This research was biting my ass.
I blew out a breath and pushed the papers away from me, my eyes red, burning and everything else a Visine commercial promised it could fix.
Hank lifted his head up and smiled at me, a baring of fangs that would be threatening if I didn't know him so well, and if he didn't look quite so damn much like the Cookie Monster.
"It's just not coming together, is it," he said in that terribly calm way he had of speaking.
"We have the research, we've done the damn research to *death*, but it just won't work." I was as frustrated as I could remember being, and if the subject matter hadn't hit so close to home, maybe it wouldn't have bothered me that much, but it was, and it did.
I pushed my chair away from the kitchen table, and got up in search of caffeine, which was about the only thing that could save this evening. I grabbed my mug and his and went over to the gleaming state-of-the-art Williams Sonoma coffee maker Charles insisted we have. Before I could pour, the back door banged open and Rogue staggered in, clutching the belt of a man that could only be described as a biker.
"Hey Jean," she greeted as she towed him past us. "Hank."
"Good evening, Rogue," Hank said nonchalantly, as if there wasn't a large tattooed man in our kitchen trying to get to second base with one of our teammates right in front of us.
"Later," she said, and continued on her way out of the kitchen, Tattoo Guy waving drunkenly at us as he passed by.
Silence once again reigned in the kitchen, before Hank ventured, "She does, ah, have a rather...active social life, doesn't she?"
I snickered and set the newly refilled mug down in front of him. "That was very politely put."
"Yes, well, I don't believe I've seen her with the same, ah, companion twice. In fact, the more that I think about it, the only one with as active a social life is Logan."
Almost on cue, a blonde with truly enormous breasts bounced into the kitchen. I was amazed that she didn't knock herself out with those implants. "Ummmm, I think I'm lost," she said in a syrupy-sweet voice.
I resisted the urge to vomit. "Who *are* you?" I enquired.
"Oh, hahaha, my name is Candi. With an I. Candi with an I."
Of course. "I see. Candi, what I meant was, why are you *here*?"
"Oh, I met this guy--"
"--Logan?" Jesus Christ, Logan and these damn blondes! If he could keep it in his pants, we wouldn't have these problems!
"I don't really know his name..."
"Great ass, weird hair?"
"Yeah, him. Anyway, I just turned around for a second and lost him."
"Jean, perhaps you should call Logan to retrieve his friend, yes?"
At the sound of Hank's voice, Candi turned and let out a shriek loud enough to wake the dead. "OHMYGOD, IT'S A MONSTER!!!!!"
Hank blanched, and I barely resisted the urge to slap the hell out of her. "Listen you, I don't--"
"Oh, hey, there you are." Logan sauntered in, a vaguely embarrassed look on his face.
I don't think I've ever been so glad to see him in my life. "Logan, your...friend...appears to be uncomfortable around mutants. Perhaps you should visit with her somewhere else."
[Get her mutant hating ass out of this house right now, Logan. I won't have her make Hank feel any worse than she already has.]
[Shit, Jeannie, I didn't--]
[--I don't care. Get rid of her.]
Logan grabbed her by the arm. "C'mon, I know someplace we can go."
She stared at Hank the entire way out of the kitchen, and it made me sick to my stomach.
Hank looked up at me, pain rolling off of him in waves. "Oh, Hank, I'm sorry about that."
"It's not your fault, Jean. Although, I must say, I like Rogue's choice in companions far more than Logan's."
I rested my hand on his arm as I sat back down. We sat in silence for a few moments as I searched desperately for something to say to take his mind off of Candi and her ignorance. I took a sip of coffee to stall, and then it came to me. I could tell Hank the story he had missed by working in DC last year.
"Their social lives are directly proportionate to each other, if you'll notice."
Hank's eyes widened. "Is it some kind of competition?"
"Not like you mean. It's more like rubbing salt in an open wound."
He leaned forward in his chair, intrigued. "Do tell."
