Building Neptune

Chapter 1: "Diving into the Deluge"

Cal didn't see that teacher guy again for over a week, and, honestly, it wasn't much hardship for him. He'd never done too well in school, and Matt would never hear it anyway. Not to mention that after the last time he was a little wary of being seen talking to the guy.

Anyway, things had been going really well that week. Matt had finished retaking his MCATs (which were probably why he'd been in such a mood that night—testing for days at a time does that to a person) and had a few days off after that. They'd gone out to dinner and a show on Sunday, Monday they'd screwed in every room in the house, and Tuesday they had movie night. Then Wednesday Matt was back to interning at the hospital and Cal was back to sleeping until noon, cleaning the apartment to keep busy, and working at the club at night. Matt even managed to get night shifts for that week. Usually, when they both worked, they were like two ships passing in the night, Cal climbing into bed an hour before Matt had to wake up.

Really, it was just a series of poorly timed circumstances. Another intern called in sick that morning, so Matt got stuck with a double shift from 8 AM until 2 AM. Cal was working the early shift at the club, 9 PM until 1 AM.

At 1:10 AM, when he walked up to their apartment building, the teacher with the red glasses had a car parked out front. He was leaning on the side, waiting for Cal. Glancing around the dark, empty street, the young man approached the car. "What are you, following me now?"

"I think you might be in some trouble."

Cal pulled some moisture from the pavement and the grass toward himself, keeping it close just in case. "Why's that?"

"Because your boyfriend is abusing you." He said it just like that, no inflection, no change in facial expression. Just a fact.

Cal laughed disbelievingly. "All of the sudden everyone's worried for my health."

Summers pulled a business card from his jacket pocket. It's déjà vu all over again. "Here's my number. We can help you. We can give you a place to stay. You deserve better than whatever this guy is giving you." He stepped forward and tucked the card into Cal's shirt pocket.

Pain registered on the young man's face. It became hopelessness and a sheen of tears gathered in his eyes as a voice called out from the building entrance behind him. "Cal."

Cal bit his lower lip and nodded at Summers. "I have to go." He turned and walked back to Matt.

Cal would not find out until later Matt's end of these poorly timed circumstances. Just before midnight, Matt's attending pulled him aside to give him his test scores. After breaking the news, he decided that his intern was too tired and upset to finish his rounds. Matt spent a half hour pacing around the apartment, angry and tired and panicked, before he looked out the window to see what he thought was an intimate conversation and an exchanging of numbers between his boyfriend and a man he'd seen him flirting with a week earlier.

Cal followed him into the apartment apologizing, but Matt wasn't listening.

"Fucking whore. All the shit I put up with for you, all the shit I do for you and what the fuck do I get for it, huh?"

Cal shut the door behind him and kicked off his shoes. "Matt, I don't even know who that guy was. He was waiting for me when I got home."

He grabbed Cal's collar and slammed him against the wall next to the door. "What, looking to buy a piece?" He slammed him against the wall again. He grabbed Cal's chin so he couldn't look away. "Everyone looks at you and thinks they can have some. But you're mine, Callie. Aren't you mine?"

"You know I am. I would never hurt you like that."

Matt looked him over. "That mouth is good for two things, baby. Sucking cock and lying." He grabbed Cal by the arms hard enough to bruise and shoved him across the room. Cal slammed sideways into the small dining room table. He made a noise like a yelp. Matt grabbed him by the hips, pinned Cal between himself and the table. He undid Cal's belt and fly. "I'm the one doing all the work here. I'm the one that has to remind you who you belong to. Do you know who I am? Do you know how lucky you are to be with me? How lucky you are that I put up with your shit? What kind of street urchin whore gets to be with someone like me?" He shoved his hand into Cal's jeans and squeezed him roughly. He leaned forward and growled into his ear, "I'm gonna show you who you belong to."

He yanked his boyfriend's pants down to his thighs, and Cal started crying a bit. "Matt, don't."

And everything that guy in the parking lot said, everything that fucking Summers guy said were ringing in his ears while Matt grabbed at his hips. He tried to push away from the table. Panic rose in his chest. He tried to twist away. Matt smacked the side of his face. The instant his hand connected with Cal's cheek, the pipes in the kitchen burst and water came pouring into the apartment.

Matt shoved him away and backed off. "What the fuck did you do, you little shit!"

"I can't help it! You're fucking crazy!"

Matt grabbed a candlestick off of the table and swung. Pain exploded in Cal's left eye. His legs crumpled under him. Red filled the left side of his vision, but, from the ground, he could still see with his right eye. Matt standing over him, raising the candlestick again.

Cal thought, Holy shit, he's really going to kill me this time.

In that split second of panic, several things happened at once. At that moment in Xavier's Mansion, Professor Xavier was checking in on Calin with Cerebro after Scott had called in to report trouble. The Professor detected dangerously high stress levels and mutant activity. In the apartment, Cal gave a tug with his mind. The water on the floor came surging around him all at once, but that wasn't all he'd done. Perhaps it was his connection to a powerful telepath at the time or perhaps this intense stress was enough to trigger a secondary mutation on its own. In any case, Matt suddenly froze in place, candlestick held high. His skin seemed to move for a moment before a rush of water flew out of him, tearing him apart as he stood. Cal passed out.

Scott was outside the apartment door in his visor just a few minutes after Xavier called him back. There was no noise except for running water. He narrowed the setting on his visor and blasted the lock out of the doorknob. Water rushed out when he pushed open the door. He took in the sight as best he could. The boyfriend was dead, mutilated. Cal was lying on his side, half submerged and inhaling quite a bit of water. His pants were around his knees and his left eye bled profusely.

He hauled the kid out of the water and lay him on the table. He pushed at his chest. Cal coughed up some water, but wouldn't regain consciousness. Sirens approached outside. The neighbors had called in a domestic disturbance. Lifting the boy's hips carefully, Scott pulled his pants up. He sighed.

"What a mess."