Chapter 13
The pitch of night still reigned supreme as Kurt and the other X-men crouched on top of a tower of shipment containers, stacked into a massive fort. Even in the lee of the topmost containers, the bitter morning seeped through to his bones, causing him to shiver slightly. The pungent, briny smell of the bay wafted around him, like a noxious cloud. Turning to his right, Kurt watched Jean yawn widely before resting her head back down on her knees. Catching the yawn himself, he rubbed his hand across his eyes to help jolt him awake. A brief well of jealousy filled him as he thought about Evan, Rogue, and Kitty - back at the mansion, sick but ensconced in warm blankets and sleep.
No one was much in the mood for conversation. Storm had woken them up at an ungodly hour, only for them to waste the early predawn sitting on cold, metallic and highly uncomfortable containers, waiting for a boat to dock.
Not as exciting as Logan had made it out the whole week. He had bumped up the frequency and intensity of their training while constantly emphasizing the importance of their mission.
A shipment of ancient Japanese relics was being transported to Bayville for an exhibit at the Museum of Art and History. While each relic was an irreplaceable piece of history, it was the Gigaku mask that was their concern. The mask had served as part of a dance drama during the 7th and 8th century, but at some point, was transformed into an item of immense power.
As the Professor had iterated to them throughout the week, "No one should be granted that much power."
There was no doubt that Magneto thought differently, and had likely planned for his own assault on the docks to obtain the Gigaku mask.
As the moon trekked lower in the sky, preparing to yield to the morning sun, Kurt couldn't help but feel anxious for the impending fight. He knew it was important to prevent Magneto from obtaining the mask, but that wasn't what caused his throat to hold his heart.
The last time he faced Lance in battle, things had wound up strained between them until… Kurt swallowed down the rest of that noxious thought. But since then, things had changed even further. More evenso on his behalf. He felt sick with worry that he would have to face Lance or one of his teammates would have to hurt him.
Storm's voice broke the silence. "Here it comes."
Kurt turned to watch the small cargo ship finish the last leg of its journey. If not for the cold, it would be rather peaceful to listen to the ocean lap at the boat's sides while the sun finally began to tinge the horizon orange.
Upon docking, the skeletal crew of the boat briefly inspected the crates inside the shipping container before heading off for a well-deserved break.
Once the dock was clear of any stragglers, Wolverine stood up, gaining everyone's attention. "I'm gonna go get the mask before the Brotherhood arrive."
"Too late for that." Storm pointed over to where the Brotherhood were emerging out of the woodworks, slinking about the shipment containers as they approached the docked ship.
"Ch. Figures." Wolverine jumped down several containers with Cyclops close on his heels. The resounding reverb of the echoing metal caught Mystique's attention. Directing the rest of the Brotherhood to her side, she led them straight across from the X-men.
Nightcrawler ported next to Cyclops, presenting a united front.
"X-men. That mask is ou-" Whatever bombastic threat Mystique was going to say was cut off by a violent gust of wind that sent her tumbling back into a stack of boxes.
Surprised, Nightcrawler and the other X-men looked up at Storm, who simply shrugged. "It's too early for speeches."
She turned back and followed up with some small whirlwinds, but Mystique was already on her feet. She deftly dodged the incoming vortexes before launching herself up and shifting into a sharp-taloned eagle at Storm. With that, everyone sprang forward to face their own opponents. Nightcrawler purposely veered away from Avalanche, who must've thought the same as he ended up on the far side near the bay against Wolverine.
Nightcrawler watched as the two clashed, hoping that Wolverine would hold back from his usual fervor. A wooden pallet rushing through the air redirected his attention. At the last second, he was able to jump to the side, but he still felt the wooden bits clatter against his feet from the impact on the hard concrete. Shaking his head, he needed to focus on the battle at hand and not worry about Lance.
The Blob hurled several more pallets at him in quick succession. Nightcrawler dodged and teleported, but didn't get any closer. He knew he couldn't take on the Blob in close quarters, but maybe he could tire him out.
"Stand still!" the Blob thundered as he exhausted his pile of pallets and moved on to a group of barrels.
Before the Blob's next throw, Nightcrawler teleported a bit behind Toad who was focused on Jean. The Blob, completely tunnel-visioned, automatically threw the barrel at Nightcrawler, unaware that his teammate was in the way. The barrel swept Toad right off his feet, causing his spit towards Jean to fly wide. Jean followed through by lifting Toad with her mind and throwing him at the Blob.
"Nice," Nightcrawler commented.
Their victory was short-lived as Quicksilver diverted from Cyclops to take a potshot at Nightcrawler.
The sudden hit to the back of his head caused Nightcrawler to take a knee and a ringing to start up in his ears. Before Quicksilver could come back around for a follow up, a cutting beam from Cyclops made him screech to a halt.
