~**~
And just for this moment
As long as you're mine
I've lot all resistance
And crossed some boarderline
And if it turnes out
It's over too fast
I'll make every last moment last
As long as you're mine






~**~
Not a day went by that Ororo Munroe didn't think of him, and her nights were haunted with dreams of him, whether the dreams were good or bad, it didn't matter, she always woke up in a cold sweat, always calling for him, screaming his name, and finally sobbing when she returned fully to the real world, he wasn't there. He hadn't been there for five months. She felt as if everyday he was gone, another peice of her soul was gone, too, and while she longed, no, ached, for his return, she dreaded it at the same time. She'd die without him, and yet, she wouldn't be much better off if he came back, it had to be a mutual feeling for it to work, or it was all for nothing. Logan, the untouchable Wolverine, the first person to make her feel this way, the reason Ororo was the person she had become, the person staring back at her from the mirror, was due to knowing Logan. He was the reason she kept getting up in the morning, kept pressing on, even after the horrible events at Alcatraz occured, she loved him, although she was sure he would never love her.

"Well, that's enough of that." Ororo said to herself, "I've got to start the day, there's no use in moping around when there's work to be done." With that, Ororo walked out of her room and downstairs to see what all had to be done that day, her mind almost completely absorbed in an ocean of To-do's. Let's see, she thought, I need to go grocery shopping, Heaven knows how much food we need, it all get's eaten so fast, then I have to meet Bobby at 2:30 for Defense practice session, he's getting a bit rusty, and then there's all that paperwork that needs to be dealt with...I wish Charles was here, I'm nearly lost without him here...It was at this moment Ororo bumped into someone, she knew she should have been watching out and looking at where she was going, but she had been lost in her train of thought when sh bumped into the familiar figure. She wasn't quite sure who it was, at first, but when she heard his familiar voice saying, "Whoa, there, 'Ro. It's nice to see you, too." Ororo couldn't help but gasp, after all these months, that son of a gun, Logan, finally came back. After all those nights of tears and wishing, and praying for his return, in the end, when he finally returned, all Ororo could utter in reply to his comment was, "Logan. Hello."

~**~
God, she had gotten more beautiful while he was away, and his thoughts, for the past five months, had revolved around her. At first, he tried to rid his thoughts of her, he loved Jean, or so he had thought, at the time. He would never tell her that he felt that way about her, there was no way she would ever be able to return the feeling, and anyway, you just don't go up to 'Ro and tell her that you love her, it just didn't work that way. At her reply to his rather, underemotional, comment, he couldn't help but grin, "What, did you miss me, 'Ro?" he asked her mockingly. Ororo looked surprised, like she didn't know what to say, as if his simple question had rendered her speechless, but after about thirty seconds, she replied, "Everyone has." Logan wasn't expecting that to come out of her mouth, could it be?? No, no, it was just ridiculous to hope that she felt anything other than friendship for him, completely out of the question. Damn, Logan thought to himself, She get's more beautiful every time I look at her, she's an extreme beauty, and she could never want anything with a guy like me. Shaking himself out of his thoughts, he smiled a genuine smile, something he rarely ever did, and she returned his smile with one of her own.

"So, uh, I guess we've got a lot of catching up to do." Logan stated casually, hoping to just keep her talking to him for a few moments longer, a few more heartbeats, anything. In return, Ororo nodded and said, "Yes, we do, as a matter of fact." All that Logan could do was grin.

"So, when do you want to talk, 'Ro? When's a good time for you?"

"How about 5:00, this evening, will that suffice"

"Yeah, sure."

And at that moment, they were both just so happy to be with each other, friends, reunited, even though neither would admit that they wanted more than friendship. Right now, they were just glad to have run into each other, and right now, that was all that mattered.

