Long to Be Part 11
Posted: Wed Sep 03, 2003 12:42 pm
PART 11 ~ MARIA
“Get up already, Michael. I’m starving.” I don’t know when I became such a morning person. It slowly happened when we all came here to go to school. Max was pulling himself into this small little world and I was afraid that no one would be able to reach him if he continued down the road he was on so I started getting up early on the weekends.
We would go eat breakfast and then walk the streets just to get out and see things. We didn’t necessarily talk about anything in particular but we just hung out. “Michael! Get up!” I jumped on the bed and practically shoved him off of it. “I’m hungry.”
“Why don’t you go get Max? He’s probably awake already.” He said to me as he rolled over and shoved his head underneath his pillow.
“Today is Saturday.” I say nonchalantly. “Besides, I’m hoping that he is somewhat already occupied.”
“Give it up Maria. There is no way that Maxwell took that girl home last night.” He rolled over and lifted the pillow off his head as he spoke. “We’re talking Max here. No way would he take a girl he just met to his apartment.”
“Michael, I’m hungry and if you get up now we can come back and have some more fun.” He grabbed me and I couldn’t help but let out a squeal from him catching me off guard.
“We can have fun now.” He whispered into my ear as he went for my neck. He knows what nibbling on my neck does to me.
“But I’m hungry now Michael and if you don’t feed me I won’t have enough energy to participate in the fun.” I was whining. He hates it when I whine which is all the more reason to do it. “Pretty please…” I was resorting to begging. He still had me wrapped up in his arms and he was still nibbling on my neck. “Michael, sweetie. Please. Take me to breakfast before there’s nothing left of me.”
I finally feel his arms loosen around me as his head slumps back on the pillow. “Fine.” He gave up any and all attempts of trying to seduce me into staying at home. “You realize that this was my last night off until next weekend. No more… Harry still hasn’t found a replacement for Matt so I’m covering the extra hours.” His eyes take on a teasing gleam, “You’re going to be on your own to…”
I smack him in the head before he can finish the thought, “You are so disgusting. I would never…. Ugh, you just sealed your fate, you’re taking me to breakfast now.”
“Aah, you know you like it when I talk…” I stop him with a kiss. “I know.” I started out saying “but I’m hungry and I don’t want you to have to cook for me so let’s go out.” I really wanted to run by Liz’s and see if she was home. It would look strange for me to show up on Max’s doorstep on Saturday when everyone knows that we go out on Sundays.
Michael worked nights so he could go to school during the day. He was night watchman for the campus security. We were lucky that he could get the job because who better than a security guard to know the comings and goings of students. It pays for his schooling and a little extra too. He likes it. He’s never been one to have a typical normal job. Well, if you don’t count the time he used to be a short order cook at my mom’s restaurant.
“Okay. Give me ten and I’ll be ready to go.” I leaned up and kissed him.
“Thanks sweetie, who knows, I might play hooky from one of my morning classes and make it up to you.” I wiggled my eyebrows up and down. It was a habit that I picked up from Alex a long, long time ago and I hated how I did it without even thinking about it.
“Whatever. I want you to remember this the next time I want to do something and you want to lay in bed.”
“You’re the best and I know you won’t let me forget this.” He gets up off of me and walks over to the bathroom. He has such a gorgeous body and I lay here and admire his nakedness before he disappears behind the closed bathroom door. I thought getting him out of bed was going to be the easy part but it turned out to be harder than I expected.
He knows me too well and I know he knows that I am planning on going over to Liz’s. I’ll just take him to the IHOP that’s right down the street from the dorms that way I can just swing by and say hi to Liz. I hope she’s not there. I so want her and Max to get together.
“Come on. Let’s go! You were in such a hurry to go eat breakfast I can’t imagine you lying there for too much longer.” I was thinking of the ways that I could get him to stop by the dorms without him realizing that that was my whole intentions in the first place. I was too wrapped up in my plan that I hadn’t even realized that he was out of the shower and was dressed already.
