Disclaimer: See Part One.
The hand in hers gripped her weakly. His eyes were still closed, but they started to move beneath the lids, and his mouth opened slightly, his throat muscles contracting. An alarm went off from another machine. Jean reached over, shut off the alarm, adjusted the controls.
"What, Dr. Summers?"
"He trying to breathe on his own. I've adjusted the respirator to react when he initiates a breath instead of forcing a steady rhythm. If he's able to keep his blood oxygen level up, I should be able to extubate him tomorrow."
"That's good?"
"That's very good. He's coming out of the coma."
Jubilee smiled and squeezed his hand. "I knew you could do it."
Jubilee spent the rest of the day moving between Rogue and Logan. It was weird to see Rogue, still with so many of the angry man's behaviors. She still had to be kept in a locked room off the main med lab, but at least she'd stopped popping the claws.
Dr. Summers said it was because as the person she'd absorbed regains his powers, she loses them. With Logan's body starting to heal, Rogue's acquired abilities dulled. Still, Logan's personality didn't seem to be fading nearly as quickly.
Gambit stayed just outside the med lab for most of the day. He worried about her so much, he just couldn't stay away, even though she wouldn't see him. Or rather, even though the Logan she'd absorbed wouldn't allow her to see him. Jubilee visited him a couple of times, but she never had any good news for him.
Logan, lying in the main room got better and better. That night, while Jean was trying to convince her to leave, he'd opened his eyes for a second and looked at her before closing them again. She decided to stay right there, sleeping on the cot Jean provided.
The next day, Jubilee held his hand while Jean extubated him.
"Now, Logan. I want you to take a deep breath... Ok, now blow out like you're blowing up a balloon."
He looked at her funny and Jubilee wondered if he'd ever blown up a balloon, but then he complied, exhaling as Jean pulled the tubing from his throat.
He started coughing as Jean reached up and pulled an oxygen mask over his mouth and nose. Logan took a few shuddering breaths, still coughing, and then seemed to settle down. Jean offered him some water, which he drank gratefully, then rested back against his pillow.
Satisfied that her patient was progressing well, Jean left to check up on Rogue.
Squeezing his hand, Jubilee introduced herself. "Hey, there. I'm Jubilee."
"I... know." Logan said, his throat still scratchy. "I heard ya."
"Really? I was hoping you would. You weren't doing so hot then."
"Wanted to die."
"Yeah, that's what it looked like." Jubilee replied, then slowly, not wanting to scare him off, but wanting to know, she asked, "Why did you do it, Logan?"
He took a minute, seemingly deciding whether or not to answer, then he said, "I've had a long life. *COUGH* Hmm, longer than anyone deserves, and none of it good. Marie was my last hope. The only good thing I've ever known."
"She's not a thing, Logan. She's a person, with dreams and thoughts of her own." Jubilee silently added, 'not that you could tell right now.'
"Know that now. Now, there's nothing."
"No, you still have a lot of people who care about ya. Rogue loves ya like a sister. Sure, it's not the kind of love you were looking for, but it's still love. You have a lot of people around here who care about ya. Sure, some of them are pissed at ya right now, but that doesn't mean that deep down they don't care. Heck, I hardly know ya, and I really care about ya."
"Why?"
"Ya remind me of me. I know what it's like to be alone in the world, but I've found a family here. You can too."
"You wouldn't say that if ya knew me, kid."
"Try me. Tell me what's so terrible about yourself."
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