xp_logs | Fairground, Bobby and Terry.

While Nate lectures the boys and rounds up the rest of the students, Bobby helps Terry back to the car while she does her best not to fall apart.

Bobby was nearly carrying her by the time they got back to the Jeep in the grassy field that served as the fair's parking lot. Terry was shaking too badly to really support herself but she insisted that she be allowed to walk. She'd started to cry at some point and hated every second of the weakness. Josh had done her very little physical harm but she was badly scared and clung to Bobby like her lifeline even as she tried to pretend she was strong.

It would be a few minutes before anyone else was rounded up, even if Nathan used telepathy--most of the students would be having fun, playing games, riding rides... "It's okay," Bobby said quietly, leaning against the Jeep and pulling her against him again. "You're safe now."

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't..." Terry pressed her face to his chest, hiding her tears. "I'm okay, really. I'm okay." If she said it enough times, maybe she'd believe it. Anything was better than thinking about what could have happened if Tommy had made it there before Bobby. If there had been two instead of one...

Bobby gently took her chin in his hand, lifting her face. "I'm here," he whispered, and then, before he could think about it, he was lowering his mouth to hers, kissing her softly, sweetly.

Terry's eyes widened in surprise then fluttered closed. She could hardly have held him more tightly but was aware suddenly of just how close he really was. She sighed softly as he drew back, blinking up at him with wide blue eyes that still shimmered with tears.

Bobby smiled at her and caressed her cheek. "I'll keep you safe," he said quietly. "I promise."

Terry lifted a hand to her lips. "Bobby..." Why had he done that? Not that she was complaining but...was that supposed to be a brotherly kiss? Did he mean it? Her heart was pounding in a way that had nothing to do with the fight. She looked away from him. "I know you will." It was barely a whisper.

Bobby tightened his arm around her waist, tucking a bit of hair behind her ear. His brain was demanding to know what he was doing, but that wasn't what he was listening to at the moment. This felt right, somehow.

He was reluctant to change to an unpleasant subject, but the question kept niggling at the back of his mind, and so he gave up and voiced it. "So...you knew them?" he asked gently.

She look up at him through her lashes, ashamed that she had to say yes. "Tommy...the one who came later. I dated him for a while. The other one is Josh." She huddled closer, "Tommy...he beat up Jay. Because we're mutants. They're Friends of Humanity."

Bobby stiffened, suddenly wanting to go back and...and hurt them, the way he'd been hurt... "You dated someone from Friends of Humanity?" he asked, his voice low and incredulous. He couldn't look at her suddenly, not believing that she could have...that she would have.... And yet, his arms never loosened from around her, keeping her safe and protected, his.

Terry trembled against the disapproval. "I didn't know. I wouldn’t have lied about being a mutant." She wanted to believe that. "I ...it's my fault, I know. If I had told him, he'd never have hurt Jay. He'd have broken up with me and Jay would have been okay."

Bobby took a deep breath, the words 'I didn't know' replaying in his head, relief flowing over him. "Shh...it's not your fault." He had only the vaguest idea what she was talking about, but he was certain that it couldn't have been her fault, whatever it was. He stroked her hair comfortingly, to stop the trembling.

"I'm sorry," she explained earnestly, "I should have stopped it. I was just...so I didn't tell him." There was far too much to explain, no way to make simple what had happened. "I suppose I've earned this."

"Don't say that," Bobby answered, a bit more vehemently than he'd intended. "You didn't earn any of this." Again he felt a near-compulsion to go back and make those boys bleed, only the reason was very different this time. He kissed her again, much harder this time, and there's no way this kiss could be mistaken as brotherly.

She whimpered and gasped in shock and pain. Her face was quite sore from being punched though she wouldn't have dreamed of complaining. She kissed him back, tentatively, not sure this wasn't a dream. "Bobby," she whispered against his mouth, wonderingly.

"Shhh..." Bobby wasn't ready for questions. He wasn't sure what he was doing, and he probably shouldn't have done it, not when everyone's emotions were running so high. He pulled back and sighed, hugging her again. "Nathan should be here soon."

She continued to look at him wide-eyed as she nodded. "I...think I should sit down now." Terry carefully pried her fingers off him, transferring her grip to the Jeep and easing away. She no longer felt like she couldn't stand though she was sore all over. "Do you have the keys?"

Bobby dug in his pockets, producing the key and unlocking the door for her. Distraction. Yes, good. Delay the thinking about what he just did. And with who, more importantly. "Are you feeling okay? Dizzy or anything? It could be a concussion..." He was babbling suddenly, and he knew it, but he couldn't help it.

She climbed into the passenger seat slowly and closed her eyes, moving her hand over her stomach to see how much it hurt. "I'll be okay," she said quietly, "I'm not dizzy. I just need to rest." And think. Try to figure out why he'd kissed her and if he'd do it again.

Bobby watched her anxiously for a moment, then leaned against the jeep with a sigh, raking his hand through his hair. Where the hell was Nathan?