Alphabet Soup Table - 8. Hankering - X-Men
Title: Pizza Between Friends
Author: Kat Lee
Fandom: Generation X/X-Men
Character/Pairing: Jubilee/Paige
Rating: PG/K+
Challenge/Prompt: FemSlash100100: Alphabet Soup: Hankering
Warning(s): None
Word Count: 1,065
Date Written: 24 October 2016
Summary:
Disclaimer: All characters within belong to Marvel Comics and Disney, not the author, and are used without permission.
"Ah've got a hankering for some pizza."
Jubilee's eyes crack open. She looks up at the ceiling before rolling onto her side and looking across the room. She'd thought she'd never get to sleep with her room mate refusing to turn out her light and stop turning pages as she studies for tomorrow's test, but she'd almost fallen asleep when the other girl had spoken. "Whut?" she asks groggily, propping higher up on her elbows and peering closer at her.
Paige has the eraser of her pencil pressed to her lips, her blue eyes focused solely on the text book in front of her. "Ah'm sorry. Didn't mean t' say that out loud." A light pink tinges her cheeks, and Jubilee knows she isn't exactly telling the truth. She wanted her attention for some reason.
She stares at the girl for a minute, thinking. The pull of sleep is inviting, but she knows Paige isn't wanting to be left alone right now. Her face is flushed and her eyes are red, and Jubilee suddenly suspects that it isn't simply because of studying all these long hours. She swings up to a sitting position as she recalls their mission from earlier that day.
It hadn't been a close one by X-Men standards, but Paige is still young. The girl's older than she is by a few years, but when it comes to saving the world, or at least mutant lives, Jubilee's an old pro. Paige . . . is not. It's like something her Wolveroonie said once before. Jubilee's an old soul, but Paige . . . Paige is still learning on a lot of levels. "Then let's go," she says, suddenly breaking the silence that has settled back over their room.
"Go where?"
"For pizza. Ain't that what you said? You're hungry for pizza?"
Paige blushes again. "Ah . . . Yeah. Ah did." She shrugs. "Ah'm sorry. It's just . . . Sam used t' splurge on occasion, 'specially when we had big tests comin' up. But Ah need t' study."
"I don't see your big brother distracting you from studying, so it must've helped somehow," Jubilee argues lightly.
Paige looks up at her, and their eyes meet from across the room. Her eraser's still pressed against her lips. Her glasses have slipped down her nose, and her long, blonde hair is falling messily around her face which has not yet seen enough battle to make it hard or scarred. She looks just like any other serious student or, at least, any Jubilee's seen on TV except . . . She is kind of cute.
Jubilee blinks and rips her gaze away from her friend's. She looks at the poster of some country band on Paige's wall. She has no idea what they sing and doesn't want to. She's not seeing them even now. She's still seeing Paige, her blue eyes wide and pretty face fresh with innocence. Where, Jubilee wonders, had that thought come from? It's not like she's into girls!
"F'rget it," Paige murmurs, turning back to her book. "Ah'm sorry Ah woke you. Didn't mean t'. Ah just need t' study."
Jubilee looks back at her. Paige's attention is now fully focused upon her text book once more, and Jubes watches her for a few seconds in silence. The girl is pretty, she realizes. No wonder the boys fight and fuss over her like Wolvy and Scott used to fight over Jean. She doesn't stand a chance with her. She doesn't want to stand a chance with her. The life she leads doesn't exactly give room for dating. She thinks of all the unhappy, superhero couples she knows and knows she doesn't want the headaches of a romantic life that can't work adding to all the stress already on her.
But that doesn't mean they can't be friends or that they can't go for pizza at -- she glances at the clock on Paige's bedside table -- three o'clock in the morning. Damn. She'll have to be up soon any way, and she's still barely caught any sleep. It's no wonder she sleeps so much in class. Her eyes trail back to Paige, and she knows, though the girl won't raise her head again, that she needs her help, even if it's just the presence of a friend by her side in these wee hours o' th' morn, as Cassidy would say.
"All right."
"Excuse me?"
Jubilee stands, dresses quickly, grabs Paige's coat, and throws it at her. "Let's go get that pizza."
"But mah studying -- "
"Will still be waitin' fer ya when we get back, Hayseed, an' yer'll think better on a full stomach." And maybe, if she's really lucky, she'll see Cassidy out there somewhere tonight and be able to talk him into delaying the test for another day. They're all tired, she knows, and she's pretty certain Paige isn't the only one not sleeping after the fight this afternoon.
"Won't we get into trouble fer leavin' after curfew?" Paige asks anxiously as Jubilee heads for their door, but she is dressed.
"I'll take the blame," Jubilee says with a shrug of her shoulders. She slips a piece of gum into her mouth and is just making her first bubble when Paige comes near the door she's opening. Her friend peeks uncertainly out into the hallway. Jubilee shoves her on and then slides out behind her. Paige is so close that she bumps into her when she enters the hall.
"Sorry," the blonde murmurs and edges on. Jubilee leads the way. She may be with Generation X now, but she's still an X-Man. She's not afraid of being caught breaking the rules or of a late night tirade from the Frost Queen. She glances at Paige as they slip out into the night together and again sees the other girl's beauty as starlight reflects on her long, blonde hair.
Gazing at her, she decides there's something else of which she's unafraid. She's not afraid to recognize that another girl is beautiful or to have feelings for some one who never return them. She's not afraid to fall for somebody who will only ever see her as a friend and who will be as unattainable to her as Jean is to Wolvy, or Rogue to Remy, or even Emma to Bobby. Hell, she's an X-Man, and it's all part of the legend.
