NOTE: I really enjoyed writing this chapter, maybe it's because of my
closet obsession with Gambit, who knows..Thanks to all my faithful Romy
reviewers, this chapter is for you. I know there are so many authors who
can do Rogue/Gambit bonding so much better than I can, so please review and
tell me what you think! I welcome any suggestions on how to make it better,
etc. Thanks a bunch to all those have reviewed already!
"Hey Rogue, where's Remy? We're late for school," Jean asked her as she slid into the passenger seat beside Scott, the next morning.
Rogue scowled. "What makes you think ~I ~ would know where Trench-coat Boy is? I'm not his keeper."
"Well, I just thought yesterday you seemed-,..nothing," Jean broke off innocently, as she exchanged a covert grin with Scott. Rogue bristled. What on ~earth~ was that supposed to mean? Yesterday, when she had left Kitty to go change clothes in the hallway bathroom, she had unluckily come across Jean and Scott. Rogue grimaced, remembering the conversation. They had taken one look at her torn skirt and had of course asked her what happened. Being as angry as she was, Rogue could only remember blurting out that it was Remy's fault. And the rest was history. Jean and Scott had let her go on her way, but not before Rogue heard them laughing and whispering something about "Rogue falling under the Cajun spell." As if!, Rogue thought, irritated that her cheeks were already flushing with color at the memory. Knowing her friends as well she did, they'd probably think it meant something. Hmph.
Out loud Rogue said, "Ah don't know where he is. Don't know why everyone keeps bothering me about him," glaring defiantly at her snickering friends.
"Calm down, Roguey, what with your thing for guys in shades and all, we just thought you'd pay a little special attention to Remy," Kitty said innocently, as Jubilee cracked up in the back seat. Rogue's face flared up as she shot a deadly glare in Kitty's direction. Thankfully, Scott had been too busy driving to notice the comment, and even if he had, Rogue wondered if he would even get it.
"Ha ha, laugh it up. Atleast ~I~ don't have a thing for silver-haired loudmouths," Rogue whispered, as Kitty flushed a deep pink.
"Rogue, you promised!" Kitty hissed angrily, as Jubilee's eyes widened.
"What? You're ~DATING~ him?!" Jubilee asked, her mouth open. Scott lifted an eyebrow.
"What's going on back there?" Scott asked, glancing behind him.
"Nothing!" Kitty and Rogue yelled simultaneously from the back seat. Scott shook his head and the ride continued in relative silence.
"Okay, we're here. Now remember, if you want a ride home, be here at 3:00 sharp," Scott told everyone, sliding out of the car and locking it. "And Rogue, wait up a second."
Rogue turned to him, motioning with her eyes to Kitty and Jubilee to go on without her. They winked at her and left. Rogue rolled her eyes and took a deep breath as Scott turned to her. "Yeah, um, what's up Scott?" Rogue asked, trying not to sound nervous.
"I just wanted to say thanks again for taking care of the decorating. Sorry I couldn't be there to finish it, but hopefully Remy was a help. How far did you guys get anyway?" Scott asked, shifting his backpack onto his right shoulder.
"Uh.actually, not that far. We got about two models done," Rogue admitted.
"Just two?" Scott asked a little incredulously.
"They weren't that easy to make. We weren't slacking off either, Remy and I were busy," Rogue said defensively, wondering why she was even sticking up for the smart-mouth Cajun. Uh oh, he might think...too late. Scott smiled a little, his eyebrows elevating another notch.
"So it would seem," Scott said, his voice faintly amused. Rouge stared at him. Now even the responsible, serious leader of the X-men was teasing her? What was the world coming to?
"Look, it's not like that-," Rogue began hotly, but broke off when she saw Scott was looking directly behind her, his face grim. She followed his gaze to see Jean across the lawn from them, laughing with Duncan Matthews. Rogue sighed despondently, as she waited for Scott to say something. It took several moments before he turned his gaze back to her, his face drawn in a distracted, glum expression.
"Ah've got to get to class, Scott. Bye," Rogue said finally.
"Yeah, seeya Rogue," Scott said in a preoccupied voice, his gaze returning to Jean and Duncan.
Rogue turned to go, wondering why she bothered at all. The more she tried to engage Scott's interest, the more oblivious he seemed to her. The sound of the final bell ringing interrupted her thoughts. "Great, ah'm late!" Rogue exclaimed, and in her hurry tripped on her perpetually untied shoelaces. "Whoah!"
She landed on her backside on the wet-grass, her hair falling into her eyes. The roar of a motorcycle caught Rogue's attention and she turned to see Remy pulling into the parking lot on a beautiful black and silver Harley Davidson. "Great, just great. Ah fall on my butt, and who shows up but Frenchy! Honestly, I don't even know why ah'm surprised anymore," Rogue muttered, as she watched him gracefully get off the bike. Remy's black-red eyes flickered over her sprawled form with amusement. In two strides, he'd crossed the lawn and extended a hand down to her.
"Seems you be gettin' in these situations a lot, chére," Remy remarked easily, revealing a charming dimple. Rogue felt her heart flutter rapidly at the sight of it. For the first time, she realized just how tall and muscled he was. The form-fitting black shirt covered his lean waist and the flowing brown trench coat only seemed to emphasize his natural height and agility. Shaking herself out of her embarrassing reverie, Rogue took his firm grasp and avoided his eyes studiously, as she picked up her things.
"Thanks," Rogue muttered, as Remy handed her a stray book that had fallen out of her backpack. Her hands tingled when his gloved fingers touched hers gently.
"Don' mention it," Remy responded, watching her face with an indecipherable expression. Suddenly feeling overwhelmed and awkward, Rogue broke the contact, and ran to class without a backward glance.
When she slid into her seat, a glance at the clock told her she was already 10 minutes late to French. Madame Bosqué gave her a stern glance and Rogue braced herself for the inevitable lecture.
"Mademoiselle Rogue, you must learn ze art of timeliness. It is not good to arrive late..," Madame Bosqué broke off, her eyes squinting. Rogue groaned as she saw Remy saunter in, his hair tousled appealingly. "Unless..of course you were showing the new student around. Remy LeBeau, isn't it?" Madame Bosque asked, beaming at Remy widely.
It's like he's everywhere, Rogue thought, not sure whether to be irritated at him or thankful that he saved her from one of Madame Bosqué famous sermons. Whenever she was around him, confusion seemed to be the most common emotion she felt. That, and.. other emotions that Rogue didn't even want to think about.
Rogue watched, annoyed at the way all the girls collectively sighed as Remy strode confidently to the seat assigned him. It was all the way on the other side of the room. Good, now he can't bother me, Rogue thought, trying not to look in his direction. Remy's eyes caught hers suddenly and he smiled devilishly. If he only weren't so damn handsome..Get a grip, Rogue chided herself as she took out her French book absently. Why was he even in this class? Rogue thought, scowling. Probably just to annoy me, Rogue mused.
The class hour progressed slowly as Madame Bosque forced them all into groups. Rogue found herself seated in the group right next to Remy's.
"So you came here from New Orleans? That is soooo cool," Sharon Fleming said dreamily, as she leaned on Remy's arm in a way that made Rogue clench her teeth. Sharon was one of the most annoying girls at Bayville, being both catty and obnoxious by turns. Her and her friends had spent the better part of the year making fun of Rogue, snidely passing remarks about her strange appearance. Even when she had abandoned her goth make-up, Sharon hadn't stopped, taking pleasure out of hinting about Rogue's parentage. Today was no exception, Rogue thought grimly, as she saw Sharon's eyes narrow at her. "Where are your gloves today, Rogue? I thought you had like, 80 pairs or something," Sharon called to her, her voice ringing with derision. Her friends laughed with her.
Rogue tried to stifle her gasp as she looked down at her bare hands. How could she have forgotten to put them on this morning?! Swallowing down her panic, Rogue felt her face heat up at the laughter. She saw Sharon whisper something to her friend behind her hand. Whatever it was had the whole group laughing uproariously. Rogue felt outrage climb in her chest. She didn't even mind their laughter anymore; it was the whispering she couldn't take. If they have something to say to me, why don't they just say it, Rogue thought fiercely, her hands tremulous. She just didn't understand how she could have overlooked putting on her gloves. She ~always~ remembered.
"Are, you, like, a leper or something?" Sharon called, her blue eyes taunting. Before Rogue could retort, Remy leaned over Sharon's desk and when she wasn't looking, charged up a soda can sitting on her desk. Rogue's mouth fell open as Remy sat back in his chair calmly as the can exploded, spraying the stunned Sharon with a shower of Coke. "Ugh! It's all OVER me!" Sharon gasped, as her friends backed away with little screams, watching the destroyed pieces of the can fall to the floor.
Remy caught Rogue's eye and winked. Rogue stared into his eyes, wanting to laugh and yet suddenly speechless. She turned away as Madame Bosque rushed to calm the commotion that Sharon had created. Why did he do that for me? Rogue thought dazed, closing her eyes. The bell rang then and Rogue left, suddenly feeling like she had to get out or she would go insane.
She took the stairs two at a time, and headed straight for the parking lot. Why can't ah just be ~normal~? Rogue thought for the hundredth time. She wasn't even normal for a mutant, which made her twice the loner she already was. Rogue glanced determinedly at the wire fencing around the school and felt with her hands for a tear.
"Goin' somewhere, chére?"
Rogue didn't even need to turn around to see whom the sexy drawl belonged to. "Can't ah get just ten minutes of peace without you checking up on me?" Rogue demanded, whirling to face him. Remy smirked with a corner of his mouth, his eyes never leaving her face.
"I'm not checkin' on you, p'tite," Remy disagreed smoothly.
"Oh, then what would you call it?" Rogue challenged, one hand still on the fence.
"You looked a bit upset, so dis Cajun thought he might' be of some help," Remy said quietly, and Rogue felt the remnants of her frustration for him die. He looked so sincere standing there, a lone and formidable figure, who for some reason cared enough to follow her out here.
"Can you take me away from this prison?" Rogue asked him in a low voice, raising her green eyes to meet his.
"I gon' do my best to try, chére," Remy said gently, after a moment. He stared at her a second, and strode silently to his bike. It roared to life, and he beckoned her with one hand. Something in his warm, searching gaze made her believe him. Rogue looked tentatively at him for another second, and wordlessly got on.
"Hey Rogue, where's Remy? We're late for school," Jean asked her as she slid into the passenger seat beside Scott, the next morning.
Rogue scowled. "What makes you think ~I ~ would know where Trench-coat Boy is? I'm not his keeper."
"Well, I just thought yesterday you seemed-,..nothing," Jean broke off innocently, as she exchanged a covert grin with Scott. Rogue bristled. What on ~earth~ was that supposed to mean? Yesterday, when she had left Kitty to go change clothes in the hallway bathroom, she had unluckily come across Jean and Scott. Rogue grimaced, remembering the conversation. They had taken one look at her torn skirt and had of course asked her what happened. Being as angry as she was, Rogue could only remember blurting out that it was Remy's fault. And the rest was history. Jean and Scott had let her go on her way, but not before Rogue heard them laughing and whispering something about "Rogue falling under the Cajun spell." As if!, Rogue thought, irritated that her cheeks were already flushing with color at the memory. Knowing her friends as well she did, they'd probably think it meant something. Hmph.
Out loud Rogue said, "Ah don't know where he is. Don't know why everyone keeps bothering me about him," glaring defiantly at her snickering friends.
"Calm down, Roguey, what with your thing for guys in shades and all, we just thought you'd pay a little special attention to Remy," Kitty said innocently, as Jubilee cracked up in the back seat. Rogue's face flared up as she shot a deadly glare in Kitty's direction. Thankfully, Scott had been too busy driving to notice the comment, and even if he had, Rogue wondered if he would even get it.
"Ha ha, laugh it up. Atleast ~I~ don't have a thing for silver-haired loudmouths," Rogue whispered, as Kitty flushed a deep pink.
"Rogue, you promised!" Kitty hissed angrily, as Jubilee's eyes widened.
"What? You're ~DATING~ him?!" Jubilee asked, her mouth open. Scott lifted an eyebrow.
"What's going on back there?" Scott asked, glancing behind him.
"Nothing!" Kitty and Rogue yelled simultaneously from the back seat. Scott shook his head and the ride continued in relative silence.
"Okay, we're here. Now remember, if you want a ride home, be here at 3:00 sharp," Scott told everyone, sliding out of the car and locking it. "And Rogue, wait up a second."
Rogue turned to him, motioning with her eyes to Kitty and Jubilee to go on without her. They winked at her and left. Rogue rolled her eyes and took a deep breath as Scott turned to her. "Yeah, um, what's up Scott?" Rogue asked, trying not to sound nervous.
"I just wanted to say thanks again for taking care of the decorating. Sorry I couldn't be there to finish it, but hopefully Remy was a help. How far did you guys get anyway?" Scott asked, shifting his backpack onto his right shoulder.
"Uh.actually, not that far. We got about two models done," Rogue admitted.
"Just two?" Scott asked a little incredulously.
"They weren't that easy to make. We weren't slacking off either, Remy and I were busy," Rogue said defensively, wondering why she was even sticking up for the smart-mouth Cajun. Uh oh, he might think...too late. Scott smiled a little, his eyebrows elevating another notch.
"So it would seem," Scott said, his voice faintly amused. Rouge stared at him. Now even the responsible, serious leader of the X-men was teasing her? What was the world coming to?
"Look, it's not like that-," Rogue began hotly, but broke off when she saw Scott was looking directly behind her, his face grim. She followed his gaze to see Jean across the lawn from them, laughing with Duncan Matthews. Rogue sighed despondently, as she waited for Scott to say something. It took several moments before he turned his gaze back to her, his face drawn in a distracted, glum expression.
"Ah've got to get to class, Scott. Bye," Rogue said finally.
"Yeah, seeya Rogue," Scott said in a preoccupied voice, his gaze returning to Jean and Duncan.
Rogue turned to go, wondering why she bothered at all. The more she tried to engage Scott's interest, the more oblivious he seemed to her. The sound of the final bell ringing interrupted her thoughts. "Great, ah'm late!" Rogue exclaimed, and in her hurry tripped on her perpetually untied shoelaces. "Whoah!"
She landed on her backside on the wet-grass, her hair falling into her eyes. The roar of a motorcycle caught Rogue's attention and she turned to see Remy pulling into the parking lot on a beautiful black and silver Harley Davidson. "Great, just great. Ah fall on my butt, and who shows up but Frenchy! Honestly, I don't even know why ah'm surprised anymore," Rogue muttered, as she watched him gracefully get off the bike. Remy's black-red eyes flickered over her sprawled form with amusement. In two strides, he'd crossed the lawn and extended a hand down to her.
"Seems you be gettin' in these situations a lot, chére," Remy remarked easily, revealing a charming dimple. Rogue felt her heart flutter rapidly at the sight of it. For the first time, she realized just how tall and muscled he was. The form-fitting black shirt covered his lean waist and the flowing brown trench coat only seemed to emphasize his natural height and agility. Shaking herself out of her embarrassing reverie, Rogue took his firm grasp and avoided his eyes studiously, as she picked up her things.
"Thanks," Rogue muttered, as Remy handed her a stray book that had fallen out of her backpack. Her hands tingled when his gloved fingers touched hers gently.
"Don' mention it," Remy responded, watching her face with an indecipherable expression. Suddenly feeling overwhelmed and awkward, Rogue broke the contact, and ran to class without a backward glance.
When she slid into her seat, a glance at the clock told her she was already 10 minutes late to French. Madame Bosqué gave her a stern glance and Rogue braced herself for the inevitable lecture.
"Mademoiselle Rogue, you must learn ze art of timeliness. It is not good to arrive late..," Madame Bosqué broke off, her eyes squinting. Rogue groaned as she saw Remy saunter in, his hair tousled appealingly. "Unless..of course you were showing the new student around. Remy LeBeau, isn't it?" Madame Bosque asked, beaming at Remy widely.
It's like he's everywhere, Rogue thought, not sure whether to be irritated at him or thankful that he saved her from one of Madame Bosqué famous sermons. Whenever she was around him, confusion seemed to be the most common emotion she felt. That, and.. other emotions that Rogue didn't even want to think about.
Rogue watched, annoyed at the way all the girls collectively sighed as Remy strode confidently to the seat assigned him. It was all the way on the other side of the room. Good, now he can't bother me, Rogue thought, trying not to look in his direction. Remy's eyes caught hers suddenly and he smiled devilishly. If he only weren't so damn handsome..Get a grip, Rogue chided herself as she took out her French book absently. Why was he even in this class? Rogue thought, scowling. Probably just to annoy me, Rogue mused.
The class hour progressed slowly as Madame Bosque forced them all into groups. Rogue found herself seated in the group right next to Remy's.
"So you came here from New Orleans? That is soooo cool," Sharon Fleming said dreamily, as she leaned on Remy's arm in a way that made Rogue clench her teeth. Sharon was one of the most annoying girls at Bayville, being both catty and obnoxious by turns. Her and her friends had spent the better part of the year making fun of Rogue, snidely passing remarks about her strange appearance. Even when she had abandoned her goth make-up, Sharon hadn't stopped, taking pleasure out of hinting about Rogue's parentage. Today was no exception, Rogue thought grimly, as she saw Sharon's eyes narrow at her. "Where are your gloves today, Rogue? I thought you had like, 80 pairs or something," Sharon called to her, her voice ringing with derision. Her friends laughed with her.
Rogue tried to stifle her gasp as she looked down at her bare hands. How could she have forgotten to put them on this morning?! Swallowing down her panic, Rogue felt her face heat up at the laughter. She saw Sharon whisper something to her friend behind her hand. Whatever it was had the whole group laughing uproariously. Rogue felt outrage climb in her chest. She didn't even mind their laughter anymore; it was the whispering she couldn't take. If they have something to say to me, why don't they just say it, Rogue thought fiercely, her hands tremulous. She just didn't understand how she could have overlooked putting on her gloves. She ~always~ remembered.
"Are, you, like, a leper or something?" Sharon called, her blue eyes taunting. Before Rogue could retort, Remy leaned over Sharon's desk and when she wasn't looking, charged up a soda can sitting on her desk. Rogue's mouth fell open as Remy sat back in his chair calmly as the can exploded, spraying the stunned Sharon with a shower of Coke. "Ugh! It's all OVER me!" Sharon gasped, as her friends backed away with little screams, watching the destroyed pieces of the can fall to the floor.
Remy caught Rogue's eye and winked. Rogue stared into his eyes, wanting to laugh and yet suddenly speechless. She turned away as Madame Bosque rushed to calm the commotion that Sharon had created. Why did he do that for me? Rogue thought dazed, closing her eyes. The bell rang then and Rogue left, suddenly feeling like she had to get out or she would go insane.
She took the stairs two at a time, and headed straight for the parking lot. Why can't ah just be ~normal~? Rogue thought for the hundredth time. She wasn't even normal for a mutant, which made her twice the loner she already was. Rogue glanced determinedly at the wire fencing around the school and felt with her hands for a tear.
"Goin' somewhere, chére?"
Rogue didn't even need to turn around to see whom the sexy drawl belonged to. "Can't ah get just ten minutes of peace without you checking up on me?" Rogue demanded, whirling to face him. Remy smirked with a corner of his mouth, his eyes never leaving her face.
"I'm not checkin' on you, p'tite," Remy disagreed smoothly.
"Oh, then what would you call it?" Rogue challenged, one hand still on the fence.
"You looked a bit upset, so dis Cajun thought he might' be of some help," Remy said quietly, and Rogue felt the remnants of her frustration for him die. He looked so sincere standing there, a lone and formidable figure, who for some reason cared enough to follow her out here.
"Can you take me away from this prison?" Rogue asked him in a low voice, raising her green eyes to meet his.
"I gon' do my best to try, chére," Remy said gently, after a moment. He stared at her a second, and strode silently to his bike. It roared to life, and he beckoned her with one hand. Something in his warm, searching gaze made her believe him. Rogue looked tentatively at him for another second, and wordlessly got on.