I climb out of bed and grab my purse and keys. He’s waiting by the door when I walk out of the bedroom. “Have I told you how much I looooovvvvvvve you today?” I said as I leaned up and kissed him quickly.
“No, but you can and just so you know… I’m not stopping by the dorms.” Damn.
I stomp my feet up and down because I wasn’t expecting him to come right out and call me on my ulterior motive of wanting to go out and eat breakfast. “Why not? I won’t be long. I just have to know if she’s there or not.”
“And what if she is there?” He asks.
“She can come eat breakfast with us.” I didn’t know what I would do if she were there.
“No.”
“Michael, I know you still don’t know what to think about her but I can assure you that she wasn’t her normal self last night. The Liz you saw last night isn’t the same one that I’ve been hanging out with for the past few weeks.” It was weird. The Liz last night wasn’t as sure about herself as she usually was.
“That’s what you said last night and I understand it Maria but only I can make up my own mind and no matter how much you plead her side of the story it just doesn’t jive. She’s holding something back.”
“Maybe, she just doesn’t do well with large groups of strange people.” He opens the door and holds it open for me to go through. “Remember how Alex and Kyle acted and they knew you guys. They acted weird for like the first few months.”
“Maria that was different. They knew we were different and that’s the reason they were acting different.” He looked at me and pinned me with his glare. “She doesn’t know about us does she? You should have told me about her sooner that way I could have been keeping an eye on her dorm. See if she had visitors at odd times.”
“NO! She doesn’t know about you guys. What, just because I blabbed to my two best buds you think I would tell a total stranger.” I stomp off leaving him to lock the door and follow me. I would never ever tell a stranger although I have a feeling that Max will tell Liz all in good time.
I flash back to when I first met Liz.
It’s hard to explain. Michael was working one night and I was sleeping all alone at home and I had this strange dream. There was Michael, Isabel, Max and Tess all standing in a circle and then in the middle there was this girl that I have never seen before in my entire life. She was lying on the ground and she was covered in webbing. It reminded me of the time when Michael was going through the balancing.
I cringe every time I think back on that period in time. We almost lost him and I really don’t like to think of losing him. Sure, he pisses me off most the time but that’s just the way we are. I didn’t have much of a home life and neither did he. Granted mine was much better than his was but it wasn’t typical. It wasn’t the same kind that Max and Isabel grew up with.
I get to the jetta and I let him know that I’m still fuming about him even thinking that I would have told a complete stranger our secret. I slam the passenger-side door and cross my arms in front of me. Make him suffer. I learned a long time ago that he hates it when I’m mad at him.
I don’t know what it was that made me have that dream but I got up and went out for a walk. It was early in the morning and maybe it was just me missing Michael but I went to the coffee shop around the corner. I ordered my hot chocolate… I’m not too fond of coffee, love the smell but hate the taste and besides its not good for the aura. I hung around Kyle too much for a brief point in my life, if you’re wondering where the aura thing came from.
Anyway, I get my hot chocolate and grab the club chair in the corner and look out the huge window that overlooked the street. California was different than New Mexico as far as being able to see the stars, both of them had their drawbacks but this was home and would continue to be home for a little while longer.
So there I was sitting in the chair drinking my hot chocolate when the bell above the door jingles. I look up wanting to see what kind of person is up at five in the morning. I’m almost expecting Max but I knew that he wouldn’t be on this side of town at this time of the day. I about fell out of the chair when I saw who had walked in, the girl from my dream.
Now I don’t believe in destiny, because the four aliens that I’ve grown to love had a predestined destiny and they have all chose to ignore it. Max said it best. “The future is to be determined. We make our own destiny.” So I was having a hard time believing that this was meant to be.
She takes a look around and she immediately notices me staring at her. I quickly look down to my hot chocolate that I have and hope that she doesn’t get weirded out. A few minutes later she’s standing beside the empty chair that is next to the one that I’m sitting in and she’s asking, “Is it okay if I sit here?”
