Chapter 31

It was about eight-thirty in the morning. Juliette woke up of what felt like just a nap. Perhaps she had probably slept for three hours or so, she couldn't be sure. She hadn't intended to spend the night, but had given Katie and Jenny instructions to cover up for her just in case. Her plan was going to sneak away out of the mansion, she had decided from the moment she agreed to come with him.

Alex was sleeping like an angel, he was so gorgeous, even in his sleep. She kissed his forehead ever so lightly, trying not to wake him up. He was just so tired that he didn't even move an inch. The girl turned woman looked over her shoulder at him before creeping out of his bedroom.

Just when she was about to make her walk of shame before anyone could see her, she saw her Auntie Emma walking her way. Juliette had been carrying her high heel shoes in one hand to avoid making a sound and inevitably dropped them at the sight of her.

"Juliette, dear. What are you doing here at this early hour? Hey, wait a minute. Is this what I think it is?" She asked her.

The girl who had just spent the night with her son was frozen in the spot and could only manage a nod, her cheeks flushing red.

"And were you going to leave my son alone in bed, to wake up and realize they were nothing but empty promises?"

"What do you mean 'empty promises'?"

"You told him you two were going to get serious, start dating. He wouldn't just go and cut the ribbons without strings attached."

"Hey! How would you know about that, auntie?" She asked her, looking a little too offended.

"When my son is involved I cross the lines, Juliette. You should know that already. I read your mind just now." The girl looked even more embarrassed.

"Did you see us… doing it?"

Emma simply ignored the question and went on pressing her case. "You said you were going to be his girlfriend and now you are running away. Jules, you love him. I know you do. So why are you doing that?"

"I don't know." She replied simply.

"I know why, because you're Rogue's daughter and that's what she would do way back in the day. It's what she used to do. She ran away whenever she was scared and perhaps you learned that by watching her deal with her problems. Or maybe it's just imprinted in the genes she passed on to you."

"My mom used to run away from situations?"

"That's why she ran away from your father when she learned about him being involved in the Morlocks massacre, that's why she would break up with Bobby a million times instead of facing the fact that she didn't love him like that, that's why she never told you about Remy when you were growing up so she could escape the memory of what she did to him. Can't you see the pattern?That's what she did, she ran away whenever things got tough. Guess what Jules, she's learned not to run away, so can you. Don't fall into that trap. Some things in life are worth fighting for, then you go and face them head on."

"I love Alex, Auntie Emma. I love him ever since he first kissed me. But I might not come and be here with the X-Men. I don't know how we could be together that way."

"Just go in there and be with him for when he wakes up. If you really think you shouldn't be together, just tell him that. That's the right thing to do."

Juliette gulped, wide eyes stared at Emma. A single tear streamed down her face. Suddenly she couldn't see herself telling Alex that, simply because that was not what she wanted. She did want to be his girlfriend, but things were not that straightforward.

"I know you love him, my sweet baby. And that's the best thing, loving someone with that innocence you two still possess. Don't throw it away. Once you start breaking each other's hearts, there's no turning back."

She nodded again, she was feeling so embarrassed at the situation, his mother of all people was the first to know about her and him spending the night together. All she could manage was a sheepish grin before he went back into his bedroom. He was still sleeping and she joined him in bed and entangled herself back into his arms. When eventually he woke up, she didn't say anything she thought she would say. They just kissed without saying a word to each other and ended up making love once again.

As it was Sunday, Remy and Rogue were hosting lunch. Remy was busy cooking the aptly named Sunday Roast, Piotr kept him company in the kitchen with a beer bottle in his hand, while Anna and Kitty were in the living room, their tots playing together. Ben, with his head of thick dark hair and hazel eyes, was a little gentleman to Becca, offering her toys to play which she would throw against the floor right away. He and Becca were best friends as far as toddler friendships go. The living room was all trashed, there was not a spot on the floor that was not covered with blocks, toys, or big jigsaw pieces. Ben being the oldest one could play nicely most of the time while Becca was still throwing tantrums every single time she saw him playing happily with some toy. The little copy of Rogue wanted it all for her. She had her mom's hair, even the white locks, and her green eyes. Juliette wasn't the little Rogue anymore.

