It had been two long months since Tabitha had left the boarding house. Every day she'd attend school, dragging herself through classes with a smile on her face, and every night she spent working at the diner until the early hours of the morning. With the few precious hours she had between the two, she would sleep on the dirty cot in her one room apartment, her alarm set to wake her up at seven. Usually she'd wake up earlier to the sound of Hillary's baby, Jessica, crying through the walls. Even with all this, with the rusty tap water, the broken heater, the cockroaches crawling in between the rotting floorboards, she was thankful. Thankful she wasn't out on the street, thankful for the food she managed to put on her table, thankful for the job that brought in the money she needed to pay for all of this. It wasn't anything close to a fairytale life, but it would do for now. No matter how bad things got, Tabby would never whine, or even let on about what she was feeling, because she knew that it could be a lot worse.
She could always be back home with her father, for one. That thought alone kept her going back to the diner every night. With every slap on the ass she received from one of the truckers passing through, she'd think back to what she used to get from her father. Every time she shivered under the thin blankets of her bed, she'd remember how her heavy quilt used to press down on her bruises as she slept. When she thought about saying something to one of her friends at school about the whole situation, she would remind herself of all the excuses she used to make for her black eyes back at her old school. No, she had no reason at all to complain. This was paradise, as far as she was concerned. Life could go ahead and do it's worse, because she'd seen plenty of it by now, and still managed to dance and smile often.
Once again she sat at the lunch table, her hands propping her head up so it wouldn't fall over onto her food. Her homework hadn't been done, and she knew the next few periods would contain lectures about responsibility.
Responsibility… I think I know more about that than anyone else. In the long run, some extra math equations are the least of my problems…
Yawning, Tabitha pulled out a mirror to touch up her make-up. She'd recently taken to wearing concealer to cover up the weary bags beneath her eyes, and it was about time that she checked to be sure the bruise-colored skin wasn't showing. Looking into the mirror, she spotted a familiar but stern face hovering over her shoulder.
"Tabitha, we need to talk."
Folding her mirror closed once again, Tabby turned to face the one and only Scott Summers.
"Well hey there, Scooter! Haven't spoke to you in a while. What's up?"
She smiled, crossing her legs and flashing him the most upbeat and sugarcoated smile possibly. He stared back behind his red shades, arms folded across his chest, with a rather un-amused expression on his face. Scott Summers was not impressed. He'd been noticing how downtrodden and exhausted she'd seemed lately on a fairly consistent basis. Jean and several of Tabby's old friends had been asking her what was going on, but from what he'd heard she'd always just said something about having trouble sleeping. There was more to it than that, and Scott was going to find out. She may not be a member of his team anymore, but he still felt responsible for her welfare. No matter how many time's he'd yelled at her back at the institute, it was only because he worried. Most of the new recruits didn't seem to understand that he was just looking out for him, and he had a feeling that Tabby was one of those who only saw him as an overbearing leader.
"Tabby… what's going on with you? And don't tell me you've just had trouble sleeping. If there's a problem, I want you to let me know. Is it the rest of the Brotherhood? Because if they've been hurting you-"
"No Scott! It… it's not them."
Tabitha was suddenly thankful that they'd all been recently expelled from school. The last thing she'd need right now was for a fight to break out between the two groups. She had friends on both sides, and really would rather not pick one or the other right now. Scott always seemed to be looking for a reason to fight with Lance. She decided not to tell him that she wasn't with the Brotherhood anymore. He was smart enough to put two and two together and ask where she was staying. He'd know immediately what was happening…
"Really, Scott. It's just a bit of insomnia I guess. I'll deal. No worries!"
She smiled again, hoping desperately he'd buy it and just move on. Scott sighed, shaking his head again.
"Fine, Tabby. I guess it isn't my business-"
"No. No it's not."
Hurt flashed across Scott's features. Tabitha immediately regretted snapping at him like that. He really was just worried about her. Being so tired all the time had given her a short fuse.
"Sorry, Scott, I just… it's something I've gotta work through on my own, really."
Scott smiled thinly. He wasn't happy about her answer, but he'd respect it. He certainly understood.
"All right, Tabitha. But if you get into any real trouble, you should know that there will always be a place for you at the mansion."
Tabby nodded, returning Scott's smile. The guy wasn't so bad. Not at all, really. It was refreshing to have a guy in her life trying to look out for her, rather than cause her some sort of bodily harm or simply want to spend a night with her. Scott was a one of a kind sort of guy, all right. If she didn't know that he and Jean belonged together, she'd consider working some of that old Boom Boom mojo magic on him and share his bed some time.
"Thanks. I'll be sure to give you a call if I'm ever in over my head."
Giving him a mock salute with two fingers, she returned to her lunch with as much enthusiasm as she could muster… which, after working in a diner all night every night, wasn't much. Scott sighed mentally and returned to his seat next to Jean at their lunch table.
Don't give up on her, Scott. You know something's up. You may have failed to keep her on the right track before, but you can still make sure she's not hurt.
Jean gave him a reassuring smile as he slid into his seat, passing him the notes they planned to go over during lunch for the test next period. Leave it to Jean to remind him of his responsibilities. He was, after all, supposed to be the role model for the rest of his peers. Constantly...
-------------------------Knock knock knock.
Tabitha sat up on her cot, rubbing her eyes. Goosebumps ran up and down her arms and legs as she slid out from under the covers. The thin, filthy cotton blanket she had did a fairly good job insulating her against the oncoming winter chill, but the moment she removed it there was nothing to protect her from the cold that penetrated her room, seeping into the floorboards and walls. Again the knock sounded at her door. She stumbled in the dark, tripping over her backpack on the floor on the way over. As she fumbled for the doorknob, it finally hit her.
