Disclaimer: I don't own the X-Men.
Author's Note: I like the basic idea of song fics, when done right at least. I figured I'd give it a shot.I used 'I Miss You" by Blink 182, which I do indeed put on repeat and listen to endlessly. Needless to say, I don't own the rights to that song.
V.V.V.V.V.V.V
The next day was Friday. The younger students had all left for school, and Scott still hadn't returned from college for the weekend. Brooke was lying on her bed with the stereo turned up. She had gone through most of her CD collection before finally settling on a song that fit her mood. She knew it was probably driving anyone listening nuts; it was on repeat, at least the 9th or 10th repetition.
Hello there, the angel from my nightmare
The shadow in the background of the morgue
The unsuspecting victim of darkness in the valley
She knew Etienne was feeling guilty about the events earlier in the week. Now that she had time to think about it, she supposed they had both been at fault. They had events in their pasts that made it hard to share their true feelings. She grimaced. They were almost as bad as Remy and Rogue if such a thing was possible. She knew she should go find him and talk, but he had been avoiding her all week like she had the plague.
We can live like Jack and Sally if we want,
Where you can always find me.
She had to laugh at that line. Part of her had been totally conscious of what was going on, and she hadn't bothered to even try to stop him. She could still feel his teeth sink into her shoulder; touching the mark on her neck she shivered. It had been one of the most erotic sensations she had ever experienced, though she would never admit that to anyone.
We'll have Halloween on Christmas.
And in the night we'll wish this never ends,
We'll wish this never ends.
Etienne rolled over on his bed and faced the wall. She had been playing that song for at least 20 minutes, over and over again. He stood up; stopping outside her door and taking a deep breath. He put a hand up to the tender area where she had bitten him yesterday. Time to get things over with one way or another. Without knocking, he pushed the door open and stepped into the room.
I miss you, I miss you
I miss you, I miss you
She looked up and saw him in the doorway. She got off her bed and walked over to him. When he tried to step back she grabbed his hand and dragged him in the room shutting the door behind. "Hey."
He looked down, noticing she hadn't let go of his hand. "Bonjour."
"Oops, sorry." She let go, taking a step back to give him more space, feeling unaccountably nervous. "So, we need to talk."
Where are you and I'm so sorry
I cannot sleep I cannot dream tonight
I need somebody and always
He nodded. "Yeah, dat occurred to me too." He was feeling nervous enough for both of them, and being able to feel her nervousness wasn't helping any.
She sighed. "I'm sorry for what happened the other day."
He shook his head. "Non, it was my fault."
"No, I knew what you were doing, and I didn't want to stop you."
"Y' know y' are exaggeratin. Y' can't t'ink past emotions when shape-shifted."
"Yeah, well I've had more practice at it than you have."
"It wasn't like I was plannin on suddenly borrowing y' mutant powers o' anything!"
"If you hadn't gotten into a fight over a dumb movie, you wouldn't have needed to!"
This sick strange darkness, Comes creeping on so haunting every time
And as I stared I counted, Webs from all the spiders
They stopped, realizing they were yelling at each other over things they had no control over. "I'm sorry." They grinned, having said it at the same time. "Jinx! You can't say anything until I say your name." She tapped her foot and studied him. When he tried to open his mouth she cut him off. "No, let me finish, it's time for some truth between us." He nodded.
"Almost since I arrived, you have been a friend when I really needed one. We found that we have a lot in common, and that made everything even better. You have been willing to just hang out long past the point when most other guys would have pushed for more in a relationship because you thought I wasn't ready. What happened was wrong; not because I didn't want it to happen, but because it was the wrong time and place." She stopped and looked at him worriedly. "I'm done, you can talk now."
Catching things and eating their insides
Like indecision to call you, and hear your voice of treason
He just looked at her for a minute, making her fidget. Then he grabbed her hand and pulled her towards him, leaning down to put his head on her shoulder hugging her tightly to him. "While we're being truthful wit' each other, I have a confession." Her eyes got wide. "But I have t' know how y' feel 'bout de link wit' me."
Will you come home and stop this pain tonight
Stop this pain tonight
That was the last thing she had expected him to say. "I won't lie, at first I was a little nervous." She shrugged. "But now, I'm used to it. It's kind of comforting to know your watching out for me." She cocked her head and looked at him again. "You did know the link works both ways, right?"
His head shot up and he let go of her. "Y'can feel me?"
She nodded. "Yeah. It was sporadic in the past, but it's been pretty steady since we, well, you know." He stared, quiet, and she wondered if she had said the wrong thing.
"So den de Professor is right, y' getting m' powers too."
She nodded and looked down. "Yeah, but the empathy works only with you. I can't sense anyone else, so it's more like a product of our link instead of me getting your powers."
Don't waste your time on me,
You're already the voice inside my head.
Etienne was thinking furiously. This must be what she was feeling when he had dropped the bombshell on her that they had an empathic link to begin with. He was starting to gain a better understanding of what exactly was happening to them. Together they were empathic, and both of them could shape shift, even if their control was seriously lacking. He also seemed to have an overpowering protective side when it came to her, and if McCoy was right, it was due to the fact that he had already claimed her as his mate. "Why did y' bite me yesterday?"
"You still haven't figured it out?"
"I want t' hear y' say it."
"I claimed you as mine." She looked him full in the face. "I think that's why you've been so overprotective lately. Subconsciously you recognized that we hadn't finished the..." She paused, unsure of how to put it. "…the mating ritual and so part of you believed other males could still move in and try to take me from you." She looked down at the floor again.
"But why?"
"Why what?"
"Why would y' be willing t' do dat fo' me?" He wanted to shake her. If what he believed was correct, she had fused their link when she had bitten him yesterday. They could never be separated now.
She looked at him, hurt showing in her eyes. "What was I supposed to do? Let you go crazy? Or am I so awful you don't want to be stuck with me?" A tear escaped to trail down her cheek.
He looked at her, feeling like an ass for making her cry. "Y' would be willing t' be stuck wit' me fo' de rest o' y' life?" He ran a hand through his hair, her emotions overwhelming in the link between them. He couldn't understand why she would want to tie herself to him. They were only 18 years old for heaven sakes. She still had her whole life ahead of her to find someone perfect for her and settle down.
She turned away from him, her heart breaking into pieces. Taking a deep breath, she unbuttoned her shirt and slid one shoulder off, turning to face him. He sucked his breath in when he saw the fang marks still discoloring the flesh of her shoulder. "So it's okay for you to take what you want, but I can't?" She closed her shirt and walked towards him, pointing a finger at his chest for emphasis. "You started this, and I finished it, and now we're stuck with each other. I love you, and if you think I'm going to let my best friend go slowly crazy just because he's scared of a little commitment, boy do you have a thing coming!" She stopped, the wind coming out of her sails at the stunned look on his face.
Don't waste your time on me,
You're already the voice inside my head.
Miss you, miss you.
He grabbed her arm and pulled her into a hug, quietly resting his head against hers. She could feel his uncertainty and surprise coming through the link. He swallowed, his mouth suddenly bone dry.
"Kiss me."
He needed no other urging, crushing his mouth to hers, feeling her through the link they shared. He broke from the kiss first, breathing hard as her desire hit him like a ton of bricks. She was watching him with a half-smile, seeing his pupils contract until they were mere slits. He could feel her in the back of his head and just the thought made him want to grab her and throw her to the bed. "Y' had better be sure of this chere, dere won't be no turning back if y' don't leave." It took iron will to keep still, waiting for her answer.
In response to his challenge, he felt her kiss the base of his throat before using her tongue to lick lightly at his ear. He threw his head back and gave in, projecting his feelings back to her down the link, feeling her do the same until neither could tell who was feeling what. He crush her lips with his own as his desire and need matched her own, unable to think rationally about anything beyond her. He led her to the bed and carefully lowered her onto it, intending to show her exactly what he couldn't bring himself to say out loud.
V.V.V.V.V.V.V
Professor Xavier looked up from the papers he was reviewing, feeling the sudden emotional surge against his personal shields. He lowered them just enough to find out what was going on before slamming them up again at full strength. Obviously Etienne and Brooke had worked out some of the problems between them. He shook his head, adding a warning about shielding to the mental list of things he needed to discuss with them later.