077. Administer

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Shrieking echos down the building. Logan drops whatever's in his hands — a frosty, unopened root beer bottle crashing onto the kitchen's tiles — heading to the source of the panic and frenzy.

He enters the front parlor in time to see one of the kids break down into hysterical crying, leaping away from the person on the ground. Dark red fluid bubbles out of Rogue's lips.

"Wh-Marie!" Logan shouts, rushing over to grab onto her wilting form. There's a glistening, bloody hole in her side, widening by the second. "Go get Jean Grey in the med-bay! Now!" he shouts over the group of young mutants weeping and turning pale.

He has no idea what happened, but clutches onto Marie's opera-gloved hand, shushing her.

"You're gonna be alright, look, look at me," Logan mumbles, his heart pounding in his ribcage as Rogue shudders and gurgles on her own blood, dazed and in agony. "Marie, need you to stay with me, hey…"

As he rakes his fingers clumsily over her forehead, scooping away her white-and-dark brown bangs, Logan feels Rogue's abilities draining him of his very life, making her responsive and choke out less of the hot, gushing blood up. It gives life back into her.

Logan makes his decision without hesitation, pressing an entire hand against Rogue's cheek and holding still, groaning as he dies, watching her eyes go round slowly with fear.

Fear for him.

It feels like an eternity before the connection ends abruptly, when Rogue shoves Logan away from her, whimpering and crawling into a ball, sobbing.

Jean Grey finds them on the parlor's floor, with him going into an agonized, twitching shock, and Rogue witnessing it, terrified and frozen in place, no longer able to cry with those red-rimmed eyes.

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"I know it wasn't my decision to make," Logan tells her, seated on the edge of his hospital cot. Rogue sends him a frustrated, wordless glare, crossing her arms stiffly and tucking up her hoodie. "But I'm not sorry I made it. I would rather suffer a little bit to save your life than let you die."

His gut warms unexpectedly for a moment, when she exhales sharply and rises to her feet, touching her little, gloved fingers over his beard.

"I know."

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X-Men isn't mine. Do yall know how badly I've been wanting to write a Logan/Marie fic? A very long time. Probably since I was in my teens. BUT HERE WE ARE. WE MADE IT, KIDS! WOO! I love whump. Whumpy whump. Angst and whump. Hope you all liked this too! Any thoughts/comments are appreciated!