MAGNETIC ATTRACTION

Part Twenty-Two

Rogue was thrilled to have someone to go to the horror movie convention with her. It surprised her that Remy had been willing to go, as it seemed to her that horror movies weren't really one of his interests. In fact, the most astonishing thing had been his revelation that he'd have been happy to do anything she wanted to do.

He's that desperate to just have an excuse to get out, Rogue decided, feeling that it couldn't just be that the boy liked her, and wanted to share an experience with her as a gesture of friendship. She was still too suspicious of him, regardless of how much she was beginning to care about him as a friend, and definitely regardless of how much she wanted to trust him and believe he liked her as much as she liked him.

As they walked past the displays of horror movie t-shirts, Rogue briefly turned to look at him every so often, wondering if he were feigning interest in any of this or if he was genuinely having a good time.

"This is the first time Ah've ever come to this...although Ah've been here three years now," Rogue commented as she stopped to examine some t-shirts, picking up one with a 'Sleepaway Camp' logo upon the chest.

"How come? You love this stuff..." he picked up a t-shirt himself, running his fingers thoughtfully across the logo as if he were trying to decide whether it would actually peel off or not.

"Ah just...Ah never felt comfortable goin' to something like this alone," she admitted.

"Because of your...you know...?" Remy took great care to not mention her powers. She was thankful he was discrete enough to do so in such a crowded area.

"Ah don't know. Maybe?" she shrugged, "or maybe just...it seemed kind of sad goin' to somethin' like this alone. Seems like somethin' you do with other people. Just like movies...and goin' to restaurants."

"I see," he nodded, seeming to understand, he looked over at the t-shirt she was holding, "I don't think I know that one," he referred to the film, "what's that one about?"

"You've never seen it? It's really old...well...older than us anyway," Rogue smirked. "Kids at a camp start gettin' killed. It's all related to a fourteen year old girl. Everyone who bullies here starts gettin' offed in horrible ways. It's a total classic...and it has one of the most original twists Ah've seen in a horror film."

"What's the twist?"

"Ah'm not gonna tell you," Rogue made a face, "It'd spoil the surprise if you ever decided to watch it. Besides, someone could be listenin' to us, and thinkin' that this movie sounds cool, then Ah might have ruined it by givin' away the endin'."

Remy shook his head at her, smiling just a little, "now I'm curious..." he spotted the DVD itself on a display nearby, "now we gotta watch this tonight..."

"Ah thought you didn't like horror films?" Rogue raised an eyebrow.

"I didn't say I don't like them," he responded, "I just don't go out of my way to see them. Maybe it's like you with the whole...you know...goin' to conventions and restaurants and stuff...sometimes somethin' is better when you're with someone..."

"You're not scared to watch it, are you?" she teased, poking him in the back playfully.

"Never. Remy LeBeau isn't scared of horror movies," he snorted. He then mumbled something under his breath as he moved out of earshot to get to the cashier selling the items. Rogue wasn't sure what he'd said but she'd caught the word 'crazy' and that was all.

Did he just call me crazy for sayin' he's scared of horror films? Rogue wondered as she waited nearby as he stood in line. As Remy took his wallet out to pay for the DVD Rogue noted in one of the slots there was an interesting amount of cash in there that she hadn't expected to see. She turned her head away entirely and pretended to have not noticed, thinking it rude to ask why he had so many twenties in that wallet.

How does he have that much money? Is he stealing again? He doesn't strike me as the kind of guy who saves his dollars, Rogue thought as she moved to the display opposite to look at gothic themed silver jewellery.

Remy moved up behind her, and she felt him fumbling with the zip on her backpack as he put the DVD in there, "I'll stick this in here, the guy ran out of bags. Taped the receipt to it though, so at least we can prove it's bought and paid for," he explained.

Casually holding a necklace up to her neck, she stared in the mirror set up at he display, admiring how pretty the tiny red gem shone beneath a red heart suspended by roses. Her eyes caught the reflection of Remy, whom she realised with some surprise was looking right back at her. Even with the sunglasses he was wearing – a precaution he took whenever he went outside to hide his mutant eyes – she could tell that his eyes were right upon hers. Their eyes were meeting through reflection, and she felt an fluttering in her stomach at this look, it was unfamiliar territory, it felt strangely intense and deep. Deeper than any glance she'd shared with another person.

