Scott and Betsy, backdated to Monday morning

[x-cyclops.livejournal.com]

After being released from the medlab, Scott surprises Betsy in her suite. The conversation goes altogether better than she was expecting.



Betsy reveled in the feeling of hot water, trailing down her back. While the heat worked through the tension in her neck and shoulders. It'd been a long weekend. She placed her head under the showerhead and closed her eyes. Might as well enjoy it, Betsy. You'll have to be back in the medlab in a few minutes. Thankfully, she started to a pot of coffee before heading into the shower. After a few minutes, Betsy quickly turned off the faucets and slide out of the bathroom. Wrapped in a black robe and her hair pulled up in a towel, she went about retrieving her coffee.

Scott smiled very slightly at the surprised look on Betsy's face as she saw him sitting in the chair by the window. "What," he said, as lightly as he could manage. "Not enough sleep this weekend?"

"I...well...no." Betsy stammered. She couldn't help but feel like a chastised five year old. "Actually, I thought you'd be out for a few more hours."

"Well," Scott said, impossibly still managing that wry tone. "You know what they say about the best-laid plans." He sighed, slouching in the chair and rubbing at the back of his neck. "Still stiff," he murmured. "Guess I didn't spend enough time in the shower."

"Quite aware." Betsy commented, her voice hushed. She took in his demeanor, wondering when the firestorm would begin. Whether for her intervention with Alison or her unexpected trip into his mind, Betsy stood on eggshell, waiting for the other shoe to drop. "If you want, you can use mine."

Scott laughed softly, tiredly. "I'm not going to yell at you, Betsy," he said with a sigh. "I'm not going to yell at anyone. I'm sure you'll all be terribly bewildered by that."

"Not so much." Betsy lied. "Perhaps, alittle." Her eyes lit up at his admission and she couldn't help but smile. Yet, she noticed his hand still couldn't quite reach the knot on his back. ~Come here.~

Scott hesitated for a moment, then got up, coming over to stand in front of her. "I'll admit I probably needed the sleep," he said quietly, raising a hand hesitantly to brush a stray lock of damp hair back from her face. "Not impressed by how you all went about it, and let's not get started on what you did while I was asleep..." He stopped, shrugged. "But it's done," he said, trying not to sound too defeated.

Betsy eyes widened again. She felt like the overexaggerating fowl that cried wolf, or something to the later. Yes, yes. Chicken Little. Always with the sky is falling. The world is ending.
Wolves are coming to eat you. Well, in this case, they did have Rahne. But that wasn't the point. Scott Summers was not angry about anything. He did sound defeated.... Betsy was about to comment on this when a light touch on her face threw all thoughts out of her head. And she was sure she spent another with her eyes closed. Because when she looked up, Scott appeared to be amused. "Oh, sit down and let me get this crick out of your neck."

"Yes, ma'am," Scott said, his voice still low but almost wry now as he went over and sat down on her bed. There was a barely perceptible slump to his shoulders, but he was still smiling very faintly at her as she followed him over.

Betsy tried to hide the blush she felt forming. She dipped her head low, as she got behind him, and started to work the muscles. It wasn't working. She tugged upward lightly on the hem of his t-shirt. Leaning in behind his left ear, her voice low. "If you wouldn't mind?"

"Taking my shirt off?" Scott murmured dryly. "For you?" He could almost feel her blush growing. He slid his shirt off, wincing a bit as stiff muscles protested.

"You're enjoying this a bit much, aren't you?" Betsy laughed freely now. She shook her head, while reaching back for her a bottle on her nightstand. Betsy poured a generous amount of the liquid in her hands and then warmed it by working it into her palm. Carefully, bringing her hands to Scott's neck, Betsy slowly began her massage.

"Why not?" Scott said quietly, his eyes closing. "I was dreaming about you," he murmured after a moment.

She fell silent. Letting her hands fall down in between his shoulder blades, Betsy diligently worked out the knots. Her eyes flicked to his head, before hurriedly looking back down his back. "Dreams, you say?"

"Just... strange dreams," Scott said distantly. "Not bad ones." Except maybe the first, and that had been more strange than bad. "Walking through the rooms in my head," he murmured.

Betsy leaned back on her haunches and sighed. She turned away from him and shook her head in shame. "I had to do it, Scott," Betsy said, pleadingly. "I'm sorry, but I had to. I couldn't go on, knowing that you were suffering so deeply, while I sat back and did nothing."

He shifted around, turning towards her. "I'm not angry," he said quietly, reaching out to take her hand. "You did what you felt you had to do. You all did." And his judgement had obviously not been up to it.

