Baby Sitting

X-Men: The Movie

Angel of Neptune

XXXXXX

DC: I do not own X-Men.

AN: The child Jean and Scott have in this ficlet is not an OC. It is Rachel Summers (Uncanny X-Men, first appeared in issue… #141?), I just slightly changed her background. ;)

XXXXXX

Literally, months had crawled by since Scott Summers and Jean Grey had been away from the mansion for some personal alone time. Hell, they could barely remember the last time the married couple went out. They had been extremely busy, especially after becoming new parents to the cutest little baby girl just eight months earlier. Both parents needed to take a very deserving break from their daily routine.

They didn't plan out a fancy dinner or anything of the sorts. Tonight was going to be easy and very laid back. Scott was up for anything Jean wanted to do and Jean knew exactly what they were going to do for the night. The local theater was playing the musical, 'The Phantom of the Opera,' and she had been dying to see it. After viewing the film, she wanted to catch a late night dinner at a nearby Mexican restaurant.

Before Jean was pregnant, neither of them cared much for Mexican food, but Jean began to crave it when they found out she was with child. No pickles and ice-cream for her, just the spiciest Mexican cuisine she could get her hands on. Now Jean enjoyed it every once in a while; Scott didn't mind at all, he just wanted to eat whatever they decided on.

"Honey." Jean called over her shoulder, keeping her gaze on the full body length mirror. The corner of her lips twitched into a frown. In each of her hands she had a different skirt: a bright red one and the other pitch black. Of course, she wanted Scott's own opinion, but chances are she already knw what it was. Why bother asking? Well, whatever Jean decided on, she was wearing that white blouse for sure. The telepath had been looking for a reason to wear that blouse, it was a gift from her dear friend, Ororo.

"Scott?"

The young man took a step out of the bathroom to spot his wife in their bedroom suite. He was holding onto a blue razor; half of his face was still covered in shaving cream as a towel hanged around his neck, barely covering his bare chest. Apparently, Scott just got out of the shower. His dark brown hair was still damp, a few strands were plastered on his forehead and a rather large towel was wrapped around his waist. "Yeah?" He replied.

"I can't choose, hon." Jean brought her attention back to the mirror. "Should I wear my red skirt or the black skirt with my white blouse?"

Personally, Scott hated with a strong passion when Jean asked him anything about fashion. It always came around to bit him in the ass one way or another. If he answered incorrectly, she was going to lecture him about why this didn't match with that. "Uh, the black one?" He answered, sounding a bit doubtful.

"Black it is." Jean replied, setting the red skirt upon the bed to later hang in the closet. At least she taught him the basic rule of fashion: Black or white matched with just about anything. Not to mention, Scott always had a hard time when she wore red. The color red doesn't exactly show while you were cursed to constantly wear a pair of ruby sunglasses or visors to reflect his blast.

Scott nodded slightly as he returned to shaving. It was fine by him, even if he really didn't have a proper say anyways. He hardly had a say in what he wanted to wear when they went out also. Jean always had to pick out his outfit, which made him feel exactly like a little kid. Perhaps she had him confused with their baby girl? He smirked, shaking the razor in the sink filled with water.

Jean smiled to herself as she stepped into the black skirt and pulled it up her slender legs until it found it's resting place upon her hips. She examined her figure in the mirror, especially her abdomen. Of course, right after she had given birth, she did worry about loosing all the extra weight. That's when she hit the Danger Room more than usual. The weight melted off, but the stretch marks weren't exactly disappearing as quick as she wished.

Her smile was replaced by a frown; she pulled the blouse over her head, "You dropped Rachel off at Ororo's room, right?" The redhead picked up her comb on the dresser. "With her favorite stuffed animal and blanket, right? Scott?"

Scott sighed heavily. If Jean continued to ask these questions, then he would never finish shaving at all. He understood very well she was just being a protective mother, something he didn't have growing up. It was a feature of hers that he loved.