"Well, when Logan came back from finding himself, or whatever, Rogue was waiting for him. No one else thought that he'd be back, but she just *knew*. They were bonded, the two of them, in a way that I've never seen in another person. And so he settled back into life here, and that was that. Except what he didn't realize or didn't want to deal with was that Rogue was carrying quite the torch for him."
"As a result of him saving her?"
"We all thought so at first, but crushes fade, and her feelings for him never have, at least not that I can see. He loves her, no question, but I don't think it has occurred to him that he might be *in love* with her as well. Which is why it happened."
My mind went back to that night, the night that started all this one-upmanship and revolving beds.
***
It was the giggling that first clued me in that something was going on. I was headed back to my room when I saw Logan in front of me, his arms around a blonde in a really short skirt. She was giggling, and he was walking her up the stairs carefully, as if she had been drinking.
Carefully, in case she was telepathically sensitive, I brushed against her mind with my own and realized that she wasn't even another mutant, just some random local that Logan had found at a bar.
I rolled my eyes, and followed them up the stairs. He was such a *guy* sometimes.
As I reached the landing, I saw a train wreck unfolding before me. Rogue was walking towards us, eyes glued to Logan and his 'friend'.
Logan looked up, saw her, and grinned. "Hey, kid." The blonde giggled some more, and echoed him in her high pitched voice.
Salutation delivered, he continued on his way, not seeing the way Rogue flinched and paled. But I did, and rushed towards her as her eyes filled up with tears.
She looked up at me, her big brown eyes glassy. "Jean..." she pleaded, lip beginning to quiver.
I grabbed her by the hand and led her to the room I shared with Scott, which was down at the other end of the hall from both Logan's room and hers.
I opened my door, flipped on the light, and dragged her inside, kicking the door shut behind us. She was gulping air, shoulders shaking with the force of keeping her tears inside.
"Let it out," I soothed, running my hands over her hair.
She shook her head. "He'll hear," she whispered painfully.
Shit. I hadn't even considered Logan's acute senses. I thought for a minute, then dragged her further into my suite, into the bathroom where I turned the shower on full blast, closed the door, and faced her.
"He can't hear now," I said.
The second the words came out of my mouth, her face crumpled and sobs like I had rarely ever heard tore out of her chest. "J-J-Jean," she whimpered pathetically, "I can't...he doesn't..."
She lurched forward, and I wrapped my arms around her small form, resting my cheek on the top of her head. She pressed her face into my shoulder and I could feel her tears soaking through my shirt. I ran my hands up and down her back, feeling her shaking from an anguish that was so strong it made my eyes tear up in sympathy.
She looked so tiny and frail in her pain, so much like the girl she once was instead of the woman I knew her to be.
After a while, her sobs lessened and I turned off the water.
"Come on," I said gently, leading her out of the bathroom towards the couch. "You need some sleep."
Numbly, she sank into the cushions of the ancient couch Scott refused to let me throw out for 'sentimental reasons'.
I wrapped a blanket around her. "Lay down. I'm going to run back down to my office to get you something to help you rest."
*
When I got back from my dash downstairs, Scott was sitting on the couch, holding Rogue, still wrapped in the blanket, on his lap as she cried softly into his shoulder.
Our eyes met over her head.
[I brought something to make her rest,] I said mentally, raising the bottle and the syringe I held in my hands.
[Good,] he replied, [She's going to need it. I've never seen her cry, Jean. Not even once. What happened?]
I let images of the last hour flood his mind, and watched as his jaw tightened in anger. [Fucking bastard,] he snarled. [I should have cut him in half a long time ago.]
[It's like he refuses to see what's right in front of him.]
[I'm going to go in there and--]
[--And what? Tell him he can't have sex in the privacy of his own bedroom?]
Rogue sniffled and raised her head. "Talk out loud, guys."
I smiled at that. "Sorry."
She wriggled an arm out of her blanket cocoon, extending it towards me. I drew the sedative out of the bottle, then gave it to my husband, holding the syringe between my teeth as I rolled up her sleeve. I had gloved up before I left my office, so as not to call attention to her skin.