Ororo had gotten through the rest of the day just fine, thank goodness, she wasn't sure she would be able to after her encounter with Logan, but she survived, barely. She had done everything on her mental To-Do lists, or nearly all of it, she could hardly remember her own name, much less if she had done all that needed doing, although she made sure that all the most important things were taken care of. After her practice session with Bobby Drake, she had just enough time to shower and dress before she went to meet Logan, she picked out a cherry red halter top that she had bought at the mall one day when she went there with Jubilee and Rogue and she had never gotten the opportunity to wear it, and she took out some comfortable black pants to put on, too. That being done, she decided on going barefoot tonight, there was no reason to wear shoes tonight, so she pulled her hair up in a clip, put on some lip gloss and eyeliner, and made her way downstairs. On her way down, she was joined by a younger mutant, Kitty Pryde, who took one look at her and said, "Ooh, Storm, you look nice tonight, are you meeting anyone special?" Kitty's tone was half-jesting and half-serious, but Ororo replied simply with, "I'm just going down to catch up with Logan, he's back, if you didn't notice" Kitty took this as bait, her prodding and joking becoming more and more consistant. "What, he's not special in your eyes?" Kitty teased, "I thought you had it bad for him, that you had the hotts for him, ya know what I mean?" Now that caught Ororo off guard, she knew Kitty was probably bluffing, and just trying to see how long it would take her to get told to shut up, but that had come as a surprise!! "Wh-what did you say??" Ororo stammered, she was shaken, she hadn't thought it was so obvious that she had feelings for Logan. "Is-is it that obvious, Kitty?" Ororo asked her, she didn't care if the young woman was just joking, it was out of her mouth before she could stop herself, and she was almost at the bottom of the stairs. Kitty's eyes widened, she hadn't planned on being right, she was just giving her older companion a hard time, so Ororo's answer shocked her, when her ability to speak had returned, Kitty blurted out, "Whoa, there, I was right?!? I was ACTUALLY RIGHT?!? Storm, this is big, this is SO big, I can't believe you actually feel that way about Logan!!" Now it was Ororo's turn to widen her eyes, "Shh...I'm telling you, Kitty, not the whole world." Her eyes dropped and she stared at her bare feet, "Besides, he doesn't feel that way about me, he couldn't...it's just not possible..." She nearly whispered those last words, tears forming in her pretty brown eyes, and Kitty immediatly regretted even bringing up the subject, her lovely facial features sofetning as she tried to comfort Ororo, saying, "Oh, don't say that, Storm, you'll never know unless you give it a try. For all you know, he could feel the same way about you and is just unable to find the right words to voice his feelings." Kitty was now near tears herself, wishing she could take back whatever she said that caused Ororo's reaction. Ororo looked at the clock nearby and cursed, "Shit, it's almost five, I've got to go, Kitty, thank you for talking to me." The younger woman smiled and said, "It's alright, Storm. And don't worry, I won't tell anyone." Ororo hugged her young friend and then opened the door to the sitting room she and Logan were to meet in.

When Ororo entered the sitting room, Logan couldn't take his eyes off her. She was so beautiful. She had her hair up and away from her face, while a few white strands of hair fell near her eyes, oh, God, those deep brown eyes, they were even more radiant than usual, they seemed to light up when she saw him, and her smile was even more To-Die-For than it was every other day he had seen it for the past few years. His love for her was now inevitable, he didn't know why he had never seen it before, so why couldn't he just come out and tell her so?? This was getting complicated. Loving Jean was like being in a flash flood, while loving Ororo was like being in a tornado and a hurricane at the same time, Ororo was fierce and gentle at the same time, she was so differnt from Jean, and it seemed as though everyday that passed, his heart belonged less and less to the charming redhead that used to be Jean Grey and it started belonging more and more to the beautiful and kind Ororo Munroe.

