Mind Over Matter, Chapter 22

"Jackson!" I crumple to the floor and drag myself over to him. "Jackson! Wake up." I can feel the dark edges of unconsciousness seep into my mind, but I fight it. I can't pass out when Jackson's laying on the floor potentially bleeding to death. And part of me feels that if I were to go under, I wouldn't come back up.

I grab his arm and shake him, willing him with my mind to wake up. For a few terrifying seconds, nothing happens. But then, slowly, the nausea and dizziness subside. I scramble up to my knees beside Jackson's head. I feel him wake up, like it's happening to myself.

His eyes open and he looks up at me. "Well, that was weird." I'm so relieved that I almost hit him.

"That was more than weird. What happened?"

"Don't know." Although I can't see it, I can feel him trying to figure out what happened.

"What's going on?" He goes to sit, but I'm hit with a wave of dizziness, so I push him back down. "Oh God, if you make me throw up I might have to kill you." He eases back onto the floor. I remember that his head had been bleeding, so I inspect it, and find nothing. "You were bleeding."

"I heal fast." I feel like I'm lying, which must mean that he is.

"You're lying, I can feel it." I feel indecision, confusion, guilt. This is all too confusing. "What happened, Jackson? This isn't my powers growing. This doesn't feel natural." As soon as I say it, I realize how natural it feels.

"I don't know."

"You never seem to have any answers." I see, as well as feel, the amusement on his face.

"I have plenty of answers, just not the ones you're looking for." Not yet.

"Oh, now I can hear you too?" I don't know whose confusion is it, but I stand up, thankfully dizzy free, and kick the wall, which only makes my toe hurt.

"Ow." I turn on Jackson.

"So you can feel it too?"

"Yep." I kick the wall again for good measure and smile when he frowns down at his foot.

"This is too weird. I don't want this.. whatever this is! I want my mind back. Give it back to me!" Despite how mad I am, I also feel calm. Jackson holds his hands out like I'm a cornered animal.

"Hey, calm down, okay?"

"Don't tell me to calm down. This is entirely all your fault."

"Maybe it is my fault, but that doesn't make it go away." I cross my arms like a mad 3 year old.

"Fix it."

"I don't know how." He's not lying. I sigh and slide down the wall to the floor. This is giving me a headache. I look up at Jackson when I feel like I've figured something out, only I don't know what it is. "What?"

"When did you first notice it?"

"Afrer you left my room. I was going to come down and have a bath then felt like I was falling. That must have been you."

"I think it happened when I took your headache away."

"How did you do that?"

"I took the pain from you, I've told you."

"Not everything. I can tell when you're not telling me everything."

"I don't know how I do it, I just do." He's telling me the truth. I sigh and lean my head against the wall, closing my eyes. So much for my bath. I jump when I hear the front door open downstairs. I feel myself begin to panic.

"What do we do?"

"We don't tell them. We don't tell anyone." The look and feeling he gives me squashes any type of argument I had. "Not even your buddy Zee." His face sends cold chills down my spine.

"Gem - Oh, there you are. What -" I look up at Zee, who's standing at the top of the stairs, looking between Jackson and I.

"Hey." It comes out sort of strangled.

"You okay?" I nod. "What, is that blood?" Jackson wipes at the blood with his shirt.

"I fell and scraped my hand, no big deal." Zee ignores Jackson.

"Why do you look so weird, Gem?"

Nothing.

I flinch at the power behind his voice.

"Weird afternoon."

"Is your head feeling better?" I almost start laughing, but stop at Jackson's warnings.

"The pain is gone." Zee smiles and holds up a shopping bag.

"I got you something." I force out a strained smile.

"Awesome." His smile falls.

"Okay, spill. What's going on?" I stand up.

"Really, I'm fine. I'm just gonna go up and take a bath. I'll see you at supper, okay?" I don't wait for an answer before running up the stairs and not stopping until I'm safely behind the locked door of the bathroom. I start the water and go to remove my shirt, but stop.

You stay outta my head, got it?

I feel laughter in my chest, deeper than my own. He's laughing at me.

Don't worry, just have your bath.

I almost back out, but I can feel that he's not looking in, so I take his advice and have the bath.

Mind Over Matter, Chapter 21

Knock. Knock. "Gemma?"

"What?"

"Can I come in?"

"No."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, pretty sure." I'm laying on my bed with my eyes closed and a wet cloth over my forehead. It's been 3 days since that weird.. thing happened, and I've had a dull headache ever since. I still can't tell you what happened, cause I still don't remember. I groan as I hear my door open. Damn the non-locks in this place. "Can't you leave me alone?" Jackson sits on my bed beside my feet. "Besides, you're not supposed to be up here, remember?"

"No one's here to get me in trouble, so it doesn't matter."

"Where'd everyone go?"

"To the city for some Christmas shopping."

"Why didn't you go?"

"I don't like crowds, plus I volunteered to stay behind with you."

"How noble of you. Now go away."

"So rude." I roll my eyes but stop because it hurts my head. "Your head has been hurting."

"So?" He's silent for once, which is a nice surprise.

"I could help, if you wanted."

"I already took an Advil."

"That's not what I meant."

"What did you mean then? I'm not in the mood for riddles."

"I meant that I can take your pain away, for good." Despite myself, my curiosity gets the better of my mouth.

"How?"

"Let me show you and you'll see."

"Fine, go ahead."

"Scoot over." I move to let him sit beside me instead of at my feet. "Relax." I put a conscious effort into relaxing, and it finally works. I feel all of my muscles relaxing one by one, from my toes to the top of my head. "Don't move." I wasn't moving anyway, but I do as he says. I feel the tops of his fingers move in circles around my temples. Everywhere he touches me feels warm. I begin to panic as his fingers start to feel hot. "Shh, don't fight it Gemma." I want to make the feeling go away, but I make myself lay still. He does this for a couple more minutes, then finally takes his fingers away.

"What'd you do?"

"Your headache is gone." I start to tell him that no it's not, but I stop and realize, it is gone indeed. I sit up, without pain, and look at Jackson. He looks pale and he's sweating. I frown.

"Are you okay?" He smiles.

"Sure." I don't believe him, but I don't press the issue. I've learned that badgering him just makes him more quiet about what I want to know.

"What did you do?"

"I did what I said I would do, I took your pain away."

"How?"

"That doesn't matter. What matter's is your headache is gone." He gets up and walks to my door, kind of wobbly I notice, then stops. I get the feeling he wants to say something, but instead he closes my door and leaves me alone in my room. How odd. I shake my head, which doesn't hurt at all, and get out of bed. Now that I'm feeling better I plan to take a long, hot bath and make myself something to eat.

Before I can take one step I get this sensation as if I'm falling. I grab onto the wall to steady myself, but realize it's not me that's falling, it's Jackson. I open the door and stagger to the stairs, using the wall for support. I make my way down the stairs to the guy's floor to see Jackson laying on his stomach, blood seeping from his forehead.