[SCENE] Julian & Rogue

[hellion-x.livejournal.com]

OMFG AN UPDATE.


This wasn't right. Only three weeks into the semester and they were already swamped with work. College was supposed to be more fun than high school, not more of a death sentence. Of course, the continuing Danger Room sessions were hardly helping matters.

Julian exhaled heavily and leaned back in his seat, pulling at locks of his jet-black hair, feet hooking under Rogue's chair. The mutant raised her eyebrows as she moved an inch under the pressure. He smirked. She rolled her eyes, lightly kicking his ankle. "We're supposed to be studying, Julian."

"Studying is for losers." He shot her a dashing grin and tapped her calf with the heel of his shoe.

"Prat," she muttered, shifting her seat back a few inches, tapping her pencil impatiently against the textbook. "Is this making any sense to you?"

"No," he answered flatly, and then shrugged, looking out the window carelessly as if it didn't matter if he comprehended anything in the textbook. "I'll get by on my good looks anyhow," he concluded smugly.

"It's a class on psychology not modeling," she shot back, the rhythm of her tapping picking up. "Failing the first test isn't exactly a good thing."

He made an affronted face that Rogue wanted to giggle at. "Fail? Me? Impossible, sweetheart."

She smirked. "Remember that science test last January?"

He simpered and wiggled his eyebrows. "I remember why I wasn't studying, sugar," he teased.

Rogue narrowed her emerald eyes, damning the unconscious blush that spread across her cheeks. "I'm sure I don't know what you're talking about, Julian."

If he seemed affronted before, now he seemed downright offended, but the smug smirk on his lips wasn't hard to decode. "How could you forget all six hours and that pretty little outfit-"

"I have no idea what you're talking about, Julian," she repeated, pursing her lips to hide a growing grin.

"Liar," he accused in a low voice. "No way you could forget what I did to you-"

"No idea-"

"You probably still fantasize about it-"

A moment later, her pen hit him squarely in the forehead. She smirked as he gave her an affronted look. "No idea, sugah. Selective memory and all."

Her pen hit her squarely on the chest and then danced in front of her nose. Rogue swatted at it and shot him a mock glare. "Oh, I get it," he simpered. "It was too much pleasure for you to process."

She rolled her eyes, grin growing as she tried futilely to snatch her pen out of the air so she could send it zooming back at him. "Someone's cocky. You just wish that was the case."

"There could be nothing further from the truth," he replied, licking his white teeth. The pen still avoided her grasp. "Just admit it."

"Nope," she said, shaking her head resolutely. "Not going to happen."

"All right," he sighed dramatically, and suddenly all her books were floating high above her head in a blue rush. "How about now?"

"That's not fair!" she exclaimed, impetuously whipping off one glove and reaching across the table with her bare hand to grab his wrist. When the familiar pull didn't kick in, she let go with a sigh of frustration, sitting back in her seat. "Powers are so not fair."

"Life's not fair, sugar," he retorted, chagrined. "Ready to admit it now?"

"I hate you," she muttered resignedly. "Give me back my books first."

"That's not what you were saying before that science test in January," he winked. "And no deal. Admit it."

Rogue glared at him, folding her arms across her chest before staring determinedly to the side. "Fine. I lied."

"About...?"

"What you said before. Give me back my books."

"What part of what I said before?"

"Julian..." she said through gritted teeth, glancing at him for a moment before looking away again. "This is getting ridiculous."

"Is not," he scoffed. "Not my fault you just can't admit it." He topped the comment off with a smirk.

"If I had anything left to throw at you, I would," she muttered, gaze dropping as she tugged her glove back on. "Fine. They were a very enjoyable six hours. Can I have my books back now?"

He rose his eyebrows and shook his head. "Just 'very enjoyable?' That's all I get?"

"We have a test to study for," she reminded him, pointedly ignoring his continuing prompts.

