Disclaimer—Still don't own any of this stuff.
Chapter 6—Crush
"Where the hell have you been?" demanded Mystique the second Rogue entered the boarding house. Rogue frowned as she closed the door behind her. In the living room she could see Lance, Pietro, and Toad sitting on the couch. From the looks of things, and by the tone of Mystique's voice, Rogue was in major trouble.
Mystique didn't wait for an answer as she continued her tirade. "Jesus, Rogue! Ditching school is one thing, but not letting me know where you are is another! How am I supposed to protect you when you vanish into thin air? Where were you?"
Rogue smirked. "Here and there. I gave myself a tour of Bayville. It isn't all that it's cracked up to be, let me tell you. The place makes my hometown look like something you'd read about in the storybooks…Bayville's more like the poster child for towns gone wrong."
"Dammit, Rogue! Don't go anywhere without telling me! The least you could have done was bring someone with you! I can't protect you if you're gallivanting about without a care in the world!"
"I'm not consorting with the X-Freaks, if that's what you're afraid of. Who the hell told you to be my mother, huh?" Rogue raised an eyebrow in relief as Mystique shut her mouth.
The shape shifter continued to glare at Rogue before turning to ascend the staircase. With an unreadable expression on her face she said, "Don't do anything stupid, Rogue. You're under my care now."
Rogue kept her own mouth shut until she heard Mystique shut the door to her room. Something told the teen that she had been let off fairly easy this time around. Making a mental note to herself to try and stay on the safe side of Mystique from that point forward Rogue turned to her housemates. "What'd she do to y'all?"
Lance shrugged. "Threatened us like usual. I don't think she understood we really had no fucking clue where you went."
"Yeah, Roguey. Where were you? I don't want a repeat of Mystique threatening to barbecue me alive next time you run off," growled Pietro in disgust.
"Yo, leave Rogue alone," reprimanded Toad bouncing off the couch and in front of Rogue. "She doesn't have to tell us where she is all the time. That's her business."
"Thanks, Toad," said Rogue with a smile. "But I was telling the truth. I went around town to see what it was like. One word boys, boring."
"If you had wanted a tour, Rogue, you could have just asked. I would have been more than happy to show you around," offered Lance, his face softening as he studied the southerner carefully.
Pietro snorted. "Please, all you want to show her is the view of Bayville from the back of your jeep."
Lance shot Pietro a dark look, as Rogue blinked in surprise. Pietro quickly sped off to his room shutting the door with a bang. Lance breezed past Rogue muttering to himself as he went after the speed demon. Rogue bit her lip in fear as she considered what Pietro had said. Nothing good could come from it.
Toad glanced at Rogue and patted her gloved hand consolingly. "Don't worry, Roguey. Lance isn't like that. Well, he is, but I think you're different. He really likes you; he wouldn't do anything stupid to mess things up between you guys."
"That's what I'm afraid of." Rogue sighed and headed towards her room. She had some serious thinking to do. Toad's voice stopped her as she reached the stairs. Above them they could hear Lance pounding on Pietro's door.
"What are you afraid of?" asked Toad quietly.
Rogue looked at Toad with a small smile. "Hurting him. I can't get close to anyone without someone getting hurt, and I don't mean simple heartbreak. Toad, my powers aren't the good kind you can just forget about…I can never get close to anyone. There are things y'all don't know about me…my past isn't clean, and god only knows what my future will be like."
"None of our pasts are clean, Roguey. That's why we're here. We can't trust anyone but Mystique either, and she might suck as a surrogate mom, but she's the only one who cares enough to give us a chance. Just because something bad happened in your past doesn't mean you're going to be a screw-up, otherwise I would have given up hope a long time ago."
"I know," murmured Rogue softly, "but it's just hard for me to let go right now. And having a relationship, however serious or non-serious it can be…it's just not possible. Trust me on this one, okay?"
Toad nodded. "You do know that Lance won't give up so easily, right?"
Rogue narrowed her eyes. She may have only known him for a day, but it seemed that already she knew Lance all too well. He had a spirit within him full of fire and pure will. She could easily see why he was the one the boys followed at the boarding house, and Rogue also knew that she needed to put a stop to his minor crush now before it got out of hand. "Not if I have anything to say about it."
Toad gulped as Rogue marched up the stairs. He had seen the determined look on her face. The girl was obviously on a mission, and he was extremely lucky that he wouldn't be on the receiving end of it.
Lance jumped in surprise when he felt a gloved hand grab the back of his neck. He barely comprehended the fact that his would be attacker was Rogue before he found himself pushed into her bedroom. Lance winced as Rogue shut her door. She didn't look very pleased. She looked pissed as hell and…scared?
