Categories > Cartoons > X-Men: Evolution > X-men: Evolution of the Heart
Growing Pains
0 reviewsAU on how the X-men came to be. Major Jott and Kurtty. Scott, Jean, Kurt, Kitty, Evan, and Rogue have all had horrible lives. See how they ban together and become the future X-men with the help of ...
0Unrated
X-men: Evolution of the Heart
Chapter 15: Growing Pains
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It had been few months since the students from the Xavier Institute had attended their first day of school. By now they had settled in to normal, teenage lives quite nicely when just a year ago they were digging through garbage cans for food. Each student had found their own certain niche in school by now and had grown use to the day to day task of being both teenagers and mutants. Overall their grades were good, they all had made new friends, and kept their dark past to themselves.
Scott and Jean had grown in popularity because of their rising status as athletes. Scott had done wonders on the track and field team while Jean became the captain of the soccer team. Because of this popularity, they had attracted numerous others in terms of the opposite sex, but so far they hadn't done much with it because they were not use to such attention. Kurt and Kitty had made new friends as well and had become an active participant in drama clubs. Evan had found his own bunch of skateboarding buddies that he now hung out with. However, some things about them didn't change too much. Rogue was still the same introvert she had always been, but now she had a friend that she spent a lot of time with. Her name was Risty and they had a lot in common, but Rogue was still forced to keep many secrets from her about her mutation. The rest of her friends accepted Risty and didn't give her a hard time.
It wasn't all fun and games however. Tensions between the Brotherhood and the X-men had grown a great deal. Outside of school some of these encounters erupted in to all out skirmishes. In school the growing rivalry between them only complicated things further. Most of the time they only exchanged death glances, but sometimes it became more confrontational. Evan and Pietro were always challenging each other in classes and more often then not they had to be broken up before they started an all out fight. Rogue and Wanda also developed a major rivalry after their first day. However Lance was the exception when it came to all this. Over the last few months he had developed feelings for Kitty Pryde and often avoided up front confrontation with the rest of her friends. However, a growing frustration developed because it seemed that her friend Kurt Wagner never left her side long enough to make his move.
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The crowds cheer erupted from the soccer field as the Bayville Hawks stole the ball with less than a minute to play.
"AND WITH THE SCORE TIED HERE LATE IN THE SECOND HALF IT SEEMS THIS MAY BE THE GAME RIGHT HERE FOLKS!" blared the announcer over the speakers.
Jean Grey was setting herself up down the center of the field as her team drove deep in to the other side's defense.
"Come on Jean, come on," said Scott from the stands, who had yet to miss one of Jean's games.
There were now 15 seconds left as Jean's teammate, Taryn, sent the ball in her direction. Now it was just her and two other defenders. Now there were 10 seconds left on the clock. With speed and skill she faked one defender out...7 seconds left. Upon faking her way to the right, she got past the other defender...3 seconds left. Jean then kicked the ball towards the goal as the last few seconds ticked by.
"GOAL!!! HAWKS WIN! HAWKS WIN!"
"YES! Way to go Jean!" yelled Scott from the stands.
The crowds cheered and Jean's team gathered around to congratulate her. In the jubilant stands she saw Scott sitting near the top of the stands. She waved to him and smiled as her team made their way off the field. Scott was about to head down to meet her, when somebody else beat him to the punch.
"Hey Jean, over here!" said a voice from the lower part of the stands.
It was the voice of Duncan Matthews, the star quarterback of the football team that had been eyeing Jean since the beginning of the year. Jean hesitated slightly before heading towards him.
"Go on Jean, its Duncan!" urged a few of her teammates who would have done anything to be called by Duncan Matthews, the richest and most popular boy in school.
Unable to walk away, Jean approached the star football player.
"Nice game there Jean! Come on, why don't you come with me and some friends and celebrate," said Duncan flashing one of his star smiles.
"Uh...Okay," said Jean still hesitant, but unable to say no due to the peer pressure of her friends.
Scott was taken aback as he watched Jean walk off with Duncan and his crew. He had heard about Duncan Matthews from other girls and had picked up some comments he said about her in the past. His ears didn't lie to him when they told him that this kid was trouble. He was known for being very spoiled and egocentric. Scott had also seen Duncan developing a grudge against him every time he was around Jean. Knowing what he knew, it didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out what Duncan was probably after in pursuing Jean.
"Hey! Earth the Scott, are you there!" said Kurt as he came up behind him.
"Oh, hey Kurt," said Scott as he slightly came to his senses.
"Well is Jean coming or not?" asked Kurt.