"Yeah-" He paused. "I forgot the blanket in the crib." Scott suddenly remembered, shaking his head before returning to his current task at hand. "I'll go bring it over-"

"No, Slim, I will." Jean interrupted. "You just hurry up and get ready, babe. We don't want lil Ray-Ray to get all fussy for her Auntie Roro." She gushed in her baby talk as she crossed the room to retrieve the blanket from the crib before exiting the suite.

"Auntie Roro." He mumbled under his breath, chuckling. Scott washed the small amount of shaving cream remaining of his face.

Knowing Jean extremely well, he had to look fairly decent for this tiny date, something that didn't clash with her outfit. Scott stood in front of his closet. The easy outfit he could pick out would be a pair of black slacks and a buttoned up shirt. Jean wouldn't expect him to be creative, and she shouldn't. This was exactly what he was going to wear.

XXXXXX

'Ororo?' Jean reached out telepathically to her close best friend as she rubbed her temple gently. Using her powers had been so stressful lately. Perhaps it tied in with the lack of sleep or trying to care for a screaming baby… Maybe that's why she's slightly slipping from control.

'Checking up already?' Ororo's thought entered Jean's mind. 'Everything's fine. Ray's taking a nap.'

'No, I uhh… just didn't want to wake Ray.' Jean replied. 'Scott forgot her blanket and Rachel gets upset without it. I'm actually outside your bedroom door.' She pointed out.

The attic door opened in front of Jean. The white haired African goddess beamed at her best friend while accepting the soft pink blanket, "Does this blanket really make a difference?"

"Yeah." Jean responded. "She will be very fussy when she wakes up without it. Auntie Roro doesn't want to deal with an upset little niece."

"Auntie Roro…" She grumbled, folding the blanket. "It sounds like something Scooby-Doo would say."

Jean snickered, "You're right, it does." She shifted slightly. "Are you sure you are going to be okay by yourself with Rachel?"

"I'll be fine." Ororo answered, trying to sound reassuring. "I've watched you, not to mention Scott did give me a pretty long lecture before dropping Ray off."

"Sorry, I'm a bit nervous, I guess…" Jean mumbled, shaking her head. "This is the first time we're going out without her and I'm worried."

"Hon, it's been months since you've been out. Go enjoy yourself." The weather witch placed a gentle hand on her companion's shoulder. "Everything's going to be fine."

"That's not the only thing that worries me." The redhead pointed out. "My powers… I can feel my control slipping. Literally, every morning my bedroom is rearranged. I don't want to revert to knowing my knuckles to the bone like when I first came to the mansion."

Ororo pulled her hand away, "Jean, we all slip, our powers are growing, and we all regain control. You've been through a lot lately, you'll be okay."

Jean weakly smiled, "Scott should be ready by now if I'm lucky. Take good care of Ray."

"I will."

XXXXXX

Scott wrapped his arm gingerly around his wife's shoulder, causing her to lean against him. They were sitting right in the middle of the theater, staring up at the blank giant silver screen. Yes, they were a tad bit early, but they wanted to get decent seats for the movie. Jean read the excellent reviews, so she just had to have the perfect seat to watch the film. Scott, on the other hand, was just craving buttery pop-corn, but Jean didn't want him to spoil dinner. He had no snacks and he had to sit here through a musical for what? Three hours? Hell if he knew.

"It feels great to be out of the mansion, eh?" Scott said, trying to strike up a small conversation before the movie started.

"Huh? Yeah, sure…"

Not really the reply Scott was looking for, "Is something wrong?"

She bit down on her lip, but shook her head anyways. "No, I was just thinking… You know, how Ororo's handling Ray and everything." She shrugged, adjusting herself in her seat. "We haven't been away from her for this long."

"That's because this is the first movie we're watching which isn't rated G." He stroked her shoulder. "Ororo will be fine; she knows what she's doing. Besides, I read somewhere a baby needs to be away from it's parents so they can enjoy their social lives."

