My Second Chance (Erik Lehnsherr x OC)

The next morning, Melinda had already been awake by the time Charles knocked on her door. Their latest powerful friend wanted to talk to them about something.

Specifically, he wanted to talk to Charles, but the telepath wanted her to be present as well. As they walked towards his office, Charles informed her how he found Erik about to leave and the small speech he had given him. 

Yet, when Melinda asked him if Erik had chosen to stay. her brother admitted that he did not know. The older woman bit the inside of her cheek once again, wondering mentally if the mysterious and secretive mutant had chosen to stay. 

Charles admitted that he had seen it in his brain, but she refused to let him tell her anything. The past of someone was not of her concern, and if ever, was she to find out about the past, she would when Erik chose to. 

At last, they had reached the office. 

The man eyed Melinda carefully since she had yet to show her mutation. She had declined to do so, feeling no need to show off. No one truly pushed her, and she was quick to take the seat next to Charles, on the other side of the man's desk. 

From his window, they could see a round white gigantic structure across the yard. 

"Hank turned that radar installation into a transmitter," he started to explain. "It's designed to amplify brainwaves, so it could enhance your telepathic powers, and help us find other mutants for our division." 

The two siblings looked at one another and then at this huge transmitter. 

Charles did not need his telepathy to know what his older sister was thinking. Yet, she did not comment on anything and simply listened. 

That machine required Charles, which meant that only he had the final word about all of that.

 "What if they don't want to be found by you?" a new voice asked, making everyone look at the door. 

"Erik," Melinda exclaimed first, a smile on her face. She was not sure why, but she was happy that he had chosen to stay.

Charles shared her happiness. "You decided to stay," he pointed out. 

The man gave a few nods with his head, his face cold and expressionless as ever. Yet Melinda could swear that his eyes showed all the emotions he tried to hide behind his mask. "If a new species is being discovered, it should be by its kind. Charles, Melinda, and I find the mutants. No suits. " 

The said woman looked at him surprised, not by his words but by the fact that he included her. Their eyes met for a moment, and she could not help but mentally thank him, giving him a warm smile.

She then turned to Charles. "I agree," she started. "If they see suits, they will be mistrustful; maybe even run away." 

"First of all, that's my machine out there," the man said. "Second of all, much more importantly, this is Charles' decision. Charles is fine with the CIA being involved, isn't that right?" 

Charles had silently kept looking at Erik and Melinda. His own blue eyes switched between the two mutants, who waited for his answers; although deep down, they already knew it. 

After a moment of silence, Charles turned to face the man. "No, I am sorry, but I am with Erik and Melinda on this one. We will find them alone. " 

The man tried to sound intimidating, not pleased by how he was outnumbered. "What if I say no?" 

Charles smirked, exchanging a look with his sister. "Then, good luck using that machine without me." A

After realizing that he could not win, the CIA agent gave this new suggestion. 

However, to recruit more mutants, they had to find them first. That's why our heroes found themselves climbing up the narrow spiral case inside the giant transmitter. 

To the top, they were met on a giant circular platform, right in the heart of the building. Huge computer towers and some lights existed, all while Hank was waiting for them. 

Not hiding his excitement, he fixed his white lab coat. "I call it Cerebro" he started, once everyone had gathered. 

Melinda could not help but smile, as her eyes travelled around the place. "Spanish for the brain, right?" she asked him, remembering a few things from the Spanish Lessons she took as an extra course at her university. The young scientist gave a nod with a small smile. "Smart"

He blushed slightly at the comment and decided to focus on the task at hand. 

He pointed at a weird helmet that had dozens of cables connected to it. "Okay, so the electrodes connect Charles to the transmitter on the roof. When he picks up a mutant, his brain sends a signal through a relay and then the coordinates and their location are printed out here" he had been walking around as he spoke, showing each piece of machinery that he talked about. 

Once again, Raven was the one most smitten and impressed by their high intelligence and capability of Hank. She approached him, watching him carefully. "You designed this?"

"Yeah" he exclaimed, looking down for a moment. 

"It's incredible Hank," Melinda said, giving him an encouraging smile before her attention go to Charles, who was about to put that special helmet on. "Charles, be careful. Don't do anything reckless" she warned, her smile disappearing and her tone going immediately more mothering. 

The telepath chuckled in amusement. "How do I look?" he asked her. 

"You want my honest opinion?" his sister joked, taking a few steps around him to observe. 

She was hesitant, that was for sure, considering the machine would connect to Charle's brain. However, she did trust Hank and his skills. That young boy had proven he was pure-hearted and truly wanted to help in their mission and in the mutant kind itself.

It was the only thing keeping her worries in check. Erik, on the other hand, kept circling him with an amused expression on his face. His hands were behind his back, stretching more the tight black turtleneck he wore. 