Scott looked back at the crowd and saw Jean walking off with Duncan's posse and a few of her soccer teammates.
"No...I guess not," said Scott plainly trying not to show his disappointment.
"Oh," said Kurt as he saw what Scott was looking at. "Sorry man."
"No, it's no big deal. This is her time to shine," said Scott changing his tone a little, but still weary. "Where's Kitty?"
"Vaiting for us. Come on let's go!" said Kurt.
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Kitty just finished saying goodbye to some friends of hers as she went to meet up with Kurt and Scott. However, she was soon greeted by a familiar presence.
"Hey pretty Kitty," said Lance as he came up to her from seemingly out of nowhere.
"Well if it isn't the walking Richter Scale," said Kitty in an exasperated tone.
Lance had been pursuing her for nearly a month now. He was still a part of the Brotherhood so it was hard to believe him, however Kitty had been noticing that he was following his comrades less in the field lately. She also knew she couldn't help but be attracted to his bad boy charm despite his allegiance.
"So where's blue boy? I notice he's not pestering you now," said Lance always vigilant of Kitty's ever-present bodyguard, Kurt.
"First of all, Kurt doesn't pester me. And second, what do want Lance?" said Kitty.
"Oh come on, is it illegal to have a decent conversation with you. We know what's going to happen Kitty. I show up, you insult me, I take it, yet we keep talking. So why not just skip the whole routine this time because we know how it's gonna end," said Lance.
Kitty was left speechless after Lance's little speech. Although she didn't agree with it, she couldn't really disagree with what he was saying. There was some truth in Lance's words. Lance quickly picked up on Kitty's disposition and decided to use it to his advantage.
"Hey Kitty, watch this," he said cockily as he looked towards the soccer coach who was carrying a couple of large boxes with sports equipment.
Lance rolled his eyes back as he started to cause a minor tremor around them. Some of the surrounding students began to wearily notice this. Kitty was about to ask Lance to stop when one of the students near the coach stumbled towards him and spilled soda all over his shirt, causing him to drop the boxes. As soon as the shaking stopped most of the students started to laugh at the thoroughly pissed-off coach.
"Why you...DROP AND GIVE ME 50 KID!" yelled the coach at the kid who spilled soda on him.
Kitty couldn't help but laugh even though she tried to hide it. This wasn't a very popular coach, nor a very liked gym teacher so it was hard not to laugh.
"See Kitty, you're laughing," said Lance with a grin.
Kitty stopped, but still couldn't wipe the smirk off her face. "That was, like, so immature...But I guess it was kinda funny."
Lance felt his had triumphed in a way as he watched her smile and he could tell it would be harder to hate him when he made her laugh. Just then, another voice cut in.
"Hey Kitty, over here!" yelled Kurt as Scott pulled his car up towards the front.
"Oh, there's my ride. I guess I'll see you later Lance," said Kitty as she ran off towards the car.
"Yeah...See ya," said Lance who couldn't stop grinning.
As Kitty hopped in to the car, Kurt wearily looked back at whom she had been talking to. It was Lance again much to his dismay.
"Vhat vere you doing talking to Lance?" asked Kurt immediately as Kitty got in.
"Just talking that's all," said Kitty causally.
"About vhat?"
"Jeez Kurt why the sudden interrogation?" said Kitty sounding noticeably irked.
"Well...Maybe because Lance is from the Brotherhood?" responded Kurt, trying to get her to realized the obvious.
"Come on Kurt, he's really not such a bad guy once you get to know him," said Kitty.
"Yeah vell..." but soon Scott cut in, not liking where this conversation was heading.
"Guys, don't fight now. We've got a major training session in the Danger Room later. You can fight afterwards," remarked Scott.
They stopped after hearing that, for neither of them wanted to go any further. Because whenever it involved Lance, Kurt and Kitty always seemed to fight about it.
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Later that evening Scott rested in his room after the intense Danger Room session. It didn't go as smoothly for him because of one major reason...Jean wasn't there. She didn't come back from the victory party with her friends after her game and he started to get worried. It had lasted a lot longer than previously thought, but that's not what was really bothering Scott.
As he busied himself with homework trying to put his fears to rest, he felt Jean's presence near his door.
"Scott?" said Jean as she walked in.
"Hey Jean...How was the party?" asked Scott casually doing his best to hide his feelings towards it.
"Well, it was great..." then she paused for a brief moment as if she was contemplating how she was going to say what was to come next, "Duncan asked me out."
Scott felt a sharp surge of anxiety and angst wash over him upon hearing those words. It was as if somebody had just sent a painful jolt of electricity through his entire system.
