During the hours after what Rogue had come to think of as “the pool incident,” she bent her mind toward the task of figuring out what was going on in Logan's head. At times she thought it was a shame that she couldn't just take the easy way out and touch him with her power. Of course, that would having damaging repercussions both for him and for her place on the team, so she resisted the urge, even when so much bare skin was presented during combat practice and she might have been able to get away with it as an "accident."
Of course, Rogue knew that it wasn't a good idea to let Logan know that she was observing him. Nothing was worse than making the predator think he had become prey. Instead, she started slow and simple with dinner that evening. She and the other younger members of the team had begun to sit with the original members whenever they were around for dinner at the Professor's suggestion. So far Rogue had only been around for one dinner. She'd been spending so much time out that it was quicker and easier to grab a bite wherever she was. At the time she hadn't been paying much attention to Logan, to be honest. She was too preoccupied with her own activities to notice if there were any changes in the social dynamics around the mansion besides the obvious ones with the graduates.
Rogue timed her entry to dinner so that she was the last one at the X-table, as the students called it, to arrive. She made a point of not looking at anyone in particular as she got food and then headed for the table. To her surprise, she saw as she approached that while the usual arrangement of the Professor on one end with Scott beside him and Jean beside Scott had not changed, for some reason Storm was sitting next to Jean, with Logan on her other side. Bobby, Kitty, Jubilee and John were ranged on the other side of the table. Beside John and beside Logan there was an empty seat. Rogue bit her lip as she tried to decide which one to take.
She made her decision when Logan looked up at her and smiled. It wasn't his normal smile, but she was too disconcerted by the changed seating arrangements between Storm and Logan that she couldn't quite place what was different. Erring on the side of caution, Rogue placed her tray next to John and sat down quickly. She held Logan's eyes the entire time, but then she glanced down the table at her friends and smiled, mostly to escape the flare of—something—that she saw in his eyes.
“Rogue!” Jubilee said, leaning around John. “So no hot date tonight, huh?” she whispered loudly, giving her friend a grin.
Rogue shook her head. “No. I decided I need a quiet day and a quiet night. You know, slow down the pace a little. I feel like I'm being run ragged!” she said, rolling her eyes. “There's combat practice in the afternoons now, too, so I might be staying home more often just to recover!” she joked.
“Whatever, chica. I'm sure it'll be fine once we get used to the pace. After all, wouldn't Bryan miss you?” teased Jubilee.
“Yeah, Rogue, speaking of Bryan, what's up with that?” Kitty asked, also leaning forward. Of course, she'd given her friends the play by play after each encounter with Bryan, much to their delight, but they couldn't help but poke her a little about it in front of the others. They knew most of the guys at the mansion were disappointed that Rogue had looked a little farther afield for companionship.
Rogue shrugged, feigning complete and total interest in her steamed carrots. “Just some dates, Kitty. You know.” She shot her friend a warning looking and quickly looked back down.
John sighed. “Do you girls really have to have this conversation with me in the middle? Can't you wait until you get back to your room?” he asked.
Jubilee smacked the back of his head lightly. “Earth to John. We moved out of that room last week. We have our own rooms now,” she said smugly, knowing what was coming next.
“Your own rooms? Why do Bobby and I have to share a room?” John asked. Rogue glanced up to see that he was glaring across the table at the older men and women.
“Because there are only two of you, not three, and a few rooms opened up. Now we can put three younger girls in the old one, some that will be coming in the fall. So eat and don't complain,” Ororo replied, pointing at his plate.
Rogue couldn't help the small smirk from lifting up the corners of her lips. It was just too great that the guys hadn't even realized what had happened. She had been wondering when they would, or if they would have to have it pointed out for them. Looked like it was option two. As Rogue started to turn back to her own food, Logan's gaze somehow caught and held hers, despite the fact that she'd been trying to avoid just that. There was something...different about the way he was looking at her. Rogue stopped the shiver that wanted to run down her spine and gave renewed interest to the damn carrots. Too bad she could barely taste them. She actually liked carrots!
Rogue tried to tune out the dinner conversation after that. She let her thoughts wander as she attempted to keep an eye on the action across the table, or rather the lack of action, while avoiding eye contact. It puzzled her to see that Logan barely glanced at Jean, even when she was speaking. Even more surprising was the realization that every time she allowed her gaze to drift to Logan, he appeared to be watching her with that odd gleam in his eyes that made her stomach clench. She would look away, then rinse and repeat. By the end of the meal, Rogue's nerves were fried.
“Anyone up for cards?” asked John when it looked like most of them were finished eating.
For some reason Rogue balked at the idea. Another hour or two spent with Logan staring at her? That did not seem like a good idea in her current frame of mind. However, as the others started to enthusiastically take up the idea, she found that her mouth must not have been communicating with her brain. When Jubilee noticed that she was the last one still seated and asked if she was coming, she replied, “Sure, Jubes. I guess I just got too much sun today or something 'cause my head was totally in the clouds. I'll catch up in a minute.”