"Scott…" She whined, gazing up at his shaded eyes as he smirked. "Don't say that…" She mumbled.

He couldn't help but chuckle, "Our lives have serious changed over the last year and a half, huh?"

"Of course, Slim." Jean agreed. "We got pregnant and had a baby. Things changed drastically, don't you agree? And no anti-mutant talk. You said we wouldn't talk about any of that…"

"I know, I know and I won't." He promised. "Heh, honestly, Rachel's one of the best things to happen to me in my entire life next to you, Jean."

Jean grinned as she curled up even closer next to her sweet-talking husband, "I know how rough you had it and you deserve to be this happy with your very own family."

"I'm going to give Rachel the life I never had, and then some." Scott remarked as people began to enter the theater.

"You're going to spoil her, Scott Summers!"

"Cuz she's Daddy's little girl."

XXXXXX

'Young infants do require a large quantity of sleep, Ororo.' Professor Xavier's voice filled in the weather witch's mind, mixing with her thoughts.

Ororo sat upon the peachy colored carpet in her room. The woman was resting her upper body on the bed as she watched the baby sleep. She had called Charles since she had gotten slightly concerned about the young child; Rachel had been sleeping for nearly three hours, a very long nap in Ororo's personal opinion.

'Jean's pretty strict with this whole schedule, Charles.' The weather witch replied mentally. 'And according to her, it's time for Ray's bottle, but…'

Xavier's chuckle filled her thoughts before he spoke, 'You do not wish to cause Rachel any discomfort, correct?'

'Right.' She admitted, staring down at the bottle in her hands. 'I hate when small children cry; such a headache.'

'I shall assist you, Ororo.'

'Thank you, Professor.'

A few moments of silence slowly came and went. The young woman cocked an eyebrow, now wondering how Charles are exactly helping in any way. She rested her head back on the mattress as the baby began to stir. Ororo sat up again, watching Rachel yawn, fluttering her green eyes open; Jean's bright eyes. The wind rider now understood how Xavier helped. She wouldn't have to deal with the crying or screaming, or so she thought.

Rachel began to whimper as the infant waved her arms and legs about. She squinted her eyes before she began to wail. Ororo winced, standing up. She quickly took the child in her arms, "Shh… Auntie Roro's here." She said gently, trying to believe that she referred to herself as 'Roro.'

Ororo carefully lead the bottle of milk to the child's lips. Nearly instantly, Rachel's tiny hands clutched the bottle as she began to suckle. The crying disappeared, Storm sighed heavily in relief. Gently, the young woman rocked Ray while pacing around the room.

"This isn't so hard…" She mumbled to herself. "It's pretty easy, huh?" She gazed down towards Rachel who took a short break from her bottle to giggle at her aunt. "You're such a cutie, lil Ray-Ray." She smiled.

Ororo stepped out into the balcony and sat on one of the wooden chairs, "Jean's pretty lucky… as usual. She's found the perfect guy, she had the perfect wedding and now she has you. You're going to make her pretty proud, won't ya? Of course, Jean's going to be ruling with an iron fist, but you'll have your Auntie Ro there. I'll sneak you out once in a while. Hey, maybe you'll have an uncle by then."

Rachel pulled the bottle away from her mouth. The young child burped. Within the next moment, the little one spat up, causing Ororo to moan. "Please don't let that be a sign." She quickly stood up and headed to her private bathroom to clean the tot.

It barely took a minute or so to clean up the small mess Rachel made. Thankfully, it wasn't that dirty; the spat got nowhere near the infant's clothes. After exiting the restroom, the ringer of her cell phone caught her attention. It wasn't any ringer, it was the 'Sex in the City' theme; Jean's ringer.

"Momma's checking up on us." Ororo stated, setting Racehl down on the bed with her bottle. "Behave." She picked up the phone from her nightstand. "Jean! Hey there, hon." Storm greeted. "How was the movie?"