"What?" said Scott in response for a lack of better words.
"Duncan Matthews asked me out. The most popular boy in school asked me...Jean Grey, the girl who people use to throw rocks at in elementary school, out on a date," said Jean still dumbstruck by the whole thing.
"And what'd you say?" asked Scott wearily, for he felt he already knew the answer.
"I said yes," responded Jean plainly.
Scott didn't know how to respond after that. Neither of them could have anticipated something like this happening before. Neither of them thought they would even be a part of a real crowd because of their own personal insecurities and their lack of opportunities in life. However, all that had changed now. If it was anybody else other than Duncan Matthews, this would've been much easier for the both of them. But nothing had ever been easy for Scott and Jean.
"Are you sure about him Jean?" said Scott finally breaking the silence.
"What do you mean?"
"Nothing it's just...I've heard things about Duncan Matthews and well...I just don't want you getting hurt, that's all," said Scott trying to sound sincere instead of worried.
"I wouldn't worry about that Scott. He's told me how people make these big assumptions about him just because he's popular."
"And you believe him?"
"Well...Yeah," said Jean, but with a noticeable amount of uncertainty in her voice. In her mind she kind of wanted to believe him from the start, even though her instincts were telling her otherwise. "Look, I just wanted to let you know and also to say I'm sorry about missing the Danger Room session earlier. I had no idea the party would go on that long."
"It's okay, it's your time to shine Jean, so don't worry about the Danger Room. However, I don't know if Logan will be so understanding."
"Yeah, I kinda figured that," said Jean with a mild laugh. "Well, I'd better get going on my homework. Thanks for listening."
"That's what I'm here for Jean."
She smiled warmly at him before she left, but it didn't help calm Scott's fears about Duncan. He let out a deep sigh as he closed his books and collapsed on his bed. He didn't know where this whole issue was going to lead with Duncan and it didn't sit well with him as he tried to sleep. Only time would tell.
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"Come on guys let's go!" yelled Scott as he grabbed his keys and waited near the door for the others.
Just then Logan walked by looking a bit more irked than usual.
"Hey Logan, have you seen Jean?"
"Yeah...Some kid came by and picked her up a few minutes ago. She told me his name was Duncan," grunted Logan who didn't seem too happy about it.
"Oh," said Scott who was sort of disheartened by this news.
"Somethin' didn't smell right about that kid...Keep an eye on him Cyke, I don't trust him."
"Neither do I," said Scott.
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Jean shifted uncomfortably in Duncan Matthews' car. He had unexpectedly driven up to the institute and offered her a ride to school.
"So you live in a mansion? Man your folks must be loaded Jean," said Duncan as he drove away from the institute.
"It's not a mansion...It's more of a boarding school," replied Jean not wanting to tell him too much about the institute.
"A boarding school for what?" asked Duncan growing a bit confused.
"It's in the name, a boarding school for gifted youngsters. I live there with my friends Scott, Kurt, Kitty, Evan, and Rogue."
"Oh, so you're gifted?" asked Duncan with a bit of intrigue. "In what way might I ask?"
"Well that's my little secret," said Jean with a smirk trying to get him to drop it.
"Oh a secret...Well then I'm gonna have to find out what it is one day," said Duncan confidently.
Jean felt a little anxious over that last comment. She hoped that she wasn't getting in over her head with this whole situation.
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Without Jean, the drive to school had been unusually quiet for Scott. Kurt, Kitty, and Evan talked for much of the way, but Scott didn't partake at all. Rogue, who usually said nothing anyway, picked up on this.
"Kinda quiet today Scott," said Rogue.
"Yeah well...I didn't get a lot of sleep last night," replied Scott even though he knew that was a bogus excuse.
"No duh...Since when have any of us ever gotten a decent night sleep?" replied Rogue not believing Scott's excuse.
"Good point," said Scott in a defeated tone.
Scott didn't say anything after that, he was still too busy thinking.
"Its Jean isn't it?" asked Rogue breaking Scott's train of thought.
"What gave you that idea?" said Scott trying to sound as if he was shocked by her assumption.
Rogue only sighed. She should have known that Scott wouldn't want to say much about something this touchy. Especially when it involved Jean Grey.
"Fine, if ya wanna be that way, go ahead," said Rogue.
Scott was about to say something in response, but Rogue then made it clear that she didn't want to go any further. He could only sigh as his thoughts returned to Jean. Rogue wasn't psychic, but she could tell what Scott was thinking about. Almost everybody in the car knew it...That is, except Scott.