I knew from experience that she had crappy veins, so I tightened the cuff of her shirt just above her elbow and slapped her skin, looking for a vein that I could use. After a few seconds of poking, I found one that would work and injected the sedative. After I finished, I rolled her sleeve back down. "All set."
She shifted herself out of Scott's lap and streched out on the couch, lifting her legs for a moment so he could get up. "Thanks, guys."
Scott leaned down and kissed the top of her head. "Don't mention it."
She closed her eyes, and I could tell the sedative was kicking in because her face relaxed for the first time all night.
[It works fast, she's already on her way out.]
[What are we going to do? She's not going to wake up tomorrow and be fine.]
[You could shoot Logan, tie him up, weight him down, and drop him into the lake.]
[Have I mentioned that I love it when you're bloodthirsty?]
[You may have pointed it out a time or two.]
He enveloped me in his arms, and I nestled into his embrace. After feeling Rogue's torment buffet me, I needed this, needed the security of what we felt for each other.
[You okay?]
[I will be.]
Just then, there was a quick knock at the door, and Ororo stuck her head in. "Jean, I need you to bandage something for me..." She trailed off as she saw Rogue asleep on the couch.
She walked in to stand next to me. "What happened?"
When I told her, her eyes glazed over and I could hear the drumming of sudden rain on the windows. Thunder crashed before she got a hold of herself and the weather calmed down.
"He's an ass," she muttered derisively.
"A horse's ass," I concurred.
"That's an insult to horses everywhere," Scott said, shaking his head.
The three of us stood there for a while, watching over her. We saw her breath hitch slightly every time she inhaled, and the sound of that caused my eyes to tear up again. Rogue had been a tough nut to crack, but once she realized that she could trust us, she had let us in. In a lot of ways, she had become the younger sister Scott, 'Ro and I never had, and it hurt to see her suffer.
'Ro ran her hand gently over Rogue's head, closing her eyes and murmuring something in a language I didn't recognize.
It was then that I noticed 'Ro's bloody knuckles. "What happened?"
She looked down, having forgotten the reason she came in the first place. "Oh, my hand."
"Did you get into trouble with the Professor's talk tonight? Did you go alone?" Scott's face went into instant leader-mode, and I remembered that 'Ro was scheduled for bodyguard duty tonight at a talk Charles was supposed to give.
'Ro shook her head. "No, I took Fire and Ice with me," she said, referring to our affectionate nicknames for Johnny and Bobby. "The talk was fine, nothing to worry about, but I caught my hand getting the wheelchair up the damn ramp."
"Come on, let's go fix that mess."
*
The next morning, when I woke up, Rogue was gone.
The blanket was folded neatly and placed on the couch, the pillow on top of it. I did a quick scan of the area and her mental signature was no where to be found.
I nudged Scott awake. "Rogue's gone."
"What do you mean, gone? Gone from the room, the mansion, the state?" His hair stuck up and his goggles were a little crooked on his face.
I straightened them for him. "Gone from the mansion at least. We'll have to wake Charles up to find out about the state."
"Damn it," he swore. "I was afraid something like this was going to happen."
In that, Logan and Rogue were exactly alike. Both of them ran when we least wanted them to.
*
Charles' early morning session with Cerebro produced nothing.
"She's blocking me," he informed us as he removed the helmet. "She's shut down tighter than I can ever remember her being. She's been practicing. She doesn't want to be found, at least not right now. I can't say as I blame her. She's an adult, she'll be fine until she decides to come back home."
"What if she doesn't come back?" Scott asked.
"She'll come back. This is her home," I said with a confidence I did not feel.
*
Later in the day, I tried to grab a quick lunch before my next class, but Logan caught me before I made it out the door.
"Hey Jeannie, have you seen Rogue?" he asked, confusion on his face.
For a moment, I seriously considered using my telekinesis to ram a sharp object into his groin, but decided against it as it would only heal immediately.
That was no fun. I wanted him to suffer.
I shrugged. "Nope."
"Well, is she in the building?"