"We need to get some things straight, Lance," said Rogue coldly.
"Like what? I can't kill Pietro? The world would be a better place without that prick," replied Lance smoothly.
"Pietro isn't a part of this. I'm talking about us, Rocky."
"Us?" Lance felt himself grin. "I didn't know there was an us, Roguey."
"Don't think I haven't heard the rumors going around the school. I've just ignored them because it saved me a shitload of trouble with certain classmates asking too many questions. I don't mind kids calling me your girl, Lance. What I do mind is you thinking I'm your girl. Get this through your head—there is no us!" Rogue cocked her head to one side and crossed her arms in preparation for Lance's protests. She wasn't disappointed.
"No us? What the fuck, Rogue? You've got to admit there's something between us. I've never met a girl like you before. Ever," argued Lance also crossing his arms.
Rogue rolled her eyes. "Lance, I'm not a typical girl, and I'm not saying that because I'm a mutant. That's only part of it. Before I came here I had a plan, and now that plan's on the backburner while I figure a few things out—I can't get close to you or anyone else. I'll only hurt you in the end…and I can't go through it again with another person. I don't want to be the one to cause pain, Lance."
"What would happen, Rogue? Would you shock me if I tried to kiss you?" Lance chuckled at his own joke. He was trying to keep the mood light despite the strained look on Rogue's face and the serious tone of her voice. Her refusal to accept what he assumed to be the inevitable only made him that much more attracted to her.
"Something like that." Rogue's voice became soft as she leaned back against her door wearily.
Lance sighed in frustration and ran a hand through his hair. Then he spoke up. "Rogue, you've got to trust me, I'm not going to use you or…hurt you. You're the first girl I've met that I've actually tried to be friends with first. If you don't want to be more than friends I won't push it, but…you can't deny there's chemistry between us. We have something."
Rogue dropped her gaze to the floor, chewing on her lower lip as she allowed the words to sink in. She had intended to stay firm and not give in, but his words were proving too much for her teenage heart. Here she was in an entirely new place with people she hardly knew, and here was one guy promising to take care of her without question. "I've never been any good at chemistry, Rocky."
Lance smiled. "I can teach you."
"I don't know, Lance. I'm not sure figuring this out between us, whatever it is, would be good. I know for a fact that ruining a good thing—and us being able to talk like we've always known each other forever is a really good thing—it would just be awkward. I don't like awkward, Lance. I want to be normal."
"Rogue, we're mutants. We're never going to be normal. It doesn't work that way. I hate school, but if there's one thing I've learned while being there it's that normal is overrated. You don't want to be another mindless drone like the humans. What we are kicks ass, and that's putting it simply. You want to be a normal girl? Then give me a chance. Don't let your powers take everything away from you—you'll only be giving in to what the humans want you to believe—that you're a freak. And trust me, babe, standing where I am, you aren't a freak."
Rogue could feel a small smile forming on her lips at the words flowing from Lance's mouth. He made things sound so easy, and while she knew it would be in their best interests to say no, she couldn't help but murmur, "Maybe." Her resolve was dissolving as quickly as it had been formed. Lance was right in part. Falling in love was normal. Having crushes was normal. She couldn't give in to her fears forever, could she? If she did that what point would there be in living?
Pursing her lips Rogue glanced up at Lance, making sure to lock eyes with him. "Just so you know I'm never going to be the touchy-feely type. There won't be any kissing or whatever else your perverted mind can think up. I'm never going to be the ideal girlfriend, Lance."
"Whoever said anything about you being my girlfriend?"
Rogue frowned in genuine confusion. She had been sure she had been reading the signs right from the very beginning, and people had already confirmed most of it at school, and yet here was Lance telling her she was wrong. It was odd since Rogue had been comparing this to Cody, and this had been about the same way he had acted before things had gotten serious between them. "But I thought…that is, Toad said…huh?"
Lance chuckled and gave Rogue a wink. "I'm going to do this the right way, Rogue. You can't call yourself my girl without going on a date with me. That's not how it works."
Rogue was speechless as Lance tried to open her door, nudging her ever so slightly to let him out. She felt a smile form on her lips as he closed the door behind him. Just as Rogue was about to plop herself down in bed to squeal into her pillow the door flew open again. Rogue turned to see Lance giving her a puppy eyed look.
"You want see a movie with me tomorrow? I promise I won't take you to make-out point."
Her lips curled into a smile as she contemplated the offer as corny as it was. "I'd love to."
"Great. We'll go after school, alright?"
"Alright." Rogue waited until Lance had closed the door again before throwing herself down on her bed in a surreal stupor.
Things weren't looking so bad after all.
A/N: As of June 16, 2007 Chapter 6 has been revised.