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Starting the morning hearing the neighbor's dog barking as if possessed was not exactly the best way to start the day according to Charles Xavier. He gave a wail like a five-year-old who won't get out of bed and rolled over, ready to go back to dreamland. His only comfort was that at least today he wouldn't hear the neighbors' daughters hopping and cackling upstairs now that school term had started again and he could sleep for more hours without being disturbed. At this thought though, something snapped in Xavier's big brain and, like a vampire whose coffin has just been opened, he immediately sat up, now much more alert and aware of what was happening.
"Wait, kids? School? Fuck, I'm late!" He started talking as if there was someone else in the room with him. He jumped out of bed and started running around the house, eating the first edible thing from hia cupboard and immediately running to the bathroom. After only ten minutes he was already out. His hair was still damp from the shower and he hadn't trimmed his morning stubble but it didn't matter. It wasn't as if ten-year-olds cared much about how their new teacher first introduced himself. Luckily the school wasn't too far away, that was also one of the reasons why he had accepted the job offer. The less he used the car, the less he spent on fuel and that meant more money he saved and more money that would go into his bank account to afford a better place to live.
He only had five minutes before class started but he hoped to be there before the bell rang. The teacher is always the first to enter, isn't he? He had to move and the red light for pedestrians ahead of him wasn't helping him at all. Everyone waited patiently for the red to turn green as a few cars passed between the two sidewalks.
"It must be a joke..." He thought to himself as he looked at the now deserted street and the still red light. As if fate wanted to tease him, the school was almost immediately after that road, only this small piece separated him from his destination. With a sigh he decided that he didn't have time to stay on that sidewalk among cigarette butts and what Charles thought was vomit and, knowing he wasn't doing the right thing but in good faith, he crossed the pedestrian crossing convinced that no car would pass in that precise instant.
How wrong was he.
The noise of wheels scraping on the asphalt made all of Charles's organs vibrate as his skin turned whiter than usual at the sight of the huge and most likely very expensive black car inches from his leg. One of the darkened windows of the so-called car rolled down and the head of a man with a menacing face peeked out.
"Can't you see or what? It's green for cars, you asshole!" the man yelled in a thick German accent, his well-defined features stiffening with anger giving him a stern air, even more severe when associated with the man's penetrating gray eyes.
"This is not the time to think about how sexy this asshole is!" He told himself internally.
"Fuck you, have a chamomile tea if you're always this nervous when you drive!" Charles yelled back, all the anxiety and frustration of being late going to his head.
"What did you say?!" The man at the wheel continued, now other cars behind him were honking their horns, eager to move forward.
"I said" he continued going towards the window "fuck you and have a chamomile tea if you're always so nervous." He answered through gritted teeth and in a low tone of voice.
"You're lucky I have to go or I would have gotten out of the car and made you wish you hadn't gotten out of bed." gray eyes continued bringing his face close to Charles's, so much that the man's red beard touched Charles's barely growing one.
"Sure, sure, careful not to get too angry though, it looks like a vein is about to burst on your forehead." He resumed his upright stance and walked away, cracking a small smile when he didn't hear a response from the other man, hearing only the sound of the car continuing on its way.
He arrived two minutes after the bell rang, it wasn't a good thing to be late on his first day but at least he was rid of all the frustration and anxiety of the past few days thanks to that fight. The children were already in class, some were sitting but most were standing, little screams and giggles echoing throughout the room.
"Sorry I'm late! Hi everyone, I'll be your math and science teacher for this year. I'm Charles Xavier but you can call me teacher Charles. Now please, everyone take their seats." He announced using his voice and his sociable expression and in a second, all the desks were taken.
All but one.
"Mhh, there's an empty counter, whose is that?" He asked craning his neck to see an empty chair in the corner of the back row.
"It belongs to my brother Pietro." Said a little voice still in the back row. The little girl had thick brown hair and eyes big enough to make a fawn jealous.
"Oh, and is your brother sick? Is he home for that?"
