Let's Stop this Pain
Chapter One: Unfaithful
Disclaimer: I don't own any of the Xmen characters (wahh) but whoever did is a flipping genius fo sho. )
Summary: Kind of hard to explain what each character goes through in this story... Best to just read on and find out for yourself. This fan fiction will revolve mostly around Scott and Rogue and how they find comfort in one another..
(A.N. author's note… hehe This is my first Xmen fanfic ever.. please, I'd really appreciate some feedback && reviews. D That'd be awesome! Just let me know what I need to improve on and don't sugarcoat it! Hehe…)
The colossal mansion, usually upbeat with children running around in uproars over who really won that last game of cards, was unusually calm today. An eerily silence hovered over the atmosphere as the Professor emerged from his office, the look of knowledge pasted into his bright sapphire eyes.
Rogue was daydreaming as she sat peacefully on the garden bench in the front yard. A copy of Mockingbird settled in her gloved hands. Her eyebrows squeezed together as she enthusiastically turned the page. What would be the trial's final decision be? Before she could start reading the second sentence, a noise caught her ears. A nearby motorcycle engine was coming this way.
It couldn't be…?
Her russet eyes caught sight of a familiar silver and black coated bike in the near distance and her heart jumped. She rose swiftly, already a pink flush covering her cheeks in excitement. She started running to the front door of the mansion, but it opened a couple of milliseconds before her got her, nearly missing her face.
It was the professor.
"Professor," Rogue's voice was eager as she struggled to gain her breath back. "I- I think S-"
"I know." He intervened, a slight smile rising upon him. "Go tell the others."
It had been 3 days since Scott Summer's return and since then, the eerily peace that had been before had now distorted into an eerily awkward stillness. From the time, the young man had arrived, he was either cooped up in his room all day or he wandered aimlessly around the halls, skipping the hall where… HER room was located. No one wanted to say the wrong thing, and so, they said nothing at all.
It was like a heavy weight had been heaved onto everyone's shoulders. Every time he passed by, it was like each mutant was holding their breath until he passed by. He was aware of this, but did no effort to start conversation. A casual chat about the weather was the last thing he needed right now.
Professor Xavier called to him awfully late at night, and behind that heavy, wooden door he tried to get into Scott's mind. Tried to aid him. The professor wanted to find… well, Scott. He wanted this empty soul that had taken the place of the usual smiling and prevailing man to be out of the school.
As Scott drifted to his room, grave with lethargy, he heard soft footsteps behind him.
"Scott…" Rogue's soft southern accent sliced through the heavy silence.
She could notice the muscles in his back stiffen, and she suddenly hesitated.
"What?" His voice was tired.
"Uh…" Only now had she realized just how terrible he looked- unshaved, and even under his thick lenses, anyone could distinguish the red bags that had formed under his eyes. "I just… I guess, I wanted to let you know that… erm." Damn it. She sounded like a babbling, stuttering idiot. She swallowed hard. 'Get it together, Rogue!'
Scott grew impatient. "Listen, Marie… I'm pretty exhausted right now… mind if this waits until morning?" He started to walk to his room, then stopped when Rogue's ivory locks plopped down in rejection in the corner of his eye.
He sighed and gathered all his strength into one last sentence. "I'm sorry. It's just… now's not the best time. You know?" He forced a tight smile to his lips.
"Uh, yeah, sure!" The dejected girl did her best to sound as cheery as she could, but instead her voice came out in a squeak. She flinched. 'May I win Worst Actress award right now.'
She watched as his back disappeared down the hall and that was when she allowed herself to slide down the wall behind her. A puddle of anxiousness. She wanted to tell him so bad. It only took 3 words. Three small, little words. Yet they held so much power…
'What am I THINKING? Stupidstupidstupid!' She lightly hit the back of her head against the wall with each syllable, her eyes shut tightly. 'He's still very much in love with Jean. I can't compare to that. She's a woman, mature and bears a C cup bra size, while I'm… still a little girl in his mind. Geezers, I'm like his SISTER.'
"So… am I just supposed to walk by this and not comment?" Came a gruff voice.