Why does he look so serious? Deadly serious?

She put the necklace down back where she'd gotten it from, and turned towards him, "is something wrong?" she forced herself to sound light, and unaffected.

He was still looking at her, and it took a moment, almost as if he'd been in a trance, "Hmm? Oh..." he blinked, "no...nothin'..."

"You were thinkin' about somethin'...you looked so serious..." Rogue pointed out.

"I was just admiring that necklace on you. You have such white skin, that pewter looked kind of nice against it...especially with the red stones...stood out...suited you," he said, looking slightly distant. She was convinced this was nowhere near what he'd been thinking, although she had to commend his eye for detail at least.

Rogue snorted, amused, "is that how you get the girls, LeBeau? That the kind of corny compliments and lines you use?" she turned back to the display and glanced through the other items, necklaces with skull pendants, rings shaped like coffins, earrings with black roses dangling from ruby red stones.

"You'd know if I was usin' my lines on you, chere. There'd be no question."

"Come on, try me," Rogue held another necklace to her throat casually, although it wasn't quite as attractive as the one she'd held up before.

"You're serious? You want me to use a line on you?" he asked, moving up behind her and talking near her ear, "you want me to sweep you off your feet?"

Rogue laughed, "Seriously? You think you're actually capable of sweepin' me off my feet? Yeah...right."

"You think I can't?"

Eyeing him up in the mirror once again as she tried a different necklace, she responded with, "okay, come on. Seduce me."

His expression changed, and he lowered his sunglasses just a little so that he was looking at her from beneath his brows the red of his eyes just appearing over the rims. Then, with a confident tone, he said, "Honey, I ain't Fred Flintstone, but if you come home with me, I'll make your bed rock."

Rogue burst out laughing, "oh come on!"

"Do you wash your pants in Windex? 'Cause I can really see myself in them."

"Oh please!" she giggled.

"Hi, I'm Mr. Right," he winked at her reflection, "I heard you're lookin' for me?"

"Ugh, that's bad..." Rogue shook her head.

"What's a nice girl like you doin' in a dirty mind like mine?"

Rogue rolled her eyes at him, "okay, enough. Obviously you are...usin' your talent to seduce girls, because there is just no way you can do it from a line."

He gave amused sigh, smiling to himself as he looked away from her, quite pleased with himself for a moment. Then, he stepped up right behind her, placing his hands gently upon her arms. He leaned near to breathe words in to her ear, an oddly soft and delicate voice she'd never heard him use, "For some time now I've been fighting with my desire for you..."

She shuddered a little at the hot feel of his breath right at the tip of her ear.

"I want to stare forever into the grass of your eyes, bathe in the milk of your skin...kiss the velvety petals of your lips..."

Rogue watched him in the mirror as he bit his lip, it was incredible how serious he could be when he put his mind to it. How she found herself almost very falling of for it. She felt his fingers slide along the mesh sleeves of her blouse, a delicate and intensely intimate touch she hadn't expected. The necklace fell from her fingers back onto the display it had come from.

"I'd love to taste the sweet grain of your sugary tongue," he continued, his voice getting thicker, his breath getting hotter, he slid his fingers further down her arms to her wrists and down across her gloved knuckles, twining his fingers with hers, "and run mines against the pearls of your teeth..."

Rogue watched his reflection as his head dipped and she could see he was looking at her bust. She felt her heart skip an odd nervous beat. Why was it this wasn't amusing or funny any more? He looks so serious. How can he just do this without even caring? How many hearts has he broken?

"I want to feel your hands buried in my hair and for you to tell me that you love me..." he whispered now.

Rogue swallowed hard and stared at him in the mirror. She felt the onset of tears, she could feel the headache that holding them back always caused starting to come on. She composed herself quickly, "Okay...I get it. You're good at using a line or two."

