Post by Iceman on Jul 5, 2006 15:39:36 GMT -5
Bobby walked slowly along the hallway to his room. He'd never have admitted it, but the last training session that he, Kitty, and Pete had been put through in the Danger Room had exhausted him. He'd changed silently and taken the elevator on his own, and trudged up the stairs slowly. He was looking forward to going to his quiet, peaceful room, and sleeping. Forget dinner.
When he reached his room, he stopped and opened his door. Walking inside, he was met with a rush of cold air--when John had left, he'd returned the temperature to a point much more comfortable than him--a good ten degrees lower than that which was comfortable for everyone else.
Rogue had just gotten off the phone with Lee, who was having some human problems of her own, when she heard Bobby return from practice. She'd been debating something recently, and her latest call from Lee had solidified it in her mind. Now she would just have to tell Bobby, and she was sure he wouldn't be happy.
Making her way down the hall, she knocked quietly before letting herself in. It was always cold in Bobby's room, and she'd come well-prepared with the gloves she always wore, even now that she was "cured".
As Bobby heard a knock on the door, he looked in it's direction, his face curious and yet begrudging. 'Sleep,' he groaned inwardly. He sat up and swung his legs over the side of the bed. Even as he stood, he heard the door click and start to open. "Come in," he called out, though whoever it was was already coming.
"Hey Bobby," Rogue started as casually as possible, "how was practice?" She'd rather not jump right into it, although putting it off also seemed like a damn waste of time. Still, she was nervous as to what he'd say (he already didn't like the fact that she'd gotten the cure), so she tried to start out as normal as possible.
XXxFyreByrdxXx [3:00 PM]: When Bobby saw that it was Rogue at the door, he smiled at her--though it was a tired smile. "Ah...tiring." He answered with a shrug. Then, shaking his head, he added, "I don't know. Maybe I'm just off today...or something."
"How was, uh-" Hard to ask how it was when he didn't know what she'd been doing while he was training. "How's your day been?"
"Well, I talked to Lee," she replied, a slight lift to her voice on the name. Rogue closed the door behind her and moved a little closer to the bed. She might as well just get right down to it then. "She was talking about possibly moving back down south, getting an apartment together somewhere, maybe Mississippi, where I used to live. Get jobs, you know, normal stuff." She winced a little at her use of the word, hoping that he wouldn't take offense and knowing quite well that she hadn't done "normal stuff" in two years now.
Bobby nodded at Rogue's mention of her friend Lee. As Rogue began to relate the conversation, at first Bobby saw it as just an update on Lee's life. As he listened, he leaned down to grab some clothes he'd tossed on his bed and get them all the way into the hamper this time.
'...getting an apartment together somewhere...'
Bobby stopped folding. His eyes went directly to her face as she continued. Together? As she trailed off, it was clear. "You want to...leave?" Bobby asked, his voice carefully controlled and yet obviously incredulous.
"Well, I wouldn't really say that..." Rogue trailed off and looked at one of the snowboarding posters on the wall, her hands carefully folded in her lap. "I mean, I don't really want to leave, but... it might be fun. Ya'know, get out into the world again. Be..." she wouldn't say it this time, "not surrounded by people all the time."
"It's not like I really belong here anymore," she put in quickly. "I'm not a mutant anymore. I don't need to learn how to control any powers. Now I'm just Marie again, and I feel out of place here."
Bobby let the shirt he was holding fall back onto the bed, serious eyes on her still. Everything she was saying was right, he knew. They'd fought enough over the separation that had become apparent between her and the X-Men in the last few months. Bobby knew she didn't technically belong there anymore...But everyone still wanted her there, and it wasn't like it was detrimental to any of them to have her be there. All things he'd argued before. But she'd never before outrightly told him that she wanted to go out into the 'regular' world--the one unconcerned with mutant rights and the war. Of course he wanted her to be happy...But he didn't want her to go.
"Well..." He carefully kept any accusation out of his voice, and spoke gently. "You knew that would be the case...when you took the cure."
