「 The Professor & I 」VOLUME II

(157) Bane

Charles' POV

Ten years seemed to be the bane of our happiness and if there really was a higher being in control of our fate, he surely took joy in snatching ours away.

The nasty brick that struck Lynn, with astounding accuracy at the original impact point where she had been shot and her spine crippled twice, fractured and dislodged her backbone once again, mercilessly ripping her nerves together with the shattered fragments.

The repeated injuries and prior trauma to the region rendered the mildly successful secondary DNA transplant incapable of rectifying the damage inflicted on her completely severed spinal cord, with the artificial procedure only serving to aid in the healing of the superficial wounds sustained during the assault and operation, necessitating the reintroduction of a metal implant into her body to realign, strengthen and maintain the integrity of her back that could no longer support itself.

After presenting me with a concise yet informative explanation of Lynn's current medical condition, Jean offered to push me into the theatre but I politely declined, calmly wheeling myself in despite the exhaustion it caused, slowly arriving at Lynn's bedside and took her chilly hand.

Countless tubings hung from her sickly frame that laid unconscious with anesthetic on the surgical platform, guiding my gaze to the beeping machines that indicated her weak but thankfully stabilising vitals. While her face remained nearly colourless and was cold to the touch, it was relieving to find her thigh no longer dripping with blood.

I looked up at Jean gratefully, yet unable to muster even a fleeting smile as I swept my eyes to Hank. Although highly appreciative of his efforts to deliver Lynn from danger, my face was cheerless and caught in an obvious dilemma to break him the calamitous news.

"We did everything we could, Charles. Her body just rejected the rest. I'm sorry..." Hank apologized sincerely, thinking my grave expression arose from the predicament he could not salvage and his understanding made it even more compelling to preserve his blissful ignorance but reality was cruel.

Upon a telepathic conversation with Scott, Jean instinctively gasped, cupping her mouth in horror as she looked towards Hank and her aghast expression instantly piqued his interest.

"What is it?" Hank probed in concern.

Jean looked apprehensively towards me for approval and I nodded agonisingly, practically like the subtle motion of my head was directly stabbing my heart.

"Aunt Raven's X-Jet sent out an SOS in Alberta and then her plane vanished from our radars," Jean unveiled delicately, being extreme cautious with her words, but even her gentle tone and tender voice failed to cushion the blow for Hank as he processed the honest truth.

His jaw dropped, as with his expression and the tray of stained apparatus he used to rescue Lynn. As Hank disregarded the mess and sprinted towards the aircraft control centre, a light squeeze of my palm had my heart jolting in delight, preventing me from leaving as Jean pursued him.

I turned my head around but it was painful to find Lynn's face trapped in a frown as the piercing clash of tools and ceramic that plagued our eardrums earlier awakened her from the comatose state. She struggled to fight off the thriving drowsiness induced by the potent sedative drug still flowing through her veins, wrestling to even flutter her eyelids open and it was simply torturous to watch her lips tremble as she attempted futilely to speak.

"It's alright, love. Just go back to sleep," I whispered, holding back my tears as I caressed her head and put her back into a slumber.

Pecking her pale cheek, I replaced her hand under the blanket that did not quite suffice to keep her body warm as the rapid clicking of Jean's boots sounded more and more distinctly.

"Magneto has gone AWOL!" She announced breathlessly as she quickly paced into the room.

"What?!" I blurted in shock.

"His plane was reported landing fifteen minutes ago in Alberta at the exact coordinates where Aunt Raven left off. But ten minutes later, it was detected that all his transmissions have been deliberately shut down and we don't have him anymore," Jean revealed in a frenzy that surprisingly did not compromise her fluency or coherency.

Hank's equipment were basically the only ones in the entire world with the ability to distinguish and communicate with his completely stealth aircrafts and if even they could no longer identify them, it absolutely could not mean anything good.

I stared blankly, dumbfounded for unknown moments that passed until I registered Jean's hand wave across my line of vision. Breaking out of my daze, I faced towards her who was now crouched by my chair, looking at me with a worried gaze.

"Like... Like he intended to disappear?" I deduced hesitantly, actually frightened by the fact that my hypothesis could be correct.

"We don't know..." Jean consoled, trying to remain optimistic but I knew better.

"But it's not a malfunction?" I challenged presumably.

Contemplating for a while with uncertainty and anxiety gradually filling up her shifty eyes, Jean eventually shook her head, albeit sighing dejectedly as she affirmed my assumption.

"How is Hank?" I examined warily.

"He locked himself in his lab," Jean disclosed sheepishly.

"Should we be sending anyone else?" She enquired with reservations in her tone that mirrored my sentiments.

"We can't spare anymore manpower," I refuted wretchedly.

Slumping back into my chair, I closed my eyes in disappointment and rotated my head around to ease the tension clogging at the back of my neck from the prolonged tilting. I shakily lifted my hand, planning to rub the stiff area but even those muscles protested, aching terribly with every move and my triceps spontaneously cramped, causing me let out an uncontainable grunt.

"Professor!" Jean panicked, instantly wrapping her hands on the tightened stretch of my arm that was spasming involuntarily.

She meticulously kneaded away the sharp discomfort, conveniently alleviating the unpleasant sting, yet all I could see was not those purely jaded eyes or vividly colored mane but the essence of Lynn, and everything she ever was, transcending through Jean's physicality.

An insuppressible tear strayed down my face and was immediately spotted by the considerate girl, turned lady, Lynn raised. She carefully released my limb that was now moderately competent of flexing without major issues, allowing me to use it to brush away the lawless drop of sorrow from the surface of my cheek as she automatically moved to mollify the irritation troubling my other arm.

"Professor, I think-" She uttered but I did not let her continue with her speech or the massage.

"Jean, don't make me leave her, please," I begged as I placed my hand on hers and she looked at me compassionately.

"But-" She argued to no avail as I cut her off again.

"I know you mean well. But I'm fine. I won't fall. She needs me," I reiterated and Jean's expression further soften, breaking up slightly in fact as the brimming tears in her eyes uncontrollably overflowed.

"She'll be alright," Jean croaked, but more like she was trying to convince herself than me as she gave me a hug.

"She'll be alright," I asserted, stroking Jean's back to pacify her mood but knowing Lynn well, inside out like a book I have read over a thousand times, I was glad that my doubtful face had been obscured from her view.

XXXXX

This, I thought, would be a not so good chapter to end the week but on seconds, I think it's not too bad, compared to fifth 😅

I'm not sure to say if you guys should be enjoying this, but nevertheless, I would appreciate votes/comments if you're so kind to leave me some 😘

Happy Friday!