"No, he left the class before you got there, he never came back." Charles felt his heart stop and his legs go limp. Had he lost a child on the first day of school? What was he going to do.
"You... you stay here, I'll go look for him." He said in a weak voice as he ran out of the classroom. It was his fault, if he hadn't arrived late the child wouldn't have come out, why, why had he had to back up that idiot who had almost run over him! He ran through the halls happy that the classroom doors were closed, at least he wouldn't make a bad impression in front of his new colleagues. He turned the corner and felt his heart beat again. A boy, very similar to the same girl who had spoken to him in class, was standing in the hall reading posters on the wall.
"Are you Pietro?" He asked with his heart pounding, hoping for a positive answer. The boy, whose hair was so light it looked bleached, nodded, then ran towards his teacher.
"Who are you?" He asked smiling at Charles, showing him his smile that was missing two teeth.
"I'm your teacher. My name is Charles. Please don't run away like that again, you scared me." He said trying to smile.
"Okay, okay." Replied the little one, trying not to show his fingers crossed behind his back.
"Now let's go to class." He ruffled the boy's hair and, making him go forward so as not to lose sight of him, they went back to the classroom together. He called roll and asked each of the children to say something about them.
"I like motorcycles!" A bespectacled boy, Scott, as Charles reminded himself, speaked out.
"It's good that you have this passion, does anyone else want to say something?"
"I like running!" Peter commented.
"Yes, I understood that." He said halfway between a snort and a laugh.
The children kept naming hobbies or things they liked.
"I like metal music!" Sean said.
"I like cartoons!" Jean replied.
"I like the rain!" Ororo said showing her shirt with a stormy cloud.
"I love the rain too, especially if I can spend it warm between the blankets." Charles replied, making the children laugh.
"And what do you like?" He asked Wanda, Pietro's sister, who had remained silent all the time trying not to get noticed. The little girl shrugged, still looking at her teacher with her huge brown eyes.
"Okay nothing comes to mind, so let's try with... well, yeah, what's the first thing that comes to mind when I say the word love?" The little girl thought about it for a moment and then, gathering courage, she softly murmured a few words.
"My dad and my brother come to mind." Charles smiled at all the love the little girl seemed to have for her family. It reminded him of Raven.
"Do you love your dad very much?" he asked, now all the attention of the class was on the two.
"Our dad is like the coolest person in the world! He likes cars and we go racing together! Wanda forces him to get his nails painted with polish every once in a while!" Peter began to speak
"I don't force him, he likes it!" The sister continued and Charles tried to calm the two siblings.
"Calm down guys, calm down. Pietro, don't interrupt your sister, it's not polite. I'm sure your dad loves having his nails painted by you, Wanda, he seems like a fantastic person." He smiled at her and the little girl blushed, smiling back. The first day lesson was not made up of boring explanations or blackboard exercises, Charles preferred to get to know the children and, from the personal questions they were asking him, it seemed that the children also wanted to get to know him.
"Do you have any children?" Kurt asked.
"Are you married?" Annemarie asked.
"Do you like running?" Obviously, Peter asked.
"No guys, I'm not married and I don't have children and no, I'm not a very sporty person." He answered everyone, making Pietro moan. The bell rang, the day had flown by both for him and for the children and, like lightning bolts, everyone took their backpacks and ran out of the classroom, a chorus of "See you tomorrow teacher!" It made his heart leap for joy. At least the children seemed to take a liking to him. He put all his papers away, placing them neatly inside his folder and, convinced that all the children had gone home, he was ready to return to his apartment, only to see two figures still in the courtyard.
"Wanda? Pietro? What are you still doing here? Hasn't anyone come?"
"Daddy is late sometimes but he'll be here soon, don't worry teacher." Wanda said standing close to her brother.
"I'll stay here until he arrives, don't worry." He smiled at the two and the three together began to look at the road waiting for someone to arrive. After about five minutes, the sound of an approaching car made all three of them look up and Charles would burst out laughing at the absurdity of the situation. The same black car from that same morning had parked in the yard, and the same man he had told to fuck off got out of the car and nearly fell to the ground when the two children ran towards it.
