Sam sat in his living room alone, thinking about what had happened between
he and Glen. He had poured out his heart to Glen on that hill. Glen had
been about to tell him something before the cops had driven by and seen
their wine bottle. They had made a daring escape, but it had totally killed
the mood. Sam was sure that Glen felt the same way about him, but he was
just not willing to be public with his love. Maybe it had to do with being
a mutant, Sam thought. Having to live every day in fear that somebody might
find out about them probably made them uneasy about being open about who
they were. But how was that so different from being gay, he thought? He
still faced the ever-present specter of fear and persecution. If he could
be open about who he was, why couldn't Glen?
As he pondered these things in his mind, he heard a knock at the door. Opening it, he saw Glen standing on the porch. "Come with me," said Glen. "We need to talk," With no further words, he turned and began walking. Sam quickly ran out the door and chased after Glen. When he caught up, he grabbed Glen's arm. "Where are we going?" he asked.
"Someplace where we can talk privately. It's about what I mentioned to you earlier, about the problems we were facing. You may be able to help us,"
"How?"
"I'm taking you to meet some people. You may be of some use to them,"
They walked for several minutes until they came to the Bayville Library. They went around to the alley behind the building. "Wait here," said Glen. "I need to make sure they're ready," Sam waited as Glen disappeared into the shadows. A moment later, he heard Glen's voice. "Ok, come over here,"
Sam stepped into the dark alley, very nervous. Who was he about to meet? And how would he possibly be able to help them against this person Glen had told him about? In the moonlight, he saw Glen standing at the back of the alley alone, facing the wall at the end. He was holding an object, turning it over in his hands, examining it carefully. "So where are they?" asked Sam.
"We're right here!" came a menacing reply. Sam turned around to see Lance Alvers standing in front of him. Behind him, the rest of the Brotherhood took up positions at the front of the alley, making escape totally impossible. "Glen, what's going on? Why are they here?" Sam shouted, turning back around. He saw Glen turn to face him, and then his mind went numb as he watched Glen transform into a slender, blue-skinned woman. "Who are you? What do you want with me?" Sam asked, frightened. "My name is unimportant," said the woman. "Seeing as you won't remember it. As for what we want, we're setting up a trap for your friend, and you are going to be our bait," she said. Sam tried to run, but Lance grabbed him and lifted him off his feet. "After all, when you're going fishing for a fag, what better bait to use than his boyfriend!" Lance leered. Sam tried to struggle, but he heard a hiss of air and felt a stab in his neck as Mystique injected him with a drug, and his mind went black. In his mind, Sam struggled through a thick haze. He staggered about blindly, trying to find a way out of the cloud that was obscuring his vision. A breeze kicked up, and Sam looked around to see a scarlet and purple streak rush by him from behind. He looked up to see a tall, imposing figure hovering in the air in front of him. He could barely make out the slits of the man's eyes, which were covered by a tall, menacing looking helmet. The figure stretched out its hand, and Sam turned to run, instantly knowing that somehow, he should be very afraid of this man. As he took his first step in flight, he felt the ground suddenly give way beneath him, and he fell screaming a long way.
He awoke suddenly in a cold sweat. He was back in his living room, lying on the couch. He ran his hands through his tangled black hair. What kind of dream had he just had, he wondered?
In a control room very far away, Magneto watched a monitor with rapt attention. So far, everything was going according to plan. The kidnapping of the boy had been flawlessly executed. The chemical series he had administered to the boy's brain had not appeared to cause any adverse side effects. These chemicals would make Sam very susceptible to subliminal suggestion, which would come from a transmitter chip that Magneto had implanted behind the boy's ear. This would allow him to communicate commands directly to the boy's brain, making him a puppet for Magneto to control. It had also allowed him to repress the memories the boy had of his encounter with Mystique. A second implant would process and transmit imagery to Magneto's computers, allowing Magneto to see what Sam was seeing in near real time. Magneto had also inserted a third implant, this one sitting directly at the root of the boy's spine. Unlike the other implants, this one was not yet active. Mystique, who was also watching the monitor next to Magneto, hoped it never would be used, that the boy could somehow accomplish the task that he had been brainwashed to perform, but a clinging dread hung in the back of her mind that very soon, the boy would be dead.
