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05. Boys n’ Girls

Summary: Everyone is talking in this one, the girls about the boys and the boys about the girls….and then there is Scott.

“Hmph!”

Jubilee Lee was bored out of her mind. Not was she suspended from school, which was a good thing, she also was grounded at home. That meant no going out, no computers, no phone, no nothing. Like she said, “Hmph!”

All there was to do; was gaze out of the window and watch the people and cars pass by. All that he father allowed her was the TV, and everyone knows what great pastime programming daytime television is. Having spent the better part of the day lolling in front of the boob tube and after hours of senseless soap operas and talk shows, she was ready to chuck it into the garbage bin….or preferably at the people making those shows in the first place.

‘2:45 PM,’ the bedside clock said. Almost time for school to be over for the day.

Soon her best friend, Katherine ‘Kitty’ Pryde would be here, giving her the lowdown of the day’s events. Thankfully, Logan had not forbid that. Looking back at her actions, she knew that she could have handled the situation in a more mature manner. However, mature thought was farthest from her mind when she saw those punks harassing her sister.

Flopping down on her soft, yellow spread covered, queen-sized bed, she reminisced about the time Logan found her and brought her home. She had been nearly ten years old at the time.

----

//Flashback//

Time: six years and ‘change’ months,

“Hey did you find the little bitch?” Jubilee could hear the shopkeeper calling out to his assistants.
“Crap, crap, crap….Crrraaappp…” the preteen cursed at herself. “Jubilee Lee, you really screwed up this time. Why did you have to go for that apple?” Her growling stomach answered her question. “Oh yeah, haven’t eaten since yesterday, that’s why.”

It had been six months since her parents died in a car accident. After their deaths, Jubilee, an only child was handed over to their family friends. Not liking that family, she bided her time,a nd one afternoon when no one was at home, she slinked away and hitched a ride into the city. After wandering the lonely and scary streets for just one night, she gave up and headed to the mall her mother used to frequent. Being there made her feel closer to her parents and at the same time, allowed her to subsist by filching from the various shops and keeping an eye out for any spare change or sometimes even currency notes that fell from the purses and wallets of the mall shoppers.

Seldom venturing out of the mall, she always made it a point to return before it closed for the night. That was something she hadn’t been able to do yesterday and the mall was closed today. Almost twenty-four hours without food made her take the risk to steal from the fruit vendor.

“Wasn’t really a good idea…was it?” she muttered, looking around for a place to hide and more importantly somewhere warm and dry, her eyes fell on an old beaten up camper. Thanking the ‘lock’ gods for the unlocked door, she stepped in to find a small kitchen and mattress inside the trailer. ‘Must be a truck driver.’

Rummaging around, all that the famished girl found was slightly stale beef jerky. Starting to eat, she found that her throat was parched, making it near impossible to get the jerky down her throat. Opening the cooler, she found only beer cans. She had once tasted beer with her friends and nearly lost her food.
“Desperate times call for desperate measures.” Taking out one can, she flipped it open. Holding her nose with one hand, she tilted her head back and guzzled the cool liquid down, its bitter taste notwithstanding.

“Yuck” The half-filled can pushed away, the rest of the jerky went down a bit smoothly and removed the offensive taste of the beer from her mouth. “I am never doing that again. At least not until I am like eighty years old,” vowed Jubilee, her head already feeling light from the effects of the alcohol.

Ten minutes later, she was asleep on the mattress, oblivious to her pursuers searching for her just few feet away from her.

Just like she missed detecting the shopkeepers’ assistants, so as she missed the return of the owner of the truck an hour later.

--

Many hours later,

“Uhn…” Jubilee moaned coming out of her beer and fatigue induced sleep. It took her few moments to realize that she was still in the truck and that the truck was moving. “MOVING” her inadvertent yell drew the attention of the driver.

“Yer up?” his obvious comment irked her, almost as much as the nervousness she felt from hearing his gruff voice.
“There is something fer ya ta eat on the counter….” He jerked a hand without looking back, “And some soda in the cooler. If ya want ya can come in the front.”

