I don't own anything but the story
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**
Cody stared out the window as he sat on the hospital bed. His best friend Ty had just left after reiterating the football game the night before. He wished he wasn't sitting there, wasting precious time but his thoughts lingered more on the Goth girl he had liked for most of the school year.
He remembered the first time he met her, he had just walked into the school that very first day and saw her sitting alone in the back of the class, the first day he had arrived. He sat beside her and smiled, but she immediately averted her eyes. He later found out from his new friend/team mate, Ty, that she had a skin condition that didn't allow her to touch people.
Cody hadn't cared about that. He had never been a physical person, wanting to save himself for someone special. He had gotten a lot of ribbing for his morals. But now he thought that maybe he found that someone. Most of the time he would attempt to initiate a conversation with her but her responses were clipped and short. Finally he had found an opportunity at the party. Ty had pushed him into it asking her to dance but it had been something he had wanted to do for a long time.
When Ty had shoved him into her, for a small moment his heart had stopped. Not because of what had happened a few seconds afterwards, but because of her warmth and the feel of her. Next all he felt was his life being sucked out of him. One minute he had been looking in her gray-green eyes and the next Ty had rushed over to him, asking him how he was doing. He was sitting in the same white room as he was now.
Now he found himself thinking about her, about Rogue. He was determined to find her again. He knew what she was, he had heard about them even before he had moved but he didn't care. He liked her anyway. He thought about the way her auburn hair would fall into her face, perhaps he had fallen in love with those impertinent white streaks before he did her. He remembered how she would lower her eyes in shyness when he spoke to her, and the day that he had asked to take her home, he remembered the way her eyes just looked up and shocked him with its pale and cool coloring.
The nurse who had taken his pulse gave him a look; he figured that his heart rate had gone up. He decided that as soon as he left he would see her. His thoughts were broken when his parents and little sister walked into the room. They occupied his time until the evening, where he fell asleep dreaming about his southern belle.
***
Cody managed to escape his house hold two weeks later when his mom went to take his little sister to a doctor's appointment and his dad went to work. They had been treating him like a baby since he had gone home. He had known where Rogue lived through the many times he had 'followed' her home.
He knocked on the door and waited for a response. A brunette with dark glasses answered the door, he saw her cane and immediately spoke to she wouldn't panic at his silence. "Um, hi, ahm Cody, ahm a friend of Rogue's, is she home?"
Irene smiled to herself, she remembered the many times Rogue had described this young man to her and was glad that he saw passed her limitations. "Rogue went away for a while-." Irene was cut off by a tall, older version of Rogue (minus the Goth look). Her hair was pulled back in a bun with her white bangs combed to the side and her eyes were an exact replica, Cody's heart almost stopped at the severe resemblance.
"Actually, Ah can give you her number, perhaps she'd like ta hear from ya." Raven Darkholme's southern accent was as close to Rogue's as possible.
"Thank you ma'm." Cody smiled as he ran his long, tapered fingers through his hair.
Mystique gave him a piece of paper with Rogue's number at the X-Men institute and urged him to call her soon. When he left she shut the door and allowed her body to shift back to normal. She answered Irene's unspoken question.
"She needs someone, doesn't she?"
***
Rogue casually took the phone from Kitty; she wondered who her 'southern friend' could be. She had managed to keep away from everyone and had no friends down there, her curiosity overcame her wariness and she answered the call.
"Hello?" She said softly.
"Hey Rogue, its Cody. Ahm sorry for callin' but ah got your number from your mom and wanted to speak to ya." Rogue didn't bother to correct that Irene was her step mother not her real mother, but she was too busy dwelling on the fact that he had called her.
Cody had been the only one to show her any interest. She had often noticed him following her home, and while it should have been creepy she was flattered by his attention. "No, ah-ah don't mind Cody. So how are ya feelin'?" She immediately regretted the question.
"Pretty good, considerin' ah was in a coma." His chuckle eased some of her tension.
"So you're not mad?" Rogue's voice had a worried tome to it and Cody immediately reassured her.