The End
Author: Kat Lee
Fandom: Generation X/X-Men
Character/Pairing: Jubilee/Paige
Rating: PG/K+
Challenge/Prompt: FemSlash100100: Alphabet Soup: Hankering
Warning(s): None
Word Count: 1,065
Date Written: 24 October 2016
Summary:
Disclaimer: All characters within belong to Marvel Comics and Disney, not the author, and are used without permission.
"Ah've got a hankering for some pizza."
Jubilee's eyes crack open. She looks up at the ceiling before rolling onto her side and looking across the room. She'd thought she'd never get to sleep with her room mate refusing to turn out her light and stop turning pages as she studies for tomorrow's test, but she'd almost fallen asleep when the other girl had spoken. "Whut?" she asks groggily, propping higher up on her elbows and peering closer at her.
Paige has the eraser of her pencil pressed to her lips, her blue eyes focused solely on the text book in front of her. "Ah'm sorry. Didn't mean t' say that out loud." A light pink tinges her cheeks, and Jubilee knows she isn't exactly telling the truth. She wanted her attention for some reason.
She stares at the girl for a minute, thinking. The pull of sleep is inviting, but she knows Paige isn't wanting to be left alone right now. Her face is flushed and her eyes are red, and Jubilee suddenly suspects that it isn't simply because of studying all these long hours. She swings up to a sitting position as she recalls their mission from earlier that day.
It hadn't been a close one by X-Men standards, but Paige is still young. The girl's older than she is by a few years, but when it comes to saving the world, or at least mutant lives, Jubilee's an old pro. Paige . . . is not. It's like something her Wolveroonie said once before. Jubilee's an old soul, but Paige . . . Paige is still learning on a lot of levels. "Then let's go," she says, suddenly breaking the silence that has settled back over their room.
"Go where?"
"For pizza. Ain't that what you said? You're hungry for pizza?"
Paige blushes again. "Ah . . . Yeah. Ah did." She shrugs. "Ah'm sorry. It's just . . . Sam used t' splurge on occasion, 'specially when we had big tests comin' up. But Ah need t' study."
"I don't see your big brother distracting you from studying, so it must've helped somehow," Jubilee argues lightly.
Paige looks up at her, and their eyes meet from across the room. Her eraser's still pressed against her lips. Her glasses have slipped down her nose, and her long, blonde hair is falling messily around her face which has not yet seen enough battle to make it hard or scarred. She looks just like any other serious student or, at least, any Jubilee's seen on TV except . . . She is kind of cute.
Jubilee blinks and rips her gaze away from her friend's. She looks at the poster of some country band on Paige's wall. She has no idea what they sing and doesn't want to. She's not seeing them even now. She's still seeing Paige, her blue eyes wide and pretty face fresh with innocence. Where, Jubilee wonders, had that thought come from? It's not like she's into girls!
"F'rget it," Paige murmurs, turning back to her book. "Ah'm sorry Ah woke you. Didn't mean t'. Ah just need t' study."
Jubilee looks back at her. Paige's attention is now fully focused upon her text book once more, and Jubes watches her for a few seconds in silence. The girl is pretty, she realizes. No wonder the boys fight and fuss over her like Wolvy and Scott used to fight over Jean. She doesn't stand a chance with her. She doesn't want to stand a chance with her. The life she leads doesn't exactly give room for dating. She thinks of all the unhappy, superhero couples she knows and knows she doesn't want the headaches of a romantic life that can't work adding to all the stress already on her.
But that doesn't mean they can't be friends or that they can't go for pizza at -- she glances at the clock on Paige's bedside table -- three o'clock in the morning. Damn. She'll have to be up soon any way, and she's still barely caught any sleep. It's no wonder she sleeps so much in class. Her eyes trail back to Paige, and she knows, though the girl won't raise her head again, that she needs her help, even if it's just the presence of a friend by her side in these wee hours o' th' morn, as Cassidy would say.
"All right."
"Excuse me?"
Jubilee stands, dresses quickly, grabs Paige's coat, and throws it at her. "Let's go get that pizza."
"But mah studying -- "
"Will still be waitin' fer ya when we get back, Hayseed, an' yer'll think better on a full stomach." And maybe, if she's really lucky, she'll see Cassidy out there somewhere tonight and be able to talk him into delaying the test for another day. They're all tired, she knows, and she's pretty certain Paige isn't the only one not sleeping after the fight this afternoon.
"Won't we get into trouble fer leavin' after curfew?" Paige asks anxiously as Jubilee heads for their door, but she is dressed.
"I'll take the blame," Jubilee says with a shrug of her shoulders. She slips a piece of gum into her mouth and is just making her first bubble when Paige comes near the door she's opening. Her friend peeks uncertainly out into the hallway. Jubilee shoves her on and then slides out behind her. Paige is so close that she bumps into her when she enters the hall.
"Sorry," the blonde murmurs and edges on. Jubilee leads the way. She may be with Generation X now, but she's still an X-Man. She's not afraid of being caught breaking the rules or of a late night tirade from the Frost Queen. She glances at Paige as they slip out into the night together and again sees the other girl's beauty as starlight reflects on her long, blonde hair.
Gazing at her, she decides there's something else of which she's unafraid. She's not afraid to recognize that another girl is beautiful or to have feelings for some one who never return them. She's not afraid to fall for somebody who will only ever see her as a friend and who will be as unattainable to her as Jean is to Wolvy, or Rogue to Remy, or even Emma to Bobby. Hell, she's an X-Man, and it's all part of the legend.
The End