In his house, Sam squinted his eyes, trying to shake off the dream. He stood, feeling a little dizzy, and slowly walked to his bedroom. Had the wine he and Glen had shared earlier that evening made him that drunk? He lay down on his bed and was soon caught up again by fitful dreams.
Meanwhile back at the Institute, Glen was thinking of what Sam had said to him, and what he had been about to say in response. Sam was asking a lot of him. Glen had preferred to be selective about who he informed about his sexuality, afraid that he wouldn't be able to deal with a lot of people knowing. Now the one thing he had been looking for for a while, a boyfriend, was within his reach, but he found himself lacking the courage to reach out and seize the opportunity. As he wrestled with his dilemma, he didn't notice Scott walk into the den until he sat down next to him, a similarly glum expression on his face.
"Hi Scott, I didn't hear you come in," he said.
"Hey," Scott said, not offering much.
Glen glanced over at the look on Scott's face. After a moment, he asked, "Why do I get the feeling we're both thinking about the same thing, more or less,"
Scott looked over at him. "Are you that good at reading people, or is it just that obvious?"
"It's that obvious. Let me guess. Jean?"
"Yeah. I really want to let her know how I feel about her, but it seems like I can never bring myself to tell her,"
"Scott, you sound like you're worried whether she'll say 'yes' or 'no'. If that was really the case, you would have realized that the worst she could say is no, and you'd have told her by now and taken whatever reaction she gave you. I think that what's really got you worried is that you want to hear Jean say 'I know', but you're afraid that she'll be caught off guard when you tell her. Trust me, you don't have to worry about that happening. She knows how you feel about her. She just needs to hear you say it,"
Those words all made sense when they coming out of another person's mouth, Scott realized. Glen was right. All he really needed to do was let Jean know how he felt about her. Regardless of how she answered him, the burden would be lifted off of his chest, hopefully for good.
"I take it that you've got somebody on your mind, too," Scott said.
"Yeah," said Glen. "Sam wants me and him to be more. public, with our relationship. I don't know if I'm quite ready for that,"
"Well," said Scott, "I certainly wouldn't tell you to get yourself into something you're not ready for. But then again, you may find that by hiding all the time, you may be hurting your relationship with him,"
"What do you mean?"
"Couples need to be open with each other, Glen, but they also need to be open with the people around them. If you and Sam keep your relationship to yourselves, people won't get a chance to see what I've seen and what all of us here have seen from you, that gay people are really just like everybody else. You may have some problems at first dealing with some close-minded people, but after a while, those people will see that they don't have anything to fear from you, and they'll accept you eventually,"
"You sound like the Professor," said Glen.
"Hey, we may not all be gay like you, but we're all going to have to come out about being mutants one day," said Scott. "We know what you're going through, and we'll be here to support you, even if it seems like the whole rest of the world turns its back on you,"
Glen thought on this for a moment, and then stood up. "Thanks Scott. I think that's what I needed to hear," He went up to his room and started getting ready for bed. Tomorrow, when he saw Sam at school, he knew exactly what he would say.
Back down in the den, Scott saw Jean walk in the door, returning from a late soccer practice. "Ok," he thought. "Show time,"
"Hey, Jean, got a minute?"
"Sure. What's up?" she asked.
Scott clasped her hands. "Jean, there's something I've been meaning to say to you for a while now. I love you. I've been in love with you since the first day I met you. I just haven't been able to tell you until now,"
Jean looked at Scott and smiled, saying the three words he had been waiting so long to hear pass across her lips: "I know, Scott,"
Scott felt weightless as he heard those words. Finally, after holding back so long, he had overcome the one thing that had stifled him more than anything else.
Jean continued. "Look, Scott, I know I'm kinda seeing somebody else right now," she said, avoiding mentioning Scott's rival by name. "But I want you to know that we'll always have each other," She ran her hand across the rim of his visor and down his cheek, and then kissed him gently on the lips before turning and walking off.
Upstairs, Kurt, Evan, Kitty and Rogue had been watching. When they saw Jean kiss Scott, Kurt and Kitty slapped hands. "Yes! Told you she'd finally kiss him," said Kitty. "Ve vin. Pay up!" said Kurt to a dejected Evan and Rogue as they reached for their wallets. The foursome had had a bet going that Scott and Jean would graduate from Bayville before they ever kissed. Before Glen had arrived at the Institute, it had seemed like an easy win for Rogue and Evan. But somehow, Glen had been able to work his magic yet again and cause "Stoneface" as the others jokingly called him to finally show a little emotion and tell Jean how he felt about her. "He just has that way with people," Rogue muttered, handing Kitty 10 bucks. As Evan pulled out his wager, he had another idea. "Hey, double or nothing says Glen can't make Logan smile," he said coyly. "You're on!" Kitty and Kurt replied.
