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The morning went well. Jean finally sat down with Gabriel and had a decent breakfast and chat. Things were put into motion to get things done, along with more training on the horizon when she was better. But right now? She just needed some fresh air, something to kill the time while she waits for her body to heal, cold air usually gets the blood slowing, and once she was inside? She'd get it going again.
With her hands and forearms fully bandaged, even along her waist and parts of her chest, she moves around the outside of the grounds rather slowly. Each step was met with an irritating pain, a slight wince here, a suck of her breath there.. and a book held within her hand that she holds outright with her hand to read. She has to stop to turn the page, and yet she continues on, occasionally drawing her bandaged hand up to wipe away at her cheek. Heck, she even has a tiny burn upon her chin. And that itself was starting to itch.
*
Overhead, the sound of it starts low, in the distance; a dull roar, which grows louder as the source draws closer. Should one look up, the fiery explosive exhaust, not unlike that of a Juno rocket, is easy to see in the relatively clear sky. And it's trajectory isn't carrying it overhead, but rather down toward the ground. Fast.
Goggles over his eyes and with a lot more flight control than he had the /last time/ he made an entrance like this, Sam Guthrie, AKA Cannonball, careens toward the Earth at breakneck speed, only to slow to a more manageable velocity and drop the last several feet to the ground at the last second. Thank God for that blast field and the compensation for inertial effects. He lands on his feet, into a bit of a crouch, some distance from where Jean has meandered.
"Phew. Glad Ah didn't wreck the lawn this time around," he mutters to himself, a smile forming on his lips as he looks around. Home sweet home? Sort of? And then he turns to spot Jean, and that smile gets even wider as he picks up his feet and hurries toward her. "Jean!"
*
"I.. do not.." She says aloud, prostrating herself as if she were attempting to call out as if she were on stage. But, perhaps she could hear that mind before she hears his descent, turning almost immediately to allow her hands to shield her eyes from the sun. Oh..
"Oh.. my god.."
Yes, it was Sam! Her heart nearly drops, skips two beats, does flips and flops and possibly throws up. Even as he lands upon the ground, spewing dirt everywhere which.. happens to get a bit in her robe and on her hair. She coughs a little, waving her hands a bit as he calls out her name.. "Sam?" Just to be sure, at least to be sure that the Phoenix wasn't playing tricks on her.
"Sam!?" Holy.. crap..
*
Despite the cold weather, Sam is still very warm from the blast field, practically steaming in the winter air. His feet carry him quickly to meet Jean, and if it weren't for her bandaged state, he might have actually tackled her in his excitement. "Sorry 'bout the landing.. gettin' better, but Ah'm still workin' on it." Certainly didn't mean to spray dirt all over the place, but it's still better than cratering on the lawn, right? He's all smiles, seeing Jean after so many months. "Ah'm back!" He moves closer, very tentatively; not sure how she'll react to him, what with his rather abrupt departure. If she's open to it, there's at least a hug waiting for her. If not.. well, he'll be yet another disappointed Kentuckian.
*
Those months without Sam were hard. She was often left wondering if she had done something wrong. Then everything fell apart when Logan nearly crippled her due to her harming him, and everything else in between everything else.. and everything else in between that. But she really didn't know what to feel, should she.. yell, scream, or cry? Does she even have a right to be angry? Either way, as close as he was, she couldn't help but to throw her arms around him, lifting.. no, near flying within the air just to match his tall height, and remaining careful of her bandages.
*
Whatever confusion Jean might be feeling, it's very simple for Sam. He's happy to be back, happier still to find his girl waiting for him on the lawn, as if she knew he was coming, or the powers that be had arranged events just so. It practically radiates off him, as much as the warmth of his body in the chilly air. He embraces her tightly against him, as she jumps up to match his height, "Ah'm so happy to see you, Jeannie," he says, spinning around slowly with her in his arms. "Ah missed you." And then, after a brief pause, he moves to press his lips against hers, as if nothing had happened, as if he hadn't disappeared for months. As if she were still his girl.
*
As he lifts her into the air, she lets out a little squeak in surprise. The levitation act that she put up was immediately dropped, and there was the allowance of him twirling her about as she holds tightly to him. Her head buries into his neck to hide the look of shock and disbelief, and yet.. as he peels her away and kisses her, her heart nearly melts, and breaks all at once.
Her head twists away to break from the kiss, her hands upon his shoulders to push him back as her feet dangle and nearly kick at the air. "I need to get down.. I.. I need down.." She stammers out, near frantic. "..put me down!"
*
Sam's (understandably?) taken aback by her sudden need to get away from him. When she resists his kiss, he doesn't try to force it, and immediately lets her down when she starts to panic; upsetting Jean was the last thing he wanted to do, but there's definite confusion on his face as he sets her back on the ground, even backing away a step or two. "Did Ah do something wrong, Jean? Ah'm sorry.. Ah just, Ah'm so happy t' see you again." He's not completely clueless; he left without warning or explanation those months ago, and it was a bit naive to think he could just show up and things would be as they were. But he was hoping. In hindsight, maybe a letter would have been a good first start..
