Title: Shadowland: Jake/Sleepy's POV

Rating: Probably K+

Disclaimer: I do not own these stories. The talented Meg Cabot does, of course.

Summary: This is the Mediator, book one: Shadowland. But, it's in Jake/Sleepy's POV. It's about his feelings in the book, and his feelings for Suze. Just what exactly is going on? And why is his step-sister so frequently on his mind?

A/N: Okay, I get that their siblings, but it is STEP-siblings. So technically, it's not wrong. It's just weird. But I read a Suze/Jake (Sleepy) story, and it was amazing and I was really interested. So, when I re-read some of the books, I noticed a lot of scenes that could be taken as a protective older brother BUT if you open your imagination just a little, it could almost be seen as jealousy. So at least try it, first. Then if you don't like it, that's fine. But at least give it a try! And be sure to let me know what you think!

I was just having an incredible time with Suze. We were in my new Camaro with the T-tops off, driving along with her beautiful brown hair blowing in the breeze. I had one arm around her and one hand on the wheel and she was smiling up at me. She looked incredibly hot, even though she was still wearing her leather jacket that I didn't like too much. Although, I have to admit, it was growing on me.

She turned to me and opened her mouth to say something……..

"Jake!"

She was whispering my name.

"Jake!"

Correction, she was practically yelling my name in my ear. Well, it was the quietest yelling I've ever heard. If that's even possible. Then I felt myself being shaken.

"Jake! Come on! Wake up!"

I slowly opened my eyes and looked up to see….David?!

I looked around, trying to orient myself and realized that I was actually in my room. Not in my new Camaro. And Suze was definitely not here. I hate when your dreams are so much better than reality.

I was still groggy and confused when I heard Dave say something that definitely caught my attention.

"Jake! Hurry get up! Suze needs our help! We have to get to the school and find her!"

I looked up at him, confused. How did he know that Suze was in trouble? How did he know where to find her?

"But, how? What's going on?" I asked, incredibly confused.

"We don't have time. Just hurry up, grab some clothing, and get your keys to the Rambler," David said, panicking.

I jumped out of bed and looked for something to put on.

"Hurry, Jake. Or we might be too late," he said, sounding very worried.

If I had ever rushed in my entire life, it was at this moment. What did he mean too late?! Those words should never be used in a sentence with my Suze. Ahem, I mean, Suze.

I really hoped that Suze was safe. I hoped that she didn't get into a gang war or something.

What if someone had killed her? What if she had been shot and left for dead?

All of the worst scenarios passed through my mind. I kept picturing Suze in millions of different situations, but none of them were pretty.

I took a deep breath and grabbed the nearest pair of jeans and my Army jacket and threw them on. I didn't have time to worry about a shirt. A jacket would have to do.

I grabbed my keys off the hook where I left them. Thankfully, Suze hadn't decided to use them to get to her destination tonight. Hopefully, we would still get to her in time.

In time for what, exactly, I wasn't sure. But I knew that I had to get there in time for whatever it was. I didn't want to risk hearing the words "Suze" and "too late" ever again!

I rushed outside to see David waiting by the Rambler. I unlocked the doors as we both jumped in. I threw the car in reverse and drove as quickly as possible to the Mission.

I don't know if I've ever driven that fast in my life. I mean, yeah, I do sort of do a rolling stops at STOP signs and all of that, but usually I drive the speed limit. Not tonight though. Luckily, there weren't too many cars on the road.

I couldn't help but worry that I wasn't going fast enough. If only I had my Camaro, I would have been there ages ago…

I noticed that my hands were shaking a bit, and I took a deep breath as I ran my hands through my hair that was tousled from sleep. Funny thing is, even though I had been woken up in the middle of the night, I actually felt more awake than usual. Usually, I walk around groggily. But not this time. I was wide awake and alert. I had to be ready for the worst.

What if a gang fight was still going on with Suze stuck in the middle? I would have to think of some way to get her out, even if it killed me. I couldn't just leave her in there after all. A good older brother would never do something like that.