Gritting her teeth at that, Rogue knew that he was right. Her and Lee had discussed it thoroughly before either of them had decided to take the cure, and of course they had known what it would mean. But Lee had been convinced that everything would go back to normal - she'd return home and go back to being Oralee. And Rogue was so desperate for human touch at that point she was willing to risk alienating herself yet again for it. But while super powers couldn't compensate for human touch, touch couldn't compensate for alienation either, and now that she was human again she found herself once again on the outs. It was a lose/lose situation.
Rogue sighed as she didn't feel she could explain herself well enough for him to realize what it was like. "I don't regret taking the cure, really. I just, don't want to be cooped up in the mansion anylonger with a bunch of mutants who used to fear me and now look down at me because I did something taboo."
Bobby frowned slightly, and he spoke as though she were being overly dramatic. "Nobody looks down on you. You've got a lot of friends here--"
"No, I don't!" She said and tried to hide her sob in a sarcastic laugh. "I've got you, who has to stand by me because you're my boyfriend. I've got Logan, who is gone half of the time trying to find his past. And I've got Kitty, my roommate who looks at me sympathetically while trying to steal my boyfriend right behind my back!" Rogue crossed her arms over her chest angrily - she hadn't meant to say that outloud to Bobby. But honestly, that was what had really driven her to be cured, to get Bobby back, and it turned out not to be the cure for their problems afterall.
Bobby looked across the room, exasperated. "God!" He let his head tilt up for a second as his eyes flitted skyward before zeroing in once again on Rogue's now angry face. "Is that what this is about?! I told you--a million times--nothing is going on between me and Kitty!" He held out his hands, gesturing as he spoke, as if to emphasize the statement.
"If nothing is going on between you two then why did you kiss her?" Rogue turned so she was glarring at him, tears showing in her eyes but not yet spilling over her face. "I saw it, Bobby. When you took her ice skating! Why do you think I went to get the cure that night?!"
Bobby's face--and chest--froze as Rogue roared at him. The anger slipped from his features as he closed his eyes and his head slowly tilted down. He let loose a long breath, then lifted a hand to his face and placed it over his eyes for a second, before he rose his head. His hand ran down over his face before he crossed his arms across his chest.
Inside him, he struggled between how to react. He needed to apologize, ought to apologize. But at the same time, fresh anger was kindled at her accusation that her getting the cure had been his fault.
"Don't...blame me...for how this turned out," he began, referring to how much things had changed because of her 'cure'--forming his thoughts into words with a tired attempt to keep his voice low. "I never should have done that, and I'm sorry." As he went on, he once again became exasperated. "But you should have said something about it, or dumped me, or something! You didn't have to get the cure--Anyone with half a brain would be able to tell that that wasn't going to fix anything."
"Half a brain!" Rogue sputtered. She had the distinct urge to suck half his life out at the moment, if only she hadn't be cured. "You're absolutely right, Bobby Drake. I should have broken up with you that night. Thank god I have a whole brain now." She pushed herself up off his bed and opened the door, slamming it shut behind her and locking her own door. She wished there was some way to lock Kitty out, but seeing as how there wasn't, she instead started packing her bags, planning to do exactally what Lee had done and go home.
"Rogue, c'mon--" Bobby started forward as Rogue headed for the door. But the door slammed before he could get to her, and he stopped, turning and giving a frustrated growl.
Bobby stood there as he listened to her door slam down the hall. Staring blankly at the wall, he wondered whether or not he should go after her. But in the end, he didn't. He sat on the edge of his bed, his elbows on his knees and his head down, one hand in his hair as he stared at the floorboards. After all, they'd just broken up, and he wasn't going to run after her and beg her to have him back. But he didn't want to break up with her. He knew it would be better to find her the next day, when she had calmed down, and talk to her then. Maybe even talk her out of leaving. Once he thought of what to say.
Heaving a sigh, Bobby swung his legs up onto his bed and fell back against his pillow heavily. He spent much of the next hour staring at the ceiling with a troubled expression, before he fell into uneasy sleep. But uneasy as it was, he slept through the remainder of the evening and through the night.