Ororo could hear the redhead sigh happily into the phone, "Gerard Butler and Emmy Rossum were just amazing. Not to mention, Patrick Wilson's a bit of a hottie…"

"Hey, you're happily married-" Ororo paused. "Patrick Wilson? That William guy from 'The Alamo?' That man can sing?"

Jean laughed slightly, "For the most part. How's my little girl?"

"Oh, Ray's fine." Ororo replied. "She just woke up from her nap and now she's finishing up her bottle. Everything's under control."

"Be careful when you burp her, Ray spits up." Jean warned.

Ororo scoffed, "No kidding."

"Alright, Ro. Scott's coming from the men's room." Jean informed. "I got to go. See you later."

"Yeah, have fun." The weather witch replied before closing the phone.

She laid back on the bed; folding her hands together, she rested them on her stomach, "Ray…" She rolled over onto her chest, only to have her heart leap up to hr throat. Rachel was crawling along the edge of the other side of the bed. Ororo jumped up on her knees and pulled the infant over by the feet; Rachel found this amusing, she squealed in delight.

"Don't worry me like that!" Ororo hissed. "You'll turn my hair… white. Oh, it's a saying and I should be entitled to it. Stop laughing at me, chicklet." Her slender fingers tickled Ray's sides. The child burst into fits of giggles from the attack.

XXXXXX

Jean tucked the cell phone back in her purse before setting the bag besides her feet just as Scott sat back down next to her in their booth. Immediately, he went directly for the chips and salsa. By this point, the man was so extremely hungry. She scanned through the menu, apparently not interested in the chips.

"I called Ororo." Jean mumbled. "Everything sounds fine back at the mansion."

"Uh huh." Was the only reply she managed to get from her starving husband. He stuffed a salsa filled chip in his mouth, causing him to tingle from the spice.

The redhead narrowed her eyes, "Uh-huh?" She repeated, pulling the small basket of chips away from his greedy hands. "No 'how's Daddy's little girl doing?'"

"Huh? What?" Scott snapped into reality, realizing his salty fingers were nowhere near the basket anymore. "Oh, yeah. How's Ray holding up with Ororo?"

Of course she had his attention now, she had food in her grasp. Jean slid the basket back over, "I'm pretty sure Ray already spat up on her… Have you figured out what you're going to order?"

"The chicken quesadilla sounds good. You?"

She shrugged her shoulders, "I'm not really that hungry… How about a mini ensalada basket?"

"That thing is tiny." Scott stated.

"What was your first clue?" Jean scoffed. "Seriously, it's not that big or small. Chances are Ray's going to wake me tonight. I'll snack on something then."

"Are you sure?" He asked, sounding a bit concerned for his spouse.

She nodded, "I've spread my three daily meals into six smaller ones for the last couple of weeks. Taking care of Ray and working down at the lab has been difficult… Not to mention the school year's started, so you're busy yourself."

"Then I'll take care of her during my prep hour." Scott offered. "And I'm always up late grading Algebra papers anyways. I'll take over baby duty then."

"And what about during the day?" She pointed out. "I can't keep her down in the med lab, she gets really bored down there."

"Then why not just be on call for the school day?" He took a sip from his glass of water. The salsa was getting to him. "I'm sure Professor Xavier would understand. Jean, are you sure people don't know what we're talking about?"

"As far as they are concerned, we're chatting about Hugh Jackman's latest Broadway show." Jean reassured, drawing her glass near. "I'll bring it to Charles' attention the next time we meet."

"Wait, why Hugh Jackman?"

Jean took a sip at her own drink, "I want to see his show. You know, a little hint, hint."

XXXXXX

"Ack!" Ororo tumbled back from kneeling as she grabbed a hold of a towel behind her. Droplets of soapy water trailed down her face. She quickly dried off, making sure nothing was in her blue eyes. That's the last thing she needed. Giving a small child a bath was horrid. Rachel continued to splash around, giggling. At least someone was having fun with all this.

