Author's Note: Apologies once again for the delay. I wrote this. Re-wrote it. Went back to the original. Then mashed the two together. Enjoy.
Disclaimer: Don't own the x-men but I will stake my claim on the uber-cuteness of Jinx and Tommy and Abi if they pop up!
Sleeping With the Enemy
Chapter 13
A quiet Russian curse escaped Piotr's lips as he made his way through the mansion corridors. The fight between the kids had been broken up, he and Bobby had dragged the two in question off to see Ororo, detentions had been handed out, Bobby had returned Carl to his room, Piotr had returned Jinx to Tommy and… Jamie was nowhere to be found. Running his hands through his hair the Russian finally relented, heading for his bedroom. Maybe the multiplying mutant had finished with the system and had left already…
Worrying his bottom lip Piotr delved into his pocket and retrieved his cell phone, scrolling through the numbers until Jamie's was selected. His finger hovered over the call button for a moment as he walked slowly down the empty corridors. Finally he hit the button, listening impatiently to the soft ring, ring, ring…
The call went to voicemail just as Piotr reached his bedroom door. With another weary sigh he shoved the phone back in his pocket, opening his door and slipping into his darkening room.
"About fucking time…"
Piotr barely had time to register that someone had spoken before he found himself being pulled into a passionate embrace, Jamie's lips capturing his in a fierce, possessive kiss. A low groan escaped Piotr as he responded eagerly, grabbing Jamie's shirt, pulling him close. The two mutants stumbled backward, somehow finding the Russian's bed, falling onto it in a tangled mass of limbs. Quickly Jamie's jacket was removed, t-shirts were lost, a belt was thrown to the floor…
x-x-x x-x-x x-x-x
Finally the two bodies stilled, both mutants lying back down to try and catch their breath. As he felt the other male shift however, Piotr quickly turned to face his companion, placing a hand on Jamie's bare chest but it was the multiplying mutant who spoke up first.
"Sshhh, not now," he said quietly but insistently. "You're exhausted."
Piotr opened his mouth to object but even as he did so he found his eyes closing, for a little longer than they would otherwise as he struggled to get them open again. Taking a deep breath he once again tried to form a reply but Jamie was right, it had been along day, he was exhausted. And as he felt Jamie's hands gently rubbing over his shoulders his eyes grew heavier still…
x-x-x x-x-x x-x-x
Slowly Piotr became aware of his surroundings, a grudging groan escaping his lips as he shut his eyes tighter and pulled his duvet closer round his shoulders…
His eyes flung open as he realised he was lying in the middle of his bed and was clearly alone. Sitting up he looked around his room, finding absolutely no trace of the mutant who had been there when he had fallen asleep the night before. The Russian sighed heavily, collapsing back onto his bed, running a hand through his hair. Rolling his head slowly to the side he glanced at the clock. It was so close to the time to get up for classes anyway that with another heavy sigh he clambered from the bed and made his way toward his bathroom. Piotr paused however as he passed his jeans lying on the floor. For a moment he looked down at them, contemplating delving into the pocket for his cell phone but he quickly decided it was not worth it. Jamie obviously was not in the mood to talk…
x-x-x x-x-x x-x-x
A quiet sigh escaped Jamie's lips as he watched the early morning bustle of the mansion on the security monitors, students and teachers alike trying to make the most of the last few minutes before classes began. Closing his eyes the multiplying mutant leant back in his seat, tilting his head back, exhaling slowly. When he finally looked back up the corridors were empty but this did not diminish his feeling of uneasiness. Delving into his pocket Jamie retrieved his cell phone, tapping his fingers against the screen as for several moments he just looked down at it thoughtfully. Eventually, with yet another sigh, he flipped the phone open and dialled one of his contacts.
"Jamie!" came the eventual reply. "Do you know what time it is?"
"Time you were up, Firebug," the multiplying mutant replied. "What, is Mystique too scared to come in and wake you up in case she finds you and speedy going at it?"
"No!" the pyrokinetic grumbled. "Pietro's not here. Magneto's back."
"Oh…" Jamie pulled a face. The base was so much more… laid back when Magneto was not around… "Oh well."
There was a short pause.
"Is… something wrong?" John prompted. Jamie scowled.
"No, nothing's wrong."
"So you're waking me up just for fun?" John's arched eyebrow was evident in his voice. "Come on Jamie, you've been acting weird for… weeks. Even before the big, friendly Russian came on the go."
"I have not been acting weird," the multiplying mutant replied defensively, although his uneasy frown disagreed with the statement. Looking back at the screens in front of him he sighed quietly as he watched a small handful of students who must have had free periods wandering the corridors. Rolling his eyes at himself he turned away from the screens, rubbing his temples wearily as he tried to think what to say to the other mutant, but John beat him to it.
"Speaking of our big, friendly Russian, how is Pete?"
Jamie curled up his lips, at first relieved to be distracted from his first problem but he quickly realised it was not an ideal distraction. The multiplying mutant gave a relenting sigh.
"We had sex."
"Oh," there was a brief silence. "I thought the big guy was running about flaunting his girlfriend yesterday?"