"No ah should have been more careful since ah had been told 'bout your condition, now ah know what it is." The last phrase was whispered.
"So you know ahma mutant?" She said quietly.
"Yup."
"And that doesn't bother you?" Cody scoffed at the question.
"Heck no! Ah liked ya before ah knew." Silence immediately followed his confession. His voice was rapid and nervous when he said his farewell. "Uh, ah gotta go, but ah'll call ya soon. All right?"
"Okay bye," she whispered.
"Bye." Rogue slowly hung up the phone and stared at the wall, a small smile appeared on her face. She replayed their short conversation through out dinner and kept on smiling, weirding out the rest of the mutants.
Perhaps life wasn't so bad, after all.
***
Months later everyone was still surprised at how much Rogue could speak with the right person, she even rivaled Kitty. Scott was slightly jealous that her attention was taken away from him but he was glad that she wasn't as uptight as she used to be.
Cody called her every night at seven and they wouldn't hang up until Logan or his mother threatened their lives. The professor asked Rogue if she would like to invite Cody up to stay with them for a week or two, since he accepted their differences. Rogue took this to heart and they made plans for him to stay with them the next vacation.
When Cody entered the waiting area, Rogue stared at him in disbelief. His blond hair had grown longer and his face had matured, muscle taking place of the baby fat that he had the last time she saw him.
He was the one who initiated the long hug meanwhile Kitty and Kurt were giggling in the background, Rogue was careful not to come into contact with his skin.
"Ah have a surprise for you." Cody handed her a box. Rogue blushed and opened the plain package gingerly. Inside was a pair of long, blood red gloves.
"Thank you." She whispered. The quality was expensive and she treated it with care as she returned it to its place. She kissed him quickly on the cheek. He blushed in return.
"Ah thought you might want to wear it for dinner tonight." They both blushed crimson and entered the X Van. Logan watched them through the rear view mirror and smiled at their nervousness.
He was glad she found someone other than Slim to like, Scott was too stuck on Jean to make room for anyone else. He heard Kitty and Kurt's snickers and wondered why they were behaving so stupidly. He saw why when he glanced at the reflection in the back window and saw Cody and Rogue holding hands, Cody wearing a pair of brown leather gloves. His smile broadened into a grin.
That evening Rogue and Cody were seated in an old fashioned diner. He wore an olive button down shirt with black pants, while she wore a short black dress, her new gloves, and thin stockings to cover the skin of her legs.
They ate happily and spoke about how things were going for them. Cody casually mentioned coming to Bayville for college, he had an academic as well as a football scholarship and could afford to live out of state. He suggested Bayville University, which she had in turn told him she wanted to attend when she graduated the next year.
He spoke about his plans and went into detail on how much he missed her and wished he could see her everyday. He invited her to spend the second half of their two week vacation with his family, they knew about her mutation as well and didn't care.
Rogue readily agreed. Unfortunately someone was watching her every move and intended to take advantage of the opportunity.
***
Cody and Rogue waved good bye at the terminal, the others left without waiting to see them go into the plane. A few minutes later their heads were banged together and they were tossed over a huge man's shoulders. The people were frightened and made no attempt to help them.
Cody was the first to wake up, he crawled over to Rogue and cradled her head in his lap, while running his still gloved fingers through her hair. He tried to decipher where they were but all he saw was a slab in a stone wall and a wooden door.
As soon as he heard noise from the locks on the door he stood up ignoring the throbbing in his head. Suddenly the man who had hurt them at the airport walked in and without a thought kicked him in the stomach. Cody crumpled into the floor holding his belly.
Rogue came to at the noise and screamed when she saw the man viciously kick Cody again. The man turned to her and looked her dead in the eye and she saw the hatred emanating from them. "Let him go," she said. "You want me not him." She felt his hatred towards her, he was a human, and the worst kind, the discriminating kind.
"Do you think I'm really gonna let go of a mutie lover?" His laugh was dry. Rogue stood up and yanked off her glove.
"If you hurt him ah'll kill you." The man grabbed her hands with his gloved ones and banged her against the stone wall. Rogue's eyes refocused and she looked into a pair of jewel green eyes, his face was beautiful but his eyes venomous like a snake.