“Ummm…Thank you,” Jubilee reached for the food and drink. Standing up, she walked to the front of the truck.
“Where are we? Where are you taking me?” She asked, looking around as she plopped in the passenger seat. She couldn’t find any known landmark and it was clear that they were on some sort of highway. “Where are you taking me?” she asked in a louder voice, her bravado paling as she saw her savior/kidnapper for the first time.
Looking at her, he smirked at her attitude. He could practically smell the fear rolling off her, and still she maintained a brave face. Rolling his cigar to a corner of his mouth he grunted his answer. “New York”

“New YORK” Jubilee practically yelled out. “Bu…bu…but I was in LA few hours ago,” she answered disbelievingly. Narrowing her eyes at the driver, she asked slowly. “What are you going to do with me?”
“Listen kid, I am not goin’ ta hurt ya,” the driver tried to appear harmless, something that his large muscular body, long unruly hair and deep voice, made impossible for him to be.
“Logan” he introduced himself, offering his hand as a peace offering. “I saw those guys searching fer ya and then saw ya passed out on the mattress…”
“I wasn’t passed out” Jubilee insisted, knowing fully well that he was telling the truth. The beer had hit her hard. She had barely made it to the mattress, before falling down on it, asleep the moment her head hit it. “I was just resting.”
“Sure…” Logan humored her. “Ya were *resting* and I tried ta wake ya up. As those assholes were still lookin’ fer ya, I decided ta help ya out.”
“And kidnapping and taking me to New York will help me how?” Logan scowled at her comment.

“I ain’t kidnapping ya,” Logan clarified tightly. “I just wanted ta help ya. I have a *safe place* where ya can stay. If ya want I can drop ya off at the end town.”
Jubilee was silent for the next couple on moments, letting everything sink in. Los Angeles to New York sounded better than Los Angeles to some desolate town. Moreover, the man…Logan seemed truthful enough. He hadn’t laid a hand on her, which he could have done at anytime she was unconscious. If things didn’t work out in New York, she could always run away and find another mall.
“Jubilee” she said, taking his hand outstretched hand.
“Hnn…” was all Logan said, flashing a small grin at her. “Nice name.”

“So why are you doing this?” Jubilee asked after a few minutes, unable to contain herself. “Do you go around saving people and carting them to your *safe place*?”

“Something like that” Logan smiled an actual smile, a wistful one as he seemed to recall something from his past.

//End Flashback//

----

It would be three days until Jubilee came to know the reason behind his smile. It wouldn’t be from him, it would be from his wife and her second mother Mariko. It was on that day that Mariko told her about how Logan and she had met all those years ago on a cold night in Alberta.

Two weeks later, the couple made her an offer. They offered Jubilee a second home, one, which could be hers if she agreed to stay with them. Jubilee jumped at their offer, hugging them tightly, tears of joy in her eyes. All her initial suspicions and doubts had been laid to rest. The couple genuinely cared for her and Jubilee was falling in love with them and didn’t want to leave them ever. More than that, she had very attached to their five-year-old girl, Amiko. Both the girls called each other sister and even had cute nicknames for each other and everyone around them. Amiko called her Jubi, while Jubilee called Amiko leggy, because of her patented way of demanding attention. She was a quite child who did not cry or whine much. Instead, she would latch onto the person’s leg, mostly her dad, who used lug her around, clinging to his leg like a koala bear. Logan was Wolvie and Mariko was simply mom or ma, a name and feeling that Jubilee immediately felt towards the motherly Mariko.

Logan managed to sort out all the adoption details and six months later, Jubilation Lee was officially the daughter of James and Mariko Howlett and sister to Amiko Yashida Howlett.

-----

A ring at the front door drew her attention to it. Peering through the window, she saw a bicycle leaning against the garage. ‘Kitty’ she grinned, leaping off the bed and rushing to the door.

“Hey Kit-Kat” Jubilee chimed, opening the door for her best friend to enter. “How’s it hanging?”


Grinning at Jubilee’s choice of words Kitty stepped inside the house. The proverbial firecracker, Jubilee’s colorful language was something Kitty enjoyed but could never adopt. She almost died of embarrassment at the laughs she got from her classmates at her last try at talking like Jubilee. Even Jubilee snickered at her attempt to sound ‘street-wise’. She had since then given up on that plan of hers, except for when she was truly pissed off at someone. Then she channeled her inner Jubilee and lashed out, just like her yellow and purple clad friend.

“Hey Jubes,” Kitty shot back. “So what have you been doing all day? ….Besides stuffing your face with junk food and sitting in front of the television.”

“Hey! I resent that.” Jubilee punched her arm, trying to sound hurt. With that, she ran to her room, trying to dodge the punch from Kitty.

