Bright Lights
An X-men Evolution fanfic by Lavender Gaia
Editing and Assistance by Laine
Chapter Four: Competition.
First draft: July 6, 2005
Disclaimer: I do not own X-men Evolution or any of its characters. They are all property of Marvel. I also don't own South Beach (it belongs to the City of Miami) or South Beach Modeling (since I don't think it exists). Alicia Roy and all other guests belong to themselves. I also do not own any DC Comic characters who cameo-ed in this chapter.
Jean Grey-Summers was enjoying the silence of her apartment. School didn't start for a few days and Scott said that he had other things to do, leaving her alone to spend her day relaxingly read magazines and browse through television that she didn't have to feel guilty watching. It also meant that she could watch Lifetime and other chick channels without Scott groaning.
Of course, as was common in her world, this bliss was interrupted by some banging on the door. "Who is it?" she sighed to the caller.
"Tabitha!" came the energetic reply.
The locks telekinetically undid themselves. "It's open," Jean told her without looking up from her September issue of Cosmopolitan.
The blonde bounced in and sat at the end of the couch where the redhead's feet were comfortable situated. "C'mon, get up. We're going shopping."
"Excuse me?"
"Ok, Amara and Bobby are out doing whatever couple thing they're doing, Sam's not back yet, I know your hubby is out doing something or other, Kitty and Rogue took Kurt out to cheer him up about Amanda, and Ray isn't the best person to go shopping with," she pointed out. "Plus, I thought we'd have fun."
"What makes you think I'd want to go? If you didn't notice, I'm quite comfy here on my couch." To emphasize her point, she lifted a cookie from a plate, dunked it in her milk and brought it to her mouth using only her mind.
"I'm not sure if you're being lazy or a show-off," Tabby rolled her eyes. "Besides the fact that we know both of those is my department, I have three words for you: Seven story Macy's."
Jean's eyes flicked down to what she was wearing: an old X-shirt and a pair of Scott's boxers. "Just let me change."
Tabitha grinned and took Jean's place on the couch. "Alright!"
A little while later she returned in a pair of jean Capri's and a light blue t-shirt, along with sneakers that were perfect for walking around and buying everything in sight. "Ready?"
"What's with the Kama Sutra?" Tabby asked, holding up the magazine. "Things already stale with O' Fearless Leader? You guys haven't been married that long. Though, most people might argue you've been married since you were like preteens."
"First of all, that's none of your business," she took it from her and put it back on the coffee table. "Second, it's Kitty's and she leant it to me because there was an article for newly-weds."
"Alright, alright, no need to get hostile about it. C'mon, let's go before the rest of Manhattan takes all the cute clothes we want." They took the subway over to the store (without getting lost, something Jean felt was better not to question her about). "Ok," Tabitha began as they entered the building. "I think we should start with clothes, follow with shoes, and finish up with make up and anything extra we're missing for our new apartments."
"Works for me," Jean nodded and they took the escalator to the women's department. "Whoa, there are a lot of people here."
Indeed there were. Most of them were women in their teens and twenties, gathered around a large platform and talking excitedly. "Don't these people have jobs?" Tabitha asked in annoyance. Grabbing the nearest clerk, she asked "Hi! My name is Emily!", "Hey, what's up with this? Some celebrity here or something?"
"You haven't heard?" Emily blinked in surprise. "South Beach Modeling is recruiting new people. Amateurs get a minute or two on stage. Third place wins $500, second place is $1,000 and the winner gets $5,000 and a modeling contract." She nodded at the girls' shocked expressions. "Yeah, I know. Registration ends in about ten minutes so if you're interested, I'd get over there."
"Thanks!" Tabby grinned, dragging the taller redhead over. "You're signing up."
"What? Why me? You sign up!"
