Disclaimer: Don't own them!

Chapter 2: Good decisions.

With her knees up to her chest, Rogue continued reading the book.

But it was hard to focus.

Not only it was her surveillance shift, which meant she had to pay attention to the screens around her, that displayed different areas of the mansion; but, no matter how interesting One hundred years of solitude was, she just couldn't stop thinking about herself and her own loneliness.

The best thing to do when she couldn't touch people, was to pretend she didn't need it; to force herself to believe not everyone is born to have a couple, and since we're all different, she could very well manage to live this way. Of course it never worked too well, but she still woke up every morning hoping it would come the day when she'd see two people kissing and she wouldn't feel like the most miserable life form on earth.

She used to think her life was weird because of this, but she'd had the weirdest week ever, since she unexpectedly gained control.

What would she do now?

She was waiting for the right moment to tell the others, but then again, how would she do it? She could so picture them, congratulating her like it was her birthday, and that'd be just too awkward; not to mention the professor and Hank McCoy, who would want to run all kinds of tests her to find out the cause of it. Is it so hard to understand some people just hate other people sticking their noses into their lives?

And what about the touching side of the story? How was she supposed to find the right guy now, when she had spent all her life avoiding either right or wrong guys, and just any type of guys? It was so strange to feel she had a secret, the best thing could ever happen to her, and not knowing what to do with it.

She felt ashamed of it at the beginning, but damn, not anymore: she wanted to kiss. Something so common for most people, as having contact with others, was like a whole mysterious world for Rogue, and definitely a world she wanted to be a part of; it wasn't just curiosity or physical desire, it was the need to feel close to somebody. She wanted, needed to know what it was like when someone holds you, just like she had already read it in so many stupid books she then tossed against a wall. But during these days, she laughed herself to sleep at night, enjoying thinking of the hundreds of possibilities she now had: she could be a normal person; she could love, be loved… and everything that implies.

Sighing, she directed her attention back to the book, only to read about five words before a beep interrupted her.

"So we've got visits today?"

Checking on a folder, she found a single name: Remy LeBeau.

"Yah kiddin' me? LeBeau? The beautiful?" she raised her brows: "That's one hell of a cocky name".

She zoomed camera Nº 2, to distinguish a man in front of the entrance fence; he was tall, and it was evident there was something really well fit underneath that trench coat. More zooming, and she found out his hair was brown and a little long, like it took him no time to take care of it, but it still looked so great on him. Rogue unfolded her legs and leaned closer to the screen, her chin resting on her left fist in a way she could use her little finger to unconsciously play with her lower lip; and she changed to camera Nº 3, getting a full close up of his strong, arrogant, good looking features.

"Kinda fits yah, though…" she recognized, and then started to laugh. "Yah're startin' t' go crazy, Rogue! Cut it off". But then she wondered if she wasn't just a girl, thinking a boy was cute; was that such a crime?

"Not anymore…"

Next, she pressed the speaker button, and heard his voice:

"Remy LeBeau. I'm here t' talk t' Professeur Xavier".

Whoever on Earth said accents were hot, was totally and absolutely right; he wasn't just speaking, he was sending slight shivers to Rogue's back, with each word. She let the button go right away, and let him and his bike into the fields of the mansion.

There are times when you see someone for the first time and you feel something special you can't explain; some of those times you realize you had never felt the same thing before. Maybe it's mere attraction, simple interest, or just your crazy head idealizing this person. But the truth is that you can't let it go. You can't continue doing whatever you were doing, because you are suddenly hooked and you need to know more.

The book was put aside on the table, as the screens showed her the visitor's way.

He got to Professor Xavier's office, had a conversation with him, and that's how Rogue found out he would stay that night in the mansion. Only one day, and then she wouldn't see him ever again.

One day, one night…

"Gawd… this guy's the biggest flirt ever" she rolled her eyes, watching him kissing Jean's hand later on. But she wouldn't have needed to see this; it was obvious by the way he looked, by the ways he stood and walked, that he was a player always in the search for his next prey. She had to remember taking note of not ever getting involved with this particular type of man…

But instead, she smiled mischievously when he pronounced her name; she had behaved well, too well all her life… those notes could wait.

