Decisions
Author: RoguesKnight
Disclaimer: I own nothing but the plot. Scott, Kitty, et al, are the property of Marvel Entertainment, the WB, anyone else who has the ability to sue for this actually. Speaking of which, please don't I'm just a poor college student. Cosmo.....still not mine.
Author's note: Sequel/Companion piece to Options. Options, was originally intended as a one shot, but I got so many reviews asking for more, I figured I'd give it another shot. Yes, the big puppy dog eyes worked angelele19. Like Options, this is going to be first person p.o.v, only from Kitty. Please bear in mind that I am not now, nor have I ever been, a teenage girl, so her thoughts might not be dead on.
Dedication : To my lovely and wonderful fiancée. Also to the wonderful people without whom this would probably never have been written. Thanks for your praise, support and helpful tidbits of info to, in no particular order: MarvelGrl, Pandemonium Fox, angelele19, nameless1010, somekindafreaky, and DOJ, if I missed anyone, my apologies and my gratitude to you as well.
My first thought after Scott's lips left mine was wow. Not terribly articulate, I know, but at the moment it was the best my mind could come up with. It was without a doubt the single best kiss I had ever had, not like I had a world of experience to compare it with or anything, but with other guys it always seemed to be more about them than "us". Scott's was definitely an "us" kiss, at least that's what I thought. When I opened my eyes again, he was gone; book, coffee, nothing remained to suggest that he'd even been there save the slight tingle of my lips. Maybe he was just trying to give me hope about other guys I thought morosely. After all, he was Scott Summers, without a doubt the most desired guy in all of Bayville High School and Xavier's Institute. Even Rogue, who had vowed to kill me in the most horrible way she could imagine if I ever told anyone, had confessed to having a thing for Scott. Roommates, gotta love them.
"What could he possibly see in me?" I muttered to the empty room. I didn't honestly expect an answer, but truth be told, had the room started listing off my good qualities the way Scott had , I wouldn't have been that surprised. Let's just say that when you've saved the world a few times, it takes a lot to surprise you. As I gazed out the window onto the sunlit lawn, Scott's compliments floated back to me
"you're a lovely young woman that any guy would be lucky to have in his life" he'd said. I wondered if he was just interested in me physically, but that just didn't feel right. He'd also expressed admiration for my self- confidence and my mind, not just my body. Either he was the best liar in the world, or he really liked more than my body. I giggled softly to myself as the thought that Scott seemed to honestly like me as more than a friend pushed away my doubts. Even if Scott could tell a lie with a straight face, which I seriously doubted, a kiss like that couldn't lie. A warmth that had nothing to do with the sunlight streaming through the study's large windows started in my chest and flowed throughout my body.
"He's an option" I almost chirped happily, rising to my feet and spinning in a quick circle. Thankfully no one was on hand to witness my extreme girliness at the moment. I know that everyone pretty much thinks of me as pretty girly anyway, but there were some boundaries I wasn't going to cross. My glee quickly turned to puzzlement, as I realized I wasn't really sure what he meant by being an option. Was he trying to let me know that he wanted me, or was it an only if I was interested thing? I hoped that it was an only if I was interested thing, because that would be so sweet. He'd let me know he had feelings for me, but would be willing to keep that just between us if I didn't reciprocate those feelings. It'd be a nice change from Lance's lust. But the question remained, how did I feel about him? Argh, why did it have to be so complicated? I left the Cosmo sitting on the loveseat and smiled, imagining Logan finding it later and secretly flipping through it. It probably wouldn't happen, more than likely he'd just give me a lecture about leaving "trash" around the mansion but the thought was entertaining enough on its own. I smoothed a few wrinkles out of my skirt, a dark blue, can Scott see in other than red? the thought quickly crossed my mind, and headed out of the study.
With nearly everyone in the Institute out for one reason or another, you'd think I'd pick anywhere I wanted to do some deep thinking. Nope, I chose my bedroom. Well, Rogue's and mine, but since she was off god only knew where, it was mine alone for the moment. I flopped down on my stomach on the soft mattress and pulled a pink pillow under my chin, tucking my arms under it. I knew that nearly every girl who met him wanted Scott, but was I one of them? The question turned over and over in my mind. He was undeniably hot, but then again, Lance's appeal had been mainly physical too. I shook my head, trying to focus...Scott and Lance were polar opposites in so many ways, and I had thought I'd really been in love with Lance. Was it even possible that I could like someone who wasn't a badass, or who at least didn't like to think he was one and feel the need to prove it every chance he got? I mean, no offense to Scott, but it wasn't the Boy Scouts that had all the women flocking around them. Even the good looking ones didn't seem to have too much luck when the girls realized that they weren't being treated like dirt.