"I'm going to tell you something mutie. You touch me and I'll kill him and it won't be a short and pretty death, you got me?" He let her go and she fell to the floor.
"What do you want from me?" Rogue regretted her question as soon as his grin widened.
"Let's just say, that when I'm through with you, there will be one less mutie for me to worry about." He smiled, baring even white teeth and Rogue teared. When he left she crawled over to Cody and checked his body for injuries. He seemed to be in pain but was awake, just becoming alert. When the throbbing slightened he got up and cupped Rogue's face with his gloved palm.
"Ah won't let him hurt you Rogue, ah swear." When he heard the locks clicking on the door, he was prepared. He pushed Rogue behind him and put all of his strength into his shoulder. The minute the young man walked into the room, Cody tackled him to the floor and shut the door quietly. Then he punched him in the face. Rogue winced when she heard the crack of his nose being broken.
Cody grabbed his collar. "Now ah want ta know how to get out of here or my girl will suck the life out of your body ta find out."
"At-At the end of this h-hall is a stairway to the back door. The woods lead to-to the h-highway."
"If you're lyin' to me, ah'll crack you in half." Cody's voice was cold and menacing, the man feared for his life, mistaking him for a mutant.
"I'm not lying, I swear on my life." The man began to hyperventilate.
"Rogue." Cody simply said. She pulled off her glove again and touched the guys face, he fell back a few seconds later, alive but unconscious.
"He's tellin' the truth."
"Touch me Rogue, we need all the skills we can get."
"But ah don't wanna hurt you."
"I'll be fine, just touch me."
"Okay, concentrate." Rogue reached out her finger and touched his face, she felt a new sense of strength. It took Cody a minute to recover but he did it quickly.
He grabbed her gloved hand and peered into the hallway, no one was around save two guards by an exit. He pointed at the thinnest guard and she nodded in understanding. She pulled off her other glove, tucked it into her jeans pocket and automatically took position. She was crouching with one hand on the floor. Cody beside her doing the same thing.
The guards didn't know what hit them. The minute they fell to the floor, Rogue put both hands on their faces, taking their lives quickly, she took her hand away but left them worst off than the other guy, they didn't move in their coma state.
"There's a quicker way out of here Cody, no guards." She had gotten the information from the guard's memories.
"Lead the way." Cody smiled and followed her as she put the gloves on. They walked into a bathroom and she opened a door with an out of order sign on it. In the stall was a ladder that crept into a type of ventilation system.
Cody followed her through the narrow passage, somebody must like him up there because it was wide enough for his large frame to crawl through. When they reached the end they entered a wide room and Rogue stretched out the kinks in her body, Cody mimicking her moves.
"This way," Rogue said. She pushed open a metal door and they found themselves at the back of a building. They began to run, Rogue's borrowed stamina slowly fading away and reached a highway.
They managed to hitch a ride to the institute, bodies bruised and battered but still alive.
***
After they washed and Cody called his parents. They met Xavier in his office. He read their minds and sent out Logan and Ororo to scope the place they were taken to. Unfortunately when they returned, the place was empty save for a young mutant that they had taken home.
"I don't think that this will be repeated Rogue, so there is no need for you to be afraid, but I see clearly that Cody is in danger with us." Rogue looked over to Cody and feared that she had once again hurt someone she loved. "I think Cody that you should go home. You can leave tomorrow morning. We'll discuss what we're going to do at a later date. Right now you both should be exhausted and tired from the ordeal."
They left the room and Cody walked Rogue over to the room she shared with Kitty. She turned to him, her green eyes filled with tears.
"Ah am so sorry Cody. This was my fault. Ah should have known this wouldn't work out." Cody smiled and kissed her quickly on the lips, her very first one as well as his.
"Are you crazy? Ah love you. I admit it wasn't my ideal vacation but that doesn't mean we can't get around it. Don't worry; this doesn't change anything between us. And we'll work it out. Ah promise."
They separated; each going into their rooms and thought about each other. They would make it, love like this was too rare to be let go.
