XXXXXXXXXXXXX

Rogue sat in her last class of the day before the weekend and as much as she hated to admit it, she was starting to get a little antsy. Almost an entire week had passed with absolutely no gifts, notes, or contact from her secret admirer. On one hand, she was thankful not to have embarrassing displays of affection constantly plaguing her, but on the other hand, she hoped she hadn't scared him off by seeming ungrateful.

Not that she wanted him to keep giving her presents! Just the opposite. She wished that she could just be over and done with this whole secret admirer business altogether. At least, part of her did. In the back of her mind, however, she was actually sort of pleased. The fact that anyone would go to so much trouble for her proved that he was willing to look beyond untouchable skin and see the person underneath the powers. At least, in theory, that is.

That thought had Rogue pensively chewing on her lip. Kitty had pretty much concluded that it HAD to be one of the boys from Xavier's – especially since the only other people it could possibly be were Warren Worthington and Piotr Rasputin, both of whom had come to visit briefly while she was unconscious last week.

Warren was… hmm. She didn't know what to think about the possibility of him being the secret admirer. A tiny smile played at the corner of Rogue's mouth as she listened to her English teacher drone on about "A Midsummer's Night Dream." Warren certainly was handsome, not to mention kind. She loved that they had met simply because he wanted to do some good in the world. He had amazing values and integrity, and she really admired that about him.

He did have a lot of money so he could actually afford all the expensive gifts, unlike most of the boys at Xavier's (except for Bobby, whose family also had a fair amount of money). Angel was nice enough, and he also didn't seem particularly put off by her powers or gothic exterior.

With a sigh, she shook the thought from her head. They had already determined that Warren couldn't possibly be her secret admirer. He didn't have the kind of access to the mansion that was needed to deliver all the gifts, and Rogue doubted he would be interested in a high school senior who'd been held back a year. Especially when he was accustomed to having supermodels hanging off his arm…

Piotr was another possible suspect, but Rogue had never actually met him, so she doubted that he would be interested. Plus, she suspected Kitty had a bit of a thing for the large Russian; and, from the way the brunette spoke of their encounters, it was likely he felt the same way about Kitty.

Then there were the boys at the mansion – Bobby, Ray, Roberto, Sam, and Jaime. Scott was out because he was with Jean, and Kurt was her brother, so yeah. Jaime was really too young to be thinking up such elaborate plans, or even to be seriously interested in girls. Plus he seemed absolutely terrified of her anyhow.

So really, that left four potential candidates. Bobby DID have a lot more money than the other boys – at least, he flaunted his money more than they did. He had the math skills to pull off her homework (even if he did just goof off in class), but she doubted he would go to the trouble of doing all her homework for an entire week, even if he did have help. He HAD been a lot more pleasant to her lately, though…

Then there was Sam. He'd NEVER opened a door for her before, at least, not that she could remember. Of course, she was usually either way ahead of him and the others or way behind them all, so she'd never really given him the opportunity before. They were both from the south, and the blonde boy HAD tried to reminisce with her on more than one occasion.

But there was the money issue with him, though. She knew Sam's parents were not well-off by any means, and most of what Sam did make in extra cash (bets, doing "chores" for other students, etc.) went straight to his family. Rogue smiled at the thought. He really was a southern gentleman, and Rogue somehow doubted she'd be too disappointed if he ended up being the culprit. That possibility, however, wasn't very likely either.

Ray and Roberto didn't have as much family money as Bobby, but they seemed to do alright. The problem with those two, however, was that they'd hardly ever said two words to her; minus that day last week when Roberto had TRIED to say hello.

The only other men Rogue knew were Logan, Beast, and the Professor, and there was no WAY any of them could be the admirer. Rogue nearly laughed aloud at the thought of Logan sending her flowers, let alone stepping foot in the mall without a reason to pound someone…

Rogue rubbed her brow tiredly. All this nonsense was giving her a headache. With a deep breath, Rogue forced herself to put the whole ordeal out of her mind and focus on Shakespeare instead.

