Touched



Chapter Three



Shawn stood on the lawn with a sense of dread. He looked around at the kids who looked no older than him. They were playing football, there was even a basketball court. It looked just like a normal highschool.



Bobby and Rogue sat in the shade of an oak tree at the far end of the lawn. Rogue leaned casually on Bobby's shoulder and let out a content sigh as they read the book that lay on the grass. It was calculus which was a far from interesting subject, but for some reason Rogue was enjoying it beyond measure at the moment.

Suddenly Jubilee seemed to spring out of nowhere and practically landed in Rogue's lap.

Rogue frowned. "What?"

Jubilee glanced over to the tall, pale haired boy who stood with his hands in his pockets. "New guy." She said with glee.

Rogue looked over and could barely make out the features of his face. But she could see that he was well built with a long, athletic body. What was most eye catching was his hair. It was white, like a snow flake.

"How much do I think he's hot, let me count the ways!" Jubilee squealed.

Bobby rolled his eyes. "You flunk Shakespeare but can pull out that gem?"

Jubilee turned up her nose with a giggle. "I'm going to make him my love slave." She glanced at Rogue. "Unless you want dibs."

Rogue chuckled nervously as she looked over at Bobby. "No. I'm fine thanks."

Jubilee shrugged. "What ever you say". She clambered to her feet and began fidgeting with her black fringe until it drooped over her dark eyes just right. "I'm going in."

Jubilee began to strut across the lawn.

"Must be something in the air." Bobby sighed as he hooked an arm around Rogue. "Everybody is getting smitten in one way or another."

Rogue smiled as she looked into Bobbys' warm eyes. It would have been nice at this moment to give him a big, old kiss. Rogue glanced down at her gloved hands and something inside her suddenly felt sick. She couldn't do that.



Shawn saw the petite Asian girl coming across the lawn with a mischievous grin on her face. He raised an eyebrow which was just as white as his hair, and looked behind him, wondering where exactly the girl was strutting to. He gulped when she came to a halt right in front of him.

"Hi" She said with a sugary tone. "I'm Jubilee."

"I'm Shawn." He replied in almost a whisper.

"So you're new right? Need some one to show you around?" Jubilee asked.

Shawn shook his head with confidence. "I'm supposed to go and see Professor Xavier this after noon. I better just wait here."

Jubilee was stunned at his refusal of her more than appealing offer. There was no saucier tour guide than her.

"Well you've probably already been asked a million times since you've gotten here but, what do you do?" Jubilee grinned. "I want to know what I'm in for."

Shawn sighed. "Seems to be the question of the day."

Suddenly Shawn felt a hand on his shoulder and before he knew it the air around him was filled with the most amazing smell. Roses, summer rain, even chocolate chip cookies, you name it and whatever it was Shawn felt his knees go weak and an over powering need to follow the smell. He turned to find himself locked in the gaze of an emerald eyed girl with spirals of vibrant red hair and the cutest button nose. Her skin was a light shade of brown and she stood only half a foot shorter than Shawn. Shawn couldn't help but admire her toned physique and had never seen a girl make a pair of jeans look incredible.

As Shawn stood close to her he discovered that she was the source of this heavenly smell. He felt as if he was floating on air.

"Hi. Are you Shawn?" The girl asked with a distinctive accent.

Shawn couldn't talk. He was too busy tip-toeing over daffodils in a beautiful, lush, green valley. His body became completely numb. He couldn't move, but even if he could he didn't want to. The feeling inside him was undescribable. He felt so free and blissfully happy.

Jubilee raised an eyebrow and looked at the girl. "What's wrong with him?"

The girl gasped and snapped her fingers and in doing so snapped Shawn out of his dream. He stumbled a little. His feeling of bliss was replaced with confusion and a little nausea. Like the time he ate his cousin's special cookies.

"Sorry" The girl gushed as she rubbed Shawn's shoulder.

Jubilee noticed the gesture and folded her arms crossly.

"It's my power. I'm still mastering shutting it on and off. Are you okay?" She asked.

Shawn rubbed his head and was still a little dazed. "What exactly is your power? LSD?"

The girl laughed and shook her head. "No. From what the Professor was saying, I exude pheromones or something like that. It's this smell that comes from my skin that guys go nuts for. I thought it was my personality." She joked then turned to Jubilee. "That's probably why it didn't affect you. Girls can't smell it."

"I can smell something." Jubilee muttered bitterly.

"Smell's don't normally put you in a drug induced state." Shawn said.

The girl smiled with perfect white teeth. "Once a guy gets a whiff of my smell, they go numb, almost paralysed. They begin to visualise a serene place, somewhere they feel completely relaxed. So far snapping my fingers is the only way I can reverse it."

"Seems to work well enough." Shawn replied, cracking a smile. "Wish I had something like that when I had a crush on Cameron Diaz."

Shawn and the new girl laughed together and Jubilee was not impressed. Shawn was suddenly opening up and it wasn't to her. Jubilee had never seen this girl before, she definitely would have remembered her.

"I'm Ladha" She said. "I was asked to come and get you. The Professor wants to see us."

"Your accent. I suppose it's stupid of me thinking that you're not from around here" Shawn said.

"I'm from Africa. Western African to be exact. But my mother is American." Ladha seemed to glow as she talked about her family. "She's a photographer. She met my father while she was travelling over there."

"Nice story. Wish I could say something even half as romantic about my parents. I think they met at the supermarket or something like that." Shawn chuckled.

Ladha laughed with him and Jubilee saw that she didn't seem to need this power of hers to hypnotise Shawn.

"So, shall we go then?" Ladha asked.

Shawn nodded. "Okay." He glanced back at Jubilee. "Nice meeting you."

Jubilee faked a smile as she watched Shawn and Ladha laugh their way back into the mansion. Rogue appeared at Jubilee's side with a smug grin on her face.

"Struck out then?"

Jubilee sniggered. "Not likely. Miss Africa doesn't know what she's up against."