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As the time for first period drew closer, Kitty Pryde headed towards her locker to get her books for English. But as she opened up her locker, she noticed a small slip of paper fall out. Curious, she picked it up and read it.
'Kitty, call me sometimes and maybe we can talk. 555-9364. Lance A.'
"Vhat's that Kitty," said Kurt as he came up from behind her.
"Nothing," said Kitty with a small smile as she stuffed it in her pocket. "Come on Kurt, let's get to class before Principle Kelly goes ballistic."
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As Scott walked across the outside part of the Bayville campus, he was still full of worry. He trusted Jean fully to make the right decisions, but Duncan was another story. Suddenly, his thoughts were interrupted by an unfamiliar female voice.
"Scott...Hey Scott, wait up!"
Scott turned around to see the voice belonging to one of Jean's friends and soccer teammates, Taryn.
"Hey Taryn. If you're looking for Jean I..." but Scott was cut off before he could finish.
"Actually, I didn't want to talk to Jean. I wanted to talk to you," said Taryn with a strange, flirtatious tone in her voice.
"Oh," said Scott a little dumbstruck.
Scott had met Taryn on the first day of school when she bumped in to him and made some offhand comments about his glasses. Since then, Scott didn't talk to her that much even though she had become a good friend with Jean. Unknown to the both of them, however, Jean Grey was watching this scene unfold from a distance. Jean had wanted to talk to Scott about Duncan since last night, but now that wasn't the most pressing issue on her mind anymore. Now she was thinking, what on Earth was Taryn doing with Scott and why did she have that strange look in her eye? Eagerly, Jean watched the two as the scene unfolded before her.
"Listen Scott, I don't think I ever really apologized to you after that little 'incident' on the first day," said Taryn sheepishly.
"Oh that...Well, it's really no big deal," said Scott who never really took that incident that seriously in the first place since. He had heard much worse in the past anyway.
"Thanks Scott..." she said relieved by Scott's forgiveness. "So...Can I ask you one thing?
"Uh...Sure."
"What color are your eyes?"
"My eyes...Well, brown if you must know," said Scott seeing no harm in it, but getting a bit weary at what Taryn was getting at.
"Brown...They must really be something," said Taryn sounding more flirtatious by the second, which was definitely giving Jean a severe anxiety attack.
Then, to Jean's relief, she heard the warning bell ring for first period.
"There's the bell. Well, I guess I'll see you later then Taryn," said Scott as he started to walk away.
"Scott wait," said Taryn.
Scott turned around once again while Jean still listened.
"Do you...Wanna do something after school later today? Just the two of us?" said Taryn in a suggestive manner.
Jean felt she was going to have a heart attack after that. Is Taryn asking Scott out on a date? How could she? They were supposed to be friends.
Scott was almost as equally shocked. Taryn seemed to be a nice girl and all, but he couldn't help but hesitate. Should he say yes? What could the harm in it be? But then he had a strange nagging feeling, a feeling that kept telling him that this wasn't right somehow...A feeling that he couldn't ignore.
"Um...Thanks for offer Taryn, but I don't think I should," said Scott finally.
"Why not?" replied Taryn with noticeable disappointment in her voice.
Scott let out a deep sigh, knowing that this was probably the right choice for him. But there was still another side of him asking why he was doing this. Jean was going out with Duncan, why shouldn't he go out with Taryn?
"I...Just don't think I can," said Scott being as truthful as he could.
"Is there somebody else?" asked Taryn.
Scott hesitated before answering this one, which confirmed it for Taryn.
"I...It's complicated Taryn. Look, you seem like a really nice girl, but I can't," said Scott.
"Well, if you ever change your mind...Call me. I'll see you later Scott," said Taryn with a sigh of disappointment. After that she left and Scott soon followed suite, heading towards his first class.
Jean couldn't help but feel relieved by seeing this, but she felt it was for all the wrong reasons. Scott had turned down Taryn, but she didn't turn down Duncan. What did that make her? Did she make the right decision in going out with him? Why did it feel just so wrong in many ways? Jean tried to clear her head as she walked off to class still thinking about this. She and Scott were always the best of friends and in the times they had known each other it had grown noticeably deeper. Jean owed her life to Scott in many ways. They had both been through so much together and they knew each other so well from the experiences on the street. Neither of them could imagine life without each other. Suddenly Jean felt her thoughts might be confirming what she feared from the start, in that she had made a mistake in agreeing going out with Duncan Matthews.