After all, there was only a few minutes left of class, which was usually when the teacher made sure to assign LOTS of homework for the weekend. Just as Mrs. Brownridge was about to write the assignment on the board, however, she was interrupted by a knock at the classroom door.

A student office assistant peeked his head into the class and glanced to the teacher before entering completely. The boy looked extremely confused and uncomfortable for some reason and Rogue rolled her eyes.

When he walked to the front of the room, however, Rogue finally understood the problem as she noticed the large bouquet of red roses he was trying to hide behind his back.

She raised an eyebrow before covering her eyes with one hand. "Oh god, please don't let that be for me, PLEASE don't let that be for me," she repeated in her mind while trying to shrink down as small as possible in her desk.

"Uh," the boy finally spoke as he scanned the room. "Rogue? Rogue Adler?"

The classroom exploded in whispers and gasps, and Rogue wished she could call on Kitty's powers and sink through the floor. Consequences be damned.

A few students must have pointed in her direction, because she heard the messenger quickly drop the vase on her desk before retreating from the room.

Rogue shrank further down in her seat, but pulled her hands from her face. She knew she was probably beet red, but she tried to redirect herself by grabbing the bouquet and hiding it under her desk.

When the chatter refused to cease, the teacher finally threatened to double the homework for the weekend, which thankfully brought the whispers under control.

As class finally ended a few minutes later, Rogue made sure she was absolutely the LAST person to leave the room. She took her time writing down the assignment in her planner and pretended not to notice the snickers and whispers as the other students left. Gratefully, even the teacher exited the classroom, allowing Rogue a few moments to compose herself.

With a deep breath, the Southerner ducked under her desk and pulled out the large bouquet. There were at least two dozen red roses interlaced with baby's breath and holly to create a very festive Christmas feel. The assortment rested inside a clear glass vase which was filled with flat red and white marbles to complete the look.

Poking out from the side was a small white card, which Rogue reluctantly plucked off and opened. Inside was a plain red note and a Barnes and Noble gift certificate for twenty-five dollars.

My dearest Rogue, please accept my sincerest apologies for any distress or anxiety I may have caused with my last gesture. I have been properly reprimanded and will do my best to respect your privacy. As such, please accept this small token as penance. While I find it very impersonal, I hope that you will enjoy it.

With a small smile and bemused sigh, Rogue emptied her school books out of her backpack. There was no way she was going to carry that gigantic thing all through the halls with everyone watching. If she stuck it in her bag, she might get out of there with at least SOME dignity!

With the roses in her bag and her books in her arms, Rogue sped through the halls, trying to escape the school as quickly as possible. She had almost made it to her locker when she heard an all too familiar squeal of delight.

"Oh. My. GOSH!" Kitty shrieked happily as she came running up to her friend. "It's all over the school! He sent you flowers! To class! How romantic is that!?"

Rogue tried to avoid direct eye contact with the petite brunette as she dragged herself the rest of the way to her locker and quickly put in the combination. She could hear the other students' whispers as they passed by, and she sighed. It was like their mutant "coming out" escapade all over again.

Kitty was oblivious to Rogue's discomfort, however, and continued. "Oh wow, he must really like you to send roses to school. Roses are like, THE symbol of romance, you know."

"Yeah, I know," Rogue responded curtly as she placed a few books into her locker and retrieved others.

"I mean, he must really, REALLY like you !"

"Yeah, I KNOW." Rogue repeated curtly.

"I mean, we're talking, like, the ULTIMATE declaration of ..."

Rogue cut Kitty off by slamming her locker shut. "Ah GET IT Kitty!

The brunette jumped back slightly with a startled look. Rogue hung her head and sighed as she deposited her books into her locker and took the roses out of her bag, placing them on the floor.

"Look, I'm sorry Kit," Rogue apologized quickly. "Ah'm just, ah'm just not used to all this attention, ya know?" Placing her backpack and the vase of roses on the floor, she turned toward her friend once again.

