What had happened to time flying? Jessie fidgeted in her seat, watching the clock above the teacher's head with some consternation. The two black pieces of plastic that decided her fate would simply not move! The old saying was not living up to its potential. The teacher cleared his throat, no doubt parched from having droned on so long, and Jessie pinched her leg in order to try and pay attention.
Brrriiinnnggg!!! The bell out in the hall shrilled the end of the school day, and Jessie was up and out of her seat before anyone else could move. The teacher watched her in surprise, not quite sure what to do as she tossed her papers into his drop-off slot and then darted out the door.
She was out of school and down the street in less than five minutes, running at top speed towards the hospital. As she reached the front doors, she slowed to a walk, breathing hard and feeling a bit of sweat trickle down her neck. She stepped inside the cool hospital and mentally breathed a sigh of relief as the air conditioning hit her full force.
"Now to find a computer," she thought to herself as she nodded and smiled politely at the bored receptionist and headed down the hall in the opposite direction from the elevators. She found a computer room that doubled as a library and slipped inside, knowing that this room was meant to be used by family members too worried about their loved ones to go home to use their computer, but she took advantage of it as she sat down in the swivel chair.
She swirled the mouse around on the mouse pad, waiting for the computer to come out of its sleep mode before she scanned the icons on the main page for the internet icon. Finding it, she double-clicked and waited for the browser to open before she typed, 'Jason Grey' into the search bar and hit the 'Enter' key.
Millions of results popped up, but only the first few had anything to do with what she wanted to find. She scanned the items that caught her attention and clicked on some of the newest news results. A whole page of reports came up, dating back to three years ago when the Connect 3 band had formed. She leaned forward unconsciously and began to read.
Various bits of the news caught her attention as her eyes scanned the pages. "Jason Grey is a complete gentleman," his wardrobe artist had been quoted on saying, both about his character and his clothing style.
"Jason Grey's new song was rejected by Radio Disney voters as being 'too deep.'" A report stated. Jessie frowned, checking the date of the report. It had been almost a year ago. Another report touted the same message, but this one was dated only two months ago, right after Jason's accident.
"Jason Grey's girlfriend dumps him on Valentine's Day, telling him that he isn't 'the one.'"
"Is Jason Grey's career going to consist of following in his brother, Shane's, shadow?" another report ended, and it was evident to Jessie that people saw the exclusiveness that Nate and Shane received, but brushed it off because of the two boys' vivacious characters. Though Nate seemed to be the quite one, he still received plenty of attention.
"It has been reported that at the last Connect 3 concert, Jason Grey's mic was actually turned off so that no one was able to hear him. Shane Grey has commented, saying that it was an error on the sound technician's part, but is that really what happened, or are the Grey brothers hiding something?" Jessie felt her heart give a little squeeze as she read that last report. No wonder Jason refused to bring himself out of his coma. For the last three years, his life had been full of pressure, speculation, and disappointment.
She read a few more reports, some more uplifting than others, and then searched the internet for pictures of Jason, just to see what he would look like if he actually opened his eyes. The first picture she clicked on took her breath away.
A young man of eighteen stared back at her, his curly hair falling around his clean-shaven face, and his smile was full of straight, white teeth that were meant to charm sighs out of fans. However, Jessie noticed something in the picture that few people probably even would. It was Jason's eyes that captured her attention, riveting her gaze on his, and broke her heart at the same time that it made the very same organ swell. For in his eyes, she saw the same sadness that she had seen countless times when she had looked in the mirror at her own face. It was a look of loneliness, and it was a look of restless exhaustion.
Jessie didn't know how long she stared at the picture before she clicked the 'Back' button and chose a few other pictures to peruse. All of them held the same smiling expression with the same look of one who feels that the world doesn't understand the person hidden within. Perhaps Photoshop wasn't as all-powerful as it was cracked up to be, for it couldn't hide the look of loneliness that danced around the edges of Jason's face, ever-present no matter what the occasion turned out to be.
Jessie closed the browser and picked up her school bag to swing it over her shoulder before hurrying out of the computer room at a brisk walk. She couldn't wait to get up to Jason's room! Finally, she had found someone that she could connect with, someone that understood the feeling of having no one in the world to talk to.