Remy released her hands after a moment, almost reluctantly it seemed, and gave a soft laugh, "yeah, well...I've...had practice. Read a few books, saw a few movies. I know how it works."

"But it doesn't mean anything," Rogue shrugged, she picked up a pair of earrings and held them up to her ears as she tried to will her heartbeat to slow. It seemed to be thudding unusually fast. Why do Ah feel like cryin'? She wondered, feeling angry with herself. It was the same burst of emotion that seemed to have come when Magneto had shown he could touch her. It was so overwhelming, and she didn't understand exactly what it was or where it came from.

Remy did nothing but shrug in response to this.

Putting down the earrings, she sighed, "Ah need to go to the bathroom."

"It's through those doors," Remy gestured several feet away.

"Okay. Just...wait here," she commanded, and with that, she dashed off.

She barely managed to make it into the women's rest-room before she started sobbing hysterically. Luckily the bathrooms were completely empty and so no one was there to see her. She stood there for several moments, trying to catch her breath between pitiful sobs and tears that flowed like rivers. It took longer than she'd expected it to, but finally, she managed to somehow to pull herself together.

She stared at her tear-stained face in the mirror, shaking her head at herself in disgrace. What the hell is this? Why are you bein' like this? She demanded of herself angrily. She grabbed a handful of paper towels, wet them at the sink and began working at clearing away the black and grey streaks her mascara had caused to run down her cheeks.

You're a mess, and not just physically, she thought as she blew her nose after scrubbing off her slightly smudged lipstick. She found a spare eyeliner in her bag, and did her best to reapply what had been lost, although it wouldn't draw on quite as well as her waterlines were still quite damp. Her eyes were pink, and she realised there was no way she was ever going to hide this. With her fingers, she combed her hair forward a little, trying to hide her face in her streaks a little, hoping Remy wouldn't see the mess she looked right now.

Just pull yourself together, she warned herself. This is probably just PMS or something...it must be that time of the month soon.

When she returned she found Remy standing by a stall selling blood-red slushes, and he was in the middle of purchasing two. She drew a breath and approached him just as he'd finished paying.

"Hey," he said, reaching out with one of the clear plastic cups, "I got you a cherry slush."

"Thanks," she responded, accepting the drink, she put the straw to her lips.

"You've been gone like, fifteen minutes."

"Yeah, there was a line," Rogue shrugged, she hoped he couldn't hear in her voice that she'd been crying, as occasionally after crying, her voice always held an odd tremble, almost as if she were afraid of something.

"Must have been a hell of a line," he sipped on his own, "I took a look around while you were away. There's some little guy signing autographs over in a booth back there...he was in a Leprechaun movie or something. Looks sort of familiar, I think he might have been in a movie from the eighties..."

"Oh," said Rogue, finding it hard to pay attention, her head was still somewhat hurting, and she felt too drained now to properly enjoy this as she had been.

"While you're here, you know, you should look at some clothes," Remy admitted, "there's a display of PVC clothes...someone said they're replicas of the stuff Kate Beckinsale wore in Underworld. I was thinking that would be a really hot uniform for you..."

"I bet," Rogue raised an eyebrow as she looked up at him.

"Hey..." Remy paused, "your eyes are kinda red..."

"Yeah, this mascara sucks," Rogue sighed, "the fall out is kind of irritating my eyes."

"Fall out?"

"Some mascaras have this thing where it dries up after a while when you put it on and it starts flaking off and gettin' into your eyes...it makes your eyes sting sometimes."

"I see," Remy said, "you need me to see if I can find eye drops or something?"

"No, Ah'm fine..." she assured, "lets go look at the clothes."

Together, they browsed the clothing stalls, some replica outfits were on display, some expensive, some inexpensive but poorly made. She agreed the PVC outfit Remy had his eye did look rather nice, but it was also ridiculously expensive and out of her price range.

"Five hundred bucks for plastic?" Rogue folded her arms, gazing at the mannequin with the outfit displayed.

