𝐏𝐑𝐎𝐌𝐈𝐒𝐄𝐒 𝐈𝐍 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐃𝐀𝐑𝐊━︎━︎ J. Grey ✓︎

𝐒𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐧

CHAPTER SEVEN:
YOU'RE SMILING

AURELIA HAD NEVER BEEN MORE proud of herself. She had always feared her powers, but she had a feeling she was only over thinking it. However ,the fact that she had managed to control her gift wasn't what was mainly on her mind. What was mainly on her mind was Jean Grey, and the fact that the red haired woman had been her anchor. Her control. She didn't know Jean Grey all that well, and that was a regret that she would forever have. The fact that she never truly approached the red haired woman made her feel guilty almost. She wondered if Jean had thought she was afraid of her, because Aurelia wasn't, nor had she ever been.

Aurelia stopped in her tracks, a smile falling on her face as she looked across the lawn to see Jean and Scott talking with one another, Jean throwing her head back as she let out a laugh whilst Scott smiled at the girl. It warmed her heart. Suddenly she felt complete. Since Scott had arrived, it had only been Scott and herself, no one else. And before Scott himself had arrived, it had always been Aurelia.

Aurelia had always been a kind girl with a kind smile, but she had always been a sort of closed off girl. One that didn't have more than a five minute conversation with anyone unless that someone was Raven. But when Scott had arrived, he had forced the girl to open up, and she was thankful for it. Jean had been there as long as Aurelia had, and yet the two had never talked, and it made a pain run through Aurelia's veins. Thought, she knew that Jean was just as closed off as she was back then, if not more. She wasn't seen around the school as often back then.

Aurelia pushed her blonde hair off her shoulders, plastering a wide smile on her face before she ran towards the duo. Jean was the one to see the girl coming, nudging Scott gently with her arm and nodding towards the blonde, the two turned to face the girl, both noticing the wide smile that was on her face. She stopped in front of them, taking a moment to quickly catch her breath before she looked at both of them with a proud smile.

"Notice anything different?" Aurelia quizzed the duo.

"You're smiling after a session, that one's new." Scott tried, earning a blank look from the girl before she smiled again.

"That is true, but that's not it." She crossed her arms over her chest, purposefully putting the arm she wore her bracelet on on the outside of the arm cross. It took Scott a moment, the boy scanning her before his eyes fell on her wrist and the golden bracelet that was missing from it.

"Your bracelet." He pointed out. "Where's your. . ." He paused before his mouth fell open. "You did it?"

"I did it!" Aurelia cheered. Scott was quick to pull the girl into a hug, spinning her around, making the girl let out a loud squeal of laughter. He placed her back on the ground.

"See! I told you! I'm so proud of you, Aria." He smiled at the girl before hugging her again. She couldn't stop laughing. She was so incredibly happy with her achievement.

"Congratulations." Jean smiled at the girl, glad to see her so happy and filled with bubbly contagious laughter.

"Thank you." Aurelia beamed at the woman.

"Well, how'd you do it?" Scott immediately questioned.

"Well, at first I couldn't." Aurelia explained. "The same thing that happens every time took place. I lost control, about put a hole down to the pipes on the poor grass over there. Then Raven came up with this idea. I have absolutely no clue where it came from, but she said to think of something or someone, and focus on them. Let that someone or something be your anchor. Well, I still thought it was going to go badly, but I did it anyways. I focused, and I didn't even realize that I was actually controlling until Raven spoke up. I even stopped without realizing I did. So, Raven took my bracelet and said to go the rest of the day without to see how I do."

"That's amazing, Ari!" Scott smiled at his best friend. Aurelia couldn't help but smile back at him.

"Can I ask a question?" Jean asked. Aurelia smiled at the redhead before nodding her head. "What was your anchor? Who, or what, did you think about?"

Aurelia bit her lip as she looked at the woman. She felt her cheeks start to heat up, making her clench her jaw as she tried to push the blush away. She didn't know how Jean was going to react to her answer. But Aurelia wasn't one to lie, so she had to tell the truth, or avoid the question. But if she avoided the question, the answer would be blatantly obvious, so she was positive the two would quickly figure it out either way.

She looked at Jean, biting nervously on her lips before answering: "You."

Jean's eyebrows rose in surprise, a blush crawling up her neck. Aurelia thought of her? The two barely knew one another, so why would the blonde think of her of all people? Why not Scott who was her best friend, and quite frankly the only person that Aurelia ever talked to? What was so special about herself that it made her become Aurelia's anchor when it came to controlling her powers. Her heart sped up, and she knew that the girl was waiting for her reaction. And the longer she stood there, shocked, the more she could see the guilt and fear grow in Aurelia's eyes.

"Me?" Jean quickly asked, now trying to hide the smile that wanted to form on her face, though failing. She glanced towards Scott out of the corner of eye to notice the small smirk that was covering his features. "Why me?"

Aurelia shrugged her shoulders. "I don't know, Jean. But ever since you've come around and started hanging out with us, I've started feeling more confident about myself."

"I wonder why." Scott muttered, earning a slight glare from the female before she turned her attention back towards Jean.

"So, I guess, thank you. For your presence alone." Aurelia offered the girl a small smile, and Jean quickly reciprocated it.

"I don't know about you two, but this causes for a celebration." Scott old the two, grabbing their attention. "Movie night. Tonight. Ari's room."

Aurelia jokingly scoffed, but nonetheless smiled. "Sounds good to me. You?" She turned towards Jean who immediately smiled at the offer before nodding her head. "Great! I'll see you two at eight tonight then!" She then saluted them both before saying, "Until then." With that, the girl turned around and walked away, a beaming smile covering her face for the rest of the day.