"What do I look like, hall monitor?"
My sarcasm caught him off guard, and he gaped at me. "Uh, Jeannie, can't you do your mind thing and find her?"
With an exaggerated sigh, I closed my eyes for a second. "Nope. No Rogue," I announced, and left the cafeteria.
He didn't follow.
I heard later that he questioned everyone else, with the exception of 'Ro, mainly because she was better at avoiding him, what with the whole flying thing and all.
Most people legitimately knew nothing of Rogue's whereabouts, and those of us who did were staying quiet on the topic.
She was gone for a month.
*
When she came back, she wasn't alone.
Her loud moans of "Yes, Steve, yes, oh God, yes, right there" clued us all in simultaneously, including Logan. He did not react well to the idea of Rogue having sex with this Steve person, whoever he was, and decided to break it up.
Another world war could have nothing on the fight that ensued.
I admit to eavesdropping in the hall with Scott and 'Ro. Jubilee and Kitty, along with Bobby, Johnny and Peter, were behind us. We should have been ashamed of ourselves, but there was no way we were going to miss what was going on in that bedroom.
"What the fuck is going on here!" Logan's bellow could surely be heard outside.
"Logan!" Rogue shrieked, "What the fuck are you doing in here?!?"
"I heard you screamin' like a five dollar hooker!"
Johnny winced. "Goddamn."
"FUCK YOU, LOGAN!"
We heard a strangled scream.
"Logan, put him down. NOW!!!!"
"Whoa, man, I didn't know she was married!!"
"We're not married!" They both shouted that one.
"Uh, okay."
"Get the fuck out of here and never come back here, do you hear me? The next time I see you, you get a taste of these." The metallic snikt of Logan's claws extending echoed in the room, followed by Steve's screech.
"Holy shit!"
The door opened and he ran past us, clearly looking for an exit. Logan must have really frightened him, because he didn't even stop to put on his pants.
"Down the stairs and to the right," Kitty said helpfully.
Steve took off.
"Nice ass," Jubes noted.
Bobby rolled his eyes at her.
"God damn you, Logan, what the hell do you think you're doin'?"
"What am I doin'? What are you doin'? You disappear for months for no reason and without telling me, and then come back with a fuck buddy?"
Rogue was silent for too long, and almost as one, we all took a few steps back from the door. That was wise in hindsight, because seconds later, Logan came flying *through* the door courtesy of Rogue's super strength. He kept going, right through his own door, which happened to be across the hall from Rogue's.
He landed in his bed, the wood frame splintering with the impact. He probably had a concussion, and I probably should have gone and done my doctorly duty, but I didn't because he definitely deserved it.
"What're you all lookin' at?" Rogue stood in the shredded doorway, hands on her hips. She was wearing nothing but an extremely sheer bodystocking.
Scott's eyes bugged out of his head a little. "We were just..."
"...Taking a walk," I provided.
"A walk," Rogue said.
Peter nodded enthusiastically. "Yes, a walk," he said in his cute accent. "Would you like to come?"
"I would've come if it hadn't been for Logan," she snarled, and slammed what was left of her door.
We took that as a sign and fled.
***
"So that's how it started. The next night, Logan brought someone home, which pissed her off and she brought someone new home the following night. That's how it goes. Logan gets pissed at her and brings someone else home, which in turn pisses Rogue off, who finds someone else as well. It's a vicious cycle that none of us know how to break."
"Has anyone spoken to both of them?"
"We're all a little too aggravated at Logan to discuss it rationally with him. And also, I love Rogue, but she's been a little scary lately."
"I'm a neutral party," Hank decided. "I'll do it."
***
I had no idea what Hank said to Logan, but a few days later, well before noon, he was standing in my office, shuffling his feet anxiously.
"Can I help you?" My tone was frosty. I was still holding a grudge about the whole Candi thing, and I wasn't about to let him off the hook that easily.
"Yeah. I, uh, talked to Hank last night, and he told me some stuff and said that I should come and talk with you."
I played dumb. "Talk with me about what?"