"I guess it is a little expensive," Remy checked the price tag, "but something similar to this would look hot on you. Plus, it's a complete cover-up," he gestured, obviously we'd need a little more padding at the knees and elbows, but this is kind of the thing I have in mind for the uniforms for the girls. Maybe leather. Something durable, anyway."

"And what about the guys?"

"Still undecided about that. I'm supposed to see Magneto about it once I have everyone's sizes. I may need to take a measuring tape to everyone."

"Ah can measure myself," Rogue remarked after sipping her slush, "You're not gettin' anywhere near me with a tape. You'd just use it as an excuse to get all touchy feely."

"You know me so well," he teased. "You gonna buy anythin' then?"

"Ah don't think so," Rogue commented, "it's all very nice, but Ah'd look like a dominatrix in that get up. And Wanda pretty much has that look covered."

"I don't know, I don't think you'd look like a dominatrix. A sexy vampire killer, maybe."

Rogue shoved him, "How about you replace that piece of crap coat with something new? A nice leather one?" she gestured to a male mannequin wearing a long leather coat. "Ah think Ah saw that one in Blade."

Remy tilted his head as he examined the coat, "it's shit hot, sure, but..." he looked down at his trench coat. "I like this coat. I've had it for years."

"It looks older than you are."

"It belonged to Jean-Luc," Remy admitted, "one of the only things he ever gave me other than grief."

"It's stained, it's threadbare, and it's not even waterproof anymore. It's old fashioned, too."

"I'm still not throwin' it away," Remy looked at her.

"You don't have to, you just need to leave it in a box somewhere so you can maybe give it to your son some day," she shrugged, "the amount of sex you have, you're gonna have a kid somewhere out there eventually," she moved to where the coats were hanging, "come on...try it on," she urged, beginning to feel a little better as her mind was taken away from her troubles by the creak and smell of new leather.

"Wow, the lining is red," Remy said, watching as she took the coat from the hanger.

"Try it on at least," Rogue gestured for him to remove the trench coat.

"Fine," he smirked a little and removed the trench coat and exchanged the trench coat for the leather one. He slipped the item on and went to the full length mirror in the booth, staring at himself almost appreciating how undeniably good he looked in black leather. "Fits like a glove," he admitted, turning and admiring from each angle.

"Yeah," Rogue nodded, "perfect size."

He raised the sleeve where the price tag was attached and winced, "six hundred bucks. I've never spent sixty on a coat, let alone six hundred..."

"Oh come on, don't be a cheap skate, I know you have the cash."

"Oh?" Remy looked at her suspiciously, "and how do you know that?"

"You have a pile of it in your wallet, I saw."

Remy frowned, "I see."

"If you don't want people to see how rich you are, at least keep your wallet out of sight. Someone's gonna see the that and steal it, you know."

He suddenly laughed, "seriously? You think I'm gonna get pick pocketed? I'm a thief, I know what to look for."

"Yeah?" Rogue asked, holding his coat, "in case you didn't notice, you already don't have your wallet on you, and for all you know Ah could have just taken a hundred bucks from it while you were lookin' at your reflection in the mirror thinkin' that you looked so good you'd fuck yourself," she teased.

"Hey I do look that good," he smirked. "And anyway, I know you wouldn't take money from me," he added, fixing the collar of the leather coat.

"Wouldn't Ah?" she teased.

"You might pretend you had, but you wouldn't. Because you're an honest person, a good person, and you're above petty thievery. I ain't. That's how I got half that money."

"And the other half?" Rogue asked.

"Workin' for Magneto. Honestly," Remy moved to her to take the wallet from the pocket of the coat she was holding.

"You're gonna buy it?"

"You don't think it looks as good on as you thought it would?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.

"It looks great on, Remy. Looks like it was made for you."

"Do I look hot?" he asked, slipping the money from the wallet.

"Oh, totally," she agreed, "Tabitha will be all over you when she sees you in that," she added, laughing.

Remy shuddered a little, "don't say that. She's all over me enough as it is, and it's...well...she's still a kid. It ain't right."

"You have morals, huh?" Rogue asked.

"Surprisingly, yes. Who'd have thought it? A hot blonde teenager who wants to fuck me, and I'm not even interested? I must have morals."