"Fuck the test." He flashed a pair of canines and leaned forward, resting his chin in his hand, the cyan of his eyes bright. "I'm still waiting."

"Juuuulian!"

"Say my name again, sweetheart," he teased, "but this time a little lower and with more of a begging tone... you know, how I like it."

She let out a sound of frustration as she grabbed his textbook, shoving her chair back so she could sit cross-legged in it. "I hate you sometimes, Hellion," she said as she flipped through it to the relevant chapter.

"You're lying about that too," he laughed, crossing his arms. The pages of the book ruffled and turned over, a direct effect of his reaching telekinesis.

"Nope. Not this one," she said firmly, attempting to beat the cyan when it came to keeping the book on the right page.

"Admit it," he repeated in a sing-song voice.

"I completely and utterly hate you right now and when I fail this test, I'm going to blame you," she declared.

His grin widened and the book shut with a soft thud. Rogue flinched slightly and lifted her eyes to give him an angry look, and suddenly found him leaning in, a familiar look in his eyes that somehow made her heart speed up still. "Well, if we're going to fail, we might as well make the most of it. Got six hours to spare?"

She froze, unable to look away for several long moments. Finally, she tore her gaze away, focusing intently on the book, tongue darting out to wet dry lips. "Julian, don't..."

She stared at the title of the cover, blinking back a wave of sadness that seemed to rear from nowhere. She couldn't find the will to pull away, to even blink as his hand slid of hers, thumb tracing over her knuckles in a gentle sweeping motion. "Don't what?" He breathed.

His low tone was what surprised her, the grating quality hidden beneath the weighted question. With a breath she looked up, and he looked more serious then she'd seen in a long time.

"Don't... don't bring this up again," she whispered, barely able to keep her voice from cracking with emotion. Her fingers tightened around the book as he continued to run his thumb over her knuckles.

He smiled softly after a moment, and Rogue couldn't help but be mesmerized at that tugging of his lips and every eyelash that framed his too-blue eyes. His other hand reached to smooth her hair back, and the warm palm brushed her cheek, and suddenly he was closer and leaning over the table, his nose brushing hers an a sweet innocent gesture that had her heart tightening and her breath shallowing.

"I just want to kiss you," he murmured, as if he were just asking something as mundane as borrowing her pen, but the sigh that accompanied it was hot, heavy, full of a longing that was beginning to stir low in her stomach. And then his lips were on hers, tongue slipping past to caress hers. She couldn't move, she couldn't breath, she couldn't even close her eyes- she kept them open as he continued to kiss her, watching his lowered eyelids.

And then he pulled away slightly, a lingering kiss touching her lips, and without thinking she arched her neck to catch it, book slipping out of her grip to drop to the floor with a thud. This time, she returned the kiss, shaken from her shocked stupor. Every molecule of her body wished that the table between them would vanish as she began to recall just how his lips felt against hers.

The thought had hardly formed in her head before their chairs screeched and without pulling his lips from hers, he circled the table, arms wrapping around her waist, toes dragging against the ground as he held her flush against him, mouth devouring hers. She made a sound- small and sighing, hands hesitantly coming up to hold his working jaw, eyelids slipping down.

He groaned as if he could feel the tension relax in her body- and Rogue knew he probably could, when she was so very close- and kissed her even more fervently, if it were possible, each kiss one she returned a second too late. His hand slipped beneath her shirt, fingers stroking her skin, leaving a shivering trail.

Rogue thought she was going to explode. Apparently the sentiment was shared by Julian as she vaguely registered the sound of several books crashing to the ground as his concentration slipped in regards to his powers but only increased as far kissing her was concerned.

Finally, he drew back, never looking away from her eyes and keeping her pulled flush against him, both of them breathless. One of her hands slowly dropped from his jaw to rest lightly on his shoulder. "Whoa," she breathed, still trying to catch her breath and fully take in what had just happened.

