Of Mutants and Men

[11]

A.N: Hey yall ! Finally back with a new chapter. I hope you and your loved ones are safe and healthy. Also, I'm sorry for going on hiatus for so long. This chapter was probably the hardest one I had to write for this story. I really had a hard time inserting Angelika in this chaos... *pleasedontkillme* As always, a big thank you to those who read this story! Not edited btw but I promise to edit this chapter and the previous ones before 2020 is over hahaha

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          Her knees buckled and all she wanted was to fall asleep, to hide even if it was just for a short moment. But Angelika knew she would never be granted such peace, that the demons of her guilt would feast on her sombre thoughts. She vaguely sensed that Peter had returned by her side, his lips sealed shut.

But what use was silence when she could hear his thoughts?

Moving at Peter's pace caused her stomach to churn. Shaking her head lightly, Angelika opened her eyes to find that she was sitting in the car, four pair of eyes staring at her. Hank and Charles were mortified by her bloody appearance while they turned their head back to fixate their gaze on the road. Logan seemed to pity her, giving her privacy as he smoked his cigar, leaving his questions unspoken. The worst of all was Erik. So many thoughts were running through his mind and each of them made her fists clench harder.

"I know what you're thinking," Angelika spoke as nonchalantly as she could, "And the answer is that they are all dead. Water is an absolutely formidable conductor of electricity."

Charles' shoulders tensed at her words. Even without her telepathy, the female mutant could tell he was appalled at her nonchalance, that innocent lives were wasted for Erik's sake once again. She dared not to correct him that it was her weakness that caused such loss; she refused to show it in front of the problematic metal bender.

"It was either yours or theirs. I'm glad that you made the right choice," said Erik. Angelika made the mistake of looking into his eyes and see the sincerity behind his words. Anger flared within her and she wanted to kick him towards a far, far away planet. After all these years, he did not have the right to show that he cared for her.

Biting her tongue, the telepath feigned as though he wasn't staring at her in a way that sent chills down her spine. She hoped to have Caliban with her — not that he would do much to ease her mind. On the contrary, he would reprimand her for acting so recklessly. Breaking into the Pentagon was one thing, committing mass murder was another. But his presence always brought peace to her mind and she desperately needed some to endure a car ride and an 8-hour flight with Erik and Charles.

"Has anyone seen The Exorcist," Peter asked out of blue, popping his head from behind. "They say it's the most chilling thriller ever yet and I'm kinda miffed about seeing it by myself. Not saying I don't have any friends or anything but they're all busy with stuff."

Logan snorted in a mocking manner. "Sounds to me like you don't have any friends, kid."

"See, there's where you're wrong. I have 3 friends and that's plenty enough for me."

"Your mother and sister don't count, Pietro," Angelika stated teasingly, enjoying how the usage of his first name caused him to blush.

"Oh man, your name is Pietro?" Logan barked out a laughter. "That sounds like the name of an Italian clown."

"You're violating my privacy and I can sue you for that," Peter muttered, glaring at Angelika.

"I like you, Peter. You're a funny kid." Peter was purposely embarrassing himself to ease her mind and Angelika was thankful for the kind gesture.