Rogue's eyes popped open. "Logan!" She scrambled herself up into an awkward standing position with her arms folded around the small of her back. "What's up?" She tried to look cool, like she did this every night. Then she came to her senses and scrunched her eyebrows together. "What are you doing awake anyway?"
"I could ask you the same question." Logan's trademark smirk came to play. "It's two in the morning, kiddo."
"Really? I hadn't noticed." She lied. She inwardly sighed. Maybe she should go to bed. But she wasn't tired. Not after that quick pump of adrenaline she'd just rushed through with Scott. Every time she was near him, she swore her heart beat about 10 times faster. She looked over when she heard the scruffy man before her sniff slightly at the air around her.
"You're upset." He said matter-of-facty.
"Damn you and your dog detecting nose," Rogue joked bitterly. "I can't keep anything a secret in this mansion."
"Well, well, getting a mouth on us, are we?" Logan couldn't help but to let a genuine half smile spread across his face as he stared at the tongue-tied girl in amusement.
She pointedly ignored him. "I need some ice cream," she announced suddenly. She walked past him and toward the kitchen.
"Bad mood AND ice cream? Oh, God, Rogue."
She flipped back around, her eyes bulging. By mentioning ice cream, did it have some sort of secret sign that she was in love? Did Logan know now? "Wh-what?" Her accent was really heavy now.
"Are you…"
"What? Dangit, just say it!"
"Are you PMSing?"
Rogue's face paled for a moment. After a moment, she burst out laughing. Good old Logan. A little rude (well, maybe more than a little…) but he could still make her laugh even on her bad days. "No, Logan. Can a girl crave some ice cream and not be on her period?"
"I don't know. Can she?" He flashed her a curious look.
Rogue slapped him across his leather covered shoulder playfully. "Go to bed, Logan! See? This is exactly where your bad remarks come from! From not enough sleep!"
"Lay off," he complained. "I'm not the teenager here."
"No, but you sure act like one," she muttered under her breath. She gave him a grin. "Good night, Logan." She walked away, her long, white night gown flowing behind her. Against the starlight streaming through an open window, her skin looked milk-white and flawless.
She was no teenager anymore, it hit Logan. When did this transformation happen? Suddenly, the young girl he had found in the back of his truck 4 years ago has vanished, and left this young lady behind. Her body looked more adult than anything… he shook his head at such thoughts.
He must have been sleepier than he thought.
"Good night, kid…"
Morning.
Scott groaned as the strong sunlight hit his face directly. He stretched out his aching muscles with a grunt and pulled the silk comforter over his face. This was the worst time of the day for him. Before, he would eagerly greet the day and awake easily with just the thought of perceiving his loved one, Jean, on another day. He would fantasize about how she would smile at him once more- her amazing auburn eyes dancing with bliss and her full lips spreading into an amazing beam just for him. He would ponder about what she would wear that day, and how she would sport her hairstyle.
But all that had altered abruptly when she found herself someone else.
A man with the name of Glen.
"Who the hell has a name like Glen?" Scott murmured into his sheets, his voice still heavy from sleep. "Why can't he get a normal name? Like 'Scott'."
There was no point in denying it. He was extremely jealous of that asshole who had stolen his fiancée.
But more than jealous, he was hurt. How could Jean have had such a rapid change of heart- and so quickly? He could still remember her explanation so clearly…
"I love you, Scott. You know that. I always will and that will never change. I don't know how to say this without hurting you. But we've been together for so long… don't you think it's time we start exploring other- things?" Her voice had been very low, and she couldn't look him in the eyes.
"You want to see someone else," Scott could feel his whole life crashing to the ground at that very point. His heart was twisting.
"Scott, I'm sorry-"
"Who is he?" He willed himself to whisper that dreaded question.
She sighed, and he could see that her eyes were misted over with unfallen tears. "His name is Glen Stevens… I met him a about two years ago when he came in with a terrible wound on his stomach. Someone had shot him, Scott. He wasn't or is he a mutant but he came here because it was the closest building around. If I hadn't helped him, he could have died. You were gone on a mission when this happened... he called me a couple of months ago and I agreed to meet him for coffee. He thanked me and well… feelings started to form. I couldn't help them, Scott, do you understand? Please don't hate me. Scott?"
