When Scott Met Annie

Chapter 16: Cyclops Comes Out to Play

Annie was all warmth and energy ever since her parents had come to visit, and that seemed to carry over and even get stronger once the school year started.

She was absolutely thrilled with her new class, especially because Leslie Ann was at her school, and the little girl was always drawing pictures to give to her every day. The drawer beside the fridge was filling up more and more — until at one point, Annie asked Scott to pull down the attic ladder and help her get to a box in which she was keeping all of Leslie Ann's creations.

It was amazing to watch her work, really. She knew the names of her entire class from day one and made it a point to learn their favorite colors as well. She knew the little things, too — for example, that little Andrew wanted to be a cat when he grew up and that Helen was scared of spiders, but not daddy long-legs, or "father spiders," as Helen called them.

Just watching her and the genuine care and attention that she poured into these kids, it was obvious to see that she was doing what she loved, what she was good at.

He found himself missing that feeling.

It wasn't that he didn't love being there with Annie. That was the furthest thing from the truth. In fact, it was the simple fact that he loved being there that kept him from spiralling the way he had with Sinister, from focusing on the team and the school that he felt like he'd never be able to lead again — he'd never be able to make up for his mistakes and earn it back.

He'd pushed a lot of that to the back of his mind in the summer he spent with Annie, but now, as the school year started and Scott watched Annie pour herself into it... he couldn't ignore it anymore.

Over in Westchester, the institute would be welcoming back any kids that went home for the summer, as well as a few new students that simply came with the start of any new semester. There would be the rush of kids discovering their mutations, learning for themselves that Storm wasn't going to let them get away with anything...

There would be kids bragging about how they were going to be X-Men one day. Kids learning for the first time to embrace their mutations. Kids experiencing the Danger Room for the first time.

Scott knew that Storm had things well in hand. He wasn't worried about that. He knew that she was running the school perfectly — as always.

It was just that... well.

Scott put the thought out of his mind and instead focused on working around the house with Annie. With both of them working now, he made an effort to put together dinners — though they weren't nearly as elegant as Annie's — when she came home worn out from something or other, whether it was a kid having a tantrum that day or a parent that Annie wanted to strangle for not paying attention to their own kids...

That's what he was doing when Annie came home from school that day in a good mood, wrapping him around the waist from behind to rest her head in the space between his shoulders with a little smile. Even though it was only a few weeks into the school year, it was already starting to get cold enough that Scott had opted to put together a stew from the leftovers of the roast Annie made the other day.

And, just for something new to try, he'd even put together some cornbread from the recipe book Annie had. It wasn't a published cookbook with an index and page numbers for what he was looking for — instead, it was a binder full of handwritten recipes, organized by types of food like "breads," "desserts," and "breakfasts."

Annie squeezed him slightly around the middle, still smiling into his back. "Smells delicious."

"That's a compliment, coming from you," he said with a smile as he twisted around so that he could face her and properly kiss her.