I imagined Suze with other gang members all around her having a war and I shuddered. I tried to quickly push the thought aside as I pushed the pedal to the floor. Then again, I was practically driving the whole way there with the pedal to the floor, but I really didn't care. David didn't seem to mind either. He just looked incredibly worried.

What did he know? What was happening? How did he know that Suze was in trouble?

Finally, after what felt like ages, we pulled up to the street that the Mission was on. There was a police car parked near the Mission.

Well, I definitely ruled out a giant gang fight, since I'm pretty sure the cop would have noticed something of that magnitude.

"Are you sure she's here?" I turned to David, asking curiously. It didn't look like anyone was at the school.

"I'm sure, just hurry," he said, sounding absolute. I didn't question him again.

I pulled up and parked the Rambler in the shadows so that the cop couldn't see. David and I quietly got out of the Rambler and walked through the shadows toward the Mission, being careful not to disturb the cop.

I reached the front gate and tried it. Just great. It's locked.

"It's locked. What are we supposed to do?" I asked, worried.

"Hmmm…" David, said, looking around. I saw his eyes widen as he crawled to the ground. I saw him squeezing through the space between the bottom of the gate and the concrete. It was a somewhat tight fit, but he made it. He quickly opened the gate from the inside to let me in. I locked it back, just in case, so we didn't arouse any suspicion. I wasn't sure what was going on, and I wanted to be as careful as possible.

We walked through the courtyard slowly, looking back and forth and over our shoulders in case someone was hiding. I didn't see any sign of anything abnormal, except that it looked incredibly creepy with no lights on. It was also eerily quiet, without the sound of the fountain. We didn't see any sign of Suze though, so we continued to walk.

My first thought was that David was wrong and that she wasn't really here. But then I looked over to see him looking frantically, incredibly worried. I had to believe him, because well, David was always right. Well, except for this idea that he has about ghosts. Besides that, though, he was always right. I've never seen him this worried in my life.

So my next thought was that something bad had happened to Suze. I just got a very bad feeling as we walked further and my stomach lurched.

What would I do if I saw Suze with bullet holes in her? Or saw her lying unconscious on the floor? Or worse, what if she was dead?

I suddenly felt sick to my stomach. I couldn't think about it. Suze wasn't dead. She couldn't be dead. She had to be safe. She just had to okay!

I sped up, walking faster, because I was becoming too anxious. I had to find her, and I had to find her NOW! I had to see that she was safe and hold her in my arms.

Okay, maybe not the latter. Even though I'd like to, it might make her a little uncomfortable. But I didn't care. I just needed to see her safe this very second.

We walked into the breezeway, and that's when we saw it. Tons of rubble. The breezeway had apparently collapsed.

What the heck was Suze up to?! The pillars that hold up this breezeway have lasted through nearly 300 years of earthquakes and everything else you can think of. Yet, whatever Suze was up to was able to cause them to collapse?!!

What was she thinking with this gang of hers?! Was she crazy?

I immediately started panicking. Suze had to be here somewhere. What if she was buried? What if all her bones were broken? What if she was dead?

I started running through the breezeway, calling her name and looking through the rubble. I had never felt so worried in my entire life.

This was bad. It looked like a tornado or earthquake had struck. I had a feeling that Suze was stuck somewhere in the middle of all this rubble. I started screaming louder.

"Suze! Suze!" I shouted, frantically.

Then I heard a sound, the sound of an angel.

"Jesse! Don't! Go Back! It isn't Safe!"

Who was this Jesse?! I felt my eyes narrow. Some Jesse he was, leaving Suze in this mess. I would have been almost a little jealous, but then realized I had more important things to worry about.

"Here she is! Jake, I found her!" I heard David yell, as his voice fluctuated. He sounded worried and relieved all at once.

I ran over as quickly as I could and saw Suze covered in large chunks of timber. She looked pretty banged up, and her body was nearly invisible due to the massive amounts of wood covering her. I felt my heart break and my head rush with worry. My poor Suze! I asked if she was alright, but instead of answering my question, she said something else.

"Help me up," she said.

I shook my head to clear my thoughts. Clearly, I should have been helping her all along instead of standing here.

David and I began to lift the larger pieces of timber off of her, and then, when it finally looked clear enough, we decided to pull her out.

