Chapter Text
Oct 2000
“Welcome St John you're going to like it here.” Storm smiles at him.
Well, she hopes he will like it. Honestly, only time could tell.
He gets up from his chair in the Professor's office and she puts an arm around his shoulder.
He tenses and she squeezes his shoulder and lets him go.
She wonders if he got much affection growing up in the custody of the state. She thinks maybe that’s what he needs to really open up and be comfortable.
“Come with me and we’ll see if we can find you some things.”
Storm escorts John to the storage room.
It’s where things that other students had grown out of and donated or that were left by previous students and instructors were kept.
There was stuff in the room all the way back to the 70s when the Professor started the school.
They could have saved some space by tossing the stuff but it had been useful over the years when they got new students who came with nothing.
“Lets see...” Storm looks around the room until she spots a good place to start. “here's a trunk you can use.”
She slides an old foot locker out from under a rack of clothes.
She opens it and finds it has a couple dress shirts and a tan jacket in it.
“Hey, what do you know. There's some clothes for you.” She teases.
John scrunches up his nose, he thinks she’s serious... the clothes are not his taste they look pretty old fashioned, like from the 70s, Anyway they were probably too big.
Storm shakes her head at his expression.
“You'll grow into them.” She smirks at the idea of him actually wearing the vintage clothes and puts them back in the trunk.
“Here's some t-shirts.” She pulls some out of a drawer. There are a couple black and a dark blue and a red. “This will be good too.” She throws a long sleeved gray t-shirt in.
John stands back as Ms. Monroe moves around the room looking in different drawers and boxes.
“Here's some shorts and a pair of sweat pants you can sleep in or use for sports.”
She pulls a small box off a shelf and holds it as she digs through some smaller items.
“Would you like a pair of sunglasses or a baseball hat?” She looks at him and he shakes his head. “Here you might need these this winter.” She throws a pair of gloves and a knitted cap in the foot locker.
She looks around once more and comes to the conclusion that that was all they would find.
She takes some tape and a marker. “How do you spell your last name?”
“hum A L L E R D Y C E” He tells her and she puts it down on the footlocker.
“We'll have this put in your room when they decide where and who you'll room with.”
“Ok” John says still not as enthusiastic as most new students are at this point.
“Don't worry about it,” Ororo tried to calm any anxiety he is having about the rooming situation, “Dr. Grey is figuring out the rooming assignment, I'm sure she'll find you someone nice to be roommates with.”
Bobby was walking to the dining hall with some of the other kids when Dr. Grey calls him into her classroom.
Bobby isn’t concerned, she often has notes for the student council meeting to give him.
“I'll catch up with you guys, save me a seat.” Bobby calls after his friends before heading into the classroom.
“I have a question to ask you about John.” Dr. Grey studies some papers on her desk.
Bobby is suddenly nervous.
He hasn’t seen John since the tour that ended badly. That had been yesturday.
'what could she possibly want from him to do with John? Had something serious happened after the tour? Had John left? Bobby really doesn’t know anything.'
“Don't panic Bobby,” Jean chuckles. “Have you been watching Law and Order with Piotr again? This isn't an interrogation. John has decided to stay and we were wondering if he could room with you.”
“With me?” Bobby is surprised and doesn't know how that would work he already has two roommates.
Mike and Steve are a grade above him and share the bunk beds in their room. They are nice guys, a sound amplifier and static shock generator respectively.
“I know you've been rooming with Mike and Steve.” Jean looks at the floor chart.
“If you'd room with John I was thinking we could put the two of you in the room at the end of the hall. It's smaller then where you are now but it's closer to the bathroom and it would just be the two of you.”
Bobby thinks about it for a second, it doesn’t seem like a bad deal as long as John is cool. “no more snoring in stereo.” he quips.
“Well no, probably not. So what do you think?”
“Hum, sure, I can do that.”
“Great! I'll make the arrangements and get your key to you, you should be able to move in tomorrow.”
Bobby leaves the classroom and starts back towards the dinning hall.
“Hey Bobby.” someone called from behind him. Bobby turns to see Mr. Summers. “Hey Bobby I heard you agreed to room with John.”
'Wow' Bobby thinks 'he'd heard fast' Bobby realized it probably was because Dr. Grey was a telepath.
“Yeah I said I would.”
“Well that was nice of you.” Scott puts his hand on Bobby's shoulder. Scott has known Bobby for a couple of years now and he likes the kid but Scott thinks he’s maybe too nice sometimes.
He hopes that niceness doesn’t get him into trouble someday.
“Look if you have any issues or trouble with him, let me know. Ok?”
Bobby has aways liked Mr. Summers.
He wonders what kind of trouble Mr. Summers thinks John would cause.
“Anyway we really do appreciate it. I think the kid needs all the help he can get. You'll be a good influence, just watch out for yourself.”
Bobby nods a bit stunned and Mr. Summers heads into Dr. Grey's classroom.
“What's up?” Kitty had come around the corner and seen Bobby and Mr. Summers talking.
“I don't know, I've got a new roommate and I don't know what to think about it.” Bobby worries as he and Kitty walk together.
“John decided to stay?”
