Defrosting Chapter 10
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The early morning sunlight casting through Emma's half drawn curtains wakes her earlier than she had planned. Her headache has diminished greatly and although her leg is still sore, the pain has lessened enough so that she can walk much easier. Glancing at the clock, she groans inwardly as she pushes herself off the bed. She limps to the shower, proceeding to get ready for the day at hand. Testing out her telepathy, Emma calls out to Hank to find out if there's been any change in Bobby's condition. Much to her chagrin, there hasn't. She knows she should be resting, and she shuts off her telepathic link with Hank before he can tell her the same. Emma should be recuperating, but the semester is finally underway and she doesn't want to miss any classes, especially the first day. Emma welcomes the distraction the classes will bring. The past few days have been chaotic and she is ready for a sense of normalcy again.
Once out of the shower and dressed, Emma sits in front of her vanity. With great care Emma applies makeup, doing her best to conceal the bruising on her cheek. What she isn't able to cover up with makeup, she is hides by styling her hair. She scrutinizes her job in the mirror, turning her head at different angles before being satisfied with her work. While she can much easier mask it from the others with her telepathy, she plans on following Hank's advice to refrain from using them. Contacting him earlier via telepathic link caused a sensation of dizziness that is still permeating at the back of her mind. She is doing her best not to bring it back to the forefront.
Gathering her things, Emma heads down to get prepared before the classes begin. Although the pain still lingers, she walks gracefully, refusing to let anyone see her falter. She passes a few of the early birds on her way through the mansion but she doesn't stop to speak or to acknowledge them. As she approaches her classroom, she discovers another member of the X-Men about to enter.
"This is my class Scott. Are you lost?"
"Emma? Good morning. How are you?" Scott recovers as Emma approaches him.
"Can I help you with something?"
"I was going to cancel your classes."
"Why?" Her neutral demeanor quickly evolves into a defensive pose as she crosses her arms across her chest.
"With everything that happened, we weren't sure if you were up to it yet."
"We?"
"We thought the time off would be good for you."
"Thank you, but I do not need you, or anyone else cancelling my classes, especially without consulting me first."
"I'm sorry Emma. We just thought- ."
"I am fine," Emma interrupts him. "And I am perfectly able to teach. I don't intend on cancelling anything, so if you'll excuse me..."
With that Emma walks past him and into her classroom, closing the door and leaving a confused Cyclops standing outside.
When Emma gets into the mind set of preparing for the day, her anger begins to subside. She hates when others try to patronize her, especially when she feels that the majority of the X-Men couldn't be bothered to care for her well being. The "we" Scott mentioned most likely only involves himself and Hank. A small bit of excitement builds in the pit of her stomach as the first batch of students enter the classroom, driving away some of her irritation.
After the last student leaves, Emma leans against her desk in reflection. Despite the slight headaches, the day goes by virtually unhitched. She's avoided walking as much as possible, choosing to stay behind her desk or sit atop it much like she is doing now. The day flew by and much to Emma's enjoyment, it is now over. She is glad the semester is officially underway. Now she can use the time needed to prepare course assignments and the like as a distraction from everything else.
As Emma gathers her things and leaves the classroom, her adrenaline wanes and her exhaustion resurfaces. Her thoughts immediately return to the brief conversation with Cyclops and his suggestion she take some time off. No matter how tired she feels now, the joy of getting the first day under her belt outweighs any negative.
A low musical tone emits from Emma's bag, increasing in volume as she retrieves the phone from her bag.
"Frost."
Emma cautiously makes her way through the slightly crowded halls, listening intently to the speaker on the other end of the line.
"Send my car. I'll be there within the hour." Emma says, hanging up before awaiting a response.
Stopping in place, Emma turns around and heads in the opposite direction to the parking garage instead. Her original destination was the med lab to meet with Hank for a scheduled follow-up, but that will have to wait. She curses herself inwardly for forgetting about the meeting this afternoon. After answering her assistant's phone call, she's certain that her limo will be waiting out front for her, if not already there.