The thought stopped me in my tracks. Did I really want someone who was going to treat me like dirt when the glow of a new relationship began to fade? Of course not. "I want Scott" I said to myself with a smile, kicking my legs slowly in yet another moment of extreme girliness. I stretched my right arm out from under my pillow and grabbed my journal, which was of course, pink, and a pen. I knew all the pink in the vicinity of my bed, not to mention my wardrobe, drove Rogue nuts, which was partially the reason for it. People think that Goths are so intimidating with all their dark make-up and clothing, of course that's so totally wrong, you've never known intimidating until faced with the power of pink. Opening the journal, I picked a random page and wrote "Mrs. Kitty Summers," and alternately "Mrs. Kitty Pryde-Summers" over and over. The mature part of my mind chided me for being so juvenile. It was just one kiss, not a marriage proposal after all. The rest of me however, collectively stuck it's tongue out at the mature part of my mind. Screw maturity, a little fantasy never hurt anyone.
A smile pulled at my lips, widened into something of a feral grin as I imagined how Jean would react were Scott and I to even get involved with each other, let alone if we were engaged. Contrary to popular assumption, I'm no fan of Jean "Ms. Perfect" Grey. It's one of the things that bonded Rogue and me so quickly. Unlike her however, I'm not as quick to let my dislike show. Like mom always told me, "you catch more flies with honey than you do with vinegar". Of course, that lead me to wondering what my parents would think of Scott. Mom would probably have a fit if I accepted a proposal from him, she's pretty accepting of the whole mutant thing, both of my parents are actually, but she would kill me if I was going to marry someone who wasn't a "nice Jewish boy". Dad on the other hand would probably get along great with Scott regardless of faith, they're both total car guys.
I must have been deep into fantasy land because I didn't notice the bedroom door open as Rogue came in from wherever the hell it was she went when we didn't have to deal with school, fight the brotherhood, or have danger room sessions with Logan. Nor did I notice the sound of the door slamming shut, that characteristically followed my oh-so-cheery roommate's entry. In fact I didn't notice anything until the sounds of Britney Spears' "Hit Me Baby One More Time" caught my ears. On more than one occasion Rogue had given me hell for my taste, or lack thereof in her opinion, in music. Why she'd chosen that song, especially with her deep hatred for the pop princess, was beyond me. I turned to see if my roommate was feeling alright and almost had a heart attack. Rogue had taken advantage of my being totally out of it to change into one of my pink tube tops and an extra short skirt and was lip syncing along with the c.d. She'd even pulled a little hair on each side of her head into my pink scrunchies; I had to admit, save the patch of white hair, she pulled off a pretty close imitation of the pop diva, and except for her ever present gloves, it was the most skin I'd ever seen her show off. It was wildly out of character for her, but also wildly amusing. One of the many things I'd learned about Rogue from living with her was that deep down she had a great sense of humor, and wasn't above being silly from time to time. This it seemed, was one of those times. Never taking my eyes off her, I slowly reached back towards my nightstand and the digital camera on it.
"Touch that camera Pryde and we'll find out just how many ways there are to skin a cat" she said, turning off the music and sitting down on her bed facing me. Like I said, great sense of humor.
I quickly closed my journal and smiled, "Spoilsport. Like nobody's going to believe me that you were," I gestured helplessly at her, unable to find just the right words, "without some sort of proof."
She grinned, pulling the scrunchies from her hair and flinging them at me, "That's the idea. I've been trying to get your attention for the last five minutes. If that hadn't worked, I would have had to call the Prof in Washington and tell him to come home cause something was wrong with you. What's got you all spaced out anyway? School doesn't start up for a couple months yet, so it can't possibly be your grades." Her eyes narrowed into dark green slits, "It's a boy, isn't it?"
I squirmed uneasily, attempting to casually slide my journal behind me, " Of course not Rogue." I put as much indignation into my voice as possible and hoped it would be convincing. If you've ever tried to convince someone that they're absolutely wrong when they're so totally right, you know about how well that worked.
"Bullshit" She exclaimed, her grin widening Her expression suddenly turned serious and she stood, walking directly in front of me and stopping with mere inches between us. Most people, including many of the students at Xavier's would have been uncomfortable with Rogue being that close with so much skin exposed. I wasn't. I trusted her and I knew that she wouldn't intentionally hurt me. I hoped so anyway, I wasn't sure how she'd react if and when I told her about Scott. "Kitty," she said, genuine concern filling her voice, "Don't tell me it's Alvers again. For one thing, you gave me permission to smack you silly if you ever wanted to get him back, and for another, you can do so much better than rock head."
