Chapter Text
AN: CW for homophobic slur
Erik held his books close to his chest, eyes down and jaw clenched as he walked down the hallway. He felt everyone’s eyes on him, and he heard the snickering and whispering. He sped up, turning into the library where he could take refuge among the reference books. He could disappear in the rows of pages and be truly invisible as long as he wanted. Well, at least for lunch and study hall.
When he arrived at his normal table, he was shocked to see it partially occupied. Hiding behind a bookshelf, Erik identified Charles Xavier immediately by his blue eyes that shimmered behind his wire-framed glasses. His heart leapt up into his throat as Charles looked up and stared directly at him. Erik almost swore that Charles could peer through the metal and books and see him.
“Who’s there?” Charles called, voice wavering slightly. Words stuck in Erik’s voicebox, rendering him unable to respond, so he ran. He threw his stuff into an empty chair by the computers and sat down. He was surrounded by other students, and he wanted to crawl in a hole and hide from the prying glances and stifled laughter.
“Mutant freak,” someone giggled, and the comment was met with cries of “amen” and “take ‘em out.” Mutant registration was a hot topic, and Erik found that student that talked to him or about him in his presence somehow seemed to bring it up. Not that people talked with him regularly… He’d opted out of the mutant rights debate in government class, and he’d spent his free time in the library hyperventilating about a “debate” over his right to exist as a normal being.
Being the only known mutant in school was rough, but manifesting in the cafeteria in front of everyone during the first week of high school was another beast entirely. All the metal objects in the immediate vicinity, including the contents of the dirty silverware trays and the pans from the lunch line, had stuck to his body, drenching him in food, dishwater, and god knows what else. Everyone had pointed and laughed as a school administrator had ushered him quietly to the nurse’s office, soaked and humiliated, while the entire janitorial staff had to work on cleaning the cafeteria. Incidents like that were normal for young mutants, but Erik couldn’t have felt more abnormal if he tried. He was alone. His parents were dead. His aunt didn’t understand him, and his uncle beat and bullied him. His younger cousins were skittish around him. Almost everyone at school mocked him at every opportunity, and he trusted no one.
“Hey spoon face!” A girl called before launching a metal spoon at him. Erik could occasionally control his mutation (it didn’t help that he wasn’t allowed to practice at home), but he chose to let the utensil collide with his back and clatter to the floor. It stung and would probably bruise, but he couldn’t show emotion in front of other people; he couldn’t and wouldn’t react.
“Say something, faggot!” One of the boys from the soccer team, Zack, said, slamming a book closed close to Erik’s head, making him flinch.
“Guys, that’s enough!” Another voice snapped from behind Erik. He turned to see Charles Xavier had rolled over and was glaring at the groups of other students. “Seriously, leave him alone.”
“Coming to save some fucking mutant, Xavier? Whatcha got a crush on him too? Don’t you have better things to do?”
“Listen, just leave him alone, and we won’t have a problem, understand? Come on, Erik, let’s go.”
Charles was halfway out the door before Erik timidly followed, struggling to hold back tears.
“Are you okay?” Charles asked once they were alone in the hallway.
“N-no,” Erik stuttered, his voice sounding tinny and afraid.
“What can I do for you? How can I help?”
“I, um, I gotta go,” he said before running down the hall and out the door right as the final school bell rang.