"This is fun and sweet for you, but I'm just not as comfortable with it all. It's growin' on me a bit, but ah've spent so long tryin' t' AVOID getting attention from anyone that ah'm havin' a real hard time adjusting t' getting so much of it all the sudden."

"Oh," Kitty replied quietly, turning her gaze to her shoes. Nervously, she reached back to play with her ponytail as she finally met Rogue's eyes. "I like, get it. You don't enjoy everyone lookin' at you all the time. I'm sorry if I like, made it worse."

Rogue leaned against her locker and sighed as she tucked her white bangs behind her ear. "It's, it's alright. Ah'm just still not convinced it ain't all a sick joke, ya know?"

"No way!" Kitty protested loudly. "Nobody would go to so much trouble for a joke. I mean, all this stuff must have cost a fortune!" She gestured down at the roses and Rogue gingerly picked up and cradled the vase in one arm. The Southerner carefully pulled out a flower and inhaled deeply, a faint smile gracing her lips.

XXXX-XXXX

Rogue lay in bed later that night, her right arm propped behind her head while her left hand fingered the beautiful emerald necklace she had received as her second gift. There was still one week left of school until Christmas break, and as Rogue turned to look at the two dozen red roses, she sincerely hoped she wouldn't get any more surprises like that on school grounds. She doubted she could survive the public humiliation or the million and one questions from the other girls at the Institute.

When she'd walked through the door with the large bouquet in her arms, nearly every girl at the institute had come running to see the arrangement. Of course they'd also wanted every juicy tidbit possible from Kitty since they'd all learned by now that Rogue wasn't likely to divulge any information.

It was slightly annoying that Kitty insisted on giving everyone a play-by-play of every incident, but at least it spared Rogue from fielding questions and kept her slightly removed from the spotlight. Plus, Kitty was wise and conscientious enough to keep any private conversations out of the story. Rogue had pretty much accepted that any gifts the other girls were privy to would be passed around and admired, so she'd just handed the flowers off to Tabitha and gone up to her room as soon as she'd walked in the door that afternoon.

Now it was nearly 11:00 at night and she'd just gotten the flowers back. Thankfully, Kitty had tracked them down and returned them to Rogue's dresser without a word.

With another sigh, Rogue swung her legs off the bed and retrieved a single rose from the bouquet before climbing back into bed once more. Leaning up against the headboard, she enjoyed the soft silky texture of the rose petals against her fingers as she gently caressed the rose. Closing her eyes, she brought the fragrant flower to her nose, delighting in its sweet smell. As she did so, she slowly let the rose drift across her face, luxuriating in the feel of the cool, smooth petals against her skin.

She let the little flower flit along her jaw, up her cheek, and across her forehead before coming back down the same path on the opposite side. She continued caressing her skin with the amazing texture of the flower for a few minutes before once again inhaling its aroma.

Rogue had never understood why girls went so crazy for roses, but now that she had received her first bouquet, the concept was starting to make sense at last. There was something almost intoxicating about the surprising little flower that she couldn't seem to get enough of. The scent, the feel, the color…

Oh yes, it was all becoming very clear now. For a fleeting moment, Rogue even considered throwing a few of the roses into bed with her. Instead, she shook her head with a little smile and opted to cozy down under her blankets, content for now with simply one rose on her pillow as she drifted off to sleep.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Tell me again why we're out shoppin' on the last weekend before Christmas?" Rogue complained to her petite companion as she warily eyed the dozens of other shoppers.

"Um, because it's like, the last weekend before Christmas! This is the last full day I'm going to have to get all my shopping done!" Kitty rolled her eyes and groaned. "I like, totally can't believe we're leaving at 4 in the morning on Friday. That's too early even for Logan!"

Rogue chuckled. She wisely decided not to mention that she would be going back to bed promptly after seeing them all off. There would be no early one-on-one Danger Room training with Wolverine for her next Saturday. He would be chauffeuring Jubilee, Tabitha, Ray, and Jamie along the eastern seaboard as he dropped them off at their houses. It was sure to keep him away from the mansion for at least 4 or 5 hours, giving her plenty of time to go back to bed and sleep in.