I smiled, I could totally tell her the truth....well almost, "No it's not Lance. I'm like completely over him. And I know I can do better than him. It just took me a while to realize that." Ok, that one incredible kiss from Scott definitely helped with that particular realization. I'd almost completely hidden the journal when she spoke again.
"But it is a boy, isn't it?" She asked, sitting down next to me and none to subtly reaching for my journal. I had the feeling she wouldn't actually read it if she got a hold of it, Rogue is the only person I've ever met who values privacy almost as much as Logan, but I wasn't going to risk it. After all, if you'd asked me this morning if I ever thought I'd see her in a pink tube top and a mini skirt, I'd have said no. No sense in being wrong twice.
"Maybe" I said cautiously, part of me just wanted to tell her about Scott and the kiss, but another part didn't want to hurt her and told me to hold back. Of course, my only other close girl friend I could possibly tell is Jubilee and if I told her the whole school would know within an hour. I decided that I needed more girlfriends.
She smiled, "Ok, so who's last name would I find following yours if I were to take a look at that journal that you were so blatantly trying to hide from me?" Sometimes it's just eerie how well she knows me. She rubbed her chin thoughtfully between her thumb and forefinger, "Could it be Bobby's?"
"No"
"Kurt's?"
I hit her with my pillow and scowled, "Like totally no. Besides, he and Amanda are adorable together, I would never want to break them up."
She seemed to consider that, "Yea, I know what you mean. I'd probably kill you if you did. It would break Amanda's heart, and she's a sweet girl. More importantly, Kurt would be in here all the time, and feel even more free to pop in whenever he wanted than he already does. I mean I love Kurt like a brother, but when he sheds....." She shuddered. "Ok...is it Sam's or maybe Ray's?
It was my turn to shudder, "I'm not a cradle robber Rogue, so no. And before you ask, no to Jamie and Roberto"
She paused, "You know we're running out of guys here." I just smiled as sweetly as possible back at her, knowing full well it would drive her crazy. Maybe if I could annoy the hell out of her she'd decide it wasn't worth finding out. "Ok...if it's the Prof, I really don't want to know," she said with a deeply disturbed expression on her face. She looked at me suddenly dead serious, "It isn't Logan is it?" There was something in her voice I couldn't quite identify, if I had to guess I'd say it was nervousness mixed with jealousy. I couldn't be positive because I'd never seen her exhibit either emotion.
"Yes" I said as seriously as I could. I know it was mean, but she deserved it for not letting me take a picture of her. Or so I thought, her face fell almost immediately and I felt my heart give a sympathetic twinge in response. Maybe I'd crossed a line I shouldn't have. "Rogue," I said, placing a hand on top of her gloved one, "I was kidding, Logan's old enough to be my father...or hell maybe even my grandfather." I began to laugh and she soon joined in. Before long we were both rolling on the bed, clutching at our sides and gasping for breathe. When we finally calmed down, the relief I saw spreading across her face was almost palpable. " He's all yours Rogue," I whispered with a smile.
"Hey, we're not talking about me," She actually blushed, quite prettily, and I had the strongest urge to go for the camera again. Unfortunately that line of thinking refocused her on our original conversation. "Hmmmmm," she looked at me carefully and I did my best not to meet her eyes "It's Scott, isn't it?" She asked. Her tone let me know that there was no use in lying, and given that she apparently had something for Logan, I figured it was safe to tell the truth. "Yes," I said quietly, bringing my eyes up to meet hers cautiously, " You're not mad or anything are you?"
She smiled warmly, "Of course not, I've been over him for a little bit now. On to bigger and better things and all,:" she winked at me and I decided that I really didn't want to know all the details of what she meant for once, "Besides there are worse people who could end up with Scott than you, and I think you know whom I refer to"
"That's just it," I said hopelessly flopping back on my back and pulling a pillow to my chest, "I don't know that I'm going to end up with him. I mean, we just had one kiss, it could have meant anything."
Her eyes widened almost comically, "Wait, there was a kiss?! This isn't just a crush you have on him like every other girl in Bayville? Tell me everything, leave nothing out," she said. So, of course, I did. Over the next forty-five minutes we rehashed every little thing that had gone on between Scott and me earlier in the afternoon.
"You have no idea how wonderful it feels to tell someone about that" I said during a lull in our examination of the day's earlier events.
