「 The Professor & I 」VOLUME II

(164) Depressing Reality

Lynn's POV

"Oh my god, Lynn!" Scott blurted as he entered the ward.

"What happened?!" He questioned frantically and his extreme concern was explicitly written all over his face as he gaped in shock at my partially deformed leg residing in the strange-looking polished contraption.

"It's just a fracture," I stated casually, weakly smiling at him.

"A very serious one," Jean insisted sternly.

"Don't worry, I'm fine," I reiterated but they all stood silently with somber expressions, essentially like they were mourning.

"Besides... I... I can't feel anything..." I added, mustering immense courage to spill my intended joke in the most jovial tone I could manage, hoping to ease the atmosphere but my body basically could not take the heartache, automatically dripping tears from my eyes in the process.

"Lynn..." Jean called out shakily, arriving by my side, as I bravely dried my face and contained my remaining fluids.

"There's something I need to tell all of you," I claimed feebly, peering up to the youthful yet mature bunch.

"But my neck is tired. Would all of you sit down, please?" I requested humorously but the tense environment persisted as Storm and Scott scrambled to take their seats on the adjacent stools while Jean hurriedly sat on the edge of my bed facing me.

"I'm planning to leave," I announced softly and all of them returned me puzzled expressions.

"What do you mean?" Jean prodded with a baffled tone.

"I can't stay in this house," I answered plainly, unable to break the news all at once, and definitely, it did not suffice to appease Jean's inquisitiveness.

"Why not? You've lived here all your life," Jean argued in confusion and the fact only induced an immeasurable pang in my heart.

"I can't live with him anymore," I confessed sheepishly and her eyes widened dramatically in astonishment as she sprung up from her position.

"You're leaving him?!" Jean interrogated, glaring at me fiercely, disregarding Scott and Storm who tried to curb her flare up.

"He's agreed," I informed, my voice faltering as my throat choked up with accumulating tears.

"This is ridiculous! How could he?! I'm talking to him!" Jean shouted in a frenzy and stomped away.

"Jean! Calm down!" I cried, pivoting myself to stretch a hand towards her when the rattle of vibrating metal and the alarming beeps from the monitors attached to my body diverted all our attention.

"Lynn!" All of them yelled in unison as we stared aghast at my once again aggressively
spasming leg that was effected by my mindless motion.

While it was frightening to witness my lifeless limb vigorously convulsing within its elevated traction, there was no apparent pain sensible but an abstract discomfort transcended through my veins and my heart palpitated with my breathing accelerating erratically as my blood pressure escalated presumably from the trauma.

Swiftly, Jean extended her arm into the air and a syringe soaring across the room conveniently landed in her grasp. As she prepared for the injection, Storm prudently supported my continuously twitching leg in her palms to reduce its excessive shiver and Scott quickly peeled off my injured hands that were dearly trying to do the same but regrettably inefficiently.

Restraining me, Scott wrapped his arms around my shoulders to steady my involuntarily shaking frame and even though his grip was firm, his embrace could never match the tenderness and security offered by Charles', whom I ironically wished was and was not here.