Inside Jean's room.

  After throwing Scott out of the window, Jean gradually calmed down. Wheurned around, she realized Reid had somehoeared again, quietly pig up the objects scattered across the floor due to her telekiic outburst.

  Jean, unize Reid as an illusion, didn't notice that his as of pig things up were actually the result of her subscious use of telekinesis.

  Eveangible sensation she felt when she hugged the illusion of Reid roduct of her mind simuting the se through her abilities.

  If Jean could fully trol her powers, she wouldn't be so lost in distinguishiween illusion ay.

  "I'm sorry, Reid. Did I scare you just now?"

  In Jean's eyes, Reid was an ordinary human. Her use of such powerful abilities must have frightened him, she thought.

  "No... If anything, I should apologize for troubling you, Jean."

  Reid's response surprised Jean. The illusion didn't dispy any fear, only a faint look of guilt.

  "Because of me, you've had a falling out with your friend. I don't know why your friend dislikes me so much… or why he resents humans. Did I do something wrong?"

  Hearing this, Jea a pang of u was as if, if this versation tinued, Reid would leave her. Without hesitation, she rushed forward and embraced him tightly.

  "No... It's not your fault. It's Scott who's wrong. He's so pletely, utterly wrong. You're wonderful, Reid. You've dohing wrong."

  Hearing this, the illusion of Reid returhe embrace, gently f her troubled heart. But in the space where Jean couldn't see, the er of Reid's mouth curled into a sly smile, one as difficult to suppress as a loaded AK.

  As the two separated, the illusion of Reid once again showed a flicted and uain expression.

  "But your friends... your family... they all reject humans. They reject me. What should we do? I just want to stay with you forever."

  Reid's words struck a chord within Jean.

  Yes, she knew very well what her panions thought of humans. Fag her ow, she had to admit the truth—apart from Reid, she didn't truly care about the lives of ordinary humans.

  This was indeed a problem. She had to find a way to make her panions accept Reid.

  "It's okay. I'll think of something. They'll accept you, Reid. So please, don't leave me, alright? I want to be with you forever too."

  The illusion of Reid nodded, embrag her once more before slowly fading away.

  Moments ter, as Jeauro her senses, she realized the weight of the issue. If the people around her couldn't accept Reid, he might eventually leave her. She had to prevent that from happening.

  "Then I'll start with Scott. I'm closest to him. If I talk to him properly, he should be able to accept Reid."

  Having made up her mind, Jean decided to start by Scott, looking for an approach to vince him.

  Over the few days, Scott didn't e to see her. Instead, it was Jean who stayed hiddely watg his behavior, trying to determihe best way to ge his mind about Reid.

  But gradually, Jean noticed something was amiss.

  Scott seemed to be iigating something.

  She, Scott, and Ororo were among Professor Xavier's earliest and most trusted students, naturally gaining access to certain resources and responsibilities within the academy. However, Scott appeared to be using the academy's internal systems to dig into information about Reid.

  This discovery uled Jean, stirring an uneasy suspi she couldn't ignore.

  As days passed, her telepathic abilities began to pick up on Scott's emotions. The hatred and anger festering within him grew more pronounced, sharper, and harder to dismiss.

  Uo ehe tension any longer, Jean made the decision to directly read Scott's mind.

  What she found shocked her to her core.

  'It's time. That damned human. He has to die!'

  This was the clearest and most resolute thought in Scott's mind.

  'How could this be?'

  Her closest friend lotting to kill the one she loved most. The realization shattered Jean, leaving her dazed as she stumbled back to her room.

  As always, the illusion of Reid was waiting for her by the bedside.

  "Jean, did you have a good day? But unfortunately, I'm afraid I have to leave soon."

  Reid's illusion, being a refle of Jean's own subscious, was aware of what she had learned. And so, it spoke those words, subtly guiding her emotions.

  "No! Reid, don't leave me!"

  Just as the illusioed, Jean immediately assumed that Scott was the reason Reid was about to leave her.

  "But..."

  The illusion of Reid put on a troubled expression.

  "If I stay, you're bound to have flicts with your friends."

  "There won't be any flio, he's not even my friend!"

  Jean's voice trembled with desperation, her mind clouded by emotion.

  With just a slight nudge, Jean pletely abahe idea of ever reg with Scott.

  She tightly held Reid's hand, her voice trembling as she begged, "Don't leave. Please wait for me here, okay? I'll be back soon, I promise. Nothing will g."

  Jean's resolve hardened. Nothing and no one would stop her from being with Reid—not even Scott. Anyone who dared to stand in her way would bee her enemy.

  "Jean..."

  Hearing her plea, the illusion of Reid leaned closer, and Jean instinctively moved toward her imagined lover.

  Their lips met in a tender kiss, though in truth, it was her subscious telekiic power creating the sensation.

  After a long moment, they parted.

  "Reid, wait for me. I won't allow ao e between us."

  With those words, Jeahe room.

  She was determio follow Scott and uncover what he po do to her beloved Reid.

  Later that night, after Charles and the others had goo rest, Scott quietly started his new motorcycle ahe academy, heading straight for New York.

  Jean, without a vehicle of her own, wasn't deterred. She used her telekiic powers to fly after him, though her speed was no match for Scott's bike.

  ......

  As the illusion of Reid, or rather the virus at the mutant academy, was causing chaos, the real Reid was pletely unaware.

  Reid had no idea what Jean was seeing uhe influence of the virus, nor was he aware of the hatred it had drawn toward him.

  Unknowingly, he had bee Scott's sole target, enough for the man Charles himself had marked as his successor to disregard everything else. Scott was now singurly focused on reag New York and killing Reid

  At this time, Reid sat in his rented apartment, pletely oblivious to the chaos brewing in his name. Instead, he reoccupied with a dilemma of his own.

  "Whipany should I try to take over first?" he muttered to himself, ruffling his hair in frustration.

  Finally, he flopped onto his bed with a sigh. "Fet it. I'll figure it out tomorrow. Life first, pime to sleep."

  With that, Reid pulled the b over his head, blissfully unaware of the storm headed his way.

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