As he pondered these things in his mind, he heard a knock at the door. Opening it, he saw Glen standing on the porch. "Come with me," said Glen. "We need to talk," With no further words, he turned and began walking. Sam quickly ran out the door and chased after Glen. When he caught up, he grabbed Glen's arm. "Where are we going?" he asked.
"Someplace where we can talk privately. It's about what I mentioned to you earlier, about the problems we were facing. You may be able to help us,"
"How?"
"I'm taking you to meet some people. You may be of some use to them,"
They walked for several minutes until they came to the Bayville Library. They went around to the alley behind the building. "Wait here," said Glen. "I need to make sure they're ready," Sam waited as Glen disappeared into the shadows. A moment later, he heard Glen's voice. "Ok, come over here,"
Sam stepped into the dark alley, very nervous. Who was he about to meet? And how would he possibly be able to help them against this person Glen had told him about? In the moonlight, he saw Glen standing at the back of the alley alone, facing the wall at the end. He was holding an object, turning it over in his hands, examining it carefully. "So where are they?" asked Sam.
"We're right here!" came a menacing reply. Sam turned around to see Lance Alvers standing in front of him. Behind him, the rest of the Brotherhood took up positions at the front of the alley, making escape totally impossible. "Glen, what's going on? Why are they here?" Sam shouted, turning back around. He saw Glen turn to face him, and then his mind went numb as he watched Glen transform into a slender, blue-skinned woman. "Who are you? What do you want with me?" Sam asked, frightened. "My name is unimportant," said the woman. "Seeing as you won't remember it. As for what we want, we're setting up a trap for your friend, and you are going to be our bait," she said. Sam tried to run, but Lance grabbed him and lifted him off his feet. "After all, when you're going fishing for a fag, what better bait to use than his boyfriend!" Lance leered. Sam tried to struggle, but he heard a hiss of air and felt a stab in his neck as Mystique injected him with a drug, and his mind went black. In his mind, Sam struggled through a thick haze. He staggered about blindly, trying to find a way out of the cloud that was obscuring his vision. A breeze kicked up, and Sam looked around to see a scarlet and purple streak rush by him from behind. He looked up to see a tall, imposing figure hovering in the air in front of him. He could barely make out the slits of the man's eyes, which were covered by a tall, menacing looking helmet. The figure stretched out its hand, and Sam turned to run, instantly knowing that somehow, he should be very afraid of this man. As he took his first step in flight, he felt the ground suddenly give way beneath him, and he fell screaming a long way.
He awoke suddenly in a cold sweat. He was back in his living room, lying on the couch. He ran his hands through his tangled black hair. What kind of dream had he just had, he wondered?
In a control room very far away, Magneto watched a monitor with rapt attention. So far, everything was going according to plan. The kidnapping of the boy had been flawlessly executed. The chemical series he had administered to the boy's brain had not appeared to cause any adverse side effects. These chemicals would make Sam very susceptible to subliminal suggestion, which would come from a transmitter chip that Magneto had implanted behind the boy's ear. This would allow him to communicate commands directly to the boy's brain, making him a puppet for Magneto to control. It had also allowed him to repress the memories the boy had of his encounter with Mystique. A second implant would process and transmit imagery to Magneto's computers, allowing Magneto to see what Sam was seeing in near real time. Magneto had also inserted a third implant, this one sitting directly at the root of the boy's spine. Unlike the other implants, this one was not yet active. Mystique, who was also watching the monitor next to Magneto, hoped it never would be used, that the boy could somehow accomplish the task that he had been brainwashed to perform, but a clinging dread hung in the back of her mind that very soon, the boy would be dead.
In his house, Sam squinted his eyes, trying to shake off the dream. He stood, feeling a little dizzy, and slowly walked to his bedroom. Had the wine he and Glen had shared earlier that evening made him that drunk? He lay down on his bed and was soon caught up again by fitful dreams.
