Because We’re Friends

Posted on Tue Jul 23rd, 2024 @ 9:10am by Iris Walker & Bobby Drake

1,738 words; about a 9 minute read

Mission: Episode 4: The Savage ConneXion
Location: Breakstone Lake
Timeline: September 21, 1990

This must be how the early Americans felt on July 4, 1776.

Iris was euphoric, but also a bit melancholy. Happy because she was free of her task for the President, but sad because of what had happened to a friend of a friend. She hadn’t known Lorna very well- they had only talked exactly once and only for a few minutes- but Bobby knew her well and he was hurting, which meant that because he was her friend, she felt a bit of his pain. But what she felt was barely a drop in the bucket compared to what he must be feeling.

She had left him alone the previous day, figuring he would come find her if he wanted to talk that early. But today, she decided to at least seek him out and see how he was doing. If he still didn’t want to talk, he could send her away and she wouldn’t be upset with him, but she wanted to at least let him know she was available to talk if he was ready.

She found him outside, sitting by the lake. “Bobby?” she said softly as she approached. “How are you doing?”

"Shitty..." Bobby created a perfectly round ice disc in his hand and skipped it across the water. "I couldn't save her, Iris. All I remember was being scared shitless and attacking some fire demon looking thing, then she called me. Lorna's voice... you knew her. Everything she said was like a song or something. But now..." The look in Bobby's eyes didn't hold anything for the lake or beautiful horizon. All he saw was a fiery portal to somewhere beyond dragging his first love away. "... now I don't know anything."

Well, he hadn’t told her to beat it, so that was a start. She didn’t want to give him any empty platitudes, so she refrained from saying anything about getting her back. She knew they would, somehow, but she didn’t have any idea how. “I wanted to hurl Zaladane through that portal,” she confessed as she sat next to him. “I didn’t know Lorna well, but she didn’t deserve that. Nobody deserves that. Well, except Zaladane, but it’s too late for that now.”

"Fuck Zaladane." Bobby all but seethed with cold malice. "I just want Lorna back."

Instead of another skipping stone, Bobby fashioned a large boulder of ice over his head. He spun in a few circles, building up the moment, and chucked it from waist level as far as he could fling it. It sailed all of about five feet before hitting the water with a splash that drenched them both.

"Sorry..." Bobby grunted, giving Iris an apologetic and slightly embarrassed side-eye that looked more than a little ridiculous with his pouty mouth.

Iris could not keep herself from laughing, even though she tried. “It’s okay,” she said, wringing out her t-shirt. “I understand.” She paused a moment, then pulled her knees to her chest and hugged them. “You wanna talk about it?” she asked.

The bit of laughter did Bobby good. It took the fine edge away from his surly disposition. Now he was just left with smoldering unease. "I dunno." He shrugged. "I sorta just did. Not sure what else there is to say..." He looked at his dripping clothes and turned to iceform, then back again. The action left him dry as a bone. "I just more alone now than ever..."

“Hey, that’s not fair!” Iris protested when he’d shifted forms to dry off. “Oh well, at least it’s not cold out. But you’re not alone, Bobby. You have friends. We’re here for you.”

"I could try it for you," Bobby said, "but you might get real cold for a minute." Yeah, he had friends. So what? "None of them are with me out here," he said at length, "except you."

Iris waved a hand at his offer to freeze her dry; she’d rather just dry off naturally. “I think the problem is that nobody know what to say,” she told him. “And also when to say it. But it’s okay to ask for help. And it’s okay to say ‘I don’t want advice, I just want to vent.’ Most people will understand that.”

"Where the hell did you get an idea like that?" Bobby was incredulous. "Nobody gives a shit. We're all just afterthoughts to each other. Something to worry about when we have nothing better to do. Nobody cares about anybody else, not really." Of course he was talking out of his sulk, but Bobby was hurting too much to admit that. "All the good ones just go away."

Iris put on her best sass and raised her eyebrows. “Are you trying to tell me I don’t care about you and you don’t care about me?” she asked. “I’m sitting here with good news bursting out of my guts and yet, I’m asking how you’re doing and letting you vent and you’re saying I don’t care about you?”

