Chapter Twelve

"Group projects!" Mr. Haws said the next day in English. "Always was the better part of school. And the best thing about this assignment is that I'm gonna pick your groups!" There came a few moans from the class. "You're going to be presenting one of Shakespeare's famous plays." He started pairing people off. He got to the back of the room and realized that there were three of us left. Scott, Rogue, and me.

"Carson, right?" Scott asked me once we were seated in a group.

"Yeah," I replied, suddenly feeling shy. Rogue, I noticed, wore a pair of black gloves. Her shirt was a black tank top with green lace covering her arms. She wore a black skirt and black boots and black lipstick. She was definitely the "dark" sort of person. She sat with her arms folded across her chest.

"Ah'm not happy about this," she said, leaning back in her chair.

"It's not like we chose our groups," Scott said through gritted teeth. "Let's just get this done and over with."

"What exactly are we supposed to do?" Rogue asked.

"'Present your play to the class in a creative way'," Scott read from the rubric we were given. "'You can act it out or use a poster or whatever as long as the story gets told.' This is a load of crap."

"Ah agree," Rogue replied. "And if Ah didn't have ta pass this dumb class, Ah'd say we skip it."

"Yeah, but the fact is that we do need these points so let's suck it up and do it," Scott said. Just then, the bell rang. "I'll meet you at the library after school, is that okay?"

"Ah'll be there," Rogue said.

"Me too," I replied.

I walked into the cafeteria to see John, Tabitha, Wanda, and Lance waiting for me at a table. I suddenly decided that I didn't want to sit with them. So I quickly made an escape to the library before they could see me.

I grabbed a book and tried to read. But the words blurred before my eyes. I had been so detached since I had come here and I was sick of it. I hurriedly wiped at the tears.

"Tissue?" asked a voice suddenly next to me. I smiled slightly and took one from the box he held out. I wiped at my eyes and blew my nose.

"Thanks," I said.

"No problem." He smiled. His long black hair fell into his face in two thick strands. The rest was tucked behind his ears. "I'm Kurt Wagner."

"Nice to meet you," I said, quietly. "I'm Carson."

"Yeah, I know. You're in my biology class. I sit in the back."

"Oh."

"If you have, like, any questions about, like, the school or people or whatever, you can ask me."

"Thanks." And then he was gone. People here were a lot nicer than people back home, I thought. The bell rang and I left the library for my next class. Algebra II. I saw John standing out side of the library door. He was waiting for me.

"You ditched us at lunch," he said.

"I wasn't hungry," I replied.

He grabbed my wrist.

"That hurts, John," I said, trying to pull away. His hand was hot. Hotter than it should have been.

"Why didn't you sit with us at lunch?"

"I-I was in the library. I wasn't hungry." I kept trying to pull away but his grip was iron.

"That's not true. From now on you sit with us at lunch." He let me go and stormed off. I cradled my burning wrist and headed to class. It started to rain and that power I always felt came with it. I started to shake. I had to get out.

I never made it all the way to Algebra. I took a detour that led me outside. Before I knew it, I wasn't on the school grounds anymore. I just ran, letting the rain pelt me as I did. I ran until I couldn't breathe anymore. Then I collapsed on the ground. I didn't know where I was but I was more comfortable than I had been in a long time. The next thing I knew, I was floating between conscious and unconscious.

Running… running…Running…

A voice called out my name. Carson… Come home…Water fell from the ground. It was raining backwards…

I sat up with a start. I was soaked with rain water and shaking all over. But I was no longer outside. I was on a bed in a white room with a big window.

"You want somethin' to eat?" a voice asked.

I turned to see a red-haired girl sitting on a chair reading a book.

"Where am I?" I asked, sitting up.

You are at the Xavier Mansion for gifted youngsters, a voice said in my head. I looked around to see where it had come from.

Do not be alarmed. My name is Professor Charles Xavier. You are amongst friends here.

"I'm Jean Grey," the red-head said.

"Carson," I replied. "How did I get here and why is there a voice in my head?"

"The professor is a powerful telepath and we found you unconscious in an alley," Jean replied. I must have gotten a look of terror on my face because she went on to add that the professor wouldn't use his powers to hurt me or make me feel uncomfortable. "He's a mentor and a teacher. He can help you control your powers."

It suddenly hit me that these were the people that Kitty had been talking about. These were the X-Men.