Doreen & Jan (Backdated to 7/26)

[x-squirrel.livejournal.com]

Trying to sort through things alone with Monkey Joe, Doreen instead gets a talk with Jan and a promise of a surprise tomorrow.

Doreen held the cellphone in one clawed hand for the longest time. She had taken call outside the room she shared with Callie, and the suite it was in and had made her way to the recroom. With the time difference and when her Mom had gotten off the nursing shift today, she had to make the phone call at one in the morning. She hadn't wanted to disturb Callie or anyone and now was glad she hadn't.

Doreen hadn't been sure why she thought things would get better between her Mom and Dad when she came to the school, but it wasn't the case. Things just seemed to be getting worse and worse. Doreen considered calling her Grandpa, but put that thought out of her mind almost instantly. Her parents might hate each other now, but her Grandfather considered the thing one more reason to dislike her Dad in the first place.

Now she was sitting in the corner of the rec room, trying not to cry while Monkey Joe nudged at her hands, hoping to be able to cheer her up. The rec room was pretty empty. Sometimes a ton of people were there and other times, like now, not so much. Still, Jan liked to come to the rec room or at least pass by to see what was going on. Now, it seemed that there was one unhappy student and one concered squirrel in need of attention.

"Hey, Dori, what's going on?" Jan asked, half-sitting near the squirrely pair.

"I dunno," Doreen said, snapping the phone shut, "I just called my mom." those words on their own said a lot more than just that.

"Did you talk to her? Or someone else?" Jan asked, wondering if Doreen was upset due to a conversation she'd had with her mother or if it was a lack of conversation that had bothered her.

"I talked to her. It's hard to get ahold of her though because of how much she has to work," Doreen admitted. Which hadn't always been the case, but Mom didn't always have to be the one making all the money either.

"Talk didn't go all that great, or it made you homesick?" Jan guessed.

"Oh, I like talking to Mom," it was what her mom had to say that was the problem, "And I guess I am. I miss Mom, but she had to work all the time anyway, so this isn't all that different. I just wish I could call Dad," she said, muttering the last. Monkey Joe had some clicking remarks about what her Dad could go and do that weren't all that flattering.

While Jan had no way of knowing what Monkey Joe was saying (and other than Doreen and other squirrels, who would?), but it was obvious that something had set him off. "Don't like her dad too much, huh?" she asked, directing the question at the squirrel rather than the girl. "Yeah, mine's kind of dumb, too." The winged woman looked back at Dori. "You want to talk about it? I don't want to make you uncomfortable or anything, or have to talk about something that will make you even more sad, but I'm here to talk if you want. Now or later, whatever you need."

"He doesn't," Doreen said, petting Monkey Joe, "But I got him after Dad left. It's all... really complicated I guess. How is your Dad dumb?"

"Well," Jan said slowly. "He's not exactly the world's biggest fan of mutants. He wasn't too pleased when I manifested and didn't want me to let anyone else know, so I thought he was ok with it. He was even all worried when I disappeared a few years ago, except I didn't really go anywhere, I was just tiny and no one could see me. Anyway, he called up the school when I went missing to ask for help, so he was concerned about me, except I guess back then I was still playing by all of his rules and then once I'd been living at the school for a while and was an RA and an X-Man he decided he didn't want to see me anymore."

"Oh," Doreen said. Her Dad had started drinking about the time she grew her tail and hadn't stopped, even after moving out. He didn't answer the phone or return emails or even hand written letters. It went beyond being busy and Doreen wasn't dumb enough to think that that was the reason anymore. "My Dad's... just confused. I hope. And Mom is great, but she's working so much now just to try to pay for things that it's not even fair, you know?"

"Yeah," Jan agreed. She hadn't had to worry about paying for anything while her dad was around. "I wish I had something better to tell you about that. You're right, life just isn't fair sometimes."

"I wish it was. The world shouldn't be unfair," Doreen said, sulking, "Our dads shouldn't be jerks. They should just be our dads."

"Yeah," Jan agreed again, and sighed. "Would be nice, wouldn't it? But, you know, it could still wind up being that way. People change, sometimes the change is good and sometimes it's not so good, but your dad could be not-a-jerk again. He might just need some time."

"I hope so. But I don't know if that will be enough for Mom anymore," she said. She'd love it for things to go back to normal with her family, even though it wasn't going to happen. She hoped it would, though.

"Not enough for her?" Jan asked.

"They're getting divorced," Doreen admitted, "I don't know if Mom would call it off if Dad stopped being a jerk. He didn't used to be. He used to be a great Dad."

"Hey, Dori, like I said, it could be that way again," Jan said. "I mean, I'm not saying it will happen right away, or that it would keep them from getting divorced. But your dad... do yourself a favor and don't write him off just yet, OK?"

"I won't. I want him to be like he was, and I'm sure he just need time, but waiting sucks," Doreen said, "I don't like waiting."

Jan grinned at that. "I don't think most people like waiting, but hopefully you won't mind a bit more waiting, because I've got a surprise for people tomorrow!"

"Really? What is it?" Doreen asked, perking up. Even Monkey Joe perked up, "Will it be fun? I bet it will be a fun surprise!"

"If I tell you now it won't be a surprise anymore, will it?" Jan was glad to see Doreen looking happier, even though she knew all the small surprises in the world couldn't make up for what the girl was going though. "It's a good one, I promise! Hopefully other people will like it, too."

"Okay! I guess I can wait, but as long as you promise to tell me tomorrow!" she said, her mind for now not on anything other than what the surprise could be.

"You'll find out tomorrow, I promise!"