* Whoo hoo, less than a year this time between updates! See, being sick in bed is good for something. Thank you so much, everyone who reads my stories. It really does mean a lot to me, especially when readers leave a review. I still own no X-Men characters, but as always, my stories are my own intellectual property. Have a great summer everyone, in case I get sidetracked with updating again!

A Long Walk Back To Reality: Stormy Skies

After leaving the mess hall, Forge made his way back to the cabin, hoping that it was still vacant, due to his fellow campers' anticipation of their upcoming punishment. He could feel his anger rising, something he was becoming more accustomed to the longer he knew Remy LeBeau, and he craved privacy. Why did his girlfriend have to have such a smarmy lech as her best friend? Maybe their relationship wouldn't seem so suspicious if Gambit would just talk to Forge once in awhile, but it seemed like every time they were together, Remy had nothing to say unless Ororo was also present. In no way did this endear him to Forge, and Forge was tired of feeling jealous.

He reached the cabin and slammed open the door, surprising a very guilty couple, Lorna and Alex. "Aw, crap. So sorry, guys." Forge averted his eyes, pretending to be interested in a spider over the door as the two lovebirds adjusted their clothing and smoothed their hair.

"No big deal," Alex replied, but Forge couldn't help but notice that he seemed out of breath, and smiled to himself. "What are you up to, besides giving us minor heart attacks?"

Lorna laughed shakily. "Yeah, seriously. I thought you were Scott, and I really didn't want to have to explain to him why I was in your cabin."

"No worries. I certainly won't say anything," Forge replied. He moved over to his own bed and threw himself down on it.

Lorna and Alex looked at each other pointedly. "Everything cool, man?" Havok wanted to know.

"Yeah, yeah. I just wanted to get some rest before the incredible day of fun that's been laid out before us." He chuckled and turned his head to the side on his pillow, hoping his sarcastic answer would satisfy them both, and spur them to find another place to make out in.

"Okay, well, I guess I'll see you both tonight at dinner then," Lorna said nonchalantly, stealthily motioning to her partner that something was wrong with Forge. Alex rolled his eyes as if to say, "You really think I don't know that?"

Without looking, Forge waved his hand dismissively to Polaris, thinking that she would take Havok out of the cabin with her. When he heard the door close, he sat up with his head in his hands. Stupid freaking LeBeau.

What a shame that he had missed his friends' silent kiss goodbye. "Dude, you wanna talk about it?" Forge was so overly startled when Alex spoke that he nearly fell off the bed.

"I thought you left; sorry."

"Sorry for what? You didn't do anything."

Yeah, as usual. I never do anything; I just let creeps like Remy bother me without saying a word.

When his friend made no reply, Alex laid down on his own bed and stared at the ceiling. "It's Ororo and LeBeau, isn't it?" He said it as non-confrontationally as possible, but he heard Forge's head snap up to look at him. Havok decided to wait his silence out, since Forge had never really been one to offer up personal information freely in the past.

"They uh – they were out alone together in the woods this morning."

"So I heard." At his friend's look of surprise, Alex offered, "Lorna told me they'd said that at breakfast, and that was why she already knew about Scott's plans for us this afternoon."

"It's weird, right?" Forge said quietly, looking sideways at Havok.

"I don't know if I'd say 'weird.' I mean, after all, they've been friends a long time. Hell, they came to Xavier's together. It's just that I don't know what kind of relationship they had before Xavier's." And neither one of them seems to feel too inclined to clear that matter up, he added silently to himself. "Of course, it's not like men and women can't be friends. Like, Logan and Jean, for example. You don't see my brother worrying over their friendship. Scott's happy with Jean, and he trusts her."

"And what about you and Lorna? Do you ever worry that she's not being faithful to you?"

"With this body?" Havok joked, sitting up and flexing.

Forge chuckled and lay back down, his arms behind his head. "I feel like I can trust Storm, but not Remy. I don't really know him; none of us do." Except Ororo, he thought bitterly.

"I know what you mean. I'm never quite sure if he's telling the truth or not."

"So why does she like to spend time with him so much?" Forge had asked the unanswerable; Gambit was a secret to almost everyone in the mansion. He played his hand close to his chest, and laughed off any inquiries about his life that were too personal, so Alex had to blow by Forge's painful question without a direct reply.

"If you really think that there's something going on between him and Storm, you need to talk to her about it. If you don't, your jealousy will eat your relationship alive." He knew that Forge and Storm had already broken up once or twice before, and while they managed to get back together, things had been really tense between them at the mansion for awhile. "Can I ask you something?" Forge turned towards his friend. "When you guys broke up before, what made you get back together?"