Wait... dark? Oh God, what time is it?!
Sure enough, as she opened the door, there stood a breathless Hillary wearing a tattered winter coat and scarf.
"Tabby! What happened to you? Harvey's shittin' a brick back at the diner! You were supposed to start your shift two hours ago! He's about ready to fire you! I managed to talk him outta it but you better get down there fast!"
Tabby left the door open, jumping back into the room, hopping over her book bag, pulling the chain for the light bulb in the middle of the room, and scrambling for her uniform. She was supposed to start work today at 6... it was 8:12.
"Shit Hill, I'm so sorry! I forgot to set my alarm after school today! Hold on, I'll be right with you!"
Yanking off her jeans and shirt, she pulled on the short pink dress and apron, pulling her hair back into two short pigtails. She hopped over to her bed while pulling on her stockings, kicking her shoes over to herself as she went. Her nametag, reading Gwen, was already attached to her apron. She slipped her feet in, already feeling the draft through the thin soles, and dashed out the door, barely remembering her wallet and keys on the way out.
"I'm so sorry about all this, Hill."
"Don't worry about me, Harvey's the one you're gonna haveta answer to."
"Shit..."
The two ran all the way down to the diner, only stopping once they reached the door to both catch their breath and compose themselves. They tried opening the door as slow as they could so they would be able to slip inside without the bells chiming, but the moment the door opened at all...
"Where the hell have you been, girl?!"
Harvey's large, hulking, grease-stained figure stood behind the counter, his thick meaty arms crossed over his dirty white apron. He glared at them as they opened the door the rest of the way, slinking inside with their heads held low. Immediately they both headed in back to the kitchen, ignoring some of the snickering coming from the truckers at the counter.
"I asked you a question, girl! Where've ya been?"
Tabby stuck her keys and wallet on the table, averting her eyes from the larger man's stare.
"I'm really sorry, Harvey. I fell asleep, that's all. It was an accident, and it won't happen again, I swear."
She walked past him as she spoke, still not looking at him, heading over to the coffee maker t grab one of the pots and make her rounds around the diner with it.
"You're right it won't happen again! I've already gotten two penny tips on you, girl! One more like that an' you're gone, ya hear me? You'll be outta here! Are you listening to me?"
Tabby had started walking out to the counter, hoping Harvey would stop yelling as she headed towards the customers, but apparently not. She paused in the doorway between the back kitchen and the counter, turning to look over her shoulder.
"Yes, Harvey. I heard you. It really won't happen again... And besides, those one-penny tips weren't because of bad service; it was because I told those jerks not to touch me! They were-"
"Don't you talk back to me, girl! The customer is always right, remember that! Now stop wastin' time givin' me lip and get back to work!"
"Yeah, Harvey, sure thing. Right away, boss..."
Her head held low, she walked down the counter, asking each customer in a quiet voice if he'd like a refill or not. But at least she felt more rested than she'd been in a long time. The memory of Scott's talk with her at lunch filtered into her head. Maybe she should take his offer and stay at the mansion again... No, she'd tried living there before and it just hadn't worked. She was too much of a rebel for Scott or the teachers at the institute to want to deal with, and she wasn't 'bad' enough for the Brotherhood. She didn't relate all that well with anyone on either team anymore. She definitely didn't belong in this diner either, though. Scott's offer was tempting, especially while serving coffee to a bunch of disgusting, overly friendly truckers. But she was sure that Scott was busy enough being perfect to deal with her.
--------------------------
"Scott, what are you doing?"
Scott paused, his hand held in mid air, hovering over one of Jean's shoulders. They'd been studying all night together for another test, and finally around ten o' clock he found the nerve to try and put an arm around Jean. They'd been "dating" for the last few weeks, and the whole time he'd been trying to move in closer. Of course their time together could end any day now, since for the last few years she'd been switching between himself and Duncan at an almost predictable rate. Scott knew it was probably because for some reason, Jean wasn't much for the touching, and so she didn't want to get too close to any one guy. Scott, however, had wanted to touch her for a while now. Nothing obscene, of course. A role model such as himself would never sink so low as to think about such things. No, he just wanted to hold her in his arms, to protect her from the world. Most of all he wanted to protect her.
But now he'd been caught, just as he'd finally made his move. His hand held in position over her shoulder a moment longer before he drew it back, a sheepish smile on his face.
"Uh, nothing Jean. I was, uh, just stretching." Scott yawned for affect, stretching both arms out, but he knew his little ruse wouldn't work. Jean was a telepath, after all.
Jean sighed, shaking her head as she gathered up her books. "If you're so tired, then maybe we should call it a night." Pushing her chair back, she stood and walked off towards her room, pausing to look over her shoulder at him. "Maybe… this won't work after all, Scott."
Silence hung in the air for a long moment. In that one moment of weakness, Scott had managed to drive Jean away once again.
"Good night, Scott."
Scott leaned over the table, holding his head in his hands. "Good night, Jean…"
I should have known it wouldn't work. Jean's not the kind of girl that wants to be protected or held or anything like that. She's too busy over achieving to think about that sort of thing. I should be that way too. I'm the team leader; all the kids look up to me. I need to set an example, and wanting to… to be closer to Jean in that way wouldn't be acceptable. She knows that. That's probably why she stopped me. But…
Standing up from his seat, Scott decided to do something for once that would benefit him. Something that he would never allow any of the kids to do. Something unexpected, daring…
He was going to go out for a late night walk.
He didn't know where he was going, or when he'd get back, but damnit he needed some time to think. Grabbing his jacket, Scott headed downstairs and out the door. Upon reaching the gates he punched in the entry code and slipped out, undetected, to wander the darkened streets of Bayville.