*
Yeah, no shit! A letter! Something! He was here one day, gone the next! Nothing..
"Did you do something wrong?" Jean asks, her brows genuinely raised as if she were frightened. Not of him, but of her self and what she would say. "I.. I'm happy to see you too.. Sam but.. you left.." The book within her hand falls to the floor, in favor for both bandaged hands to cover her face. She tries to calm herself, even by turning away from him to put a little distance in between the two.
"You.. you didn't say a thing.. you left me.."
*
"… Ah'm sorry, Jeannie," Sam practically stutters out as Jean brings it all into bluntly stated reality, how he messed up in such a colossal way. His smile is gone, replaced with a slow welling of tears threatening his eyes. "Ah had t' go. My ma, she got sick.. and my family, they needed me. When Ah heard 'bout her, Ah just.. went." Not a word to anyone. Sam's family's always been the most important thing in the world to him, surely Jean would understand, but he's not so dense that he thinks the explanation would make her forgive him for it just like that. "Ah should have written, or somethin'.." You know, some word, some explanation? "Ah promise you, Jeannie, Ah'm not goin' anywhere now. Ah'm here, and Ah'm here t' stay." He offers a weak smile, and leans down to pick up her book for her before lifting his eyes to look at the girl again, for some sign.
*
She keeps her back turned towards him as she draws her hands upright to wrap around herself. She was feeling it now, all of that repressed sadness that was put upon him when he left. "That's.. it?" She asks, turning.. anger full in her eyes. "We made plans to see your family.." Jean nearly shouts out. "If you told me, I would have gone with you! I would have stayed with you, no matter how long it would have took!"
Her head shakes a little, her hand raising. Yes, he should have written.
"Yes.. then.. then maybe.." She huffs a breath, trying her best not to cry. "I.. I wouldn't have felt that something was wrong with me. That.. I wouldn't have thought that maybe I was too messed up in my head to be with you.. or.." She half-sobs softly, her hand lifting to wipe a little under her nose. "..that I was too dangerous or just a.. evil thing or.. I wanted.. I tried.. if I were with you I wou.." She sniffs hard, attempting to compose herself. "You.. You don't ge.. I can't. I just can't Sam.. it's too late!"
*
Her words hit him like a truck. ".. Ah messed up, Jeannie. You din't do nothin' wrong, it was all me. Ah panicked when Ah heard about m' ma. Wasn't thinkin' straight, and by the time Ah got there, Ah couldn't just leave 'em again." He doesn't mean to be making excuses, but they come out regardless, and his eyes leak a little bit with the revelation that just because he comes back and says his sorries, doesn't mean he gets to have everything he wanted back too. Time to man up, Sam Guthrie. He composes himself a little bit, straightening his back and standing to his full height. The look of sadness and disappointment remains, but he's stopped himself from degenerating into a weepy mess. "Ah understand, Jeannie.. Ah'd give anything to take back what Ah did, how Ah left things, but Ah can't. Just.. want y' t' known that Ah'm sorry for it all." He pauses, and then holds out the book to her. "If y' don't want me t' stay, Ah won't."
*
"I understand.. Sam, I just.. I just don't get why you didn't think of me too.." She quiets down mostly, taking those few steps forward to gently take the book from his hand. "It.. it's family. So it's alright.." She stammers out. She wipes away a little at her cheeks, then draws in a breath, shaking her head as she admonishes his apology and accepts it all the same. Everything was fine.
"It's.. I don't want you to leave. This is your home too, stay. I'm sure everyone misses you." She smiles a little then, dropping her hands down in front of her. "Is your mother okay now? Your brothers and sisters?"
*
"Ah didn't mean t' upset you, Jeannie," Sams says, looking down at the ground rather than into her eyes. He releases the book into her possession, and doesn't try to get closer to her this time. Sad Cannonball. "She's okay now. Least she says so. Pretty much forced me t' go once she was up an' about. Said Ah needed to get back and finish m' schoolin', and all." There's no arguing with Ma Guthrie once she makes up her mind about something, after all. "What about you, Jeannie? You gettin' on okay here? Lots o' news comin' outta th' city, but by the time word gets out t' Kentucky.. well, I learned to take most of it with a pretty big ol' grain o' salt." He smiles weakly at that again. "Giants and demons and all that." In truth, he isn't sure exactly to believe these days.
*
"It.. it's okay." She finally breathes out, calming down into a more sensible conversation. She takes a little step forward, dipping her head to catch his gaze, attempting a bright smile as she used to. "See?" But she does back away, nodding her head at the news of his mother, then moves aside to begin to walk towards the house with the hopes that he'd follow.