Begrudgingly, Rogue nodded in agreement. It would be difficult to get all of her Christmas shopping crammed in next week between school, training, homework, and Xavier's annual holiday dinner on Thursday. Thankfully, they had decided to bypass Bayville's regular mall in favor of a smaller outdoor shopping center on the outskirts of town.

The girls were, graciously, alone for the trip. Rogue had been feeling rather claustrophobic with everyone constantly checking in on her and asking how she was doing. She appreciated the concern, truly, but after a week of the adults and students treating her like glass, she needed some space.

"Hey, ah'm gonna stop in here and use this while ah gotta chance," Rogue declared, swishing her Barnes and Noble gift card in the air. She reached for the door handle, but Kitty beat her to it.

"I'll come with you!" the brunette declared quickly.

Rogue dropped the door and stood back, arms folded with one hip jutting out. "Ah thought you said you wanted to hit Old Navy right there?" She pointed to a store three doors down.

"Well, yeah, but like, we can do that after, right?" Kitty fidgeted with a lock of her hair as she squirmed under Rogue's questioning gaze.

"Spill Kit." The southerner raised one eyebrow at her friend.

Kitty groaned. She was SO not good at this covert stuff...

"Fine. I told Logan I would stay with you the whole time. It was like, the only way he would let us go alone." The brunette folded her arms and pouted.

Rogue sighed. How long were they going to treat her with kid gloves? "Ah promise ah won't tell anyone that we didn't hold hands the whole time. Besides, ah'm not steppin' foot in that store a' yours - it's a mad house in there! So if you want anything from it, you're gonna have t' go in alone anyhow."

Kitty groaned in exasperation. There was no arguing with Rogue when she was irritated and feeling patronized. "You, like, have your communicator this time, right?"

The brunette was awarded with a small smile. "Yeah, ah got it Kitty." Rogue patted her back pocket.

"Well, okay. I guess. Just promise to buzz me if there's any problem AT ALL. I'll, like, be here in a flash."

"Will do, Kit. Now go; do y'r shoppin' already so we can get out of these crowds." Rogue smiled reassuringly at her friend as she reached for the door again.

Kitty smiled brightly and waved as she jogged away.

XXXX

A few minutes later Rogue was browsing the fantasy section of the bookstore when she turned abruptly, the feeling that someone was watching her electrifying her spine. She saw no one paying her any mind as she looked around the store, however. Regardless, she kept her attention focused on the unnerving sensation as she turned back to her browsing.

Moments later, she turned again, goosebumps littering her arms and tingling the back of her neck. There to her left, a few feet away at the end of the aisle, was a familiar red-eyed sneak thief. He was leaning up against one of the racks, watching her intently.

Rogue raised an eyebrow as she folded her arms, watching him watching her. With a smirk he sauntered toward her, and Rogue straightened, putting her left hand on her hip. Her fingers were poised just above the communicator in her back pocket..

"Gambit." She greeted him suspiciously.

"Chere." He bent forward as he reached her, lifting her right hand and placing a kiss on her gloved knuckles. "'S good t' see you, Rogue."

He was wearing a plain black crew neck sweater with tight blue jeans and black dress shoes - a far cry from his ever-present uniform. She regarded him cautiously, butterflies fluttering in her stomach as he dropped her hand and smiled up at her.

"You plannin' on kidnappin' me again, Swamp Rat, or just doin' some good old fashioned stalking?"

He chuckled, but something resembling remorse flashed across his face. He gave her a crooked smile and held up a book of his own, it's cover partially covered by his gloved hands. "Actually, Remy be doin' some shoppin' too. Lookin' for une petite cadeau for a friend. Believe it or not, dis just be a happy coincidence."

Rogue raised her eyebrow again, but dropped her left hand and turned back to her browsing. "Oh? Does REMY actually have friends? Ah thought you worked solo?"

