Disclaimer: Don't own, don't sue!

Author's Note: I feel like I've been slacking off. I thought I'd get this chapter up sooner, but some stuff came up this week. For one, I had to get my wisdom teeth pulled. So, I've been stuck in the house feeling sore and lazy. That aside, I'm very happy at the response the last chapter got. I wasn't expecting that many reviews, so they definitely made my day a whole lot better!! With that said, a BIG thanks to those who reviewed: demitasse 007, Slickboy444, Sweet-destiny3, CykePhoenixSummers, Angelfly06, Diaz F, and Adit W!! I appreciate it!! Hopefully, you'll all still drop me a review at the end… but most importantly, enjoy reading the chapter!

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On Thin Ice

By: Pinkchick

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Chapter 6

The Aftermath

After what seemed like forever, Jean walked back into the mansion. Duncan's parents had come to pick him up after Storm had called them and explained to them what had happened. Duncan's parents seemed speechless when they had arrived. Their son had changed into drier clothing. Scott's clothing, in fact. Jean shook her head at the irony. So, Duncan had gone home wearing Scott's clothing and a few extra blankets. He did not say anything to Jean when he left. Duncan only gave her a guilty look and fled the scene muttering something she could not hear.

Duncan was the least of Jean's worries. It was not as though she did not care for her boyfriend, but Scott suffered more extensively than Duncan did. She would definitely deal with Duncan later, however. As Jean entered her home, a group of the younger mutants barraged her with questions pertaining to what happened. They also kept asking if Scott was going to be alright. Jean rubbed her temples and tried to pry the teens away from her. She did not have time to answer questions. She needed to go down and see Scott.

"It's a long story," Jean heard herself saying. "And as for Scott… I don't know anything yet. I was just going down to see him."

With that said, she pushed past her friends and housemates. Jean quickly walked to the elevator that led to the mansion's secret downstairs corridors. The ride down felt like forever until the doors opened and she was met with metallic walls. Jean immediately turned in the direction of the infirmary. As she approached, the sound of low voices filled her ears.

Jean finally reached the entrance to the infirmary and almost cursed out loud. The doors were sealed shut. So, she turned her attention to the rest of her teammates who were pacing the corridors. Jean bit her lip. At the moment, the events of the day were still running through her head and she couldn't shake the fact that something was wrong. It was not until she sat down and leaned her head against the wall that fatigue overwhelmed her.

"Any news yet?" Jean asked tentatively. Kitty, Kurt, and Rogue were startled by Jean's voice, as though just realizing she was there.

The three of them had been pacing the corridors of the basement. Kurt, having returned to his normal-looking self, was whipping his tail around nervously. Kitty was muttering, "Oh my God, oh my God," over and over again while biting her nails frantically. Rogue seemed the calmest, although she kept toying with her only strand of white hair.

"Nothin'," Rogue replied, gazing back at the closed infirmary doors. "They've been in there for a while."

Jean nodded mutely, sighed and slumped down onto the floor next to the other three. She leaned her head against the cool metallic wall behind her and closed her eyes. This was not exactly how she had pictured her weekend. All she had wanted was for Duncan and Scott to try and get along. Apparently, that was asking too much. Jean did not know how long she and her friends were sitting in silence. It could have been a few minutes or more. Jean glanced down at her watch and realized they had been sitting there for more than two hours.

Jean realized she could no longer take this sitting down. She needed to get up, stretch her limbs. As she looked at her watch again, the shock of what had happened began to wear off and panic began to set in. She started pacing with everyone else, running her hands through her hair.

"They're taking way too long in there," Jean stated nervously, glancing at the doors. "I mean, what if something's wrong? They can't just leave us out here waiting! They can't."

"Jean's, like, right," Kitty added, "Why are they taking so long? It shouldn't take this long. Should it?" She glanced questioningly at her friends.

"No, it—it shouldn't," Jean stammered. She rubbed her temples and, giving up on pacing, slumped to the floor. She rested her head once again against the cool wall and banged it once. The friends sat in silence once more.

"This is all my fault," a voice piped up quietly.

Jean whipped her head to stare at the owner of the voice. Kurt's blue tail was swishing back and forth behind him. Now that Duncan had gone, it was once again safe for him to look like his natural self. Jean shook her head in confusion.

"No, it's not," Rogue assured Kurt. "No one knew this was gonna happen. So, it's no one's fault." Rogue paused and her lips twitched. "Except for Duncan's, that is."

"I guess… but still," Kurt said, his voice sounding far away.

"Well, maybe if we had, like, gotten him out in time…" Kitty's voice trailed off, her gaze permanently transfixed with the floor.

"This is ridiculous," Rogue interjected. Kurt and Kitty turned their faces toward her. Jean, however, kept her gaze locked on anything but her friends. She feared if they saw her face they would all see the guilty look upon it. "It was no one's fault. If Duncan had actually listened, then maybe we wouldn't even be down here." She glanced at Jean and added, "No offense, Jean."

"None taken," Jean heard herself saying. It was strange hearing her voice as though it was coming from far away. "But, I know you all know it was my fault." Jean laughed humorlessly, the sound bouncing off the metallic walls. "Even I know that it was my fault."

"What is this?" Rogue asked, undeterred by everyone's downward sloping attitudes. "Pass the blaming torch?"

"No, it's just… God," Jean rubbed her face in frustration and looked down at the floor, speaking to it as though it were the most interesting thing in the world. It was better than looking into the faces of her teammates and friends. "If Duncan hadn't come here to begin with, none of this would've happened."

"Ja, but you didn't know, Jean," Kurt commented gently. "Besides, you said he invited himself. You're not to blame for that."