"I can imagine," she said softly; a sad smile tugging at her lips made me wonder if she was as over Scott as she claimed she was, "So anyway, when you opened your eyes he was gone?" "Who was gone?" a voice came from the doorway. As one Rogue and I turned to find Jean Grey leaning against our doorframe, looking somewhat less cheerful than usual. "Come on, I could seriously use some girl talk after today" she prompted walking into the room without invitation. She was wearing a plain black suit with matching pumps and her normally free flowing hair was pulled up into a tight French braid. Rogue "coughed" a quick "librarian" behind a gloved hand and I had to fight the urge to smile.
"Oh, no one was gone" I babbled in her direction, as nonchalantly as I could, "We were just talking about this really vivid dream I had last night". You know, she might be the second most powerful telepath in the world after the Professor, but she was lousy at figuring out when someone was lying to her.
"Oh?" she asked, obviously interested. She sauntered into the room and sat on the bed with us, fortunately on the opposite side of me from Rogue, at least with me in the middle no one would be tempted to throw any punches. I hoped. "What kind of dream was it she asked, kicking off her pumps and pulling her feet up under her, "I've been reading Freud lately, want to get a jump start on college, and I might be able to tell you what it means"
I scrambled mentally for an answer. Rogue unfortunately had one for her. "It was a sex dream," She said, with a wicked smile in my direction, "guest starring Pietro. Not really much to interpret there. Our little kitten wants the speed freak"
Jean smiled at me, "Well who doesn't? From what I've heard from some of the other girls on the cheerleading squad, it's about the only thing he takes his time with." Her eyes seemed to glaze over for a moment and her smile grew wistful as if she were imagining it herself. Rogue and I shared a glance, shuddered. "Anyway," Jean said, "It's probably best that it was just a dream. God, can you imagine if one of us actually tried to have a relationship with him? Scott's head would explode, it damn near did when Kitty was into Lance" Must everyone bring that up? "Speaking of Scott, I'm going to go see if he's in his room. Washington was a total disaster and I could use one of his wonderful backrubs." With that, she stood, collected her pumps and headed out the door.
"Well that's that," I sighed, flopping over on the bed, "She'll get him to give her a backrub and he'll start obsessing again and forget that I ever existed."
Rogue wasn't having it however, she slapped me in the leg none to lightly with a gloved hand, "That's it? You're just going to give up? Like hell."
"Come on Rogue," I said irritably, rubbing at my leg, "How can I compete with her? Especially for Scott?"
"If you get to him first," she said matter of factly, "she'll be the one competing with you. And I can guarantee there's no way in the world Scott would want fake....well...everything, over the genuine article. You're it Kitty, don't give up without a fight. Do you want him?"
"Yes," I said, feeling a gentle warmth flood through me at the thought of getting into a relationship with Scott.
"Then go get him" She ordered. Rising quickly to her feet she grabbed me by the shoulder and flung me at the wall. Since it was either phase through it or end up looking really stupid, I decided to phase. Sticking my head back through the wall to berate her for not giving me fair warning I noticed her taking off her gloves and heading for the door.
"What're you going to do" I asked.
"Something I'm probably going to regret later," she replied, "Now haul ass Kitty and go claim your man." I did as she said, pulling my head back through the wall and running through, thankfully empty, rooms, doing my best to avoid any electrical equipment the occupants had laying around. I had the sneaking suspicion that I wouldn't have to worry about Jean coming in to ask Scott for that backrub if Rogue caught up to her. I'd like to think of it as her way for implying I had a desire to have sex with Pietro, but I knew that she would just use that as an excuse to knock Jean out for a few hours. Not that I had a problem with that. Finally, I made it into Scott's room, running through his bed as a matter of fact, a bed on which he was laying on and topless. Wow.
"Kitty!" he said, clearly startled. He pushed himself up, propping his arms behind his back for support, causing his abs to become even more clearly defined. Never before had I been as glad for the intensity of Logan's danger room sessions with us as I was at that moment. "Is there something wrong?" He asked, rolling off the bed and grabbing a spare visor from his night stand. He's such a sweet guy, ready to ride to the rescue at a moments notice. How could I not love this man? Wait, love? Back it up there Kitty, gotta take this a little bit slower than that. "Kitty?" He asked again, waving a hand in front of my face, "Is there something going on?"
"Yes," I said looking into his eyes, or where I'd always felt his eyes were behind his lenses. "But not what you're thinking"
He looked puzzled for a moment, his visor forgotten in his hand, "Then what?"
I took a deep breath and closed the distance between us. "I've made a decision" I said simply before wrapping my arms around his neck and pulling his lips down to mine.