Logan blinked, he knew he shouldn't stare at her, so he just looked down at his feet, feeling awkwardly nervous. This wasn't like him, he was usually so calm with 'Ro, he never had any problems talking to her, so he just decided to open his mouth and say something. "You, uh, look...good." Smooth. What the Hell did I say that for?? He wondered. "I mean, you look beautiful. But better than that." Why couldn't he say something at least halfway intellegent? Ororo just smiled that angelic smile, although she looked down at her hands, quite like he did, and she said, "Well, um, th-thank you, thank you, Logan." He motioned for her to take a seat, and she did, greatfully. Seeing what looked liked tears in her eyes, Logan gave her a concerned frown, "Are you okay, 'Ro?" Ororo was shocked, did he sense something was wrong with her?? "No, no, it's nothing, nothing at all" She assured him, she didn't want him to worry about her, as pleasing as that would be. He smiled, "Good." he said, "I don't need you breakin' down on me, 'Ro, you're the strong one, here." Logan looked at his hands again before continuing, "I know you must be mad at me, 'Ro, for taking off, but it was just something I had to do."
"I'm not mad at you."
"You aren't?"
"No."
"Why not?"
Ororo opened her mouth, paused for a second, then closed it, she couldn't tell him how she felt about him, at least not here, not now. Logan took her silence as a contradiction to her statement that she wasn't mad at him. "I shouldn't have come back" he muttered, "You all would probably be better off without me, anyway." Ororo reached out and grabbed his hand, not sure of what she was doing, all she knew was that this was right, she shook her head, "No, no, Logan, don't you ever think that, you know you're always welcome here. We need you." The last part was out before she could stop it, it just slipped out. Logan cocked and eyebrow, he was amused now, "Need me?" Ororo was blushing majorly, she was really red and all she could do was nod her head and look away from him. Logan was finding this very very amusing, and he grinned when he informed Ororo of her red face, "You're blushing" he said, with both eyebrows raised, but his expression changed instantly when he saw the tears clearly in her eyes, he lifted her chin so that her face and his face were at the same level, "Hey." he said softly, "I'm not going anywhere for a long time now, you remember that, 'Ro. Don't start cryin' on me now, Ororo, if you fall apart then this whole school falls apart."

Ororo didn't know what was happening, Logan was going all soft, she was starting to cry, and it seemed as though she and Logan had been transported into a soap opera, this was all too much for her, she wasn't sure how much longer she could keep her feelings to herself. "Logan." she began, "There's something I have to tell you. I can't tell you now, but please, promise me you'll be ready to listen when I can finally say it, please?" Logan was surprised at how extremely honest she was with him, and if he didn't think she'd jolt him off his ass, he'd kiss her then and there, "I promise, 'Ro, my door is always open and you know where to find me." he assured her, and in return she smiled. Just then, there was a knock at the door and Bobby's head popped in, "Uh, Storm?" He said nervously. Ororo smiled and nodded her head for him to continue, "It's, uh, five minutes past eight." Bobby continued. Ororo's eyes widened, she hadn't noticed that it had been three hours since she and Logan had first began talking, "Really?" she asked. "Well, I guess we could just order pizza for dinner tonight. Is that okay with you, Logan?" Logan just nodded, lost in his own thoughts. She smiled, "Okay, then." she said, "Bobby go see if pizza is okay with everyone else." He nodded and closed the door behind him, and Ororo gave Logan a look that said, 'I'll talk to you later' and exited to go find Kitty.

Logan sat there for a few minutes, wondering what exactly had happened in those three hours, then he, too, left and went up to his room, still pondering what had happened.

The days that followed Ororo's emotional breakdown and Logan's promise to her, to be ready to listen to her when she was ready to talk, were fairly uneventful, no missions, nothing. And while everyday that the two mutants' friendship grew stronger than ever, Logan still felt as though the amazing young woman that he had come to love was withdrawn, she seemed so distant, and even though he didn't pressure her to tell him what it was she so desperately needed to get off her mind, he was still extremely curious. What was it, what was bothering her so much? Why couldn't bring herself to tell him?? Whatever it was, he knew it couldn't be too bad, I mean, this was 'Ro, she wasn't a saint, but she wasn't a deamon, either. Logan was at a loss at what could be so hard for her to say, and for a split second, he hoped, he knew he shouldn't have hoped for anything, and he banished the thought as soon as it had entered his mind, there was no way'Ro felt the same way about him that he did her, no way.