"Mmmm," he agreed, leaning in to kiss her again, his eyes half-closed and hazy.

Somehow, her thought process started working again despite her body's intense desire to let him start kissing her again and she pushed him away gently. "Julian, wait. This-- what-- why-- what are we doing?"

"Kissing," he replied, going in for her lips again.

"Thanks, Sherlock," she had time to murmur before she let him kiss her once more, soaking in how despite how different this felt, it still felt right.

He made another humming sound in response, quickly deepening the kiss, pressing her closer. Rogue sighed and gave into him for the moment, threading her hands through the locks of jet-black hair at the nape of his neck.

That irritating voice in the back of her mind finally made her pull away once more, this time pushing him away a bit more firmly. "Julian, I'm serious. What is this?"

"Kissing," he replied again, fully intent on leaning in to do so again.

"Smartass," she muttered, pushing him away yet again, a pleading note entering into her voice as she continued, "Will you just--just stop for a minute and think about this? Please?"

He sighed, fingertips still tracing the skin of her back, forehead leaning against hers in defeat. "What's there to think about?"

"First off, we're in the library--"

"We can take this back to my room."

"--And secondly, you're not exactly single."

That seemed to give him pause, and he looked down, licking his lips. "That could change," he said finally, flicking his eyes to hers.

Her hand left his shoulder, both palms cupping his jaw. "Is that really what you want?"

He smiled softly, kissing the tip of her nose. "Are you really asking me that question?"

"Yes," she replied quietly, dropping her gaze.

He was quiet for a few seconds, but it felt so much longer to Rogue, and when he finally answered she felt as if everything inside of her had unraveled. "Yes," he whispered, lips brushing against hers, coaxing her into another kiss.

She acquiesced for a few short moments, lost in the feeling before another feeling of familiarity and wrongness rose up. Placing both hands firmly on his chest, she pushed him away, pulling back as far as his tight embrace would allow. "Julian, stop. We-- I can't do this."

He sighed resignedly, raking a hand through his hair. "You're killing me here, sugar."

"I'm sorry," she apologised, stepping back to lean against the table. "I just... I don't think I can do this right now."

"Sweetheart, if you're worried about that test-"

"It's not about the test," she interrupted, finally meeting his gaze. "Even if things do change with you and Phoebe, until then, I'm going to be 'the other woman' and that's not something that I want."

He frowned ever so slightly. "There's something else you're not telling me. Besides, things with Phoebe are probably all but over anyways. I'm sure she's already plotting my death with her sisters."

"I-- there's more." Rogue bit her lip, mentally steeling herself for what she had to say as he raised an expectant eyebrow. "I'm just not emotionally ready to get involved with you again."

He didn't say anything for a moment, staring at the ground between them. "Is it Ali?"

"Yeah, partially," she admitted softly, voice barely even a whisper. When he didn't reply, she slid to her left, bending to collect her fallen books. He swiftly knelt beside her to help, taking all three books and setting them on the table. She rose to her feet, still avoiding looking at him as she shoved the books into her bag hastily. "I'll see you in the DR," she murmured, forcing herself to walk and not run to the door.

When her gloved fingers pressed on the heavy oak, it did not budge. It didn't take a genius to figure out why- Rogue had long since been disillusioned when it came to Julian Keller's persistence. She knew it knew no bounds, and she also was expecting this, yet still her insides squirmed as she sighed and turned back to him.

His eyes were glowing faintly, and his sad frown only accentuated the piercing color of his eyes. "Please let me out, Julian," she asked quietly, politely, knowing his answer.

He shifted to the side, the movement slow and testing, his gaze unbreakable. She tried to fathom how someone could manage to scare her half to death with just a look, how a part of her was even willing to never look away at the same time, when the rest of her wanted to run as far away as possible.

"You're not leaving yet," he said plainly. "This isn't over."

She tried not to feel so much relief that she knew he was simply telling the truth. "Julian, there's nothing else left to say- I- I'm not ready."