"What an adorable lab rat you make, Charles" "Don't spoil this for me, Erik" the telepath replied, trying to keep his composure. 

"I have been a lab rat" Erik added, pointing at himself. "I know one when I see one" Those words made Melinda look at him. 

While he so casually brushed it off, she stayed on his words about him being a lab rat. She did not know of his past and yet at the mere thought, she found it hard to imagine. 

She did not realise she had been staring at him until he had sensed her gaze and returned the look. Embarrassed, she glanced down at her boots just as Hank finished with the connections and the helmet in general. 

She chose to focus on that, in an attempt to try and ignore Erik's gaze on her. 

"Okay, great," Hank said as he was done. 

"Are you sure we cannot shave your head?" 

"Don't touch my head" was Charles's simple reply, amusing Melinda. 

She could, truly, not think or imagine Charles without any hair on his head. She suspected he would eventually go bald but that was years and years ahead of them. 

Currently, she enjoyed that messy hair of his that he always tried so hard to keep in check. 

Everyone watched with their breaths held as the machine was turned on. 

Charles, at first, was calm and did not show any reaction. Erik and Melinda had even moved to be closer. The primer to just observe more and the latter in case her little brother needed her. 

Then, suddenly, Charles gasped and grabbed the railing that surrounded him. Melinda had subconsciously grabbed Erik's hand since he was closer. She did not realize it as her attention was focused on a panting Charles.

 Erik, though, did sense and he glanced at their connected hands and her for a moment before Charles spoke, drawing his attention as well. 

"I can see them. I can see them!" the telepath exclaimed. 

Melinda smiled, leaving out a heavy breath. She glanced at Erik with that beaming toothy smile, only to then realize that she still held his hand. She gently withdrew it, her cheeks flushing a shade of pink as she tried to avoid his gaze. 

Yet, with the corner of her lips, she did spot the very faint movement of his lip's edge...he was smirking. 

And so, the recruiting started. With the help of the Cerebro, they had the locations and the names of every mutant Charles could reach so far.

Hank did promise to expand its range by upgrading its technology soon. For now, they had gotten more than enough names. That meant, that in some cases, the three mutants had to split up. 

Charles, being the over-protective brother that he was, strictly refused to let her alone. Thankfully for her, Erik seemed to have her back. 

Melinda stared at the names and the coordinates, which she had managed to pinpoint to their exact locations. 

One of them was a young man in a Security Prison. The mutant was an early adult, with some distractive accidents. 

"For the last time, you will not go there alone Mel," Charles said as she had already taken the paper with the boy's name. 

"Why not Charles? He is in a prison. The safest place I can be" she said, in a way mocking him. 

Among those two, Melinda was the more experienced in defending herself through physical means. 

Charles, always, counted on his powers to stop his opponents. 

She could not do that, so, she found other ways to ensure she could handle tough cases. 

"The answer is no, Mel. For him to be in prison. We do not know what he could be capable of. It's not safe to go alone" 

Before Mel could argue some more, Erik had chosen to join. 

"Let her go, Charles"

The telepath looked at him confused. "What?" 

"She is not a child, Charles. She is a grown adult and she is more than capable of handling this and other cases" Erik added. 

Melinda looked at him, surprised but also thankful. She did not expect him to interfere, let alone back her up. Of course, he could simply be doing that because he wanted Charles to stop wasting time and start searching for those mutants. 

Yet, a part of her believed it was more than that. She exchanged a silent look with him, giving a small side smile as she mentally thanked him. 

Erik did not show any change in his facial expression, but his eyes did seem to have softened just a hue. 

Charles, the genius and powerful telepath looked between those two. Their thoughts loudly echoed in his mind and he let out a sigh before lifting his hands in the air; a sign of surrender. "Fine, you can take him and the Cassidy boy. In some others, you will be with us or one of us, okay?" 

Melinda moved and gave a peck on Charle's cheek. "Thank you" she then left the office but not before sending Erik another smile

 That was, how she ended up following a prison guard towards the isolation area. 

The mutant boy in custody was Alex Summers.

He had been placed there, due to some incidents that caused a lot of damage. 

"I must say, he is the first person I have ever seen enjoying solitude" the guard instructed as they stopped in front of the door. 

"Thank you," Melinda said as he scanned his pass and unlocked the door for her. 

"Shout if you need anything," the guard said and left. 

She entered the plain room, looking around before her eyes landed on the figure in the corner of the room. 

Sitting on the floor, Alex had his knees lifted and his face buried. Melinda's eyes softened at the scene. "Alex? Alex Summers? My name is Melinda Xavier" she introduced herself, taking slow steps inside. 

