xp_logs | Manuel & Jennie Backdated Friday April 11th (Reply)

After Manuel's introduction and this email, Manuel and Jennie meet up friday. During their discussion, Jennie comes to a realization that Manuel may not be the same as before.

Manuel stopped at the door, placing a hand over the knob and turning it. He hadn't thought about initially knocking however, now that he did, his fingers recoiled from the cool metal handle and lifted to press the flat palms of his fingertips to the wooden door. He leaned in close to it, listening for any signs of life before knocking. "Jennie?" he called out into the frame.

There was a muffled thump on the other side of the door, followed by footsteps. There was a slight pause, then, as if the person on the other side were collecting herself. Then the door opened, revealing Jennie. She was different than the girl Manuel had last seen. A little older maybe, a wariness that wasn't there before. Her smile was genuine though, even if there was a slight tremor to it.

"Hey Manny," she said.

He pressed his hand to the door, but did not push it open. Instead, he leaned against the cane and pressed his cheek to the wood, his gaze level with her own. He did not correct her on the pet name. She was very much older, refined and ... defined. There was something within the depths of her eyes he couldn't place, yet he returned her smile, pleased to see her. "Can I come in?"

"Yeah... um," Jennie stepped aside and let him enter the suite, shutting the door behind him as she did so. "Would you like anything? Like, I dunno, tea, bottle of water or something?" She gestured awkwardly in the way that she did when she was nervous, all fluttery hands and shrugged shoulders.

"No, I am fine. Thank you." Manuel slowly moved past her and went to take a seat. "Honestly, I have never been so tired in the six months that I have been awake. The past two days have pounded a permanent headache behind my eyes and it's been nothing that sleep can cure. How are you?"

"Yeah, this place'll do that to you," Jennie said, sitting across from him in the other chair. "I've been all right, I guess. I mean, I'm in college now," she made a face to show how impossible that situation was almost two years ago, "Majoring in dance. You know," she shrugged again. "Doing good, real good." Thanks to you.

He set the cane aside and placed his hands over his knees, observing her quietly. He said nothing of the accident and there was so much that he wanted to ask but resisted. It would all come in due time. It was just a matter of waiting. "Do you have recitals often? I would like to go to one if you do - if that is fine with you?"

"Yeah, yeah, I, uh, I just had one in March. You know, and I know we'll be doing one for the summer program and ...oh god, this is so awkward," she sighed. "Look, I suck at small talk. Um," she ran a hand through her hair and then shifted closer to him, looking him in the eyes. "How are you? I mean, really?"

He wasn't very good at it either. Where once he was practiced in fluent mannerisms, now he struggled to keep the focus of the conversation on mindless things. "I'd rather talk about you than me. I tire of talking about myself. Tell me how your recital went."

"Good," Jennie said. She was well-versed in the 'keep it light' subject change. "Very good. You know, it was regular old ensemble, nothing real fancy. I mean, I would have had a bigger part, but, well, that's the other thing I've been up to. I joined the team last year. All official and everything."

He refrained from rolling his eyes only because he could see she was so very proud of the team she had joined. "Interesting," he started and paused. For almost a minute, Manuel said nothing.

Jennie tilted her head at him. "Manuel?" she said.

He blinked, refocused and cleared his throat. "Yes?"

"You were," she said softly. She could delude herself that he was okay. That the cane was temporary. That nothing else was wrong. The memory was like an eye blink.

"Multiple fractures. Cranial haemorrhaging. Lucky to be alive..." Not even the screech of brakes to dull out the sound of his body hiding the cab of the truck...and then the pavement and her own scream echoing in her ears...

The tears came before she could stop them, and she looked down quickly to hide them, bringing a hand to her face.

His brow creased and his face dropped in concern. "Jennie, what's wrong?"

"'m sorry," Jennie said quickly, trying to control herself. She swiped at her eyes. "I'm sorry," she looked up at him and her eyes were red. "For all of it, Manuel. I'm so, so sorry."

"Jennie," Manuel paused again, letting out a slow and patient sigh. "There is not a thing to apologize for. You need to stop. You don't need this and as everyone likes to point out, I don't deserve your tears."