Emma walks out of the Frost International, her chauffeur holding an umbrella over her head as he opens the door of her limousine. The rain has only worsened her mood as she slides into the car. The meeting was completely trivial and mundane and bored her immensely. Emma regrets attending for it wasn't completely necessary for her to be there. The Board of Directors had things handled and her attendance was more a formality than anything else. When the meeting grew unbearable, Emma sped things along with her telepathy, much like she did when she altered everyone's minds into believing she arrived on time. She regrets that now, as her headache has increased tenfold from using her powers. She's rubbing her temples between her forefingers in an attempt to alleviate the pain when she hears the window partition lowering.
"Excuse me, Miss Frost. Shall I be taking you back to the school?"
"No," Emma says with contemplation. "I'll be staying at the penthouse tonight."
"Yes maim."
The partition rises again, leaving Emma to her thoughts. She considers informing Hank that she is not returning to the mansion, but with the pain she is feeling, she doesn't want to make it worse. She could phone him, but with all the buzz around the mansion about Bobby, she feels her absence will hardly be noticed. Her thoughts quickly turn to him. She regrets not going to visit Bobby, but his area in the med lab has not been empty since it became known to everyone that he slipped into a coma. Various members of the X-Men have been taking turns watching vigil over him in the med lab. Everyone is anxiously awaiting news concerning his condition, Emma included.
Despite the rough past between them, the relationship between Bobby and Emma has evolved from once being bitter enemies to some sort of acquaintanceship. The situations they've experienced of late have brought them closer together and out of these circumstances, Emma has found the closet thing in her life to a friend in Bobby.
Ever since the night the two of them left the mansion together, Emma's life has been in a state of disarray. Much to her amazement, she discovers that the time spent with Bobby down has been some of her most memorable moments during her stay at Xavier's. Bobby has a way of making her feel comfortable, yet not too vulnerable, that she has never experienced with anyone else. She often thinks back to the night outside the diner. When he pulled her into the alley, Emma had every intention of wiping the night from his memory, but when he took her into his arms, it simply floored her. As much as she tries to deny it, that simple act touched her more than she'd ever admit. She's never allowed anyone to see her truly emotional, yet Bobby has seen her twice. In the alley, Emma broke down and cried her heart out in his arms, but Bobby never opened his eyes. The second time, he came into her room one night, waking her from a recurring nightmare. As vulnerable and weak as she felt sobbing against him, Bobby only offered words of comfort. She had clung to him desperately, as if his simply being there could keep her demons at bay. Despite how out of character and foolish she felt, Bobby never said anything about it. He held her until she could calm herself, and stayed in her room the rest of the night.
She had felt so foolish asking him to stay, but the need to have him there was stronger. She can't explain the things that were going on between them, but by having him close, she was able to latch onto his dreams and keep her nightmares from returning. At the diner, Bobby was able to see a memory of hers despite her not projecting it to him, and he had come to her room because he could hear Emma's screams in his mind. She has no explanation for why this is happening and she is certain Bobby doesn't either. Emma toys with the idea of talking to Hank about it, but neither of them has told Hank about the strange occurrences. She wants to wait until Bobby wakes up. She wants to talk to him first and foremost.
Her door opens, immediately jarring her from her thoughts. The chauffeur holds out his hand, assisting her out of the limousine.
"Thank you." She says politely.
He simply nods acknowledgment, holding the large umbrella above them as he walks her to the entrance. As he leaves her at the elevator, Emma is relieved that she is finally alone to her vices. It's been a long and eventful day and its starting to wear on her. Her headache is finally subsiding, but the exhaustion and fatigue she feels is taking its place. She cannot wait to get into her penthouse so that she can take a hot bath and down a strong drink or two. Tomorrow morning will bring another school day and more stress, but for now she simply wants to wind down and forget it all.
To be continued….