Disclaimer: I own nothing but the plot. Scott, Kitty, et al, are the property of Marvel Entertainment, the WB, anyone else who has the ability to sue for this actually. Speaking of which, please don't I'm just a poor college student. Cosmo.....still not mine.
Author's note: Sequel/Companion piece to Options. Options, was originally intended as a one shot, but I got so many reviews asking for more, I figured I'd give it another shot. Yes, the big puppy dog eyes worked angelele19. Like Options, this is going to be first person p.o.v, only from Kitty. Please bear in mind that I am not now, nor have I ever been, a teenage girl, so her thoughts might not be dead on.
Dedication : To my lovely and wonderful fiancée. Also to the wonderful people without whom this would probably never have been written. Thanks for your praise, support and helpful tidbits of info to, in no particular order: MarvelGrl, Pandemonium Fox, angelele19, nameless1010, somekindafreaky, and DOJ, if I missed anyone, my apologies and my gratitude to you as well.
My first thought after Scott's lips left mine was wow. Not terribly articulate, I know, but at the moment it was the best my mind could come up with. It was without a doubt the single best kiss I had ever had, not like I had a world of experience to compare it with or anything, but with other guys it always seemed to be more about them than "us". Scott's was definitely an "us" kiss, at least that's what I thought. When I opened my eyes again, he was gone; book, coffee, nothing remained to suggest that he'd even been there save the slight tingle of my lips. Maybe he was just trying to give me hope about other guys I thought morosely. After all, he was Scott Summers, without a doubt the most desired guy in all of Bayville High School and Xavier's Institute. Even Rogue, who had vowed to kill me in the most horrible way she could imagine if I ever told anyone, had confessed to having a thing for Scott. Roommates, gotta love them.
"What could he possibly see in me?" I muttered to the empty room. I didn't honestly expect an answer, but truth be told, had the room started listing off my good qualities the way Scott had , I wouldn't have been that surprised. Let's just say that when you've saved the world a few times, it takes a lot to surprise you. As I gazed out the window onto the sunlit lawn, Scott's compliments floated back to me
"you're a lovely young woman that any guy would be lucky to have in his life" he'd said. I wondered if he was just interested in me physically, but that just didn't feel right. He'd also expressed admiration for my self- confidence and my mind, not just my body. Either he was the best liar in the world, or he really liked more than my body. I giggled softly to myself as the thought that Scott seemed to honestly like me as more than a friend pushed away my doubts. Even if Scott could tell a lie with a straight face, which I seriously doubted, a kiss like that couldn't lie. A warmth that had nothing to do with the sunlight streaming through the study's large windows started in my chest and flowed throughout my body.
"He's an option" I almost chirped happily, rising to my feet and spinning in a quick circle. Thankfully no one was on hand to witness my extreme girliness at the moment. I know that everyone pretty much thinks of me as pretty girly anyway, but there were some boundaries I wasn't going to cross. My glee quickly turned to puzzlement, as I realized I wasn't really sure what he meant by being an option. Was he trying to let me know that he wanted me, or was it an only if I was interested thing? I hoped that it was an only if I was interested thing, because that would be so sweet. He'd let me know he had feelings for me, but would be willing to keep that just between us if I didn't reciprocate those feelings. It'd be a nice change from Lance's lust. But the question remained, how did I feel about him? Argh, why did it have to be so complicated? I left the Cosmo sitting on the loveseat and smiled, imagining Logan finding it later and secretly flipping through it. It probably wouldn't happen, more than likely he'd just give me a lecture about leaving "trash" around the mansion but the thought was entertaining enough on its own. I smoothed a few wrinkles out of my skirt, a dark blue, can Scott see in other than red? the thought quickly crossed my mind, and headed out of the study.
With nearly everyone in the Institute out for one reason or another, you'd think I'd pick anywhere I wanted to do some deep thinking. Nope, I chose my bedroom. Well, Rogue's and mine, but since she was off god only knew where, it was mine alone for the moment. I flopped down on my stomach on the soft mattress and pulled a pink pillow under my chin, tucking my arms under it. I knew that nearly every girl who met him wanted Scott, but was I one of them? The question turned over and over in my mind. He was undeniably hot, but then again, Lance's appeal had been mainly physical too. I shook my head, trying to focus...Scott and Lance were polar opposites in so many ways, and I had thought I'd really been in love with Lance. Was it even possible that I could like someone who wasn't a badass, or who at least didn't like to think he was one and feel the need to prove it every chance he got? I mean, no offense to Scott, but it wasn't the Boy Scouts that had all the women flocking around them. Even the good looking ones didn't seem to have too much luck when the girls realized that they weren't being treated like dirt.