"Wrap your arms around my neck," I instructed her.

For the first time since I've met her, she listened to me without question or complaint. She slowly lifted her arms and latched them around my neck, her body pressing against mine.

I took a deep breath and I could smell her vanilla scent, just like that day in the car. Vanilla was definitely my favorite scent, I had decided.

The feeling of her arms around me and her body pressed against mine had to be the most amazing feeling in the world. Or, well, it would have been had I not been incredibly angry with her for coming here and taking part in whatever this was, as well as completely worried about her, and desperately ready to get out of here in case anyone came by.

I pulled her up as David wrapped his arms around her waist and we struggled to get her loose. After numerous pulls, we finally got her body free from the rubble. That was a lot of work. I may do ab exercises somewhat frequently, but I was definitely not in top shape. We all leaned up against the dais as we tried to catch our breath.

I panted as I looked out over the ruins of the breezeway, or at least part of the breezeway. What was Suze thinking causing something like this?! Was she really inconsiderate enough to cause this much damage to the school? I thought she was maybe finally starting to like it here, and she had to go and pull this stunt.

I looked over at her, panting heavily, and I realized that I was more worried than angry. What if she had broken bones or something?

In between breaths, I decided to ask her again if she was okay. Just to be safe.

I saw her look over towards me, but she didn't answer me. I saw her glance at my outfit, and I felt myself feeling uncomfortable. She probably thinks I'm a freak for not putting on a shirt. But, hey, I was worried about her.

I saw her eyes land on my chest, since my Army jacket was hanging open. Her cheeks turned red, and I bet she didn't even notice that she had subconsciously wet her lips.

She may not have noticed, but I definitely noticed. Boy, had I noticed. I felt a surge of emotions flood through me that were definitely unfamiliar. I felt pleased, and I hate to admit it, but I think I felt a rush of desire.

I tried to push the thoughts away, because it was just weird and uncomfortable. But still, I was pleased that she was obviously impressed with all of the hard work I had put into getting this six pack.

Those long workouts had definitely paid off.

I imagined what it would be like if she were to run her hands down my chest….

Then, I quickly pushed the thought away. Why am I such a pervert?

I noticed that she was still staring at me, so I looked at her curiously.

If only I could see inside that mind of hers to know what she had been thinking.

She finally noticed my curious gaze, and then she pulled her eyes away from my chest (almost as if she didn't want to, unless I'm just fooling myself) and looked back up in my eyes.

"Yeah," she said, as she pushed some hair out of her mesmerizing green eyes. "I'm fine. A little banged up, maybe. But nothing broken."

I heard David mention that Suze should go to the hospital, then looked to me and asked me if I agreed.

I was going to say yes, of course, because well I had to be sure she was safe. I didn't want her to have a concussion or something and go to sleep and not wake up the next morning. I couldn't lose her after I had just saved her!

But Suze instantly answered for me, "No. No hospitals."

David mentioned that she could have a concussion and then started listing the tests that she may need, but Suze responded again.

"No," she said as she brushed off her leggings and stood up. She looked a little wobbly, and I was about to put my hands out to steady her or offer to carry her, but she was already starting to move.

"Come on. Let's get out of here before somebody comes. They were bound to have heard all that," she said, nodding towards the place where the priests and nuns resided, where a few lights had just turned on.

"I don't want to get you guys in trouble," she finished.

Yeah, right. But she wanted to get herself in trouble?! Or even killed?! Apparently, she didn't care too much! What was she thinking pulling a stunt like this?

I was absolutely furious with her.

"Yeah, well, you might have thought of that before you snuck out, huh?" I said, sarcastically as I stood up.

Okay, maybe I was a little harsh, but she had almost gotten herself killed. Didn't she think about the fact that we might miss her if something were to happen? Or what if she had ended up in the hospital in the shape that Father Dom was in? What if that had happened?! Had she thought about that?! Apparently not!

I started heading towards the main gate, where we had entered, in order to get out of here before someone came out and found us at the scene of the crime. Even if I didn't even know what the crime had been. Probably some stupid gang initiation. Suze was so irresponsible sometimes.