Cody stared out the window as he sat on the hospital bed. His best friend Ty had just left after reiterating the football game the night before. He wished he wasn't sitting there, wasting precious time but his thoughts lingered more on the Goth girl he had liked for most of the school year.
He remembered the first time he met her, he had just walked into the school that very first day and saw her sitting alone in the back of the class, the first day he had arrived. He sat beside her and smiled, but she immediately averted her eyes. He later found out from his new friend/team mate, Ty, that she had a skin condition that didn't allow her to touch people.
Cody hadn't cared about that. He had never been a physical person, wanting to save himself for someone special. He had gotten a lot of ribbing for his morals. But now he thought that maybe he found that someone. Most of the time he would attempt to initiate a conversation with her but her responses were clipped and short. Finally he had found an opportunity at the party. Ty had pushed him into it asking her to dance but it had been something he had wanted to do for a long time.
When Ty had shoved him into her, for a small moment his heart had stopped. Not because of what had happened a few seconds afterwards, but because of her warmth and the feel of her. Next all he felt was his life being sucked out of him. One minute he had been looking in her gray-green eyes and the next Ty had rushed over to him, asking him how he was doing. He was sitting in the same white room as he was now.
Now he found himself thinking about her, about Rogue. He was determined to find her again. He knew what she was, he had heard about them even before he had moved but he didn't care. He liked her anyway. He thought about the way her auburn hair would fall into her face, perhaps he had fallen in love with those impertinent white streaks before he did her. He remembered how she would lower her eyes in shyness when he spoke to her, and the day that he had asked to take her home, he remembered the way her eyes just looked up and shocked him with its pale and cool coloring.
The nurse who had taken his pulse gave him a look; he figured that his heart rate had gone up. He decided that as soon as he left he would see her. His thoughts were broken when his parents and little sister walked into the room. They occupied his time until the evening, where he fell asleep dreaming about his southern belle.
***
Cody managed to escape his house hold two weeks later when his mom went to take his little sister to a doctor's appointment and his dad went to work. They had been treating him like a baby since he had gone home. He had known where Rogue lived through the many times he had 'followed' her home.
He knocked on the door and waited for a response. A brunette with dark glasses answered the door, he saw her cane and immediately spoke to she wouldn't panic at his silence. "Um, hi, ahm Cody, ahm a friend of Rogue's, is she home?"
Irene smiled to herself, she remembered the many times Rogue had described this young man to her and was glad that he saw passed her limitations. "Rogue went away for a while-." Irene was cut off by a tall, older version of Rogue (minus the Goth look). Her hair was pulled back in a bun with her white bangs combed to the side and her eyes were an exact replica, Cody's heart almost stopped at the severe resemblance.
"Actually, Ah can give you her number, perhaps she'd like ta hear from ya." Raven Darkholme's southern accent was as close to Rogue's as possible.
"Thank you ma'm." Cody smiled as he ran his long, tapered fingers through his hair.
Mystique gave him a piece of paper with Rogue's number at the X-Men institute and urged him to call her soon. When he left she shut the door and allowed her body to shift back to normal. She answered Irene's unspoken question.
"She needs someone, doesn't she?"
***
Rogue casually took the phone from Kitty; she wondered who her 'southern friend' could be. She had managed to keep away from everyone and had no friends down there, her curiosity overcame her wariness and she answered the call.
"Hello?" She said softly.
"Hey Rogue, its Cody. Ahm sorry for callin' but ah got your number from your mom and wanted to speak to ya." Rogue didn't bother to correct that Irene was her step mother not her real mother, but she was too busy dwelling on the fact that he had called her.
Cody had been the only one to show her any interest. She had often noticed him following her home, and while it should have been creepy she was flattered by his attention. "No, ah-ah don't mind Cody. So how are ya feelin'?" She immediately regretted the question.
"Pretty good, considerin' ah was in a coma." His chuckle eased some of her tension.
"So you're not mad?" Rogue's voice had a worried tome to it and Cody immediately reassured her.
"No ah should have been more careful since ah had been told 'bout your condition, now ah know what it is." The last phrase was whispered.
