Chapter 2
by Milmiss
Brennan rubbed his eyes for the hundredth time. Holding his breath, he distanced his hand from his face and slowly opened his eyes. Still no changes. He sighed and dropped his hand on the mattress.
He was still lying on his bed; he hadn't really moved since Jesse had left. But how could he have, anyway? Everything Jesse had told him was slowly but surely starting to sink in, rooting him to the spot. This couldn't be happening, not to him, not to them, not to Mutant X.
He suddenly tensed. He could have sworn he had just heard something. There it was again. A brief and dull sound. He was soon overcome with an uneasy feeling. Something was going on. He tried to stay calm, convincing himself that if something was indeed wrong, he would hear footsteps, voices, or in the worst case scenario, some kind of alarm. But it was all silent, except for this noise, again and again. His instinct of self-preservation however guided his next move as he channelled some electricity in his hand. Even without seeing it, he knew sparks were flying between his fingers. He could feel the energy flowing through his body, just like every time he was using his powers. At least something was working. Small satisfaction, but one anyway. The sound increased and Brennan listened to it carefully. He instantly closed his hand, making the electricity disappear, as it dawned on him. Rain. It was raining outside. Despite the current situation, a weak smile appeared on his face. Brennan Mulwray, afraid of rain. His blindness, temporary or not – hell, he was in this state since four months ago, how could it be temporary? - had apparently changed his perceptions a little. He was beginning to think he had some feral senses.
The smile on his lips died instantly. Shalimar. It couldn't be true, she couldn't be dead. Jesse hadn't gone into all the details, and Brennan could only imagine how painful it must have been for the molecular to say it. Beside Adam, he had known Shalimar the longest. She was a part of Jesse, just as much as Emma was a part of him, he knew that.
He was starting to think that Adam should have been the one to die. How could he have abandoned them? His children, as he kept saying. What had given him the right to disappear at the least little problem? Okay, this maybe wasn't a "little problem," more like a living nightmare, but he had created this situation, for Christ's sake! Even if it wasn't intentional, he had his part of responsibility for what had happened at Naxcon. He had deserted at the worst possible time, leaving them by themselves without a legitimate reason. "He couldn't see us suffer like that" had been Jesse's words. The elemental choked back a bitter laugh. What a joke! The Great Adam Kane, unable to face their state. Brennan would give anything to be able to give him a piece of his mind right now.
To ask him if he knew how Emma must feel right now, trying to deal with her own emotions, but also Jesse's and now his, since he had woken up. It wasn't fair, she shouldn't have to carry all that by herself. Brennan knew she was strong, but he didn't want to impose his feelings on her. He had never regarded the bond they shared since they had met as a curse until today. On the contrary, it had brought him some kind of sensation of security, making him feel like he would never be alone again. But he now wished he could somehow break this connection if it meant making her feel better.
Because he was scared, he couldn't deny it. Scared as hell. It seemed like everything had turned wrong, and nothing would go better anytime soon. And he was blind. He had absolutely no idea how he would deal with it.
The more he was thinking about the situation, the more agitated he was growing. He suddenly had trouble breathing, as if the walls were closing on him. Was claustrophobia a consequence of blindness? He didn't know, he didn't care, all he knew was that he needed to get out, to take a breath of fresh air. So he proceeded to get up.
"Thanks," said Jesse as Emma handed him a cup of coffee.
"How did it go?" she asked quietly as she sat down in front of him.
"It could have been worse." He paused. "I think. Well, honestly, I don't know. It seems that all I was doing back there was turning the knife in the wound, spreading out the situation. I think the only good news came from the fact that you were okay."
"Anyway, thank you. For bringing the news to Brennan. I wouldn't have been able to. Even without being in the same room with him, his feelings are so overwhelming. They're almost blocking mine. It took me by surprise when he woke up; I wasn't prepared to deal with that. My walls are down whenever I'm around him, but I never thought it would be a bad thing someday."
"And he still doesn't know everything," Jesse added, taking a sip of coffee.
Somehow Emma knew it. "You didn't tell him, did you? About you?"
Jesse locked eyes with her, answering her silently.
"So, what's next?"
Jesse frowned. "What do you mean?"
"Now that Brennan is awake. Where do we go from here?"
Jesse wasn't sure he was following her. "Emma, look at us. Shal's dead, Adam is gone, Brennan can't see, I can't walk, and you can't even think clearly! What kind of team is that? You..." he stopped himself, seeing Emma's expression. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean it like that. But you said it yourself, you're trying to deal with all our feelings. This is not healthy."
"We can't stay like this forever, Jess. We need to move on. We can't..."
Both she and Jesse were startled, almost dropping their cups, when they heard the loud noise coming from Brennan's room. The sound of his voice followed quickly.
"DAMN!" he yelled.
Emma closed her eyes, making up her mind. She stood slowly and answered Jesse's unasked question. "I'll go. I'll have to deal with it sooner or later, anyway."
She was in front of Brennan's room too soon for her liking, so she took a moment to compose herself. She breathed deeply and finally knocked at his door.
"Brennan? Is everything okay? Can I come in?"
TBC...
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