I look up at her and nod my head up and down. I didn’t own the chair and if she wanted to sit beside me that was fine. “I couldn’t sleep.” She began before she even sat down. “I feel like I’ve been hit by a freight train.” She takes a drink of her vanilla cinnamon latte and sits down beside me. We sit like that for what seemed like forever.
I realized that time stood still because I was anticipating the worst. Here I was sitting in a deserted coffee shop, with my alien boyfriend clear across town, talking with a girl that was in my dream. “Hi, I’m Liz Parker.” She said as she held out her hand to introduce herself to me.
“Maria…” I shook her hand but didn’t offer her my last name. I was a little hesitant with giving out too much information.
“You look like you do this often.” She said before she took another sip of her hot coffee.
“Not too often. I just had this really weird dream tonight and I couldn’t go back to sleep. So if I’m not sleeping I might as well ingest caffeine.” I too took another sip.
“Oh,” I don’t know if she was going to continue or not. I mean it sounded like she was trying to strike up a conversation but then it quickly died. I took in her attire and noticed that she was wearing a huge coat. Not a coat that natives would wear during the winter months here in “sunny California”.
“You just move here?” I asked her.
“Yeah,” She offered as she continued to look out the window with a far away look on her face.
“Where did you come from?”
She startled out of her stare and looked at me. “Excuse me?”
“Where did you live before you moved here?” I rephrased.
“Oh, Connecticut. New Hampshire, Connecticut. How about you? Where are you from?”
“Roswell, New Mexico.” I tell her. What could it hurt? She seemed nice enough and I always thought I was a good judge of character so I answered a few of her questions.
It was my turn. “What made you move to California?”
“I don’t know. Something. It’s really hard to explain without me sounding crazy.” I nodded my head to show that I understood and that I wouldn’t be making fun of her. I knew how some things just sounded crazy and there was no possible way of making the truth sound not crazy. I knew aliens existed and I was in love with one so needless to say when someone says that what they’re about to say may sound crazy I knew that it wasn’t anything compared to my life.
“Do you believe in reincarnation?” She starts out saying. I gawk at her. Was she for real and that’s when I notice that she’s not even looking at me anymore. She’s looking out the large bay window that over looks the street. “Most people don’t and I wouldn’t even bring this up but I have a feeling that you won’t think I’m crazy.” She finally turns her head at me and I compose myself the best that I can.
“Anything’s possible.” I finally say realizing that she’s looking to me for an answer to her first question. “So you believe that you are reincarnated.” I sit up from the lounging position that I was previously sitting in.
“Yeah,” I smile at her and she smiles back. “I’ve been to dozens of psychiatrists and none of them can explain why I have memories of another life.”
“You remember your other life?” This was good. I wonder what time period she had lived in?
“I was a queen.” She looks down into her cup of coffee as if her answers were written in there somewhere. “My father was a great king, everyone loved him and he protected me from being harmed. I had guards that protected me and there was one that I loved so very much. He was on some type of military exchange between my father’s country and his, he was in training so one day he would be able to rule his country but we loved each other.”
“And…” She just stopped as if she was caught up in the memory. She really did believe that she had lived another life.
“I was killed on our wedding day just after we kissed and that’s all I know.” She looks up to me with tears in her eyes. “I’m here to find him, my other half. Do you believe in soul mates, Maria?” She dabbed at her eyes.
“I don’t know. I think you’re asking the wrong person, Liz. I believe in love but the kind of love that you’re talking about. The kind of love that surpasses time I’m not so sure I believe in.” I thought back to Max and Tess. They had been married in their previous life and even their love didn’t transcend time and space.
“You don’t think I’m crazy?” She asked with a worried look on her face.
“No, girl. You’re not crazy. In fact, I think I might be able to help you out.”
“How?”
“I know this guy.” She interrupts me.
“I don’t want to be set up Maria. There’s no one here that will ever be my soul mate.”