"No," he rejected her answer. "You said 'partially.' What else is there?"

"Nothing," she said, the lie slipping through her lips before Rogue could even think about what she was saying. She dropped her bag to the ground resignedly. "And everything."

"What?" He repeated cautiously.

She pushed against the door again, not expecting it to open and therefore not being disappointed when it didn't. "It ain't-- just let me go, Julian."

"No," he repeated, and they stared at each other steadily for a moment. "You still don't trust me," he guessed, and the slight waver in his voice she detected might have been from fear that it was the truth.

"I--" She spun around, staring intently at the door and gripping the handle so tightly that her knuckles turned white.

An unseen force spun her around again, and now he was closer, close enough to touch. "Just tell me," he asked, a pleading note entering his voice. It occurred to Rogue that he was just as desperate for the truth as she was from getting away from him, maybe even more so.

"Yes," she finally admitted, arms wrapping around herself to ward off the nonexistent cold. He didn't say anything for a moment so she hastily filled the silence. "It's just that-- I can't just forget about what happened!"

"I'm not asking you to," he argued, hands raising. She thought for a moment he might reach out for her, but seemed to think better of it. "I'm not asking you to forget, Marie. I never have, sweetheart. I can't even forget. All I- all I ever wanted was for you to give me a chance and try to... forgive me."

"I don't know if I've forgiven you yet or not," she said softly, volume slowly increasing as her words began to run away from her. "And I told you, it's more than just this. I mean, I can't even figure out if I'm still in love with your best friend or not and then I just keep remembering what happened and part of me still hates you for it and it's all just so confusing and I don't even know what I want anymore when it comes to any of this!"

His brows furrowed, their eyes still clashing in a hold for a few long weighted seconds. Then he blinked and looked down, and the handle she was still clutching slid down, a click presenting her with freedom. But she didn't leave- she stood and waited, breath caught, emerald eyes searching his face for any clue of his reaction to the confusion that had been boiling inside of her.

"I'm not confused," he said finally, looking back to her, hands stuffed into his pockets stiffly. "I want you," he confessed, and the words made her flush with excitement and fear and hesitation and every possible emotion she could recognize. "When you figure it out, let me know. I'll always be here."

She bit back a remark about him always being there. Instead, she released the door handle, bringing her now freed hand up to gently cup his cheek. "Of course you know what you want," she began, a soft smile on her face. "You're Julian Keller; you always do."

There wasn't any hesitation this time. His hands freed themselves from his pockets, arms pulling her close, lips pressing against hers again.

It wasn't a fervent, passion filled kiss like the previous ones. Instead, it merely soft and sweet; more of a reminder of what they'd had before and what they could have again. She pulled away with a shaking breath, eyes still closed as he continued to taste her lips, her heart erratic in her chest. The kisses started to change, started to reflect that passion from before, and Rogue bent her head down, letting his lips brush against her forehead, her nose pressing against his chest.

"You're confusing me again," she said dryly, voice muffled, one hand resting lightly on his chest.

"You're tempting me again," he retorted just as dryly, lips nuzzling her neck, hand rubbing circles on her back.

"It's not my fault you're such a guy," she said playfully, eyes closing as she leaned into his touch.

"Not my fault you're so beautiful," he murmured, a smile pressing against her skin.

She drew in a deep breath and let it in a long sigh, pulling away just enough so she could look at him. "I should go now. Test and all tomorrow and if I stay..."

"Go," he agreed, sighing, still not releasing her.

"Uhh... Julian?" she prompted him gently, hand lightly tapping his arm.

"Yeah," he said, softly brushing his lips against her cheek, arms loosening, hands sliding to grip her waist. "Okay," he sighed, gently kissing her lips. "Go," he repeated.

She bent to retrieve her bag, his hands still lingering on her body as she straightened up, brushing her lips lightly and briefly against his cheek. "Good night, sugah."