The elevator couldn't ascend to the third floor fast enough, and Jessie was shifting from one foot to the other as she waited for the doors to open far enough so that she could slip out. She hurried to Diana's wing and waved to Mrs. Nash, pointing down the hall to tell the matronly nurse that she was heading down to see Jason. Mrs. Nash nodded and winked at Jessie, turning quickly back to the nurse that was consulting with her.
With a whirl that made her backpack almost slide off her shoulders, Jessie turned and headed down the hallway towards Jason's room, trying not to break out into a run. As she reached his room, she pushed open the door and stepped into the room, smiling when she noticed that there was no one else there. She headed over to the side of the bed, dropping her backpack next to her chair, and sitting down. She reached out and took Jason's hand, feeling the jolt shoot up her arm like yesterday. "Hey, Jason," she said softly. The heart monitor gave a loud beep and the BPM, beats per minute, accelerated to a stronger number. Jessie caught her breath, glancing from Jason to the monitor, and back again. Had she stumbled upon something? Was there something about her touch that caused Jason to react differently?
She was here again! Jason felt the darkness that had imprisoned him throughout the night slowly dissipate as her voice overrode his senses. Her touch once again set his heart to beating faster, and things became clearer to hear and understand. Once again, Jason wanted nothing more than to open his eyes, to squeeze her hand, to say something! However, his body refused to respond to any of the commands that his mind was screaming for. All he could do was listen, drinking in the comfort and peace that Jessie brought with her. Jessie. He couldn't utter her name, but his mind replayed it over and over like a mantra.
For some reason, Jessie found it easier to speak to Jason today. Perhaps it was the fact that she could relate to him now. He was no longer a stranger, devoid of the same feelings that she possessed. He was an equal, someone that was hurting just as much, and maybe even more, than she was.
"I'm really sorry that I wasn't here earlier," Jessie began. "Diana, my foster parents' daughter, wouldn't let me on the computer last night because she wanted to use it." Jessie realized that her voice was betraying annoyance, and she tried to take a deep breath to calm herself. "It wouldn't be a huge deal normally, but I wanted to look up as much as I could about you before I saw you again so that I could talk to you about yourself." She laughed, but the laughter wasn't forced, it was natural. "I wouldn't want you to think I was selfish and only talked about myself!"
Jason wanted to laugh along with her. He could imagine this girl sitting next to him, holding his hand and laughing with him. He could imagine her cuddling up next to him, perhaps on the beach or in a park, content to just sit there in silence, yet he could never imagine her being selfish. Just the time she had spent with him proved to him that she was not selfish.
"I didn't really think that there could be someone that felt like me," Jessie said softly, her thumbs stroking that back of Jason's hands carefully. "I didn't realize just how hard life must have been for you for a while." She paused, trying to formulate her thoughts and put them into a logical order before speaking again. "It must be difficult having people reject your ideas because there's too much emotion in it. I can't imagine what it must've felt like."
She paused again, wondering if she should tell him about her life as a foster child in more detail. It was obvious that he wouldn't laugh at her or shy away from her in disgust, so could she trust him? "Yes," Jessie whispered, and looked up at the boy in front of her. "I think I've felt the same way," she said hesitantly. "I've had people telling me with their body language that they didn't want me. I scare people without doing anything. People don't like the way I just stop talking, and they don't like the way I can remember just about anything after I've seen it or heard it one time." She smiled. "I believe it's called a photographic memory, and apparently some people find it creepy."
She smiled at the absurdity and then continued. "I've had people tell me nicely that I'm worthless, and that I'll never amount to anything. I've never had a friend since being a foster kid, and I've felt lonely for these past ten years." She looked up at Jason's face and wondered if it was just her imagination, or did his face look a little more relaxed? "I wonder if you've ever felt like that."
Jason knew that he had. He had felt shut out. He had felt that he wasn't as talented, or as special, as his brothers. He had felt the pitying looks of people when his brothers had left him out of interviews without actually meaning to shut him out. As the girl that he couldn't see continued to talk, he felt their connection strengthen and grow even more. They were alike, he and Jessie. They shared the same troubles, but perhaps together they could overcome them. Yes, he decided, together they could do anything.
A/N: VERY IMPORTANT!! The reports I used are all fictious except for the report about his gentlemanly dress!! Also, Jason's age is indeed different than in real life because I wanted him to be slightly younger and more...insecure. Remember, this is OOC!! Otherwise, I hope you guys liked it. :D Please review and tell me what you think!! Reviews make me smile!! ;) LOL!