"Dad! Dad! I managed to get the seat in the last row! Mr. Charles is nice even if he doesn't like to run!" Pietro spoke at the speed of light while Wanda was calmly clinging to her father's leg.
"The teacher stayed with us so as not to make us wait here alone." Wanda said softly.
"Hi Pietro, Hi Wanda. I hope you enjoyed yourself, sorry for the delay." He said not looking up from his children, not having noticed Charles yet.
"Let me thank your teacher, he was kind to wait for you-" He lifted his head only to stop short, his eyes widening.
"You!" He exclaimed standing up straight, the children's eyes went from the teacher to their dad.
"And I believe you are Mr. Lehnsherr at this point." Charles said with mock politeness.
"His kids are adorable." He said. "Unlike you." This he did not say, but thought it very intensely.
"Dad! You know the teacher! He's nice!" Peter repeated again.
"Yes, your teacher and I know each other." Mr. Lehnsherr said, his jaw set.
"You better go now kids, your daddy's always in a hurry you know, I bet he drives really fast." He commented with the fakest smile he could muster. The two little ones nodded and climbed into the back seats of the car.
"See you tomorrow teacher!" they said in chorus.
"See you tomorrow children and I hope to see you again, Mr. Lehnsherr." He said the last part through clenched teeth. The man grimaced and got into the car, turning the key to start the engine only to be interrupted by a pair of hands on his shoulders.
"Dad! Dad! You didn't say bye to the teacher! He said "see you tomorrow" to you!" Charles grinned and the other man seemed about to explode. He closed his eyes and flexed his hands on the steering wheel, still looking straight ahead.
"I hope so too, teacher Charles."
"The teacher is only for children, you can call me Mr. Xavier." If Mr. Lehnsherr wanted to punch him, now he wanted him directly dead.
"I hope so too, Mr. Xavier." He corrected himself, and before Charles could say anything more, the car took off, disappearing around the first bend.
He sighed and walked towards his house, hoping this was the last time he would have anything to do with Mr. Lehnsherr.
The next day, with much more calm and serenity, Charles headed back to school, happy not to be almost hit like the previous day. He walked into the classroom and his heart warmed when all the children gave him joyful smiles.
"Good morning everyone, please take a seat. Today we will only have the first two hours together and, as much as I am sorry not to spend more time with you, I think it behooves you to do some art with teacher Logan. Take your books and turn to page five." Like little automatons, the children took their books and synchronously opened them to the page told by the teacher. All children except one.
"Pietro, where is your book?" Charles asked the boy who now had red ears and a bowed head. Charles came closer and, with a touch of amusement, noticed that it wasn't just the book that was missing, but the whole backpack.
"I forgot my backpack at home." He said in a faint voice. Some of the children giggled but Charles was quick to shut them up.
"Guys, it can happen that you forget something at home, as long as it doesn't happen every day. How about I call your father to see if he can bring it here?" Pietro nodded without saying a word and Charles gave a reassuring look to Wanda who was giving her brother a worried look. Charles asked the janitor to check on the students as he headed out of the classroom to contact Mr. Lehnsherr.
"Hello, who is speaking?" the soft voice on the other end of the phone asked, and Charles had to make a herculean effort not to make his knees shake like jelly.
"Mr. Lehnsherr, I'm Mr. Xavier." He said in a firm voice and he could almost feel Mr. Lehnsherr's teeth grit.
"How did you get my number?"
"We have the number of all the students' parents in case of need, Mr. Lehnsherr."
"Did something happen to the kids?" He asked now in a much more worried voice and Charles felt heartened.
"He's an asshole but at least he's a good father." He said to himself.
"Don't worry, your children are fine but Pietro forgot his backpack at home. Is there any chance that you will be able to bring it here to school?" Mr. Lehnsherr sighed as if a weight had been lifted from his chest.
"I just finished a meeting, if you give me ten minutes I can carry it." Without saying goodbye, he cut the call and Charles found himself staring at the phone with wide eyes.