Clutching his head and pushing past the pain, Nightcrawler regained his feet just in time to see some of Toad's spit come flying at him. Jean's quick kinetic push diverted it to the ground just to the side, leaving her wide open for Quicksilver to collided with her, taking them both down.
Figuring Jean could handle Quicksilver, Nightcrawler turned to help out Cyclops. In a cloud of smoke, Nightcrawler ported right over Toad and let gravity due the rest. He landed roughly on top of Toad, causing his tongue shot at Cyclops to miss. He grappled with Toad, trying to prevent him from throwing him off or turning his head for a clear shot. His upright position gave him the advantage, and for now he had taken Toad out.
A brief glance told him Jean was still in a tussle with Quicksilver while Cyclops was shooting beams at Blob to keep him at bay. Turning his attention towards the bay, both Storm and Wolverine were holding it out against Mystique and Avalanche, respectively. Maybe he could port inside the shipment container and get the mask while everyone else was occupied.
Any implementation of his plan was cut off when, in his moment of distraction, Quicksilver rushed over and pulled Nightcrawler by his hair straight off of Toad, dragging him a few feet away. The concrete tore at his uniform before he ported out of Quicksilver's grip. The momentum caused him to tumbled a few feet, but he was able to get his hands and knees under him. Immediately, though, Toad followed up with a hard tackle to his back, causing Kurt to bump his jaw on the ground and to bite his tongue. A gush of blood filled his mouth, but he couldn't let himself be pinned down. Twisting his body, he was able to get his feet onto Toad's sternum and pushed hard. Toad was flung away, and Nightcrawler could hear him gasping as he hit the ground.
Just as he was about to get up again, a violent tremble spread out underneath him. Small pebbles and remnants of pallets danced around the shaking ground.
But he was not the epicenter of the attack.
Looking up, he saw the Blob just a few feet from him, stopped in his rushing attack at Nightcrawler, as the concrete buckled and shook beneath him. The Blob stumbled about the quaking earth before crashing to the ground, creating a large crater.
Stunned, Nightcrawler turned to Avalanche just in time to see him receive a punch to the face from Wolverine.
"What the fuck, Avalanche?" Toad yelled.
Wolverine stopped any follow-through in his attack as he realized his opponent was distracted and that the battle had paused on one side of him. He slowly backed down, arms still held up defensively as he caught everyone staring at Avalanche in bewilderment.
Avalanche cradled one hand to his now bruised jaw as he blinked at the onlookers as if bemused by his own action.
The brief lull lasted only a second. The Blob, now recovered, contrary to his size, nimbly jumped up and wasted no time in charging Avalanche. Without hesitation, Nightcrawler ported over to Avalanche, quickly grabbed his arms and teleported them out of the way just in time for the Blob to go charging through the previously occupied space, straight over the edge of the docks and into the bay with a loud, resounding splash.
Now even Storm and Mystique paused their tussle. All eyes turned from the Blob thrashing in the water to Nightcrawler and Avalanche, who had ended up on top of some shipping containers.
Realizing he was still clutching Avalanche, Nightcrawler let go and took a step back. He could feel his embarrassment rise as everyone continued to stare at them agape.
"Well, this is awkward," he said.
"Ya think," Lance quipped back.
As Nightcrawler desperately tried to avoid meeting anyone's eyes, he caught Mystique, sneaking towards the now unguarded cargo container, taking advantage of everyone's inattention.
Leaving Avalanche in a cloud of purple smoke, Nightcrawler teleported over to Mystique and jumped on top of her back. Before she could react, he teleported again, and they were both high above the bay, already plummeting towards the water. In one instant more, there was a ranging thud as Nightcrawler dropped back down beside Avalanche from his last port and fall, followed by a splash as Mystique hit the water. She burst to the surface, seething as she wiped water from her face.
Momentum was now on the X-men's side. Taking advantage of the turning tide, Jean focused her powers on Quicksilver, lifting him above the ground and throwing him into the Blob who had hoisted himself halfway out of the bay. They crashed into each other before splashing back down into the water. A beam of red flashed across the docks, hitting Toad squarely in the chest with enough force to launch him next to the rest of the floating Brotherhood.
As a finishing touch, Storm harnessed the wind to push them out towards the middle of the harbor, preventing them from climbing out. With a sneer on her face, Mystique shapeshifted into a raven and flew off, abandoning the rest of the Brotherhood.
Everyone's pose began to relax as the last remnants of adrenaline subsided.
"Not how I expected that to go, but I'll take it." Wolverine walked over to the cargo and with a quick swipe from his claws, cut off the lock. He swung open the doors, which gave a protesting metallic creak, before turning back to the others. "Well? Let's find that Gigaku mask and get out of here before the dock workers come back."