After Remy paid for the coat, they went around the stalls for a little while longer before eventually deciding it was time to leave. When they reached Piotr's van, the rain – which had stopped upon their arrival – was just starting again, and the sky was growing dark as evening arrived.

"Didn't think we'd been in there that long," Rogue admitted, looking up to the sky as Remy fumbled awkwardly with the lock, which didn't work very well half of the time.

"Yeah, it's been a fast day," Remy responded, jiggling the lock a little.

Rogue, who had been carrying Remy's coat up until now, pulled the thing on and put the collar over her head to avoid the rain, "what's the issue?"

"Lock is fucked. It keeps doing this."

"You didn't by any chance tell Piotr you were going to fix that too, did you?" Rogue teased.

"No," he responded.

"What about the passengers side?" she asked. She'd climbed in at the drivers side earlier when the van had been parked too close to the wall in the warehouse yard to get, and when parking outside the convention centre, there had been a truck far too close on the passengers side for her to attempt to get out.

"Yeah, that one doesn't open at all, Pietro drove it once and went through a stop sign so a Denali t-boned right into it. Guy managed to hit the brakes enough that it didn't cause extreme damage but the door is still dented and never opened since."

Rogue rolled her eyes, "remind me to never let Pietro borrow my car, not that I think it could get any more fucked than it already is," she moved to the back of the van and tried the handle, which opened to her delight, "Hey, Piotr didn't lock the back."

"Fuck," Remy uttered, "that...was probably my fault. I was the last one to use the van this morning."

Rogue climbed in, aware of Remy's watching her.

"Why are you wearing my old fashioned, thread-bare, stained coat?" he asked pointedly.

"It's raining and I don't have a coat on?" she asked innocently. "Are you going to stand there in the rain complaining or are you gonna get in?"

"Here, you drive," Remy tossed the keys into her before climbing in to the van himself and pulling the doors shut.

Rogue awkwardly climbed up to the front, which meant climbing over the three seats there, she slipped the key into the ignition and turned, eager to get the heating on as the van was chilly within. The engine simply sputtered, but did not come to life.

Remy leaned over the middle seat just as she was trying a second time with the key, "it's not starting?"

"No."

"Fuck," Remy uttered, "it did this at the supermarket parking lot with Wanda earlier. I'm not sure if it was her or the van is just old and needs a new engine..."

"Remy it's really starting to pour," Rogue leaned forward and looked up at the sky through the windscreen, "and it's getting dark."

"I'll go take a look," Remy sighed, "hey, at least I have a waterproof coat," he retrieved his phone from his jeans pocket and switched on the flashlight application, "open the hood...it's that lever right there," he leaned over and pointed.

Rogue opened the hood and waited within the car as Remy went outside in the pouring rain with his makeshift flashlight to try and determine the problem. He yelled at her to try the engine a few times, but it was no good. It simply wasn't going to happen.

After half an hour of Remy's messing around with the engine, and her sitting in the van thoroughly bored, Remy gave up, and got back into the van, sighing as he came over to lean over the seats. "I text Lance," he said, "But he's on a date with Kitty at some concert, so it'll be a few hours."

Rogue groaned, "it's freezing."

"You're wearing my coat."

"A few hours? Seriously? We're supposed to sit here for a few hours?" she asked unhappily.

"Yeah, there's not much else for it. Your car is fucked, so I can't call Tabitha to drive down and get us, and Wanda doesn't have a car."

"What about Magneto?" Rogue asked hopefully. "When my car broke down, he said Ah should have called him and that he'd have come and picked me up..."

"I called him first, I got no answer...just constant ringing," Remy sighed, "short of calling someone from the X-Men-"

"No..." Rogue shook her head, "Ah don't want to do that right now."

"Then we have no choice but to sit here and wait," Remy shrugged.

Rogue leaned back against the seat. "Ah guess we don't."

"I'll be right back, okay?"

"Where you going?"