"Asshole." He said softly. He waited outside the main entrance, and after exactly ten minutes, the expensive black car was parking outside the school. Mr. Lehnsherr got out, carrying a red backpack with toy cars on it and Charles had to suppress a chuckle at the sight. A large man with a colorfully printed backpack was something great to look at.
"Here you are." He said bluntly handing the backpack to Charles. The two remained silent for a few seconds, looking into each other's eyes.
"Um, sure, now I'll take it to Pietro." He said turning to go back to his duties, but remembering one thing.
"It can happen that he forgets he's backpack from time to time, but I would ask you and your wife to be more careful with the children." He said regretting it almost immediately at the sight of Mr. Lehnsherr's furious face. He took a few steps back and hugged the backpack to his chest.
"It's hard to look after two ten-year-olds when you have to wake up at 5 in the morning to run a company and their mother can't do much as she's somewhere around Europe, too busy having fun to remember call them every now and then." He said through gritted teeth and Charles felt like a horrible person. Who was he to comment on Mr. Lehnsherr's life without knowing anything about it? The man left before Charles had a chance to say anything to him. Heartbroken, he returned to class, handing the backpack to Pietro. The lessons continued and Charles had the distinct feeling that his students had noticed his low morale but none of them asked him anything. Logan came in after him and nodded good-bye, walking into the staffroom and diving into preparing the program for the next few months, hoping to get Mr. Lehnsherr's angry face out of his head.
The lessons ended and, like the day before, Wanda and Pietro were left alone in the school yard. Without a word, Charles came over and stood beside them and the two thanked him with a look. When Mr. Lehnsherr arrived, the children ran towards him and the man didn't even dare lift his head to look at Charles but instead, he got the children in and hurried off. Charles remained there for a few more minutes and, with a sigh, headed down and with anxiety in his stomach towards home. That same evening, while trying to keep his pasta sauce from charring, he received a call from Raven.
"So, those little monsters have already freaked you out?" His sister asked in an amused voice and Charles couldn't help but roll his eyes.
"They're not so bad Raven. They are all very polite and calm, except Sean, who seems to have a megaphone in front of his mouth when he speaks. And how are you?" He asked holding the phone between his shoulder and his ear while his hands were busy saving the gravy which had taken on a strange color.
"It's okay, everyone here in the office is boring as usual. Any nice colleagues?" Charles could hear the malice in his sister's voice.
"No, nobody, most of them are too old for me anyway." He told her and cursed himself internally when he started thinking about Mr. Lehnsherr.
"Charles, you are twenty-seven years old, by now it shouldn't be a problem anymore." She continued as she munched on something Charles assumed were potato chips.
"Don't spoil your appetite, Raven. It would be highly unprofessional to start an affair with the father of one of my students anyway." He bit his tongue as the last words came out. He had screwed himself with his own hands.
"The father of one of your students? Wait, I never named any parents. Oh God, you're already in love! Tell me all about him. What's his name? How old is he? Is he very cool? Is he-"
"Ok Raven, hear from you tomorrow." He said putting the call down and getting ready to order take out. He was about to dial his favorite Chinese restaurant when, and his heart stopped at the sight, Mr. Lehnsherr's number appeared on the display of his phone.
"Oh God..." he resigned himself after looking motionless at the phone for a few seconds and, taking all the courage accumulated in twenty-seven years of life, answered the cell phone.
"Yes?"
"Mr. Xavier?" Mr. Lehnsherr asked from the other end of the phone. Charles sat down in a chair and braced himself for the worst.
"Oh Mr. Lehnsherr, why are you calling me?"
"I wanted... to apologize, for today." He said the last part as an afterthought, not wanting to confuse Charles about their fight at the traffic lights yesterday.
"Apologize? For what?" He asked now really curious.
"You're right. I should be more careful with my kids. I have a job and it keeps me really busy but that's no excuse for being a neglectful parent, I promise you it won't happen again from now on." He said in a tone that Charles had never heard before and that silenced him for a moment.
