If You Wanna Stay
Summary: What if the comlink rings ceremony didn't go as it did? (I guess that makes it A/U, right?)
Couple: Emma / Brennan, Emma / Adam (not romantic)
Rating: PG-13
Disclaimer: MUTANT X is copyright 2001, Tribune Entertainment Co. So the characters do not belong to me. Also, I am not making any money out of this story, I'm just giving the Emma / Brennan fans out there a little more to feed on. The title of this fan fiction is from the song 'If You Wanna Stay' by Keith Urban on his 1999 US debut CD 'keith urban' so copyrights apply to whoever owns them for that song. The title of this chapter is from the song 'You're Not Alone Tonight' by Keith Urban from his 2002 US CD 'Golden Road' so copyrights apply to whoever owns them for that song as well.
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Chapter 5You can make it through if you believe that someone's watchin' over you
The solid hologram in front of Brennan disappeared as Jesse turned off the simulator with a heavy sigh. Adam had asked him at breakfast to put together a training program for his new teammate and so far, Brennan had managed to defeat each and every fighting simulation he could think of.
"Man, I don't see why Adam wanted me to train you," he said, shaking his head.
"Hey, what do you know.. I'm a fast learner", replied Brennan as he picked up his towel on the floor.
Adam's voice coming through the intercom interrupted the two young men. "Brennan, I need to see you in the lab."
"Coming," answered Brennan, before turning back to Jesse. "Here's your chance to find a simulation that will not be for kindergarten kids", he said with a grin before jumping off the flight of stairs.
"Show off!", mumbled Jesse under his breath as he turned his attention back to the console in front of him. "Kindergarten level my foot.. though I must admit he's handling himself in battle much better than any of us could have guessed. Good thing he's on our side…"
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As he made his way toward the lab, Brennan walked by the water garden where Emma was working with Shalimar on some relaxation and concentration technique as Adam had suggested to her that morning. Standing out of sight, he decided to watch the two women for a while and couldn't help but play the comparison game.
Tall, athletic, stunningly beautiful and incredibly sexy, Shalimar was Emma's exact opposite. Of course he would be lying if he said he wasn't attracted to her, any man in his right mind would be. But even if she was all that a man could dream of, in his eyes Shalimar couldn't hold the comparison with Emma. There was such a sweet innocence, a true sense of caring in the young brunette that Brennan secretly called her his delicate desert flower. He also felt this irresistible need to keep her close to him at all time, and to beat the hell out of anyone who would as much as be rude to her.
'Woah, since when have I developed the "knight-in-shinning-armor" persona?', he asked himself, shaking his head. His face softened even more as he saw the young woman trying her best to follow Shal's lead in some complex tai-chi movements. 'She's gonna make it, no matter what the others might think I know she will make it. It may take her longer than the rest of us but in time and with all of our help, I know her powers and inner personality will make her the most valuable member of this team.'
Blowing a silent kiss to the telempath, Brennan left the water garden area in direction of Adam's lab.
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Emma had felt Brennan's presence but hadn't let it distract her. Shalimar's routine was so difficult to follow that it was taking her concentration. Still, she was smiling in her mind. This wasn't as bad as she had expected it to be when she had agreed to give it a try about a week ago.
Shalimar and Jesse seemed to be truly happy that she had decided to stay for a while. Especially Shalimar who had turned into the best friend she could have asked her and Emma found herself considering the tall feral as the sister she never had. Brennan was always within a whisper distance and Adam was the first to wish her 'Good morning' in the kitchen area where he now took every breakfast.
When she wasn't working with Shal, Emma spent most of her time in Adam's lab, helping him and learning a great deal about genetic and bio-chemistry. 'It funny how I never really liked any of those subjects in school. But with Adam it's different, he's …'
"Ouch!" she cried, holding her back. She had let her thoughts take over her mind and had made a wrong movement. Shalimar turned to her.
"Okay, I think it's enough for now. Does it hurt much?" she asked with concern in her voice.
Emma smiled weakly. "Nah, just a bad move. I wasn't concentrating enough I guess", she added sheepishly.