She did not want to startle the boy but also to show that she was not a threat to him. She watched him as he lifted his head slightly, a mess of blond hair falling almost in front of his eyes. 

"Go away," the boy said. 

Melinda did not listen to him, instead, she walked toward him in slow silent steps. When she was right in front of him, she bent to be at his height and offered a small smile. 

"I know what you think. But I am here to assure you...you are not the only one" Her words intrigued the lost boy, who looked at her with a confused but also curious look.

Without talking, she gently touched his hand. The skin on his knuckles had been a faint red, a result of when he hit the wall in his frustration. It was not recent but the skin took its time to heal. 

He watched and mostly focused, as he felt that small tingling sensation coming from the injured part of his hand. He could have moved it away, he could have harmed her but he didn't. 

There was something in those pained and wise brown eyes of hers that made him trust her. A few seconds later, she withdrew her hand and he was left staring at the fixed and healed skin. 

"How did you do that?" he asked, trying his best to not sound hopeful and instead, keep his bad-tough boy persona. 

Melinda smiled at him. "As I said, I am different just like you. There are others out there, so many others. I can help you meet them. We gather because we are the only ones, who can save us whole" He was confused by her words, and for a moment he would call her crazy. 

Yet, she had just proven that there were others like him. 

Now, would be a good idea to be in the same place as other people? Even if they were like him? He did not know and a part of him doubted it. 

But there was something...this small need deep within his aching soul. A need to connect, to be with others...to belong somewhere. 

His parents thought he was crazy and kicked him out, no one from his peers could stand him or ever accept him for whom he was. 

He thought he was a mistake, for quite some time, but maybe now; it was his chance to accept that he was not. 

For the first time in so long, his eyes held that small spark of hope. 

There were many names on that list and they tried to visit all of them. 

Thanks to the CIA resources, it was not that hard to find and approach them despite the distance they had to cover. 

Like that one time, Melinda was busy staring at the different ice cream flavours at a small stand. She tried to decide on what flavour she would take, considering how long it had been since she last had ice cream. 

As she was bent slightly, going over the flavours again, someone approached. "You know, if you need help, I can gladly offer it to you," a new voice said. 

Melinda smiled, standing up straight and looked at the young tall boy with curly hair. He was fairly young, younger than her for sure, and he held that air of confidence when he was around ladies. 

"And what flavour would that be your suggestion?" she asked in her British accent, keeping that friendly smile. 

"Chocolate is the most classic. There is also a flavour not currently on the menu, and that is me" he winked at her. 

"The name is Sean, and I am at your service" He took her hand and gently placed a kiss on the back of it, giving her a small fake bow. 

That silly moment was quickly interrupted when a third person joined the party. 

Erik stood right behind Sean, his blue eyes as cold as the metal he could bend. Their hands folded in front of his chest, his black turtleneck stretching over his muscled frame. "She is a little bit old for you, kid," he said. 

Sean turned to look at Erik, not even close to being intimidated by him. 

"Age is just a number you know" he turned to wink at Melinda. 

The healer rolled her brown eyes. "I am Melinda and this is my friend Erik. We have a proposition for you. Shall we sit down?" she asked, motioning for a table close by, all while never dropping that friendly smile. 

In a different case, found Erik and Melinda taking a Taxi in the busy streets of New York. 

Erik, the gentleman he was, held the door for her. Melinda could not help but smile, her hand gently brushing on top of his as she took a seat inside. 

He followed suit, closing the door behind him. As both got comfortable, their knees brushed and the woman tried her best to focus on the mission at hand. The driver, one of their oldest future recruits, looked at them from his upper mirror. 

"Where can I take you, lovebirds?" 

By now, it had been common for those two to be mistaken as a couple. Yet each time it was brought up, it was Melinda who had to clear her throat or try and fail to correct that suspicion. 

In the end, Erik could clear the situation with is, although, she could swear she saw him having the faintest of ghost smirks at her reactions. 

For someone with a PhD and a mature personality, she was easily taken aback by anything related to a relationship or intimate contact. 

Both found it ironic, considering her gift required only physical contact when it came to healing other beings. 

"Richmond, Virginia, please," Erik said, once again amused by a speechless Melinda. She gave him a side glance, clearing her throat and fixing her jacket. 

She refused to let him do the mission on his own, especially after she fought hard enough with Charles to prove she was capable. 

"Right..." the driver started. 

"So, you want the station? Airport? What?" 

"Actually" Melinda spoke this time with a smirk. "We would like that you take us all the way there. Worry not, we have a lot of time in front of us" She looked at Erik, who merely had to move his finger to affect the meter counter. 

This, made the cub driver turn to look at them as they both smirked in satisfaction. 

One thing they could agree on was the satisfaction they would get from the people once they realized they were not the only ones in the world.