>>5361260https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cUpox5jGdRQYou don't know why John decided to call now of all times. By this time of night, he'd usually be asleep, but that was the old John. Perhaps the FutureLabs-imprisoned version of your brother has a much more volatile sleep schedule than the shy lab technician or even the helmeted marauder that had held back his true power against you. However, you're not going to question it, because this might be the only chance you get to talk to John before the extraction.
"Hello?" You start, hoping that your brother won't hear the sounds of the highway through his end of the phone.
"Elise." John greets, your name being said in a breathless huff. While your brother sounds downright exhausted, it feels foreign, in a way, to hear him sound so placid after your last conversation. "Everything alright?"
"Yeah," You draw out. Even as a prisoner, John is ever-the-mother-hen. "What about you?"
"Well, I'm... existing. Kind of. I'm honestly surprised you even texted." John admits, sounding slightly abashed.
"Why's that?" You ask, even though you know the answer. John is well-aware that you (or at least the civilian-you) are likely still mad at him for lying to you for so long.
"Well, after the conference, your brother pretty much called me every name in the book before blocking me." That definitely sounds like Matt, but it looks like you weren't the only one to try and make contact with John. "I'm sure he'll come around in his own time. I know finding out I was a mutant must've come as a shock to the both of you..."
"It was, but we wouldn't have ever known if you never told us." You return, and, suffice to say, you and Matt had been living in ignorance since the accident; because John could've hidden that forever, and the two of you would've been none-the-wiser.
"I was--" He says before stopping himself short. "That wasn't how I planned for either of you to find out. A lot of stuff just kind of happened, and they didn't give me much of a choice..." There's enough guilt coating his tone to tell you that John's words are genuine.
"Did you ever plan on telling us?" You inquire. Knowing John's penchant to hide his problems, you don't think he ever would.
"...Not really." He breathes. "There was never really a good time to tell you, and I... I'd never want to make you guys worry about me. About yourselves, even." John adds, his voice slightly shaking with his next words. "You guys... you didn't know just what kind of danger you were in..."
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