"Mr. Xavier, are you still there?" Charles woke up and was suddenly on his feet, as if Mr. Lehnsherr were in front of him.
"Oh my God, it's not you who should be apologizing sir, it's my fault. I was really rude to assume things about your life. I had no right to accuse you like that. I have no children but I'm sure being a single parent It's not easy at all. Don't worry, I'll understand if the children occasionally forget something at home." He said in one breath, finding himself out of breath at the end of the speech.
"From the way you talks I can tell that the guilt stayed with you throughout the day and I can't say it was the other way around for me. My apologies again, Mr. Xavier."
"Charles." He said without thinking.
"What?"
"You can call me Charles, Mr. Lehnsherr." The man was silent for a few seconds, just to snort a little chuckle.
"Then you can call me Erik, Charles. Thanks for staying with my kids today. See you tomorrow." He said not waiting for an answer. Charles stood with a stupid look in the kitchen, remembering how to walk only after a few minutes. He went straight to sleep, his hunger gone and instead, there was a feeling of warmth in his chest that continued even as he fell asleep with Erik's name on his lips.
The days turned into weeks and, before long, Charles was the favorite teacher of all the children. His students' parents also seemed to appreciate him, especially Erik, who always stayed a few minutes longer after the end of the school day to chat with him. And to think that until a few weeks ago the two would have wanted to bite each other. The children, to Charles's great surprise, had drawn up a list of who among the adults was the nicest. He was number one, followed closely by teacher McCoy, then there was Logan, and at the bottom of the list was Principal Shaw.
"The principal is scary, teacher, he seems to want to tear us apart alive." Sean said throwing his hands in the air as if to imitate someone big and scary, making the other students laugh. Charles chuckled and leaned back on his desk.
"Come on guys, Mr. Shaw isn't that bad." He was sorry to lie to the children but he knew it was for the best, he didn't have to let everyone know that he himself was scared of the principal. Charles began to explain the human body and its various systems to the children, and when the recess bell rang, he stopped and gave the children the green light to start playing. He remained in the classroom while the students stood in the hall in full view of the janitors but, a high-pitched scream made him leap to his feet and run out at lightning speed. Scott was lying on the floor holding his nose, Charles could see tears rolling down his cheeks.
"Scott! What happened?" Charles asked immediately approaching the child and gently removing his hands from his face. No blood, at least he hadn't broken anything. Scott's face was wet with tears and snot, and between sobs he managed to explain.
"Wanda punched me!" He said in one breath, immediately starting to cry again. Charles tried to calm him down and sent for the janitors, who took the boy away with them. He turned to look at Wanda who was clinging to the wall, her companions looking at her frightened. All of course except Pietro.
"Guys, everyone in class. Pause ends early today." He said not taking his eyes off the little girl. Everyone mumbled but quickly went back to class.
"You too, Pietro, I'd like to talk alone with Wanda." The boy stared at him for a few seconds, then looked at his sister and, without a word, went back to class. Charles approached and, imitating Wanda's pose in the parallel wall, began to ask questions.
"May I ask why you punch him?" He asked calmly, not wanting to upset the little girl. Wanda shrugged and Charles sighed.
"Wanda, you hurt a friend of yours, we should give you a punishment. The principal will decide it." The little girl, as if she didn't believe her teacher's words, jerked her head up.
"He insulted Pietro, it's his fault!" yelled the youngest stepping forward.
"He insulted Pietro? What do you mean?" He asked approaching in turn to put a hand on Wanda's shoulder who now had tears in her eyes.
"Peter was talking about a movie he had seen with Dad and he was very agitated, moving from side to side and talking very fast. Scott told him to shut up or learn to be normal. Peter is normal! It's just that he can't sit still for a second. I got up and hurt Scott. I'm sorry teacher." The kid was crying now and Charles accompanied her where Scott and the parents of both children were also.
"My poor baby! He's got a broken nose!" Scott's mother yelled causing Erik to roll his eyes.