Rogue pretended complete attention to the last few bites of chicken left on her plate, hoping no one would question her sudden devotion to her food. They wandered off, leaving her to a few minutes of relative solitude. Even Professor Xavier had gone off, granted in a different direction. The remaining food on her plate disappeared far too quickly, it seemed. She forced herself to rise, drop off her tray and leave the dining room. Once in the hall she started towards the study where the occasional card games were usually held.
Rogue practically jumped out of her skin when Logan suddenly appeared beside her. “Dammit, Logan!” she cried, hand to her heart. “Walk louder or something, why don't you?”
Logan just smiled and kept pace with her. Rogue couldn't help wondering if he had been waiting for her. Then she silently scolded herself for being silly. He'd probably just needed to use the restroom or something completely normal like that. Keeping her eyes straight forward and telling herself that the air conditioning was the reason she was getting goosebumps, Rogue forced herself to enter the study moments before Logan.
And if Logan hadn't been right behind her, she just might have turned on her heel and run as fast as her feet would take her up the stairs and to the safety of her room. There were only two chairs left at the round table where everyone was setting up. These two chairs just happened, of course, to be right beside each other. It was going to be a crowded table, too. Rogue stopped the whimper that wanted to break free from her throat and marched resolutely to one chair, plopping down gracelessly and resisting the urge to cross her arms. Wasn't this going to just be loads of fun? The only good thing that Rogue could think of was that she wasn't going to have to meet Logan's gaze this way at all.
Bad news number one? Jean was seated directly across from Logan. Rogue tried to convince herself that this would just give her more opportunities to watch the two of them together, to see if her suspicions were self-delusions. Bad news number two came to light when Logan took his seat and made himself comfortable. That would have been just fine, of course, except that his knee and calf were pressed against hers. The feel of the denim pressing against her skin shouldn't have been unusual. How long had she been wearing pants again? That didn't matter. For some reason this particular denim, warm from Logan's skin, made her feel like her leg was on fire. Why couldn't the man be decent, like Jubilee on her other side, and keep his legs to himself? In defiance Rogue refused to move her own leg. Or at least, that's why she told herself she wasn't moving.
That might have been the worst poker game Rogue ever played. She honestly didn't remember much of it, and she ended up folding with every hand and desperately watching the others. She zeroed in on Kitty and Bobby, who were practically in each other's laps. When had that happened? Speculating on the exact timing of their realization that it wouldn't be such a bad idea to date each other was almost enough to keep Rogue's mind off of the man sitting next to her. Almost. She was able to take some comfort in the fact that it appeared at times that Jean was trying to catch Logan's eye, and from her annoyed frown it wasn't working as often as she might have liked. Although why Rogue was taking any comfort from that...she really wasn't going to think about it. Didn't it just add to this strange mystery?
Finally the last hand was called. Rogue sat through the play quietly, having folded without really looking at her cards. Then she helped clean up chips and cards, anything to keep her hands busy and her mind off that leg still pressed against hers. Finally she felt that it was safe to stand. Thankfully, Jubilee had the same notion, and she threw an arm around her friend's shoulders as they were headed out, thus inadvertantly blocking any more attempts from Logan--not that there would be any, of course.
“Poor Rogue. You sucked today. You really sucked. I know you can play better than that. What's wrong?” she asked as they made their way up the stairs.
At the top Rogue indulged herself just long enough to let her head drop to Jubilee's shoulder for a moment. “I'm fine, really,” she said, straightening and pulling away gently. “I guess that sun really was hotter than I thought. I'll just go take a warm shower and go to bed.”
Jubilee searched her face for a minute then nodded. “Don't forget that tomorrow's Friday, and Saturday there's that concert you said you wanted to go to. I'd hate it if you missed it 'cause you gave yourself sunstroke, Roguey, and you know you'd hate yourself, too!”
Rogue smiled and assured her friend that she would be fine as they parted ways at Jubilee's door. A five more doors down was Rogue's new room. She entered gratefully and shut out the world firmly. Then she headed straight to her phone and dialed a number.
“Bryan? I was wondering if you have plans for tomorrow night, say around 8:30?” For the first time she didn't smile when he said he was free. She was way too tense for that.
Rogue didn't hear the footsteps stopping outside her door as she made her call. She didn't see the clenched fists or the determined light in Logan's eyes as he tried to glare the door into splinters before turning and going to his own room just down the hall.
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Author's Chapter Notes:
More confusion for Rogue. How will she react?
Chapter End Notes:
So next I get to make things up to Wendie, and then Rogue has some explaining, fast talking, and then anger to get to. ;-) Hope that was cryptic enough!