"I'll be back," he said, and left the van once again. She waited for a while, and listened to music from the MP3 player she'd remembered she'd packed in her backpack. It was another twenty minutes before Remy returned to the van, and the van was in darkness, the only light coming from a streetlight nearby. Rogue slipped the earphones out as she saw him climbing into the van through the rear view mirror.

Remy reached up and switched on the interior light set into the ceiling of the van, he shivered and slipped his soaking wet coat off. "It's really pouring out there. I heard some thunder. Think it's gonna be a storm tonight."

"Terrific," Rogue uttered; she leaned over the back seats to look at him. He knelt down onto the floor of the van, and was in the middle of opening a paper bag. "What's that?"

"Dinner," he said, "I spotted an Indian takeaway place up the road so I sprinted up there...got us some food and some sodas."

"You're a genius," Rogue sighed in relief, not having realised how hungry she was up until she'd smelled the spices as he opened the bag. She climbed awkwardly back into the back of the van and sat down folded legged.

"I hope you like spicy stuff," Remy handed her a couple of napkins before tearing into a large piece of naan bread and handing her some.

"Are you kiddin'? Ah eat chilli peppers raw."

Remy went about setting the food out awkwardly on paper plates, which didn't work out too well with rice and the runny sauce. "I'm sorry the van broke down."

"It's not your fault," Rogue shrugged, she dipped a piece of torn naan bread into the sauce of her meal.

"If I'd fixed your car when I said I would...it'd probably have not broke down and we'd not be here freezing in the back of a transit van that smells like oil and curry," he commented. He chewed on a pakora before continuing. "Gotta admit though, I've had a good day."

"You have?"

"I'm not...you know, into this whole horror thing as much as you are, but it was fun...seeing the outfits, the figurines, the people dressed up in costumes..." he stretched out on his side and tried to get as comfortable as he could, "I feel a lot less stressed now."

"That's all Ah wanted."

Remy stuck his plastic fork into his chicken Jalfrezi, and took a bite, he chewed thoughtfully, his eyes on her all the while. Rogue kept her eyes on his too, remembering the way he'd spoken at the jewellery stall, and how almost authentic it had sounded.

"I have fun with you, Rogue," he said

"You do?" she asked, she took a bite from a large Samosa, but found to not like the taste, so put the other half down on her plate.

"I don't know what it is, but you...just seem to calm me down, make me relax...make me forget about things that stress me out. You make me feel almost normal."

"Ah do?" she asked, she took a bite of her lamb dopiaza to try and mask the taste of bad Samosa.

"The way we hang out...in your room...at the diner...it's so..." he seemed to search for the words, "it's...so..."

"Ordinary?"

"Yes!" he exclaimed, almost enthusiastically. "I never have that. Nothing ever feels ordinary these days. But the stuff we do together...it does."

"Ah think Ah know what you mean," Rogue responded, "sometimes you get so used to doin' crazy stuff, and the team stuff, and the mutant stuff, you start to feel less and less like a person and more like...a soldier or something."

"Exactly," he nodded, "see, you totally get this. It's nice, feeling ordinary, normal, doing what normal people do...even if it's just...bein' caught stranded in the middle of a parking lot in a broken van with you eating curry."

Rogue laughed, "Ah'll take that as a compliment, then."

They talked some more, about the things they'd seen at the convention, about their food, about things in general until eventually, some time past nine pm, Lance and Kitty arrived back from their concert.

"Ah was startin' to think you guys would never get here," Rogue admitted as she climbed into the back of Lance's jeep, Remy getting in at the other side.

"Well, I paid ninety bucks a piece for those tickets, there was no way we were leaving just to come get you guys," Lance looked over his shoulder at them.

"How was the concert?" asked Rogue, pulling on her seatbelt.

"It was awesome," Kitty glanced over her shoulder at Rogue, "we were in the first row! The lead singer totally touched my hand...I am never washing this hand again..." she sighed happily.

Remy made a face, "you may want to if that's the hand you use to-"

Rogue elbowed Remy quickly in the ribs, knowing somehow instinctively what he was going to refer to.