“Girl, anything’s possible.” I stood up and sat my cocoa cup on the table in front of me. “How about we go shopping. When I’m sad and depressed I go shopping. Just think of it as a way to get your mind off of him. You know, who ever he is.” I leaned over and grabbed her hand.
“Okay… but isn’t it kind of early to go shopping?” She had a point but I didn’t care. Maybe it was my connection with the alien abyss, by something about Liz’s story just seemed to draw me in. She needed a friend and I was bound and determined to be hers.
Michael stopped the car and I was shaken from my memory of meeting Liz that very first time. “If you’re going to go you better get going. I’m not waiting out here all day.” I looked to where we were and noticed that we were outside the dorms on Taylor Street. I turned back and smiled at Michael.
I leaned over and kissed him. “Thanks. I’ll just be a minute.” I hurry out of the car and curse for being fashion conscious. Clogs were not made for running.
I push through the glass doors and make my way to Liz’s dorm room. “Please, don’t be here.” I repeat over and over. I knock on the door and wait. Her not answering was a good sign. It meant that she wasn’t in and that maybe she didn’t come home. I knock again just to be sure but with Michael I know my time is very limited. I see the note that I had left on her door from yesterday. I quickly erase it and put a new one on.
Liz ~
Breakfast… deli… I want details.
~M
She knew how to get a hold of me and she knew what I wanted. I hadn’t known the girl for that long but the past three weeks I feel like I know her pretty well. She reminded me a lot of Max. I hope he found her last night and the more I thought about it the more I began to worry. What if Max didn’t find her? Where was she now? I was itching to dial Max’s number to find out but I knew I better not. He would be embarrassed as hell if he did bring her home. I can wait. I added a few more squiggles that were uniquely me, and left.
Michael was happy that Liz wasn’t following behind me. “Where to next?” He asked. He must have figured that since Liz wasn’t there that I would want to go to Max’s since we were so close.
“No, since you were nice and took me by here I’ll take you to breakfast now. I left her a message to call me as soon as she got home. With any luck I won’t hear from her until Monday morning.” I look at the smirk on Michael’s face and nudge him in the ribs, “Don’t give me that look, it could happen.” Michael just rolled his eyes in response so I lean over and give him another quick peck on the cheek, “Thanks for bringing me by.”
“Well, I would say that it was no problem but I won’t. Let’s just say that you owe me big time when we get home.” He started the Jetta and we were off to breakfast. Finally.
We pulled into the IHOP and got out. The crowd wasn’t too bad, yet. It was still early enough.
“I don’t know why you’re so hung up on her.” He stated as we sat down at the table.
“It’s kind of hard for me to put it into words. Let’s just say that it all happened because of a really weird dream I had one day.”
“What haven’t you told me?” He knows me too well.
“You’ve never asked how I met Liz. Why have you never asked me?”
“I figured you’d tell me when you were ready.” He looked the menu over. Why he was looking the menu over was beyond me. He knew what he was having; he was doing it to keep from looking at me.
“Michael…”
“What?” He finally looks up. “Okay. I saw the two of you in the coffee shop that morning. Matt came into work to turn in his notice and Harry sent me home early. I stop there every morning before going home. I saw the two of you talking and decided not to intrude. How many girlfriends do you have that you can be normal with? None. I wanted you to have something normal so I just kept my mouth shut.” He quickly ducked back behind the menu.
He was too sweet. “Michael, I’ve never complained. You don’t think I want normal do you? I love you and I mean all of you. You guys are my normal and I really don’t know what I would do if I didn’t have you all.” I reached for his hand and took it into mine.
“Well, now you know and how does meeting Liz have anything to do with a dream?” He looked over at me and waited for me to respond.
I quickly picked up my menu to get away from his piercing glare. “Maria…”
“Nothing. What are you having?” I asked hoping to change the subject.
“The usual. What are you not telling me?”
“Well, there’s something more behind me meeting Liz in the coffee shop that morning.”
“and…” I knew I wasn’t going to get out of this so I might as well just tell him.