Remy took a step back, allowing the girl her space. "Most o' da time. As you know, t'ough, sometimes a job's too big f'r moi, and Remy need t' bring in some extra help."

"How could ah forget?!" Rogue rolled her eyes again and finally made her selection, pulling a book off the shelf.

The red-eyed flirt followed her as she made her way towards the front. "You pickin' up some gifts, too, cherie?" He snuck a peek at her selections and cringed. "True Blood? Really? Can't believe you go for dat trash. An' what's 'Evermore'?" He craned his neck to get a better look at the titles.

Rogue sighed and shrugged noncommittally. "Ah'm not sure about Evermore. One of the gals at Xavier's said ah should read it. An' ah like the True Blood books because they get me out of mah own head for a while. Makes mah life seem closer t' normal, ah guess. Well, at least not quite as screwed up. Besides, the author does a really nice job on the characters - they seem somewhat believable at least. And, her descriptions are really vivid and well done."

She stepped up to the cash register, and the cashier smiled brightly at Remy as she rang up the three books for Rogue.

"Oui," Remy replied, flashing a charming smile at the girl behind the counter before he leaned in and whispered in Rogue's ear. "'Specially those intimate scenes."

Rogue blushed furiously as the cashier bagged the books and handed the bag and the gift card back to her. The southerner blew past Remy and headed out the front door as he flirted silently with the employee. The Cajun caught up in a moment, however, and flashed her a smile as put his sunglasses on.

"Get back in there and pay for that!" Rogue scolded him with a glare.

Chuckling, Remy held up a receipt. "Already did, belle." Rogue glanced at the Barnes and Noble logo printed on the top of the paper.

"Wow, I'm surprised." She looked skeptical, but impressed. "Maybe there's hope for you yet, Swamp Rat."

The two exchanged quiet smiles as they walked along the sidewalk in front of the shops. As they passed by Old Navy and H&M, Kitty came bolting out the door with three bags in hand. "Rogue! Where are you going?!"

Rogue and Gambit turned toward the smaller girl, and Kitty paused. "Oh, who's your friend?" she asked, smiling brightly at the stranger.

The southern girl gestured toward the Cajun, "Kitty, you remember Gambit. Gambit, Kitty."

Kitty was taken aback as Gambit leaned forward and took her hand, kissing the back of it lightly. "Remy Lebeau. Enchante, mademoiselle."

"Oh, um, we've like, met," the dancer blushed furiously and giggled. "I just didn't recognize you without the uniform." She looked to her friend quickly, her eyes flashing concern. "Is everything okay?"

Rogue rolled her eyes as Gambit stood, smirking. "Yeah, Gambit here was just doin' a little Christmas shopping of his own. Kitty nodded slowly, but watched him suspiciously.

"What'd ya get?" Rogue asked, drawing her friend's attention away from the Cajun.

Kitty brightened, completely forgetting her wariness of Gambit. "Oh! Check it out! Matching scarf and glove sets for Scott and Jean," She pulled out a pink pair that said 'His,' and another blue pair that said, 'Hers.'

"I got sweaters for my mom and dad, a little Santa's Elf hat with pointy ears for Kurt - I like, totally already got him something, but I couldn't resist. Oh, and some other hats and gloves and stuff for the teachers." Kitty smiled brightly as she held up different bags from Old Navy.

Finally, she dropped her other bags on the freshly shoveled sidewalk and held up one from H&M. "Oh, and remember last year at the big dinner? You said after that everyone was dressed up so nice and fancy and you felt so out of place? Well…"

The brunette pulled out a simple black dress. It had cap sleeves and a low neckline with a wrapped waist and a flowing skirt that ended just below the knee. She placed that bag next to the others and pulled out a set of sleek black suede high heeled boots to match the dress.

"I totally got the perfect gift for you! It's actually like, from me and Kurt and Ororo and Logan though, so um, try to act surprised when we give it to you for real?" Kitty looked slightly guilty, but her excitement vastly overshadowed her embarrassment.