"The school doctor already said nothing's broken, Mrs. Summers, don't worry." the janitor informed her, earning a glare from the other woman. She looked back at her son who had now stopped crying.
"Violent kids shouldn't be in a school. They're a danger!" She continued looking at Wanda who had taken refuge behind Charles' leg.
"Violent? My daughter isn't violent! Who knows what your son might have done to instigate her like that!" Erik answered approaching the two parents and Charles understood that it was time to intervene.
"Gentlemen, please, the situation is clear. Scott was teasing Wanda's brother and she defended him. While violence is never the answer, both children are in the wrong now."
"Are you excusing that little girl's actions? She punched our son!" Mr. Summers screamed as he stood next to his wife.
"That's not what I said and you know it sir. The principal will decide the punishment of the children." Charles didn't get upset and continued to keep a firm and decisive tone.
"Punishment? My son is a victim!" Mr. Summers came perilously close to Charles, but before he could lift a finger, Erik had an iron grip on his arm and pulled him back.
"Don't go near him." He hissed through clenched teeth, making the two spouses pale and making Charles's cheeks redden. Mr. Summers pulled away violently muttering some insult that Erik pretended not to hear.
"Wanda? Can you apologize to Scott?" The little girl moved to her father and snuggled around him, muttering a thin "sorry" that didn't sound very convinced.
"And Scott, I expect you to apologize to Pietro." Charles continued, making the boy nod. The Summers took their son home, and Charles thought it best if Wanda and Pietro also went home for the day.
"They're both upset, it's for the best." Charles said giving a small smile to the two children who already had their backpacks on their shoulders.
"I'm sorry for Wanda's behavior, I promise I'll talk to her." Erik said running his hand through the little girl's curly dark hair.
"Kids can be difficult at times but I'm sure Wanda realizes what she's done is wrong, right?" He asked looking at the little girl who nodded with a smile. The four said goodbye and Charles returned to finish the day's lessons. The following day, to Charles' great satisfaction, Scott had apologized to Pietro and the two seemed to be friends as before. The children ran into the playground for the pause after an hour of math expressions while Charles stayed inside cleaning the blackboard. When the work was finished he turned around, giving a little scream at the sight of the twins motionless in front of him.
"Pietro, Wanda, why aren't you out with the other kids?" He asked touching his chest to make sure his heart was still beating. The two looked at each other with a smile and after nodding they turned to their teacher.
"Teacher, do you like our dad?" Pietro asked with a chuckle and Charles turned the color of a tomato at that question. He turned away so the children wouldn't notice and pretended to write something on the blackboard.
"Your father is nice. Why do you ask me?" He asked trying to keep a neutral tone which however came out on a higher note than usual.
"Because our dad likes you! He always talks about you. He did it yesterday too." Wanda continued.
"Oh... and may I ask what your father says?" He asked, unable to defeat the curiosity rising from his chest.
"The first few days he didn't seem to like you much but then something changed. When we come home he always asks us how are you, if we haven't driven you too crazy and stuff like that. His eyes lit up when we told him you're not married!" Pietro said excitedly, starting to jump from side to side. Charles felt himself burning. Had Erik really reacted like that? She tried to compose herself and, looking at the children, gathered courage.
"Guys, you are my students and he's your father. I like your dad but there can never be anything between us, that eould be highly unprofessional." The two children pouted and, without a word, ran out of the classroom, leaving Charles dazed and alone. The day ended and everyone went home. Charles didn't wait for Erik this time, instead giving the janitors the task of checking on the two children, too scared to meet the other's eyes after Wanda and Pietro's affirmations. That same evening, as he was stretched out on the small, rumpled sofa in his home, a call from his phone distracted him.
"Yes?" He answered without even looking at who was on the other end, convinced it was his sister given the late hour.
"Charles? It's Erik." The accented voice he knew too well answered. He cursed under his breath and stood up.
"Erik! Hi, what's going on?" He asked trying to sound normal.
"Nothing happens. Every time I call you something has to happen?" He asked in an amused tone.