"Em, you have gotta learn to not let yourself be distracted so easily", Shalimar sighed. "What was it this time, Brennan?" she asked with a little smile. Emma's face went red.
"No, not at all!"
Shalimar laughed at her friend's hasty reply. She didn't need to be a psionic to know there was something happening between their two new teammates, even though neither of them had made any move...yet.
"Awe come on girl, you can tell me. I won't tell a soul."
"If you have to know, I was thinking about Adam", said Emma as she sat down carefully.
Shalimar frowned. "Adam?"
Emma felt the uneasiness in Shalimar's voice. 'What is it with everyone freaking out whenever Adam is brought up in a conversation?', she wondered. 'They act normally when he's around, but if his name in mentioned when he's not, they are all walking on egg shells.'
"Yeah," she said out loud. "At first I thought Adam didn't like me much.."
"Oh Emma, that not true", interrupted Shalimar as she sat down next to her. "Adam thinks very highly of you and if he might seem hard sometimes it's because he cares."
Emma smiled. "I know, I can feel how much he cares for all of us. I'm an empath, remember?" Both women laughed.
"Seriously, I was just thinking about how it's easy for me to work with him in the lab. You know, in school I hated with a passion anything that had to do with science and could barely pass my classes. But now with Adam, everything is so simple. It's strange but at the same time it feels 'normal'. Does it make any sense to you?"
"Maybe it's because Adam is a good teacher with a very receptive student?", Shalimar replied with a wink.
Emma laughed. "It could be, who knows?" She felt all the previous tension leaving Shalimar's mind as the feral woman stood up.
"Okay, break is over. Get up."
"Oh Shal… five more minutes, please?", whined the young brunette.
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The scanner's ray returned to Brennan's forehead.
"End scan", said Adam and the ray vanished.
"So, how am I doing?", asked Brennan.
Adam looked at the monitor for a few seconds before replying.
"You're in perfect physical shape. How are the training sessions going? Do you feel anything strange whenever you use your power? Or after? Any headache, numb feeling?"
Brennan shook his head. "No sir, all is perfectly fine… well except for the fact that Jesse can't come up with tougher simulations."
Adam smiled. "Oh I wouldn't worry about that, Jesse can be very creative when challenged."
Brennan laughed as he got dressed. "Yeah, I had gotten the feeling he doesn't like competition much."
"Brennan, you've got to understand that this is an adjustment period for Jesse as well. Up until a week ago he was the only man around.. well except for me but I am not a mutant and I've always been here, I recruited him. He's not a bad kid, just give him some time."
Brennan turned to him. "Yeah maybe… but isn't it the same for Shalimar? I mean, she doesn't seem to feel any competition coming from Emma", he wondered.
"No, it's different for Shalimar. You see, her feral DNA makes her very protective by nature and gives her a very strong maternal side. She simply 'adopted' Emma", replied Adam. "Besides, I think she's not the only one here who developed a strong protective feeling when it comes to Emma, am I right?", he added with a little smile.
Brennan remained silent, not knowing how Adam would take his feelings towards the telempath. After all, maybe it was against the rules to be dating within the team. This was one of the reasons he had not taken his relationship with Emma any further than a very deep friendship.
Adam walked up to him and put a hand on his shoulder.
"Just be careful not to hurt her, okay?", he said slowly while looking straight at him.
Brennan nodded, knowing exactly what the other man meant. Adam smiled and returned to the console, then came back with a syringe.
"Now," he said, "Sit down and stay calm."
Brennan shivered at the sight on the syringe. He hated those things.
"Huh Adam, is this necessary?", he asked.
"Yes, I need to build a blood bank for you, in case you get hurt during a mission. You see, with all of your unique DNA in this team, I can not risk mixing them during a transfusion. There is no telling what might happen if I did. Now sit down and relax."
Brennan did as he was told. 'God I hate those things', he thought as he closed his eyes and breathed deeply, preparing for the sharp sting.
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Author's note: I realize this might seem like a slow story to some of you but I have to re-write history sort to speak, so I wanna make sure the characters are established in the way I need them in order to develop this story in the direction I want it to go. Please bear with me, I promise you'll see some action soon.