Rogue smiled after recovering from her initial shock and fingered the flowing ends of the dress. "It's real nice Kitty, thank you. Ah just wish ah had a nice pair of gloves t' go with it." She gave a sad smile. "Bobby and Roberto toasted mah nice long ones a few weeks ago and ah only have a couple pair of these little ones left. They ain't nearly long enough for that, and the best ones are a tad out of mah price range at the moment."

Kitty looked crushed.

"Hey, ah can always wear a sweater over it." She gave her friend a little squeeze as she draped her arm over Kitty's shoulder.

"I guess," the smaller girl pouted. "It'll, like, totally ruin the look though."

Bending down to pick up Kitty's other bags for her, Remy shook his head. "I agree, chaton. That WOULD be a shame; hidin' that knockout figure behind a bulky sweater." He winked at Rogue, then bowed as he handed the girls the bags. "Well, mes petites, 's been a pleasure, but Remy must be on his way now. Maybe I see you again soon, n'est pas?"

With a raised eyebrow, Rogue smiled lightly, and Kitty gave a little wave with her fingers.

"Try t' stay out of trouble, Cajun," the southerner added as the girls watch Gambit turn and head back down the sidewalk.

Kitty looked to her friend, then to Remy, then back to Rogue, her eyes twinkling as a mischievous, knowing grin flitted across her face.

"He's up to something, isn't he?" Kitty asked as the girls headed into the Bath and Body Works shop.

"Isn't he always?" Rogue countered.

"Do you think we should…" Kitty started, looking back toward where Remy had disappeared.

"Follow him?" Rogue nodded. "Good idea."

Kitty paled. "NO! Call the Professor! I was going to say, do you think we should call the Professor!"

Rogue laughed - something she did so seldom, Kitty was a little taken aback. "Ah'm just messing with you Kit. Of course we ain't gonna follow him - Logan'd kill us both.

'Sides, Gambit didn't look like he was 'working' so to speak. He didn't even have his regular, um - suit - on, so I don't think he was out t' cause trouble. Not really sure what he's doing up this way, though, so we'll just tell the Prof t' keep an eye out for any suspicious activity."

Rogue glanced back down the sidewalk toward where Gambit had disappeared and shook her head.

What was that boy up to now?

She was drawn from her ruminations by Kitty's hand digging through her bag of books.

"What are you…?" The southerner asked as Kitty finally pulled one of the True Blood books from Rogue's bag.

The dancer immediately stuck out her tongue and scrunched her face up, disgusted. She dropped the book back in Rogue's bag again.

"Yuck," Kitty sighed. "Don't those things give you nightmares?"

Rogue chuckled under her breath, but shrugged. "No more than usual. 'Sides, ah'd rather have bad dreams about fictional characters than re-live other people's memories. Some of the stuff from Wolverine's past would make your toes curl. Honestly, sometimes ah think ah read so much just so ah can try to induce a fiction-related dream f'r once."

Kitty's eyes were wide, her face still as she took in her friend's unexpected confession. Finally, she smiled brightly and gave Rogue's arm a little squeeze. "Well, I sure know what to get you for NEXT Christmas then!"

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"UGH! I can't believe it's Monday already!" Kurt moaned as he, Kitty, and Rogue trudged through the halls of Bayville High on their way to lunch.

"Yeah, but at least it's like, the last week before break, and it's only three days." Kitty almost sounded disappointed.

Kurt and Rogue exchanged looks as their brainiac friend stuck her tongue out at them.

"What ah don't get is why they even bother with these short weeks. Nothin' ever gets done. The teachers just give out these terrible holiday worksheets and we just throw 'em away." Rogue held up a coordinate graph of a snowman before crumbling it and tossing it in the trash.

"Did ya'll at least get your holiday shopping done?" The Southerner asked her friends as they approached her locker.

"Yes, thanks to you!" Kitty squealed, skipping the rest of the way to Rogue's locker.

Kurt hung his head. "Not even close. I have SO much to do and only two days to do it!" He trudged along slowly beside Rogue, who chuckled and nudged him with her shoulder playfully.