The thought stopped me in my tracks. Did I really want someone who was going to treat me like dirt when the glow of a new relationship began to fade? Of course not. "I want Scott" I said to myself with a smile, kicking my legs slowly in yet another moment of extreme girliness. I stretched my right arm out from under my pillow and grabbed my journal, which was of course, pink, and a pen. I knew all the pink in the vicinity of my bed, not to mention my wardrobe, drove Rogue nuts, which was partially the reason for it. People think that Goths are so intimidating with all their dark make-up and clothing, of course that's so totally wrong, you've never known intimidating until faced with the power of pink. Opening the journal, I picked a random page and wrote "Mrs. Kitty Summers," and alternately "Mrs. Kitty Pryde-Summers" over and over. The mature part of my mind chided me for being so juvenile. It was just one kiss, not a marriage proposal after all. The rest of me however, collectively stuck it's tongue out at the mature part of my mind. Screw maturity, a little fantasy never hurt anyone.
A smile pulled at my lips, widened into something of a feral grin as I imagined how Jean would react were Scott and I to even get involved with each other, let alone if we were engaged. Contrary to popular assumption, I'm no fan of Jean "Ms. Perfect" Grey. It's one of the things that bonded Rogue and me so quickly. Unlike her however, I'm not as quick to let my dislike show. Like mom always told me, "you catch more flies with honey than you do with vinegar". Of course, that lead me to wondering what my parents would think of Scott. Mom would probably have a fit if I accepted a proposal from him, she's pretty accepting of the whole mutant thing, both of my parents are actually, but she would kill me if I was going to marry someone who wasn't a "nice Jewish boy". Dad on the other hand would probably get along great with Scott regardless of faith, they're both total car guys.
I must have been deep into fantasy land because I didn't notice the bedroom door open as Rogue came in from wherever the hell it was she went when we didn't have to deal with school, fight the brotherhood, or have danger room sessions with Logan. Nor did I notice the sound of the door slamming shut, that characteristically followed my oh-so-cheery roommate's entry. In fact I didn't notice anything until the sounds of Britney Spears' "Hit Me Baby One More Time" caught my ears. On more than one occasion Rogue had given me hell for my taste, or lack thereof in her opinion, in music. Why she'd chosen that song, especially with her deep hatred for the pop princess, was beyond me. I turned to see if my roommate was feeling alright and almost had a heart attack. Rogue had taken advantage of my being totally out of it to change into one of my pink tube tops and an extra short skirt and was lip syncing along with the c.d. She'd even pulled a little hair on each side of her head into my pink scrunchies; I had to admit, save the patch of white hair, she pulled off a pretty close imitation of the pop diva, and except for her ever present gloves, it was the most skin I'd ever seen her show off. It was wildly out of character for her, but also wildly amusing. One of the many things I'd learned about Rogue from living with her was that deep down she had a great sense of humor, and wasn't above being silly from time to time. This it seemed, was one of those times. Never taking my eyes off her, I slowly reached back towards my nightstand and the digital camera on it.
"Touch that camera Pryde and we'll find out just how many ways there are to skin a cat" she said, turning off the music and sitting down on her bed facing me. Like I said, great sense of humor.
I quickly closed my journal and smiled, "Spoilsport. Like nobody's going to believe me that you were," I gestured helplessly at her, unable to find just the right words, "without some sort of proof."
She grinned, pulling the scrunchies from her hair and flinging them at me, "That's the idea. I've been trying to get your attention for the last five minutes. If that hadn't worked, I would have had to call the Prof in Washington and tell him to come home cause something was wrong with you. What's got you all spaced out anyway? School doesn't start up for a couple months yet, so it can't possibly be your grades." Her eyes narrowed into dark green slits, "It's a boy, isn't it?"
I squirmed uneasily, attempting to casually slide my journal behind me, " Of course not Rogue." I put as much indignation into my voice as possible and hoped it would be convincing. If you've ever tried to convince someone that they're absolutely wrong when they're so totally right, you know about how well that worked.
"Bullshit" She exclaimed, her grin widening Her expression suddenly turned serious and she stood, walking directly in front of me and stopping with mere inches between us. Most people, including many of the students at Xavier's would have been uncomfortable with Rogue being that close with so much skin exposed. I wasn't. I trusted her and I knew that she wouldn't intentionally hurt me. I hoped so anyway, I wasn't sure how she'd react if and when I told her about Scott. "Kitty," she said, genuine concern filling her voice, "Don't tell me it's Alvers again. For one thing, you gave me permission to smack you silly if you ever wanted to get him back, and for another, you can do so much better than rock head."