"Oh no no! You can call me whenever you want." He said. Erik laughed and Charles calmed down a bit.
"I called you because Wanda and Pietro told me about what they told you today. Sorry if they embarrassed you." Charles bit his tongue and closed his eyes. Searching for the words to say.
"What? What Pietro and Wanda said? Oh, I almost forgot." He lied shamelessly. "Don't worry though, no harm done, I know they probably made it all up."
"Not really, actually." Charles felt his heart stop.
"You... interest me, Charles. You're kind but at the same time you're not afraid to talk back to people, I understood it the first day we met. You're kind to children, Wanda and Pietro like you." Erik's tone couldn't be anything but seductive and Charles sat back down, too scared to lose his balance for those words.
"Erik... no." He said looking into space and not thinking about what he had just said.
"Sorry. I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable, I won't contact you again." He replied, the previous tone completely gone to give space to a defeated voice and Charles could almost imagine Erik's sad face.
"What? No! No!" Charles realized how the sentence said before could sound and hastened to explain. Erik remained silent on the other end and Charles heaved a sigh of relief, at least he hadn't hung up.
"Erik I like you, I mean really do but you're the father of my students. We can't be together it's unprofessional." He said despondently.
"I understand." Erik looked more upbeat now.
"We can be friends if you want to." Charles said hoping to save what could be saved.
"Sure, I'd like to." A smile formed on his face.
"Goodnight, Erik."
"Sleep well, teacher." He replied making the other laugh. Charles went to bed but did not sleep for a long time.
"Friends." He said with a sigh.
Months began to pass, and, as the seasons changed, so did Erik and Charles' relationship.
"I've never asked you what company you work for." Charles asked on a Tuesday in January as he and Erik spoke on the phone.
"For mine, actually. Ever heard of Lehnsherr Enterprise?" Charles mentally slapped himself. Of course he had heard of it. That company employed hundreds of people in their town. How had he not linked his friend's surname to the company?
"Of course I know it but I've never put two and two together before. It must be challenging."
"Sometimes it is but I like what I do." Their conversation was interrupted by screams from the upstairs neighbors and Charles sighed. It was the third time in a week.
"Everything Ok?" Erik asked having heard all the noises.
"Sure, its just the neighbors. I hope I can move soon." He sighed rubbing his face.
"You don't like where you live?"
"Not much, actually. I've been trying to save money since my parents kicked me out after college."
"Did your parents throw you out? Why?"
"Oh you know, family problems. It's not a problem anymore now." He said trying to defuse the situation.
"I have a meeting in ten minutes, I have to go, we'll talk." They said goodbye and Charles continued to pretend that he was fine with it.
"What about relationships? I find it strange that you're single." Charles asked him one Thursday in March after Erik had invited him for coffee as "friends".
"I've been single since I divorced about five years ago, actually. When you meet someone and tell them you have two young children it's hard for them to understand that you will always have two priorities." Charles remained silent as he continued to look at Erik.
"How old are you?" He asked abruptly to Erik who was now looking at him with an amused smile.
"Oh sorry! I realized I don't know much about you, actually."
"I don't know your age either, if that's matter." Erik said sipping his cappuccino.
"I'm twenty-seven years old."
"Guess how many I have." Erik replied making Charles roll his eyes.
"Mhh, let's see. You're thirty." He answered confidently but shattered when Erik started to laugh.
"I remind you that I have two ten-year-old kids." He said amused.
"Okay okay, so... thirty six."
"close, I'm turning thirty-eight next month." He glanced at Charles out of the corner of his eye, waiting for his reaction.
"You don't look thirty-eight."
"Thanks, I take that as a compliment. Too old for you?"
"What? No, of course not. You're perfect." He said without thinking, blushing at the look Erik gave him after that sentence.
