Chapter 4 �“ Ice Cream and Lollipops
‘What am I doing?’ Ororo asked herself as she searched through her closet for something to wear. She still wasn’t sure why she was actually going through with this. Logan hadn’t given her a chance to refuse, closing the door right after suggesting they go out. “Just for ice cream,” Ororo reminded herself, moving away from the flirty dresses neatly hanging in the back of her closet.
She could always refuse to go with him. It wasn’t like he would force her into this outing, but what would she do if she didn’t go? Sit at her desk grading papers until she fell asleep. And sleep wasn’t something that Ororo was looking forward to at the moment. Maybe she should just go and make the most of it. At least she could have some sort of control over what happened this way, unlike in her dreams.
With a small sigh, she pulled out a pair of dark jeans and a simple, long sleeved white top. There was no need for her to dress up. It wasn’t as if this were a date. Ororo nearly laughed out loud at the thought. As if Logan would actually ask her out on a date. Tugging her light blue top over her head and tossing it on her bed, she considered the idea. Did she want him to ask her out? Perhaps it wasn’t as crazy as she first thought. They did get along well when he wasn’t teasing her about one thing or another.
Ororo shook her head, pulling the white top on. Who was she kidding? The man was too unstable for her to even think dating him was a good idea. Although he had taken on many responsibilities within the school and he did stick around when he could have easily gone off on his own.
Maybe…
“No,” Ororo muttered to herself, slipping out of her black skirt and into the dark, clingy denim. “This is just for ice cream and nothing more.” She glanced at her reflection in the mirror hanging from the wall and straightened the crooked sleeves of her top.
Her hand reached for the lipstick resting on the dresser top, but jerked away as her fingertips grazed the metallic tube as if she had been bitten. “No, no make up.”
Loud knocking pulled her attention away from her make up to the door.
“’Ro, ya ready?” Logan called through the door.
“I only need to put on my shoes, and then we can be on our way.”
She heard him chuckle. “You won’t need shoes where we’re goin’ darlin’.”
Ororo stared at the door a moment, nearly expecting it to be forced open.
‘I am awake, right?’
When the door stayed closed, she took a step towards it, pinching her arm to make sure she was really awake. “I thought we had made plans to go out for ice cream?”
“Never said we weren’t, just had somethin’ a little different in mind,” Logan replied, opening her door, a slight grin on his face. “If yer up fer it of course.”
“I suppose,” Ororo said crossing her arms. She was a bit hesitant. What was he up to?
“Good,” He took a step into her room, “but there’s one thing ya gotta do.”
Ororo raised an eyebrow, “Which is?”
“I cannot believe I actually allowed you to do this,” Ororo muttered as Logan led her down the stairs from her attic room. She heard him chuckle beside her. He hadn’t answered her when she asked what she had to do. Instead he pulled out a black bandana that he must have stolen from Jubilee and used it as a blindfold.
The idea of Logan having her blindfolded would be stuck in her head for at least a week.
“We are we going?”
“If I could tell ya that ‘Ro, then I wouldn’t need the blindfold.”
“I could always remove the bandana.”
Logan looked over at the woman he was leading through the halls of the mansion. She had her arms crossed over her chest and she was frowning slightly as if she were really thinking about snatching off the blindfold. He leaned close to her ear, “Now ya wouldn’t want ta do that an’ ruin the surprise.” He chuckled again when she leaned away from him. “I’m not gonna have ta cuff ya am I, ‘Ro?”
Ororo tensed. There was another image to add to the growing list. It was almost as if he knew he was putting ideas in her head. Ideas she would never admit she was enjoying.
As he led her down the last set of stairs that ended in the main foyer, she tried to focus on something other than his arm around wrapped around her back. Ororo could feel the beginnings of a storm forming in the distance. Smiling slightly to herself, she nudged the storm clouds apart knowing that the storm would still rain down on them later in the evening. Perhaps she’d join the winds tonight.