"Well… yeah…"
"So… Pete slept with you – when he has a girlfriend?"
Jamie frowned heavily. He contemplated hanging up on the fire mutant but whenever John had done that to him he'd just kept calling back – and he knew John would do the same to him.
"Yeah, that about sums it up."
"Wow. Didn't think the big guy would have had it in him…" John let out a quick, wry laugh. "So… what's he saying?"
"What do you mean?" Jamie shifted uneasily in his seat.
"I mean… what was the big guy saying after cheating on his lady?" John replied obviously. "Don't tell me you two didn't talk?"
"Eh…"
"Jamie! What the…"
"Gotta go Firebug, bye!" Jamie snapped his cell phone shut, sighing heavily as he threw his head back. Sure enough the cell phone started to ring again but the multiplying mutant simply hit the cancel button. This was repeated several times before finally the phone rang with a text message instead of a call. Arching an eyebrow, Jamie opened the message.
You called me remember
Jamie rolled his eyes and shut the phone again. With a shake of the head the multiplying mutant shoved his phone back in his pocket and started typing away on the console in front of him. The security system was not going to fix itself…
x-x-x x-x-x x-x-x
Quickly Piotr made his way down the corridors towards the security room, having finally decided to track down the elusive multiplying mutant. Pausing briefly at the door the Russian put his hand on the handle, taking a deep breath before knocking sharply and easing the door open.
Only to find the room empty.
Piotr cursed quietly. Jamie could be anywhere – and there was only had half an hour or so left of lunch break. Screwing up his face the Russian retreated back out into the corridor, turning to head in the directing of outside…
"Ah, Pete!"
Piotr bristled slightly, turning to find Ororo making her way down the corridor toward him. For a moment he wondered if she had noticed him retreating from the security room but apparently she had not.
"Ororo?"
The female offered Piotr an almost apologetic smile.
"I need some muscles out in the garage."
Piotr gave a small nod.
"No problem," he replied, hiding the wry smile that pulled on his lips as he followed Ororo in the direction of the garage. Hopefully the security system still needed a lot of work and would keep Jamie there a while longer…
x-x-x x-x-x- x-x-x
A faint frown pulled on Jamie's brow as he stood, hidden away outside in one of the many corners of the mansion, watching as the students bustled about at the end of lunch. He had had been caught out by the lunch bell, finding himself outside as the gardens had filled. He much preferred to keep a low profile…
"Jamie?"
The multiplying mutant closed his eyes briefly at the familiar voice but managed to set the other mutant a calm expression.
"Piotr."
The Russian opened his mouth to reply, but shut it again briefly, regarding the multiplying mutant thoughtfully.
"Are… you ok?"
Jamie scowled slightly.
"I'm fine," a relieved sigh escaped his lips as the bell rang signalling the end of lunch. He arched an eyebrow pointedly. "You'd better get back to class, Mr Rasputin."
Piotr opened his mouth to object but instead he just sighed. With slumped shoulders the Russian simply turned and walked away from Jamie without a further word. Jamie rolled his eyes slightly, letting a heavy sigh escape him when the other mutant was out of earshot. This really was turning out to be a long, long day…
x-x-x x-x-x x-x-x
It was quite early in the evening when Ororo made it back to her office, offering Hank a warm smile as she shut the door behind her.
"That's the security system all up to date," she informed him. "Jamie just talked me through it. He's ramped it up a little for during the day but obviously with the amount of movement there is there's only so much can be done. The perimeter alarms have been tightened so no one can come in over the walls and the gate has a more secure system to detect any vandalism. He's set up a more secure system at night too – you need a code to disarm it. It's set to come on at curfew and go off before classes. He's given me the code, I'll tell you, Logan, Bobby, Piotr, Marie, Kitty, Warren. We'd better tell Miranda too since she often comes in early, or leaves late. Obviously Jamie recommended that as few people as possible know the code but…"
Hank nodded understandingly.
"No, I agree with you. You, me and Logan are not enough and you can't tell one of the kids without telling the others."
Ororo too gave a nod.
"Ok then. Well I can show you all exactly what Jamie has done in more detail but I think it can wait until tomorrow."
"That's fine. So is Jamie gone then?"
"He just had a couple of things to tidy up," Ororo waved a hand. "He'll be going soon."
x-x-x x-x-x x-x-x
A quiet Russian curse escaped Piotr's lips as he made his way through the mansion corridors. He'd stayed back after classes to offer some of the kids extra help with subjects they were struggling with – not his subject but he could not say no – he'd helped Logan out with another danger room session, he'd had a rather uncomfortable conversation with Miranda and … Jamie was nowhere to be found. Running his hands through his hair the Russian finally relented, heading for his bedroom. Maybe the multiplying mutant had finished with the system and had left already…
Worrying his bottom lip Piotr delved into his pocket and retrieved his cell phone, scrolling through the numbers until Jamie's was selected. His finger hovered over the call button for a moment as he walked slowly down the empty corridors. Finally he hit the button, listening impatiently to the soft ring, ring, ring…
The call went to voicemail just as Piotr reached his bedroom door. With another weary sigh he shoved the phone back in his pocket, opening his door and slipping into his darkening room.