Cyclops nodded and began to move towards Wolverine before turning to look up at Avalanche. "Hey, um. Thanks…."
"I didn't do it for you," Lance sneered, trying to regain some semblance of his usual self.
"Yeah, well. If you need help dealing with anything, you know," he cocked his head out towards the thrashing Brotherhood, "you know where to find us."
Begrudgingly, Avalanche nodded in return.
Nightcrawler waited for the rest of the X-men to disappear inside the container before turning towards Lance.
"Shouldn't you go help them?" Lance asked.
"Yeah, I will." He nodded to the side of the container they were on before sitting on the edge, legs dangling over. He waited for Avalanche to join him before asking, "What're we going to do?"
"We?"
"Ja, we. I think any fighting now might be difficult if we're both trying to save each other from our own teams."
Lance sat down beside him with a heavy sigh. "Yeah, I guess so. Though you didn't seem to mind Wolverine pummeling to a mush."
"Hey, I thought you were handling him pretty well."
Lance knocked shoulders with Kurt. "I'm teasing. Besides, I think he was going easy on me. Didn't even have his claws out."
"He did give you a nice one here." Kurt reached out to touch the blossoming bruise on Lance's jaw.
"Hey, that hurts." Lance swatted his hand away. "Besides, you don't look so hot yourself." He reached out and wiped at the blood trailing down the side of Kurt's mouth and showed him the bright red decorating his finger.
"Ugh, I bit my tongue. That's the worse." Kurt rubbed at his aching jaw where he cracked it on the ground. His head throbbed a bit from where Quicksilver had pulled him by his hair.
"Could've been worse. You know, thanks for not letting me get crushed to death."
Kurt smiled back. "Yeah. Same to you." If this was a movie, this would be the time to make a move. The sun had risen over the bay, its rays reflected on the water; the seagulls' caws echoed across the harbor, the sounds of Lance's teammates, spluttering and cursing in the water. Kurt grimaced at that. Nevermind.
"This is it!" a muffled cry came from the cargo container. The X-men soon exited the container, Storm carrying a small, wooden box under her arm. Kurt watched Jean stop for a second by the edge of the docks, curious to what she was up to. A small boat tied to the end sped out, unaided towards the Brotherhood.
"I couldn't leave them out there like that. That water has to be freezing," Jean explained to his questioning gaze.
Kurt smiled at Jean's kindness before hearing a barfing in his hear.
"Blargh. Jean is so sweet and perfect. Makes me puke."
"Don't be a dick." Kurt shoved Lance away.
"Yeah, yeah, I know." Lance watched his teammates struggle onto the boat Jean had pushed out to them. They watched the sopping wet, growling Toad climbed over the side, followed by Quicksilver. The boat lurched in the water as the Blob tried to pitch himself over the side. Three times the boat almost capsized, but somehow miraculously, the Blob made it on board while the boat, sunk low in the water, managed to stay afloat. Quicksilver gave a parting middle finger towards them, before flipping his feet over the stern, picking up speed and propelling them away.
Lance raised his eyebrows at that. "Nice trick of his."
"You know, you could come with us."
"Thanks but no. I better go clean up at home. Shit, I really fucked up. They're never going to forgive me for this."
"Sorry." Kurt felt terrible. While he didn't think Lance should be with the Brotherhood, he never meant for him to choose between his team or him. They had even seen this coming but hadn't dealt with it at the time. And even now he didn't know how they could handle it in the future.
"It's not your fault. I'd do the same thing again. But I can't explain it to them. They wouldn't get it." Lance pounded his fist onto the container. A dull clang filled the silence. Sighing, he stood up. "I better go."
"Yeah."
"Let's meet up later." Lance held out his hand to Kurt.
Smiling lightly, Kurt took the offered hand and let himself be pulled up beside Lance. "Ok."
"I'll call you, okay?"
"In two weeks?"
"Fucking Christ. I totally forgot about that stupid punishment." Lance let out an irritated groan. "Ok, fine. At school. We'll have to talk."
"Ja."
Reluctantly, Kurt left Lance to trail after the Brotherhood.
QQQQQ
The grass was powdered in a thin layer of melting snow and had squished underfoot as Lance had made his way into the park. Under the shade of the trees and surrounding the picnic table, the snow was piled into white hills and pillows. For the past five minutes, Lance paced back and forth in front of the snow-dusted picnic table. He had gotten to the park early, hoping it would help calm down his nerves as he waited for Kurt.