"Well, then I guess I didn't try hard enough to un-invite him, did I?" Jean asked rhetorically. Her voice sounded so flat, so distant, so hollow.

"Jean…" Rogue trailed off, holding up her hands. Jean just shook her head, pulled up her legs, and let her head rest on her knees. She was too engulfed in her own self-loathing to even want to listen to what Rogue had to say.

She didn't want to hear her friends tell her it was not her fault. In Jean's mind it was perfectly clear that it was no one's fault but her own. She was the one who let Duncan come over. Jean bowed her head in shame. She had even forced Scott to try and get along with him. What happened? Scott ended up beneath the lake and not on top of it. All she had wanted was for her boyfriend and best friend to get along. Now everything was a complete mess and her best friend had almost died because of her.

Abruptly, the silence and Jean's thoughts were interrupted by the swishing sound of doors opening.

Jean immediately opened her eyes and stood up, her eyes focusing on Logan, and Storm. The doors shut behind them so quickly, Jean did not have time to get a look at Scott. All of a sudden, Jean's heart dropped into the pit of her stomach. She realized she did not want to know about Scott's condition for fear of hearing something she could not bear.

The two instructors were silent for a few moments as though contemplating what they were going to say. They were spared being the bearers of any news when Doctor Hank McCoy, white coat and all, came out of the infirmary. Jean gulped. She didn't like the look on their faces. She felt like she was trapped in a room and the world was closing in on her. Suddenly, the thickness of the silence was too much and she opened her mouth.

"How is he?" Jean inquired, her voice higher than usual.

Dr. McCoy sighed and took the glasses off of his blue furred face, rubbing his nose.

"Well, the good news is that he is alive and finally warm," Dr. McCoy reassured, placing his glasses back onto his face.

Jean bit her lip, backing into the wall. She wanted to ask what the bad news was but her mouth felt dry and feared her voice would betray her should she try and say anything. Thankfully, Kitty's mouth was still functioning properly.

"And the bad news?" she asked, her usually bouncing brown ponytail now at a standstill.

Dr. McCoy sighed again. Storm placed a gentle hand on his shoulder as Logan stepped forward, his arms crossed. Jean noticed he had dried up since the last time she saw him, wearing a new set of clothes. Thankfully, Logan had a regenerating ability, yielding him against any sickness or infliction. If not for his mutant ability, he would probably be occupying the bed next to Scott.

"Because Cyke's beams take most of his body heat, he lost heat quicker when he was in the water," Logan explained. "It took us a lot longer to get him warm, and he's still unconscious, thanks to his concussion."

"Concussion?" Jean immediately questioned. She did not recall him ever hitting his head when he fell in.

Logan snorted humorlessly. "Looks like Duncan laid a good one on Cyke's head with his skates."

Inside, Jean was seething. That is what probably threw Scott back underwater. When she got her hands on Duncan, she would try and teach him what real panic was.

Logan took a deep breath before continuing. "That's not what we're worried about right now, though." He paused and turned to Storm. The white-haired weather witch nodded.

"Scott has a high fever now due to an infection in his lungs," Storm continued.

"Why does he have an infection?" Rogue asked. "Didn't we get him out in tahme?"

"Well, although CPR did get some water out of his lungs," Storm explained calmly, "his lungs were still congested."

"Is he gonna be ok?" Jean asked. No one responded quickly enough for Jean's liking. "He's gonna be ok, right?"

"We don't know yet, Jean," Dr. McCoy looked apologetic. "I can't say anything with reassurance until his fever breaks. For now, all we can do is wait."

"Wait!" Jean clenched her jaw. "Dr. McCoy, you're a doctor. There has to be something you can do. Please… anything." Jean was close to tears, but held them back. She did not need this. Breaking down in front of everyone was not going to help Scott.

Everyone was now looking at her sympathetically. Jean hated feeling helpless, especially in front of everyone she cared about. She looked up at everyone, her eyes shining, but she quickly blinked the wetness in her eyes away. She had to stay strong. If not for herself, then for Scott.

"I'm sorry, Jean," Dr. McCoy apologized regretfully.

Jean just nodded silently and turned away, her eyes glistening.

"Can we at least see him?" Kitty asked hopefully.

Dr. McCoy placed his hand on his chin in thought. Everyone was waiting for his answer expectantly. After a moment, he finally answered, "Yes, but only for a few minutes."

Kitty, Kurt, and Rogue smiled as they followed their three instructors through the doors of the infirmary. Jean did not dare look inside. All she heard when the doors swished open was the slow, rhythmic beating of the heart monitor. Storm was the last of the group to go back into the infirmary. She turned around and faced the younger mutant.

"Jean, are you not coming?" Storm asked, eyeing her calmly.

"Oh, um, in a second, Storm," Jean stammered pathetically. Storm gazed at her with sincerity in her eyes, nodded her head, and walked back into the infirmary. The doors closed behind the white haired mutant. All Jean did was stare at the metallic doors. After a moment of contemplation, she took a step towards the doors. Then, she took a step back.

Jean contemplated all the ways she had failed Scott in the past few hours. He probably wouldn't even want to speak with her anymore. She felt like the events of the last few hours would overwhelm her and suffocate her. She didn't know if she could handle seeing Scott lying in that bed. All of a sudden, her eyes welled up again and two tears slipped unbidden from her eyes. Jean bit her lip.

Slowly, Jean moved away from the door. She just could not do it. She could not move her body to get beyond the doors to Scott. Suddenly, an overwhelming sense of guilt and remorse devoured her and she turned away from the doors completely. Jean began walking away while her mind was telling her to stay. She ignored those thoughts and just kept walking. Jean walked away from the infirmary doors, and, most importantly, away from Scott.

To be continued…