xp_logs | Log backdate meme: Artie and Jean

Artie has his most recent checkup and conversation with Jean

It was late afternoon and Jean's shift in the medlab. She started out by doing a few medical reports and updates on incoming and outgoing patients but after an hour and a half crept by and she started to go cross-eyed, she wound up playing spider solitaire instead. Yes, her productivity was high.

Artie knocked on the door to attract Jean's attention before walking into the medlab. You didn't sneak up on X-Men. Ever. It was just one of those things you learned over time. Leaning against the table, he waved hello, before showing her a picture of a redheaded doctor with a clipboard while an unidentifiable boy sat on an examining table with a thermometer in his mouth, before replacing it with a calender, today's date circled in red.

Jean glanced up at the sound, then smiled.

Artie's mind was one of the most interesting ones she'd come across. Nearly everyone she'd met thought primarily in words, but Artie usually thought in images. He could understand words, but over time his mind seemed to have adapted to how he communicated.

"Oh, hello Artie. I'm sorry I forgot our appointment. I hope you weren't waiting long?" she said.

He shook his head. No. And then, grinning, he thought loudly at her, "I can see you were working hard in here, too, what with the solitaire and all."

The prospect of getting caught made Jean grin back, albeit a bit sheepishly. She laughed, rubbing the back of her neck.

"Sometimes charting can get a little boring and everyone needs a break once and awhile," she said.. Standing up, she motioned toward the door and slipped on the white coat she had hanging on the coat rack beside her desk.

"If you'll wait for me in exam room 2 I'll grab your chart and be with you shortly."

Artie nodded, heading into the room and settling himself on the exam table.

As promised, a little over a minute after Jean asked Artie to go in she was in the exam room with his chart.

"And how are you today?" she asked. She usually liked to give a little conversation. It helped ease things. People generally felt uncomfortable around doctors. Luckily for this type of checkup she didn't need for him to be in a hospital gown. Then it would've really been uncomfortable.

He gave a thumbs up and followed it up with a quick series of images. Himself using his powers over a calender showing last year's date, with a green tick and then the same image, with this year's.

She was reminded of a Rocky montage and found herself smiling.

"That's good," she said as she slipped the ear buds to her stethoscope into her ears.

"Let's check your heart, then we'll move on to your throat." His ability often made her concerned about his throat. Given that he didn't speak, his vocal cords had begun to atrophy.

Artie nodded and he settled back, waiting it out. When Jean was done with his throat, he held up a question mark. All okay, given the freakiness of the components? His innards were weeeird.

Jean shook her head. "The atrophy on your vocal cords is about the same as the last check up. We'll monitor it for now," she said.

"If it changes, then we'll figure out what to do from there. It's not a problem right now. Do you feel any discomfort?"

Artie shook his head. It wasn't like he noticed it or anything. "It's all good," he said, setting the words out in glowing red on the examination table. He didn't really want Jean in his head right now. "It's not like I was using them or anything."

"There can be a potential for difficulty in breathing should your vocal cords develop paralysis for some reason. But that's rare. Still, I don't want to take any chances. I'd like to schedule another check up in March, just to make sure everything's still okay," Jean said.

The sudden wall in Artie's mind, though she hadn't really been prying, made Jean curious. She knew her abilities made people uncomfortable. Nevertheless, it did seem odd.

"Is...everything okay? Not just with here," she said, putting her hand to her throat.

"Seriously? That is so incredibly just what I wanted to hear," Artie said, continuing to project the words onto the examination bed. He shook his head tiredly. "No. It's just--" and switched to thinking at Jean again. "I'm not even freaking using them. Why do they have to some giant timebomb that might mean I can stop breathing all of a sudden? It's stupid!"

Jean glanced him over, then gave him a soft smile.

"I know."

She took a seat beside him on the exam bed.

"But, like I said, it's rare. We'll keep a close eye on it."

There was a procedure that could be done if need be. Hopefully it wouldn't come to that.

"There are a few things to watch out for on on top of the shortness of breath...coughing, when you have no signs of a cold, a pain in your throat when trying to make a sound, and accidentally choking on food or drink. If any of these happen you let me know right away, okay?" she said.

She didn't mean to scare him, but unfortunately the facts often had the same effectiveness as a monster under the bed.

"Sure. I mean, it's not like I don't already choke sometimes on account of my stupid tongue or anything, though and I don't make sounds much at all." Artie shrugged, letting an image of his tongue, forked and far too narrow and long overlay the words he was thinking at her. "I'll keep an eye out for that stuff, though."

Jean nodded, then studied him for a moment or two.

"It sucks. But we'll get though it, whatever happens," she said.

She knew he was scared, mad, confused, and frustrated. She would've been too. Still, she'd be here this time, should anything go wrong, or even if nothing happened.

Artie nodded and managed a brief smile. "Besides, the odds are good that it won't, right?"

Jean smiled back. "Right."

More likely than not. Hopefully not.

Artie shrugged and changed the topic. He flashed up a picture of Scott, running the West Coast Annexer's through the obstacle course, much as he'd seen on his last trip out there and then a question mark, raising his eyebrows at Jean.

Pausing a moment or two, Jean nodded.

"Scott? He's doing well. He's really busy, which he likes. He misses everyone." Jean cocked her head to the side, squinting with a thoughtful smirk.

"--well, almost everyone, but there's a lot of things to still take care of where he is. I can ask him to call you on Skype later if you'd like."

He grinned and gave a thumbs up. "That would be pretty cool. I kinda miss him a little. Sort of," he said, projecting the words onto the examination bed again.

Jean glanced over. "Yeah, me too," she said

"He talked about you a lot while I was still in California."

Artie raised a question mark. "He'd better have explained how I'm the most awesome person to ever go to this school."

Jean laughed. "Something like that."

Standing up from the exam bed, Jean brushed out the wrinkles from her lab coat.

" I should probably get back to actual work now. Do you have any other questions?"

He shook his head and climbed off the table, raising a hand to wave goodbye.