It had been two long fucking weeks. Two weeks of waiting and running the battle over and over in his head. Two weeks of needing to talk to Kurt but only getting brief moments in the hallway or at lunch. Always Mark was there. Lance was glad Mark was his friend and all, but damn if he wasn't getting on his last nerves recently. First, he wouldn't divulge what Kurt had said about liking him, and now he conveniently was always around, preventing Lance from just being fucking alone with Kurt for even a few seconds.
His frustrated thoughts built to a crescendo and with an angry kick, the snow piled around the picnic table was sent into a cascade of white out in front him. Feeling a bit better at the release, Lance turned and proceeded to shove the snow off the covered table in one turbulent wave. Exhaling out the rest of his energy, Lance glanced around the park, checking to see if anyone had witnessed his hissy fit. Relieved, he jumped up to sit on the table. He knocked the bit of snow still clinging to his new gloves off, a smile creeping over his face as he thought about that night when Kurt had given them to him.
Folding his arms in front of him, Lance stared at his footprints imprinted in the snow. He hadn't really asked Kurt to come here to talk about the Brotherhood and the X-men. In fact, he didn't fucking even care about that right now. After the battle and two weeks of waiting out Kurt's punishment, he had made up his mind. He liked Kurt. He wanted to be with him. And he was tired of putting it off.
The only thing was, he had no idea how Kurt would react to his confession. With Kitty, starting their relationship had been easy… but somehow also less important.
He wanted to get this right.
He glanced down at his phone, checking the time again when a sudden impact against the back of his head had him shooting up and turning around. The cold seeping into his hair and down into his jacket told him he'd just been the victim of a snowball. He wiped away the remnants of snow clinging to his back while scanning the trees for the perpetrator.
This time, snow broke apart against his left shoulder. The following, stifled laughter gave Kurt away.
"You are so dead!" Lance yelled out, peering into the trees as he gathered some snow into his hands. Just as he started to make his way across the park, the telltale sound of Kurt porting right behind him was followed by a frigid wave of ice shoved down his back. He screeched in shock at the cold but was able to turn around and tackle Kurt to the ground before he teleported away.
In his superior position, he proceeded to gather snow and shove it under Kurt's shirt.
"How you like that?" Lance crowed as Kurt wiggled beneath him to get away from the attack.
"Mein gott, stop. I surrender."
Lance laughed. "That's right. Don't mess with me." Having proven his point, he stood up and offered a hand to Kurt.
Kurt grabbed his hand but pulled down hard, causing Lance to land in the snow beside him.
"You ass!" Lance tried to tackle Kurt again, but this time he was too fast.
Smirking, Kurt stood over him. "Who shouldn't be messed with?"
Lance kicked some snow in his direction, but it merely dusted over his feet.
"Truce?"
Lance huffed a second before agreeing. "Yeah, truce. Now give me a hand up."
Eyeing him cautiously, Kurt slowly held out his hand.
Lance let himself be pulled up. "See? Unlike others, I am fair and just."
Kurt snorted at that.
"Dick. Nice hat by the way." Lance reached out and brushed off some of the snow clinging to Kurt's hat.
Kurt self-consciously pulled down his black beanie. "It's cold. Nice gloves."
"Yeah, someone kind and thoughtful gave them to me. Dunno where he went."
Kurt rolled his eyes and turned away to brush the rest of the snow still trapped under his shirt. "I'm freezing now. Do you wanna go get something warm to drink?"
"Yeah, sure. But, um…" Lance took a steadying breath. "I wanted to tell you something first."
Kurt looked curiously at the serious of his tone. "Ok."
"And you might change your mind about wanting to get a drink together." Seeing that he had Kurt's full attention, Lance hesitated. This was it. For the past two weeks, he done his best to work through his insecurities and desires. He had talked to Mark, needing that extra support and push. Whatever the answer was, he was ready. "So. I like you. Like as in more than just a friend type like. And it's totally fine if you don't like me back. I just needed to tell you and hope this doesn't make things awkward between us. I've just been-"
The sound of suppressed laughter stopped Lance's speech.
Kurt had his hand up in front of his mouth, hiding a wide grin and muffling the small bursts of laughter escaping.
"What. Come on. That's pretty shitty. I just confessed my feelings to you. It's not funny."
Kurt shook his head and lowered his hand. "No. I'm not making fun of you. But…" His eyes widened in realization and disbelief. "Are you really serious?"
"Yeah, I'm serious."
Kurt stared at him a moment. "Really? I mean... it's just that it's pretty sudden."
"Yeah? So? Things happen suddenly."
Lance's flippant answer wasn't the wise choice as now Kurt was looking at him skeptically, eyebrows slightly raised and mouth titled.
"- and you haven't even really seemed to show any interest."
"I have too-"
"And as you've said before, you're straight." Kurt was now standing with his arms crossed, as if waiting for Lance to crack.
