"Hey, you open?" Logan called into the empty pub. Walking through the
door, he glanced around and headed for a seat at the bar. He noted
the sign on the door had said "OPEN", but where was everyone? He
shrugged and sat down. He liked being alone. It didn't matter to him.
And Harry usually didn't mind Logan being there, without him.

A voice called to him from behind the bar. A female's voice, who had
been sitting on the floor, now stood up to see her guest. "Actually,
everytime he goes away, I'm not that busy. What can I get ya?"

Logan stared at her for a minute. Her auburn hair was full, and a
touch curly, as it glided down her back to meet her slender waist.
Her face was slim and sharp, and smooth. Full pink lips that
glistened with gloss, smiled at him. Huge blue eyes that seemed as
deep as the ocean, had blinked at him, trying to get his
attention. "Surprise me." He finally said as he looked away. "Where's
Harry?"

The girl shrugged and turned around to reach into a cooler for a beer
in a bottle. "He's on vacation for a week." Her jeans hugged her
small body, and her tucked in black T-shirt was big enough to hide
her upper frame. Turning back around, she opened the bottle and set
it down in front of him.

He accepted, and raised it to his lips. "Haven't seen you before. You
new?"

"Me? No. I work here when I'm not in school, or he goes away,
whichever comes first. I live in Jersey, just here for the summer.
He's my uncle. You must be..... Logan? He's told me about you."

Logan had been taking a drink when she said his name. "Yea, darlin.
And, your name is?"

"Irivan." She smiled as he took another drink.

"Nice name." Logan replaced the bottle onto the counter.

She smiled and shrugged. "My daddy was one of those crazy bayou boys
from Louisiana. He married my mom, Harry's little sister, and
nothin's been all right since. Cajuns have the tendacy to turn
everything upside down, you know?" She laughed and rested her arms on
the bar, leaning on them slightly.

"Damn cajuns are all over the place." He smiled for a moment and then
straightened after another sip. What the Hell was he doing, talking
to someone he didn't know, and laughing as if they were old friends.
Shaking himself back to the present, he set the bottle down again and
shifted on the stool.

Nodding, Irivan tilted her head to her right, as if she was
understanding just what he had meant about his statement. "I take it,
you know one, huh?"

Logan looked at her, and cleared his throat, uneasily. "Yea, you
could say that." He knew one all too well. Damn boy was on his mind
24/7. Thing was, he didn't know if he should really open up to
someone whom he had just met. Yet, something stabbed at him to do
just that. Who knows, maybe he'd get the courage to open up to a
certain Remy, and tell him just what was on his mind.

The girl smiled and furrowed her brow in wonder at his
thoughts. "Look, if it's personal, I'm sorry. Didn't mean to pry.
But, you look as if, somethin's botherin you."

Logan looked up from his bottle, and stared at her. "I uh--....
nothin. Just thinkin."

"Well, the first rule of bartendin is to listen....?"

He sighed, deeply. "Just that,....." Logan stopped himself. Did he
really want to tell her? Could he do it, was more the question at
hand. He closed his eyes and took in a breath. Something told him
that he could tell her anything in the world, and she wouldn't
flinch. Before he could say anything, she had answered for him.

"You don't know how to tell him you love him, right?" Her tone was
calm, and unbiased.

"Yea. You one of them 'telepaths'?" He looked at her in amazement.

She shook her head. "No. I just read people."

"Empath." Logan scoffed.

"Something like that. He's not gonna mind if you tell him, hun. I
don't know who he is, but I'm guessin he might feel the same way?"
She took in a breath and watched his expressions change. "Sides, if
he doesn't, he won't know what he's missin. Sorry, sometimes my mind
takes over and my tongue goes along for the ride." Irivan pushed
herself away from the bar and looked about for a wet rag to go back
to her work. She had come around to wipe off the empty tables and put
up the chairs, while Logan sat there in wonder.

The silence had almost closed the gap, but Logan cleared his throat
again, and spoke. "Nope. You were dead on." He hadn't turned around,
but took another sip of beer and leaned back

She stopped wiping the table she was on, and came over to sit a stool
away from him, to the left. Her body was turned to face him, and took
in his profile. Good, strong man, and balanced in thought and
judgement. So, why was he agonizing over telling someone how he felt
about them? "You don't normally find yourself mulling over a man's
affections, do you?"

"Good guess." Still, he hadn't moved to look at her.

"He must be a good friend, if you're this broken up about it...?"

"Yea, he is."

Irivan shifted. "If he's a good friend, the least he owes you, is to
listen and remain a good friend. But, if he tosses it aside, his
loss."

Logan tilted his head back and downed the last of his beer. "Could
be, he already knows. In fact, he's in the same boat as you." Now
turning to look at her, he smiled. "He's the kind of kid that can
have what he wants, when he wants. And he don't see anything wrong
with it. And, I don't doubt, he's had several offers from both
parties. I guess I'm just tryin to be original in expressin my
feelings."

She nodded and examined him. "IF he knows, why aren't you out trying
to get to know his comfortability? I mean, if you've had feelings for
him, for awhile...... and he's still there, to some degree, then
chances are he shares your feelings. And, I'm not talking about
empathising. The beer and the advice is on the house."

"Thanks. I guess, I just needed to hear it outloud." Turning around
and sliding off the stool, he winked at her and told her goodbye.

She smiled back and called to him, before he exited. "I'm here till
Friday. Why don't ya come on back, and keep a lonely girl company?
Good luck, cher."

Logan stopped as he opened the door and looked back at her. He smiled
and gave her a casual salute to let her know he'd be back, and then
left. For some reason, he felt better about his problems. In fact, he
grinned all the way home.

Pulling into the drive, his eyes caught sight of a tall, lean figure
on the porch, smoking a cigarette and leaning agianst a tall column.
He parked the jeep, and made his way up to the porch to stand a few
feet away from Remy.

"Somet'in wrong, homme?" Gambit tucked his thumbs into his black
leather belt, and toyed with the smoke in his mouth.

"Nope. All too clear. Take a walk with me, for a minute." Logan
turned and headed back down the steps, the cajun cautiously following
him. "Got somethin I need to tell you, kid."
 

The End.