Maybe I should ask him to do my homework.

The next two days I stayed at home, went online, listened to music, and did my homework. Only on the third day did I realize that the pain in my leg when I got up to use the bathroom every so often had ebbed away to a dull throb. I took this as a good sign. By the fifth day, it ceased altogether except sometimes if I twisted it too far.

I went back to the doctor at the end of the week for a check-up. They X-rayed my leg again and told us to wait. Fifteen minutes later, the doctor came back, exclaiming that my leg had almost already become fully healed. I could get rid of the cast in two days.

We left the parking lot happily and I got my cast off on Sunday. But the doctor told me to still take it easy and to come back next week again for a last checkup.

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Two days later, I ran up the porch steps and up to my room, banging open my door and exclaiming, "Yes! I got rid of my cast! I can wear miniskirts again!"

Two people turned around to face me. Surprised, I realized that Derek and Jesse had been talking the moment before I stepped in.

"You don't know how glad I am to hear that," Derek said amusedly. "I bet you look hot in a miniskirt." I saw Jesse involuntarily tense up.

"Um… hey, you guys," I said hesitatingly, closing the door behind me.

"Derek, what are you doing here?" I asked, plopping on my bed.

"I was just going to visit you… Anyway, I never heard you got a leg cast. What happened?" he asked, concernedly.

"Crushed my leg behind a door," I said unconcernedly. "What are you doing back here, Derek? I thought I told you to get lost."

"Now, how could I resist a fine girl like you?" he asked flirtatiously. I flushed and saw Jesse stiffen even more out of the corner of my eye.

Not that way. God. Perverts.

"Shut the hell up, Derek. I don't have time for your bullshit. What are you doing here?"

"Nothing, nothing… just checking up on you."

"Right. You've checked up on me. Now go."

He stiffened but dematerialized. I sighed audibly, lying back on to my bed. I closed my eyes and said, "I can't wait to get back to school tomorrow. That freaking cast was getting a bit annoying."

Jesse just stood there quietly, not saying anything, yet still looking as hot as ever.

Wipe that imaginary drool off your face this instant, Suze!

I turned to him. "Hey, Jesse? What were you guys talking about?"

Jesse looked up at me startled. 'Nothing, querida."

I frowned. Jesse and Derek had looked like they had been in deep conversation when I interrupted. What the heck had they been talking about?

"Susie!" my mom called up the stairs.

I groaned. My leg was tired and I just wanted to rest. Is that just a tad too much to ask for?

"Yeah, mom?" I called, opening my door. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Jesse shimmer and disappear. I sighed.

Just when I thought I'd be left alone with him.

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(A/N: review, if you want. See you all around.

xx.butterflaii)