"I'm.. doing okay." She states. "I'm in college now, at the Frost Institute. I passed all of my tests, so.. I'm enrolled and I'm going to be a psychologist. So I'm going to help people while.. you know.." She was quiet for a time, then looks towards him with a serious gaze. "All of that happened, Sam. It wasn't safe here for a while. But we're okay, for the most part. Everyone is doing fine."
*
"Wow," is all Sam can say to all of that for a moment. He moves to walk along beside Jean, keeping a respectful distance. It's all he can do to keep from trying to hold her hand, or slip an arm around her waist, like they used to. But she's made it pretty clear. Too late. And to her empathic abilities, Jean would be able to tell there's disappointment there, in himself more than anything. But also some comfort in the fact that at least she's not shutting him out completely. Small victories. "Y'always were a smart cookie, Jeannie. Proud of you, and not surprised at all. You'll be great," he says, offering a smile. "Pretty crazy times we're livin' in now, huh? Aliens? Demons? Next thing'll be people comin' back from the future, right?" He's joking, which is clear by the tone of his voice, but it really is the next logical step in the progression of utter insanity. "Ah'm gonna need to talk to th' Professor again, get m'self settled in, and get back t' trainin' if Ah'm gonna be of much help with all that."
*
She could feel it. She was always attuned to Sam's feelings naturally, it was something that clicked with the two of them and hard to separate. But the stroll she keeps is slow, her gaze looking up towards him, a little smile produced before she looks away, keeping her jaw tense as she draws in a breath. "Thank you.." She murmurs quietly, her head nodding almost eagerly as she stops, her hand reaching out to grasp at his briefly to stop his movement.
"I.. don't think he'll refuse you but.." She looks rather uncomfortable. Should she tell him about Gabriel, or remain quiet. But.. there was the fact that he was living in her room.. "I.. I'm seeing someone. And.. it's really serious. I love him, and he loves me.. and I didn't want you to find out by seeing us together, you know?"
*
Sam stops when Jean stops, and the move to take his hand comes as a surprise, but he certainly doesn't fight it. There's the hint of a smile before she speaks, before he notices her look of discomfort. Whatever was coming, it wasn't going to be good. And then she breaks the news, and his heart sinks. It takes him a moment to process it, and he nods his head slowly. "Of course," he murmurs quietly before lifting his eyes back to her. He forces a little smile, and lets out a barely perceptible sigh. "Ah guess Ah was expecting that," he says. "Ah'm happy for you then," even though he's hurt to hear it; Sam's one of those genuinely nice guys who really means what he says, and isn't just saying it to sound like one of those genuinely nice guys. "Ah won't make trouble for ya, or him, if that's something y'r worried about. Ah couldn't imagine bein' here and things bein' awkward between us, or not bein' friends.. so they won't be, and we will be," he says, the smile strengthening a little bit. It'll take him some time, but he's a big boy, and he'll learn to shove his feelings down to the bottom of his boot like a real man. "Maybe Ah've got some work to do to get y'r trust back, but no matter what happens, Ah'll always be in y'r corner, Jeannie." And it probably doesn't need to be said, but if this new boyfriend of hers steps out of line, Sam will be right there to rocket him into orbit for a very long fall.
*
"Sam.." She says, listening to him speak, her own tears building up and wanting to yell at him until the cows come home. But that would only serve to make her feel better. Not him. His hand was drawn up, her bandaged fingers resting atop of his as she squeezes him gently. "I.. I wasn't worried about you causing trouble or picking a fight with him." She answers honestly. "You are a good, kind, and caring man. And I was lucky.. like any girl would be lucky to have you." She looks up towards him and smiles. "I.. I just didn't want your heart to break and.." Oh hell. She didn't know what she was saying, but she does manage a few tears, her head bobbing quickly.
"You don't have to try hard, okay? I still trust you.. I.. oh hell.." Instead of continuing to speak, she quickly teeters upon the tips of her toes to pull the man down into a hug, a tight.. meaningful hug. "Don't you ever, ever.. ever leave again. You hear me Sam Guthrie?"
*
"Ah know, Jeannie," Sam replies, fighting back tears of his own. He lets himself be drawn into the hug, and returns it with just as much effort, even lifting her up off the ground a little bit again. "Ah know." He holds here a moment while she speaks, gives him her orders. "Ah hear you. Ah'm not goin' anywhere. And if Ah have to, no matter what.. you'll be th' first to know when, where, an' why." And then he puts her down, giving her hand a quick squeeze before releasing it. She's not his any more, and he needs to accept it, move on, and fight that urge to try to win her back. Time to let go, and grow.
*
She allows that hug to linger for a little bit longer, her feet lightly kicking until she feels herself touch the ground. As he gently pulls away from her, she still holds onto that hand of his as she begins to tug him towards the mansion. It was all bittersweet, his arrival at such a troubled time, but it was one of those lights in a million dark spaces that occupy Jean's soul. "Good. Now come on. I want to cook you something. And you don't have to worry about anything, I've gotten better, thanks to you."
*