Disclaimer: I don't own X-Men.

Chapter 10

It goes without saying that everything was different from that point on. While Logan had never been very into the idea of being a couple, with anyone, he was trying for Rogue's sake. He would show up after every one of her classes and in between his danger room sessions with the juniors. They spent lunch together, Jubilee joining every so often. And they had sex. A lot.

Everyone had been able to tell the difference in Rogue's demeanor. She was a little looser, a lot happier, and there was an air about her that screamed, "I'm in love!" Jubilee had noticed the day after that first night together when he told her his story. But Rogue had been very tight-lipped.

The firecracker knew she had to fix that.

She waited until Rogue left her classroom for lunch. Once Rogue stepped into the foyer, Jubilee jumped her from behind. "I'm kidnapping you," she whispered conspiratorially as she dragged her friend outside.

"Jubilee!" Rogue said in annoyance once they were outside. "What was that for?"

"What's with you, girl?" her friend replied.

"What?" she snapped, even though there was a wide smile on her face. "What are you talking about?"

"Helloooo!" Jubilee called playfully. "Are you serious? You are a total space case today! What happened with Logan?"

"Nothing," Rogue said too quickly as a blush rose to her cheeks.

But the colorful mutant was not fooled. She pointed an accusatory finger at her best friend. "Something did happen! Oh, come on! Tell me, Rogue!" When her friend didn't answer, she continued, "Tell me, tell me, tell me, tell me!"

"Oh, my lord, will shut up?" Rogue growled. Her friend finally silent, she admitted, "Logan and I… made up last night."

Jubilee chuckled. "That's a nice way of saying that you fucked like bunnies."

"Jubilee!" she scolded, looking around them to make sure that no one had heard that. "Will you please be quiet?"

But Jubilee just kept laughing. "You guys fucked!"

Fed up, Rogue clapped a hand over her crude friend's mouth, only muffling her laughter. "Now…" the southerner said slowly. "I will let go of you if you promise to keep it down. Okay?"

Jubilee nodded, and Rogue let her go. "Must've been one hell of an apology if he got you to not just forgive him but fuck him as well."

Rogue narrowed her eyes. "It…" But then she broke into a smile. "Hell, I can't even stay mad at you. I'm too damn happy."

"So, what was his reasoning for being gone? What could he have possibly said that got you to jump into bed with him?" her best friend wanted to know.

She smiled a knowing smile. "Sorry, Lee, but that's something that's gonna stay between me and Logan."

"What?" Jubilee whined. "What did he say that you can't even tell your best friend?"

Rogue's smile couldn't quit. "I'm sorry, honey, but this is just one thing that I can't tell you."

The firecracker examined her friend with a critical gaze. "You're really happy, aren't you?"

"I am," Rogue replied.

Jubilee gave her a hug then said, "Go get your lunch. You're too happy, it's making me sick."

"Hey," a gruff voice said from the doorway. "I was wondering where you disappeared to."

The two women looked up at Logan. "Sorry," Rogue said, "Jubilee kidnapped me."

The offender shrugged. "Not my fault that you monopolized my best friend's time last night." She approached him and said quietly, "You hurt her again and I'll cut your balls off."

"Noted," he said with a grin. "And I won't."

She gave him an approving nod before disappearing through the doorway back into the mansion.

Rogue smiled at Logan. "Whatever she threatened to do to you if you hurt me again, she'll do it."

He chuckled. "I don't doubt that."

"So… lunch?" she asked.

"Sure thing," he replied.

However, Jubilee wasn't the only one to notice. Bobby saw the change in her, not to mention the fact that Logan had been hanging around her more often, and thought that he needed to say something to stop her from getting hurt.

It was about a week after the thing between Rogue and Logan started. She ran down to the kitchen for a midnight snack for her and Logan, but Bobby was there.

"Oh, Bobby," she said, startled. "I didn't think anyone would be down here."

He made no attempt of easing into it. "What the hell are you doing, Rogue?"

She stared back at him in confusion. "What?"

"What the hell are you doing with Logan?" he clarified.

She sighed and folded her arms over her chest. "That's none of your business."