"Serves ya right for procrastinating. Maybe if you hadn't been so caught up in your little prank war with the younger students, you'd have gotten it all done like Kitty here."

Kurt looked at his sister incredulously. "But it's a PRANK war! I HAD to defend my honor as reigning king! The art of pranking takes a lot of planning you know!"

Rogue chuckled as Kitty tapped her foot impatiently. "Will you guys come ON already! Whatever they're cooking in the cafeteria smells AMAZING!"

Rogue raised an eyebrow. "Ah thought it was just corn dogs or chicken patty sandwich today?"

Kurt nodded. "Ja, it is."

Kitty looked around, confused, as she sniffed the air. "Then what is that SMELL!"

As Rogue reached her locker and began twisting in the combination, she too sniffed the air, noting the aroma of something akin to a full-service deli. Kurt stood farther in the hallway, also trying to pinpoint the smell.

Distracted, Rogue opened her locker and just managed to catch a large stash of boxes contained within a white plastic grocery bag.

"Uh, guys, little help?" She called to Kitty and Kurt, who dashed over to stabilize Rogue's newest surprise.

Once the three of them had managed the bags, Kurt found a receipt stapled to his bag. As he read, the girls could practically see his mouth watering. "Oh man, Chiliburger, Chili Dog, Chicken Salad Platter, Chicken Noodle Soup, Matzo Ball Soup, and three Potato Latkes! I think *I'M* in love!"

Rogue rolled her eyes as she looked around in her locker for a note, but she couldn't help closing them as she inhaled the delectable aroma.

"Ahah!" Kitty cried, holding up a quickly scribbled note on a large yellow post-it. She bit her lip as she looked to Rogue.

"Go ahead," the pseudo-goth conceded.

Kitty could hardly contain her exuberance as she read aloud. "I thought perhaps a change of pace was in order and that you and your friends might enjoy something besides cafeteria slop. Bon Appetit!"

Rogue took the offered post-it from Kitty and scanned it quickly for any clues. Surprisingly, it was not penned in Mandy's usual handwriting. Biting her lip, Rogue placed the note carefully in her back pocket without a word to Kitty. If her overly obsessed friend found out it wasn't from the blonde retail worker, the girl might go around the entire school collecting writing samples!

Kurt was already digging around in his bag before he glanced up with a sheepish grin. "What, uh, what are you going to have, Rogue?"

Rogue chuckled. "You're welcome to the burger, Kurt."

Her brother made a fist and pulled his arm back in silent victory, then started trying to dig through Kitty's bag as well.

Rogue put up a hand in an attempt to curb his enthusiasm. "Let's just get to a table first," she laughed, shutting her locker and heading to the cafeteria.

XXXXXXXX

The following day after school, Jean and Scott were once again at the school to pick up some of the students. After dropping everyone off at school that day they had needed to take the X-Van to check up on a new mutant signature a few counties away. It had turned out to be a young girl with ability to grow plant life, and remarkably, the girl was already so "in tune" with nature that she didn't need any help controlling her new gifts at all.

Jean and Scott stood just outside the front doors of the building, trying to figure out which students were riding with whom.

Rogue was just about to head toward the other van still waiting in the parking lot - the one WITHOUT the sickeningly sweet couple driving - when Jean called her over.

"Hey, Rogue! Do you have a second?" The redhead called nonchalantly. "I wanted to ask you about how your history exam went."

The Southerner rolled her eyes, but tried to block out her feelings of irritation as she begrudgingly turned back around to go talk to her teammate. It was only fair, after all. Jean HAD spent a lot of time going over the material and more or less tutoring her. She wouldn't have even passed the stupid test if it weren't for Jean.

With a small, almost forced smile, Rogue came up to her teammate, and Jean carefully guided Rogue away from Scott and the others.

The redhead smiled almost conspiratorially as she glanced quickly to where Scott was trying to keep a headcount and recruit some of the younger students to ride in the X-Van. Most, like Kurt, Bobby, and Ray, were opting for non-traditional methods of transportation.