"God, I'm an asshole!" Bobby stamped the ground and let out his breath in a slow, lip-flapping breath. "Sorry, Iris. What's your good news? I could hear some."

Iris glanced around to make sure nobody was close by. “Professor Xavier got me off the hook with the president,” she answered. “It doesn’t sound like much, but I don’t have to make those horrible phone calls anymore. Or worry about my family. Even if they don’t like me, I still care about them.”

"Wait, what?" It took Bobby a minute to process all of that, not least of all due to pulling his head out of his own dark cloud. "What does that mean? You don't have to spy anymore?"

“No more spying,” she confirmed. “I don’t want to tell you too much in case someone comes along asking questions, but yeah. I’m totally off the hook.”

"That's awesome!" Bobby threw his fists straight up and cheered. "I don't know how any of that shit but that's awesome!" He grabbed her in a hug and swung her around. "With everything going on right now... that's just great to hear."

Of course, Iris had made the confession of spying on the Professor under coercion from the federal government after Bobby had made a confession of his own, that he held feelings for her. After all that had happened, Bobby was unsure of how he felt. Holding her in his arms and swinging her around in celebration of her release from extortion awakened a myriad of feelings that he wasn't sure what to do with.

"Um... yeah..." Bobby let her go with a sheepish smile. "Really great!"

Iris giggled as Bobby hugged her. Unlike him, her own emotions were clear. Ish. He was a friend. Sometimes she felt like she could love him, but she’d been in a vulnerable state and hadn’t trusted herself to make a sound decision. She was still probably slightly vulnerable, and this undoubtedly accounted for the desire to kiss him. She forced herself to think about it and sure enough, her mind shrunk away from it. See? she told herself. You’re manufacturing emotions. Bobby is a friend. Yeah,” she said after only a moment’s hesitation. “It’s a weight off my shoulders for sure. Hey! Maybe that’s why I’m so short! Maybe I’ll grow now!”

"Is that how it works?" Bobby shook his head and scoffed at the joke, but then Iris' wide grin made him start laughing. "I kind of like you little though. Not often I get to feel big and tall."

“You are tall,” she pointed out. “Although to me, everyone’s tall. Including my 12-year-old brother.”

Bobby shrugged. He had always been the runt of the First Class. "If you say so," he said with a half smile. "I'm kinda hungry..." The truth was he'd been wandering around outside all day and hadn't had a bite to eat, but he didn't want to go into all that. "You wanna grab a bite?"

“Sure, but I’ll have to change clothes,” she pointed out; she was still pretty wet.

"I just meant back at the mansion..." Bobby said meekly. "I kinda sorta didn't have any dinner. Is there any left?"

“I think so,” replied Iris. “And even if not, we can make something. But, I should probably still change. Well,” she said as she examined her clothing. “Maybe it would be okay. And if anybody asks why I’m all wet, we’ll have to think of some really wild story to tell.”

Bobby smirked at the thought of what really happened. "You mean the truth isn't wild enough?"

“You mean you throwing an iceberg into the water and splashing me?” she giggled as she stood to her feet. “Kinda run-of-the-mill stuff around here.”

"Yeah..." Bobby couldn't deny that, so he just laughed along with her. Once the moment passed, though, he turned more solemn. "Alright, let's head back."

After they walked up the trail and the mansion was in sight, Bobby stopped for a minute. "I'm sorry I kissed you," he said abruplty. "Before, I mean. That was... I don't know what it was. But it wasn't fair to you. And I'm sorry."

“It’s okay,” she replied. “I didn’t mind at the time. Still don’t, really. Sometimes you gotta take a chance. And you haven’t pushed since, so that’s okay.”

Bobby gave her a bashful sidelong glance. "What do you mean you don't mind?" He started sweating and was tempted to turn to iceform.

“I don’t mind that you kissed me,” she replied. “But don’t do it again unless I tell you it’s all right.”

"No duh!" Bobby laughed. He regretted doing it the first time. Why would he even think about doing it again. "Now I'll race you back!"

Shifting into ice form, Bobby took to his ice sled and gained a significant head start before Iris could even respond.

“Hey! No fair!” Iris called after him. But, realizing he would have won a race against her even without his powers, she merely giggled and took off towards the mansion as fast as her little legs would carry her.

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