Right at that moment, Logan's ears perked up as he heard someone walk into the kitchen, or two someones, he found out as he turned in the direction of which the noise was coming from, it was Rogue, or Marie, as she now preferred, with a younger mutant by the name of Juanita Salinas, a girl that Scott, Jean, and Ororo had picked up in Monterey, Mexico, around three years ago. "Hola, Señor Logan." The ten year old greeted him. "¿Cómo es usted? How are you?" Logan grinned at the use of her native language, he wasn't too good with little kids, but Juanita just had that personality, everyone liked her. "I'm doin' good, Juanita, how are you? And by the way, have you seen Ororo, either of you?" Marie and Juanita shook their heads, blinking, and Marie said, "No, I haven't seen her all today."
~**~
Ororo had been distracted all day, unable to focus on anything, it had been almost a week since Logan had returned, and she hadn't really been the same since. She spent time with him and everyone else, but she also distanced herself, she needed to keep to herself at least a bit, she had nearly told Logan how she felt about him that first night that he was back, and that scared her, what if she let it slip on accident? This was getting ridiculous, she couldn't concentrate and it was getting harder and harder to keep from breaking down and crying, she was unusually sad now, more than ever, why couldn't she just forget about Logan and move on with her life?? This was killing her inside, she needed either to tell him and try to endure the pain and humiliation, or she needed to get over it and go back to only thinking of Logan as just a friend, a part of the team, not someone she could fall in love with. She reminded herself that she had told Kitty later that night a week ago all that had happend, as Kitty had correctly guessed that Ororo had feelings for Logan, and her reaction.

"Jeez, Storm, you're an emotional train wreck!! What happened?" Kitty had asked, after taking one look at her older colleague and seeing the tears in her eyes and the pain on her face. Ororo had merely replied with, "It's nothing, I-I just....nearly embarassed myself to the edge of reason. It's a good thing I didn't fully do so, or I'd be worse off, most likely." At those last words, Ororo's emotional control failed her, and she buried her face in her hands and let the tears in her eyes fall like the rain that had just started pouring down outside in response to the weather princess' obviously low mood. Kitty immediately ran over to her and tried to comfort her friend and mentor, saying in a soothing voice, "It's okay, Storm, it's gonna be alright. What happened?? It's probably not as bad as it seems, nothing ever really is, you'll probably think about tonight a year from now and you'll most likely laugh your head off. Now, tell me what happened, and maybe we can figure this out." Ororo remembered later looking up at the surprisingly gentle young woman by her side, and hearing herself tell Kitty the whole story, every last word that had passed between her and Logan, her boneheaded mistake, his unusually gentle words, and Bobby's much welcomed interruption that ended the whole thing. Kitty listened intently and didn't stop her once to comment on anything, in fact, when Ororo was finished, all she could say was, "Oh my God, are you okay?". And for about a half-hour, they had just sat there, Kitty comforting her, and Ororo letting tears fall freely down her face.

Ororo hadn't noticed that she had spent so many hours in her room, she had been sitting there thinking and remembering every instant where she had slowly realized over and over again that she was falling dangerously in love with a man who couldn't let go of an enchanting redhead, even though she had become a huge threat to them all. That was it, that last thought was Ororo Munroe's undoing, she couldn't take it anymore, she just let go, sobbing uncontrollably into the night.
~**~
Logan couldn't stop looking at his watch, it was currently 1:00 AM, and he couldn't put his finger on it, but he knew something was amiss. He closed his eyes and tried to focus on listening to the sounds in the rooms: Juanita had fallen asleep listening to a broadcast in Spanish about the latest soccer game, or, as she called it, fútbol, Kitty and Marie were sleeping without problem, Bobby and Jubilee were battling it out in a graphic videogame that included dragons and private jets. Then Logan frowned as he heard the sound of sobbing, coming from Ororo's room, she sounded like she was in a lot of pain, Logan was really worried now. 'Ro wasn't the type of woman who'd go around crying for no reason, so something had to be really wrong. He hopped off of his bed, making the decision to go check on 'Ro, he had to make sure that she was alright, that she wasn't hurt or sick, and as he took the long steps to her room, his heart was pounding, and when he was almost there, one last thought ran through his mind before he knocked on her door, This is your last chance to turn back, buddy, he thought, Whatever happens after this is your fault and no one else's... Nevertheless, he knocked on the door, then opened it, what he saw next was something he wasn't prepared for at all.