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AN: Well, things have just gotten a little more complicated for both couples. Stay tuned to see these love triangles develop because they are both far from over! Don't forget to review this story! Post them on fanfiction.net or send them to me directly at slickboy444@aol.com. Thanks for reading and best wishes to you all!
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Chapter 15: Growing Pains
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It had been few months since the students from the Xavier Institute had attended their first day of school. By now they had settled in to normal, teenage lives quite nicely when just a year ago they were digging through garbage cans for food. Each student had found their own certain niche in school by now and had grown use to the day to day task of being both teenagers and mutants. Overall their grades were good, they all had made new friends, and kept their dark past to themselves.
Scott and Jean had grown in popularity because of their rising status as athletes. Scott had done wonders on the track and field team while Jean became the captain of the soccer team. Because of this popularity, they had attracted numerous others in terms of the opposite sex, but so far they hadn't done much with it because they were not use to such attention. Kurt and Kitty had made new friends as well and had become an active participant in drama clubs. Evan had found his own bunch of skateboarding buddies that he now hung out with. However, some things about them didn't change too much. Rogue was still the same introvert she had always been, but now she had a friend that she spent a lot of time with. Her name was Risty and they had a lot in common, but Rogue was still forced to keep many secrets from her about her mutation. The rest of her friends accepted Risty and didn't give her a hard time.
It wasn't all fun and games however. Tensions between the Brotherhood and the X-men had grown a great deal. Outside of school some of these encounters erupted in to all out skirmishes. In school the growing rivalry between them only complicated things further. Most of the time they only exchanged death glances, but sometimes it became more confrontational. Evan and Pietro were always challenging each other in classes and more often then not they had to be broken up before they started an all out fight. Rogue and Wanda also developed a major rivalry after their first day. However Lance was the exception when it came to all this. Over the last few months he had developed feelings for Kitty Pryde and often avoided up front confrontation with the rest of her friends. However, a growing frustration developed because it seemed that her friend Kurt Wagner never left her side long enough to make his move.
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The crowds cheer erupted from the soccer field as the Bayville Hawks stole the ball with less than a minute to play.
"AND WITH THE SCORE TIED HERE LATE IN THE SECOND HALF IT SEEMS THIS MAY BE THE GAME RIGHT HERE FOLKS!" blared the announcer over the speakers.
Jean Grey was setting herself up down the center of the field as her team drove deep in to the other side's defense.
"Come on Jean, come on," said Scott from the stands, who had yet to miss one of Jean's games.
There were now 15 seconds left as Jean's teammate, Taryn, sent the ball in her direction. Now it was just her and two other defenders. Now there were 10 seconds left on the clock. With speed and skill she faked one defender out...7 seconds left. Upon faking her way to the right, she got past the other defender...3 seconds left. Jean then kicked the ball towards the goal as the last few seconds ticked by.
"GOAL!!! HAWKS WIN! HAWKS WIN!"
"YES! Way to go Jean!" yelled Scott from the stands.
The crowds cheered and Jean's team gathered around to congratulate her. In the jubilant stands she saw Scott sitting near the top of the stands. She waved to him and smiled as her team made their way off the field. Scott was about to head down to meet her, when somebody else beat him to the punch.
"Hey Jean, over here!" said a voice from the lower part of the stands.
It was the voice of Duncan Matthews, the star quarterback of the football team that had been eyeing Jean since the beginning of the year. Jean hesitated slightly before heading towards him.
"Go on Jean, its Duncan!" urged a few of her teammates who would have done anything to be called by Duncan Matthews, the richest and most popular boy in school.
Unable to walk away, Jean approached the star football player.
"Nice game there Jean! Come on, why don't you come with me and some friends and celebrate," said Duncan flashing one of his star smiles.
"Uh...Okay," said Jean still hesitant, but unable to say no due to the peer pressure of her friends.
Scott was taken aback as he watched Jean walk off with Duncan and his crew. He had heard about Duncan Matthews from other girls and had picked up some comments he said about her in the past. His ears didn't lie to him when they told him that this kid was trouble. He was known for being very spoiled and egocentric. Scott had also seen Duncan developing a grudge against him every time he was around Jean. Knowing what he knew, it didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out what Duncan was probably after in pursuing Jean.
"Hey! Earth the Scott, are you there!" said Kurt as he came up behind him.
"Oh, hey Kurt," said Scott as he slightly came to his senses.
"Well is Jean coming or not?" asked Kurt.
Scott looked back at the crowd and saw Jean walking off with Duncan's posse and a few of her soccer teammates.
"No...I guess not," said Scott plainly trying not to show his disappointment.