He glared down at the wooden floor beneath his red tinted shades. He could feel his own tears gather. He couldn't describe this sensation- he felt livid, perplexed, and miserable all at once. His first love and his only love was leaving him for another. He felt like this was just a terrible nightmare.
"Scott, please understand," Jean was really sobbing now. Her legs buckled and she fell to the floor weakly on her knees. "I love you so much. I never wanted to hurt you. But I just need to see Glen. I've never felt like this before. I have to know where this is going. I still love you…" she repeated, her voice getting feeble by the minute.
"Bull shit." It took all of Scott's will power to not wrap his arms around this woman he loved and tell her that everything would be all right. His hands trembled to wipe her tears away, but he forced himself to turn away from her and walk out of the room with his head high.
As soon as he was in his own room, that was when he had broken down. He couldn't stay here. Not in the same building as Jean. And so he gathered a couple of clothes into a duffle bag, and he left without a word onto his motorcycle to ride his depression out. He had no destination. He just wanted to get as far as possible from Jean as he could.
He had been gone for two weeks. Then the Professor sent him a message to come back to the school- they needed him.
And here he was now. Lying in bed, with the sheets concealing freshly collapsed tears. It had been three days since his return. He still hadn't spoken a word to Jean. Sure, she'd tried to get him to aside a couple of times, but he had made a point of avoiding her. He still wasn't ready to see her.
He cursed under his breath for being so weak and felt around on his bed table for his glasses. He arose from bed and washed his face. Then he compelled himself to look up at his bathroom mirror. What stared at him on the other side shocked him. He not only had a 5 o'clock shadow forming, but his hair was tossed in all different directions… he resembled a familiar displeasure in the mansion.
"Damn. I look like Logan," he realized. "No way am I going to walk around this school sporting an infuriated- wolf look."
Jean's eyes fluttered open in the harsh sunlight. Immediately, she checked the time on her watch.
8:39 AM.
She had overslept.
Scrambling out of bed, she threw on a red haltered shirt with a black pencil skirt (A.N.: it's the kind that hugs your curves, but goes in a straight line down… hehe. Yeshh I love clothes! xD). As for her hair, it never did need much work given that she was gifted not only with telekinetic powers, but also with long, wavy hair that always seemed to find perfection by itself. She gently gathered her hair into a stylish, messy bun and kept it in place with a clear clasp.
She needed to talk with Scott.
Ever since he had disappeared to who knows where, her heart had been breaking a little more each day. She had even fallen into a temporary state of depression, and this, Glen noticed without delay. He was so sweet and comforting during these times, and though Jean was sure she loved him, she also knew that Scott held a special place in her heart as well. Life sure had its ways of turning itself on you.
She quickly left her room and kept an eye out for Scott. The halls were always quite busy at this time at the day, with students rushing to get to their classes and others on the go. A familiar head bursting with ashen white locks caught her eye.
"Storm!" Jean called, quickening her pace.
Storm turned around, revealing her beautiful, understated beauty with a dark complexion and mysteriously black eyes. It was hard to believe that the same dark eyes soon turned snow white when using her powers in battle. An instant smile popped into her face. "Yes?" Her accent was almost hard to catch, but it was there. And it just added that much more personality to this well mannered woman.
"I'm sorry, are you in a hurry?"
The smile stayed. "I have a class to teach in about 10 minutes…" she paused as she looked to the direction of the elevator. Jean followed her gaze and couldn't help but gasp inwardly in surprise. "If you were looking for Scott, however, there he is." Storm finished, knowingly.
There he was, indeed. Jean flashed Storm a gracious grin. "Thank you."
"No problem. You know… we all want you two to make up, of course. But… maybe it's too soon for him…" the kind-hearted woman suggested quietly. "Anyway, I should go. Good luck." She prayed silently for peace as she walked away from the scene.
Jean swallowed hard and gathered her courage as she walked over to where Scott had just walked out of the elevator. He still hadn't noticed her for he seemed to be pondering as he rearranged his belt buckle. Jean took this time to gawk. (And believe this, Jean Grey was not a girl who easily "gawked" at anything.)