"'Ro? Are you alright?" Logan asked her, although judging by the surprised look on her face and the tears pouring out of her eyes, she wasn't. "I heard you crying." he continued. "And I wanted to see if you were okay." Ororo looked up at him, her eyes pleading, she needed something, but what? She finally stood up and came closer to him, trying to say something, trying to get a point across, but when all she good manage to say was, "Lo-Logan." between her tears, he hushed her and cradled her face in his hands while wiping away her tears, he simply replied by saying, "Shh...don't worry, babe, it's all gonna be okay." What happened next was unintentional, but undeniably cliche`, as Logan stood there comforting the beautiful Ororo Munroe, he pulled her closer to him and kissed her.

It was probably the most amazing kiss either of them had ever experienced, Ororo wasn't expecting this to happen, but as her head tilted back, she was finding this more and more appealing, she was clinging to the light cotton of his shirt and kissing him right back, and as his tongue stroked hers lightly, she couldn't stop herself, she couldn't contain her desires anymore, she was kissing him full-out, her tongue in his mouth now, she was nearly passed out from the overwhelming love she was feeling. But then, she remembered who she was, who exactly she was kissing, and why she needed to stop this before it went any further, "Logan, stop." she said as she broke away, "We can't do this, not now. We've got to stop this, I don't want any regrets, and I know you don't want any regrets, either, we should just stop." Logan blinked, and realizing that she was absoloutly right, nodded, "You're right, this shouldn't have happened, and I don't want to hurt anyone." And with that, he turned around, bidding her a final goodbye and closed the door behind him.

And for the rest of the night, neither of them could sleep, after what happened, they both knew that they had to make things right.

The next morning was weird as crap for the both Logan and Ororo, as well as for anyone who crossed their paths, Logan was extremely moody, more so than usual, and especially irritable whenever Ororo's name was mentioned. Ororo seemed dazed, hurt, and confused all at once, her cheeks seemed permanently flushed, and whenever she talked, her voice often wavered, overcome with intense emotion. No one could figure out why Ororo was so over emotional, and no one dared to wonder what had Logan so angry, all anyone could do was guess what was wrong, and Kitty, well, she guessed right. As soon as she saw Ororo walking in the halls, she very well near broke her neck running toward the white haired weather goddess, 'Ro's appearance had definitely changed, was something amiss? Oh yeah! "What happened?" Kitty blurted out, her brown locks bouncing all around her. "And don't try to lie to me, Storm, 'cause I know something happened." The older woman shook her head, "I don't want to talk about it, Kitty." she said, "Besides, I couldn't find words to describe what happened anyway." Kitty's eyes widened to the point that they looked like they would fall out of their sockets, what the HECK had she just gotten herself into?? Ororo raised an eyebrow, "I know what you're thinking, and no. Just no. That would be wrong on so many levels. Logan's my friend, nothing more." Ororo shook her head again and muttered something incoherent, but Kitty grasped her shoulder and somehow managed to widen her eyes even further. "What did you say, Storm?!?" she asked, "Did you, after saying that you guys were no more than friends, add on, 'No matter how much I love him'?!? Did I just hear you say that, hm?" Ororo was getting a bit scared, this girl had superb hearing, when she wanted to listen, that is. "Yeah." was all she could utter, she wished she could just snap out of this...trance...the trance that Logan had her caught in. "Kitty." Ororo sighed in defeat. "He kissed me last night, I have no idea why, it just happened. I was...I was sobbing, I guess...he must've heard me...he came into my room...trying to calm me down...then he just, sort of kissed me, and I kissed back....and...I ended it." Ororo closed her eyes, remembering the events that had occured last night, now wishing she hadn't sent Logan away. She looked into the teenager's dark eyes, fighting against the tears in her own eyes, and in a barely audible whisper, she told Kitty, "I-I think I love him."

~**~
Logan hated himself right now. Big surprise. Considering he was, most likely, ruining any friendship he'd ever had with 'Ro, and while he valued her friendship like gold, he couldn't deny to himself that he wanted more. Yeah, he'd better be hating himself right now. 'Ro was the most important person in his life, and he may have just killed their friendship by kissing her last night, despite the promise he had made her, he was now considering leaving the X-Men, permanently. He had no freakin' idea where that idea had come from, but if he let his guard down, he could end up hurting 'Ro, he could lose her. She was more important to him than anything in the world to him, and if protecting her from himself by keeping his distance was what he needed to do, then he'd do it, by all means. He loved this woman, he wasn't gonna lose her. Come Hell or high water, he wasn't losing her. With that thought, Logan turned on his heel and stomped off toward the kitchen.

