There she goes
There she goes again
Chasing down my lane
And I just can't contain
This feeling that remains...
(The La’s ~ There She Goes)

Logan hates these bars. They are too crowded, too noisy, too many teenagers. And isn’t it just his luck that he picked a Friday night.

He sits at the bar, trying to ignore the loud, thumping music that threatens to split his skull, and nurses his third beer that evening. He was approached by some folks that called themselves the ‘X-Men’ earlier that day, and if only he was able to, he’d get royally drunk just to get over the junk they kept spouting off. And if he was honest with himself – he has nothing better to do.

Surrounded by dozens of noisy, tipsy teenagers, he focuses his attention on the bar. The beer isn’t strong enough, never is, but he keeps drinking, just to be doing something. And just as he is about to order his fourth bottle, someone bumps into him from behind.

Growling in annoyance, he casts a glance over his shoulder – and freezes.

Looking behind him, he meets with dark brown eyes, eyes he knows immediately he will drown in if he doesn’t tear his gaze away. Eyes that tie a man down.

“Oh, sorry, mister. She’s not really with us right now.”

Her voice is soft, with a strong southern lilt to it that sends shivers down his spine. Her face, pale with a mouth made for kissing, is framed by dark hair, silken strands that would feel heavenly wrapped around his fingers.

Then he realises she is young. Very young. 20, at best. 18, more likely. His body doesn’t care, though, and he only barely resists the urge to take her right there.

She is holding on to another girl’s arm, probably the one who bumped into him. That one looks pretty drunk, a brown-haired slip of a girl. There’s a third one, Eurasian, dressed in too much yellow and with a definite tipsy flush to her cheeks.

“No problem.” His voice is rougher than he’d like, and he just can’t tear his eyes away from her.

They move drunk girl away, and as the Eurasian leads the way, his dark-eyed beauty looks over her shoulder, smiling at him a little, and his jeans are too tight for comfort all of a sudden.

He watches as they sit in a booth at the other end of the room, and if he strains his ears a little, he can hear the Eurasian’s voice over the music.

“Rogue, you so did not flirt with caveman guy over there!”

Rogue. That’s her name. A strange name, but he has to admit it suits her, somehow. She smiles calmly, sipping her drink through a straw. “Course I didn’t.”

“What was all that smiling about, then?” The drunk one.

“Yeah. You never smile at strangers.”

“Oh, come on, Jubilee. That’s not true. I smile at people all the time.”

“But not like *that*. Isn’t that true, Kitty?”

“Definitely.”

“Rogue, that was your ‘I’m gonna jump your bones first chance I get’ smile!”

He can almost feel her heat through the room as she blushes, waving her arms around with a shocked expression on her face. “Excuse me! Ah do not have such a smile!” She pouts. “And if ah did, ah sure wouldn’t smile it at random people.” Her accent thickens, and Logan knows exactly how she’d sound, purring his name...

Jubilee laughs. “Sure do and sure did on tall, dark and hairy over there.”

Now he feels heat rise to his own head, and he swiftly turns away. He hears Rogue scoff, and downs his beer in one fluid motion.

She yelps, and he looks over his shoulder again to see if there is trouble. But she’s just staring at her watch, incredulous. “Shit! We’re so busted, Cyclops is going to have my head! We were supposed to be home two frickin’ hours ago!”

His ears perk up at the name. Cyclops? Wasn’t that the one-eyed boy scout leading the X-geeks?

He watches them leave in a flurry, and his heart actually skips a beat when she turns her head at the door, looks at him, and smiles a little. Then she’s gone, and Logan turns back to his beer.

Now, where did he put that contact number?

My will is stronger than most
I will not let you get close
Until I think that you deserve me
Cause that's a no go...
(Limp Bizkit ~ The Only One)


He arrives at the mansion the next day, and my, isn’t this a fancy place. He wonders for a fleeting second what he’s doing here but then he catches a trace of her scent and doesn’t mind not fitting in anymore.

Summers picks him up at the front door and takes him to Xavier’s office, and after much explaining about ‘the cause’ and what the school is, Logan nods and accepts the offer to join the team. They seem a little surprised, but then everyone’s smiling and Summers actually has the nerve to clap him on the back.

"Just don’t expect me to hug ya." Logan shoulders his duffel bag, and Summers grins that toothpaste-grin that makes Logan want to bash his teeth in.

Storm shows him his room and tells him that lunch is ready at 1pm, maybe he’d like to be there? He just nods, and when she’s left he flops down on the bed and stares at the ceiling.

He wonders if now, finally, he’s lost it. Fighting the good fight with a couple of preppy do-gooders, all just so he can be close to *her*? He must have lost it. Because any other explanation would involve words like 'love at first sight' and 'soul mate', and boy doesn’t he want to go there.

Lunch hour comes, and he pulls himself together just enough to go down to the rec room where Storm picks him up and takes him to lunch with her. He finds the scent he’s been looking for in the hallway, and realises that she’ll be at lunch, too.

He steps through the door and finds her within seconds. She sits with her friends, Jubilee and Kitty, and two boys, one that is sitting much too close to her, pale and frail looking, the other incessantly playing with a lighter.

She looks up and their eyes meet. She pales a little, then her brow furrows, and then she gapes at him. Jubilee turns around to see what her friend is grimacing at, and when she sees him she starts shrieking, something that sounds suspiciously like ‘stalker’ and when he tries to take a step back he finds that his feet are frozen to the damn floor, and so he lands flat on his ass.

