Title: Dizzy
Author: Tempest
Disclaimer: I don't own any characters recognizable from the movie X-Men. They are owned by Stan Lee, Marvel, Fox, et al. I'm just borrowing them very briefly to write a few drabbles.
Author's Notes: Okay, okay. No more drabble sets UNTIL I update one of my other stories. I promise. :) I was listening to some Jack Off Jill, and their song "Girl Scout" inspired the girl scout quote. Quick note to Mary: Suckers (the VMN sequel) is the next story I'll update.
He knew something was seriously wrong. He hadn't seen Ororo in months. She never called, never visited, anymore. Only occasionally did he see her around, usually around lunchtime.
They bumped into each other at their favorite deli, and they would always chat politely. One time he decided to ask her what was going between her and Jean. Ororo wouldn't answer.
Ororo had always proved to be a very forgiving person, especially where Jean was concerned. Minor and major infractions never kept the two apart long. They were inseparable, always had been since they were teenagers.
What happened between the two?
x
Jean was cold, absolutely chilly, at dinner. Her mood was as livid as her hair. She had much on her mind, but he couldn't pry it out of her. He wasn't used to this sort of treatment. They talked about everything – except what happened with Ororo.
"I have the benefit tonight," he reminded her.
She only shrugged at him and told him to go without her. She wasn't in the mood to put up false pretenses for his friends. He didn't ask any more questions. He didn't want to argue with Jean. It would only sour his mood as well.
x
He spotted Ororo dancing with a man—a rather large man—at the charity benefit for orphaned and abandoned kids. They appeared rather intimate as they swayed slowly on the dance floor. He never thought of Ororo as the unfaithful type.
"Hello, Ororo. How is Logan? Is he here?" Scott asked pointedly, breaking up a shared laugh.
"She served that asshole with divorce papers. 'Bout time, too. He's probably shacked up somewhere with her best friend right now," the man said with a shake of his head.
"Victor!" Ororo cried mortified. Then she turned back to him. "I'm sorry, Scott."
x
He couldn't breathe. He loosened his tie. His wife, his beautiful Jean, was cheating on him with Logan. He went straight home with every intention of confronting Jean with this newfound information.
Instead, he dressed for bed. When Jean reached for him, he pulled away from her quickly. He didn't want Jean to touch him. She touched Logan with those hands. She kissed Logan with that mouth. Then, she came home and she kissed him with the same mouth, touched him with the same hands.
She told him she loved him. He wondered if she told Logan the same thing.
x
He sought Ororo out at the school. She agreed to speak with him during her free period.
"Why didn't you tell me?" he demanded of Ororo.
"It wasn't my place," she said.
"You're supposed to be my friend."
"You would have hated me if I told you."
"You are supposed to be my friend," he repeated vehemently.
"You would have hated me for tainting the illusion of perfect," she replied calmly.
He placed his head on her desk. "What do I do?" he asked sadly.
She rubbed his head matronly, and he felt the first tears dropping from his eyes.
x
He'd suspected before that something was going on between Jean and Logan. She always laughed off his suspicions, said she only had eyes for him. How blind was he to believe that?
Not only had she lied to him, but he had to find out about her affair from a third party. A complete stranger knew about his wife's transgression before he did.
He wanted to hate her. He wanted to scream at her until his voice gave out, but he couldn't. She was his wife, his everything. He couldn't hurt her even if he wanted to.
x
Logan worked for a law firm not too far from the advertising agency he worked for. It took only a three second decision for him to decide to walk to the firm during his lunch break.
He stormed into Logan's office unannounced.
"Are you sleeping with my wife?" he demanded.
"Who told ya that?" Logan asked. "My wife?"
"Your wife's new boyfriend," he answered out of spite.
He saw a spark of something in Logan's eyes. More words were exchanged. Punches were dealt. Security was called. He went home with a black eye and a busted lip for his troubles.
x
Jean meant everything to him. He would've died for Jean; he would've given up everything for her. He considered her the most important thing in his life, and she had loved him, even though he came from nothing and hadn't been able to give her much at first.
She stuck by his side while he put himself through business school. She put her own dreams on hold for his, and maybe this was his punishment. But he never asked Jean to put her life on hold for him. He would've supported whatever she wanted because they were supposed to be strong together.
Now he could see. They weren't strong. They were a sham.
x
"What happened to you?" Jean asked him when he arrived home. Fake concern.
He shrugged his shoulders and mumbled something about not wanting to talk about it. He sat on the couch and studied his wife. She blushed under his stern inspection of her.
She sat there so prim and proper, pretending that nothing was wrong. He wanted to hate her. God, why couldn't he hate her? She smiled at him nervously. Good, he wanted her to be nervous.
"I know why you and Ororo are no longer speaking," he said placidly. He stood up and exited the living room.
x
She told him that people like them rarely rage. They handled most things logically with calculated steps toward a solution. Natural born leaders. He didn't feel in charge. He just wanted someone to tell him what to do.
"What do I do?" he asked Ororo once again.
"I don't know, Scott. You have to do what you think is right."
He wanted Ororo to tell him that he should leave Jean, that he should just pack up his things and go. Even now, though, Ororo was very neutral on the situation. She left. Why didn't she tell him to leave?
x
Jean tried to apologize, and he always waved her away. She couldn't have felt too guilty if she'd continued the deception for so long. How could she claim to love him when she was sleeping with another man?
And to think, he held her up on a pedestal. He'd regarded few women as near perfect. "The girl scout has fallen from honor," he muttered to himself.
Did he leave or did he stay? The question twirled around in his head until he was mentally dizzy from the ride. You were always supposed to leave when something like this happened. Always.
x
He packed his things. He tried to ignore the pitiful wails that escaped from her lips. How dare she cry. If anyone should cry, it was him. He was the one who'd been hurt.
She clung to his leg when he tried to walk out the door.
"Please," she pleaded. "I'll sacrifice anything for you."
"You've already sacrificed something – our relationship."
"We can work this out," she uttered through her tears.
"There's nothing left to work out."
There was much left that he didn't want to lose. He placed his suitcase on the floor. You didn't always have to leave.