"Jean, except for the fact that you're not skinny as a twig, you have the perfect body for modeling. Not to mention the fact that you're really pretty. Plus, if your popularity at Bayville was a hint at anything, you'd be great for the masses." She stood them in the relatively short line for a sign-up sheet. "I wouldn't last too long without blowing my top; you're better at keeping your temper."
"I don't have time to be a model," Jean protested. "I have school and a husband and I need to get a job—"
"This can be your job! Even if you don't get the first prize, a couple hundred bucks can't hurt, can it?" She smiled at the registration lady. "She's signing up."
"I need to see some I.D. to verify that you're at least sixteen," the woman requested. Jean pulled it out of her wallet and handed it over with a sigh. "Alright, Miss Grey. Just fill out these forms and you'll be ready to go."
"Thank you," Jean took a seat nearby and began working on the application.
A confused look came from Tabby's direction. "Excuse me if I'm wrong, but I coulda sworn you were Mrs. Summers now."
"It's Grey-Summers," she corrected her. "And I just haven't had a chance to get my license changed yet. No big deal."
"Oh. Um…ok." She waited as patiently as she could for her to finish filling out the papers. Tabitha decided that it was her job to scope out the competition. Too short, too short, possibility, what did that person do to their hair? And someone should tell the lady next to her that zebra print pants don't work when you're wearing a multi-colored polka-dot shirt over it. Ew.
"Done!" Jean announced, walking with her friend back to turn them in.
"Good. I only see about three or four people who are really competition. I'm sure you'll blow them out of the water though."
"I'm glad you're confident, at least," she smiled and handed the clipboard to the woman, whose name was Jodie.
"Thank you, Miss." Jodie smiled at her, then looked back and forth conspiratorially. "Listen, I'm not supposed to tell you this, but they probably won't need you for another hour or two. You look fine, but if you'd like to get something special to wear, you have plenty of time to shop for something to wear," she whispered, holding out number 63 to her.
"That sounds like a good idea!" Tabitha grinned. "C'mon, let's go make you hot. Thanks, Jodie!"
Jean allowed her to take her arm and drag her away. "Oh, I'm married so suddenly I'm not hot anymore?"
"Aw, that's not what I mean! Of course you're still hot. Siren's never lose that. It's just, now that you're married you have no one left to impress. Seriously, when was the last time you spent more than five minutes on your makeup?"
Her eyes trailed the ground sheepishly as Tabitha searched through the racks of women's clothing. "Scott always said he never cared about any of that."
"I'm sure he doesn't. I mean, the guy was like blind for a few years and he can't see in color anyway. I'm sure he just feels it's a perk that you're majorly gorgeous," the blonde bumped her hip with Jean's playfully. "But you still made yourself up anyway. Since you're married, you know you've got him for life and you don't feel the need anymore. True?"
"…True. Ok, so I haven't really cared too much about it," the redhead sighed. "It just hasn't been a priority anymore, with moving and starting school soon. For some reason, I still carry my makeup bag with me though. Must be habit."
Tabitha's face brightened up after seeing the blue and green Clinique bag in Jean's purse. "Alright! I guess I'll have to do your makeup after we find someone for you to wear."
They searched through different racks, looking for something that suited the occasion. "Can't I just wear what I have on?" Jean asked in exasperation after a while.
"Not until you try these on!" Tabby squealed, holding up a pair of leather pants. "You'd look awesome in these."
"In case you don't remember, I've done the leather before. Not exactly my style."
"You don't have to go fully dominatrix this time. I mean, you can't pull it off like I can. Or Rogue, you know, the two of us can really do the leather. Just try on the pants while I find you a shirt." It was a statement more than a request. There was no getting through to the hardheaded girl, so Jean retreated with the pants to the women's dressing rooms.
She had to admit, as she examined herself in the full-length mirror on the wall of the small cubicle, that they fit well. The pants hung low on her hips and somehow made her legs even appear longer. It was almost difficult to not get excited, and she managed not to be disgusted with herself that new—more daring—clothes gave her more energy than she's had for a while.
