Log: Laurie & Manny

[x-wallflower-.livejournal.com]

Posting early due to timezones.

Manny escorts Laurie back to her room after Prom. Things don't exactly go as planned.



Laurie walked up the stairs toward her suite, arm linked through Manuel's and feeling rather happy with the world. Prom had been wonderful, despite the obvious staring from a few people. She'd decided early on that she was not going to be having with that at all and had pointedly ignored anyone's attempt to get her alone to 'talk' to her.

He also had pointedly ignored stares of the sort. None of those who knew him approached them over the course of the night and he tributed that to most trying to bring out the positive than the negative. No one wanted to fight on prom night. His eyes fell on the corsage on her wrist, mentally noting that it had held up over the course of the night and he'd send her flowers in the morning from the same shop. The cane was the biggest hindrance, slowing his pace immensely however, Laurie played the patient date and said not a word about it.

"It was a beautiful night, Manny. Thank you so much for making my last Prom night so special." Laurie said, smiling softly up at him.

And he had made it special, he'd been the perfect gentleman throughout. He'd held her chair for her, and brought her food and drink when she sat down from dancing. And when she hadn't been dancing with him, he'd seemed to be there when she'd finished dancing with other partners. It had been the most perfect night, and it had been all she could do to make her happiness emotional alone.

Without the inhibitor on, he'd tried to make the most of a difficult night. While he had been able to ignore the stares, the emotions blared at him and had he not had emotional filters checked out before prom, he would have not been able to handle it. The caffeine pills had finally run their course and he was bordering complete and utter exhaustion by the time he took the final step to her floor. Truly, he was tired when his pride slipped and he considered using the elevator.

"Thank you for looking so beautiful," he countered, regarding her back with a tired smile of his own. "I believe most of the guys out there were green with envy."

"Well, I am rather gorgeous." Laurie replied with a wide grin. "So I suppose it's only natural that they'd want me."

She'd never been particularly self-conscious and she'd always known she was good looking, even if at the current moment her comments were meant entirely in jest. They'd reached the top of the stairs now and her suite was just down the hallway. She felt a small sadness that the night had to come to an end, she really didn't want it to.

"What's wrong?" he asked in a level tone of concern. Despite the fact that she looked happy, sadness leaked into his radiant mood and he recognized it as not his own, but hers. Sadness would not do here and as they turned and walked to her door, he kept his eyes on her, trying to see if he could read her without the colours and without the underlying emotion over lapping everyone else's.

"Just a little sad that it's all over. I'll graduate soon, and then I'll be going to college and everyone else is going to be going their own way as well. Apart from the X-men, I might not get to see people as often, especially if I move off campus to live. I'm not sure yet that I'm going to get into NYU at all." she explained, stopping outside her door to face him, shawl wrapped tight around her shoulders despite the warmth of the night.

Manuel let her slip from his arm and turned to face her. "It is a new beginning. Take it for what it is at face value and do not look beneath its depths. With age, as you get older, you sacrifice your time for the things you like to do and the people you like to see. You'll make time for them." He gripped the cane and switched it to his other hand while he spoke. "You worry too much about your application. I'm sure you got in. You're smart. I believe you're only setting yourself up for disappointment. If you do not get in, try again. Persistence is perseverance, yes?"

"You're right, I do worry too much, Dr Summers-Grey tells me that all the time. That I need to stop pushing myself to be better then people, who've been doing things for a lot longer then I have." Laurie murmured, hands clasped behind her back. "I suppose I should start listening to you all."

She suddenly pushed herself forward and placed a small, closed mouth kiss against his lips. Her hands placing themselves on his shoulders as she sort to show him her thanks for the night, and her happiness that it had gone so well.

Of course he was right and Jean as well, though his reply took flight at the contact. A single emotion surged through him with wild abandonment and his eyes intensified, glowed while his powers clawed frantically at the filters within. His breath caught in his throat and something dropped in the pit of his stomach. His hand reached up and tentatively touched her arm. He wasn't sure he had pulled her to him or she gravitated on her own.

It was with a touch of surprise that she found herself pressing closer, her lips parting to trail across his in an invitation for more, her head turning just so as her hands gripped tighter on his shoulders, before drifting down to trail her hands along his arms. She'd been as forward with boys before, but this was a man and she was almost positive that she shouldn't be doing this but it felt so good, and she didn't want to stop.

Manuel sunk deeper into a familiar recklessness that hammered at him inwardly and he lifted a hand to cup the back of her head, solidifying the kiss. And it only intensified, inhaling her scent through his nose and parting his lips against hers as though he couldn't get enough air.

Hands gripped against his elbows, she tried to push herself closer, lost in the sensation of his mouth against hers, her tongue flicking against his as she let out a soft whisper of a moan, it was so intense, she couldn't understand why it was so intense. She'd never felt anything like this before, not from a simple kiss, all she knew was that she wanted more, wanted him closer. She let go of the last few inklings of restraint and let herself fall into the sensations.

He went to her, backed her into the door -- or had she pulled him there -- and ran his hand down her side, pressing his body to hers. The wanting, yearning, needing to touch her enveloped him and his eyes glowed brightly. His powers electrified them. Oh yes, the wanting was very real but something was wrong. He hesitated in emotion and something lured him in harder, fastening over him and _pulled_. His logic was suddenly drowning, being dragged beneath the surface without taking a breath, struggling against an unknown opponent. A faint alarm went off within. He resisted and the more he did, the harder it pulled until fear laced through him and Manuel broke the kiss, taking in a ragged breath. His hand on her waist was no longer pulling her to him but holding her back. He nearly stumbled back and turned, leaving as fast as he could.

Laurie shook against the door to her suite, watching him walk, no, run away with a confused expression, a dull hurt uncurling in her mind. What? What had just happened, what had she just done? It was too much, and she sunk toward the ground, her hands going to her face as she started to sob in reaction.