"About Rogue, about her and those guys she keeps bringing home."
"You're hardly one to comment on her social life, Logan," I said archly, crossing my arms in front of me.
"Yeah, I know, but... Is she doin' it because of me?"
Give the man a prize! "Took you long enough to figure that out." I took my glasses off and put them on my desk. "Logan, I'm going to ask you a question and I want you to tell me the honest answer, all right?"
"I guess." He looked suspicious.
"Are you in love with Rogue?"
"Of course I love her!"
"That's not what I asked you. Are you *in* love with her?"
He looked sick all of a sudden, as though he were about to throw up. I hoped he didn't plan on doing that in my office.
"What if I am?"
"Then you have to tell her, because this revolving bedroom competition you two have going on is hurting both of you."
He stared at me for a minute, then collapsed into my guest chair, his weight causing the furniture to groan under him. He dropped his face into his hands. "She doesn't want anything to do with me, Jeannie. She avoids being in the same room with me. She doesn't love me."
I couldn't help it; I chuckled.
His eyes shot up and he glared at me. "It's not fuckin' funny!"
"Logan, she has been in love with you since she was seventeen years old, and despite your immense stupidity, I believe she will love you until the day she dies."
The hopeful expression on his face was nearly painful to watch. "D'you really think so?"
My heart melted, just a little bit. "I know so."
He sat there for another minute before I made shooing gestures with my hands. "Don't sit in here with me! Go talk to her!"
Logan stood up, then ducked his head so he could kiss my cheek. "Thanks, Jeannie. Scooter doesn't deserve you."
I grinned. "Don't worry, he earns his keep."
***
I didn't see either one of them for two days.
That either meant things went really, really well, or we were going to have bodies to deal with. Either way, if the endless parade of one night stands stopped, I was happy.
Late at night, I was grading papers in the lab while waiting for some blood cultures to be ready when I heard a weird noise coming from the Danger Room. It was past midnight, and I was fairly certain no one was in the basement but me. I got up and went over there, entering my code to open the door.
That's odd, I thought. The door to the projection booth is open. Maybe Scott's in there. I stuck my head in, and got an eyeful.
Logan was flat on his back and fully clothed, while Rogue was completely naked and straddling him. Their hands were entwined, and the look on her face...
I must have made a noise, because she looked up. I knew my face had to be the color of my hair. I was mortified and fumbled around for an apology, but all she did was wink at me.
[Thanks, Jean.]
[You're very welcome. I assume this means the Meaningless Fling of the Week club is over?]
[Totally over.]
[Wonderful. I'll, uh, let you get back to it now. I have to, uh--]
[--Find Scott?]
[Exactly.]
We shared a conspiratorial grin, then I turned around and went in search of my husband. Those papers could wait.
THE END!
The Wolverine & Rogue Fanfiction Archive
Barely Legal Since 2000
Author's Chapter Notes:
DISCLAIMER: All X-Men characters, concepts, etc. are copyright Stan Lee, Marvel Entertainment, and 20th Century Fox. This work is not-for-profit fanfiction, and no infringement is intended.
Feedback is always welcomed.
I got to thinking about the x-mansion and what it must be like to have to live with your coworkers. Most of us at least get to leave work and go home. The X-Men don't get to do that. They see each other from the time they wake up in the morning until the time they go to bed each night. It's kind of like one big, dysfunctional family. And like all families, it has to have its share of domestic issues.
Also, it seems to me that Jean sometimes gets the short end of the stick, fic-wise. This story demanded to be told through her eyes, so I obliged.
Feedback is always welcomed.
I got to thinking about the x-mansion and what it must be like to have to live with your coworkers. Most of us at least get to leave work and go home. The X-Men don't get to do that. They see each other from the time they wake up in the morning until the time they go to bed each night. It's kind of like one big, dysfunctional family. And like all families, it has to have its share of domestic issues.
Also, it seems to me that Jean sometimes gets the short end of the stick, fic-wise. This story demanded to be told through her eyes, so I obliged.