Meanwhile back at the Institute, Glen was thinking of what Sam had said to him, and what he had been about to say in response. Sam was asking a lot of him. Glen had preferred to be selective about who he informed about his sexuality, afraid that he wouldn't be able to deal with a lot of people knowing. Now the one thing he had been looking for for a while, a boyfriend, was within his reach, but he found himself lacking the courage to reach out and seize the opportunity. As he wrestled with his dilemma, he didn't notice Scott walk into the den until he sat down next to him, a similarly glum expression on his face.
"Hi Scott, I didn't hear you come in," he said.
"Hey," Scott said, not offering much.
Glen glanced over at the look on Scott's face. After a moment, he asked, "Why do I get the feeling we're both thinking about the same thing, more or less,"
Scott looked over at him. "Are you that good at reading people, or is it just that obvious?"
"It's that obvious. Let me guess. Jean?"
"Yeah. I really want to let her know how I feel about her, but it seems like I can never bring myself to tell her,"
"Scott, you sound like you're worried whether she'll say 'yes' or 'no'. If that was really the case, you would have realized that the worst she could say is no, and you'd have told her by now and taken whatever reaction she gave you. I think that what's really got you worried is that you want to hear Jean say 'I know', but you're afraid that she'll be caught off guard when you tell her. Trust me, you don't have to worry about that happening. She knows how you feel about her. She just needs to hear you say it,"
Those words all made sense when they coming out of another person's mouth, Scott realized. Glen was right. All he really needed to do was let Jean know how he felt about her. Regardless of how she answered him, the burden would be lifted off of his chest, hopefully for good.
"I take it that you've got somebody on your mind, too," Scott said.
"Yeah," said Glen. "Sam wants me and him to be more. public, with our relationship. I don't know if I'm quite ready for that,"
"Well," said Scott, "I certainly wouldn't tell you to get yourself into something you're not ready for. But then again, you may find that by hiding all the time, you may be hurting your relationship with him,"
"What do you mean?"
"Couples need to be open with each other, Glen, but they also need to be open with the people around them. If you and Sam keep your relationship to yourselves, people won't get a chance to see what I've seen and what all of us here have seen from you, that gay people are really just like everybody else. You may have some problems at first dealing with some close-minded people, but after a while, those people will see that they don't have anything to fear from you, and they'll accept you eventually,"
"You sound like the Professor," said Glen.
"Hey, we may not all be gay like you, but we're all going to have to come out about being mutants one day," said Scott. "We know what you're going through, and we'll be here to support you, even if it seems like the whole rest of the world turns its back on you,"
Glen thought on this for a moment, and then stood up. "Thanks Scott. I think that's what I needed to hear," He went up to his room and started getting ready for bed. Tomorrow, when he saw Sam at school, he knew exactly what he would say.
Back down in the den, Scott saw Jean walk in the door, returning from a late soccer practice. "Ok," he thought. "Show time,"
"Hey, Jean, got a minute?"
"Sure. What's up?" she asked.
Scott clasped her hands. "Jean, there's something I've been meaning to say to you for a while now. I love you. I've been in love with you since the first day I met you. I just haven't been able to tell you until now,"
Jean looked at Scott and smiled, saying the three words he had been waiting so long to hear pass across her lips: "I know, Scott,"
Scott felt weightless as he heard those words. Finally, after holding back so long, he had overcome the one thing that had stifled him more than anything else.
Jean continued. "Look, Scott, I know I'm kinda seeing somebody else right now," she said, avoiding mentioning Scott's rival by name. "But I want you to know that we'll always have each other," She ran her hand across the rim of his visor and down his cheek, and then kissed him gently on the lips before turning and walking off.
Upstairs, Kurt, Evan, Kitty and Rogue had been watching. When they saw Jean kiss Scott, Kurt and Kitty slapped hands. "Yes! Told you she'd finally kiss him," said Kitty. "Ve vin. Pay up!" said Kurt to a dejected Evan and Rogue as they reached for their wallets. The foursome had had a bet going that Scott and Jean would graduate from Bayville before they ever kissed. Before Glen had arrived at the Institute, it had seemed like an easy win for Rogue and Evan. But somehow, Glen had been able to work his magic yet again and cause "Stoneface" as the others jokingly called him to finally show a little emotion and tell Jean how he felt about her. "He just has that way with people," Rogue muttered, handing Kitty 10 bucks. As Evan pulled out his wager, he had another idea. "Hey, double or nothing says Glen can't make Logan smile," he said coyly. "You're on!" Kitty and Kurt replied.