-----

“So tell me,” Jubilee pulled Kitty down onto the bed. “Anything interesting happen at the school?”
“Hmm…..” Kitty mused. “…No nothing. Oh wait a minute, something did happen.” Kitty’s face lit up.
“What? Gimmie all the details.”
“Well…” Kitty stalled.
“Kittttttyyyyy” Jubilee grabbed and shook her hard. “Come ON….spill the beans; let the cat out of the bag and all that….please. I have been bored out of my mind the entire day.”
“I would…” Kitty grinned and rubbed her stomach. “But I am too hungry to even stand up…leave alone gossip.”
“Hmph….” Jubilee scowled at her. “Fine. I’ll get you something to eat. But then you have to tell me everything…unless….” The words trailed behind her as she made her way to the kitchen, kitty following close behind her.
“Unless?”
“Unless, you want to lose your nice long ponytail in a nasty run in with a pair of scissors.”
“You wouldn’t….” Kitty was stunned at the threat, but only momentarily. She knew that Jubilee wouldn’t do anything to harm her. The threat was her way of begging Kitty for the information….but then again. It was Jubilee. You never know with her.

--

Ten minutes later,

Both the girls were back in Jubilee’s room, a plate of hot instant noodles in one hand and a fork in the other, and two soda cans on the tray lying on the bed.

“So….” Jubilee asked between mouthfuls. “What happened?”
“Bobby and Lorna are an item…..” Kitty blushed at her choice of words. “I mean they are together now.”
“Wow” Jubilee said after a moment of stunned silence. “The class clown and the class hottie….Wow. But wait; wasn’t she dating someone else from another school?”
“College now,” Kitty corrected her. “She was dating Mr. Summers’ younger brother Alex.”
“Oh yeah…” Jubilee remembered the other boy’s name. “So what happened? When did they break up? How did it happen?”
“Well, Lorna and Alex went together for almost eight months, until last month.”
“Oh…so that was it was,” Jubilee’s eyes widened at the memory. “I knew they were having some problems, but breakup. So what happened?”
“Don’t know,” Kitty shrugged her shoulders. “But today both of them came together, sat together in class and in lunch hour and held hands. And…and on my way here, I saw them kissing each other.” Kitty turned red at the mere thought of physical intimacy.

“Good for the Iceman. I always knew he had a thing of Dane. He would always eye her when he thought no one else was looking. Moreover, he wasn’t his usual flippant brash self in front of her. When she started going out with Alex, he was down for days,” Jubilee reminisced, a smile playing on her lips. Bobby was a friend and an overall good guy…that is, if you neglected his pathetic jokes. Turning towards a blushing Kitty, she chuckled. “Kit Kat, what about you?”

“What about me?” Kitty was surprised at the sudden change in subject. Jubilee’s next words made her blush even harder.
“What about me?” Jubilee imitated her. “What I mean is, when are you going to finally gather up the courage with Pete?”
“Oh…” Kitty turned red at the mention of her crush on Logan’s apprentice. “That-That’s nothing….we are just….”

“Oh knock it off” Jubilee cried out. “I see the way you look at him. It’s like he’s a Hershey’s Kiss and you want to eat him all up. And….” Jubilee leaned closer as if to reveal some big secret. “He likes you, you know.”
“HE DOES!” Kitty squeaked. “I mean…he does?”

“Believe me,” Jubilee patted her hand. “He does, and I bet he wants to do all those with you…”
“Things? What sort of things?” Kitty was doing a pretty weak job of disguising her interest.

“Kissy-kissy things,” Jubilee puckered her lips, making kissing sounds and hugging herself hard. “Get the idea….” She winked at her shy classmate, who by now was as red as a tomato, her hands held over her face.

“Do you really think so…?” Kitty questioned hopefully, her fingers spreading out to allow her to look at the grinning visage of her best friend.
“What that he likes you?” Kitty nodded her head. “Totally.” Jubilee punched her thighs to emphasize herself.

A dreamy look came over Kitty’s face as she lost herself in thoughts of the gentle and shy Russian giant.

-----

“Kitty” Jubilee shook her day dreaming friend. “Earth to Kitty….answer Kitty”
“Uhn…Oh, sorry” Kitty apologized. “I guess I just…”
“Got lost in Russian dreams, huh” Jubilee poked her in the side. “Don’t worry Kit-Kat. Do not fear for Jubilee is here,” She puffed out her chest. “I will get your love life in order.”
“Yeah sure” Kitty swatted her outstretched arm. “You haven’ been able to get one for yourself and now you are going to help me. No thank you.”

“ME…” Jubilee exclaimed. “…A love life….hah. Nor do I have the time for it, nor is it going to happen in this lifetime.”
“Why? Why do you say that?”
“My dad,” Jubilee answered with a smirk. “He thinks boys my age have just one thing on their hormonally stunted minds. Well actually two….girls and how to get into their pants.”
“They are not all like that,” Kitty insisted. “….Are they?”
“Don’t worry Kitten,” Jubilee calmed her. “Your Petey is not like that.”
“Oh…Ok,” Kitty smiled at that. ‘Your Petey,’ it had a nice ring to it. “Why do you say you don’t have the time?”
“Well I do have a couple of guys who I wouldn’t mind tonguing around with, but none of them are boyfriend material, just use ‘em and lose ‘em types.”