He never gave thought to the idea that she would pack up and leave that night. But when she wasn't at breakfast the next morning, Bobby went up to her room. He let himself in, and saw that the room was completely bare. She was gone.
When he reached his room, he stopped and opened his door. Walking inside, he was met with a rush of cold air--when John had left, he'd returned the temperature to a point much more comfortable than him--a good ten degrees lower than that which was comfortable for everyone else.
Rogue had just gotten off the phone with Lee, who was having some human problems of her own, when she heard Bobby return from practice. She'd been debating something recently, and her latest call from Lee had solidified it in her mind. Now she would just have to tell Bobby, and she was sure he wouldn't be happy.
Making her way down the hall, she knocked quietly before letting herself in. It was always cold in Bobby's room, and she'd come well-prepared with the gloves she always wore, even now that she was "cured".
As Bobby heard a knock on the door, he looked in it's direction, his face curious and yet begrudging. 'Sleep,' he groaned inwardly. He sat up and swung his legs over the side of the bed. Even as he stood, he heard the door click and start to open. "Come in," he called out, though whoever it was was already coming.
"Hey Bobby," Rogue started as casually as possible, "how was practice?" She'd rather not jump right into it, although putting it off also seemed like a damn waste of time. Still, she was nervous as to what he'd say (he already didn't like the fact that she'd gotten the cure), so she tried to start out as normal as possible.
XXxFyreByrdxXx [3:00 PM]: When Bobby saw that it was Rogue at the door, he smiled at her--though it was a tired smile. "Ah...tiring." He answered with a shrug. Then, shaking his head, he added, "I don't know. Maybe I'm just off today...or something."
"How was, uh-" Hard to ask how it was when he didn't know what she'd been doing while he was training. "How's your day been?"
"Well, I talked to Lee," she replied, a slight lift to her voice on the name. Rogue closed the door behind her and moved a little closer to the bed. She might as well just get right down to it then. "She was talking about possibly moving back down south, getting an apartment together somewhere, maybe Mississippi, where I used to live. Get jobs, you know, normal stuff." She winced a little at her use of the word, hoping that he wouldn't take offense and knowing quite well that she hadn't done "normal stuff" in two years now.
Bobby nodded at Rogue's mention of her friend Lee. As Rogue began to relate the conversation, at first Bobby saw it as just an update on Lee's life. As he listened, he leaned down to grab some clothes he'd tossed on his bed and get them all the way into the hamper this time.
'...getting an apartment together somewhere...'
Bobby stopped folding. His eyes went directly to her face as she continued. Together? As she trailed off, it was clear. "You want to...leave?" Bobby asked, his voice carefully controlled and yet obviously incredulous.
"Well, I wouldn't really say that..." Rogue trailed off and looked at one of the snowboarding posters on the wall, her hands carefully folded in her lap. "I mean, I don't really want to leave, but... it might be fun. Ya'know, get out into the world again. Be..." she wouldn't say it this time, "not surrounded by people all the time."
"It's not like I really belong here anymore," she put in quickly. "I'm not a mutant anymore. I don't need to learn how to control any powers. Now I'm just Marie again, and I feel out of place here."
Bobby let the shirt he was holding fall back onto the bed, serious eyes on her still. Everything she was saying was right, he knew. They'd fought enough over the separation that had become apparent between her and the X-Men in the last few months. Bobby knew she didn't technically belong there anymore...But everyone still wanted her there, and it wasn't like it was detrimental to any of them to have her be there. All things he'd argued before. But she'd never before outrightly told him that she wanted to go out into the 'regular' world--the one unconcerned with mutant rights and the war. Of course he wanted her to be happy...But he didn't want her to go.
"Well..." He carefully kept any accusation out of his voice, and spoke gently. "You knew that would be the case...when you took the cure."
