A/N: Hi.

"No one would have blamed you if you had used the front door, kid," that gravelly voice chimed suddenly. Lowen jumped and could have punched herself for not realizing he was there in the first place. Logan was the last man on the planet she has wanted to see as she half jumped half fluttered down from the 4th story window; but there he was, his broad shoulder leaning carelessly against the brick structure that towered over both of them. He motioned to the unlit cigar perched atop one of his ear as his alibi of why he was outside at such an ungodly hour.

"Rules.. kids.." he grunted as he slid it out from behind his ear and sparked up a match against the brick in the confines of darkness, never taking his eyes off the barefoot, bewildered girl. She knew that he was waiting for an explanation. The only thing she managed to do was give a couple of helpless stammers before doing her best to close her mouth. Finally, she drew a breath, sheepishly and stupidly trying to regain her senses.

"I... man, to be honest, I was doing it specifically to avoid you," she admitted ashamedly, lowing her head and digging a toe into the dirt, only managing to fake a ghost of a smirk, as if she meant for this whole situation to be comical.

"And why would that be?" the stocky man asked, exhaling smoke before giving the wall under his shoulder a shove as righted himself. His eyes held suspicion; he was wary of her actions. He of all people knew that she was being sneaky. Besides the fact that he has caught her in the act of "escaping" out the window, she practically reeked of guilt, and her constantly shifting stance gave another reason.

"You've just been... so kind..." she struggled.

"Kind enough to warrant a half-assed escape plan, for whatever reason," he grunted.

"No please!" she said. Part of her wanted to cry, and another part of her wanted to flee into the darkness. She enveloped her entire face in both hands and took a deep, slow breath, lifting her head upward, her mind jumbled and her mouth trying to figure out what to say.

"I'm... I'm not running," she said slowly, measuring her words. "I mean... I'm leaving... but just because I'm scared of other things doesn't mean I shouldn't face it head-on, right? So, I think I need to search out who I'm looking for and... figure it out. Apologize. Figure out how I feel. Become brave. Find answers. Tell him that I-"

She suddenly froze, realizing what she had just blurted out. That last one had somehow ended up spilling out so suddenly. Logan raised with eyebrows and waited, staring her down expectantly.

"I-I-I didn't... umm..." The stocky man only put up a hand to stop her faltering words.

"It doesn't matter," he said gruffly. Lowen lunged forward suddenly, her fingers curled and her head bent downward, like a charging bull. The Wolverine had always been trained to prepare for anything, but he could have toppled over when this wildly confused kid barreled into him, burying her face in his chest and her arms clinging around him so tightly. His whole body went tense, arms hovering awkwardly in midair with his cigar burning uselessly in between his wavering fingers.

"I... I need to stop running..." she whispered into him. If not for his super human hearing, Logan would not have heard anything but a near-silent, shuddering sob pressed into his massive chest. "I am afraid. And I need to face everything I've been feeling. I don't want to be afraid of emotions anymore." Lowen could feel colors seep out from his body and gentle curl in wisps around her mind. She didn't fight it this time. Blue, ocean hues and crimson-purple sunsets drifted from this beast of a man and came to rest within in the openness of her receptive mind. She let the tingling shivers run through here, ruminating in everything he was feeling. Long, wispy grass danced lightly against their ankles as their bodies and minds couldn't comprehend or care about who was comforting who.

The faint line of whitening sky let itself be known on the horizon; the stars blinking and shimmering began to retreat out of the sky and fade back into the vast cosmos until the night came once more. They both knew she had to go soon.

"I promise... I'll come back."

Now all he could hear was light sobs coming from this broken girl. And all he could feel was her pain.