Bits and Pieces

Bits and Pieces Chapter Thirty One

Disclaimers Apply

A/N Goddess Foxfeather, Queen of Mad Plotbunnies, BUSIEST
WOMAN ALIVE ™, Prophetic Muse, Hamster Witch and Uberbeta…style='mso-spacerun:yes'> *bouncy * I have a plan, lol. style='mso-spacerun:yes'> InterNutter, TC, Maxwell Pink, Dracena and
Greywolf are loverly and wondermous for archiving/hosting.style='mso-spacerun:yes'> J ProPhile: So… how’s it
going? ;)style='mso-spacerun:yes'> Morgan: *GLOMP*style='mso-spacerun:yes'> Readers/Reviewers: Just a few more to
go and then… new story where loose ends are tied up, lol. Just a warning, the
next chapter has slash. Not this one
though.

“Are you
okay?” Kurt asked, leaning across the table warily.style='mso-spacerun:yes'> “Do you need to go back home?”

“No,”
Jubilee protested, shaking her head but wincing at the pain the action
caused. “I’m fine.style='mso-spacerun:yes'> Just… full.”style='mso-spacerun:yes'> She pushed the remains of her late morning
Gut Bomb Burger Meal away. The onion
rings were making her nauseated and she thought if she ate one more bite, she
would be sick all over Kurt. class=GramE>“Long morning.”

Kurt nodded
slowly, picking up one of her discarded onion rings and popping it into his
mouth, whole. “It’s been a class=SpellE>sucky morning.” He
sighed and picked up another ring, twirling it loosely around his finger,
frowning at the crumbs that spilled onto his fur, hidden as it was by his class=SpellE>holo. “So what’re
you going to say to Remy?”

“I’m…” She paused, her teeth
pressing into her lower lip delicately. “I’m
going to tell him I want a break.” She
looked

at Kurt from under lowered lashes,
waiting for his reaction. When none came after a long moment, she sighed. “What?”

“Was what?”
he replied carefully. “I think these
need more salt…” He rose to get a shaker
from the counter but found himself held in place by Jubilee’s fingers around
his wrist.

“Why aren’t
you commenting?” she asked, her brows knitting together in concern.style='mso-spacerun:yes'> “You always comment on stuff like this!”style='mso-spacerun:yes'> She released his wrist when he returned to
his seat, ignoring his sigh of consternation.
She leaned close, careful of the remains of her burger and asked in
hushed tones, “Do you think it’s a bad idea?”

“I can’t
tell you what to do, Jubilee,” he said, sounding slightly pained.style='mso-spacerun:yes'> He met her eyes with a look of intense
discomfort. “It’s not my place to tell
you what to do with your life.”

“Kurt, you’re
my friend. One of my best friends,” she
added, laying a hand atop his where it rested on the Formica table top. style='mso-spacerun:yes'> “I need to know what I’m doing!”style='mso-spacerun:yes'> She winced again, pressing her fingertips
below the small bandage covering the bump on her forehead.style='mso-spacerun:yes'> “Damn it…”

“That’s it,” Kurt announced,
standing and taking her hand, pulling her gently to her feet. “We’re going
home. You shouldn’t be out in the first
place and me letting you do this is just wrong!
I should’ve put my foot down!”
Kurt knew he said something wrong as soon as the words left his
mouth. He felt Jubilee tense in his
grasp and a moment before she jerked away violently, he released her, stepping
back and putting his hands up in a ‘no harm meant’ gesture.style='mso-spacerun:yes'> “Hey, sorry!” he yelped as she swung at him
ineffectually. “What’s wrong?”

“What the Hell is it with you men?”
she snarled. She turned and stalked away
towards the door, then paused, turned on her heel, and strode back to Kurt,
stopping just out of arm’s reach. “I am
not a child. Having a vagina does not
make me stupid or unable to handle simple pieces of information, good or bad.”

Kurt was
blushing furiously, motioning for her to be quiet.style='mso-spacerun:yes'> “Jubilee! You’re
drawing attention! class=GramE>Bitte, not here!”

She made sound in her throat that
bespoke great annoyance. “What the fuck
is wrong with you people that you think I can’t deal with real life, huh?” She
jabbed her finger at his chest, unintentionally hurting him.style='mso-spacerun:yes'> “I’m sick and tired of it.style='mso-spacerun:yes'> I’m tired of it from Remy,
I’m already tired of it from you… Does everything think I’m a child? Is that
it? Jamie’s younger than me and no one
fucks him over like this!” She raked her
fingers through her spiky-short hair and growled.style='mso-spacerun:yes'> “Damn it!”

Kurt swallowed hard and gave a
nervous smile to the people now craning their necks to look at them in their
corner of the fast food restaurant. “class=SpellE>Jubes, come on. Let’s go.
You can yell at me in the car…”

She let herself be led by the elbow
to the station wagon, silently fuming.
She even let Kurt open the car door for her because she knew it went
against every gentlemanly bone in his body not to.style='mso-spacerun:yes'> She even remained silent as he started the
car and pulled onto Main Street.style='mso-spacerun:yes'> Finally, she took a deep breath and exhaled
slowly, pretending she could see the anger being pushed from her body with the
exhalation. “Kurt,” she began in a much
calmer tone, “are you and Kitty happy?”

“Was?style='mso-spacerun:yes'> I mean…why?”
He slid a sideways glance at her and frowned.style='mso-spacerun:yes'> He did not like this turn of conversation,
mainly because he had a feeling that he did not have any good answers.style='mso-spacerun:yes'> “You can’t compare our relationship to yours…”

“Duh,” she sighed.style='mso-spacerun:yes'> “I just wanted to know.style='mso-spacerun:yes'> I was figuring maybe it’s an epidemic if we’re
not the only couple having issues, ya know?”
She touched her sore head tenderly, hissing between her teeth as a bolt
of pain shot from the concussed spot to her eyes.style='mso-spacerun:yes'>

Kurt did not respond, turning onto
Evergreen Terrace and humming under his breath.
He gauged the time they had left before reaching the Institute and knew
there was no way he could remain silent for so long—she would definitely get
pissed, he thought. “Kitty and I are
kind of fighting,” he admitted after another moment of tense quiet.style='mso-spacerun:yes'> “Does that help any?”

“No,” Jubilee admitted, sinking
lower in her seat. “Just makes me feel worse…”
She inhaled shakily, her fingers curling into fists on the seat beside
her. “I think I know what I need to do,
to get some thinking space.”

“Oh?” Kurt replied lightly, already
knowing and almost cringing at the coming answer.

“I’m going to tell Remy I want a
break. From him, from us, from everything.”