“How did you know?” Bobby doesn't know why he's shocked. News obviously travels fast at this school.
“Fire and ice, it makes sense that they'd want you to room together.” plus Kitty was good at putting things together.
“Yeah I suppose.” Bobby hadn't thought of it but the teachers may have. “Do you think he's going to be trouble?”
“He's different but it's too early to tell if that will mean trouble.”
“yeah, however it goes I think it's going to be interesting.”
“You're probably right.”
“We can go into town this afternoon and get you some other things, school supplies, toiletries, some socks and... things.” She don't want to say underwear out loud as they walk into a dining hall full of kids.
The room is buzzing with students, conversations, and glasses and forks clicking and clattering.
John tries to be calm and just follow Ms. Monroe in but he gets distracted by a student floating their milk carton up and another student swatting it out of the air, as the kids at the table laugh.
John is so distracted he walks into a chair.
“Whoa, ok there John?” Storm turns to check on him and notices the commotion. “Hey Laurence knock it off and clean that up.” Storm tells the students as another Scott heads in their direction.
“This way” Storm shows John over to the kitchen to get something to eat.
Jubilee sees him first. “Don't look now but your new roomie just came in with Storm.” She tells Bobby in a hushed voice that really isn't that quiet and everyone at their table turns to look as John trips.
“What is even his deal?” Jubilee is convinced John must be a mess.
“Lay off Jubs.” Bobby rolls his eyes.
“You gonna get all defensive now cause you're the spaz's new babysitter?”
“That's not it.” Bobby stabs at a tomato in his salad.
Kitty adds diplomatically. “We don't know yet that he's gonna be a total spaz.”
“I'm not going to hold my breath.” Jubilee scoffs as she takes a drink of her water.
Piotr is all for new students, he likes meeting new people. “He's only been here a few days, I say we give him a chance.”
“You would, you haven't met him.” Jubilee points out.
“And you have?” Piotr questions.
“uuuhh Yes! He and I got up close and personal you remember.”
“There's a difference between talking to someone and running into them, Jubilee.” Bobby points out.
“Yeah well Kitty met him and he was obnoxious.”
Kitty worries at her lip, she isn't sure who to side with. “Well you've spent the most time with him Bobby what do you think?”
“I think he's hum... interesting... but I don't really know it wasn't like he said a whole lot. He likes comic books and writing I think.”
“and he's rude.” Jubilee adds, not wanting that left out.
Piotr thought the whole thing was silly. “Well I think the Wolf Boy might liven things up around here, he definitely gets you worked up Jubilee.”
“Yeah well, don't make me mad you want like me when I'm...” Jubilee starts and then shifts gears real fast. “Hi Ms. Monroe how are you?”
“I'm fine Jubilee, Hi guys. I was wondering if our new student John could sit with you?”
Everyone nods and smiles and agrees.
“Great, John you know Bobby and Kitty, this is Jubilee who I believe you met on your tour and Piotr. Have a good lunch, I'll be back in a bit.”
John takes a seat and starts eating his lunch with little attention paid to the other students at the table.
Everyone looks to Bobby to take the lead. “So... John, you decided to stay that's good.” Bobby offers.
John hitches an eyebrow at him and answers with his mouth half full. “I guess, beats were I was living before.”
“and where was that?” Jubilee asks with a forced smile.
John doesn't really feel like playing twenty questions, he really doesn't know if he wants to talk about himself “hum around.”
“Oh yeah, I bet that was just awful living 'around.'” Jubilee sarcastically says and Bobby glares at her.
John stops chewing and looks at her. He looks at her face and tries to determine what she meant by what she'd said and the way she'd said it.
“Wow, that bad uhh?” she teases him again.
He narrows his eyes at her, he had a feeling this girl that had yelled at him yesterday day was messing with him now. “Well it wasn't as nice as here, Princess.”
Jubilee's face gets red real fast. “oh yeah must have been awful all that dirt and the fleas in the wolves' den, having to fight for scraps with the rest of the mutts.” Jubilee tells him and when he doesn't have a comeback but rather looks from her to the others at the table for an explanation Jubilee takes it as her victory.
She sits back and finished her water.
John looks at them all quizzically but no one offers to explain what Jubilee was talking about so he grumbles and goes back to eating.
“So...” Bobby starts again feeling awkward. “It looks like were going to be rooming together.” Bobby waits but John doesn't say anything, he just kepeps eating his sandwich hungrily.
Bobby and Kitty looks at each other. “John?” Kitty asks.
John looks up from his sandwich. “hum?” he makes a questioning noise as he sees they were looking at him. “what?”
Bobby blinks at him “We're going to be roommates.”
John's eyes get wide and he coughs as he swallows too fast. “oh...”
“Yeah Dr. Grey asked me a little earlier.” Bobby smiles and tries not to be too shy. “We move in tomorrow.”
John looks at Bobby, he always seems to be talking which is kind of annoying, but he might be a good guy to have around, someone who knows everyone and who people seemed to like. “hum, ok, that's cool.”
“Great.” Bobby nods trying not to be too awkward.
John grips the lighter in his pocket and tries to imagine what things were going to be like now. He'd never really liked change.