Title: Shooting Stars

Disclaimer: All the characters belong to Marvel, I'm just using for them for entertainment purposes.

Just outside the backyard of the Xavier's Institute, stood several people in the freezing weather, looking up at the dark sky. Some of them were waiting patiently, some were grumbling and there were always others who refused to stay still.

"Now, tell me again why Ah was being dragged out of mah bed and forced to stand here in this freakin' freezing weather?" Rogue asked to no one in particular as she wrapped her jacket tightly around her slender body.

"Becuz ze weather news said that ve can vatch shooting stars tonight?" Kurt answered voluntarily.

"So where are the freakin' stars?" she raised her voice in annoyance. "We have stood here for nearly two hours."

"She's right, 'Ro." Logan joined in as well. He wasn't a patience man after all. "Can't ya do somethin' with the weather and make those stars start fallin'?"

The beautiful African woman looked at him as if he had grown a third eye. "Logan, I'm a weather witch. I manipulate the weather, not the constellations."

"Well, I'm sure you can't," Kitty's voice was heard, "but can you like, stop Bobby and Scott from throwing snowballs around? I swear over my vegetarian body, if that thing like, hit me, I'll—"

And she got what she wished for. The snowball which was intended for Scott, hit Kitty night at her nape and slid down beneath her pink sweater.

"AARRGHH! BOBBY!" The woman screamed loud enough to wake the entire neighbourhood.

"I'm sorry, Kitty," Bobby quickly apologised. "It's Scott's fault. He dodged."

Scott Summers stood at his place laughing like a mad man with one finger pointed towards Bobby. "Loser!" he muttered between laughter.

"Oh yeah? Then take this!" Bobby formed another snowball and threw it at the cocky leader.

"Hey, no powers!" Scott exclaimed as the icy ball was aimed at him. He ducked and it missed him by an inch. Bobby formed another ball and threw it at Scott once again. It never reached him though since Jean was holding the ball in mid air using her telekinesis.

"Stop it this instant, both of you!" The red head warned in a tone that left no room for argument.

Their mentor chuckled at their behaviour. "They're still a kid at heart, Jean. You can't really blame them."

"They're behaving worse than the students!" Jean said.

After completing their education, the X-Men decided that they wanted to stay in the Institute to help the Professor by being a teacher. They loved their job. Every new student who came into the Institute was like a reflection of their past. Scared, abandoned by their loved ones, being hated and discriminated by people who didn't understand them, unsure of what they really were… It gave them a sense of pride to know that they too, could make a difference in someone else's life, just like what the Professor had done for them.

"Hey, we're having fun here. You said I need to relax more often, so here I am." Scott protested, he then bent down to pick up another snowball he had made.

"Drop the snow, Scott." Jean warned and he dropped it in an instant. "Why can't you be nice and sit here with me?" she said as she placed her mug of hot chocolate on the wooden table placed at the yard. "You're still sick from the cold."

"Jean, I told you, I'm fine."

"No, you are not. Sit here."

"I'm fine…"

"I don't like repeating myself, honey."

And he reluctantly followed his wife's instruction.

Logan grinned at the young couple, wondering how in the world Jean could have so much power over her husband. Would he be in that state too if he married the woman who was standing beside him? He shuddered at the thought. Well, that is if he finally got the guts to pop the question to her.

"Ah can't take anymore of this." Rogue started to walk away. "Star or no star, Ah'm going to bed. Anyone tries waking me up, Ah'll make sure yer gonna see the stars floatin' on yer head."

"Umm, yeah, me too." Logan snapped out of his reverie and soon the rest joined in. Only Professor Xavier, Scott, Bobby and Jean who were left outside.

"I supposed we're going in too?" Xavier inquired, taking one last look at the sky above him.

"Yeah," Jean agreed. "I don't see anything up there. Besides I really want to get Scott some rest."

The older man smiled fondly. "Of course. Goodnight, all of you." Then he wheeled himself into the mansion.

"C'mon, honey." Jean pulled Scott's jacket by the collar using her powers. He dropped the snowball which he managed to make while Jean was talking with Xavier. It wouldn't do him any good to make his temperamental wife angry.