----

Elsewhere,

“Knock Knock,” a female voice sounded from the other side of the door.

Looking up, Ororo found a beautiful redheaded face, that of her friend, Jean leaning inside from the door.
“Oh, I am sorry…” Jean apologized, seeing the young Asian girl sitting next to Ororo. “I didn’t know you were still busy. I’ll come back…”
“Its alright Jean,” Ororo waved her inside. “Please come in. We were just wrapping up for the day.”
Smiling at her, Jean entered the classroom and sat a couple rows away from the teacher-student couple.

Ten minutes later, Ororo finished her tuition class for the day and was about to send Amiko on her way when Jean’s fiancé, Scott entered the room.

Wishing all three adults goodnight, Amiko silently left the room, leaving three very different lines of thoughts behind her.

“New student?” Jean inquired; recalling the conversation she and Ororo had had just a few hours earlier.
“Yes,” Ororo nodded. “Amiko Yashida. Her parents requested for a tutor if possible and Scott here put me up to it. Today was her first day, and I must say I was surprised by her level of command over the English language.”
“Why?” This time Scott was the one with the question. Thanks to the showdown with her father, he had been taking special interest in Ms. Yashida. With a man like that for a father, who know what sort of a home environment the young girl must be having.

“She is not weak in English. In fact, she is better than many other students of her class are. She doesn’t need actual tuition as much as someone to guide her….” Ororo stopped for a moment as she realized something.

“Her father speaks just fine,” Scott frowned as he recalled Mr. Howlett’s visit to the school.
“Shocked? Why?” Jean looked up at him. Ororo, having actually witnessed it, wisely decided to sit this one out. With Scott…well, he could carry a grudge…for quite some time. It was his whole perfectionist attitude that made him this way.

---

Drawing a chair, Scott settled down. Rubbing his forehead to drive the day’s fatigue away, he started speaking.
“Her father…” he tried to get the correct words. “Well he wasn’t what I was expecting.”
“Why?”
“Well for one, he is not Japanese. He is American. No, more like Canadian. At least it sounded like that from his accent.”
“Hmm….” Jean nodded her head. “…and.”
“He doesn’t look old enough to be a father of a twelve year old girl, let alone a sixteen year old one…nor does he look safe enough,” Scott added under his breath.

“Sixteen year old?”
“Scott!” Ororo hoped that Scott would refrain from passing judgment over someone’s family. Although Amiko was new to her and to the school, she had taught Jubilee in the past, and except for a motor-mouth attitude, there was very little to fault in the mostly studious and respect giving Jubilee.

---

However, from the hard glint in Scott’s eyes that was not to be. Removing his glass, he rubbed the bridge of his nose before recounting the meeting, starting from his first look at James Howlett, the identity debacle, the cause for his coming to the school, his elder daughter’s suspension and Mr. Howlett’s scathing remark before he left the room.

“I guess we found the reason behind Jubilation’s wild streak. She definitely takes after her father,” Ororo smirked lightly. “Although I must say, I agree with him. He did say the right thing.”
“Me too,” Much to Scott’s chagrin, Jean seconded Ororo. “He was correct in what he said.”
“Hmph,” Scott frowned at their words. He knew that what Mr. Howlett said was correct…well, to an extent. There was no way he was going to agree with that man. He came into his office and lambasted him. That was just not done. He was the vice principal after all.

“Jubilation is Amiko’s sister,” Ororo tapped her chin, thinking about their different last names. “Yes.” Once again, Scott agreed reluctantly. “I checked the document, and it’s as they say it is. He is their father and legally they are sisters.”
“Hmmm…” was all Ororo could say before Jean piped up and changed the subject.

“Hey I didn’t come here to hear you two talk shop, are we going to have this dinner or should I go home and nuke yesterday’s pizza?”
“Ok ok,” Scott held up his hands in defeat. He knew what Jean was doing, she was trying to get his thoughts away from the school and its stresses to relax him, and he appreciated that quality of hers. “Come lets go,” he stood up and held out a hand for Jean.

“You coming Ororo.” It was more of a statement than a question from the flame haired doctor.

“Just give me a minute.”

---

Five minutes later, as the trio stepped down the steps of the school, one of them was still thinking about the ferocious Mr. Howlett….

….and it wasn’t Scott.





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