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He was gone again. Off to search for answers to questions he didn't even remember anymore.
And she was still here. Waiting for him to come back.
Which was dumb of her, because it's not like he came back for her. He didn't choose her to come back to. It's always for her, always for Jean. Never for poor little Rogue.
Sometimes she just stayed in her room. It wasn't worth going outside to see everyone's pity for her. She didn't need it. She just curled up in bed, covers over her head, pretending there was nothing out there for her.
Because without him, it didn't feel like there was.
Bobby tried pulling her out of her shell. He thought he succeeded when she accepted his proposal to be his girlfriend. He thought they really had something, something special.
Logan wasn't there when she gained control of her skin. He wasn't anywhere near Westchester. He was across the ocean, doing work with the Avengers and forgetting all about her.
It ruined the best day of her life. So she did something to spite him, she did something she'd regret: she slept with Bobby. The temptation of hurting him, of actually using the skin she'd neglected for so long, was too much. So she did it.
She broke up with him the next day. It was better to have him hate her than to live that lie.
So she kept to herself again. She grew up, that love for him always present inside her. She lived it every day, remembering him when he most likely forgot about her years ago.
One day he came back. She was twenty-five and he knew it. He didn't come back for Jean this time.
Their forgotten friendship began to grow again. She missed him more than she thought, and that was saying something. He would sit in the back of her classrooms while she taught, she would watch him as he worked on Scott's stolen bike. It was a great thing.
One day she pushed the line a bit. She wanted more. He said no, he had done too much wrong in his past. He couldn't put that on her. He was throwing away his last chance and she knew it. He was giving up before it even started.
She got mad. She started yelling at him. He could be happy if he wanted to, he was being a coward! This wasn't about her, this was about his hang ups. He needed to stop making excuses. He yelled back at her and they got up in each other's faces.
Suddenly he grabbed her face and brought it to his, making her knees weak. For the first time she felt like her skin was put to good use.
They sat up that night, whispering to each other. She wouldn't admit it out loud, and she'd never do this with anyone else, but she felt safe with him enough to let go.
She begged him to try. If he gave them a chance it could work. He caressed her cheek, a vulnerability that he never showed to anyone else. He said he didn't want to ruin her, but he also said he didn't want to be without her. She gripped his hand and held it tight. She told him she knew who he was, what he was. She lightly touched his hand to her temple to explain. He understood. She said she loved him anyway, she loved him because of it.
He didn't say it back, but a look melted his eyes. One that she couldn't place, but it made her heart throb with emotion.
It wasn't perfect, there was no grace in this relationship, but it worked. It wasn't perfect by anyone's standards, but to her? It was all she needed, all she wanted.
They weren't going to screw this up.