"Oh," said Kurt as he saw what Scott was looking at. "Sorry man."
"No, it's no big deal. This is her time to shine," said Scott changing his tone a little, but still weary. "Where's Kitty?"
"Vaiting for us. Come on let's go!" said Kurt.
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Kitty just finished saying goodbye to some friends of hers as she went to meet up with Kurt and Scott. However, she was soon greeted by a familiar presence.
"Hey pretty Kitty," said Lance as he came up to her from seemingly out of nowhere.
"Well if it isn't the walking Richter Scale," said Kitty in an exasperated tone.
Lance had been pursuing her for nearly a month now. He was still a part of the Brotherhood so it was hard to believe him, however Kitty had been noticing that he was following his comrades less in the field lately. She also knew she couldn't help but be attracted to his bad boy charm despite his allegiance.
"So where's blue boy? I notice he's not pestering you now," said Lance always vigilant of Kitty's ever-present bodyguard, Kurt.
"First of all, Kurt doesn't pester me. And second, what do want Lance?" said Kitty.
"Oh come on, is it illegal to have a decent conversation with you. We know what's going to happen Kitty. I show up, you insult me, I take it, yet we keep talking. So why not just skip the whole routine this time because we know how it's gonna end," said Lance.
Kitty was left speechless after Lance's little speech. Although she didn't agree with it, she couldn't really disagree with what he was saying. There was some truth in Lance's words. Lance quickly picked up on Kitty's disposition and decided to use it to his advantage.
"Hey Kitty, watch this," he said cockily as he looked towards the soccer coach who was carrying a couple of large boxes with sports equipment.
Lance rolled his eyes back as he started to cause a minor tremor around them. Some of the surrounding students began to wearily notice this. Kitty was about to ask Lance to stop when one of the students near the coach stumbled towards him and spilled soda all over his shirt, causing him to drop the boxes. As soon as the shaking stopped most of the students started to laugh at the thoroughly pissed-off coach.
"Why you...DROP AND GIVE ME 50 KID!" yelled the coach at the kid who spilled soda on him.
Kitty couldn't help but laugh even though she tried to hide it. This wasn't a very popular coach, nor a very liked gym teacher so it was hard not to laugh.
"See Kitty, you're laughing," said Lance with a grin.
Kitty stopped, but still couldn't wipe the smirk off her face. "That was, like, so immature...But I guess it was kinda funny."
Lance felt his had triumphed in a way as he watched her smile and he could tell it would be harder to hate him when he made her laugh. Just then, another voice cut in.
"Hey Kitty, over here!" yelled Kurt as Scott pulled his car up towards the front.
"Oh, there's my ride. I guess I'll see you later Lance," said Kitty as she ran off towards the car.
"Yeah...See ya," said Lance who couldn't stop grinning.
As Kitty hopped in to the car, Kurt wearily looked back at whom she had been talking to. It was Lance again much to his dismay.
"Vhat vere you doing talking to Lance?" asked Kurt immediately as Kitty got in.
"Just talking that's all," said Kitty causally.
"About vhat?"
"Jeez Kurt why the sudden interrogation?" said Kitty sounding noticeably irked.
"Well...Maybe because Lance is from the Brotherhood?" responded Kurt, trying to get her to realized the obvious.
"Come on Kurt, he's really not such a bad guy once you get to know him," said Kitty.
"Yeah vell..." but soon Scott cut in, not liking where this conversation was heading.
"Guys, don't fight now. We've got a major training session in the Danger Room later. You can fight afterwards," remarked Scott.
They stopped after hearing that, for neither of them wanted to go any further. Because whenever it involved Lance, Kurt and Kitty always seemed to fight about it.
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Later that evening Scott rested in his room after the intense Danger Room session. It didn't go as smoothly for him because of one major reason...Jean wasn't there. She didn't come back from the victory party with her friends after her game and he started to get worried. It had lasted a lot longer than previously thought, but that's not what was really bothering Scott.
As he busied himself with homework trying to put his fears to rest, he felt Jean's presence near his door.
"Scott?" said Jean as she walked in.
"Hey Jean...How was the party?" asked Scott casually doing his best to hide his feelings towards it.
"Well, it was great..." then she paused for a brief moment as if she was contemplating how she was going to say what was to come next, "Duncan asked me out."
Scott felt a sharp surge of anxiety and angst wash over him upon hearing those words. It was as if somebody had just sent a painful jolt of electricity through his entire system.
"What?" said Scott in response for a lack of better words.
