Running for Home - 65. March 9, 2022

March 9, 2022

Rogue arrived this morning, unannounced. I have incredibly mixed feelings about her being around, to say the least. But given their similarities, my student Kevin Ford could potentially benefit from talking to her about her powers and her journey with them, and that is more important than any leftover grudge I hold over her role in breaking Bobby and I apart all those years ago.

She received a warm welcome at lunch from many people on staff, my friends included. I guess that shouldn’t be a surprise, since we went to high school together. At least, we did until I took off with Magneto. The rest of them, they were all still together for years after that. Whatever. I wasn’t here to change the past. I stayed back away from the action and just ate my lunch. I had nothing to say to her. Emma could brief her on Kevin and set up whatever meetings they should have.

Well, I should have known I wouldn’t be left alone. After about fifteen minutes, she sauntered over like she’d never left this place. Ever the southern belle, she asked if I minded that she sit down. I told her it was a free country between mouthfuls and resumed eating. She evaluated me cautiously while I tried to ignore her presence. Jubilee and Bobby sat down at the table with us, clearly curious about my reaction to her. It was annoying. I just wanted to eat my lunch in peace and then get back to class and forget she was even here.

“So, Johnny, y’all are living here now?”

I scowled at her. “Obviously.”

“Why?”

“Emma offered me a job teaching English. I accepted.”

“You even qualified for that?”

“I have a degree in journalism and I have 3 books published. I think I know a fucking thing or two about reading and writing.”

She crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow. “Doesn’t mean you’re a good teacher. You being a good influence?”

I slammed my fork down. “I’m not going to sit here and listen to you judge me. If you actually gave a fuck about what went on this place, you’d be here contributing, but you aren’t. Oh yes, it’s so very nice of you to stop by and grace us with your presence. So nice of you to come because we have some students here that you might be able to help. But that has nothing to do with me or my teaching, so do me a favour and leave me the fuck alone.”

I stomped off, even though I hadn’t finished my lunch. I wasn’t going to sit there and waste my time with her. What the fuck was her problem, anyway?

Bobby came after me, found me in my office brooding. He was annoyed with her as well, though perhaps more than anything else he was disappointed with the way she had treated me. I really don’t know what he was expecting. It’s not like we were on good terms the last time I interacted with her, in the middle of a battle. I was Brotherhood, she was an X-man. She tried to drain me and missed. I sent her flying away from me with a dense fireball.

I told Bobby it was fine, that I could handle it. Her opinion wasn’t one that mattered, anyway. I cared about how I thought I was doing, and how Emma and Sean thought I was doing. I might not feel entirely comfortable with my performance, but I know I’m getting better every day. As far as Emma and Sean went, neither of them had left me with the impression that they were anything but happy with how I was doing in the classroom. I might not have much experience yet, but I was good at my job and I cared enough to try and get better at it.

Bobby came around my desk and hugged me. I didn’t want to be hugged, but I didn’t shrug him off because I didn’t want him to think that I didn’t like it when he tried to comfort me. This was just not something I needed comforting from.

Kevin Ford was missing from my Writing class, unsurprisingly. That kind of pissed me off, though. It was the class that mattered the most to that kid, and they pulled him out of it. Whatever. It wasn’t my call to make.

I decided to make my students a vehicle for my frustrations and had them write about situations where they were misjudged or underestimated. I wasn’t sure if it would do any good for my mood, but I was curious to see what they would come up with. Hopefully it wasn’t shit. To be honest, I didn’t generally like being too specific with topics because I seemed to get better results when I gave them something to spark their creativity, yet was vague enough not to really box them in. Whatever, they’d just have to deal with it if this was a stinker of an idea.

I holed up in my office after class to get some marking done. My junior lit class was struggling with some concepts and it was annoying. I didn’t like giving them so many corrections, but I couldn’t just leave it alone. I tried this morning to explain things more clearly but it was difficult to do over the dull roar coming from the peanut gallery. I swear, I don’t know what more to do to keep Quentin and his cronies under control. I feel like everything I try is absolutely useless, short of sending them to see Emma and Sean. And doing that doesn’t feel like a win, it just feels like I’m giving them what they want - to get out of class.

One of the things I hate the most is how boxed in I feel about grading them. They don’t give a fuck what I think, so why should I bother giving them any good feedback? But I can’t not give them feedback - I have to give them just as much as I give the other students. And I also don’t want to just fail them, as tempting as that is, because it just means I will probably be stuck with them again next year. Fuck, I’ll probably luck out and get stuck with them again next year in senior Lit anyway!

Next year? Yes. I guess I haven’t written this here yet, but I will be staying on and teaching here again next year. Between me actually feeling like I’ve sorta kinda found a fit here, there’s also the fact that Bobby is happy here too. Well, right now anyway. I love that with his accounting credentials he could effectively get a job anywhere we might go. My writing and journalism cred is a little tougher to make work, but if someday in the future we decide not to be here anymore we both won’t be shit out of luck finding a job.

I sat there dreaming a bit about the future, about where things were going with Bobby and I for a while. I guess I lost track of time, because suddenly Bobby was knocking on my door and asking me if I was coming to dinner. That brought me back to earth pretty quick. Rogue would probably be there, and I had no desire for a repeat of the bullshit that happened at lunch.

I asked Bobby if he wanted to go out for the evening, my treat. He looked a little surprised for a second, but then seemed to catch on. We hopped into my car and went to Purdy’s Farmer and the Fish, a pricey but delicious farm-to-table joint not too far from the School. We had the seafood tower and slammed back a few drinks to go with it. It was a much better meal than anything we would have had at the School. To be honest, I drank a little more than I should have so Bobby ended up driving us home.

We went straight upstairs and ended up naked pretty quick. I probably should have been back downstairs in my office getting work done, but making love with Bobby felt like a much better choice at the time.

It was heavenly. Bobby might not be the most experienced lover, but he makes up for it in enthusiasm and good instincts. We ended up sixty-nining until we both came, but he was still hard afterwards and I couldn’t resist having him fuck me. He took me long and slow, laying on our sides, with his arms around me, holding me to him. His soft caresses, his hot breath on the back of my neck, his whispers into my ear drove me absolutely wild. I came hard, harder than I thought possible after already getting off just a half hour earlier.

Afterwards, when we were lying there, tangled amongst one another coming down, he kissed me and told me he wished he’d never been so stupid, naive and in denial as a teenager. That he’d been able to give me the love I deserved from him all these years. He tried to say more, but I stopped him, saying that I’d rather that I get to have him now, when I can appreciate him for who he is and all the awesome things he brings to the table, and not for my stupid teenage crush on my best friend. We were older, wiser, and better able to be good partners for one another now that the world had tested us.

I wouldn’t take Bobby for granted. Not this time.