"Jean?" Tabby called through out the changing area. When the taller girl opened her door and walked out for inspection, a grin spread over her friend's face. "You have to get those. Even if you don't wear them for the modeling thing, those were made for you. I'd love to see Scott's face when he sees you wearing it."
"Ok, ok, I'll get them. Find anything else?" She took the sea-foam green shirt and added it to the outfit. It was a v-neck and Tabitha happily noted that somehow it drew attention to her eyes while highlighting just how fabulous that deep red hair was.
Jean pulled out her credit card and paid at a nearby register before going to a different floor to find shoes; both of them agreed that sneakers didn't really go too well. After grabbing a pair of heeled sandals that Jean knew she would wear again in the future, they headed back to the woman's department. She quickly changed and allowed Tabby to do her makeup with little protest.
Eventually, they returned back to the modeling area as number 59 walked across the stage. "You look awesome!" Jodie told her from the desk.
"Thanks," Jean grinned, feeling pretty good about herself.
"You'll be up in a few minutes, so if you just want to take a seat somewhere, they'll call you when they're ready," she explained, gesturing to some seats around.
She and Tabitha relaxed until the emcee announced, "Now is number 62, Miss Alicia Roy. Number 63 up next."
Jean approached the back of the stage as an African-American woman had her turn. She wasn't exactly sure what to do. Everyone she'd seen was trying to pout like models they'd seen on runways before. She wasn't exactly the pouty type. I'll just smile, she thought to herself. Maybe they'll appreciate something different.
She smiled supportively as Alicia came back behind the curtain. "Good luck," the woman told her before exiting to the wait area.
"Now we have number 63, Miss Jean Grey. Number 64 up next." Jean took a deep breath and walked on to the stage. There was a shaky smile on her lips as she started down the runway. Out of the corner of her eye she caught Tabitha standing in the back, waving to catch her attention. A grin broke out on Jean's face and she winked at her blonde friend.
There were plenty of catcalls and wolf whistles from guys in the crowd that had stopped to watch the performances. And of course Tabby calling out "Jean, you're my hero!" didn't help stop her from laughing. After making her way to the end of the catwalk, she smiled at the judges and made her way back to the curtain.
She left the stage and went down the stairs only to be intercepted by Tabitha's hug. "You were awesome! I'm serious, Jean, all eyes were on you. I think a few guys passed out from dehydration because they were drooling so much!"
Another laugh erupted from Jean. "Thanks. Let's just sit down and wait, I don't think there are too many other people left."
The two other girls took their turns, and then one of the judges came on stage. "Hello, everyone. I'm Max Zimmerman, one of the agents from South Beach Modeling. I'd like to thank everyone for coming out here today and participating. You are all beautiful, and while you may not be exactly what we are looking for at the moment, if this is your dream I urge you to pursue it.
"The judges, which include myself, one of our photographers, and one of our current models, a Miss Kori Anders that you may recognize from our jean ads, are thrilled with today's turnout. After some deliberation, we are ready to announce our winners.
"Third place is Miss Aja Steiger. Second place is Miss Gabrielle Porter." Applause and cheers sounded through the room and the two girls took their checks happily. "And the winner of the $5,000 and our newest model is Miss Jean Grey!"
The telepath blinked in surprise as Tabby hugged her tightly, screaming "YES!" In a daze, she approached the stage, hardly hearing the appreciation the crowd had for her, as well as Tabitha's proud call of "That's my girl!"
"Congratulations, Miss Gray," Max Zimmerman told her.
"Um, wow, thank you. I really wasn't expecting this," she admitted.
"You're a beautiful woman, and your smile is sexy and likeable at the same time. Here, why don't' I introduce you to one of our photographers. Donna, can you come here?" He waved to a woman who looked lovely enough to be a model herself. Black hair curled lightly against her back and her smile reached blue eyes. "This is Donna Troy."