The young redhead squealed. She picked up the bright yellow rubber duck floating on the water and threw it out of the tub. Ororo rubbed her forehead; there was no way she was going to pick that back up again. Ray had already nailed her with that rubber duck on the forehead. She wasn't taking any chances.

"Alright…" Ororo scooted over to the bathtub in order to take Rachel out. The weather witch set the girl on the towel covered counter before drying her off gently. "All I need to do is get you in a fresh pair of pajamas and get you off to bed… then I'm free for the night. Uhh… after that Clifford movie, I guess."

Rachel clapped her hands, rather excited. True, the only word she understood was 'Clifford.' Whenever Mommy said 'Clifford,' she got to watch a big funny red dog on the television and she loved that big red dog.

"Hopefully, you'll fall asleep during it, eh?" Ororo mumbled, putting a crisp clean diaper on her young niece. "Mommy and Daddy should be home soon anyways." She added, slipping her into a warm pair of pajamas. The wind rider took the child into her arms and headed towards the rec room.

XXXXXX

Maybe chowing down on those chips and salsa wasn't such a bright idea. The tip of Scott's fork poked at the remaining pieces of the quesadilla which was covered with onions, tomatoes, and other bits. It tasted great, of course, but he just couldn't finish it. Even Jean stared to pick at his plate, taking bits of chicken after finishing up her ensalada basket.

Scott finally gave up and placed his fork down on top of his dirtied napkin, "I purpose a walk in the park to finish off this date."

Jean tilted her head, still picking at the leftovers on the plate, "I don't know, hon…" She sighed. "Ororo's baby-sitting Rachel and she thinks were going to be home soon."

The man smirked lightly. That's all she wanted, to be with their little girl. Heck, going out alone without Ray was her idea to begin with. He wrapped his arm around her waist, pulling her closer as he leaned in for the kiss. Jean's soft lips pressed against his as she beamed, "That walk does sound… great." She whispered before clearing her throat. "I'll call Ororo."

"And I'll go pay the bill." Scott replied, getting out of their booth. "See you in a bit." He added, heading towards the front.

Jean pulled out her cell phone and dialed Ororo's number. She waited a couple of seconds until the weather witch finally answered.

"Young woman in her twenties enjoying 'Clifford the Big Red Dog,' help me, Jean." She groaned. "My neturla feelings for his dog are slowly changing as I bond with my niece."

She grinned, "Sorry, Ro. Scott and I are going to swing by the park. Besides, Ray will be out sometime through the movie. Something about it just puts her to sleep every time." She chatted away. "If that's the case, them put her in her crib."

"No Jean, I'm going to put her in the Danger Room." The wind rider mumbled under her breath.

"What?"

"I got it, the crib." Ororo spoke up. "The monitor is in the top draw of your nightstand, right?"

"Right." Jean replied with a nod. "It should be charged and ready for use. Oh, and be very careful, alright? Scott caught her trying to climb out of the crib one morning."

"Are you kidding me?"

She shook her head, "No, that girl's a wild child. Just look who her parents are."

Ororo snorted, "Then I'm not going to take any chances. I'll catch up on some reading in your room while she sleeps."

"Thanks, Ro." Jean smiled, rubbing the back of her neck. "We'll be home soon. Enjoy Clifford."

XXXXXX

"Enjoy Clifford…" Ororo mocked, flipping her phone off before tucking it away in her jean pocket. She was sitting back on the couch with Rachel in her lap, leaning against her body. "Mommy thinks she's funny…"

Rachel appeared to be not paying any attention to the movie at all. Jean was right. This movie was putting her right to sleep. Ororo began to wonder if Ray ever saw the entire movie ever as she shifted the infant into a more comfortable position, one which allowed Ororo to rock her. Rachel disagreed with this, she began to whimper.

"Hush, little baby…" She spoke gently, trying to relax her. Ororo rocked her back and forth until the whimpering came to a stop. Her bright green eyes were drooping. Rachel was so tired; Xavier was right when he said babies needed a ton of sleep at this young age. It was pretty amazing, actually.

