Chapter Four - Gossip

Dinner was disgusting. Granted, it was better than the sludge that used to be served at the Orphanage, and certainly more appetising looking. But she didn't like green beans, and she didn't like Broccoli, and she hated the texture of the pork; her jaws got sore from trying to chew it.

She pushed her food around with her fork, listening to the rest of the students talking amongst themselves. They were talking about their training – they got to take part in the fun and exciting sessions in the danger room, and were always bragging about what levels they had completed and what holographic enemies they had defeated.

Jessie, again, felt sadly out of place, and despairingly lonely. She hated eating with the students, although she understood that the adults liked to speak adult business at the dinner table and they couldn't always do that while she was there with them.

She wondered if it was dinner time where Mr. LeBeau was – and what kind of meals he was having in Scotland. Did they all speak like Groundskeeper Willie over there?

"I mean it's weird," said Rusty Collins who was sitting close enough that Jessie could hear his low tone as he spoke to Alison Blaire who was sitting across from him. "I can't imagine Rogue getting married to anyone."

Jessie put a piece of carrot into her mouth; she tried to pretend she wasn't listening – not that they ever noticed her enough to see that she was.

"I heard they're not getting married," Alison was saying matter of factly. "I mean how can they? What are they gonna do on their wedding night? Watch TV?" she giggled.

"He must spend a fortune in porn," said Rusty, and he laughed at this.

Alison kept her voice low, "Makes me wonder."

"What?" asked Rusty, even more quiet now.

"Y'know...if Gambit has something on the side? Maybe Miss Pryde's baby is his. I mean...she's never said who Caleb's dad is...maybe it's him."

"Oh come on..." interjected Everett Thomas, "you think the guy can actually hit the target when it comes to making babies?"

"Hey, he was around the time Kitty got pregnant," Rusty reasoned.

Jessie pursed her lips. She didn't know herself who the baby's father was, but she knew in her heart it could never be Mr. LeBeau.

"Nah...guy has this big reputation as a major don juan...if he wasn't shooting blanks, there'd be all sorts of women showing up looking for child-support cheques."

"He's not shooting blanks," came a Southern drawl from nearby; Paige Guthrie put down her glass of water and leaned over the table a little to join the conversation.

"Yeah, right," said Everett.

"No, it's true," Paige assured.

"So where is the kid then?" Everett gestured his arms up in the air.

Paige's voice lowered, "she died..."

"Really?" Alison blinked.

Jessie glanced over at them from the corner of her eyes; she felt invisible. No one seemed to even be aware of her presence. She wondered if she was like the Blackbird jet...not really existing even though being there.

"How do you know?" asked Everett, scoffing.

"Sam told me. The baby died in childbirth – umbilical wrapped the neck. It was a little girl – Gabrielle I think her name was."

Jessie felt an instant despair thinking of Gabrielle LeBeau; she'd known the girl had died as a baby but she hadn't known that the baby had died during childbirth. She wasn't sure what an umbilical was, but anything wrapped around a neck was dangerous. Suddenly, she felt sadder for Mr. LeBeau all the more that he'd never gotten to see his little girl alive before she'd been taken so suddenly.

If things had been different and she hadn't died, Jessie wondered, would me and her be friends? Would she be here at the institute like me?

The thought of having a friend her age made her heart ache with the echoes of loneliness.

"That's kind of sad," said Alison softly, her lips pulled a pretty but sad pout at the tragic revelation.

"When was all of this?" Everett demanded.

"I dunno...2003 maybe," Paige responded. "It was Sam's second year I think."

"You're sure?" asked Rusty.

"Yes, I'm positive. Sam told me about it...he was at the frickin' funeral. It was the first funeral he'd been to. And y' know what else..." Paige leaned in closer to say in a hush voiced.

"Hmm?" asked Alison.

"The mother of the baby; she was living here...and she just bailed...like she popped out the kid and just...like...disappeared. No one ever saw her again..."

It was odd, that although Jessie had known about Gabrielle's death, it had never occurred to her somehow that there was a mother who she'd never heard about. She wasn't exactly sure where babies came from but she knew it took two people, and she wondered why it never had occurred to her earlier.

"How come it took so long for Gambit to come back, anyway?" Alison wondered aloud, "I mean...how long was he away? Six years?"

"Seven, I think," Paige responded, "Sam said he'd left a few months later...some stuff went down and there's still all this big hush about what it was...all I know is Sam got called back here to be at this big meeting or something when Gambit came back – and it was something important and he wouldn't tell me what."

"He creeps me out sometimes," Everett said suddenly.

"Why?"

"He doesn't creep you out? The way he goes up and down this place not doin' anything remotely important; why is he always hurt? He's shifty. I don't know how the Professor could actually trust a professional Thief."

Jessie's eyes flitted to look over to Everett.

"You just know that guy must be loaded," Rusty agreed. "Probably a swiss bank account somewhere with millions of dollars in it."

"If he's that rich, why does he still dress like a bum?" Alison pondered.

"That's how rich people stay rich. By not spending," said Paige with a grin. "I kinda like the way he dresses – I love that whole ruffled 'could care less' look. Suits him."

"Yeah, but you have a thing for guys who look like douchebags," Alison remarked.

"Do not," Paige rolled her eyes. "Anyway, you can't deny Gambit isn't hot, no matter how he dresses or acts. He has the kinda body that you could just totally stare at all day. And his butt.."

The conversation was starting to make Jessie extremely uncomfortable. Without excusing herself, she got up and left without finishing her dinner. As she wandered around the halls somewhat aimlessly, she wondered why the other students thought it was so acceptable to talk about Mr. LeBeau in such a gossipy manner...and why the girls thought it was fine to think about his body in that way. It seemed so...wrong.

What what felt more wrong was that she had listened to the whole thing without once trying to defend him; not that she thought they would have taken her seriously, or for that matter even hear her.

Hearing about her had only made her feel even lonelier and she sighed as she climbed the stairs.