yeah im back with another story...without having done anything to the others...I really am sorry...

7 Years Late
(Is Better Than Never)

By: Akari Zyne

Betaed by: Amaya Mizuno

Chapter 1
The Beginning of the End Part 1

Looking back on it now, I should've known something was wrong. Erik and I met our freshman year of college in a 100 level physics class at Cambridge University. We were lab partners and were practically joined at the hip almost instantly. I was sixteen, Erik was eighteen, and we were both too stupid to see that we were hopelessly in love. Two years and a lot of jealous fits later, we finally got together, with a little help from my sister Raven… Okay a lot of help, but I'll save that story for another time.

I suppose the trouble really started the day Erik asked me to stay out of his mind. We had been together for two years and there hadn't been any signs. No pulling away from me, no hanging out with other people. In fact, we were cuddling on his couch when he suddenly demanded I stay out of his head. At first it hurt - after all, my telepathy is as a part of me as my dick - so I felt kind of rejected until I started thinking. Maybe he was finally planning on asking me to move in with him, or perhaps even thinking of proposing to me. The thought of either made me giddy so I didn't complain. If he wanted it to be a surprise then I wouldn't ruin it. In hindsight, it would have just been better if I had stayed heartbroken.

Two months passed by and still nothing to tip me off that my life was about to go to hell. The third month I got a call from my mother, and let's face it… my mother hates me; anytime she calls it means trouble for me. She had asked me to come back to the Westchester mansion. I fantasized that this meant that the abusive asshole I called a step-father had died, but I knew better. Kurt would never die that easily.

So I went back. Unfortunately, though it was no surprise, Kurt wasn't dead and to add to my growing list of problems, I was disinherited. Cut off, completely. I had some money saved up so I wasn't worried, but the hurt was still present. I was, however, relieved when I learned that Raven was still in the will.

Ah, Raven, my beautiful, blue adopted sister. I miss her from time to time, when I'm not too broken up and angry over her betrayal. But that's coming up, so I'll try to not get too ahead of myself.

Now where were we, ah yes, I remember. So I headed home, well back to Erik's anyway. When I arrived, I found Erik playing Call of Duty with Raven over Xbox connect. I don't particularly like the violence that the game symbolizes but whatever; I wasn't going to begrudge him his game. I went over to the couch and sat next to him. He leaned over without taking his eyes off the telly and kissed my cheek, so I thought he was listening. I started ranting about how cruel it was to cut me off right before my last semester and how ridiculous it would be to have to get a loan just for the one semester, though I was actually looking forward to getting a job and earning my own money to pay for it.

When I finished, he told me it'd be okay and that I didn't need them anyways. So I just sat there and watched him play until he shut the game off after they won. We went to bed and cuddled, but he didn't start anything, which really should have clued me in, but I wasn't really in the mood for sex. I thought nothing of it, feeling happy that Erik knew me so well. Or, at least that's what I had thought. A week later, my world shattered.

7 years earlier

Charles was running late. He was supposed to meet everyone at Sue's Country Kitchen for dinner at 5. It was 5:15. As he rounded the corner he saw his rather small group of friends still waiting and gave a sigh of relief. They were passing something around and he wondered what it was.

"Hey guys. Sorry I'm late. Class ran -." Charles trailed off as he took in their expressions: disbelief, anger, and hurt. "Is something wrong?" he asked, looking at the anger and hurt written on Erik's face.

"How could you Charles?!" Raven burst out, thoroughly startling him. He was about to ask what it was that he did when Alex started.

"I thought you were better than that Charles."
"What?"

"Don't play dumb! We know all about it!" yelled Sean. Charles was becoming increasingly more confused.

"What did I do?"

"Enough Charles!" Erik yelled in frustration. "Even if you admitted it, we're through." Charles's heart stopped in his chest before cracking, Erik continued. "I'm sorry I'm not enough for you, but I refuse to be cheated on!" Erik flung what appeared to be a picture at him and started to walk away, everyone but Hank following. When Charles looked to Hank to ask what was going on, Raven yelled for him to follow. He did so rather reluctantly.

"Sorry Charles." Hank said as he left to follow the group. Charles felt so confused. He looked down at the cause of all the hurt, it was picture. A picture of him kissing a girl he'd never seen before which confused him immensely. Didn't they realize that he couldn't kiss someone he had never seen before? And why did Erik think Charles cheated on him? Didn't he know Charles better than that? Didn't they all know him better than that? Didn't Erik know that Charles loved him and only him? Wanted no one else but him? When he looked up though, everyone was already gone.

