Title: Hardly So
Fandom: X-Men
Characters: Scott and Ororo
Disclaimer: I don’t own any of them… not making any money.
Archive: At Ink-and-Quill
Summary: Scott is missing Jean and turns to someone he feels most comfortable with, only to find that maybe she knows a little bit more about him than he knows about himself.
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“I brought you some lemonade,” Ororo said to the legs that were sticking out from underneath the car. Oh, she knew the rest of him was under there somewhere. It’s just that this was pretty much all that anyone saw of him anymore. She pulled up a chair and waited for him to roll out from below the car. When he did, she offered him the glass and a smile. “I thought you would be thirsty. You’ve been in here for hours.”
He merely nodded and sat up, taking the glass she offered him. “Thanks. I was thirsty, I suppose.”
“You spend too much time in here, Scott. These cars are no substitute for human interaction. You need it.”
He drank down the tart liquid and handed the glass back to her. “I’m not substituting anything. I get human interaction. You visit with me. What more do I need?”
He laid back down and started to roll under the car. “Scott, wait. I would like to talk.”
He sighed. He enjoyed her visits, but he could really do without these little pep talks that she felt the need to have. They always ended with him becoming frustrated. Though really, he wouldn’t trade them for anything. “Ororo, I’m fine.”
She gazed at him intently. “You may be. I believe you want to be. But Scott, you need to spend time with other people than myself.”
He shrugged. “I talk to the kids. I talk to the professor. Who else do I need to spend time with? No one.”
“What about Kurt? What about Logan? What about any other adult in this school?”
Reaching out, he placed a hand on her arm. “I spend time with the people I want to spend time with.” He lifted a brow and gave her a soft smile. “You… and the professor. You worry about me too much.” He gave her arm a squeeze before moving away.
“Scott,” she said nothing else as he moved back under the car. He spent quite a bit of time with her, every moment he could, actually. “I’ll leave you to your work.”
He rolled out quickly, saying her name as he did. “Please stay. Just sit here.”
She sighed. “Sit. Here? In the garage? It’s hardly the place for relaxing.”
He looked at her for a long moment. “Would you rather relax with me say… at a restaurant in the city. We could go shopping. Maybe catch a movie?”
She looked at him for the longest time. It was obvious to her what was happening. Jean had been gone for well over a year now. She was the only woman Scott spent any time with. And though she cared for him deeply, she knew what he was feeling for her wasn’t exactly love. He may have thought so, but the ‘date’ he’d just suggested was more what Jean would enjoy than Ororo. “I have a better idea. What if we made some popcorn and watched a movie here? Maybe something classic. Casablanca perhaps?”
He smiled. “I can do that.” Picking up a rag, he wiped his hands to remove some oil that had gotten on them. “I’ll grab a shower; you grab the popcorn?”
Returning his smile, she nodded. “I can do that.” With that, she left him to pick up his tools before going to his room to shower.
It was as the hot water was rolling down his back that he was overwhelmed with thoughts. What was he doing? He couldn’t be falling in love with Ororo. Storm? His ‘second-in-command’. They worked together, taught together, but what interests did they share? He wasn’t really fond of Casablanca. And he knew that when he went downstairs, Kurt and possibly Bobby and Rogue would be downstairs, watching the movie with them as well.
Jean always made sure that movie time was just for them. But then, she was also fond of going out. They shared interests.
And no matter what he wanted to believe, Ororo would never love him. It just didn’t work like that for them. For a while, he’d wanted to believe. He’d wanted to believe that there was love, that these feelings were more than friendship. They’d laughed, teased, and even touched more than they had in the past. But why? Because he’d needed the contact, and she knew it.
Rinsing his hair, he turned off the water and grabbed for a towel. As he dried himself off, he realized what she had done in the garage. She knew where he had been leading with his offer of dinner and a movie. She also knew why and by giving the counter-offer she was letting him know she understood.
He dressed and headed out of his room. It was love, but not in the aspect he’d been thinking. Ororo was his friend. They had shared a deep bond not only through their work, but through their love of Jean. What he had felt for the doctor had been love. What he felt for Ororo was nothing more than a deep kinship.
By the time he made his way to the sitting room, he heard all the voices. Sure enough, he heard Kurt, Bobby, Rogue, and a few others. Colossus… and was that Professor Xavier? He smiled. Of course, the professor had mentioned once that Casablanca was one of his favorite movies.
She’d duped him but good. As he entered the room, he had to try not to laugh. He spent too much time alone. She’d pointed that out, and he blew her off. Thinking he was smart, he’d invited her out on a date. He’d thought nothing of her offer, other than that she didn’t want to go out. But what she’d really wanted to do was get him with other people. She wanted to make him spend time with them and used the opportunity to finesse him into doing it.
Sitting beside her, he smiled. “You’re good,” he said as he grabbed a hand full of popcorn. “Very good.”
Her smile was genuine as she patted his leg. “Of course I am.”
The End
Tags: angst, drama, ororo/storm, rating: pg, scott/cyclops