As soon as Jean knew Scott and the other student's attention were elsewhere, Jean pulled out a slender black box and slipped it to Rogue.

"Here. This arrived today while you were at school. I thought maybe you'd rather not have the entire student body at Xavier's passing it around for once."

Rogue took the small package, her eyebrows nearly up to her hairline as she realized Jean was simultaneously keeping secrets from Scott, too. Her features softened, and she nodded quickly, smiling brightly at the college freshman.

With her back to Scott and the others, Rogue began pulling the simple silver ribbon of the small black box.

As she did so, however, Tabitha suddenly noticed the two girls standing off by themselves and decided to investigate.

Rogue was none the wiser to the sudden interest, but Jean placed an arm on the shorter girl's shoulder and spoke up, projecting her voice so Tabitha and anyone else could hear her.

"So, did they quiz you on Napoleon, too, or just the early part of the French Revolution, because you know, I can tell you ALL about Napoleon. He really was fascinating! Did you know when he was a boy…"

Jean smiled and shook with laughter as Tabitha quickly did a 180 and made a beeline for the other white van with Sam, Amara, and Jubilee.

"Thanks," Rogue whispered gratefully as she peeled the tape away from one corner of the black box.

"Any time," Jean whispered back. Nervously, she shifted her feet, unsure whether to give Rogue her space or stand guard - okay, so she WAS curious about her friend's newest gift, but the whole point of the charade was to give Rogue some semblance of privacy.

"Oh thank heavens!" Rogue declared, dropping her backpack on the ground and putting the now empty black box inside. With an almost gleeful expression, she held out the gift for Jean to see.

"Gloves!" Rogue stated, quickly ripping her old ones off and placing them in her backpack as Jean took the new ones for her.

"Gloves are good?" Jean questioned skeptically.

"Gloves are very, VERY good." Rogue nodded enthusiastically. "These ones are startin' t' get holes in the fingertips ah've had 'em so long."

"Oh," Jean felt along the fabric of the new gloves, "Feel this! There's some kind of ribbing on the fingertips!"

Rogue was almost giddy as Jean handed over the sleek black fabric. The Southerner carefully pulled one on, and gasped. "They're so soft! And the material really breathes, too." With one bare hand, she felt the tips of the fingers. "Ooh, these are so you can use smart phones and touch screens. Oh mah god. These are so NICE! Ah wonder where on earth he got 'em?"

Jean shook her head. "Wolverine said it was delivered by courier this morning. There aren't any tags or anything?"

Rogue turned the sleek black gloves over and checked inside the cuffs. "Not that ah can see. He usually doesn't leave any tags or anything, though. Kitty says it's so ah can't take anything back."

Jean raised an eyebrow as her mouth quirked up at one side. "He is clever, I'll give him that."

Rogue nodded in agreement as she pulled on the second glove. While the glove fit perfectly - neither too loose or too tight - the cuff was a little wider, giving her the ability to quickly slide the glove off if need be. The material itself was a plain black and thin; almost thin enough to see through, but still strong and hardy.

"And with good taste," Rogue commented, still feeling the soft material with her other, gloveless, hand. "Ah'm startin' t' worry this guy might be a woman."

Rogue and Jean chuckled, and the redhead commented. "Or maybe a telepath?"

Rogue shook her head with a disgusted look. "Well, the only two telepaths I know are you and the Professor, and as far as ah know, he ain't really into teenagers."

Jean stuck out her tongue and shuddered.

"So unless there's something YOU been wantin' t' tell me…" The Southerner teased, an amused smile flitting across her face.

Jean laughed, but put her hand on Rogue's covered arm, "You got me, Rogue. I'm madly in love with you! I need more than a man can offer! I love Scott, but there's just something between you and I that I can't deny any more."

Rogue wasn't sure whether she wanted to laugh or grimace.

When Scott suddenly whipped around from a few feet away to stare at Jean, however, Rogue couldn't contain herself and the two girls broke into raucous laughter.

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