Chapter 12: 2nd Chance
After Stella fell asleep and the situation calmed down, Nick began to stand up and walked toward Lorna, wanting to explain what happened. But before he could say anything, Alex stood in front of her defensively.
"What are you doing?" Nick asked, the anger inside of him barely being held back since he didn't want to wake up Stella
"Don't act like this wasn't your fault. You decided to stand up Stella when you promised Lorna you...," Alex began to shout but Nick began to constrict his throat using his powers.
Since he decided to step up, he wanted to do the right thing as much as possible. And letting someone wake up his daughter after she just had a stressful moment was not the right thing.
"Shut up! Don't you dare wake her up or blame me. Blame the king of speedos and your brother," Nick said in a hushed tone, afraid of speaking too loudly. "I had to go on a mission for Scott while he was supposed to tell Lorna I would be late."
Emma heard this and held her head. She was with Scott, Ororo, and Logan for the past hour having a working lunch but Scott had never mentioned anything.
'He most likely forgot or didn't think it would be a big deal,' Emma thought as she walked over to smooth over the situation.
"Enough, Nicholas!"
Emma stood between the two of them to prevent any conflict. Nick released the hold he had on Alex who in return, began gathering energy around his hands. Seeing Alex was ready to act, Nick was also prepared to make his move.
"I said, enough. Both of you!" Emma's eyes began to glow as she let out telepathic pressure on both of their minds.
Both of them felt some strain but nothing they could not handle. Alex used to be married to a clone of the most powerful telepath on the planet while Nick was a powerful telepath in his own right. Neither of them could be taken down so easily without Emma using her full power.
But even though she could not shut them down, the pressure was enough to remind them that it was not a good time to fight. There was a huge crowd around them, a little girl in Nick's arms, and Lorna who was behind Alex.
[Another time then, Summers] Nick said telepathically
[Anytime] Alex responded before walking out of the room and pushing whoever was in his path out of the way
Nick watched Alex until he left the room before turning his gaze to Emma.
"Where's your boyfriend? I have a few words and a couple punches for him," Nick didn't hide his intentions at all
"Please, Nicholas. There has been enough excitement for one day. We had a working lunch and he most likely forgot but I will be sure to lecture him. His lack of consideration could have caused a serious issue," Emma both covered for Scott but also let Nick know that she would deal with how he handled the matter.
"Fine. But if we ever have a sparring session, I got dibs," Nick knew better than to push the matter. It really was a small thing that wouldn't have caused so much trouble for most people but because he was involved, it became a bigger deal.
'I've been too careless in the past and now I am paying for it,' Nick looked at the girl in his arms and felt guilty. He looked up and saw that Lorna was giving him a look he had seen so many times during the year they dated.
"Sorry. You know how me and Eternity don't get along," Nick used the same joke he used when they dated and he ran late
Lorna couldn't help but laugh at Nick. Even though he sounded stiffer and it did not come out as funny as before, Lorna still appreciated that Nick remembered the good times between them.
"I'll forgive you this time but make sure you aren't late for dinner with us tonight. And you need to read Stella to bed," Lorna quickly recovered herself, not wanting to let Nick think that she was no longer upset with him
"Of course. Whatever it takes to please the queen and princess," Nick used another one of his old jokes. He used to always call Lorna a princess since she was Magneto's daughter but now that she was a mother and had a daughter, he thought it was more appropriate to refer to her as the queen and his daughter as the princess.
Lorna hummed in agreement before reaching over and grabbing Stella. Nick wanted to stop her but he knew that he had to be patient. He couldn't just do whatever he wanted now. Lorna had been a single mother this entire time so he had no right to act like his position as Stella's father was equal to hers.
Stella held onto Nick tightly but after a few tugs, Lorna was able to get the little girl loose. With Stella in her arms, Lorna gave Nick a small smile before she left the canteen to bring Stella back to their room.
Nick wanted to follow but a hand on his shoulder stopped him. He turned to see it was his mother that had held him back.
"Patience, Nick. I can see that you are willing to put in the effort and am happy for you. But you must be patient," his mother gently advised him
Nick looked at her before looking at Lorna's back and Stella's face that was sleeping on her shoulder. He had to force himself to turn his head away.
"I've been acting like an idiot, haven't I, Okaa-san?"
"Yep!" Alexis appeared out of nowhere and slammed down on Nick's shoulder with her superhuman strength. Nick couldn't help but winch at the pain.
"A huge fucking idiot. We kept sending you pictures of videos of that sweet girl but you just ignored them all," Alexis didn't show Nick any mercy. She felt that this was just a small price to pay for how he had been acting for the past few years
"I know, Nee-san. That's why I am here. I need to make up for the sins I've committed," Nick admitted his mistake. His family had been trying to help him for years but he was too stubborn. Stuck in his past.
Alexis slapped Nick's shoulder again.
"Good! As long as you know, I won't have to beat you to a bloody pulp," Alexis teased before moving her hand from his shoulder to his head. "And can you dye your hair back? I hate all these flashy colors you put in it."
Nick was about to reject her when he thought about it. Stella had his black hair and Lorna's green. If he dyed his hair back, he would match with his daughter.
"I'll think about it," he answered vaguely before walking out the canteen and heading back to his room
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone