Flag on the Play
Part VII
A/N: Update! One more chapter to go!
Thank you to all that have read and reviewed! No Beta! Hopefully I caught the glaring mistakes but if you see one, let me know!
Logan turned and looked at Ororo. She sat stunned. Jaw gaping and wide eyed. "Oh my god!" she finally shouted. This shout was a shrieking difference from her earlier cries of passion. She continued her mantra repeating it three or four times before finally leaping from the bed and running into the bathroom slamming the door.
Ororo sat on the toilet and tried her best to clean herself up. Her mind raced frantically as she mumbled to herself, "This can't be happening! Emma has one night stands all the time but nooooo…I do it and this happens. Oh my god, oh my god," she continued as she wiped at herself frantically.
Logan could hear her mutterings but couldn't make out what she was saying. He was sure whatever it could be wasn't the same as his thoughts. At first he was a bit freaked out, for about five seconds, then he realized the idea of her being knocked up wasn't such a terrible thought. He stood and stepped back into his sweats then sat back down on the bed and waited.
She was a pain in the ass at first glance but last night after explaining how she'd been duped into making the trip, the suspicious loss of her luggage, and her dick athlete ex-boyfriend he understood her bad attitude and reluctance. It also didn't hurt that she'd confessed her love of cars…especially his car.
On top of all that, she was beautiful, as well as sexy as hell, smart, driven, quick witted, even though initially she'd used that wit to tear him a new one but most importantly she wasn't a gold digger. Ororo could be the woman he'd been searching for.
However…she was adamant that she did not want to be involved with another athlete. He was just a quick lay of convenience. If he hadn't have wanted her so bad he would have felt used. Now he just felt somewhat insulted. She'd been in the bathroom at least five minutes making sounds of despair before she turned on the shower. Probably trying to scrub every bit of him off.
Why was the idea of having his baby so repulsive to her? He was a good guy. Loved his mother. Worked hard. Had more money that he knew what to do with. He wasn't an Einstein but he wasn't an idiot either. Damn it! He was a catch! Although, he had to admit, he'd been a bit of a jerk in the beginning too. But they'd worked that out. Hell, she liked him enough to sleep with him…even have sex with him, absolutely amazing sex with him.
Logan sighed and looked at the small garbage bin that he'd discarded the broken rubber into. Maybe it was a sign. He was ready to settle down. A kid would definitely be a great reason to do so. Now he'd have to convince her of that.
Ororo walked out of the bathroom wearing the sweatpants she'd left in there not even thirty minutes ago. She wore a towel over her breast and searched for the shirt that was buried somewhere in tangle of covers of the bed. She didn't look at him. She couldn't. She was too embarrassed. Usually every minute detail of her life was planned. Her daily journal was consistently filled from 6am until it was time for her to eat dinner. Never had she behaved so irrationally. Now look where it had gotten her.
She'd read somewhere that women made up their mind if they were going to sleep with a guy within the first 30 seconds of meeting him. In their case, she knew she hated his guts in less time than that. Why didn't she go with her instincts?
"'Roro? Y' all right, darlin?" he asked as he watched her look for the shirt. He stood finding it easily and handed it to her.
"Don't call me that," she responded finally looking at him and the proffered article.
"We're back to that now?"
"We never left," she said as she took the shirt from him and walked back into the bathroom.
He followed and stood in the door watching as she turned her back to him and changed into the shirt. "What the fuck? Now yer pissed at me? It broke! It happens!"
She turned and walked the few feet and stood in front of him. "Move."
"Don't be pissed with me."
"I'm not…yet."
He moved and let her pass. "If yer scared you could be pregnant, don't be. I'd be there for you and the baby."
She looked at him like he was speaking a foreign language that she had no knowledge of. "First of all, I don't know you. Having sex with a man I don't know is bad enough but having a baby with him is absolutely out of the question." He opened his mouth to respond but was cut off by her continued tirade, "Second of all, I'm not scared. It took me a minute to think but I have the situation under control," she took a cleansing breath. "I need you to take me to the drugstore."
"For what?" he asked perplexed at her request.
"So I can get a Morning After pill. That will take care of this…nightmare."
Logan stared blankly at her. He'd heard about this pill. Remy had mentioned on more than one occasion about the pill had saving his ass multiple times after careless random hook-ups. His friend was probably on first name basis with his pharmacist. "I don't think I want to do that," Logan said slowly.
Ororo tilted her head at him. He really was talking crazy now. "What do you mean? This isn't about you!"
"Like hell it ain't!" he quickly countered. "Just because you don't want a kid doesn't mean I don't want one!"
"So now you want to be my "Baby Daddy"? She asked quoting the words he used from the previous night. "No thank you. Go knock someone else up! When I decide I want to have a baby I'll be married and ready. I'm neither of those two!"
Logan exhaled a breath of exasperation while he rubbed his hand over the back of his neck. "Ro, sometimes these things can't be planned."
She shook her head. "That may be the case for you but not for me."
"What if ya never get married? Huh? What if no man can ever manage to pull ya off of that high ass horse of yers?"
"I've thought about that," she said softly, some of her irritation leaving her upon hearing his words. "If I'm destined to be single then I'd be willing to have a child on my own. But I'm only twenty-eight. I have time." Logan didn't say anything. He just looked at her and shook his head. "Can you please take me to the pharmacy?"
Logan leaned on the driver's side of his car smoking a cigar as he watched her exit the automatic double doors of the store. He drew the smoke into his lungs and held it before letting it out. Even in his oversized clothes and flip-flops she was a beauty.
He rounded the car and opened the door for her. They didn't speak. Little had been said since their conversation in his bedroom. He quickly walked around and slid inside. He hesitated starting the engine. There was more he wanted to say but didn't know where to start. "You hungry?" he asked deciding to take a safe route.
She shook her head and clutched the plastic bag containing her tiny dress and Jean's shoes to her, as well as the small brown paper bag Logan assumed the pharmacist had given to her. "I'd like to go back to my hotel now."
He started the engine and began to back out of the parking spot then suddenly stopped. Ororo looked at him questioningly.
"Did'ya take it yet?" He had to know.
She shook her head before she spoke. "No…the pharmacist said I had five days to do so."
Logan exhaled, somewhat relieved. "Good." He started out of the spot again and they rode in silence. Logan pulled underneath the canopy in front of the hotel. He waved the valet off when he approached.
Ororo turned to him and stuck out her hand. "It was nice meeting you, Logan. I appreciate all your help last night…and this morning. Sorry to have been such an inconvenience to you."
Logan looked down at her outstretched hand and back into the cool depths of her blue eyes. He took her hand and held it. He couldn't let this opportunity pass. "'Roro…I know this ain't the way yer plan was supposed to go but I just want ya to know, I like ya." Ororo scoffed and opened her mouth to reply but was quickly shut down, "Wait a minute and listen, woman. Just listen." He was surprised to see her mouth snap shut. "I know we're far from love but I do like ya. I enjoyed yer company." She harrumphed and rolled her eyes. "Not just the sex, darlin'. I liked talking to ya. I liked arguing with'ya." He turned in his seat to face her fully. "I think ya like me too. If ya didn't just a little we wouldn't be sitting here having this conversation."
"What are you getting at, Logan?" she asked as she finally looked at him directly.
"Hell, I don't know, Ro. I'm not as thought out as you are but this ain't my idea of perfect either. But maybe fate has stepped in. Ya know…giving us a tie that binds. I'm asking ya, Ro, not to take that pill."
She snatched her hand away from him. "You just don't get it do you?" she said as she opened the car door and stepped out. Leaning back into the car she said, "I have a life, a career…I'm not ready for this. Besides…I don't date athletes and I definitely don't have their babies." She shut the door and walked inside the hotel.
Emma and Anna were still asleep, one in each of the queen size beds. Ororo snorted a sound of disgust. They probably had a late night. She hoped they had a good time… at her expense. Ororo flopped down on the couch. She was tired and ready to go home.
"Hey, girl," a sleepy voice said. "You just gettin' in?"
"No thanks to you and your friend," Ororo shot back. "I'm going back to New York today. I've had enough of this place."
Anna sat up and stretched her limbs. "Was he that bad?" she asked then suddenly remembered why her friend ended up staying with him the whole night. "Suga, how's yo' foot?"
"It's fine. I'm fine. He's fine. Everything is fine," Ororo said as she stood. She took her bags and her suitcase that had conveniently appeared into the bathroom and closed the door.
She pulled out some fresh clothes to travel in, gray slacks, white blouse, and sensible black shoes. After putting them on she sighed out her relief. She quickly twisted her hair into a ponytail then pinned it up with a few of the hairpins laying on the vanity. She felt back to her normal self. Plain old Ororo.
Another sigh. She grabbed the small brown paper bag from the pharmacy and pulled out the packet. She looked at the two tiny pills. The pharmacist advised her that she could take both at the same time or take one then the other twelve hours afterwards.
She opened one of the hotel's provided plastic encased cups and filled it with water from the tap.
Logan slammed his helmet on the ground as he walked off the field. "God damn it, Logan! What the fuck is wrong with you?" Scott shouted then kicked the offensive lineman's helmet to the sideline behind him.
"Fuck you, asshole!" Logan shouted as he brushed past his teammates and the coaches that were also yelling Scott's same sentiments. It was the third quarter of their first playoff game and Logan had been ejected for unnecessary roughness. A hard call when one is playing offense. However a helmet to the back of an opposing player with get that call every time.
During practice he'd been knocking the shit out of anyone who dared to get in his way. He'd been a ball of anger since Ororo slammed his car door. He was pissed that he couldn't make her listen, couldn't make her stay. Hell, he didn't even get her phone number and couldn't recall if she'd ever said her last name.
Logan banged his fist against the side of the first set of lockers he passed as he entered the locker room leaving a small dent in its armor. Fortunately the locker room was empty for now. He'd have a minute alone then try to escape the frenzy of reporters that was sure to be bursting through the door at first opportunity.
He could probably get it from Remy. Remy and the southern bell seemed to really have hit it off which was surprising to everyone. She wasn't charmed by his Casanova moves forcing him to get to know her. Apparently he liked what he'd learned.
Logan paced back and forth before ripping off his jersey and pulling off the pads. He headed for the shower as soon as all the gear was gone. He passed a mirror and glimpsed his nude body. He didn't want to look at himself. Without all the padding, the uniform, the helmet, without all the protection, he was just plain old Logan. A regular man that felt the loss of something he didn't know he wanted. And not even having the possibility hurt like hell.
The alarm clock went off at 6am as it did everyday. She didn't have to be at work until 9am. At least that's what time she and Emma had decided to start their workday conference call. They sometimes met at their office space, which was only open by appointment only. Otherwise they telecommuted with clients and worked from their homes.
Ororo sat at her small kitchen table sipping on a cup of decaffeinated Green tea. She tried to study the words on the paperwork in front of her but just couldn't seem to focus. Her mind kept wondering back to New Orleans. It was all she could think of for the last week.
Not only that, the television was beckoning for her attention. Anna had mentioned the Saints game would be on last night. Ororo surely knew that ESPN would be replaying clips for the game. It couldn't hurt to take a peek. Maybe it would settle her mind so that she could concentrate. That was her reasoning to herself. She knew she it wouldn't help.
She ventured to the couch and grabbed the remote as she sat. She had to enter the numbers for the TV Guide Channel. She had no clue where to find the sports channel. It seemed to take forever for the screen to scroll through the channel she was looking for.
Ororo listened to the sports announcers banter back and forth. They teased her with promises of covering the playoff games that occurred over the weekend only to return to tennis, then ladies golf, and snowboarding after the commercial breaks. Sitting and waiting on something she couldn't fast forward was wasting her time. The papers she couldn't focus on became a welcomed distraction from what was her initial distraction.
She flipped through the papers absorbing the information when finally the sounds of helmets clashing caught her attention. The lead story was coverage of the Saints and Logan's meltdown on the field. Ororo startled upon seeing the hit he'd inflicted on the unsuspecting opponent. It was even more disturbing when slowed down and analyzed.
Ororo found herself standing in front of the television watching Logan walk off the field. The camera shook as he passed. He'd obviously taken out his frustrations on it and the cameraman emphasizing his frustration with both with a barrage of curses.
Scott along with the head coach spoke at the new conference following the team's win. Of course the theme of the Q&A session focused on Logan's antics. The coach looked at Scott to answer. All the quarterback would offer was that his teammate seemed to have a personal issue and an assurance that it wouldn't happen in next week's game.
Ororo turned off the T.V. during the commercial break. She sat, still stunned. Football was a violent sport but Logan's actions were far beyond the usual parameters of the game. Although she'd spent less than twenty-four hours with him she knew that angry man on the television wasn't his true self.
Scott said it was personal. She wondered if it could be about her and their…issue. She had to talk to him. He had a right to be in on the decision she'd made.
A few hours later she was on the phone with Emma. After their business was over she asked her friend to please ask Scott to give Logan her number. When Emma inquired why, Ororo simply stated it was none of her business. The blonde laughed and said she would relay the message.
Ororo was surprised when her phone rang fifteen minutes later. She answered with a hint of hesitation in her voice. Even though their pending conversation was a few days overdue, she didn't know where or how to start.
"Hello, darlin'."
The flutters in her belly surprised her when she heard the deep drawl of his voice. "Hi Logan. How've you been?" she asked not knowing what else to say.
"I've been better. Got a lot on my mind. A big fine to pay. How about you?"
"Same here. Well, not the fine," she laughed nervously.
An awkward silence filled the line. Logan decided to give her a nudge to get out what she wanted to say. "Scott gave me yer number. Said ya wanted to talk to me."
"Yes, I did. I just wanted to tell you how sorry I am about the way I left things. After I had time to think, I realized that I wasn't the only one a bit shook up by our mishap."
"Look, 'Ro, I don't really want to go back over this. You made yer'self clear. It's up to me to get over it…to move on," he said in a remorseful tone that Ororo heard clearly laced in his words.
"I didn't take the pills, Logan. That's why I need to talk to you. I didn't take them." She waited for his reaction. There wasn't one so she continued in an effort to explain. "I thought about what you said and you were right." She took a breath and continued. "I've decided to let my life run its course without any interference from me. I hope that's okay with you." Silence. "Logan? Are you still there?"
"Damn it, Ro. Yer killin' me."
"I know. And I'm sorry for that. But you were right. Fate stepped in…regardless of what the outcome may be it gave me a wakeup call.
"And what was that, darlin'? He asked wearily.
"So far my well laid plans have only been a real benefit when it came to business but haven't gotten me anywhere in my personal life. I want to get somewhere, Logan."
She couldn't see Logan but she was sure he smiled. And she was also sure she was doing the right thing.