Meanwhile, Bobby who finally got the chance to have his revenge on Scott threw a snowball at him and it landed successfully on his forehead.

"Bull's-eye!" Without having to turn her head, Jean formed a giant snowball and brought it over Bobby's head. Scott could only laugh in return as he watched poor Bobby being squashed underneath the gigantic snowball.

"Have you taken your medication?" asked Jean once they were in their room. Scott was already lying beneath the thick blanket waiting for his wife to join him in bed.

"For what? I'm cured already."

"Hank said you have to finish them." Jean replied as she set down her brush.

"Fine…" He walked to the drawer where he kept his medication, took the pills Hank prescribed for him and drank it with one gulp. "Happy now?"

"Very. Now go to bed, okay? You got me all worried when you're sick."

He didn't argue this time.

An hour later, Jean was already asleep beside him while Scott stared blankly at the ceiling. His sleeping goggle was like a red lamp which kept on blinking.

"Jean?" He nudged his sleeping wife. "Jean…"

"Hmm?" came the sleepy response.

"I can't sleep."

She snuggled up to him. "Just think of a happy place, hon," she muttered sleepily.

"Okay."

Fifteen minutes later, he nudged her again. "Jean, I've been thinking about something."

"Mmmh, what is it?" she asked with eyes closed.

"Y'know, people usually make a wish upon a star. What would you wish for?"

"World peace…" Jean answered without thinking.

The silence lasted not more than five minutes as Scott spoke again. "Hey, the shooting stars reminded me of something. Which is Deep Impact and which is Armageddon?"

Jean sighed heavily. "Deep Impact is the one where the meteors hit the sea and Armageddon is the thing that will happen to you if you keep waking me up. Now sleep, Scott!"

The last warning definitely worked for him for he dared not asked another question. Besides, he was feeling a little drowsy now.

Half hour later, he woke up again, feeling cold all over, thinking that perhaps Jean had taken his share of blanket which happened most of the time. But she didn't. In fact, it was him who took more than his share causing Jean to snuggle closer to him to keep herself warm.

"Jean…" He reached out to shake her gently.

"What is it now?"

"I'm cold…"

She looked at her husband's body covered in blanket. "Huh?"

"I'm cold, can you—" He was stopped as Jean quickly placed her left hand on his forehead.

"Oh God," she gasped. "You're so dead, Mister. I told you not to come with us."

"I-It's boring to stay all day in the room, you know."

"Don't get cute with me, Scott. You're burning and it's all thanks to our stupidity."

"Y-You don't have t-to rub it in." He shivered.

Jean hurriedly got down from bed and went to the closet to fetch another thick blanket for him and went to the infirmary to get some medicine, cool water and compresses.

Scott's flesh was hot and papery beneath her palm. This fever was going to be difficult to tame, and would no doubt get worse before it got better.

Jean sat down the side of the bed near Scott's waist. Starting with his head, she soaked the cloth in the basin, wrung it out, and began swabbing his skin with it.

It was going to be a long night.


Time ceased to exist for Scott as the fever took hold. In and out of consciousness he faded, uncertain how many minutes or hours had passed each time he slipped into dream-riddled blackness.

One time he awoke he was hot, the next time he was cold. Then he was thirsty. No matter how he felt or how often he woke, Jean was there beside him. She stayed by his side, wiping his hot flesh with cool cloths or covering him when he shook with chills. Even if he couldn't see her through the slits of his eyelids, he could smell her, the subtle fruity smell of her shampoo, or he could feel her hands, so gentle and loving as they touched him.

She hadn't yelled at him for waking her in the middle of the night again. She stayed by his side and nursed him. That was even more comforting that the blankets tucked under his chin.

Once he woke up to find himself in almost total darkness, as silent as the tomb, and for a moment he feared that was exactly where he was. Then Jean was beside him, small light emitting from the lamp beside the bed. He remembered asking her to switch it off last time he awoke because the light hurt his eyes. That was why the room had seemed so dark. And it was the fever that made him warm, not the flames of Hades.