Just when they were going to sit down to eat, Juliette and Alex arrived. He took her home in his car and insisted on going in to say hello to everybody. As for Juliette, she was dreading facing her mother and father. One thing was omitting information, the other was straight-up lying. She didn't remember ever lying to her mother before. But the previous night, before going to the mansion she phoned her and told her she was sleeping at the mansion, in her old bedroom because she had drunk a little and didn't want her father to give her a hard time.

About the sex, they would most probably not give her a hard time, she knew it, but she just didn't know how or if she was going to tell them. How do you tell your parents something like that? 'Hey, mom, dad! I'm not a virgin anymore.'

When her father went into the room, carrying a big dish in his hands, he frowned and commented how he thought she was sleeping at Jenny's place. Rogue told him she knew she had come back home with the X-teens instead because she had called her to tell her so.

"Mmmm, you guys don't fool me for a second. I think I know what this is all about." He said. Playfully, he took Juliette's bag from her hands and opened it. She was petrified, her face was drained of all color. No condoms were there anymore. It was Remy's turn to have his face washed pale. He had been just kidding, he had no idea what he'd find, better saying, wouldn't find in her clutch bag.

Juliette was so enraged with the whole situation that she ran off and climbed up the stairs with loud stomps, shouting "I hate you, dad" all the way up until everybody heard her slam her bedroom door.

"I'm gonna go talk to her," Rogue said, standing up with some difficulty. That had to be the biggest she got while pregnant. Olivier was surely going to be a big baby.

"Non, chére. I was an idiot and I'm gonna fix this." He said, kissing her cheek lovingly. When he walked past Alex, he glared at him. The boy just stood there, paralyzed, not daring to utter a single word.

"I don't think she'll want to see you now, Remy," his wife told him.

"I guess that part is quite clear," Kitty offered.

"Give her some space, sugar." But before she even finished saying those words, he was headed upstairs.

"Jules, open up."

"Go away! I hate you!"

"Too bad for you, I love you and I'll be here until I get to talk to you. Worse still, I'll be here until you love me again."

"Why did you have to do that? I'm mortified. Now everyone knows. Go away!"

"Not everyone knew before you made a scene. They didn't know about the missing condoms. That was something only you and I knew," he tried to reason with her.

"Go away, dad. You had no right!"

"Jules, open up or I'll blow your door." He placed his hand on the door and charged it. He wouldn't blow it, of course, but the bluff had to be convincing. She saw the door glowing pink and thought her father was crazy enough to do something like that, so, in a second the door swung open.

"Door is open. Happy? Now, leave me alone!"

"Juliette, I'm sorry, okay? I never thought you would have…" He trailed off. She remained in silence, staring down at her own feet. "Was it the Summers boy?"

"His name is Alex." He took it as a yes.

"You love him, don't you?"

She simply nodded, still not looking at her father.

"And the boy loves you, doesn't he?"

Another silent nod.

"Then I'm happy for you and Alex."

"What?"

"He loves you, I always knew that and you just told me you love him back. So, I'm glad for you. It's great that you got to have your first time with him." She blushed all shades of pink. "Come here, ma fille." He continued, pulling her close to him. His arms enveloped her protectively, and she didn't fight him off. She just hid her face in his chest. His embrace had always been safe haven ever since they first met. "And by the way, I know about Tony Stark. Are you going to say yes?"

"How do you know?"

"You have no idea how much information the guild can access, do you?"

"Well, you could tell me about it."

"That kind of knowledge is only for real thieves that go through rigid training, then there's the initiation ritual, drinking the blood of a goat..."

"Did you really have to drink goat blood?" She asked him incredulously.

"Of course not. I'm just teasing you. You didn't answer the question. Are you going to accept Stark's offer?"

"Guess so. Does mom know?"

"Non. You'll have to tell her. Jules, I… I know I haven't been your parent for as long as your mother, but, I just want to say that I love you. You taught me how to be a father, ma petite and I'll always support you and have your back. But you are free, you're eighteen and now all your mom and I can do is watch you fly and be there for you when you need us. It's scary for us and I bet it's scary for you too. But I know you are smart and you'll do just fine wherever you go."

