"I was thinking of checking out the property, you know, before finalizing the deal and all. So, wanna go out with me?" I offered. "Maybe grab some dinner on the way?"

"As friends?" Jean narrowed her eyes. I'm pretty sure she was trying to read my mind, but I'm immune to mind reading. Hehe. She always complains about how she doesn't know what I'm thinking and how she feels lost during our conversation. It's fun to watch Jean like that. She always reads everyone's mind without their permission, now, she can't do that to me. It feels good.

"How about we call it a date today?" I asked while maintaining my composure.

"Okay," Jean smiled. "Sounds like fun. What time do you want to go?"

"Wait! 'Okay?!' I was expecting some kind of reaction from you. Like, oh my god, a real date? What took you so long? Or, I don't know... Something like that," I said while making a funny face.

"And let you make fun of me later?" Jean said as she stood up with a smirk.

"Yeah! Go on, give me a reaction or something! I'm waiting," I urged.

Jean laughed as she shook her head and started walking toward the door.

"Hey, I'm serious!" I called after her. "You're not gonna get away with this, Jean."

She paused and glanced back at me over her shoulder, her green eyes sparkling with amusement, "And what are you gonna do about it, Aron?"

"Well, maybe put a big bell pepper in your burger, for starters," I said with a straight face.

"Ouch." She raised an eyebrow, clearly enjoying the little banter. "That's just cruel."

I walked toward her, grinning. "You better watch your back, Miss Grey. I'm not gonna go easy on you."

Jean turned to face me fully, a challenging look in her eyes. "Bring it on, Aron. I dare you."

We stared at each other for a long moment, neither of us willing to back down. It was like a silent standoff, each of us trying to gauge the other's resolve.

"I really should stop spending time with Jubilee and Kitty," I said as I scratched the back of my head. Their habit of pranking people was starting to rub off on me.

Jean chuckled, "You know they will prank you forever if you leave the gang, right? They might go to your new house and annoy you. Stealing newspapers, pressing the doorbell and running away, and so on. Not to mention, Kitty can walk through walls. She might take some embarrassing pictures of you and spread them all over the academy. Humm... Now, that's a good idea. I might just put her up to this and get some nice pics of you." A teasing smirk appeared on her face.

"You wouldn't do that," I said, half-joking, half-serious.

"Try me," Jean replied with a mischievous grin.

"Fine," I sighed, raising my hands in defeat. "I give up. I'll never prank you again. Promise."

"Good choice." She patted me on the shoulder. "Now, about you close that recorder in your pocket?"

"Tsk." I was planning on recording her reaction and pranking her later. Damn it! How did she figure it out? Wait! I only told Jubilee about it... So, she must have read Jubilee's mind and got to know about my plan. Man! She is so smart. I closed the recorder.

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"Nice try, though," Jean patted my shoulder again before asking, "So, when are we going?"

"3 PM," I replied as she started walking away.

"See you at the gate."

With that, she left me alone in the canteen area with my thoughts. I couldn't help but smile as I watched her leave. Jean and I have been friends for a long time now, but this is the first time I asked her out on a date. Well, we have gone out a few times, but as I've already said, we never called it a date back then. So, I was kinda expecting a big reaction from her.

The thought brought me back to reality, and I realized that I was getting dragged into Jubilee and Kitty's pace and thinking like them. I'm not the kind of guy who plays pranks on people. Fuck! Who am I kidding? I pranked so many students and even teachers. Sigh! Never mind, let's focus on the date.

...

At 2:55 PM, I stood by the gate, nervously checking the time. I wasn't sure why I felt so jittery. It wasn't like this was our first time hanging out. But then again, this time, it was different. I kept adjusting my shirt, wondering if I should've gone with something a little more… I don't know, formal? Nah. Jean's seen me at my best and worst, so dressing up too much might come off as trying too hard.

"Relax, Aron. It's just Jean," I muttered to myself, leaning against the gate.

"Uumm... What are you doing?"

It's Jubilee. Oh, no, Jubilee, Kitty, and wait! Is that Rogue? I've only seen her a couple of times in a year. She often stays indoors, probably because of her powers. I haven't had the chance to talk to her much, maybe twice or thrice, that's it. Anyway, they are all here, and the three of them have their arms crossed as they look at me.

"You look nervous," Jubilee said as she walked out of the gate and took a quick look around before turning back to me.

"What makes you think that?" I asked, trying my best to sound normal.

"Aron, you look like a mess. And trust me, I've seen you at your worst. So, what's wrong?" she asked, studying me with those big brown eyes of hers.

No, you haven't. I was about to say that but stopped myself just in time. Jubilee has a habit of poking her nose into everything. I mean, literally everything. No secrets are safe from her, especially if it's juicy gossip. And what could be more juicy than this? Me, going on a date with the girl who is considered one of the most beautiful women at Xavier's school with a fan club, not to mention that Scott had also been after her for quite a while now. To make things worse, Jubilee had her suspicions for quite some time, keeping an eye on us for a perfect moment to jump and expose us.

"Nothing worth mentioning. By the way, why are you here again? You following me or something like that?" I asked her, trying to change the subject.

"You know that's exactly what we are doing, right?" Kitty replied, smirking. "Now spill it! We are not going to leave until you do."

Wait! I can't tell them that I'm going to check out my new house. If they learn about it then I can kiss goodbye to my peaceful life. Not to mention the fact that they don't even know that I'm moving out of the academy. Sigh! Should I just manipulate their mind and get them out of here? Or... Wait! What if I make a distraction and run? Nah! That won't work. They will figure it out soon and follow me. Sigh! Guess I have to use the most basic trick in the book...

"Say, girls, didn't you want that new imported chocolate? Tell you what, go away and leave me alone and I'll buy you all two boxes each," I said with a grin.

"Whoa! Seriously?" Jubilee's eyes sparkled as she looked at me in surprise. "I thought you were gonna use your usual tricks and run away."

Yeah, she fell for it. She is too simple.

"I'm not that kind of person." I scratched the back of my head, trying to look innocent. "So, how about it? Two boxes each and I'll buy you dinner on the weekend. Deal?"

"Deal!" All three replied in unison.

"Okay, but you can't tell anyone about this, alright?" I warned. "And don't follow me again."

"Alright!" The trio replied once again in unison.

"See ya!" Jubilee waved and walked away, followed by Rogue and Kitty.

Whew! That was close. I turned around and leaned against the gate. Although they are all adults, I don't know why they behave like that. It probably gotta do with their mutation or past. Well, at least they are out of my hair now.

Soon, Jean arrived, wearing a beautiful yellow dress and a white coat that complemented her fiery red hair. She smiled as she approached me.

"You look great," I complimented, smiling.

"Thanks," she replied with a faint blush on her cheeks. "You don't look so bad yourself."

"Come on, let's get out of here before those three come back," I said as I offered her my arm.

"Who?" Jean asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Jubilee, Kitty, and Rogue," I replied as we started walking toward the gate.

"Oh? Did something happen?" She asked as we passed through the gate and headed toward the main road.

"Let's just say that I made a deal with them." I scratched the back of my head with a wry smile.

Jean nodded, "I see. Well, I guess I don't need to know the details."

"Yeah," I replied before changing the subject.