She stopped crying about an hour ago. But she hadn't said much after that. A small, faint whimper would escape her lips every couple of minutes. Scott didn't break the silence either. In fact, he welcomed it. So did Jean. Even through all her heartbreak and torment, just having Scott there, knowing that he cared... that meant so much to her. I mean, we're best friends. It should mean something... right? Jean turned her torso to face Scott. She clutched the bottom of her hair to keep the wind from blocking her gaze on him. He must have caught her eye or felt her looking on him because he turned himself to look at her, still without saying a word.

It was the middle of the day — the peak. Everything was at its best. The sun was radiating its gentle light across upstate New York, giving a soft addition of warmth to the cold front moving in. The fallen leaves tumbled around in a gust of wind, their motions languid and delicate. Scott Summers and Jean Grey sat quietly together in Scott's convertible. He had parked them at a common look out spot that overlooked the town of Bayville. It wasn't romantic; wasn't that sort of spot at all. Well, at least right now.

It took every ounce of strength to keep Scott from reaching out to her, to embrace her, to kiss her — somehow be close to her. But he felt it was his place to keep his distance. Whether Jean felt the same way was irrelevant.

"Thank you for giving me a ride from school," Jean said, her voice barely above a whisper. Even through Scott's red visors, he could still tell her eyes were still red from fresh tears, her face splotchy with embarrassment and pain. Was it so wrong of him to think she still looked beautiful? He felt that way, at least. Another breeze blew by, stronger now, letting Jean's hair blow undesirably within the winds grasp.

"It's okay, Jean. You really don't have to thank me." Jean nodded and Scott could have sworn he heard her say "I know," but he immediately shook those thoughts from his head.

"I really admire what you did," Scott said finally, "It took a lot of strength to stand up to him. I.. I just admire it, that's all." Jean brought her hand to her neck and looked down at her knees modestly. For some reason she just didn't want to talk about it, no matter how much he wanted her to.

"You really took it well," he added, with more enthusiasm. Jean shook her head roughly.

"Just drop it," she finally said, clearly annoyed. Scott took the hint and remained quiet. It really wasn't his place to say anything after all.

Jean closed her eyes slowly and took in a long, deep breath. Cold, Jean thought monotonously, wrapping her arms around herself. She didn't realize how cold she was until now. Maybe her crying had distracted her. But that didn't change the fact that she was cold now. Suddenly she felt something covering the front of her. She opened her eyes to see Scott deathly close to her, wrapping his leather jacked around her. She tried to shrug it off but he persisted.

"What are you doing?" she asked coldly, staring at him almost maliciously.

"Um, giving you my jacket?" he replied, somewhat confused.

"I don't need your help. I don't need anyone. And I don't need you." Jean blurted out, pushing his coat and arms away from her. She turned her body away from him and exited the car quickly. She slammed the door and walked forcefully over near the edge of the cliff and sat down on the grass. She hugged her knees to her chest and hid her face between them. Her tears were beginning to flow again. CLICK. Jean heard Scott's door open and close quietly. She could hear his footsteps against the gravel and then the soft thud of his weight on the grass. He sat down next to her, one leg bent and the other extended forward. Even though Jean knew Scott had seen her crying again, she shielded her face even more.

I didn't mean that, she said to him quietly in a mind link. He lifted his head to look at her, his eyes wide open and glossy with compassion. Luckily, they weren't visible through his glasses; if this was good or bad was hard to say.

"I know," he said aloud. She turned to look at him, letting him get a look of her defeated face once more. He still thought she looked beautiful.

"I heard that," she answered quietly, a faint smile on her face. Scott shrugged his shoulders and slid closer to her. He put his arm across her shoulders, letting it dangle loosely to one side of her. She looked down at his hand and then to him. Why haven't I noticed it before...?

"Scott.. I —" He quickly shushed her by bringing his other hand to her lips.

"It's okay," he whispered, sliding his hand down her arm, then tightening his grip around her. Jean's body felt electrified with his warmth as he held her. She rested her head on Scott's broad shoulder, he then resting his head on hers. Her hair was wonderfully smooth and like silk; he loved the feeling of it brushing against his face. Instantly, Jean lifted her lips and kissed his neck. Once. Twice. Three times. Scott pulled away sharply. He knew she was in a vulnerable state. And though he wanted her to continue — honestly, he did — he just knew he couldn't take advantage of her like that. He didn't want to hurt himself and he especially didn't want to hurt her.

"Let's go home," he said quickly, not wanting to have anything else progress out here. He offered his hand to her but she refused it and walked by him, her arms wrapped around her in an attempt to stay warm. He sat down in the car, started it up and began driving back to the Institute. Scott knew he had done the right thing.

So why do I feel like I did something terribly wrong?


Scott pulled the car into the garage. Jean hadn't even looked at him the entire ride; she wasn't going to start now. She immediately exited the car, not looking back for one second. Jean knew she couldn't go back to Scott to talk about it. And she definitely didn't want to talk about it with anyone else. The truth was that she was alone. And she had left Scott to be alone in the garage. Inevitably, that didn't make her a better person. She put her hand to her head and squinted her eyes shut. What is wrong with me?

Jean looked across the grounds of the Institute, noticing for the first time that the sun was almost done setting, it's colors dulled with the night sky. She raised her head to admire the stars, a wave of nostalgia overcoming her. For a moment she forgot about the cold, forgot about her heart break, forgot about the X-Men, forgot about everything. But then why was Scott's face imprinted in her eyes, haunting the very sky in which she was viewing.

"Nice night," Scott said, finally revealing himself from the garage. Somehow, Jean could tell that he wasn't hurt, really; sure his face looked flushed, and his eyes... well, she couldn't really see what they were saying to her. The thought sent a stab of regret into her side. His eyes. She ached to see them so badly. Seeing him there standing before her made her feelings buckle and flow freely.

"I'm sorry, Scott. I didn't mean to hurt you. I'd never want to hurt you. I just, I'm in so much pain and I don't know why; it's tearing me up inside don't you see!? Duncan hurt me so badly. He used me — made me feel bad about myself and convinced me I wasn't good enough. He told me he was going to make me do things with him and today when I thought I had gotten rid of it all, I just couldn't stand up for myself! It kills me just thinking about it — I'm so incredibly weak! I need everything to disappear so I'll never have to deal with anything again." Jean choked out, her voice growing from incredibly soft to loud and forceful. He didn't have to say anything. And he didn't. Scott moved toward Jean and wrapped his arms around her, letting his chin rest atop her head. At first, Jean was surprised, but willingly let her body melt within his embrace. She slid her arms up his torso and wrapped them around his neck. The tears had come again. But they didn't burn this time.

All she could feel was him holding her. And that was all she wanted to feel.



Hey, I know it's kinda shorter than the other chapters.. but come on... I liked it like this. Expect many more chapters soon! I'm off of work for a week!hurrah. But don't be too expectant as I'll be occupied over this coming weekend. That said, I think I'll go write some more now. Keep the feedback coming :D

- Sarah