I smiled, I could totally tell her the truth....well almost, "No it's not Lance. I'm like completely over him. And I know I can do better than him. It just took me a while to realize that." Ok, that one incredible kiss from Scott definitely helped with that particular realization. I'd almost completely hidden the journal when she spoke again.
"But it is a boy, isn't it?" She asked, sitting down next to me and none to subtly reaching for my journal. I had the feeling she wouldn't actually read it if she got a hold of it, Rogue is the only person I've ever met who values privacy almost as much as Logan, but I wasn't going to risk it. After all, if you'd asked me this morning if I ever thought I'd see her in a pink tube top and a mini skirt, I'd have said no. No sense in being wrong twice.
"Maybe" I said cautiously, part of me just wanted to tell her about Scott and the kiss, but another part didn't want to hurt her and told me to hold back. Of course, my only other close girl friend I could possibly tell is Jubilee and if I told her the whole school would know within an hour. I decided that I needed more girlfriends.
She smiled, "Ok, so who's last name would I find following yours if I were to take a look at that journal that you were so blatantly trying to hide from me?" Sometimes it's just eerie how well she knows me. She rubbed her chin thoughtfully between her thumb and forefinger, "Could it be Bobby's?"
"No"
"Kurt's?"
I hit her with my pillow and scowled, "Like totally no. Besides, he and Amanda are adorable together, I would never want to break them up."
She seemed to consider that, "Yea, I know what you mean. I'd probably kill you if you did. It would break Amanda's heart, and she's a sweet girl. More importantly, Kurt would be in here all the time, and feel even more free to pop in whenever he wanted than he already does. I mean I love Kurt like a brother, but when he sheds....." She shuddered. "Ok...is it Sam's or maybe Ray's?
It was my turn to shudder, "I'm not a cradle robber Rogue, so no. And before you ask, no to Jamie and Roberto"
She paused, "You know we're running out of guys here." I just smiled as sweetly as possible back at her, knowing full well it would drive her crazy. Maybe if I could annoy the hell out of her she'd decide it wasn't worth finding out. "Ok...if it's the Prof, I really don't want to know," she said with a deeply disturbed expression on her face. She looked at me suddenly dead serious, "It isn't Logan is it?" There was something in her voice I couldn't quite identify, if I had to guess I'd say it was nervousness mixed with jealousy. I couldn't be positive because I'd never seen her exhibit either emotion.
"Yes" I said as seriously as I could. I know it was mean, but she deserved it for not letting me take a picture of her. Or so I thought, her face fell almost immediately and I felt my heart give a sympathetic twinge in response. Maybe I'd crossed a line I shouldn't have. "Rogue," I said, placing a hand on top of her gloved one, "I was kidding, Logan's old enough to be my father...or hell maybe even my grandfather." I began to laugh and she soon joined in. Before long we were both rolling on the bed, clutching at our sides and gasping for breathe. When we finally calmed down, the relief I saw spreading across her face was almost palpable. " He's all yours Rogue," I whispered with a smile.
"Hey, we're not talking about me," She actually blushed, quite prettily, and I had the strongest urge to go for the camera again. Unfortunately that line of thinking refocused her on our original conversation. "Hmmmmm," she looked at me carefully and I did my best not to meet her eyes "It's Scott, isn't it?" She asked. Her tone let me know that there was no use in lying, and given that she apparently had something for Logan, I figured it was safe to tell the truth. "Yes," I said quietly, bringing my eyes up to meet hers cautiously, " You're not mad or anything are you?"
She smiled warmly, "Of course not, I've been over him for a little bit now. On to bigger and better things and all,:" she winked at me and I decided that I really didn't want to know all the details of what she meant for once, "Besides there are worse people who could end up with Scott than you, and I think you know whom I refer to"
"That's just it," I said hopelessly flopping back on my back and pulling a pillow to my chest, "I don't know that I'm going to end up with him. I mean, we just had one kiss, it could have meant anything."
Her eyes widened almost comically, "Wait, there was a kiss?! This isn't just a crush you have on him like every other girl in Bayville? Tell me everything, leave nothing out," she said. So, of course, I did. Over the next forty-five minutes we rehashed every little thing that had gone on between Scott and me earlier in the afternoon.
"You have no idea how wonderful it feels to tell someone about that" I said during a lull in our examination of the day's earlier events.