"It's nice to meet you, Miss Grey," Donna shook her hand. "I hope we can work together often."
"Me too," Jean smiled. The photographer had an easy-going air about her, which Jean appreciated. She felt automatically that she'd be easy to work with.
The other model approached her, grinning widely at her. "Hello, new friend! I am Kori Anders!"
Kori was incredibly tall, with jade green eyes and a long, thick mane of red curls. Her golden skin glowed and the jeans she made famous hugged curves even she could be envious of. "Um, hi. It's nice to meet you."
"It is always pleasurable to make a new acquaintance!" Kori beamed at her.
"Listen, Miss Grey, how about we meet on Friday and discuss a contract and such over lunch?" Max suggested. "There are plenty of good restaurants by our office."
"That sounds great," she answered, watching as he wrote down directions to his office on the back of a business card.
"It'll be a pleasure doing business with you, Miss Grey. Excuse me for a moment," He nodded a good-bye to her, then went to talk to a Macy's assistant who was waving to him.
Tabitha squealed and hopped up on the stage, giving her another hug. "This is amazing, Jean!" She grinned proudly. "I know a supermodel."
"I'm not a supermodel yet. I haven't even done any work. But Friday I'm meeting with them to go over a contract." She took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. "Wow. It's all going so fast."
"But that's a good thing, right? You wanted a job and how cool would it be to tell people you're a genetic researcher who does some modeling on the side?" the blonde elbowed her in the side playfully.
"Yeah, yeah, ok." Jean grinned. "Just promise me something ok? Don't tell anyone. Especially Scott."
"What? Why not?" She cocked her head to the side, staring at her friend questioningly.
"I'll tell them in my own time. Let's just keep this a secret between us for now, ok?" Green eyes pleaded with blue ones until Tabby looked away with a sigh.
"Alright, I won't tell them. I always thought that honesty was the basis for a good marriage though. Not that my parents are any example," she sighed. "But, ok, whatever. I won't tell. C'mon, let's go get me something to wear, supermodel!"
Tabitha started off towards a large rack of pants. Jean checked the business card in her hand one last time before slipping it in her purse and following her friend.
The treadmill slowed to a stop and Scott Summers wiped off the sweat that had accumulated on his forehead. He wondered vaguely whether or not the state-of-the-art gym had any part of Xavier deciding that this was the perfect building for them. After seeing that his lovely wife wasn't home, he'd decided to try it out. While it was no Danger Room, it would still do to keep them all in shape.
He made his way to the elevator, planning on taking a shower to wash the day's work away. Automatically, he reached for the doorknob before remembering he'd locked it. It was open though and the handle turned in his grip. Fear shot through him until he realized that his Jean had probably come home.
There she was, leaning against the kitchen island, flipping through a magazine and eating cherries. His eyebrows raised above his glasses as he took in her leather pants. "Hey, honey."
She looked over at him with a grin and a sparkle in her eyes. "Hi!" Jean kissed him lightly; she tasted sweeter than usual, thanks to the berries. "Working out?"
"The gym is really nice," he responded with a nod. "You should come down with me next time. Not that you really need to work on your body," he continued quickly, eyeing her legs appreciatively. "New outfit?"
"Tabby and I went shopping," she informed him, accompanying it with another kiss.
"Well, I think you look awesome. I'm sure every guy there was staring at you." His strong arms wrapped around her waist.
"Yeah, well, I'm married now. And my husband is really cute," she grinned at him.
"You don't say? What a coincidence, because I happen to have an extremely gorgeous wife."
"Really now?" He kissed her again, hearing her giggles as his lips trailed over her neck. She took his hand and led him to the new couch, where she then settled into her husbands lap and resumed kissing him.
Later on, they snuggled together on their couch, flipping through the channels. Scott's arm was wrapped around her waist lightly. "I love you, Jean."