Gritting her teeth at that, Rogue knew that he was right. Her and Lee had discussed it thoroughly before either of them had decided to take the cure, and of course they had known what it would mean. But Lee had been convinced that everything would go back to normal - she'd return home and go back to being Oralee. And Rogue was so desperate for human touch at that point she was willing to risk alienating herself yet again for it. But while super powers couldn't compensate for human touch, touch couldn't compensate for alienation either, and now that she was human again she found herself once again on the outs. It was a lose/lose situation.
Rogue sighed as she didn't feel she could explain herself well enough for him to realize what it was like. "I don't regret taking the cure, really. I just, don't want to be cooped up in the mansion anylonger with a bunch of mutants who used to fear me and now look down at me because I did something taboo."
Bobby frowned slightly, and he spoke as though she were being overly dramatic. "Nobody looks down on you. You've got a lot of friends here--"
"No, I don't!" She said and tried to hide her sob in a sarcastic laugh. "I've got you, who has to stand by me because you're my boyfriend. I've got Logan, who is gone half of the time trying to find his past. And I've got Kitty, my roommate who looks at me sympathetically while trying to steal my boyfriend right behind my back!" Rogue crossed her arms over her chest angrily - she hadn't meant to say that outloud to Bobby. But honestly, that was what had really driven her to be cured, to get Bobby back, and it turned out not to be the cure for their problems afterall.
Bobby looked across the room, exasperated. "God!" He let his head tilt up for a second as his eyes flitted skyward before zeroing in once again on Rogue's now angry face. "Is that what this is about?! I told you--a million times--nothing is going on between me and Kitty!" He held out his hands, gesturing as he spoke, as if to emphasize the statement.
"If nothing is going on between you two then why did you kiss her?" Rogue turned so she was glarring at him, tears showing in her eyes but not yet spilling over her face. "I saw it, Bobby. When you took her ice skating! Why do you think I went to get the cure that night?!"
Bobby's face--and chest--froze as Rogue roared at him. The anger slipped from his features as he closed his eyes and his head slowly tilted down. He let loose a long breath, then lifted a hand to his face and placed it over his eyes for a second, before he rose his head. His hand ran down over his face before he crossed his arms across his chest.
Inside him, he struggled between how to react. He needed to apologize, ought to apologize. But at the same time, fresh anger was kindled at her accusation that her getting the cure had been his fault.
"Don't...blame me...for how this turned out," he began, referring to how much things had changed because of her 'cure'--forming his thoughts into words with a tired attempt to keep his voice low. "I never should have done that, and I'm sorry." As he went on, he once again became exasperated. "But you should have said something about it, or dumped me, or something! You didn't have to get the cure--Anyone with half a brain would be able to tell that that wasn't going to fix anything."
"Half a brain!" Rogue sputtered. She had the distinct urge to suck half his life out at the moment, if only she hadn't be cured. "You're absolutely right, Bobby Drake. I should have broken up with you that night. Thank god I have a whole brain now." She pushed herself up off his bed and opened the door, slamming it shut behind her and locking her own door. She wished there was some way to lock Kitty out, but seeing as how there wasn't, she instead started packing her bags, planning to do exactally what Lee had done and go home.
"Rogue, c'mon--" Bobby started forward as Rogue headed for the door. But the door slammed before he could get to her, and he stopped, turning and giving a frustrated growl.
Bobby stood there as he listened to her door slam down the hall. Staring blankly at the wall, he wondered whether or not he should go after her. But in the end, he didn't. He sat on the edge of his bed, his elbows on his knees and his head down, one hand in his hair as he stared at the floorboards. After all, they'd just broken up, and he wasn't going to run after her and beg her to have him back. But he didn't want to break up with her. He knew it would be better to find her the next day, when she had calmed down, and talk to her then. Maybe even talk her out of leaving. Once he thought of what to say.
Heaving a sigh, Bobby swung his legs up onto his bed and fell back against his pillow heavily. He spent much of the next hour staring at the ceiling with a troubled expression, before he fell into uneasy sleep. But uneasy as it was, he slept through the remainder of the evening and through the night.
He never gave thought to the idea that she would pack up and leave that night. But when she wasn't at breakfast the next morning, Bobby went up to her room. He let himself in, and saw that the room was completely bare. She was gone.
