Insert Standard Disclaimer
Chapter 3 ~ Stimulation
I woke up very early on that second day. Well, I thought it was early, but the two other beds in the room were vacant and made. I began to wonder if anyone had been in the room at all, but then I saw a cardigan sweater on a desk chair and some gloves on the desk. I looked at the digital clock: 7:17 am. I went over to my suitcase, pulled out my hairbrush to sweep my curly black ringlets into a low bun, and pulled out my clothes for the day. I gathered my morning toiletries and clothes and went to the bathroom. There I changed and got ready for a new day, checking in the mirror at my slightly oversized shirt and nondescript blue jeans. I grabbed my stuff and stepped into the hallway – and into a mass of children. Well, I'm exaggerating. There were eight or nine kids, but to me that was a lot. I'm still not comfortable around a lot of people to this day, so on that particular occasion I retreated back into the bathroom. After I heard no one else I deemed it safe to go back into my room and exited. I walked into my room to see my two roommates for the first time.
One girl was younger, probably fourteen or fifteen. She was wearing a light blue tank top and khaki capris. As I walked in the room timidly, she described later, her face lightened up.
"Hi! My name's Kitty Pryde!" she seemed to be the kind of person who was always happy. I, of course, didn't respond verbally, but nodded my head a bit in acknowledgement. She seemed surprised at my lack of reply, but then, as if remembering something, that surprise flew away.
The second girl was older, more my age of sixteen or seventeen. Flaxen strips of hair framed her face while the rest of her nut-brown hair was drawn up into a ponytail. She was wearing almost the exact opposite of her roommate, Kitty. Black pants and long, black satin gloves accented a red, form-fitting, sleeveless shirt.
"Hey. I'm Rogue," she said, again in contrast with Kitty. Her soft Southern accent seemed to fit her laid-back personality. I nodded once more, then went to my suitcase to put my things away. "You must be Audrey," she said. "The Professor mentioned we'd have a roommate last night when we came in, the he explained to the rest of the kids about who you were." I looked at her, hoping to covey a sort of "and just who am I?" look. I think she got my message.
"He told us that you were new and that you were French and that you didn't speak much," Kitty recalled. "He told everyone to be really nice and, um, to try our hardest to make you feel at home." At that I sighed rather loudly. I may have looked pissed because at that point Kitty asked quietly to Rogue, "Did I say something wrong?" Rogue responded both to my mood change and Kitty's question.
"Home's probably the last place you wanna be right now, right?" I looked at her and nodded. At least we were on the same wavelength. She looked like she was about to say something else, but Kitty looked at the clock and exclaimed,
"Oh hey! We gotta get to breakfast!" She grabbed her sandals from beside the bed and hurried out the door. Rogue was a little slower and waited for me a bit before going out. I was relieved that Rogue had decided to become my self-appointed tour guide. As nice as Kitty seemed, Rogue was a lot easier to be around for extended periods of time. On our way down to breakfast, Rogue started talking again.
"I know what it's like to want to be anywhere else but home. I can't pretend we've been through the same thing, but I'm not a bad person to hang around sometimes. We seem to have some things in common." I was about to question her little speech, but we reached the dining room.
If I thought I was scared when the crowd of kids passed me in the halls, this was three times as uncomfortable. I could feel myself physically tense up as Rogue led me into the salle à manger [dining room].
I sat down quite rigidly in the elegant wooden chairs and everyone started to dig in. I noticed a few people stopping briefly to say prayers and whatnot, but overall I was amazed at the general tolerance. No one was telling the others what to say or do (save 'pass the potatoes!') and I appreciated it. Everything was going fine, too, until the guy with the shades, who had been introduced as Scott, came over. In retrospect, I know he only meant well, but at the time I was out of my mind with fear. As I was holding the bowl of corn to dish onto my plate, he clasped my shoulder. My entire body tensed up and I dropped the serving spoon, which made a loud clang! as it hit the ceramic bowl. All conversation ceased immediately and everyone turned to look at me. I completely freaked out. I stood up quickly (a little too quickly, actually) and my plate flipped onto the floor. I stared out with (as I found out later) the most horrified look on my face at the crowd as they look at me with gaping mouths. It was too much, so I ran up to my room and slammed the door.
Looking back, I know my actions were too dramatic and severe. Later Rogue told me everyone was really worried and surprised, and I noticed Scott kept his distance for a few days. In my room I sat on my bed and started to sob. I swear I'm usually not a crier, but the stimulation had been way too much and it just scared me. Besides, Scott had touched my shoulder the way he touched me should and it was too much for me to bear. I pulled out my CD player and started my standard form of escape.
I hardly noticed when Rogue came in fifteen minutes later. She came into the room so quietly and it was only after touched my bed that I saw her. She gave a horrible fright, of course, but when I realized whom it was I took my headphones off. Rogue had brought up a plate of food from dinner and she put it on my bedside table.
"I hope you like it," she said. "I don't know what kind of food you like." I simply nodded at her and then took the plate. "He didn't mean to scare you. He told the professor afterwards that he was just going to welcome you to the mansion. I don't understand you, but I know you had a good reason for the way you acted. You seem like a very rational person." I stopped eating when she said that. I looked up at Rogue, trying to figure out if she was being sincere. If she were, she'd be the first person in a long time to have any sort of confidence in me. She met my gaze and I looked down immediately, suddenly becoming interested in my food again.
"I know you're not ready for a lot of things, least of all talking to me, but I was wondering if I could talk to you. Because, you see, I know we're very different, yet I feel like if I tell you about how I got here, you'd be able to relate to something." She looked over to me for a response. I thought about the situation for a moment, then nodded.
"I'm from Mississippi, if you couldn't tell by the accent. Only child, not bad in school, okay parents. So I invite this guy over to my house one day, just to hang out, even though I have the most massive crush on him. So we're lying on the bed, talking casually, when we lean in for the kiss. I'll spare you the details, but basically, the moment our skin touches, I start to suck his energy away. I try my hardest to break away, and when I succeed, he's seizing. Right then and there, huddled in the corner and scared out of my mind, I swore to myself that I'd never go back. I never thought in my wildest dreams I'd end up here, but it's hard because no one knows what I'm going through. Yeah, they all have their own mutant abilities that are exceedingly difficult, but they can touch people if they want to. They can hold hands, kiss, et cetera. They have a choice in the manner. I do not; not unless I wanna kill the person I'm touching.
"I must be completely boring you, and I really didn't mean to drag on so long. And honestly, I'm not sure why I'm telling you all this. Maybe it's because I think you'll understand, but it also helps me vent. I swear I'm not trying to take advantage of you…" I cut her off with a wave of my hand, then look at my new roommate, Rogue. I had no idea, but I appreciated her bearing of the soul. I tried my hardest to remember the miniscule amount of American Sign Language I knew. I put my fingers, straight-palmed and nails out, on my chin, and then drew my arm straight out. Thank You.
If she didn't understand the sign language, Rogue at least understood the effort, and she smiled.
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So, any good? R+R, please. I really appreciate it, 'cause I know how much of a wave X2 is creating (seen four times and counting…). No promises, but Kurt'ems might show up later. ^^