Jean fights her way over to him through the commotion, and suddenly everyone is quiet. Rogue is staring at him, still in her chair, the pale kid’s hand on her shoulder. His other is glistening with a fine layer of ice, and Logan makes a mental note to kick the little shit’s ass first chance he gets.

"What is going on here? Bobby, why did you attack Logan?"

Jubilee points an accusing finger at him as he struggles to break free of the ice still coating his feet. "He followed us, Dr. Grey! We met him at a bar yesterday, and he must’ve followed us."

Jean actually chuckles at that, then waves her manicured hand over his feet, and the ice cracks enough for him to move his feet. Smiling, she lays a calming hand on Jubilee’s shoulder. "He’s been invited by Professor X. He’s joining the team."

Rogue raises an eyebrow at that, and Logan gives her a crooked grin. She looks away, and he’s sure she’s blushing a little. The ice kid glares at him.

The kids return to their food, and Jean helps him up. "You okay?"

"Yeah." He nods to Bobby. "What got into him?"

Jean smiles a little. "Bobby Drake, also known as Iceman. He’s very protective of Rogue.” She shoots him a look. “So you met them already?"

"Pure chance. They were... partying, and we bumped into each other."

Jean looks at him like she knows what really happened, and hell, she probably does. But he just nods at her and strolls over to the food counter. His stomach is actually rumbling, and he’s never one to turn down free food.

Just as he starts piling up vegetables next to his steak, she appears by his side, not bothering with a cover like getting seconds. She just looks up at him, questioningly. "Why’d you agree to join the team?"

He sends her a sideways look, not letting on how much her presence affects him. "You heard I refused first time around?"

She nods. "I’m on the team. They told me."

"Because of you." Might as well tell her the truth.

She looks surprised, then she smiles. "That so?"

"Yeah." He lowers his voice, and he knows she can feel it reverberating in her bones. "I kept wondering what you’d look like in that little leather outfit they hand out around here."

She swallows, hard, and forces her eyes away, and he smirks. "I... I guess I’ll see you in the Danger Room, then."

She turns and walks away, and he looks after her, puzzled. "What the hell is a Danger Room?"

You made me feel alright for once in my life
Now all that’s left of me
Is what I pretend to be
So together but so broken up inside
(Kelly Clarkson ~ Behind These Hazel Eyes)

He knew that he’d be no match for Magneto, and he still tried to protect her from him. But for once his metal skeleton did nothing to help him, quite the contrary, really. Only that had enabled Magneto to blast him into the back of that train wagon when they had tried to get Layla out of there. No one knew what Magneto wanted with her, and wasn’t it ironic that it wasn’t Layla he wanted at all.

Now he stands there in the head of the Statue of Liberty, listening to her screams. He doesn’t know what he wants to do first – kill Magneto for doing this to her or kill himself for letting this happen.

“Gotta get her out of there. Cyclops, can you hit it?”

Scott takes aim, then shakes his head. “The ring’s moving too fast.”

Anger, fear seizes him. “Just shoot it!”

“I’ll kill her!”

And then, somehow, Jean and Storm manage to get him up to the ring. Rogue is beneath him, so close he can smell her tears. She’s not moving... Frantic, he pulls off his glove and gently puts his hand on her cheek, waiting for the pain to set in as her powers start draining him.

But nothing happens.

Come on, kid. Come on!

And just when he’s about to give up, that pain shoots through him, white-hot pain that eradicates everything and leaves him with only one thought: You’ll live.

And as he slips into merciful unconsciousness, he hears her gasp and feels how she struggles out of his embrace, hears her whisper, “God, Logan, no!” and he almost smiles, before darkness envelopes him.

I can't get rid of you
I don't know what to do
I don't even know who is growing on who
'Cos everywhere I go you're there
Can't get you out of my hair
Can't pretend that I don't care - it's not fair
(The Darkness ~ Growing On Me)

His head is pounding, a feeling he isn’t too familiar with. The room he is in smells of anti-septic, and the bright light creeps through his closed eyelids, sending sharp pains through his brain.

Then he notices movement to his side, and his hand shoots out, catching somebody’s arm. His nose twitches, and he relaxes. Rogue. God, she’s alive.

“Hey.”

“Hey yourself.” Her voice is soft, so low that only he can hear her.

“Whatcha doin’ here?”

“I... I wanted to be here, when you woke up. I wanted to see if... you’d be okay.” She sniffles a little and turns away quickly.

He smiles a little. “That worried about me, huh?”

She wipes at her eyes angrily, then glares at him. “You big moron! You could’ve died!”

“You would’ve.”

She sniffles again, remaining silent. Then, “I know.” Smiles at him, and his heart aches at the thought that he won’t be able to touch her without landing in the med lab. “Thank you.” She leans down, and he actually holds his breath as she places the shadow of a kiss on his brow. Not out of fright. Amazement.

As she moves back he grins lopsidedly. “This mean I might have a chance?”

She laughs. “Keep tryin’, big guy.” Then, with a soft smile. “’sides, might turn out to be a good match. After all, I now know all your little secrets.. and preferences.” And with a soft tap to his temple, she turns around and leaves the med lab, leaving him in stunned silence.

The END