"Well, you're wrong. I've thought about you. Do you even know. I mean, when at the mansion in the -" Lance cut himself off there, not wanting to reveal that embarrassing moment, "- and then Christmas Eve in the park. I almost kissed you then. I was so close. And how could you not have noticed since winter break. You know, the way I've been more touchy with you."
"I dunno. I thought you were just… I dunno."
"And I wouldn't joke around making you think I like you. That'd be a pretty shitty thing to do. Do you think I'd really do that?"
"No…."
They stood there for a few seconds. Lance, all keyed up and nervous now that he had gone off script. He couldn't even remember what he had just said. Kurt seemed to be mulling over his ramblings, but Lance had no idea what he was thinking. He never thought that Kurt wouldn't believe him and now what? Did he at least convince him?
"So… you really like me?" Kurt had a slight smile on his lips, but Lance was too wrapped up in his anxiety to notice.
"Yes."
"Really?"
"Yes." He had even practiced his speech and everything. Not that that seemed to have helped. "Whatever. I think I'll just go." He turned to leave but was stopped by Kurt grabbing hold of his arm.
"Just wait. You haven't given me a chance to respond."
"I think I got it."
"No, I don't think you do." Slowly, Kurt placed his hand gently around the back of Lance's head, as if unsure what Lance's reaction might be - and pulled him down for a kiss - a small, brief movement of lips before parting.
Lance felt his heart skip a beat and he couldn't help but grin idiotically. "Oh."
"Ja. Oh."
Despite not liking when Kurt wore the inducer, Lance thought Kurt looked fetching with the blush across his cheeks.
"So I guess you like me too." Lance tried to make his smile turn more sexy and mature than foolish and giddy. It didn't work.
"What gave that away?"
"Then why the laughter?"
"I was surprised. You weren't very convincing at first. Besides, you said you were straight."
Lance didn't want to get into his whole turmoil of his sexuality, so he figured he'd just sum it up. "Yeah, I know. I knew I liked girls, but thought I might like guys too. Just didn't really come out and say it. And maybe I kinda hoped it was a passing thing. But then I realized I liked you. So, yeah."
Kurt slightly smiled at that. "So, um, when did you start liking me?"
"I dunno. It just sorta happened. You?"
"Yeah. Same, I guess. But you didn't know, right?"
"Ha. I wish. It would've made this a whole lot easier." Lance laughed to himself and shook his head. "You have no idea. I even asked Mark to see if you liked me. He wouldn't tell me the answer. The asshole."
"Gut. He's a trustworthy asshole then. I was wondering why he asked all of a sudden. But I swear I didn't mean to like you. You said you were straight and I didn't want things to be all awkward."
"No one can resist my charm," Lance preened.
"Yeah that must be it. What I meant was, I didn't want you to be uncomfortable or anything."
"Well, you don't. As I said, I had to figure things out. I like boys too. Specifically you."
Kurt's blush deepened. Lance figured this time he'd take the initiative and leaned back in for another kiss. This time, a bit longer, though still careful and hesitant.
When they pulled away, Lance let his stray thoughts become voiced out loud. "I guess I really am bi."
"I thought you just said… are you still unsure?"
"Well, no. I mean. I knew, but, you know, I was just… kinda still hoping…"
Kurt took a step back. "Are you sure you're okay with it?"
"Yes," but the quiver in his voice betrayed his uncertainty. Lance ran his hand through his hair in frustration. He didn't know. He had acknowledged in his mind that he was bi. Had even just said it outloud and enjoyed kissing a guy. But yet somehow his heart still pattered with worry and fear.
"You know, we can just pretend it didn't-" Kurt began to widen the space between them more, but before Kurt could get far, Lance pulled him back.
"No." Lance kissed him, albeit sloppily, causing their teeth to clack against each other. "Ok, that wasn't my best kiss. It was I'm making a point kiss."
"And your point being?"
"Shut up."
As they kissed again, Lance pushed off Kurt's beanie and threaded a hand through his hair. Softly and gently he stroked Kurt's hair, matching the tempo of their parting lips. The feel of a bit of fur around his lips was strange at first, but as he ran his hand along Kurt's waist, he figured it would not be unlike kissing someone with very soft facial hair. A soft hand trailed along his jaw, a caress that sent shivers down his spine.
With their tender kissing, Lance felt he could melt into the snow until a hand against his back pulled him in closer, and Kurt increased the intensity. Heartbeat increasing, Lance met his passion, tightened his grip around Kurt's waist and trailing his hand along his spine. His fervor consumed any lingering doubt in his mind.
Feeling ridiculously breathless, Lance eventually parted their lips. "Yeah. I could get used to doing that."