She stood up and switched the television off before heading back up stairs to the Grey-Summers bedroom suite. Rachel's tiny hands clutched onto Ororo's shirt as her lips twitched in a suckle motion. Carefully, she placed the tot on her back in the crib. There was no need for the monitors if the weather witch was just going to stay in this room, but she had to fetch a couple of magazines and the pink blanket, for that matter, from her own room.

She would be absent for two minutes at most, barely even that. Rachel was sleeping. There was no problem, right? Maybe if she ran… Ororo shook her head as she took off down the hall. Within moments, she was in her attic room. Instantly, she placed a few 'Home Garden' magazines under her arm and grabbed the blanket before heading back towards the room.

However, the white haired wonder was stopped in her tracks in the hallway by the infamous Wolverine.

"Uh, Logan…" She mumbled. "Had enough in the Danger Room?"'

"Nah, I'm just taking a break." Logan replied. "The computer needs to cool down. What about you? Still watching the Summers brat?"

"Yeah, Rachel is doing fine." She remarked. "Scott and Jean will be home soon enough." Ororo couldn't help but notice Logan's nostrils flare when she said Scott's name. She wasn't going to put up with his bickering, not now. "I have to go."

"See you around, Darling."

She didn't say another word. Ororo headed back into the suite. That guy made her feel uncomfortable. In Goddess name, Jean was married and had a child, but that didn't stop the Wolverine from flirting with the telepath. She was pretty sure he hated Scott because he was just married to Jean. This whole situation was disturbing.

XXXXXX

Hand-in-hand, the married couple walked together on a paved path that circled the nearly empty green park. Trees were scattered here and there which were surrounded by many bushes. Lamp posts shown brightly every few feet to light their current path. Scott silently stared onward as Jean gazed off to the side. Both were merely enjoying each other's company in silence. It was rather peaceful, very relaxing.

They were use to not talking with each other physically, especially in public thanks to Jean's telepathic abilities. They hardly worried about someone overhearing their conversations. It was much easier this way when they wanted to talk in private; it never let them down.

Jean inhaled deeply as she cast her gaze up towards the night sky which was sprinkled with tiny glowing stars. It was so much easier to see the sky at the mansion, there weren't so many city lights. Her eyes stared up at the magnificent full moon. She glanced over at Scott, grinning. When was the last time they goofed off without a care in the world? Even she would admit that Scott was a bit of a stick in the mud.

"Do you think your beams could carve our initials on the moon?" She pondered.

Scott smirked lightly, "We both know my optic blast would dissipate before it can even escape the atmosphere, Jean."

She latched onto his arm, resting her head on his shoulder as they went on walking, "Just take off those glasses, Slim."

"I can't just take them off." Scott replied. "I can't keep my power in check like most of you. I'm not in control without my glasses. I don't feel in control without them. Besides, we're out in the city, hon. Someone will see the blast."

"Fine, party-pooper." Jean mumbled. "Are you ready to head back home?" she asked. "Cuz I'm ready to head back to my baby."

"Then I guess I have no choice. I'm done with this walk." Scott remarked, pulling out his car keys from his pocket. "Let's go."

XXXXXX

Lazily, her bright blue eyes scanned through a rather outdated fashion magazine, one that belonged to Jean. Ororo's own 'Home Garden' got a tad bit broing. In general, she was tired; her eyelids were growing so heavy. She tossed the issue aside on the bed and stood up. She had to get the blood pumping. The last thing she wanted was to fall asleep in Jean's and Scott's room. What would they say if they found her sleeping while watching Rachel?

Ororo stretched her arms over her head as she stood in front of the crib to watch Rachel lay there like a log. The young child was cuddled up with her favorite pink blanket while suckling on her thumb. This kid just loved to sleep.