"Duncan Matthews asked me out. The most popular boy in school asked me...Jean Grey, the girl who people use to throw rocks at in elementary school, out on a date," said Jean still dumbstruck by the whole thing.
"And what'd you say?" asked Scott wearily, for he felt he already knew the answer.
"I said yes," responded Jean plainly.
Scott didn't know how to respond after that. Neither of them could have anticipated something like this happening before. Neither of them thought they would even be a part of a real crowd because of their own personal insecurities and their lack of opportunities in life. However, all that had changed now. If it was anybody else other than Duncan Matthews, this would've been much easier for the both of them. But nothing had ever been easy for Scott and Jean.
"Are you sure about him Jean?" said Scott finally breaking the silence.
"What do you mean?"
"Nothing it's just...I've heard things about Duncan Matthews and well...I just don't want you getting hurt, that's all," said Scott trying to sound sincere instead of worried.
"I wouldn't worry about that Scott. He's told me how people make these big assumptions about him just because he's popular."
"And you believe him?"
"Well...Yeah," said Jean, but with a noticeable amount of uncertainty in her voice. In her mind she kind of wanted to believe him from the start, even though her instincts were telling her otherwise. "Look, I just wanted to let you know and also to say I'm sorry about missing the Danger Room session earlier. I had no idea the party would go on that long."
"It's okay, it's your time to shine Jean, so don't worry about the Danger Room. However, I don't know if Logan will be so understanding."
"Yeah, I kinda figured that," said Jean with a mild laugh. "Well, I'd better get going on my homework. Thanks for listening."
"That's what I'm here for Jean."
She smiled warmly at him before she left, but it didn't help calm Scott's fears about Duncan. He let out a deep sigh as he closed his books and collapsed on his bed. He didn't know where this whole issue was going to lead with Duncan and it didn't sit well with him as he tried to sleep. Only time would tell.
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"Come on guys let's go!" yelled Scott as he grabbed his keys and waited near the door for the others.
Just then Logan walked by looking a bit more irked than usual.
"Hey Logan, have you seen Jean?"
"Yeah...Some kid came by and picked her up a few minutes ago. She told me his name was Duncan," grunted Logan who didn't seem too happy about it.
"Oh," said Scott who was sort of disheartened by this news.
"Somethin' didn't smell right about that kid...Keep an eye on him Cyke, I don't trust him."
"Neither do I," said Scott.
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Jean shifted uncomfortably in Duncan Matthews' car. He had unexpectedly driven up to the institute and offered her a ride to school.
"So you live in a mansion? Man your folks must be loaded Jean," said Duncan as he drove away from the institute.
"It's not a mansion...It's more of a boarding school," replied Jean not wanting to tell him too much about the institute.
"A boarding school for what?" asked Duncan growing a bit confused.
"It's in the name, a boarding school for gifted youngsters. I live there with my friends Scott, Kurt, Kitty, Evan, and Rogue."
"Oh, so you're gifted?" asked Duncan with a bit of intrigue. "In what way might I ask?"
"Well that's my little secret," said Jean with a smirk trying to get him to drop it.
"Oh a secret...Well then I'm gonna have to find out what it is one day," said Duncan confidently.
Jean felt a little anxious over that last comment. She hoped that she wasn't getting in over her head with this whole situation.
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Without Jean, the drive to school had been unusually quiet for Scott. Kurt, Kitty, and Evan talked for much of the way, but Scott didn't partake at all. Rogue, who usually said nothing anyway, picked up on this.
"Kinda quiet today Scott," said Rogue.
"Yeah well...I didn't get a lot of sleep last night," replied Scott even though he knew that was a bogus excuse.
"No duh...Since when have any of us ever gotten a decent night sleep?" replied Rogue not believing Scott's excuse.
"Good point," said Scott in a defeated tone.
Scott didn't say anything after that, he was still too busy thinking.
"Its Jean isn't it?" asked Rogue breaking Scott's train of thought.
"What gave you that idea?" said Scott trying to sound as if he was shocked by her assumption.
Rogue only sighed. She should have known that Scott wouldn't want to say much about something this touchy. Especially when it involved Jean Grey.
"Fine, if ya wanna be that way, go ahead," said Rogue.
Scott was about to say something in response, but Rogue then made it clear that she didn't want to go any further. He could only sigh as his thoughts returned to Jean. Rogue wasn't psychic, but she could tell what Scott was thinking about. Almost everybody in the car knew it...That is, except Scott.
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As the time for first period drew closer, Kitty Pryde headed towards her locker to get her books for English. But as she opened up her locker, she noticed a small slip of paper fall out. Curious, she picked it up and read it.
'Kitty, call me sometimes and maybe we can talk. 555-9364. Lance A.'
"Vhat's that Kitty," said Kurt as he came up from behind her.
"Nothing," said Kitty with a small smile as she stuffed it in her pocket. "Come on Kurt, let's get to class before Principle Kelly goes ballistic."
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As Scott walked across the outside part of the Bayville campus, he was still full of worry. He trusted Jean fully to make the right decisions, but Duncan was another story. Suddenly, his thoughts were interrupted by an unfamiliar female voice.
"Scott...Hey Scott, wait up!"
Scott turned around to see the voice belonging to one of Jean's friends and soccer teammates, Taryn.
"Hey Taryn. If you're looking for Jean I..." but Scott was cut off before he could finish.
"Actually, I didn't want to talk to Jean. I wanted to talk to you," said Taryn with a strange, flirtatious tone in her voice.
"Oh," said Scott a little dumbstruck.
Scott had met Taryn on the first day of school when she bumped in to him and made some offhand comments about his glasses. Since then, Scott didn't talk to her that much even though she had become a good friend with Jean. Unknown to the both of them, however, Jean Grey was watching this scene unfold from a distance. Jean had wanted to talk to Scott about Duncan since last night, but now that wasn't the most pressing issue on her mind anymore. Now she was thinking, what on Earth was Taryn doing with Scott and why did she have that strange look in her eye? Eagerly, Jean watched the two as the scene unfolded before her.
"Listen Scott, I don't think I ever really apologized to you after that little 'incident' on the first day," said Taryn sheepishly.
"Oh that...Well, it's really no big deal," said Scott who never really took that incident that seriously in the first place since. He had heard much worse in the past anyway.
"Thanks Scott..." she said relieved by Scott's forgiveness. "So...Can I ask you one thing?
"Uh...Sure."
"What color are your eyes?"
"My eyes...Well, brown if you must know," said Scott seeing no harm in it, but getting a bit weary at what Taryn was getting at.
"Brown...They must really be something," said Taryn sounding more flirtatious by the second, which was definitely giving Jean a severe anxiety attack.
Then, to Jean's relief, she heard the warning bell ring for first period.
"There's the bell. Well, I guess I'll see you later then Taryn," said Scott as he started to walk away.
"Scott wait," said Taryn.
Scott turned around once again while Jean still listened.
"Do you...Wanna do something after school later today? Just the two of us?" said Taryn in a suggestive manner.
Jean felt she was going to have a heart attack after that. Is Taryn asking Scott out on a date? How could she? They were supposed to be friends.
Scott was almost as equally shocked. Taryn seemed to be a nice girl and all, but he couldn't help but hesitate. Should he say yes? What could the harm in it be? But then he had a strange nagging feeling, a feeling that kept telling him that this wasn't right somehow...A feeling that he couldn't ignore.
"Um...Thanks for offer Taryn, but I don't think I should," said Scott finally.
"Why not?" replied Taryn with noticeable disappointment in her voice.
Scott let out a deep sigh, knowing that this was probably the right choice for him. But there was still another side of him asking why he was doing this. Jean was going out with Duncan, why shouldn't he go out with Taryn?
"I...Just don't think I can," said Scott being as truthful as he could.
"Is there somebody else?" asked Taryn.
Scott hesitated before answering this one, which confirmed it for Taryn.
"I...It's complicated Taryn. Look, you seem like a really nice girl, but I can't," said Scott.
"Well, if you ever change your mind...Call me. I'll see you later Scott," said Taryn with a sigh of disappointment. After that she left and Scott soon followed suite, heading towards his first class.
Jean couldn't help but feel relieved by seeing this, but she felt it was for all the wrong reasons. Scott had turned down Taryn, but she didn't turn down Duncan. What did that make her? Did she make the right decision in going out with him? Why did it feel just so wrong in many ways? Jean tried to clear her head as she walked off to class still thinking about this. She and Scott were always the best of friends and in the times they had known each other it had grown noticeably deeper. Jean owed her life to Scott in many ways. They had both been through so much together and they knew each other so well from the experiences on the street. Neither of them could imagine life without each other. Suddenly Jean felt her thoughts might be confirming what she feared from the start, in that she had made a mistake in agreeing going out with Duncan Matthews.
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AN: Well, things have just gotten a little more complicated for both couples. Stay tuned to see these love triangles develop because they are both far from over! Don't forget to review this story! Post them on fanfiction.net or send them to me directly at slickboy444@aol.com. Thanks for reading and best wishes to you all!
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