"Good." Kurt's cheeky smile had Lance smirking in return.
They stood there, Lance with his hand still lingering on Kurt's waist, both enjoying their moment.
Finally, Kurt broke the silence. "While it's nice and all, it's pretty cold out here. Were you still up for that drink?"
"Yeah." Lance let go and picked up Kurt's hat before handing it to him. "Be nice to warm up after someone shoved snow down my jacket."
"Right? Almost as bad as having snow shoved under my shirt." Kurt did his best to straighten his mussed up hair before shoving his hat back on.
Reaching out, Lance pushed one of Kurt's stray locks back into place.
"Thanks. So where to?"
"Bean to Grind?" Lance suggested. He was a bit disappointed they were leaving the park so soon. He would've braved the cold a bit longer to have more makeout time. But, he supposed Kurt was right. Now that he noticed, his toes felt frozen and his ears were burning cold.
"Sounds good. Ready?"
"Yeah, but um," Lance hesitated a second. "I don't want to be out just yet. I know I'm bi, ok. But, I'm still kinda… adjusting. And if the Brotherhood found out…."
"Lance, don't worry about it."
"You sure?"
"Ja."
Lance couldn't read Kurt but he seemed fine with it. He hoped that Kurt would speak up if he had a problem with not being together in public. He just wasn't ready for that step yet.
"I haven't been there often. Let me pull it up on Street View." Kurt pulled out his phone and began pulling up his app. "I really missed having my phone. It's so nice to have it back. Gmaps helps so much with teleporting."
"Huh. That's kinda cool." Lance was slightly impressed with Kurt's use of technology and his powers.
"Right? Ok, let's teleport to the roof first and then find a way down from there."
"Sounds good." He stepped closer, letting Kurt bamf them to a more comfortable spot.
XXXXXXX
The warmth of Bean to Grind embraced Lance as he swung open the door. Foregoing the modern look of clean lines and austere art, the shop felt like walking into a grandmother's wood cabin. The cushy couches and mismatched chairs set around burnished wood tables beckoned customers to nestle down into the pillows and enjoy a steaming cup of joe. A fireplace was set in the middle of the room, its surrounding brick covered in a black soot that trailed to the ceiling.
One reason Lance had chosen Bean to Grind was because he knew it wasn't the haunt of many high school students, who were more into convenient, modern chain stores than a local, languid experience. True enough, a burgundy couch and chairs were occupied by some middle-aged women in the corner while college students crowded around electric sockets, their laptops shielding them from view.
"I'll get the coffee. You get the table," Kurt suggested as they approached the register, the menu scrawled across blackboard on the wall behind. "What do you want?"
"You sure? I mean…" Lance lowered his voice, "is this a date?"
Kurt shrugged. "I dunno. You don't-" He stopped and gestured over to the side of the line so they could continue their hushed conversation. "You don't want to be out yet, right?"
"Well, yeah. But you and I… we just," here Lance lowered his voice to a bare whisper, "made out. So now doesn't it make sense this is a date?"
"Ja. That'd be nice."
"You and I could know it's a date. But no one else would. That works."
"If you're sure…" Kurt turned away to get back in line, but this time Lance heard it in his voice - that doubt.
He grabbed Kurt's hand, getting him to turn back. "I'm really sure. Ok. I'm really, really sure. About this all. I mean I know what I am." Lance spared a look to the rest of the customers, making sure no one was listening in before continuing . "And I want to do what we did at the park again. Definitely again." And more he added in his head. "I just don't want to tell anyone else just yet… I dunno. I just can't yet. Except Mark. He already knows." He didn't think he really explained himself well, but Kurt's smile was reassuring.
"Ok." Kurt squeezed his hand before returning to the line again. "But I'm still buying. Think of it as repayment for the snowballs to your head."
Lance scoffed but acquiesced. "Ok, I'll take the dirty chai. Medium. I like things dirty." Lance waggled his eyebrows for effect.
Kurt laughed and pushed him away to go find them a table.
Lance lucked in, and was able to snag the two chairs on one side of the fireplace. An orange and brown crocheted throw decorated the club armchair he settled down in, while he let Kurt take the cream floral wingback with the decorative pink pillow.
As he waited for Kurt and his drink, he stared into the fire, content to replay their last kiss over in his head.
"Here," Kurt said as he handed him his drink and settled down with his own.
"Did you actually get anything to drink or just a cup full of whip cream?" Lance eyed the mug Kurt had put on the round coffee table between them. A precarious mountain of whip cream decorated with a swirl of chocolate syrup towered over the top, threatening to collapse over the sides.
"Yeah. I guess the barista just went a little whip cream crazy. Which is fine by me."