The waitress coming to take our orders was a reprieve but the minute she was gone he was asking me again to tell him what I meant. “Fine…” I began. “You were at work and I was all alone.”
“Maria I know this part get on to the rest of it.” He scolded me.
“I’m getting there if you would just quit interrupting me.” I huffed and leaned back in my chair and crossed my arms over my chest. I looked anywhere and everywhere but at him.
“Maria, you know I’m not buying this… this mad thing that you’ve been doing all day and it’s not even nine o’clock.”
I ignore him and he starts messing with his silverware. The food finally arrives and he immediately starts to eat.
I push my eggs around a little, nibble a bit of my whole-wheat toast. I’m not really all that hungry anymore. I just happen to look up and I see no other but Max and Liz standing in line waiting to be the next to be seated. I couldn’t help but squeal. They looked so happy… so close.
“I knew it… I just knew it! Am I good or what?” I said a little too loudly at Michael. I start to wave my hands at Max, trying to get his attention.
I briefly saw Michael look at me and then go back as if I was acting normal. I knew what he was thinking. I’ve dated him for five years and I know what was going through that alien head of his. I chose to ignore him. There was no way that he was going to rain on my parade.
Everyone else in the restaurant noticed me so I know Max is purposefully ignoring me. "No way is he going to ignore me!" I snapped at Michael. I really wasn’t the world’s tallest woman so I would need some outside help to get them to see me so I jumped up on my chair and waved my arms frantically to get Max’s attention.
Max slowly turned around as if he wanted to be somewhere else. I can understand where he’s coming from. He waves and then ducks down to whisper something into Liz’s ear. I’m not sure what he is saying but I’m pretty sure that he’s embarrassed to even acknowledge me. She looks my way and waves at me. She has a smile on her face that brightens even wider when she sees me.
“That’s my girl.” I say out loud as I get down off my chair.
“If I were Max I would turn and bolt. I wouldn’t even turn around to see if you were chasing me.”
“Ha ha… very funny. They spent the night together, look at that glow. Just look at the two of them, they are a perfect match. Am I good or what?”
“Yeah, yeah, you said that already.” He shoveled more food into his mouth.
I couldn’t stand it any longer I had to go get them. “Oh, goody, goody, goody.” I had to hug my girlfriend first. Max could wait besides I wanted to make him squirm a little. He of so little faith in my match making, I’m still a little ticked at the way he and Tess acted last night but all was well. I made my way over to him and hugged him anyway. While he was bent over I couldn’t resist giving him a hard time. I knew Max well and I knew that he wasn’t one to act on the first date so I had to tease him. “How’s it feel to get laid?” I pull back from him and I have to squeal again because he’s actually turning red. Maybe I didn’t know him all that well after all. I grab hold of Liz’s hand and began to drag them to our table. “I knew the two of you were going to hit it off famously. I just knew it.”
I let them get settled in and Liz kept on giving Michael a strange look over the top of her menu. I kicked him from underneath the table to tell him that he was being rude to our guest.
“Damn it, Maria. Those clogs are going in the trash if you kick me again.”
“You’re being rude, Michael.”
“Hi, guys.” He finally said.
“Hey.” Max said quietly. He looked nervous to me. Maybe it was being in Liz’s company with the two of us watching their every move? Who knows? I’m just happy that another one of my matches works.
The waitress quickly comes to our table. I’m sure it has something to do with my behavior from earlier. It’s amazing what kind of service you get when the manager thinks you’re crazy and tells everyone to hurry us out because he doesn’t want another scene like the one I just displayed to happen again.
“She’ll have the short stack with a side of…” Max looked to Liz for some reason. “Scrambled?” She nodded her head yes. “Yes, add a side of scrambled eggs and I would like the same and could you bring me some Tabasco sauce too, please.” Max folded up the menu and then took Liz’s from her as she handed it to him.
I was smiling. He already knew what she liked to eat for breakfast. That is just too cute. “So, you’re ordering her food for her now?”