"Lucky…" She mumbled, sitting back down on the bed, rubbing her eyes. Today had just been so very exhausting. Watching the infant wasn't exactly a walk in the park. Speaking of the walks in the park, where were Scott and Jean? All she wanted was to lay down in her own bed and snuggle against her own pillow.

XXXXXX

"Can I turn off the stereo now?" Scott complained as he pulled into the mansion entrance, passing the gates. Throughout the whole car ride, Jean had been blasting N'Sync and he couldn't take it anymore. If he could, Scott would bang his head on the steering wheel, but he was driving. He feared turning it off himself. You learn to not mess with telepaths.

"Whine, whine, whine." Jean murmured, turning the stereo off and leaning back in her seat. "Sometimes I think I have two babies instead of one." Truth be told, she enjoyed to watch him suffer. The man sure did look cute when he was suffering.

Scott sighed in relief as his shoulders dropped. Silence sounded so bliss at the moment; sweet music to his hear, "I just don't nejoy boy bands, if you haven't heard."

"What do you think Rachel's going to listen to when she gets older? Beethoven?" Jean questioned.

"Now you're stereotyping." He pointed out, parking the car safely in the garage next to his others.

Jean unbuckled herself and opened her car door. "No, I'm not. I'm just going to make sure Ray grows up listening to nothing but 98 degrees and Backstreet Boys, not to mention N'Sync." She smirked, stepping out of the car just as Scott had.

"And I'll make sure you are nowhere near a stereo with Ray." Scott remarked, making sure the car was locked. "Are you going to contact Storm?"

"Iv'e already have." Jean replied with a slight nod. "Believe me when I say she's ready to break into a song."

He chuckled lightly. The student always saw Ororo as a mother figure when in reality, she had a hard time with an eight month old baby.

XXXXXX

Ororo carefully adjusted the blanket over the young Rachel before fixing the ruffled up sheets on the bed she had rested upon earlier. She grabbed her magazines before heading towards the door. The wind rider gazed over her shoulder, smiling, "Night, lil Rachel." She said before walking into the hallway.

Upon reaching her attic bedroom, the weather witch tossed the magazines on the shaggy carpet and collapsed on her bed. She rolled over onto her back, snuggling one of her fluffy pillows. The smile on her face slowly turned into a frown before burying her face into the pillow, remembering the 'conversation's he had with little Ray on the balcony. Jean really did have everything she wanted.

XXXXXX

"She looks so beautiful… sleeping peacefully like this." Scott looked into the crib before undressing to nothing but his boxers. "I just wish I could see her in something other than shades of red, you know."

"I know." Jean automatically replied as she placed her evening wear away while in her nightgown. Scott always said something like this every once in a while, blaming his mutation… What could she really say to make him feel better?

She walked up behind him and wrapped her arms around his neck as she pecked his ear. He smirked and turned to face her, "I had fun tonight."

"We should do this more often then." She pointed out, taking a step back before heading to the bed to lay down. "You need to enjoy yourself more."

"Next time, we can go see Spongebob and then have dinner at Chuckie Cheese." Scott scoffed as he laid down next to his wife.

Jean grinned, cuddling against his body. "That does sound rather romantic." She admitted.

"Besides, I enjoy myself just by being with you and Ray." He added as she leaned up to kiss him.

"I'll see you in the morning, Tiger." Jean said, rolling over.

"Good night, hon." Scott replied, making sure his visor was strapped on properly before curling up under the sheets.

XXXXXX

The End

AN: I hope you enjoyed this ficlet. I must mention that the idea for the scene with Jean and Scott walking in the park was taken from 'Ultimate X-Men' issue 50 (Cry Wolf: Part 1). I've always loved that moment for some odd reason or another. I think I should also mention that this is the longest ficlet that I have ever written. ;) I feel rather accomplished.

If you want more info about my ficlets, just head over to my LiveJournal and look for the entries titled 'Fics' or something of that sort. I tend to post what I'm writing about a lot. :P

Now, go off and review. ;)