Her hand closed around his. "Scott, are you all right? Did you have a nightmare?"

"I'm fine." He didn't sound fine. His voice was rough and dry as sand in a boot.

"Here, drink some water." She pressed a glass to his lips as she lifted his head. The water was cold and sweet and he wanted to drink it all in one greedy gulp, but she wouldn't let him. "Just sip it."

He did as she bid, taking one small sip after another until he felt the hand supporting his head start to quiver with exertion and his own neck began to feel the strain. God, his head hurt.

He raised his gaze to hers, despite the glaring light. The sharp glow surrounding her with a hazy halo, lighting on the red in her hair, making it look as though her whole head smoldered like ember of fire.

She looked like an angle with her hair down.

Her hand touched the one on his chest. Slowly, he opened his fingers and allowed her to wrap her own around them.

"I'm sorry," he said.

She smiled. "Still want to go outside and built a snowman? It's snowing pretty hard."

Scott smiled weakly and shook his head. Her free hand smoothed the hair back from his brow. "You should go back to sleep. You need your rest." She squeezed his fingers. "I'm not going anywhere. I'll be here when you wake up."

Scott held her hand to his chest, her words ringing in his ears. Despite the fever's hold, he managed to fall into a comfortable slumber.

A deep and dreamless sleep with his guardian angel watching over him.

The next morning, Jean was already seated on her chair at the teachers' lounge when Ororo made her appearance.

"Morning," greeted Jean, startling the African woman.

"Jean, what are you doing here? You don't usually get up this early," Ororo said.

"Can't sleep," Jean muttered as she sipped her cup of hot coffee. "Scott kept me up all night."

"Scott? Ah…" The weather witch grinned with a knowing look. "I understand, though I'm quite shocked that I didn't hear anything coming from your room last night."

Jean rolled her eyes though she wished it did happen. "We were not having sex," sighed Jean. "Scott had a high fever last night and I spent all night taking care of him."

"I thought he already took the medicine from Hank."

"Only when I forced him to. And that stubborn fool wouldn't listen to me when I told him to stay inside the house. I swear to God, I'll kick his ass if he dares to play outside again."

Ororo chuckled. "Do you want me to relief your classes for today? You look like you need some rest too."

"No, I'm okay, 'Ro. I can handle it. I'm just going to lie down for a while before my lesson start."

"If you say so."

Jean walked out of the room only to stop and turned to her best friend with a quizzical look. "Were we really that loud?"

Ororo chuckled in response.

Jean dragged herself to their bedroom and saw Scott was already wide awake. He was about to get down from bed.

"Don't tell me you're going to get ready for classes because you are not leaving that bed at least for today and tomorrow." Jean warned as she threw herself on the bed.

"But I'm feeling great already."

"Don't argue with me, Summers. I've already spent the entire night looking after you and I'm not planning on doing it again tonight."

"Aw… I thought we've taken our vows? In sickness and in health, remember?"

"No, I don't," she mumbled, "go back to bed."

A mischievous glint appeared on Scott's face as he lay back on the bed, snuggling against his wife. His eyes leveled with hers and he was grinning like a fool.

"What?"

"I'll stay in bed, but you're staying with me."

"No, I've got my class to— Scott!" she yelped in surprise as Scott's hand drifted down her body and touched her at her sensitive spots which he knew by heart.

"C'mon Jeannie, I know you want to…" Scott said seductively as he trailed kisses down her neck. "I'll even make up for last night."

"No, you're— aaahh! Stop it, I have a test to— oh God, Scott…." she trailed off again as Scott placed his lips against hers. "Ooh, screw that test! Ororo can substitute for me." Then she deepened their kiss.

Scott pulled back, grinning like a fool. "Why, I'm surprised at you, Mrs. Summers. Where are your manners? I wonder what the kids will say if they hear you swearing—"

"Shut up. Give me your mouth again…"

Scott was more than happy to fulfill her wish.

--- THE END ---

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Oh, and thanks to amazing redd phoenix who reminded me that I need to post a new story :-)