Max turned bright red again. “Maria.” I held up my hand to stop him from denying anything.
“No, no. That’s quite all right. I understand completely. It’s like being newly weds. No explanation needed.” My appetite suddenly reappeared and I started eating my western omelet.
Max and Liz’s breakfast came and I watched as the two of them prepared their food. Max had to send the waitress back for peanut butter and I was surprised that it was for Liz. That was Max’s favorite way of eating pancakes. They were more like each other than I realized. I about fell out of my chair when Liz took the Tabasco sauce and doused her eggs in it. I looked over to Michael and he sat there and watched as well. I’m sure he was thinking that she had to be crazy because no one ate Tabasco like that. No one not unless…
Both of our heads shot to Max. He looked up at us moments later. When Michael motioned ever so slightly towards Liz, Max shook his head a little. Liz continued to eat; she was still unaware of the silent communication that was occurring between the three of us.
“Excuse me, I’ll be right back.” Michael stood up and headed in the direction of the restrooms.
“Max…” I let the sentence hang and Max understood what I was wanting. “Could you…”
“Sure, I’ll go see what’s wrong.” Liz finally looked up from her food. “I’ll be right back.” He leaned over and kissed her. She smiled and when he was gone she looked at me.
“What’s wrong with Michael? It’s not me is it?” I couldn’t quite read her expression but she was actually concerned whether Michael liked her or not.
“No, no… I’m sure it’s nothing. I just really wanted to have some time to talk to you. You know. To see what you thought about everyone and to find out what happened last night.” She paled visibly and I wondered what I had said to make her so uncomfortable.
“It was just one of those things. I had to…” She paused and closed her eyes. She sat her fork down and took a drink of her orange juice. “Well, it’s complicated.” She finally looked back up to me and when her eyes met mine it looked like she was gauging what my reaction would be if she told me something.
“You can tell me anything. Believe me, there’s nothing that you could tell me that would make me any less your friend.” I reached over and grabbed her hand; “I wouldn’t have introduced you to all of them last night if I didn’t want you to become a part of our group. We’ve all been friends since like…forever but it always seemed like we were missing one person and I think that person is you. I haven’t seen Max smile like that in a really long time and the only thing I can think of for him smiling that big is because of you. I don’t know…”
Liz pulled her hand out of mine even as she leaned closer and quietly said, “That’s just it, Maria… I don’t know what happened last night. I wasn’t there.”
“What? I don’t understand.” Okay, call me lost. Hand me a road map to this conversation because I’ve taken a wrong turn somewhere.
“Some times I’m here… and some times I’m not. I have what most people call a split personality or at least the equivalent of one.”
I grabbed my drink and took a huge gulp. I couldn’t believe that I didn’t know. “You didn’t think about telling me first before I introduced you to my friends. You should have told me.” I ran my hand through my hair as I think for a moment, “Michael doesn’t trust you and if I would have known I could have eased some of his suspicions, I could have explained things to him.” I took another drink and finished off the last of it. I raised my glass and wasn’t surprised to see that the waitress was already on her way to the table. “Michael’s probably reaming Max out royally right about now.” I sunk my head into my hands. “Why me?”
“I’m sorry, Maria. You have to understand that not everyone looks at me the same way once they find out about my condition. When I first met you I had no idea that you would understand.” Liz tried to explain. “I thought I was the only one like me. When you look at it the way I do you’ll understand my reasoning behind wanting to keep it a secret.”
“So when you told me you were looking for your other half, were you referring to your split or were you referring to a soul mate kind of person.”
“When I told you about searching for that someone I meant I was looking for Max.” She must have seen the shocked expression on my face because she quickly continued, “I just didn’t know that that was his name. I knew him as…”
The guys have impeccable timing. Just when I was so close to getting the information that I so needed Max and Michael decided to come back. “Are you done?” Michael asked.
“Why what’s wrong?” It wasn’t like Michael to just leave, there had to be something wrong.