"'Course Ah'm a girl! Ah'll show yah…" she said half defiantly, half in joke, a little impressed at her own words.

Then he entered his bedroom, and Rogue couldn't see or hear him anymore; no, security cameras didn't go that far.

So she stayed sitting there, thinking.

We have crazy, unusual ideas every day, but we turn them into reality very few times and most times never; it was scary, but she decided she wanted to change that.

Nothing could stop her now.

She wouldn't be hurting anybody.

Remy would be gone the next day.

He'd ask no explanations.

She'd be just another random girl for him.

He'd forget the whole thing soon.

Especially if she acted careless about him.

So, why not?

(…)

"Chere? Wait! Where y'…?"

Those were the last words she heard from him, before leaving the garage. She slipped a couple of times on the polished floor, because she was wearing socks and no shoes. The heat in the back of her neck wasn't important, and neither if she found someone on her way; she just needed to get to her room as fast as possible. But she wasn't just running as she used to do it in the danger room, or in some training; it was some kind of absurd rush of excitement, the one running through her whole body.

After slamming the door to her bedroom behind her, she rested her back against a wall and remained this way a few moments, letting herself exhale a little louder. It was hard to stop trembling at the thought of his skin being next to hers seconds ago, and it was just so delicious to feel this way: like some kind of insane, free person that does whatever she wants to do. She knew she'd be back at being a reasonable girl tomorrow, but tonight there was nothing but Remy's scent lingering on her.

"Ah kinda like this" she smiled, but gasped in surprise when the door was knocked.

"Chere?" he whispered on the other side, and she didn't know whether to be terrified or to laugh. "Hey… Rogue?"

She ran her fingers through her hair and went walking on tip toes to sit on her bed; this would calm her down, yes.

"Cherie… come on, it ain't nice t' leave poor Remy dis way".

Sniggering, she let herself fall backwards, and remained this way, staring at the ceiling. Remy knocked on the door again a couple times, but then no more.

"So, this is what it feels like…?" Rogue thought, bringing back to her memory his lips on hers, on her neck, the way he touched her…

She felt she had a fever she never wanted to sweat out.

(…)

For breakfast and lunch, Rogue had that sandwich she had kept in her tiny little fridge, and some crackers, because she didn't leave her bedroom during the whole day. One hundred years of solitude must have been the most interrupted reading of her life, because once she managed to read a few lines, last night's recalls overwhelmed her again. And so many questions too: did she act like a slut? Would anybody find it out? Was Remy out of the house already? To make sure, she wanted to wait until dinner time; he had to be gone by then.

And when the time came, she went to the dining room imagining everybody could notice what she did, only by staring at her; the telepaths in the house always swore they never looked inside someone's head without permission, so she tried to stay stuck to this, not to freak out.

But everything was as normal as usual, and nobody looked at her weirdly.

"Hey Rogue! Where were you the whole day?" Kitty greeted her, when she was sitting at the table.

"Ah had sort of a stomach ache, but Ah'm 'kay now".

"You know, today I, like, went to the mall, and you wouldn't imagine how cute these shoes were…" Shadowcat started telling her interesting story, when the Professor, sitting at the end of the large table, called everyone's attention:

"I did not want to begin dinner without a short but necessary information". All eyes were on him, as he continued: "It is not definitive yet, as he let me know, but Mr. LeBeau will be staying with us a few more days".

Rogue felt she was suddenly transported to outer space, since there was no air around to breathe; she was just paralyzed, and didn't want to turn around, which everyone else did.

She didn't want to, because she knew what she'd see.

But above all things, she had to pretend everything was cool; so she put on her face an average expression and looked towards the other side of the table.

"Or mebbe even weeks" Remy smirked, sitting next to Storm. "Who knows? Dis be a fine place".

Note: WOW: I had never got so many reviews for the first chap of a fic: 18! I really wasn't expecting it. Thanks so much to everyone who took the time to drop me a few words; really, feedback is the best thing in the world after you spent three, four hours or more, writing a chapter. Thanks guys! Now, let's not loose that nice habit, and please give a click to the little review button before you leave.

Btw: it's kinda hard to write Rogue this way: meeting Remy for the first time and not hating him. It's different, I know, but well, it could happen too, right? Why not? ;-)