The End v2.0
by
Elizabeth Wilde
DISCLAIMER: I do not own any of these characters. They are all copyright... Marvel and/or Twentieth Century Fox and possibly even other places or people. Point is, not mine. I make no money from this site and I don't have any to give, so there's no point in suing.
AUTHOR'S NOTE: This end actually wasn't as happy when I first planned it. But I like it happier. I needed something happy for once, or at least partially so. The song used is "In My Car" by Gin Blossoms.
I miss her feel, her touch, her taste
I feel the distance everyplace
This distance can't be taken casually
Scott Summers gripped the wheel of his new/old car, a small black model with only a few rust spots. It had been cheap enough to be within his budget and still had enough parts left to run, which was all he needed. He needed a way to get home.
Almost three years had passed since he sped away from the school on his bike, which he'd eventually ended up stripping the turbo from and trading in. He looked out across the scenery, remembering a time when he could have told the exact distance from Xavier's School from almost any given point without a second's hesitation. //Now I can barely tell where I am.//
The memory gaps were disturbing and comforting all at the same time. Scott wanted to be different when he walked in the door. He wanted people to see some sort of change in him. Mostly, he wanted to be near Jean again. //Logan might've gotten the girl, but I'll be damned if I spend another day without being near her,// Scott affirmed silently.
"Just don't be too long," Logan had said when he caught Scott sneaking away in the middle of the night. //It's been way too long.// Living without Jean's love hurt enough. Living without her was even worse. //I need her, whether she needs me or not.// And no matter where he'd run, all he could feel was the lengthening miles between them and the weakening of their now-dissolved bond.
Take my time just drive around
I'm feeling lost in my hometown
Every turn I take is comforting
Scott had lunch at a small cafÈ in Westchester more as a reason to delay his arrival at the school than out of hunger. He picked half-heartedly at the food then left the waitress a five dollar tip for being so patient with his nervous terseness. //Not her fault my heart is beating so loud I can barely hear myself think.//
Behind the wheel once again, Scott found the road to the school without thinking. //Guess I remember more than I figured.// It would have been easy to take the wrong turn on purpose and spend a little more time thinking, trying to plan what he would say to anyone and everyone when he walked in, but Scott knew that no amount of planning could help him anticipate what seeing Jean again might be like. He expected sadness, pain, anger, and exhilaration.
The gates were open as usual and Scott parked near the front door, steeling himself-or trying to-before stepping outside the vehicle. His palms were sweating, and Scott felt as if his body was going to shake itself apart. //Get a grip, Summers!// He pulled a worn duffel bag from the back seat and ascended the steps.
The door opened quietly. There was no one in the hall, and Scott had to fight a half-forgotten urge to send Jean a greeting through a bond that didn't exist. "Hello?" he called into the empty hallway.
A form appeared at the end of the hall, and Scott knew instantly that it was Rogue by the long, white-streaked auburn hair. She looked entirely different otherwise. She wasn't a little girl anymore. Her face was slender and so was her form, more curvaceous by half than it had been when he left. "Mr. Summers?" she asked with a hesitant smile.
"Hi, Rogue."
The young woman smiled and held her arms out. "Miss us?"
He pulled her into a quick hug, fighting back tears. There was something immensely comforting in Rogue's immediate acceptance. "Yes. More than you'll ever know."
She stepped back and studied him. "Ya need to shave. Stubble just doesn't look right on ya," Rogue teased. Her dark eyes watched him for another breath. "Ya wanna see Dr. Grey?"
Something in him was comforted that Jean's name hadn't changed. //At least they aren't married.// "I think so," he replied with a sheepish smile.
Rogue linked her arm through his. "Too damn nervous. Ain't like ya at all. We're gonna have hell whippin' ya back into shape, aren't we?"
"We?" Scott inquired cautiously.
"The X-Men, silly. Ya didn't think ya'd come back and we'd let ya slack off, didja?" Rogue explained, voice carrying a note of reproach. "And 'we' are Jean, Ororo, Logan, Bobby, and me. That sound about right?"
"That sounds great," Scott affirmed.
"Here ya go." Rogue pointed into the TV room. Logan and Jean were sitting together on the couch, her legs swung over his lap as they talked quietly about something. "It ain't gonna get easier if ya wait," Rogue reminded Scott as she walked off in the opposite direction.
Scott stepped into the room and the movement caught Logan's eye instantly. A smile spread across the other man's face. "About damn time," he complained lightly as Jean's head swung to face the same direction.
"Scott!" She was up and in his arms what seemed like seconds later. They held each other for a few moments, then she pulled back, smiling. "Where have you been?"
He swallowed, overwhelmed by her reception. "I... just... anywhere but here," he finally finished.
Jean bit her lip. "Oh."
Logan came to stand beside her, offering Scott his hand. "Find anything useful?"
Scott took Logan's hand and shook it. "Not a damn thing," he replied honestly.
Logan nodded. "Yep." His arm went around Jean's waist. "I could've told ya that much if you weren't so damn stubborn."
"I wouldn't have believed you before," Scott reminded him.
"Yeah. How 'bout now?"
Scott surprised himself by smiling. "I believe you."
Logan nodded again and Jean smiled. "You're staying?" she asked hopefully, gaze drifting to the duffel bag.
"Yep. This is the only place worth being for me."
"Besides," Logan added with one eyebrow arched, "if you try runnin' out again, I'll kill you myself."
Jean laughed and swatted her lover's chest before turning back to Scott. "Welcome home."
Slowly, a smile spread across his face. Things were different, but that didn't mean they couldn't still be good. "It's great to be here."
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