Scott had obviously just shaven for his face was clear of any stubble and looked smooth. Jean could still remember when she would run her hands on top of his soft skin to his strong, defined jaw… 'Stop it.' She told herself. 'You broke up with him, remember?' Still, the man in front of her could not help it if he looked… well, sexy in his considerably tight leather jacket, pronouncing his muscles even under the black material. He must have felt a presence all of a sudden, because he looked up, startled.
"Scott," Jean started, slowly taking a step towards him.
At first, he looked like he wanted to turn around right back into the elevator, but he must have changed his mind because he sighed after what seemed like an eternity. "Jean." If she wouldn't be staring so intently into his face, she might not have caught the soft whisper. She tried her best attempt at a smile, but it same out as a sort of twitch.
She thought she was prepared to see him. She was wrong. But the action was already done.
"Can we talk?" She blurted out.
He looked off to the paintings that were hung in the lobby. "Sure."
She closed her eyes for a moment in relief. "Do you want to go to the coffeehouse…? Or…"
He finally looked her in the eyes. It made her nearly want to embrace him and bid his forgiveness. "Why don't we just go in the backyard? It's pretty… clear there at this time of the day."
"Oh. Yeah. Good idea. Let's go."
As they walked uneasily side by side, no word was offered. Jean could feel the painful ineptness in the air. She also swore that everyone who passed the pair of Xmen gawked at them for more time than necessary.
When they finally reached the massive green garden, Jean was surprised to find that there was indeed someone already there. A young woman with an even younger-looking face stuffed into a book, her knees brought to her chest on the small swing. Although you couldn't distinguish her face from such a distance, a strand of ashen mixed with auburn hair was flowing easily in the breeze. Rogue.
"Should I suggest to her to find another spot?" Jean asked after a while. She knew this conversation should be discussed alone.
As if on cue, Rogue's face popped out of the book, a mixture of surprise and confusion written on her slightly parted lips. Her gaze was held on Scott a few seconds after it was normal, and immediately, Jean felt a shock of jealously shoot through her body. Rogue caught herself and her face reddened before returning to her novel.
Scott gazed at the girl for a moment, remembering how he had dismissed her so quickly last night. "No." His voice was firmer than it had been since he had come back from the black hole he disappeared into. "We don't have much to say anyway."
This last statement struck Jean's heart, and she willed the knot in her throat to untie. "Of course we do," she sounded desperate. "Scott, I want us to stay the best of friends."
Scott softly snorted. "It's not that easy, Jean. You messed everything up when you went behind my back. When you were my fiancée, and you still agreed to the little date with Glen." He emphasized the last part as he flopped down into a couch-styled lawn chair.
"If it makes you feel any better, it was impossible to be happy with him while you were gone. I couldn't stop thinking about you." She swallowed hard to stop the tears.
Anger arose in Scott. "No, it doesn't make me feel better. Jean, what is this? Why are you telling me this? Do you want to get back together with me- is that it? You're Glen's girlfriend, but you're still flirting with me. God, is this what you did to him while you were with me?" His voice was near shouts now.
Jean's eyebrows pressed together as her mouth dropped open in dismay. "Scoot, I'm not flirting with you-"
"Then stop telling me that you still love me." His voice grew softer until it became a tone full of defeat. "Stop telling me you can't stop thinking about me. You have him to cry on. I… I have no one, Jean. All my life, I've dedicated my life to you. I always thought we'd be so happy together forever…" He paused as his voice broke. He swallowed hard before he continued. "I didn't see this coming. Please… I can't handle this right now."
Tears spilled onto Jean's cheek but she had no energy to wipe them away. "What's 'this', Scott?" she asked meekly.
"This confrontation. I can't face you right now. Because when I do… I can't help but see a guy hanging all over you. I can't stop remembering on how that guy used to be me. I thought our love was so strong...indestructible even. I was very wrong." He rose from the chair and managed to face Jean.
"I'm sorry that's not what you wanted to hear, Jean. But I can't offer you anything else at this point. Maybe someday we can go back to being friends. Who knows? But now isn't the time."
With that, he sauntered back into the mansion before anyone could notice the tears swelling in his eyes under the thick red lenses. It was time to forget about the love he and Jean once shared. It was time to move on.
(A.N. To be continued if I get enough reviews.. hint hint lol. Please, I just wanna know if the story is going okay or if I should just delete it… heeelllp. Gets down on knees)
