"I think we should confront him."

"No, you're wrong. We need to mind our own business."

"We don't have our own business!" Kayla insisted, as she walked around the bed. "He tried bringing you to the school already; he wouldn't expect us to show up on our own."

Logan's harsh stare was enough to stop her in her tracks. He almost looked...emotional? No, it couldn't be.

"Would you just drop it? I said I'm fine."

Kayla's eyes followed him as he walked away from her. He wandered to the bedside table and picked up the beer bottle, examining its label. Her words grabbed his attention and stilled his hand.

"You seem pretty broken to me."

After a moment's hesitation, he set the bottle down on the bedside table. "Eighty proof," he grumbled. His near-immortal body demanded more, so he sat on the bed and leaned forward, putting on his shoes. "I'm gonna go get somethin' stronger."

"I don't want you out there by yourself."

"You scared away the freak. I can handle the rest."

"You don't need to be drunk, you need—"

"What?" he interrupted, as he surged to his feet. "For me to be out there by myself with your blessing, what do I need?"

"Control of your own brain."

"I've got that."

"Right here, right now. Not when you're under the influence of alcohol. Or a telepath."

"What do you want?" he interrupted. "You want to come with me? Would that help?" he asked, and continued blasting her when she nodded. "Why the hell would it? If I did get attacked, even if he was going to blow my brains out, all you'd do is touch 'im."

Her gentle attempt to support him effectively extinguished like a candle in a rainstorm, she watched him shuffle to the dresser and pull out a clean shirt. He unintentionally slammed the drawer, ignoring his recklessness as he began to change; his muscles rippling in the muted light. She averted her eyes from his obvious strength. "You've got your power... I've got mine."

Pulling the shirt down, Logan snatched up his keys and began walking to the door. But he paused beside her and uttered the last thing she expected to hear.

"You're pathetic."

Confused, her eyes shot up to his. She searched their dark depths for any sign of a stranger, but all she could see was Logan. "All this time, I thought you were happy," she said, barely able to raise her voice above a whisper. Seeing a responsive flicker of sadness in his eyes before his face resumed its stoic mask, she attempted to touch his hand, intending to try and peek inside his mind. But he suddenly moved past her, opened the door and was gone. Turning around and leaning, she watched him disappear down the stairs.

Logan's heavy footsteps caught the attention of House, who lay on the couch with his head nearest to the door. Hearing the jingle of keys, he turned his head and looked at Logan, again wishing it was Kayla. Wishing she would invite him along to someplace secluded and nice.

"What're you looking at?" Logan grumbled.

This time House shrugged and turned his eyes up to the ceiling. "Nothing."

Suppressing a smile, Logan opened the front door and stepped out into the dark heart of the night.

Having heard Logan's voice and rough departure, Cameron wandered down the hallway, seeing the other bedroom door wide open. Kayla stood on the inside, arms crossed with her back to the door, head hanging. She appeared to wipe her eyes before turning around. Hand on the door knob, she stopped cold when she saw Cameron.

"Did you break up?"

"I don't know," Kayla answered tensely.

Cameron exhaled through the nose as she looked away, then her eyes found Kayla's again. She squinted at her. "Who fired the shot?"

"I don't know, probably one of the locals."

"From an invisible house," Cameron deduced. "Okay, we'll blame that one on Wonder Woman, but I know everyone's lying to me. Which is fine," she added, her tense tone matching Kayla's, "Because House is my patient, and patients lie."

"What's your theory about me?"

"Well, you've got no reason to lie to a friend," Cameron answered. She raised her eyebrows and began to turn away.

"There are some things about my life I don't think you could handle. Long term," she added under her breath. "Because they're dangerous. We've already been detained, shot at, interrogated."

"And I'm handling it," Cameron answered. "Very gracefully, I think. You really have no idea how dangerous patients can be, and I've dealt with that, too. I mean, I don't think I could drug a cop," she added, "But there are times I could use a friend. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I never distanced myself with you." She stared unblinkingly at her, obviously trying not to break down. "You don't want anything to do with me, I can try to accept that. You can still tell me who fired the shot."

Kayla hesitated a moment longer, but finally relented. "Actually, I don't know who fired the shot. That was why I went into the room. The gun was already on the bed."