"You still haven't been home to visit," Kitty said, as they drove towards the Xavier mansion. Rogue realised that of course, Lance would drop Kitty off first before the three of them went home to the warehouse together.

"Ah know...but Ah've been busy...and my car broke down."

"You have a car?" Kitty asked, "since when?"

"Remy got me it..." Rogue stated; she noted as they came to a red light, Lance turned and looked over his shoulder suspiciously at Remy. She could tell he was definitely asking why Rogue was worth buying a car for.

"It's a wreck," Remy spoke up, "I got a deal on it, but for a first car it's okay. It just a little work..."

Lance coughed, "yeah...a new engine, a new battery, a new transmission, new brakes, new clutch, three new tires, a new window mechanism, new heating system and a fan belt."

"So...basically...it's a steering wheel that needs a whole new car around it?" Kitty cracked.

"Basically," Lance stated. "It's a heap of shit. If you're gonna buy someone a car, Gambit, at least buy something that works."

"Hey, give him a break," Kitty smacked Lance's arm, "you didn't buy me a car, and I'm your girlfriend," she pointed out.

Rogue felt vaguely uncomfortable with Kitty's relationship with Lance, maybe it was just anyone in a relationship in general that she was uncomfortable with. Ah don't think Ah'm ever gonna have somethin' like that.

"So what were you guys doin' at the convention centre?" Kitty asked, glancing over her shoulder again.

"Horror movie convention," Rogue answered.

"Any good?"

"We had a good time," Rogue responded.

The rest of the journey on the way to the Institute was in silence. Rogue glanced over at Remy every now and then who seemed tired, slouched in his seat and staring out of the windows at the trails of rain running down the glass. He looked more relaxed than he had in days.

As the Jeep drove through the gates that led up the drive towards the mansion, Kitty turned back to talk to Rogue once again.

"You should like, come in and visit for a little while why you're here."

Rogue stared out the window, thinking of how different everything looked after weeks of being away. How the grounds seemed bigger, the mansion seemed different, how even the cars parked out front didn't seem the same. "Ah wish Ah could, but it's late. Look at the time, it's nearly ten. It's not really the time for visitin'. But...Ah'll maybe come by durin' the week."

"Promise?" Kitty asked.

"Ah promise," Rogue smiled wanly. The promise wasn't empty, she had to come visit to give Kitty her birthday present. At least Ah have an excuse to come, she thought. Hopefully no one would bombard her with questions. She still wasn't ready to give straight answers yet.

They said their goodbyes in the car, but Lance got out of the car and saw Kitty right to the door. Rogue felt her cheeks flush hot with embarrassment as they kissed goodnight, the kiss lasting several minutes longer than it was probably expected to.

"Couples, huh?" Remy asked casually, tapping his fingers upon his knee absently.

Rogue shrugged, but said nothing. Then something quite unexpected happened. Her hand, which had been upon her own knee, was suddenly covered with his hand. She glanced down, seeing his fingers curl over her own, his bare thumb brushing over the kid leather. In astonishment, she turned to look at him, to question his motives, but he wasn't looking at her, nor was he looking at Lance and Kitty's marathon makeout session. He was simply staring out at the rain, his mind elsewhere.

When Lance returned to the car, Remy seemed to remember himself, for immediately, he removed his hand, sat up straighter in the seat, and folded his arms comfortably over himself.

Rogue was confused, wondering what he'd meant by putting his hand upon hers, and leaving it there for those two minutes. Was it meant as a comforting gesture? Or was it meant as something more? How do Ah tell the difference when Ah've never had to deal with this before? She wondered.

"Did you give her the present?" Rogue asked, trying to tear her mind away from the thoughts.

"Not yet. I'll give it to her on Monday...the X-Men are going to throw her a little surprise party, apparently. Nightcrawler called to tell me last night..."

"Ah should probably be there," Rogue sighed.

"It's at five on Monday, so...if you're gonna catch a ride with me, then would be the time..."

"Is that your way of sayin' there's no way in hell my car is going to be workin' by Monday?" Rogue asked with a pout.

"That car should have been crushed instead of being sold on."

