Kevin & Juanita Espinosa | Friday afternoon

[x-wither.livejournal.com]

Kevin tries to make use of himself as a distraction. Mrs. Espinosa surprises him with a very kind offer.

The unceasing tension that was knotting itself happily up Kevin's spine seemed to fluctuate. It would get worse, then better, then worse. He was beginning to attempt to ignore it as best he could, but so many people had him so on edge he was fairly certain if he wasn't teetering unstably on it yet he would be soon. It was really best to find things to do to distract himself. His sculpture session with Yvette had done a world of good as far as his mental health went. He wasn't even as relaxed as he generally was at the school, if one could call that relaxed, but he was a whole lot better than he was before he'd found Yvette.

In light of his improved mood and the spirit of finding distraction, he tried to find something useful to do. He found the potential for distraction in the bustling mother of Angelo. "Hello, Missus Espinosa," he greeted in his most polite tone of voice. His accent, while still very present, was obviously much lighter when he was being more polite. It was a natural shift back closer to his own accent from life before mutation, all soft vowels but otherwise undetectable. "Do you need any help with anything, ma'am?"

Juanita was fussing around the kitchen, trying to make sure it was kept spotless in between keeping a half-dozen hungry students fed and distracted. She glanced over at him with a tired smile. "Hello, Kevin. I was just tidying up."

Way to not answer the question. She looked a bit exhausted, though, and probably distracted as well. Kevin was fairly sure Angelo was somewhere being more official and less lounging around someone else's dad's house so he was hardly going to hold it against her. "Is there anything else you may need some help with, ma'am?"

"...oh." She looked apologetic at her failure to answer properly. "Does anyone want any more food? I know how Kyle eats... some popcorn, maybe, if there are movies on?"

Kevin gave her a small, soft smile in return for her expression. "Ah think everyone's doing, whatever it is everyone does in situations like this. That mostly means Ah don't have much of an idea who's where or doing what," his tone was slightly embarrassed, as if he knew he should have been paying more attention to a situation which would have been easily grasped if he was looking around at the obvious. "Ah'm not sure, but Ah don't think anyone's quite got the appetite here that Kyle does," not that he really knew a whole lot regarding how much Kyle ate. Not being particularly close to nearly anyone tended to result in things like ignorance of general things like food intake and the such. He did know Kyle cooked and had a slew of things he couldn't eat, after all.

"Mostly try to keep themselves occupied and keep their minds off what's happening and wherever their teachers are now", she told him wryly. "Have you not been staying with the others?"

Kevin shook his head slowly, almost trying to turn the volume down on the answer. "No, ma'am. Ah do better on mah own. Though, Ah did put Yvette to work this morning. She's got this tree now that she might be a little in love with. Too bad when we get back Ah'll have to borrow it away from her to finish it." He sort of forgot that Mrs. Espinosa, not being at the school, would have no idea what he was referring to or have any inclination that he was speaking of sculpture.

The comment that he needed to finish it gave her at least something of a hint. "I'm sure she'll love it even more when it's done. What's it made of?"

His reply, amazingly enough, was preceded by a smile. "Metal. It's one of the few things Ah can touch without gloves and something Yvette doesn't immediately destroy. Her hair, when she's calm anyway, turns into these ringlets. She looked like that when Ah first met her and it gave me an idea. We made her a weeping willow with metal ribbon ringlets for the cascading leaves." The image of Yvette's sheer joy when he'd just told her what he was planning made his smile broaden a little. "When we get back and everything's calm Ah'm gonna see if Ah can get Forge to help me make it into a sort of fountain. That way Yvette will have the only weeping willow that actually weeps."

"That sounds lovely", Juanita said warmly with a smile in return, pleased to see him enthusiastic about something. "And I'm sure Forge can do it very easily."

"Yeah, Ah'm sure it's sorta like breathing to Forge. You know, he has that massive brain and all. We're going to make a bigger one. It'll be a fountain too, but we'll probably have to use the machine shop to make it. When it's finished we're gonna give it to Miss Munroe for her gardens. And we made a waterfall with ringlets for water. When that's rigged up to have water then we're going to send it back here. Ah just figure with taking us all in on short notice, especially two of the most physically dangerous, that Mister Jones deserves a little thank you, at least." He deserved far, far more in Kevin's opinion, but he liked small gestures. After all, they seemed to mean more. Still, letting Yvette and Kevin come to your home knowing between the two of them the entire thing could be shreds and dust was pretty major. At least it was to Kevin.

"I'm sure he'll appreciate it very much", Juanita said sincerely. "He's a good man, as you said, to take everyone in this way - though I know the two of you are taking all the care you can not to cause damage."

Kevin nodded and did a mental sweep. "Ah think we've managed to leave everything intact so far." Yvette had it rougher than he did, though. Long hair was harder to keep away from things, not to mention it was only Kevin's skin that was an issue, not his everything.

"I've noticed", she said with an approving smile. "But you know no one here would blame you for a little damage, provided you were still taking as much care as you are now to avoid it?"

Kevin gave Mrs. Espinosa a sympathetic smile which suggested there was something she simply did not understand. "With all due respect, ma'am, but Ah don't think it's really about whether or not others would blame us for either of us. It's about if we would blame us and Ah know Ah would. Ah reckon Yvette would as well. It's not about being able to slip up sometimes with us. We slip up and people might die. It could be a couch or a door or a table, but Ah know Ah look at that object and Ah see what would happen if it was a person. Yvette's got it worse than me and she's younger on top of it. Ah suspect if any damage is done by either of us no one can expect us to let that fact go too easily." Kevin really didn't like stating things so plainly or being so open about things relating to his powers. It all gave him this knotted feeling in his stomach, to be honest. Mrs. Espinosa was a nice lady, though. and it was only fair that she really understand. It wasn't about the destruction, it was about what could be destroyed.

There were some things that could only be understood, really, if you knew them from the inside, but Juanita could at least listen and take in what he was saying. "Of course. I'm sorry, Kevin, I shouldn't have said that. I didn't mean to suggest you should take it lightly."

He gave the woman the most reassuring smile he could manage, though it was difficult with the knots his stomach was in and the tension curling up his spine. "Ah didn't mean to make you feel about about saying it, ma'am. Ah just thought maybe you should understand. For Yvette and for me, it's never about if other people will forgive us. Ah don't forgive myself half as much as others seem to be willing to. But don't go feeling bad for us, ma'am. It could be worse." Like jail worse.

"I suppose it could", she said quietly, watching him. "Are you all right, Kevin, with so many people in the house?" After what he'd just said... it seemed a reasonable question.

Perceptive, he supposed that came with being a mom. "Ah'm alright." Okay, sort of half a lie right there. He gave her a weak smile. "Ah mean, Ah'll be alright. It gets better, it gets worse." Kevin shrugged a little because, really, what could he do about it? He had to be able to function, right?

"You know", she started slowly, "if I'm going to be here helping with the others, my house is empty. If you wanted some space..."

"Thank you, Missus Espinosa, Ah appreciate the offer. Ah think Ah'll be okay, though. Ah wouldn't want to leave Yvette anyway. Sometimes it's better having a fellow freak around than to be the only freak among freaks, if you'll pardon my phrasing." After a moment of silence he hesitantly added, "Though, maybe Ah could take you up on that offer later? If Ah need it?"

"Of course", Juanita said gently. "Just come and find me if you do change your mind. And Yvette's welcome to go too, if she wants to - she's been to the house before."

"That's very kind of you, ma'am, thank you. Ah'll keep it in mind, if we need it." He gave her a smile and filed the offer away in his head.