"So you know ahma mutant?" She said quietly.
"Yup."
"And that doesn't bother you?" Cody scoffed at the question.
"Heck no! Ah liked ya before ah knew." Silence immediately followed his confession. His voice was rapid and nervous when he said his farewell. "Uh, ah gotta go, but ah'll call ya soon. All right?"
"Okay bye," she whispered.
"Bye." Rogue slowly hung up the phone and stared at the wall, a small smile appeared on her face. She replayed their short conversation through out dinner and kept on smiling, weirding out the rest of the mutants.
Perhaps life wasn't so bad, after all.
***
Months later everyone was still surprised at how much Rogue could speak with the right person, she even rivaled Kitty. Scott was slightly jealous that her attention was taken away from him but he was glad that she wasn't as uptight as she used to be.
Cody called her every night at seven and they wouldn't hang up until Logan or his mother threatened their lives. The professor asked Rogue if she would like to invite Cody up to stay with them for a week or two, since he accepted their differences. Rogue took this to heart and they made plans for him to stay with them the next vacation.
When Cody entered the waiting area, Rogue stared at him in disbelief. His blond hair had grown longer and his face had matured, muscle taking place of the baby fat that he had the last time she saw him.
He was the one who initiated the long hug meanwhile Kitty and Kurt were giggling in the background, Rogue was careful not to come into contact with his skin.
"Ah have a surprise for you." Cody handed her a box. Rogue blushed and opened the plain package gingerly. Inside was a pair of long, blood red gloves.
"Thank you." She whispered. The quality was expensive and she treated it with care as she returned it to its place. She kissed him quickly on the cheek. He blushed in return.
"Ah thought you might want to wear it for dinner tonight." They both blushed crimson and entered the X Van. Logan watched them through the rear view mirror and smiled at their nervousness.
He was glad she found someone other than Slim to like, Scott was too stuck on Jean to make room for anyone else. He heard Kitty and Kurt's snickers and wondered why they were behaving so stupidly. He saw why when he glanced at the reflection in the back window and saw Cody and Rogue holding hands, Cody wearing a pair of brown leather gloves. His smile broadened into a grin.
That evening Rogue and Cody were seated in an old fashioned diner. He wore an olive button down shirt with black pants, while she wore a short black dress, her new gloves, and thin stockings to cover the skin of her legs.
They ate happily and spoke about how things were going for them. Cody casually mentioned coming to Bayville for college, he had an academic as well as a football scholarship and could afford to live out of state. He suggested Bayville University, which she had in turn told him she wanted to attend when she graduated the next year.
He spoke about his plans and went into detail on how much he missed her and wished he could see her everyday. He invited her to spend the second half of their two week vacation with his family, they knew about her mutation as well and didn't care.
Rogue readily agreed. Unfortunately someone was watching her every move and intended to take advantage of the opportunity.
***
Cody and Rogue waved good bye at the terminal, the others left without waiting to see them go into the plane. A few minutes later their heads were banged together and they were tossed over a huge man's shoulders. The people were frightened and made no attempt to help them.
Cody was the first to wake up, he crawled over to Rogue and cradled her head in his lap, while running his still gloved fingers through her hair. He tried to decipher where they were but all he saw was a slab in a stone wall and a wooden door.
As soon as he heard noise from the locks on the door he stood up ignoring the throbbing in his head. Suddenly the man who had hurt them at the airport walked in and without a thought kicked him in the stomach. Cody crumpled into the floor holding his belly.
Rogue came to at the noise and screamed when she saw the man viciously kick Cody again. The man turned to her and looked her dead in the eye and she saw the hatred emanating from them. "Let him go," she said. "You want me not him." She felt his hatred towards her, he was a human, and the worst kind, the discriminating kind.
"Do you think I'm really gonna let go of a mutie lover?" His laugh was dry. Rogue stood up and yanked off her glove.
"If you hurt him ah'll kill you." The man grabbed her hands with his gloved ones and banged her against the stone wall. Rogue's eyes refocused and she looked into a pair of jewel green eyes, his face was beautiful but his eyes venomous like a snake.