Ororo was in the kitchen when Logan got there, along with Kitty and Juanita, Kitty was chomping down on Tomatos and Juanita was sipping a coke, chattering happily in Spanish. 'Ro was just standing around, not really doing anything in particular, Logan walked past her to the fridge, muttering an, "Afternoon, you all." as he went by, recieving a "hey" an "hola" and a "hello" in return. Logan grabbed a beer that he had hid in the very back of the refrigerator, and decided that in a few minutes he'd just bring up the idea of leaving casually to 'Ro, he knew that she'd be pissed, but he had convinced himself that it was for her own good that he was bringing this up, no way was he going to take the risk of hurting the one woman he loved. "Um...uh, 'Ro." he started. "I just wanted you to know that...I'm thinking of leaving. For good this time." Juanita choked on the mouthful of coke that she'd just swallowed, Kitty bit her thumb and continued to swear without shame, and Ororo's eyes seemed to have flames ignited in them. Man was she pissed. "Logan, we need to talk. NOW!" Ororo said, fuming. Kitty nudged the younger girl beside her and the two of them exited ubruptly, leaving Ororo and Logan to battle this out alone.


"What" Ororo said, her voice rising. "The HELL are you thinking, Logan?!? Is there any reason you want to leave yet again, or are just wishing you were out of here?!? Are you trying to kill me, Logan?? Because that's what you're doing, YOU'RE KILLING ME!!" Logan knew that her rage would be inevitable, but this was like being in the midst of an erupting volcanoe, and what was this about him killing her? "What? 'Ro, what are you talking about?? I'm not trying to kill you, that's the very thing I'm trying to PREVENT!" Logan found himself raising his voice, too. "If I stay away, than I can't hurt you, I'm sorry, 'Ro, but if something weird happened and it lead to a repeat performance of last night, I don't think I'd be able to stop again, no matter how hard you fought me." Ororo's eyes were still full of fire, but they were also full of tears, she couldn't take much more of this, her heart was just seconds away from breaking. "Logan, do you even KNOW how much that hurt, to end that last night?" Ororo was crying now, barely able to continue talking. "Can you even IMAGINE how PAINFUL that was for me?!? I thought that I was going to DIE, it hurt so much, Logan, leaving won't make the pain go away, it'll make it worse, okay?? It'll make it worse, and I don't know how to make the hurt stop!!" Ororo gasped for air before continuing. "Kissing you, was the most AMAZING thing that I've ever experienced, Logan, it was like...like..."

"Like one of your wildest dreams becoming real." Logan finished for her, knowing exactly how she felt. "I know, it was the best thing that ever happened to me, 'Ro, for once in my life, it felt like something was going right. I didn't want it to ever end. And now you're confusing the hell outta me, 'Ro, if you didn't want it to end, then why did you end it?" Ororo's expression softened, tears still rolling down her cheeks, she wasn't sure what to say. "I-I guess I was afraid." she said, her voice hoarse. "I was...I was afraid it wasn't real. Or that it was a mistake, or that I was just tricking myself into losing control of my emotions...or..." Logan stopped her right there, wiping away a few tears on her face with his fingers, and looking this woman straight in the eye, he said, "'Ro, if you don't know me by know, you ain't ever gonna know me! If I was gonna kiss you outta pity, I would've clawed my face off so I couldn't do it again. I may not be the most honest guy in the world, but no way would I lie about this kind of stuff, not to you, never you. Darlin', you may not know it, but you mean the world to me." Ororo now gave him a small, timid smile, Logan had, unintentionally, reminded her why she loved him. "You mean that, Logan. I mean, really mean it?" she asked him, still a little unsure. Logan gave her a smile and nodded, "Yeah." he said with finality, "I do mean it, and will always mean it." Ororo's mind was made up now, no way was she letting go of this guy. "Then kiss me, Logan. Like you did last night." Ororo told him, her tone serious. Logan pulled her closer, loving every minute of this whirlwind day, and finally, he told her, with gratefullness in his eyes, "With pleasure, darlin'."

And, finally, after five months of waiting, his mouth claimed hers.