Log: Bobby and Jay, Tuesday

[x-coldhands.livejournal.com]

Tuesday afternoon, Bobby goes looking for Terry in the music room and finds someone else he's been wanting to talk to instead. Jay finds out he's not the only one that thinks Terry's dead wrong for standing up for Tommy.


There were two places one could find Jay if they were looking for him: either in the music room or Sam's suite. Sam was nice enough to agree to drive away any potential visitors, so really the only place he clould be found was the music room. And even, he only went there when he thought no one else was around.

He sat by the window, absently strumming his guitar and humming. Just a random melody, nothing special. His mind was wandering, replaying the events of the past couple of weeks. He wondered if he should have done anything differently.

No. He was right, everyone else was wrong. As usual.

Bobby wasn't looking for Jay when he headed to the music room. He was looking for Terry, hoping to spend some time with her before he went home for Christmas, vowing that this time, they would talk. It wouldn't be about sex. At all. Well, maybe a little kissing.

He pushed the door of the music room open and stopped, spotting Jay. "Oh. Sorry, didn't know you were in here." Terry's tear-streaked face flashed before his eyes, a memory of the other day when she'd come to him after talking to Jay. "Uh. How you doing?" Kind of a lame opening, but oh well.

Jay looked up and shook his hair away from his face. Oh. Bobby. Jay frowned. The boy scout was trying to be a peace kepper, no doubt. "Peachy," he replied. "You?"

"Well, nobody's thrown me through a wall or anything in the last few weeks, so I can't complain." Bobby slipped into the room and closed the door behind him, keeping a fair distance between them. "So...Terry told me you two had a fight."

Jay briefly glared at the intruder before looking down at the guitar on his lap. "Yeah. And you're here ta tell me she's hurtin', aren't'cha?"

Bobby hesitated. That had been part of the plan, true. "...No. Not exactly. I mean..." He stepped closer. "She is, but. I wanted to tell you that I understand. I mean, I just don't get how she can defend that asshole." He sighed and ran a hand through his hair, remembering yesterday, listening to her yell at him--and then with the tears still drying on her cheeks, defending him yet again. It just made no sense to him.

"You know, why don't'cha just . . . wait, what?" Jay looked up again. He'd been expecting Terry's boyfriend to chew him out. That last thing he'd think he'd hear was for Bobby to be on his side.

"I said I get it. I totally get it. It's like she's hypnotized, or something. She's completely irrational about that bigot--swears he's better than he seems, even after what he said yesterday." Bobby shrugged, sinking into a chair a few feet from Jay. "I wish you two could work it out--it'd make her a lot happier--but I don't blame you for not wanting anything to do with her." He was having a hard enough time not taking Terry's defense of Tommy personally. He couldn't imagine how much harder it must be for Jay, with his very personal reason for hating the FoH bastard.

"Ah . . . thanks." Jay offered Bobby a brief smile. "Why's she so convinced that he can be changed? Have y'all talked about it?"

Bobby rolled his eyes. "She claims she knows him, knows he's better than this. Whatever." He kicked at a nearby table leg, frustration in every line of his body. "How many chances does the little shit get, anyway? He burns down businesses, sics his friends on people at the fair...not to mention what he did to you--and now just because he's a mutant, we're supposed to all welcome him with open arms? I don't get her sometimes!"

"How d'you know what he did ta me?" Jay put his guitar down so he wouldn't hit something with it. "Terry told you?"

Bobby froze. "Uh. Yeah. ...After the thing at the fair," he said, looking over at Jay. "I didn't know you didn't know I knew." Okay, this was starting to sound like a sitcom. "...Sorry."

Jay only fumed for a minute. Of all the people who could find out, Bobby was the last one he should keep it from. Hell, even Marius knew. No harm, no foul, really. Not that it made Jay any happier with Terry, though. "S'all right. So you see why Ah'm so pissed, then."

Bobby nodded. "Yeah. That's what I'm saying. I don't know if I could forgive her for defending him either, in your shoes. Hell, I'm having a hard enough time doing it now, and it's not even personal, for me." Or at least, it was less personal.

"It's like, she and Forge are so convinced that people can change if ya just give 'em a chance. And Ah want to agree, y'know? But how am Ah supposed ta forgive him? How can Ah in good conscience put behind what he did?" Jay sighed and hit his head on the wall behind him.

"And hey. Maybe they're right. I mean, I know people can change...if they want to." The thing was, Bobby hadn't seen any indication that Tommy wanted to. "You want my honest opinion, Jay?" Bobby looked at him, waiting for the slight nod, then said, "I don't think you should. He hasn't asked for your forgiveness, he hasn't seemed at all sorry...I sure as hell wouldn't forgive him, if I were you." Maybe that made Bobby not a good person, but if Tommy wasn't even sorry, why should Jay torture himself trying to find forgiveness for the bastard?

"That's what Ah said!" Jay exclaimed, throwing his arms up in exhasperation. "Forge says it doesn't matter 'cuz it doesn't change anythin'. But it changes everythin', y'know? Maybe Ah'm petty, but Ah reckon that if a body wants ta change, then they haveta start by realizin' they were wrong, and that involves sayin' sorry."

"I completely agree. The whole 'I thought it was the right thing at the time' argument?" Bobby snorted, rolling his eyes in disgust. "Ignorance doesn't excuse bad behavior. And Tommy Jones has gone way beyond simple 'bad behavior'." He sighed and leaned back in the chair, closing his eyes. "I don't know how to make her see how pointless it is to keep trying with him..." he said softly. "What the hell is it about him?" He cracked an eye open and looked at Jay, wondering if the other boy might know something he didn't. After all, Jay had been around when Terry'd dated the guy. "Is she still in love with him, or something?" The question was barely above a whisper.

Jay hadn't really considered that possibility before. "Ah don't think so," he replied slowly, thinking about it. It did make sense, though. Stick by your man, and all that. "Ah can't see why. He stomped all over her heart."

Bobby replied without thinking, his tone angry, "He stomped all over your face, and that didn't deter her..." He stole a glance at Jay, realizing that was just the teeniest bit insensitive. "...Sorry, man."

"There's that, too." Jay frowned. Was Terry choosing the man who broke him over her best friend and adoring boyfriend? Not even she could be that loony. "So you two're havin' it out again, huh?"

"No. Well. Kinda." Bobby shrugged. "She knows I don't like him. Usually we just avoid the subject altogether, but yesterday...she came running to me after telling him what a bastard he is. Not that that changed her 'oh he can change, really!' tune one bit..."

Jay just shook his head. "There's nothin' Ah can do. He's just gonna keep on lettin' her down and at this rate, no one's gonna want ta listen to her gripin' about it. But it's her choice."

Bobby nodded and got to his feet. "Yeah. It's her choice. And I'll still be there for her, even if I think it's a supremely bad one." Whether they were dating or not, Bobby would remain Terry's friend. Most likely. "Anyway. I'd just wanted to tell you that I'm on your side on this one, and if you want to talk..."

"Thanks, man. Oh, hey," he called as Bobby walked away. "Ah'm up in Sam's room for a coupla days. Y'know, 'til things cool down." Until Forge stops being a giant jackass. "So, y'know, if you're lookin' for me, that's probably where Ah'll be."

Bobby hesitated, then nodded. "Cool. I'll talk to you later." He smiled and strode to the door, deciding he wasn't going to look for Terry right away, after all. He was going to take a walk, think for a bit.