Charles didn't realize he was crying until he got back to his apartment. He felt so heartbroken and numb. He tried to call everyone only to get no answers so he tried texting them instead. He wanted to tell them the truth - that he didn't know the person in the picture; however, no one would respond. After an hour of trying, he stopped and decided to try again the next day. Unfortunately, the next day was even worse.

Charles's alarm went off at 7am and was immediately shut off. He hadn't slept that night. Getting out of bed, Charles heard someone knocking at the door. Hoping it was Erik, Charles bolted to the door. He felt his face fall when he came face to face with the building manager.

"I'm sorry sir but I'm here to inform you that your lease has been officially terminated. And, as requested by the building owner Mr. Marko, you have two days to move out. Thank you, have a nice day." Charles couldn't even reply. After standing in the doorway for what seemed to be an eternity but was only about two minutes, Charles walked back in and collapsed on the couch. He noticed his cell phone on the coffee table and picked it up. Nothing new, but he decided to give it another try. Still nobody answered, not even after he texted them about having to move out. He curled up on the couch and cried.

He felt so betrayed. His sister was supposed to take his side and she hadn't. Neither had his friends, not even Hank. He felt so abandoned and alone. When he was finally able to get a handle on his emotions, Charles called Will and Jim's Storage and Moving Company to set up his storage space and arranged for them to come by and pick up his stuff in two days, then he proceeded to start packing.

Two days passed quicker than Charles thought possible. The movers showed up bright and early on moving day and Charles gave them everything but a bag of clothes to take to the storage unit. Fortunately it was an already furnished apartment so the furniture stayed but Charles still had boxes upon boxes of books that were now on their way to the storage unit.

Still not having heard from anyone, Charles left his apartment and headed for the closest homeless shelter near campus, wanting to save what little money he had left for his last semester of school. Two weeks went by and still no word. It became increasingly colder out as Thanksgiving came and went but Charles didn't notice.

He was becoming progressively more nauseous in the mornings and he didn't know why. He didn't attempt to go to the doctor until after finals, and that was only when he started to actually throw up. At first he couldn't believe it even after the doctor told him that, while still rather rare, he wasn't the first male mutant to be pregnant and that he shouldn't worry too overly much but to still take it easy all the same. 'Since I'm only two and a half months along, I can still finish my last semester and graduate, can't I?' He asked the doctor.

"So long as you don't have any labs, then yes, you can complete your last semester." Charles paled; all but one of the classes he needed to graduate had labs which meant that no, he wouldn't be able to finish his last semester. With a heavy heart he called Erik; even with the split he still deserved to know.

Unfortunately Erik didn't answer. He tried Raven, no answer. He called the others, but they didn't answer either. So he texted them instead, telling them he was pregnant. He finally got a response, but not the one he was hoping for.

Hank didn't reply. Charles couldn't really blame him, after all if Hank were to respond positively to Charles then it would make the already rocky relationship between him and Raven even rockier and he didn't want that. Raven, Alex, and Sean all texted back and called him a liar and pathetic. Erik… Erik actually called but Charles couldn't get a word in edgewise while Erik called him a liar and pathetic for thinking Erik would actually believe such a lie. To top it off, he called Charles "a dirty lying whore who needs to go fuck himself and leave everyone the fuck alone," before promptly hanging up without Charles so much as saying hello.

Charles was all but shattered. His mother disowned him, his sister and his friends abandoned him, the love of his life hated him, and he found out he couldn't finish his last semester and graduate. He cried the whole way back to the shelter; still more while packing his bag back up. As he was leaving the shelter he spotted a calendar hanging on the wall. December 25th was the next week, well happy fucking Christmas to him. All he wanted was nothing more than to get away.

His tears cease long enough to hail a taxi and tell the taxi to take him to the airport. Charles bought a ticket for the furthest place he could afford; which was, after having to pay for the storage unit, sadly, only New York City.

It only took Charles two hours to get to NYC and he would have cried the whole plane ride there had he not felt so very numb. He'd finally run out of tears, and while he would never get over Erik, he felt it was time to move on and start a new life. After all, it wasn't just his wellbeing he had to think about now.

When Charles disembarked from the plane he only had $1.03 left in his pocket and nothing left in his savings.

so let me know what you think yea? =]