~Stop it~ Betsy sent down the link. ~Stop thinking that we were value you so little that we would take every opportunity to circumvent you, Scott.~ She placed her other hand on top of his, her eyes locked on him. "Everyone here did what they thought was best, it may have been extreme and I'm not quite so sure I'd handle it as gracefully as you. But, in the end, your sanity took precedence. And for once, I'm thankful for it."

"My sanity," Scott murmured, his eyes dropping to their linked hands. He wanted to ask her if he'd really been that far gone, but then he thought about that screaming match with Jubilee... well, hardly a screaming match, he'd been the one doing all the shouting... "We'll see, I guess," he said finally. "How it works out. I gather I'm not going to have much to say about that. Guess I need to be accustoming myself to the idea of sitting back and watching for a while."

"Not so much and well, you do have that trip with Alex coming up." Betsy said, resting her head on his shoulder. "Besides, it'd might be nice to actually see you instead of reading about your day on the journals," she chided. Her thumb, gliding up and down his fingers, while she continued to nuzzle the crook in his neck.

Scott let his breath out on a sigh. "All right," he said, the wry tone coming back. "What are you doing for dinner tonight?" She raised her head and looked at him, and he smiled a bit lamely. "Might as well start making the effort, no?" It wasn't as if he had much option than to try. He wasn't going to sit around and stare at the walls of his office for lack of anything better to do.

Betsy's towel unravelled from her head and a damp mass of purple locks fell down to her shoulders. She couldn't help the genuine smile on her face as she laughed excitedly at the prospect of their going out together. "Does it matter where we go? I mean, there are loads of places I'd love to visit. But, I can go anywhere. Oooh, there's that new Cafe with the outdoor patio? Cafe Intermezzo, I think?" Her eyes alit, Betsy paused. "Scott, we don't have to go out, if you don't want to? I know you're doing this for my sake and all. But really, it's alright."

"Nonsense," Scott said, managing a mock-severe look for a moment before he gave her that slight smile again. "I would like very much to get out of the house. That being said, I'd like it to be with you." The look in her eyes and the smile she was giving him made him very glad he'd suggested this. "Does this place need you to make reservations?"

"Yes, I'd love some time alone...just the two of us." Betsy replied, manuevering herself closer to him. "The Cafe does require reservations, but I guess it's a good thing I know the owner. It shouldn't be anything to manage. But I'll give Pablo a call just in case. "

Betsy tenderly wrapped her arms around his neck. The prospect of a night out was simply mind boggling. "And I have just the outfit for tonight." Betsy added. Her voice low and sultry, reminding Scott exactly why this was a good suggestion.

He wrapped his arms around her in turn, letting the air in his lungs out on a sigh. "Looking forward to it," he said with a faint smile, meaning it. There was a certain feeling of helplessness to all of this - his life, sliding at least partially out of his control. But there was also absolutely nothing he could do about it. Might as well find enjoyment in it where he could. And he had missed her. Scott leaned in, a bit hesitantly, and kissed her.

She sensed his hesitation and it pained her to feel it. But only tensed for a moment before falling into the kiss. It was so easy to forget everything when they were like this. So easy. Betsy let out a purr as she pulled back from his inviting lips. Her fingers lazily tracing circles just below his hairline. "As am I," she murmured. "I could really get use to spending everyday like this."

"Every day?" he murmured, another faint smile, this one teasing, tugging at his lips. "You might want to start me off slow. To avoid my head exploding."

"And why would I not want that?" Betsy asked, impishly Giggling outright as Scott's eyebrows shot straight up to his hairline. "I'm sure I could come up with quite a few things to occupy your time if I put my mind to it. Days on end filled with sensations so overwhelming, you couldn't even form complete sentences without my saying so."

He was probably turning a very interesting shade of red. Ah, well. "Why you put up with me, I don't know," he murmured, the smile coming a little more naturally this time. "Do we have to have classes? Can't we say I had a relapse or something?"

"Because I love you, you silly git!" She gave him a mock punch in his stomach. "Why else?" Betsy shifted her leg over from her side and straddled Scott. Her face indicated that the tone of the conversation had changed from light banter to serious. Betsy watched his face, her eyes searching for a reaction. "We can always cancel class and give assigned reading. I have the little ones only till about twelve today and then I'm free."

"I had a quiz written," Scott said after a moment. "But I can always give them that and then let them out earlier. Compromise?" he suggested.

"I don't know." Her voice lilting, Betsy leaned back on Scott's leg. The side of her silk robe riding up with the motion. Thankfully, she secured the front with a well-placed knot. Betsy propped herself up, her arms placed firmly behind her back. She couldn't help herself, if she didn't commit to the act fully. "I honestly don't think I can risk having you gone for so long."

Betsy shifted farther back on his legs, still managing to appear every bit as coy without laughing. "Scott, I might not know what to do with myself."