"I can imagine," she said softly; a sad smile tugging at her lips made me wonder if she was as over Scott as she claimed she was, "So anyway, when you opened your eyes he was gone?" "Who was gone?" a voice came from the doorway. As one Rogue and I turned to find Jean Grey leaning against our doorframe, looking somewhat less cheerful than usual. "Come on, I could seriously use some girl talk after today" she prompted walking into the room without invitation. She was wearing a plain black suit with matching pumps and her normally free flowing hair was pulled up into a tight French braid. Rogue "coughed" a quick "librarian" behind a gloved hand and I had to fight the urge to smile.
"Oh, no one was gone" I babbled in her direction, as nonchalantly as I could, "We were just talking about this really vivid dream I had last night". You know, she might be the second most powerful telepath in the world after the Professor, but she was lousy at figuring out when someone was lying to her.
"Oh?" she asked, obviously interested. She sauntered into the room and sat on the bed with us, fortunately on the opposite side of me from Rogue, at least with me in the middle no one would be tempted to throw any punches. I hoped. "What kind of dream was it she asked, kicking off her pumps and pulling her feet up under her, "I've been reading Freud lately, want to get a jump start on college, and I might be able to tell you what it means"
I scrambled mentally for an answer. Rogue unfortunately had one for her. "It was a sex dream," She said, with a wicked smile in my direction, "guest starring Pietro. Not really much to interpret there. Our little kitten wants the speed freak"
Jean smiled at me, "Well who doesn't? From what I've heard from some of the other girls on the cheerleading squad, it's about the only thing he takes his time with." Her eyes seemed to glaze over for a moment and her smile grew wistful as if she were imagining it herself. Rogue and I shared a glance, shuddered. "Anyway," Jean said, "It's probably best that it was just a dream. God, can you imagine if one of us actually tried to have a relationship with him? Scott's head would explode, it damn near did when Kitty was into Lance" Must everyone bring that up? "Speaking of Scott, I'm going to go see if he's in his room. Washington was a total disaster and I could use one of his wonderful backrubs." With that, she stood, collected her pumps and headed out the door.
"Well that's that," I sighed, flopping over on the bed, "She'll get him to give her a backrub and he'll start obsessing again and forget that I ever existed."
Rogue wasn't having it however, she slapped me in the leg none to lightly with a gloved hand, "That's it? You're just going to give up? Like hell."
"Come on Rogue," I said irritably, rubbing at my leg, "How can I compete with her? Especially for Scott?"
"If you get to him first," she said matter of factly, "she'll be the one competing with you. And I can guarantee there's no way in the world Scott would want fake....well...everything, over the genuine article. You're it Kitty, don't give up without a fight. Do you want him?"
"Yes," I said, feeling a gentle warmth flood through me at the thought of getting into a relationship with Scott.
"Then go get him" She ordered. Rising quickly to her feet she grabbed me by the shoulder and flung me at the wall. Since it was either phase through it or end up looking really stupid, I decided to phase. Sticking my head back through the wall to berate her for not giving me fair warning I noticed her taking off her gloves and heading for the door.
"What're you going to do" I asked.
"Something I'm probably going to regret later," she replied, "Now haul ass Kitty and go claim your man." I did as she said, pulling my head back through the wall and running through, thankfully empty, rooms, doing my best to avoid any electrical equipment the occupants had laying around. I had the sneaking suspicion that I wouldn't have to worry about Jean coming in to ask Scott for that backrub if Rogue caught up to her. I'd like to think of it as her way for implying I had a desire to have sex with Pietro, but I knew that she would just use that as an excuse to knock Jean out for a few hours. Not that I had a problem with that. Finally, I made it into Scott's room, running through his bed as a matter of fact, a bed on which he was laying on and topless. Wow.
"Kitty!" he said, clearly startled. He pushed himself up, propping his arms behind his back for support, causing his abs to become even more clearly defined. Never before had I been as glad for the intensity of Logan's danger room sessions with us as I was at that moment. "Is there something wrong?" He asked, rolling off the bed and grabbing a spare visor from his night stand. He's such a sweet guy, ready to ride to the rescue at a moments notice. How could I not love this man? Wait, love? Back it up there Kitty, gotta take this a little bit slower than that. "Kitty?" He asked again, waving a hand in front of my face, "Is there something going on?"
"Yes," I said looking into his eyes, or where I'd always felt his eyes were behind his lenses. "But not what you're thinking"
He looked puzzled for a moment, his visor forgotten in his hand, "Then what?"
I took a deep breath and closed the distance between us. "I've made a decision" I said simply before wrapping my arms around his neck and pulling his lips down to mine.