Remy gave a sigh, he didn't seem to like being reminded that the gift idea hadn't quite worked out.

On the drive home, the three said very little to each other. The warehouse was it's noisy self as they got inside; Wanda's music blasting from her room, Pietro and Piotr were watching some kind of sporting event on television, and they were yelling at the television in disappointment as whom ever they were backing seemed to be losing.

Lance went upstairs to join them, and Remy pulled the heavy door shut.

Rogue slipped the soaking wet trench coat she'd borrowed from Remy and handed it to him, "here..."

"For a minute there was wondering if you influenced me to buy this coat 'cause you wanted this," Remy teased as he shook the rain water off the trench coat a little.

"No...it's not my style," she smirked, "thanks for a good day."

"It's me who should be thankin' you, isn't it?" he asked.

Rogue smiled a little, "night, Remy."

Her mind was swimming with thoughts of what had happened today; in her room she undressed and changed into her dry pyjamas, and slipped beneath the covers, thankful for the warmth and comfort of her bed. She tried to focus for a little while on one of her coursework books, but found it quite difficult as exhaustion started to weigh her down.

Just as she was beginning to nod off, a knock came at her door, and she leaned up, confused. "Yeah?" she called out.

The door opened only a little, and Remy's voice came from behind the door. "Can I come in?" he asked.

"I'm decent, if that's what you mean."

He stepped in, closing the door behind himself. He'd changed into a dry t-shirt and a pair of flannel pyjama plants which looked warm and comfortable, and oddly attractive on him.

"Something wrong?" she asked, sweeping her still slightly damp hair back from her face.

"No...just..." he paused, "listen...I'm not too good with this stuff...I can fake it real well, but..."

"Huh?"

He moved over and sat down at the side of her bed so that he was near her. "I had a really good time today."

"You've already said it," Rogue assured.

"But I wanted to thank you."

"For?"

"For...just bein'...you..." he held out something towards her.

Rogue dropped her eyes to a black velvet box in his hand. She hadn't noticed he'd been holding it all this time. "What's...this?"

"Open it," he urged.

Tentatively, she accepted the box, careful not to let their bare hands touch. With nervous breath, she flipped the box open. Inside, she found something she did not expect.

The necklace she'd been admiring at the stall, the red heart suspended by silver roses, with the tiny red gem dangling from the tip of the heart. Her breath caught in her throat, and she raised her eyes to him, surprised and speechless. Astonished, she lifted it out of the box, looking at it with wide eyes.

"I...thought you should have it," he explained.

"Remy...this isn't the pewter one they were displaying..." her eyes caught hallmark on the back of the pendant, and then the little card with the box that stated the authenticity of the item as 'sterling silver bleeding heart'. "This is real silver..."

"You don't like real silver?"

"Ah love real silver..." she stared back to the necklace, "but...this was expensive. Ah saw the price of the silver version...it was over a hundred and fifty dollars..."

"And you gave me more than a hundred and fifty dollars worth of friendship, and support, and help since you came here..." he explained.

"You bought this when Ah was in the bathroom, didn't you?" she realised.

"I did," he smirked. "You do like it...right?" he asked hopefully.

"Ah love it...it's...it's probably the nicest thing anyone's ever gave me..." she chewed her lip staring down at the necklace, "Ah...Ah don't know what to say."

"You don't need to say anything," he went to get up, "I better go...you're tired, and so am I..."

"No...wait..." Rogue stopped him from getting up. There was something about this gesture that made her reluctant to let him go. She couldn't just turn him away now, not after this.

"What?" he asked curiously.

"That DVD...we never watched it..." she pointed out. "it's still in my bag."

"But you're tired..."

"Ah'm not tired, she lied, "besides, if we fall asleep...we fall asleep, right?"

"I guess you're right."

End of Part Twenty-Two

I was gonna post this one in a few days, but I figured, HEY, why not. At least it shows a little more of their relationship growing, etc. Also, I thought those who've been hanging on for the 'romy-ness' might appreciate it, lmao. Part 23 most likely coming in a few days, stay tuned. Thanks for all the super reviews! You guys rock :D