"It was my fault," she said, wiping at her eyes again, her movements quick and jerky. "My fault. The truck was aiming for me. It was my powers that sent it after me. You ...saved me. And you wound up in a coma because of it."

"And because of it, I am here before you as a changed man. Would you have me be as how I was then? If I kept on the path that I had been going, death would have been knocking sooner." He resisted the impulse to go to her, to comfort her. It was what he would have done before, taken advantage of the situation. But now? Now he remained grounded where he was, convincing her from where he sat that she was not at fault. "My luck had run out long before we did what we did. "I am healthy, I walk, I can talk. I'm mobile. I believe there is nothing more I could ask for. Would you not agree?"

Jennie shook her head in disbelief and made a sound that was halfway between a laugh and a sob. "God, Manuel. This whole time I ... I didn't know what to think. What to say. I couldn't go see you-- I just couldn't," she looked at her hands that were clenched tightly in her lap. "I didn't want that to be how I saw you, in the coma. Maybe that was really selfish of me and I'm sorry. I just--" she rubbed her face and then ran her hands through her hair. She really wasn't sure what to make of the man sitting on the couch across from her. At the very least she expected blame, or some form of resentment. Not ...gratitude?

How strange.

"Thank you," she said, quietly. "Whatever anyone else says about you, you saved my life. So, thank you."

"You're welcome." He wasn't surprised by her confession, but maybe he should have been. It was probably the reason Marius hadn't visited him either. "A lot of people did not visit me, but from you, the apology is not wanted, nor is it needed. Only keep it in mind that you should make it a habit of seeing me more and not less." He offered her a smile, though he was far from picture perfect. While Jennie's excuse for not seeing him was rational, what excuse did the others have?

"Yeah, well, you're here now, so..." Jennie smiled. She swiped at her eyes. "Seriously though, you're always welcome here. I mean, this place is always crawling with teenage girls, but they're all good people."

He smiled faintly but it did not reach his eyes. "If you don't mind me asking, what happened afterwards with the truck? I can only imagine that we were in a lot of trouble. It's nothing I would care to repeat however, staff at Muir are not very talkative concerning topics like this and its better to get it from the source."

Jennie looked down at her clasped hands. "It was covered up. Xavier paid the damages to the Monte Carlo government, and Marius's father reimbursed him, along with extra donations to keep a bunch of beauracrats happy. Yvette was taken here, and is doing well, as you can see. I regained all the weight I lost. Marius found a cure for his condition. Turns out all her needed was a marrow donation from Monet, who just happens to be genetically perfect. Day was saved, hurrah hurrah," she finished quietly.

"I see. Predictable that it would be covered up. I suppose if I were in his position, I would be inclined to do the same for the safety of my beloved school." Except love was not what Manuel had for the school. No longer bitter, but thankful? That would be stretching it. He was somewhere in the middle, pleased to be here but not, though he figured much had to do with the resident's reactions rather than how he really felt about therapy and rehab. "Is this meeting with me a one time occasion and then I will never hear from you again?" he inquired. Obviously she felt guilty and wanted to clear her guilt.

"No," said Jennie, shaking her head. "Not if you don't want it to be. My door is always open to you Manuel," she gave him a small smile. Completely genuine.

"I can assume we'll put this behind us and move forward?" Picking up the cane, Manuel used it to push himself up and shifting it from his left to his right. He leaned on it, locking his elbow and stared down at her though not unkindly. "Unless you have anything else you are in need of addressing, I'm going to leave you alone for now. I'm sure you've had your fill."

Mentally Jennie rolled her eyes. Same old Manuel. "Dude, you don't get to decide things for me, you know this," she leaned back and looked up at him slyly, much more like the Jennie she had been. "You start with me and I'm not above kicking that cane out from under you and sitting on you until you yell uncle, right?"

Then she stood and quickly wrapped one thin arm around his shoulders, giving them a slight squeeze before letting go. "Never stopped thinking about you, you dumbass," she said, kindly. "Get used to the sight of me, because you'll be seeing me, often."