I knew it was stupid the moment I did it. No, wait -- 'stupid' isn't the right word. I mean, I tried to freeze Wolverine's hand. 'Indescribably ignorant' wouldn't even begin to cover it.
I don't even know what came over me. I've never been an aggressive sort of person, and God knows I've never even considered deliberately using my mutation against someone before. I was just so frustrated, so irritated and okay, yes -- so jealous.
Before he showed up, Rogue and I were sitting on the couch in the common room. And not only was she sitting closer to me than she ever had before, she was beginning to lean even closer. She didn't even seem to mind that I had my arm stretched out along the back of the couch behind her shoulders.
We were thumb wrestling. And yeah, I know that doesn't sound very exciting. When your girlfriend has toxic skin, though, it's a different situation, a different standard. At a certain point, just about any form of touching seems hot.
The thumb war went a few rounds, but I don't remember who won what and it didn't matter anyway. It was really just an excuse to hold her hand. After a minute or two, we didn't even bother with the pretense.
There were other kids in the room. Some were watching tv, some were playing cards or doing homework, but it was like Rogue and I were in a bubble of some kind, just the two of us. She stared up at me with those big, beautiful brown eyes, and I couldn't look away.
All I could think about was how good she smelled. Like brown sugar, with just the slightest hint of cinnamon. Sweet and a little spicy, like Rogue herself. I was dying to know if she tasted the same.
Her lips parted then and before I could even think, I was leaning toward her. She backed off at the last moment, said she didn't want to hurt me.
I started to say something but I was cut off by the unmistakable sound of a motorcycle pulling up outside. Rogue turned away, following the rumble until it stopped out front, and then she turned back to me with the brightest smile imaginable. The sight was almost like a punch to the gut.
She's never smiled that way because of me. It was like a bright light turned on inside her, making her glow, and that was all his doing. Just by showing up.
"Logan's back!"
Barely able to contain her excitement, she bounced off the couch and practically ran out of the common room and into the main foyer. I followed, but I walked like a regular person, and not like a kid on Christmas morning.
I was just in time to see her walk right up to Logan and hug him.
Rogue. Hugged him. The girl who shied away from anything even remotely approaching physical contact. She turned her head so that her face wouldn't come close to touching his, but otherwise she didn't seem the least bit frightened. And neither did he.
She stepped back after a moment and then he joked around with her, asked if she'd missed him. Rogue shook her head and lied. "Nah," she said, and if it was possible, he smirked a little more.
He noticed me walking up beside her. "Who's this?"
"Oh, this is Bobby. He's my --"
I finished the sentence for her. "Boyfriend," I told him, and he looked at Marie, clearly amused.
After that, it's all kind of a blur. All I know is, when I reached out to shake his hand, I was thinking about the way my girlfriend's eyes sparkled whenever she talked about this man. I was thinking about the rumors that said she slept with his dog tags wrapped around her wrist.
But mostly, I was thinking about the way his eyes had slid over her body the second before she'd leaned up to wrap her arms around his neck, and that it was obvious he liked what he saw.
His grip was firm and I had a sudden, inexplicably fierce need to make him let go first. I've never felt an urge like that before, and I hope I never feel it again. Later, Rogue said she understood that I'd lost control, that I hadn't meant to, and that she'd make sure to tell Logan.
The thing is, I hadn't lost it. If I had, not only would I have frozen Logan's hand, I would have frozen the rest of Logan, coated the entire room with several layers of thick ice and Rogue herself would have ended up with a nasty case of frost bite.
No, I was in complete control when I froze his hand.
He looked from Rogue to our joined hands and frosted-over grip. And I have to admit, I felt like a total bad ass. For about two whole seconds.
Then he looked at me. And smiled.
I swear to God, the hair on the back of my neck rose.
He shook free of my hand then, rather easily. "Boyfriend?" he asked, and there was a glint in his eye I didn't quite get. Partially amused, partially challenging. "So how do you guys . . .
If I had a tail? Tucked firmly between my legs. Like I said, it was stupid. Indescribably ignorant. Foolish. Misguided.
The list goes on and on.
end
The Wolverine & Rogue Fanfiction Archive
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Story Notes:
Written for the Remix...Redux challenge (http://remix.illuminatedtext.com/index.php). Original story: Displays of Dominance by Diebin.