Spun

By Liz Wyatt

Thanks to my reviewers and readers! You all keep me going.

CaptMacKenzie:I'm glad even if you're not a Ryro fan that you might still stick around. Trying something new is always good. Heh

Dan: sorry they couldn't jump each other's bones in the elevator for you. Glad you like it so far!

Chapter Five: We Might As Well Be Strangers

I don't know your face no more
Or feel your touch that I adore
I don't know your face no more
It's just a place I'm looking for
We might as well be strangers in another town
We might as well be living in a different world
We might as well
We might as well
We might as well

I don't know your thoughts these days
We're strangers in an empty space
I don't understand your heart
It's easier to be apart

-Keane

Rogue had watched John try to roll to his feet with no luck thus far. She was still leaning on the door, no intention of opening it just yet. With one foot pushing off the door and her arms crossed over her chest she peered down at his struggling form.

Getting himself to his knees, but still holding the floor with one hand as the other circled his ribs he looked up at her with dark eyes.

"You must be loving this." He said through tight teeth.

"Sure. Why should I help you when you obviously don't need anyone but yourself?" Rogue retaliated.

"Nice. And here I thought all you X-men were about helping people."

"Are you calling yourself a person, because I thought you detested humans just like everyone else in the brotherhood."

"Not everyone is that way Roguey. I think humans are dumb, but they have their perks. Heck without my IPOD I'd probably have been lost. What you fail to realize is the difference between humans who add to our success and those that stand in the way."

"Because of course world domination is a success for everyone." She pushed off the door and stepped over his still crouched body. She walked towards the window, but she turned right towards her bathroom. With a click the light from her bathroom filled a corner of the dorm room. Rogue looked back at John to make sure he was still there.

"When I said our success I wasn't talking about just the brotherhood. All of us are in danger as long as we live in fear of humans."

Rogue disappeared into the light and when she reappeared. She had a small basket full of gauze and other first aid items.

"I thought you didn't fear anything." Rogue said harshly.

"I'm not afraid to use my powers, unlike you. I do however know the reality of the world right now. So you can stay cooped up in your precious school and play pretend, but I know what they do to us out there. Not everyone is as strong or trained as your prized x-men."

He managed to push off his knees, while still holding his ribs. Rogue rushed over as he was struggling. She grabbed behind his back and went under his free shoulder. There was a moment as she placed him to sit on the middle of her bed that they stared into each other's eyes. Realizing the uncomfortable air she sat on the end of her bed to fumble with gauze pads.

His breath had caught when she was close to him. Both of them understood that they hadn't talked in months and suddenly they were basically hugging.

If someone had told Rogue at dinner that tonight she'd be about to ask the enemy to lift his shirt up she would have laughed them off. The reality was making her nervous.

"Take off your shirt." She said while not looking him in the eye.

"My, my you're very forward." His smug grin was back.

"Just do it John. I need to see what's got you bleeding all over my floor." He went to tug his jacket off. He succeeded in dropping the jacket to the floor, but as he went to pull his shirt off he struggled once it got to his ribs. He quickly hissed out in pain and dropped his shirt back to its original position.

Rogue knew what she had to do. Scooting closer as he began to grab the bottom of his shirt her hands swatted his.

"Just put your arms up." He eyed her curiously as she started to pull the shirt over his head and then off his arms.

Throwing his shirt onto the bed her eyes swept to his torso. Dark bruises lay across his ribcage. It looked like he had been kicked quite vigorously. Without thinking her hand reached out to touch the bruise. As her fingertips grazed the area, John hissed and grabbed that hand with his own. Immediately her eyes shot up to his face.

"Bar fighting again?" she tried to lighten the situation.

"You know me." He smirked.

She began to clean up the area without looking him in the face. She was focused on her task while taking in his breathing patterns as she noticed his chest rise and fall. When he began to talk to her again he shifted so she could have better access.

"Not that I mind you playing doctor Rogue, but it's not necessary. I really really need to leave before sunrise."

She knew he would be leaving. He had to. Rogue wasn't sure why but when he said those words her stomach dropped. Maybe it was that she missed her friend. Maybe it was that she knew he wasn't fairing well out in that real world of his as evident by his scars. Whatever the reason she knew that all she was doing by bandaging him up was prolonging the inevitable. So she quickly tried to finish. And with the last piece of gauze taped to his side she stood up and threw his shirt at him.

"You're right. You need to go, but that doesn't mean I'll help you steal supplies. I'll take you down to the door."

He had felt the change in her tone and had hoped that she would be more forgiving to him on the whole stealing thing, but he was wrong.

Moving quickly through the hallway she chose to lead him down the main staircase, rather than walk by Kitty's room. This gave John more opportunity to get noticed by other people, but he figured if he walked fast enough he could get out without being seen.

Rogue went first down the old wooden staircase that creaked with each of her steps. As she approached the main door she looked back to see him sliding down the banister.

"You never change." She smiled a little.

"Hey, it's better than your enormous racket." He smiled too.

Then they both heard it. A door had closed down the left hallway. They froze. John turned to the right to head behind a pillar leading into the TV room. Rogue looked around debating whether to hide or stay put. What was the worst that this anonymous kid could do?

Then he came around the corner and Rogue found herself wishing that she had hid. It was a drenched Logan. She deduced that he had come in from the garage on the left wing of the school. At first he didn't notice her, but then her pink workout shirt was hard not to miss even with her black hoodie over it.

He looked at her confused and all she could say was, "oops. Umm this isn't my room." Rogue started walking towards the stairs.

Pyro rolled his eyes at her excuse. He noted that she was never very good at lying to Wolverine.

Logan stopped her in her tracks before she got to the stairs by saying, "that's your excuse?"

She turned to face him. "Well…"

"What are you doing out here this late kid?"

Rogue looked at her hands and realized she was still in her workout clothes. It clicked.

"I was working out downstairs and just, lost track of time. You know how it is in the basement so yeah. Off to bed. Night Logan." She tried to run for the stairs again.

"Listen Rogue I think we should talk before you go to bed."

She was hoping to avoid this conversation. Knowing that John was probably listening in made her want to converse even less.

"Logan, really we don't-"

But he cut her off, "what I was doing in the danger room was my problem that I am trying to deal with. You had nothing to do with it. When you came in… I thought you were in the program. You know, in my head."

"Logan I-"

He cut her off again, "I don't want you thinking any of it. All those things that happened on that island, who knows if you could have even made a difference. Just as long as you don't blame yourself than I know that we're okay. You and me, kid we have to be okay."

He sounded desperate and she had no clue why. Rogue knew that he only stayed at the school to watch out for her, but she had hoped that his reasons had changed. For his sake.

She realized that it was quite possible that he was feeling the same pain of losing a friend that she had been feeling for the past week when she thought that he had left.

"We're okay Logan." She smiled and a feeling of relief overcame her. She even almost forgot that John was hiding until Logan stopped and sniffed the air.

"Do you smell that?"

"Smell what?" Rogue was getting nervous now.

Logan looked around "it smells like smoke."

Ignoring another door closing from the left hallway, Rogue felt her chest begin to pound.

AN: dun dun dun! so yeah another cliffish hangerish thing. Hope you liked the rewrite because my original chapter went in a completely wackyt and different direction before, but I think I like this better. Tell me what you think. I'll try and update soon. Thanks again for reading!