As they enjoyed their drinks, Lance couldn't help but be absorbed as he watched Kurt lick at the edge of the whipcream and trail his tongue to the top. He wanted to reach over and wipe off the whip cream that stuck to Kurt's lips. Preferably with his tongue. Distracted, Lance only caught the tailend of what Kurt said.
"- I just think it kinda seems important to work it out."
"Oh, um, yeah. Wait, what? Work what out?"
Kurt sighed in exasperation.
"Hey, it is totally your fault I was distracted. You and your whipcream," Lance finished under his breath.
Kurt's salacious and devious look didn't help matters any.
"Were you doing that on purpose?"
"I have no idea what you're talking about." Kurt innocently took a sip of his drink.
Lance wasn't fooled. "As soon as I finish this drink, we are going back to the park."
He picked up his mug, ready to chug down the rest of his chai.
"Wait. That sounds good, but we really should talk about what happened at the dock. Especially if we're going to see each other, you know... like this."
Lance sighed in frustration. "Yeah, you're right." Instead of the big, scalding gulp he planned, he blew on his drink before taking a sip.
"Our previous plan didn't really work out," Kurt restated.
"Yeah, no kidding. The Brotherhood was so pissed. Mystique, though, was eyeing me all strange. I never know what that bitch is thinking." Realizing he was actually talking about Kurt's mom, Lance followed up, "Sorry."
Kurt brushed off the apology as unnecessary. "What else can we do? The only thing I've thought of is to not go when we know the other one is there. Like switch off."
"And what if it's really important. That gigy, giga, or whatever mask seemed pretty important."
"I dunno. But I don't think I could just ignore you if you needed help. I mean, what if it's dire?"
Lance leaned forward as an idea sprung on him. "Then, that's it, then. We help each other only when it's really dire. Like a major injury. Like being crushed or stabbed or something. Life or death."
Kurt shrugged. "I guess."
"It'll be fine. We can combine our ideas. First, we can see which one of us needs to go to the fight, right? Then, if it comes down to us both being there, we only help each other out if it's something serious."
"Ok," Kurt glanced at Lance before turning towards the fire.
Lance could tell that Kurt still wasn't really convinced, but it was the best they had. Lance thought it wasn't a bad plan himself. Besides, there were more pressing matters to attend to.
As the conversation drifted to safer topics and his drink cooled, Lance began taking bigger sips until his mug was drained.
"I'm all warmed up… wanna head back to the park?" Lance asked.
Kurt grinned in response.
QQQQQQ
With a bounce to his step, Lance walked up the path to the Brotherhood house. Taking off his gloves, he shoved them in his right pocket while a lingering smile trailed across his face. He was very pleased with how today had gone. Very pleased. Lance knew he'd be replaying that last, parting kiss in his head tonight.
His euphoria didn't last long.
As soon as he opened the door, Pietro's sneering voice greeted him. "So where you've been, asshole?"
Pietro was sitting on the couch, TV playing before him, but his eyes pierced through Lance as he closed the door. Lance now had Todd's attention too as he straightened up in his bean bag to get a better view of the upcoming argument.
"None of your business." Smile vanishing, Lance made towards his room, trying to circumnavigate Pietro before he even got started. A gust of wind followed by a sudden push from Pietro prevented any escape.
"Fuck you. I bet you've been with your new X-men side piece. What're you doing? Working your way through the whole team?"
"It's none of your business."Lance prided himself on his poker face. He knew that Pietro was clueless as to what was really going on with him and Kurt, considering it had just happened, and that Pietro was just saying shit to get a rise out of him. There was no way he was going to clue him into the truth.
"It's my business when you betray us in the middle of battle for an X-men! What the fuck is wrong with you. They're our enemy." Pietro's breathing quickened as it always did when he got worked up about something. Lance had done a fair job at not rising to Pietro's baits since the battle, but each time it was getting harder and harder not to lash back.
Taking a deep sigh, Lance calmly responded, "I didn't betray you."
"Are you kidding me? What else would you call throwing Freddie to the ground in the middle of battle. And then that freak goes and saves you."
"Didn't we already go over this? Every day. For the last two weeks. Get over it." Lance rolled his eyes before trying to push past Pietro.
"Get over it? Fuck you man." This time, Pietro pushed him hard enough to cause him to trip backwards. "We've been your team for two whole years! And the minute some X-freak comes along, you leave us out to dry."
"Yeah," Todd chimed in as he finally decided to join in on the daily "Let's Fight Lance" show. "And each time we try to talk to ya about it, ya just blow us off." He sidled up alongside Pietro, creating a barrier to his escape.
"More like yell at me about it," Lance grumbled under his breath before he continued louder. "Fine you want to talk about. Let's talk about it. I'm sorry. Happy?"