Bobby stood and moved toward her, placing his hands on her shoulders. "He's gonna hurt you again. I don't think I can just stand by and watch you go through that again."

She scoffed, shoving his hands from her shoulders. "You didn't watch it happen the first time," she snapped. "You were too busy with Kitty to notice how much pain I was in."

"Oh, I noticed," he said defensively. "You just had too much pride to come to me for comfort because I had been right."

Her jaw dropped. "What? Too much pride? Are you mental? I was mad at you, Bobby! I had been happy until you tried to hurt me! So don't go turning this around on me like it's my fault that we haven't talked much."

"All I'm saying," he continued, ignoring her comments, "is that this guy is just gonna get your hopes up before turning right back around and breaking your heart again."

With narrowed eyes, she took a deep breath, stepping forward and pointing an accusatory finger at him. "You don't know what happened over these past seven years, Bobby. Don't pretend like you do. And because of that, you'll never understand. Logan will never hurt me again. Have no doubt about that."

As she started walking away, he said, "You may have forgiven him, Rogue, but I haven't."

She glanced over her shoulder at him. "Good. Cause I didn't ask you to."

Of course when Rogue had made it back up to the room with no snack in hand, she had to explain to Logan what had happened. He wanted to go down there and punch the ice cube's face in, but she assured him that she was fine. She knew that he wasn't going anywhere this time.

Other things were happening around the mansion as well. Jubilee had become overwhelmed with all the tech work that needed to be done.

"This whole place is a disaster," Jubilee had announced as she sat down with Logan and Rogue at lunch one day.

It was a nice sunny day so they'd decided to have lunch outside that day. "What?" Rogue asked, squinting against the sun to look up at her friend.

Jubilee sat down in the grass next to Rogue. "This whole place is a technological disaster," she repeated. "I can't handle all of this!"

Rogue sighed. "This place is falling apart…"

"Literally," Jubilee added. She saw the confusion on Logan's face and explained, "Things have been rough since Storm took over. Our admittance rates are low and the students we do have barely attend class."

"Storm's doing her best," Rogue said, "but this place is just… not the same."

"But back to what I was saying," Jubilee intervened before Logan could say anything, "technologically speaking, this place is a disaster."

"What do you mean?" Logan asked, finally getting a word in edgewise.

"With all the computer system failures and the malfunctioning equipment," she explained, "I can't handle everything." She leaned over, picked up Rogue's sandwich, and took a bite before setting it back down. "Oh, by the way, Logan, I'd watch yourself when in the danger room."

"You're starting to scare me now, Lee," Rogue said.

"I'm just saying that there are several malfunctioning projectors and processors," the techie went on to explain. "And when they malfunction, it can either short out and nothing bad will happen, or it could just explode and set off the rest, killing you in a fiery hell storm." She shrugged. "I'm just saying."

Logan chuckled. "Thanks for the warning, Jubilee, but I think I'll be okay."

Rogue wasn't so certain, but she didn't voice it. "Just talk to Storm, Lee. I'm sure she'll figure something out.

The something turned out to be an assistant. A human boy by the name of Webber Torque, AKA Arcade, who happened to be a technological genius, or so it they'd been told. He was nerdy looking, with short curly red hair and glasses. Webber had been assigned to danger room duty since he'd been so fascinated with the concept. Between the two of them, they were getting things back up to par.

Over the next month, Logan and Rogue went out on more motorcycle rides together. They liked having the time alone together away from the mansion, more often than not stopping at the field where they'd spent that fateful day together.

And one day, when they came back, there was a truck in the garage that hadn't been there before. "Who's truck is that?" Logan asked, as Rogue dismounted.

She took off her helmet and brushed a strand of hair from her face. "Um… not sure." She handed her helmet to him. "I'll be right back," she said, rushing into the mansion.

She raced through the mansion, skidding into the foyer when she saw him. He smiled. "Hey, Marie."

Her heart was beating hard in her chest. A smile came over her face as she said, "Hi, Peter."

AN: You didn't think that I'd actually leave them alone without throwing some sort of obstacle at them, did you? Well, sucky for them but excellent drama. Review.