“Remember our conversation this morning?” Okay Michael you have to give me more information. We talked about a lot of things this morning. I shook my head anyways. “Well, now is one of those times. I need to go.” He held out his hand to me and I took it. No questions asked. Whatever Max told Michael, had freaked him out and I wanted to know what it was and the only way I was going to find out what it was was to go with him.
“This conversation isn’t over. I’ll talk to you later, okay, chica?” I leaned down and hugged her.
“Sure,” she said.
“Maxwell.” Michael turned and I followed him.
I didn’t want to say a thing until he did. It would only make matters worse. We were almost home and the silence still wasn’t broken. I couldn’t take the silence any more. “She’s one of you, isn’t she?”
He turned and looked at me. “Did she tell you that?”
“No, not in so many words. I should have known. That morning at the coffee shop, I should have put two and two together.”
“What did she say that day?” He made a sharp turn and I was pushed against the car door from the force of it.
“I don’t know…”
“Think!” He yelled at me. I was becoming more and more scared.
“Is she your enemy?”
“Damn it! What did she say, Maria?”
I was almost in tears. How could I have been so wrong about her? “She asked me if I believed in reincarnation. She said that she remembers her other life. She was a queen and was heavily guarded to keep her safe.”
“Who was she?”
“I don’t know. She was just about to tell me when the two of you came back from the restroom. What did Max tell you?”
“She’s like us but not the same as us.” That sounded like Max. Very cryptic probably because he wasn’t sure whether or not she could be trusted.
“What are we going to do now? Is she good or is she evil? Are we going to tell Alex and Isabel as well as Kyle and Tess?
“We don’t do anything. We don’t do anything until Max tells us what to do. As far as telling Alex, Isabel, Kyle and Tess we don’t tell them a thing. As far as they know we never saw them this weekend.”
“How am I supposed to do that? I can’t lie to them. Alex and Kyle will know that I know something.”
“You will tell them nothing.” He said through clinched teeth.
We pulled into our parking space and we both got out. I guess when Michael thought I was wanting normal I was actually getting deeper into the alien abyss. “Did Max say whether or not we’re still on for our usual Sunday morning ritual?”
“What do you think?” Well, I don’t really know. I sat down heavily onto our worn out couch. I looked at the clock that sat on top of our TV it was only ten o’clock in the morning.
“I don’t feel so well.” I got up and went to our bedroom. I crawled into bed and pulled the covers up over my head. I wished that I wasn’t so much of a busy body. I would have ten times less the hassle if I would learn to keep my nose out of other people’s business.
When will I learn?
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“Get up already, Michael. I’m starving.” I don’t know when I became such a morning person. It slowly happened when we all came here to go to school. Max was pulling himself into this small little world and I was afraid that no one would be able to reach him if he continued down the road he was on so I started getting up early on the weekends.
We would go eat breakfast and then walk the streets just to get out and see things. We didn’t necessarily talk about anything in particular but we just hung out. “Michael! Get up!” I jumped on the bed and practically shoved him off of it. “I’m hungry.”
“Why don’t you go get Max? He’s probably awake already.” He said to me as he rolled over and shoved his head underneath his pillow.
“Today is Saturday.” I say nonchalantly. “Besides, I’m hoping that he is somewhat already occupied.”
“Give it up Maria. There is no way that Maxwell took that girl home last night.” He rolled over and lifted the pillow off his head as he spoke. “We’re talking Max here. No way would he take a girl he just met to his apartment.”
“Michael, I’m hungry and if you get up now we can come back and have some more fun.” He grabbed me and I couldn’t help but let out a squeal from him catching me off guard.
“We can have fun now.” He whispered into my ear as he went for my neck. He knows what nibbling on my neck does to me.
“But I’m hungry now Michael and if you don’t feed me I won’t have enough energy to participate in the fun.” I was whining. He hates it when I whine which is all the more reason to do it. “Pretty please…” I was resorting to begging. He still had me wrapped up in his arms and he was still nibbling on my neck. “Michael, sweetie. Please. Take me to breakfast before there’s nothing left of me.”