"I missed her. I had a hard time building machines when we broke up because I was so depressed."

"Did you tell her that?"

Of course not, Forge thought. Alex was, in fact, the only person he'd ever admitted that to out loud.

Taking in his friend's silence, Havok replied, "Maybe you should. Maybe you should tell Ororo that you want to spend time alone with her. Make a date or something while we're here; tell her you want to take her on a picnic! I'll help you steal food from the dining hall," Alex smirked.

"Yeah..." Forge mulled it over. "And if she's with me, that eliminates my problem with LeBeau too, at least for the time being."

Alex rolled his eyes. He thought it would be more like sweeping the problem under the rug. "Fine. But while you're together, make sure you don't attack her friendship with Gambit. That'll just make her feel cornered, and like you don't trust her."

Forge looked like the wheels in his mind were turning, and Havok wasn't totally sure he'd caught his last piece of advice, despite his reply in the affirmative. "Yeah, you're right. Maybe I'll run out and talk to her right now, so we can take that picnic later on tonight."

"If we live through tonight," Alex answered, laughing. "My stupid brother can't take a joke."

Forge chuckled and sprinted out of the cabin, trying to think where Storm might be at the moment. He almost ran right into Betsy, who was working on her tan, splayed out on a towel in a pair of cut-off shorts and a halter top. "Hey Maker," she welcomed him.

He paused, agitated, hoping that she wouldn't keep him too long. Scott must be close to finishing his breakfast and rounding up Hank and Bobby by now, he thought. I've gotta talk to Storm before he gets back. "Hey, Bets. Your tan's looking good."

"Thanks. I'm surprised you're not already hard at work under Cyclops's watchful eye."

"I guess he hasn't found Beast and Iceman yet, since I was just at the cabin and he wasn't there. I don't know if I'm more excited that they're postponing this whole thing, or more worried that they're pissing him off further," he laughed. Betsy smiled and he used this as his opportunity to ask her if she'd seen Ororo recently.

"Yeah, she was still at the cabin after I left. I think she was just taking a shower or something."

"Okay, great. Thanks." He left Psylocke and headed in the direction of the girls' cabin. The sun was out, and Forge was starting to feel good about that night. He would make a picnic for Ororo, they would spend some alone time together, and the Cajun would be nowhere in sight. He began to whistle as he knocked on Storm's door.

She answered it in a towel and his heart leapt into his throat. Her white hair hung damp and curly down her back, her skin bright from its recent cleansing. "Damn girl, you smell good," he flirted.

"Must be that rose-scented body wash you gave me." She smiled and leaned over to kiss him, cupping his face with her hand and caressing his cheek with her thumb. "Want to come in?"

"I do, desperately; believe me," he replied, and Ororo glowed. "But you know I have to be back for cleanup duty with Cyke. I just wanted to see what you were doing tonight."

"No clue. No plans." She brought his hand up to her shoulder, letting him feel her warm skin, and Forge's pulse quickened.

"Okay, great. I want to take you out for a picnic under the stars. I'll come over as soon as I'm done with the dictator's cleaning schedule." He mock-saluted Ororo and she laughed, nodding her agreement with his plan. It was then that he heard a door open.

"'Ro, who is it?" The absolute last voice that Forge wanted to hear was attached to the last person he wanted to see, who stepped out from Storm's bathroom wearing nothing but a towel. His reddish hair was also dripping wet, and the water slicked down his abs, making a puddle on the floor. Forge felt like all the world had stopped, and he couldn't seem to breathe. "Oh hey, homme," Remy greeted him, smiling in what seemed to Forge to be quite a lascivious manner, but maybe it had something to do with his eyes...

Ignoring him completely, trying desperately to hide his shock and dismay, Forge confirmed his plans with his girlfriend, then turned and walked off in what he hoped was a nonchalant manner. Inside, he was seething. Already, his and Alex's discussion was taking a backseat, while jealousy tore through him, sweeping all reason to the wayside. He tortured himself with visions of Remy and Ororo showering together, soaping up each other's bodies, until he couldn't see straight. He stumbled into his own cabin, annoyed to find everyone else already there. No one spoke to him, since Scott had already begun droning on about the tasks at hand to Hank, Bobby, and Alex, and Forge merely waited until Cyclops handed him his assignment and his bag of Q-tips to begin vigorously attacking his sanctioned area, pretending he was wiping Remy LeBeau off the face of planet instead of dirt and grime.

* Who knows where this story will go? Should Cyclops be worried about Wolverine and Jean's friendship, despite Havok's assurances that he is not? If nothing is going on now with Storm and Gambit, will Forge's jealousy push something to occur in the future? I guess you'll just have to wait and see. Thanks for reading!