Without anyone noticing, time continued to pass. Most days it was fine, the kids were quiet and he put just the right amount of lemon in his tea so it didn't get too sour while other days it was a nightmare. One May day, the children paid no attention to him, preferring to yell and throw pencils at each other. He tried several times to call them but no one seemed to listen to him. Those had been difficult days. He had argued with his sister, the neighbors didn't let him sleep at night and, to make things worse, he had called Erik at a bad time the day before and the man had answered him abruptly only to end the call after less than two minutes.
"Guys, stop!" He yelled slamming the book on the desk and all the voices suddenly stopped, the children's eyes were fixed on him.
"Teacher, why are you crying?" Jean asked after a few seconds. Shit, he hadn't even noticed the big tears rolling down his cheeks. Not answering he hurriedly wiped his face.
"Open your notebooks." The children obeyed and no one dared speak to him for the rest of the day. In the evening he was too tired to call anyone and so he lay there, thrown in bed with his eyes open trying to think of anything but this day to forget. Suddenly the doorbell rang and Charles covered his head with the pillow, trying to block out the sound. Whoever was outside his door didn't seem to have any intention of leaving though, and with a defeated sigh, he stood up to open the door in his t-shirt and underpants, his eyes widening as he realized who was outside his house.
"Erik." He said in greeting, slightly opening the door a little.
"The kids told me you didn't have a good day."
"How do you know where I live?" He asked ignoring the previous sentence.
"You told me you lived in a dilapidated apartment near the school and this is the only one. Finding your name among the intercom wasn't difficult."
"What do you want anyway? It's late." He hid even further behind the door.
"I wanted to apologize for yesterday and know how you are. Can you let me in?" Charles had never seen that expression on Erik and, opening the door, ushered him into his living room.
"Excuse the mess." He said looking at the pile of dirty shirts and pants on the sofa.
"Don't worry. Two young children, remember?" Erik had a bag in his hand which he handed out to Charles.
"What's this?" He asked taking it in his hand as if it were a precious object.
"Last time we went to the cafe you had this dessert. I thought you might like it." Erik had a smile on his face that immediately faded away when Charles started crying, placing the bag on the table and embracing Erik who instinctively started running a hand through his hair.
"Thank you. Say sorry for me to your children for being angry today." He said after ten minutes of tears and sweet words from Erik. The man didn't answer. His hand hadn't left Charles' hair and slowly moved to his cheek, caressing the other's cheekbone with his thumb.
"Erik..." Charles saw the other's face approaching, their faces were only a few centimeters apart but Charles stopped him putting a hand on his arm.
"You know we can't." He said in a whisper and Erik nodded. His hand left Charles's cheek and, after hugging for a few more minutes in silence, the two said goodbye, leaving a sense of emptiness in Charles' arms as the door closed after Erik.
The end of school came before anyone knew it. Wanda, Pietro and all their classmates were happy. Their last year of primary school had come to an end and at the end of the summer they would start middle school. Charles hugged all the children at the end of class, trying not to cry when the children thanked him for the school year. When he got home he felt empty but happy. The next three months were going to be pretty boring. He was about to prepare something to eat when the doorbell rang. He went to open the door only to find a grinning Erik standing in front of him.
"Hey, hi. Come in." Charles made room for him and Erik didn't ask twice. As soon as the door closed. Erik began to speak.
"Charles." He said solemnly.
"For these nine months you have been one of the people who understood me the most. I know we didn't start well but now I realize that I really misjudged you at the beginning. I had prepared a whole speech to give you but now I can't I remember more so I'll go straight to the point. Do you want to go out with me?" He asked with a hopeful face. Charles smiled sheepishly and leaned against the door.
"How long did you wait to ask me?"
"About eight months." Charles's face couldn't be redder and, looking into Erik's eyes, he walked over to him.
"I too waited a long time to do this." He said standing on tiptoe to kiss the other man. He put his hands on his shoulders while the other placed them on Charles' hips. They parted to catch their breath and Erik leaned his forehead against that of the man in front of him.
"Wanda and Pietro will be jumping for joy." Charles laughed and hugged Erik tighter.
Two months later, Charles moved in with Erik.
Two years after their first meeting, Charles officially became Charles Xavier-Lehnsherr.