Logan caught the sudden scent of ozone and glanced back at the large glass window above the front door. The sun nearly set, the red and purple glow slowly fading to black over the miniature forest surrounding the mansion. He turned back to Ororo, noticing the small almost mischievous smile gracing her full lips. Logan wondered what she had just done or what she was thinking about doing. He hoped she wasn’t planning on proving her accuracy since he had teased her about her “way off” energy blasts in a danger room session last week.
He knew that she wouldn’t risk letting loose anything remotely dangerous if there was a chance that one of the students could be hit. As he continued to lead her through the halls of the mansion toward the kitchen, he watched the little smile tugging at the corners of her mouth out of the corner of his eye.
“You should smile more often,” Logan said quietly, carefully walking the blindfolded woman around the kitchen table and chairs.
“What?” Ororo asked a little startled by the comment. Logan was almost relieved as the unique smell of ozone that accompanied her powers dissipated.
“Smile more often,” He repeated as he slid open the glass doors leading to the patio. It was a little chilly, but he knew that wouldn’t bother either of them. Logan was used to colder weather and he knew the chill might as well just be a light breeze to Ororo.
“What are we doing outside?” Ororo asked, ignoring his comment.
“Can’t ya just be patient, darlin’,” She sighed and he could almost feel her rolling her eyes at him behind the bandana, “or next time I’ll just hafta gag ya too.” Logan felt her tense at the last comment and smirked to himself.
The last few yards of their walk were silent.
“We’re here,” Logan announced, unwrapping his arm from around Ororo’s back.
She reached up to pull off the bandana, but his hands caught her forearms. Once he let go, she felt him tugging at the knot he had tied at the back of her head. Slowly the black cloth fell away from her eyes.
There in front of her was a scene she was not expecting.
Spread out over the grass was a deep green blanket between two of the numerous young trees that had been planted by the students in the past year. Christmas lights that were never removed twinkled down at her from the thin branches, mimicking the stars dotting the inky blue sky above. Placed right in the center of the blanket was an average sized blue cooler; the absence of its lid revealing pints and pints of various Ben & Jerry’s flavors on ice.
Ororo looked back at Logan, surprised clearly written across her face. He merely shrugged and took a seat on the blanket, pulling out a pair of spoons from behind the cooler. Ororo followed suit, still a bit in shock at the whole set up. She took the spoon that he offered her and glanced down into the almost overflowing cooler.
“Did you have to buy so much?”
Logan shrugged again, “Didn’t know what kind ta buy, so I grabbed one of each.”
“We could have just gone to the shop.” She laughed when Logan gave her a look suggesting that she was out of her mind for even hinting that he go anywhere near a mall. Ororo picked out the nearest container to her and lifted it up to eye level. She saw that Logan had done the same, but she recognized the colorful tie dye pattern decorating his before she even read her own bright yellow packaging.
“Phish food?” Logan asked, tugging off the cardboard lid. “Who comes up with these names?”
Ororo chuckled and returned her gaze on her own pint. “Chunky Monkey sounds a bit more fun,” She said, pulling off the top. As she started scooping out a small spoonful of the ice cream, Ororo glanced back up at Logan and laughed.
He was holding his spoon in his mouth and peering down into the carton, one eyebrow raised.
As she laughed, Logan looked up at her. “Wha…” He started before taking the spoon out of his mouth, “what are you laughin’ about?”
Ororo shook her head, lifting her spoon to her mouth, grinning to herself, “Nothing at all.”
“Hmph,” He grunted, clearly not believing her. “I got ya somethin’.” Before she could finish the spoonful of ice cream and comment, Logan pulled out a brightly colored handful of something that glittered in the twinkling lights above their heads and handed them to her. She put down her ice cream pint and spoon, taking the handful of clear plastic sticks with shimmering tops.
In her hand Ororo held a beautiful bouquet she had never seen anything like before.
A bouquet of vividly colored lollipop flowers.
~Continue?