We reached the front gate, where David and I walked through and Suze decided to lock it from the inside and wriggle out. She didn't want to raise suspicion that anyone had been here. I don't know if she was hoping that they'd think it was an earthquake or something. I didn't know.

So Suze wriggled out from underneath the gate and I saw her look over to her bike.

"Forget about it," I said, as I waved her along. "You might get noticed by that cop."

She nodded her head in agreement as she followed David and me back to the Rambler through the shadows.

We all piled into the Rambler, and then I decided it was time to give Suze a piece of my mind.

"What the heck did you think you were doing?!" I shouted, furious.

I think all of the emotions and weird thoughts I've been repressing all just turned themselves into fury. Because, I was absolutely furious.

"I mean. Come on, Suze. I thought you were smarter than this. Going down to the school in the middle of the night for some stupid gang initiation. That doesn't seem like you. You're too intelligent for that. You don't want that kind of life!"

I paused to look over at her, but she was just sitting there, listening quietly.

At least she was finally listening to me without talking back or disagreeing, so I continued.

"And what kind of friends do you think they are, anyway?"

Especially this Jesse, I thought disgustedly. I mean really, this Jesse couldn't have been too great if he hadn't even shown up to save her. Whoever he was obviously wasn't good enough for her.

"I mean, what kind of friends," I started, saying the word "friends" as sarcastically as possible.

"leave you to die under piles of roofing tiles?!" I finished, still furious. By now, I was constantly glancing over at her as I waved my hands around.

She still sat, saying nothing.

"If you're like bored or in need of a thrill or something, take up surfing," I said, trying to picture it. I could just picture Suze in a suit, me by her side, teaching her to ride the waves.

But then I shook my head, I was starting to get distracted again. Why was it so hard to stay angry at Suze?!

"If you're gonna have your head split open, it might as well be while you're riding a wave, dude," I finished, proudly.

Maybe Suze would take my advice and give up this stupid gang thing. It has caused her nothing but trouble.

I was about to continue when I heard Suze ask how David had known where to find her. That was a good question. I wasn't even sure of the answer myself.

"I don't know. All I know is, I was catching some pretty heavy-duty Z's…"

I didn't mention how these Z's included me dreaming of her. I didn't think she'd be too happy with that answer. Plus, I definitely didn't want to admit that aloud. I barely even wanted to admit it to myself.

"when all of a sudden Dave is all over me, telling me we have to go down to the school and find you. How'd you know she was down there, anyway, Dave?"

Dave's face turned incredibly pale, like a ghost. "I don't know. I just had a feeling," he said.

He looked really freaked out, and I became awfully curious. I saw Suze's eyes widen, as she turned to look at him. She tried to meet his eye, but he wouldn't look back.

What was going on?

Apparently, David knew something that Suze was worried about him knowing. But what could it have been?! What was going on?!

Finally, we arrived at home, and I was incredibly exhausted. After all of that worrying, then the heavy work of digging Suze out, then the anxiety of sneaking out, and the rage that came in the car, I had pretty thoroughly earned myself a good night's sleep. Too bad I wouldn't get it, since I had to wake up so early for school.

We snuck back into the house, and thankfully, only Max woke upon our arrival. He jumped up and tried to lick all of us as we made our way inside. I turned to head towards my room but decided to watch Suze and David first, just in case. I saw Suze look over at David, waiting to see what he said, but he didn't say anything. He just shut his door, so I turned around headed back to my bed.

I threw off my army jacket and jeans, leaving just my boxers and climbed into my bed. I had never looked forward to sleep more than this in my entire existence.

A/N: I hope that I did this part justice. It's my favorite part of the story. I love when Suze wraps her arms around Jake, and I also love when Suze stares at his chest.

What did YOU think? Good? Bad? Too out of character? Or just right?

Anything I should change?

Well, I think I should only be posting one or two more chapters for this story. I hope that you've liked it so far.

Please, Please, PLEASE REVIEW?! I really don't like updating if I don't get reviews, because I feel like no ones reading or even interested. Let me know that you are. And thanks to all of my readers so far! =)