"I love you too, Scott," she turned her head to smile at him before looking back at the television. Her frowned at the back of her head; the tone of her voice sounded as if she had just confessed a heinous sin to him, and wanted to prove that she cared for him. But as she nuzzled closer, he decided to let it go. It could wait another day. After all, they had their whole lives together.
A/N: I'm so sorry this took so long. I've been so busy lately. I moved and my new place was leaking from the moment we moved in and just recently my mother's best friend died. Everything's been kind of messed up lately. This just isn't my summer.
I hope everyone liked the JOTT in this chapter! And if you are aware of the DC comic world, you may have noticed some cameos. They aren't scheduled to become main characters now, but if people want them and the rest of their team in it, I'll see what I can do.
Questions, comments, reactions and reviews are greatly appreciated.
Review Responses:
Simba317: I'm so glad you liked the chapter. I'm not sure if the real Riley was like that, I haven't seen him in years, but he was definitely going that way. We will see more of him in the future though.
Mattb3671: I'm happy you liked the Rogue/Warren. Thank you for reading!
Whylime: Thank you for your concern. I tried to update as soon as possible and I'll do the same in the future (hopefully quicker though).
Wen1: I will, thanks!
Jott luver: Well, I always thought that while they fight occasionally, Jean and Rogue are friends. Not best friends, per say, but definitely more than casual acquaintances or enemies.
Raniatlw: Everything will go well eventually, I'm sure. I'm glad you like the Rogue with Warren, I'll try to put more in future chapters.
Diaz F: I actually didn't come up with Rogue's dream…I stole it from a series called Ranma ½ by Rumiko Takahashi. A friend of mine did have a dream like that once though.
Telepathic Angel: Well, here's your JOTT! There will be more, they're one of my favorite couples.
Jenskott: I have to wonder if everyone wishing me well is just making everything worse. Thank you for your kind words though. Rogue and Warren are a strange pair, but I like to rearrange couples as long as they don't mess with major canon (like Jean and Scott).
Agent-G: Well, the only other ones I can think of in NY are Spiderman and Matt Murdock. Unfortunately, as I know pretty much nothing about either of them besides the movies, it would probably ruin their characters to have me write for them. I added some non-Marvel New York superheroes in this chapter, but unless I brush up on my Spiderman comics sometimes in the future, I'd be worried about writing him horribly and I have too much respect to Jack Kirby for that. I'm sorry I gave you the impression that I definitely wasn't going to include Kurtty. At that time I hadn't decided, but I'm pretty sure what I'm going to do now, and there's a good chance the couple will be included.
Elizabeth: I'm glad you like Rogue with Warren and I hope you keep reading!
Realtfarraige: I'm enjoying writing the normal chapters, but they should be starting college by the next chapter. Let's see how they handle all that. Thank you for reviewing.
Slickboy444: Kurt's friends are doing the best they can to help him through this rough transition and I'll be pointing that out more later on. I'm so happy you like Bobby and Amara; I think I may be the only person who writes for them, and I'm glad to see others enjoying the pair I love so much.
DOJ: Lance broke up with Kitty before she moved to New York. Since that's all Kitty knows right now (besides the deep, scarring details) I won't go into it right now, but I can assure you that Lance will come in later. Gotta love the Eager Puppy with his Kitty cat.
Gothik Strawberry: I did find a new place, thank you for your kind wishes. I'm glad you liked the parts with Rogue and Warren. I hope you keep reading.
Darkstorm5000: So many people enjoy Rogue with Warren. I'm thrilled by it and I'm glad you like it as well. I'll keep trying to update as soon as I can.
Ingrid: I don't think it's bad that you're obsessed with Jott. I am too, which is why I love to write them so much. I hope you like that part of this chapter.
LilyEvansPotter4456: I'm happy you like it. Thank you for reading.
I Heart the Distillers: I will be bringing in not only other people from the show, but also comic characters. There are going to be a LOT of pairings, so hopefully I'll be able to hit on everyone's favorite. I hope you like this chapter.