"Jamie," the Russian stopped dead upon seeing the figure standing by the window. The multiplying mutant looked over his shoulder briefly before returning his attention to gazing out the window.
"Piotr," he replied quietly. "Or is it just Pete? That seems to be what everyone else calls you."
"No one else can be bothered to try and pronounce it properly," Piotr explained, turning briefly to shut the door gently behind him. Taking a deep breath he looked back across the room at Jamie, frowning slightly as he took in the multiplying mutant's demeanour but before he could comment Jamie spoke up again.
"Is that your Jinx and Tommy characters out there is it? The blonde and the one with the purple hair?"
Piotr crossed the room, but stopped a safe distance behind the other mutant, looking out the window over Jamie's shoulder.
"Yeah, that's them," he smiled faintly as the two students walked through the garden, hand in hand, despite it being very close to curfew time. No doubt Jinx would still be whining about the detentions he was going to have to serve for fighting the day before…
"So who's this kid Jinx was fighting with yesterday?"
"Carl? Just another student who has his eyes on Tommy. Doesn't stand a chance though," Piotr looked over Jamie carefully, his frown deepening. The Russian paused for a moment before deciding to try and talk to the other mutant again. "Jamie, are you ok?"
"Yeah, I'm fine, I…" Jamie replied quickly before shaking his head with a wry laugh. The multiplying mutant sighed in conceit, bowing his head. "I have a kid about their age – a son. I was in high school and my power was going haywire and I was sleeping with most of the cheerleaders – and a couple of footballers – and law of averages one of them got pregnant but I didn't know cause my parents had me institutionalised for being supposedly crazy and then when I did find out I figured the kid was better off without me cause I didn't know if I was sane or crazy or straight or gay cause no one had told me that you be both and…" Jamie finally took a breath, running his hands through his hair with another dry laugh. "And I'm babbling now. I'm sorry – it just hits me sometimes. Like… when I'm in a school surrounded by kids."
Piotr blinked, taken aback slightly before nodded slowly, regarding the other mutant thoughtfully as he looked back up out the window.
"Do you… see much of him?" he asked softly. Jamie shook his head, still facing away from the Russian.
"I haven't seen him since he was a baby. I sent money… I sent a lot of money, you know, when I started robbing banks…" the multiplying mutant scoffed quietly. "I know it's a very nice house he stays in with his mom and his new dad. I used to send birthday cards and Christmas cards and more money, just pretending it was from Uncle Jamie, but I'm not even allowed to do that any more. New daddy doesn't like it. And… they have their own kids now so…" a small sigh escaped Jamie's lips as he turned away from the window. "I have no idea if he's human or a mutant, jock, geek, shy, loud…"
Again Piotr stayed quiet for a moment but he continued to study Jamie.
"It was his birthday recently, yeah?" the Russian asked, remembering the telephone conversations he had overheard in the earlier days of their relationship. His eyes widened slightly as his train of thought progressed. "That day you phoned me… the first time you phoned me…"
Jamie nodded, looking up at Piotr for the first time.
"Yeah, that was his actual birthday," he shrugged helplessly. Piotr frowned slightly.
"You should'a said something."
"You were busy," Jamie waved a hand dismissively.
"It wasn't that important! I could have just locked Jinx and Tommy in a room – they'd have sorted it out," the Russian looked back at Jamie earnestly. "If I'd have known you needed the company…"
Jamie laughed dryly.
"Yeah, but I was loathed to admit how much I wanted company at all… never mind…" the multiplying mutant took a deep breath, returning the Russian's gaze. "Never mind how much I wanted your company," he offered the other mutant a quick, meek smile before looking away again. "I knew that you weren't interested in Miranda, I just kinda convinced myself that you were. I'm good at convincing myself of shit…" he waved loosely at his head before continuing quickly. "It's just that it was either tell you to go for it with her or I was gonna ask you to stay the night."
Piotr inhaled sharply, taking a moment to try and process all that Jamie had said.
"Would that… really have been such a bad thing?" he asked quietly, taking a small step forward. Jamie let out a soft laugh, arching an eyebrow.
"You mean, other than the fact that you are friendly, kind, patient, loyal good guy and I'm a borderline crazy convicted criminal with a penchant for stealing fast cars and currently running about with mutant terrorists?" the multiplying mutant shrugged helplessly. "I mean it might not have gone anywhere but… I think we both know it had gone beyond just sex and I figured it was best to get out while we still could."
Piotr arched an eyebrow, opening his mouth slowly as his brain tried to form a reply but all that came out was a tired sigh. Flopping down onto his bed the Russian sat, resting his elbows on his knees as he looked up at Jamie.
"So… you still wanna… get out?" he asked quietly. Jamie too sighed, running a hand through his hair as he looked back at Piotr. The silence between the two seemed to last forever before finally Jamie took a deep breath, looking back at Piotr determinedly as he opened his mouth…