Maintaining eye contact for several seconds, Cameron said, "Okay. I think I believe you."

"Have I ever lied before?"

Cameron briefly considered. "Uh, no... Not that I can think of."

"Logan and I are mutants. Another one is messing with his mind."

Cameron was quiet for a moment, then her brows went up. "What?"

"You've actually known before. But I keep erasing your memory because I didn't think...you could handle it," she repeated. "And we're always worried about being turned in to the authorities."

Cameron's attempt at trying to absorb the revelation faltered. "Wait—you think I called them?"

"No." Kayla sighed and shook her head. "Chase called them."

"Okay, wait. Wait, wait," Cameron stammered.

"I know this is a lot to process. We're not freaks. We're just...genetically," she floundered. "A little different."

Cameron stood still for a moment, then covered her eyes briefly, running her hands over her hair. "Um... And you said another mutant is messing with his mind," she mumbled slowly.

"Yeah. Controlling him."

Cameron sighed, dropping her hands. "Uh, that-that's got to be causing neurological damage," she muttered, her face blank. "Rewiring neurons, and..."

"Are you okay?"

Cameron looked at her, wide-eyed. "How can I be okay? You were getting shot at!"

Kayla nodded. "Logan heals," she answered softly. "He could sustain the most damage humanly possible, and live."

"Unless this mutant intentionally causes brain hemorrhage."

"No, I don't think that's..." Kayla paused. "Do you think he... Well, he's not a doctor," she decided.

"Did he tell you that?"

"No," Kayla answered hastily. Then she paused again, giving Cameron another uncertain look. "Well, I think it's a safe bet. He doesn't seem like the rational type. Breaking into a building, misusing equipment, controlling others, declaring a w..." Too late, her words rushed to a falter.

"Declaring a war?" Cameron finished.

"See, this is one of the things I didn't want you knowing."

"No, I'm not freaking out. No, I'm fine." Cameron put a hand over her heart, offering a light chuckle before her smile dropped off her face. "So, you, um—what-what would this mutant want with Logan?"

"He wants to control him."

"I see."

In the following silence, Kayla scrutinized Cameron, who stood very still. Her eyes were all that moved, as she tried to process. She waited until the silence was unbearable, then finally had to speak. "You alright, Cam?"

"Yes." Cameron looked at her. "Thank you for telling me."

Her words came slow and quiet, and her hands shook; her right hand at her side and her left hand still raised near her heart. "I'm not falling for it," she mumbled, still staring into her eyes.

"Use your phone. It'll prove..." Again, Kayla ran out of words when she realized that Cameron hadn't meant it. She probably hadn't even been aware that she had said it; because she was definitely freaking out. "Want me to erase your memory again?"

"No." Cameron made a face and dismissively waved a hand. "Pfft, you kidding? I'm not a threat. If anything, you should erase the other guy's memory. No, I'm not a threat, no," she rambled, as Kayla considered the idea. "I can handle it. You know, House might have neurological damage. He's been abusing pills for years. Somebody else controlling you... That's got to be a million times worse. And believe me, because I should know, there are some things you just can't recover from."

"With all due respect, you're not familiar with...people like us."

"No, I'm familiar with people. Regular, human people. This is screwed up. You're screwed up. Oh my God," she blathered, as she began wandering around the room. "Were you like this as a kid? The-the sleepovers, the school days, the...the reason you vanished?"

"Yes."

"Did I know back then? Did you erase my memory back then?"

"If I had, I wouldn't have vanished."

"So-so that's your choice. Now. Erase my memory and stay, or don't erase my memory and take off."

"Or erase your memory and take off."

"So that's it. You won't stay and let me know. You won't even give me a chance."

"Cameron, this is a lot to handle even for Logan. And you, you're just..." Kayla sighed. "Human."