"You're such a piece of shit, Lance." Pietro spat. "We don't want your platitudes."
"Yeah, no platit- yeah…" Todd sneered at Lance.
"God, Todd, use a dictionary for once."
"God, Lance," Pietro mocked, "find some loyalty for once."
Seeing that the conversation wasn't going to get anywhere, Lance turned towards the door, figuring if he couldn't get to his room, he'd wait them out by hanging out somewhere else. Maybe he could call Mark.
"You know what. You should go join them," Pietro said to his back. "We don't want no Benedict Arnold on our team."
Frustrated, Lance whirled around. "I'm not gonna go join the X-men, idiot. Kurt and I are just friends. It means nothing about my ties to the Brotherhood."
"You can talk all you want, but you ain't shown us nothin' yet that says we gotta believe ya." Todd crossed his arms and looking judgingly up at Lance.
"Fine. Then what would make you trust me?"
"Trust?" Pietro scoffed. "That won't be so easy. Just show us some loyalty. Instead of eating with the idiotic furbrain, sit with us at lunch. Think you can manage that?" Pietro snidely ended as he voiced his proposition.
"What, so now you get to chose who I'm friends with?" Lance's temper was reaching its limits.
"Yeah, when you chose him over us in battle."
"Holy fucking shit, how many times do I have to repeat myself. It won't happen again. It was a spur of the moment," Lance lied. Besides he and Kurt had it all worked out now. With their new plan, it wouldn't happen again.
"You know, we all accepted you being with Kitty before. You never turned on us in battle for her."
"I said it was a mistake! Stop beating a dead fucking horse!"
"First Kitty, and now Kurt. What are you? A goody-two shoe fucker?"
"Ha, yeah," Todd picked up Pietro's line of thinking. "Moving on to Wagner? Really? What are you, into beastility or something?"
"That is my son you're talking about." Mystique's gelid voice stopped their argument dead in its tracks. They all turned towards the stairs where she stood, imposing as she stared back. Lance didn't know if he should feel relieved or not. His hands were clenched in fists, and he would've thrown a punch at Todd's leering face if she hadn't intervened. He deserved it.
Todd sheepishly averted his gaze from Mystique before shoving his shoulder into Lance as he retreated to the living room with a parting "asshole."
Pietro scoffed, but backed away from Lance. "We aren't done yet."
"No. You are done now." Mystique stared at Pietro until he followed Todd back onto the couch.
"I think it's time you and me had a small chat, Alvers." Mystique turned and walked back up the stairs, fully expecting Lance to follow.
Letting out an exhausted sigh, Lance had no other choice, but to join Mystique in her room.
As soon as Lance closed the door behind him, Mystique gestured for him to take a seat in one of the chairs gathered by the window. Not knowing how to refuse, he complied. Mystique joined him, but rather than sitting, she chose to stand intimidatingly before him.
"What is your relationship with my son?"
Lance raised an eyebrow at that. Mystique rarely referred to Kurt as her son. He didn't know why she started now. He wasn't sure how to answer. Obviously, he wasn't going to tell her the whole truth. He didn't even know how to classify their relationship with today's happenings.
"Well?"
Mystique, though, had been the only one to not rag on him about helping Kurt out during the battle. Maybe he could go for a partial truth. "We're friends." He added a shrug at the end, as if to convince her it wasn't that big of a deal.
"Hmm." She turned her head to briefly look out the window before continuing her interrogation. "How good of friends?"
"I dunno." Uncomfortable, Lance shifted in his chair. She was asking as if she knew the truth but that wasn't possible. "I mean, we hang out. You know, at school, or on the weekends. Sometimes his place or a friend's."
"So he trusts you."
"Yeah?" He wasn't sure of the point she was getting at.
He watched as a smile grew across Mystique's face. It wasn't pleasant. "I'm sure he is a fountain of information on the X-men's plans."
"...We don't really talk about that."
"Then start."
"I… um." Lance was usually not one for loss of words. And he should've seen this coming a mile away, but somehow he missed it. Of course Mystique was an opportunist, and she'd exploit any avenue to get what she wanted, even if it meant using Lance and Kurt's relationship.
"It's simple. Start casually shifting the conversation over. Don't make it obvious. But you said he trusts you. Simply use that to our advantage."
Lance felt disgusted. How could she think manipulating her own son was okay? But if he refused, that might be it for him in the Brotherhood. Maybe if she had asked him at the start of their friendship, he would've complied. But things had changed so much between them. He had changed so much. There was no way he'd betray Kurt like that. He'd just have to walk a fine line of appeasing Mystique without compromising his relationship with Kurt.
"Should I take your silence as acquiescence?"
"Yeah, I'll do it." Lance finished in his head 'not in a million years.'