"I'm going to tell you something mutie. You touch me and I'll kill him and it won't be a short and pretty death, you got me?" He let her go and she fell to the floor.
"What do you want from me?" Rogue regretted her question as soon as his grin widened.
"Let's just say, that when I'm through with you, there will be one less mutie for me to worry about." He smiled, baring even white teeth and Rogue teared. When he left she crawled over to Cody and checked his body for injuries. He seemed to be in pain but was awake, just becoming alert. When the throbbing slightened he got up and cupped Rogue's face with his gloved palm.
"Ah won't let him hurt you Rogue, ah swear." When he heard the locks clicking on the door, he was prepared. He pushed Rogue behind him and put all of his strength into his shoulder. The minute the young man walked into the room, Cody tackled him to the floor and shut the door quietly. Then he punched him in the face. Rogue winced when she heard the crack of his nose being broken.
Cody grabbed his collar. "Now ah want ta know how to get out of here or my girl will suck the life out of your body ta find out."
"At-At the end of this h-hall is a stairway to the back door. The woods lead to-to the h-highway."
"If you're lyin' to me, ah'll crack you in half." Cody's voice was cold and menacing, the man feared for his life, mistaking him for a mutant.
"I'm not lying, I swear on my life." The man began to hyperventilate.
"Rogue." Cody simply said. She pulled off her glove again and touched the guys face, he fell back a few seconds later, alive but unconscious.
"He's tellin' the truth."
"Touch me Rogue, we need all the skills we can get."
"But ah don't wanna hurt you."
"I'll be fine, just touch me."
"Okay, concentrate." Rogue reached out her finger and touched his face, she felt a new sense of strength. It took Cody a minute to recover but he did it quickly.
He grabbed her gloved hand and peered into the hallway, no one was around save two guards by an exit. He pointed at the thinnest guard and she nodded in understanding. She pulled off her other glove, tucked it into her jeans pocket and automatically took position. She was crouching with one hand on the floor. Cody beside her doing the same thing.
The guards didn't know what hit them. The minute they fell to the floor, Rogue put both hands on their faces, taking their lives quickly, she took her hand away but left them worst off than the other guy, they didn't move in their coma state.
"There's a quicker way out of here Cody, no guards." She had gotten the information from the guard's memories.
"Lead the way." Cody smiled and followed her as she put the gloves on. They walked into a bathroom and she opened a door with an out of order sign on it. In the stall was a ladder that crept into a type of ventilation system.
Cody followed her through the narrow passage, somebody must like him up there because it was wide enough for his large frame to crawl through. When they reached the end they entered a wide room and Rogue stretched out the kinks in her body, Cody mimicking her moves.
"This way," Rogue said. She pushed open a metal door and they found themselves at the back of a building. They began to run, Rogue's borrowed stamina slowly fading away and reached a highway.
They managed to hitch a ride to the institute, bodies bruised and battered but still alive.
***
After they washed and Cody called his parents. They met Xavier in his office. He read their minds and sent out Logan and Ororo to scope the place they were taken to. Unfortunately when they returned, the place was empty save for a young mutant that they had taken home.
"I don't think that this will be repeated Rogue, so there is no need for you to be afraid, but I see clearly that Cody is in danger with us." Rogue looked over to Cody and feared that she had once again hurt someone she loved. "I think Cody that you should go home. You can leave tomorrow morning. We'll discuss what we're going to do at a later date. Right now you both should be exhausted and tired from the ordeal."
They left the room and Cody walked Rogue over to the room she shared with Kitty. She turned to him, her green eyes filled with tears.
"Ah am so sorry Cody. This was my fault. Ah should have known this wouldn't work out." Cody smiled and kissed her quickly on the lips, her very first one as well as his.
"Are you crazy? Ah love you. I admit it wasn't my ideal vacation but that doesn't mean we can't get around it. Don't worry; this doesn't change anything between us. And we'll work it out. Ah promise."
They separated; each going into their rooms and thought about each other. They would make it, love like this was too rare to be let go.