"I'm handling it. Okay, the best way I know how. Just give me a minute; give me a chance. You didn't exactly tell me what two plus two is. I want the chance. I want you to trust me. You're genetically different, but you're not flawed. Like that patient with the extra toe. Everything was all fine and normal and good until he talked about it. You leave your socks on... I am not freaking out," she interrupted herself, when she saw the way Kayla was looking at her. She paused, and then began to backpedal, "Okay, I'm freaking out. There's mutants, there's a war, there's people shooting at you. I mean, I thought House was screwed up. But God," she groaned, "I had no idea how normal he was. How screwed up you were when...when we were kids," her voice ended on an upward inflection, like she was asking, while she continued to roam around the bedroom. "Sharing a room, sneaking chocolate after midnight. How screwed up you were when you were right there." Her voice ended on a flat tone and she stared at Kayla, arms crossed.

The silence grew.

"I'm not screwed up," Kayla finally said. "And if you want me to trust you, then let me. If you want a chance, take it when it's offered. Okay, I'm standing here, I'm offering. Even the irrational, mind-controlling mutant can appreciate what he is."

"What is he?" Cameron demanded. "I assume the mind-controlling mutant doesn't want a mind-controlling mutant. So what is he?"

"He heals," Kayla repeated hesitantly. "And I don't control minds. I just coerce them. I convinced you to block it out. I never took control. And the mutant, Erik, he wouldn't have control, either. He's using a machine with that function. And he's trying to recruit, to make sure he...wins," she finished apologetically. "And you're in more danger knowing this, so I do advise letting me erase that knowledge."

"Well, I don't want you to. At least not now," she added. "You can hold off until you vanish again. I'd like to... I need to talk about this. You say he's trying to recruit? How many mutants are there?"

"I don't know. Lots, probably. It's genetic."

"So you said." Cameron narrowed her eyes, and Kayla was about to apologize when she took the conversation in an unexpected direction. "Mutants aren't immune to each other. So if there's, like, a mutant who can transfer powers, couldn't he use Logan to heal House?"

Kayla smiled at her one-track-minded concern. "That ability seems kind of far-fetched."

"Right, and everything else, totally normal."

Kayla tilted her head in acknowledgment. "Anyway, he's not injured."

"He's missing muscle."

"You can't heal something that's not there." Kayla shook her head, smiling sadly. "He's damaged, but he's healthy. If there was such a mutant, he couldn't help him."

In the following silence, Kayla examined her again. She didn't appear to be breaking down anymore; only disappointed. "I'm sorry," she felt compelled to say. "If I thought you were onto something, I'd take him there now." She shrugged restlessly. "I don't think there's anything I can do."

"He's my patient," Cameron repeated softly. "How can there be nothing I can do? And...if that hurts me," she added, and shook her head. Thinking her conclusion was obvious, she fell silent and stared off into the distance, remembering the indent she had felt beneath his clothes.

Kayla's face materialized, closer. "Are you okay?" she asked again.

"No. Far from it." Cameron shook her head and then blurted, "I studied. I trained. I was a professional with two dozen patients, every day of the year, for three years before he hired me and I ran circles around the doctors in the ER after I quit the team. But when it's me and him, I feel like a med student. I trained specifically for this; how can this...be it? How can I fail this hard?" she asked, with a self-loathing chuckle.

"You're not failing. You're just failing him." Kayla gazed at her, with that plain expression on her face. "I'm sorry he doesn't love you back."

Cameron reached up and patted Kayla's shoulder. "And I'm sorry your life is so screwed up."

"I'm not screwed up."

"Everything is screwed up. Everyone is screwed up. If you don't see it, you're more screwed up than most."

Kayla frowned at her. "That's...poignant."

"I was quoting House."

"Ah, well, that makes sense."

"It's starting to," Cameron said quietly.

Kayla adjusted her shirt, studying her friend's eyes. "So you're...you're not repulsed by me? You won't turn us in, or...hold a gun to my head?"

"No. I'm not, and I won't."

"So I can let you keep knowing, and go to sleep, and everything will be fine?"

Cameron shrugged. "Consider this a trust exercise. Tell you what; if I break your trust...convince me to hold the gun to my own head."

"I would never do that. Why would you even say that?"

"That's me trying to convince you." Cameron quirked a brow at her, then turned around and headed down the hall. Kayla was smiling as she walked to the door and closed it, but her thoughts rapidly turned to Logan, and the things he'd said to her; and she had to wonder that any apology he extended would be him trying to heal something that wasn't there.