He sat at her bed and she laid her head on his lap. He caressed her hair lovingly while she told him all about her feelings and doubts, talked about Alex and how she didn't want to be an X-Men, not now, anyway. She wanted to be able to experiment and do her own thing. An hour passed them by swiftly, they laughed and cried together. When they finally joined the others, her heart was as light as can be. It was great to have such a friend in her father.

When they came down, they found poor Alex being practically interrogated by Kitty and Rogue. They made him confess they had indeed made love. They even called Emma and had a video call to talk about the news. The boy was visibly mortified, but their mothers were hardly bothered by his embarrassment.

When Jules saw the scene, she made a point of giving him a way out of his predicament. She took him to the yard and hugged him, without saying a word.

"Are you okay, Jules?" He was tempted to just invade her mind, but decided to be respectful. "Did your father get mad?"

She shook her head.

"So what then?"

"I thought of leaving you behind, of treating you like a one-night stand."

"So, why didn't you?"

"Because I love you." They remained in silence, Alex's mind was racing as he digested the information.

"Are you still going to let me go?" He asked her with his heart in his hand.

"I have seen what happened to my parents, how they suffered because they neglected what their hearts were telling them. I wouldn't dare let you go, Alex. I'm not going to waste our love. I've learned from my parents' mistakes. I don't want to wait for fifteen years to be happy. I want it now."

Alex smiled and it seemed the whole world lit up with his joy. The young couple shared a breathtaking kiss before they went back inside. Juliette was going to tell them all about her decision to join the Avengers and also introduce the boyfriend to the family.

There had been a massive antimutant demonstration in Central Park and the Avengers were called in to help. Brazen, as her Avenger colleagues and even the press called her, got to blast some of her Kinect energy to stop more aggressive rioters from attacking a defenseless man. Being able to use her powers to help others made her feel amazing. Even though her powers could be destructive, and she hardly ever got the chance of using them, she could still put them to good use with the Avengers. When she was under the X-Men tutelage, there had been more restrictions and rules. It was always kept as last resort. But it turned out, with the Avengers, you learned to use last resorts in most missions.

'What's not to love about my job?' She thought. Being an Avengers was definitely fun and living in Manhattan where everything happens was certainly a plus. She would still be close enough to her parents' house and visit often. Same went for a certain school for gifted youngsters.

The sun was high in the sky and it shone over the tall green-eyed man who strode purposefully her way turning his light-colored hair into pure gold. His black sleek uniform with an X across his chest left little to imagination, and that thought made her smile.

"I love when we do crossovers," she told him with a beaming smile.

"Are we still on for the movies tonight?" He said, now standing just an inch away from her. His warm breath brushing over her face. It tickled her and she wanted to just melt into him, but made an effort to look professional.

"Of course, my love," she replied, smiling at him provocatively.

"I'll pick you up at around 8. Is that alright?"

"Do you think you could bring this uniform of yours for later?" She whispered in his ear while tracing a finger down his chest. All pretence of keeping things professional thrown out of the window. He chuckled at the suggestion. "I heard there's a bad red-eyed villain on the loose who's in desperate need of some correction, perhaps some punishment."

He couldn't hold his laugh this time.

"Being your boyfriend is never old news, Jules. I just love it."

"Guess we'll have X-Men invasion again tonight." Black Widow commented. Tony Stark rolled his eyes at the information.

"Not again! Gosh, they are so loud! Someone has to tell them."

-O-O-O-

Author's notes:

I'd like to thank you all for every review, every favorite and follow and if you're one of the shy ones, thank you for just reading it.

Tx Peppa helped me out with Juliette's codename. I LOVED IT! It sounds so cool and it does describe her personality. Thanks a million.

Special thanks to faithful reviewers: kataract52, Jehilew, txpeppa, danielemlac and Warrior-princess1980. This story was so much fun to write and in parts, because of you guys. Thanks to everyone else who reviewed. It was deeply appreciated.

Update: I wrote a sequel/spin-off to Wasting Love, it's called Christmas at the LeBeaus. Be sure to check it out if you enjoyed this story here.