I finally feel his arms loosen around me as his head slumps back on the pillow. “Fine.” He gave up any and all attempts of trying to seduce me into staying at home. “You realize that this was my last night off until next weekend. No more… Harry still hasn’t found a replacement for Matt so I’m covering the extra hours.” His eyes take on a teasing gleam, “You’re going to be on your own to…”
I smack him in the head before he can finish the thought, “You are so disgusting. I would never…. Ugh, you just sealed your fate, you’re taking me to breakfast now.”
“Aah, you know you like it when I talk…” I stop him with a kiss. “I know.” I started out saying “but I’m hungry and I don’t want you to have to cook for me so let’s go out.” I really wanted to run by Liz’s and see if she was home. It would look strange for me to show up on Max’s doorstep on Saturday when everyone knows that we go out on Sundays.
Michael worked nights so he could go to school during the day. He was night watchman for the campus security. We were lucky that he could get the job because who better than a security guard to know the comings and goings of students. It pays for his schooling and a little extra too. He likes it. He’s never been one to have a typical normal job. Well, if you don’t count the time he used to be a short order cook at my mom’s restaurant.
“Okay. Give me ten and I’ll be ready to go.” I leaned up and kissed him.
“Thanks sweetie, who knows, I might play hooky from one of my morning classes and make it up to you.” I wiggled my eyebrows up and down. It was a habit that I picked up from Alex a long, long time ago and I hated how I did it without even thinking about it.
“Whatever. I want you to remember this the next time I want to do something and you want to lay in bed.”
“You’re the best and I know you won’t let me forget this.” He gets up off of me and walks over to the bathroom. He has such a gorgeous body and I lay here and admire his nakedness before he disappears behind the closed bathroom door. I thought getting him out of bed was going to be the easy part but it turned out to be harder than I expected.
He knows me too well and I know he knows that I am planning on going over to Liz’s. I’ll just take him to the IHOP that’s right down the street from the dorms that way I can just swing by and say hi to Liz. I hope she’s not there. I so want her and Max to get together.
“Come on. Let’s go! You were in such a hurry to go eat breakfast I can’t imagine you lying there for too much longer.” I was thinking of the ways that I could get him to stop by the dorms without him realizing that that was my whole intentions in the first place. I was too wrapped up in my plan that I hadn’t even realized that he was out of the shower and was dressed already.
I climb out of bed and grab my purse and keys. He’s waiting by the door when I walk out of the bedroom. “Have I told you how much I looooovvvvvvve you today?” I said as I leaned up and kissed him quickly.
“No, but you can and just so you know… I’m not stopping by the dorms.” Damn.
I stomp my feet up and down because I wasn’t expecting him to come right out and call me on my ulterior motive of wanting to go out and eat breakfast. “Why not? I won’t be long. I just have to know if she’s there or not.”
“And what if she is there?” He asks.
“She can come eat breakfast with us.” I didn’t know what I would do if she were there.
“No.”
“Michael, I know you still don’t know what to think about her but I can assure you that she wasn’t her normal self last night. The Liz you saw last night isn’t the same one that I’ve been hanging out with for the past few weeks.” It was weird. The Liz last night wasn’t as sure about herself as she usually was.
“That’s what you said last night and I understand it Maria but only I can make up my own mind and no matter how much you plead her side of the story it just doesn’t jive. She’s holding something back.”
“Maybe, she just doesn’t do well with large groups of strange people.” He opens the door and holds it open for me to go through. “Remember how Alex and Kyle acted and they knew you guys. They acted weird for like the first few months.”
“Maria that was different. They knew we were different and that’s the reason they were acting different.” He looked at me and pinned me with his glare. “She doesn’t know about us does she? You should have told me about her sooner that way I could have been keeping an eye on her dorm. See if she had visitors at odd times.”
“NO! She doesn’t know about you guys. What, just because I blabbed to my two best buds you think I would tell a total stranger.” I stomp off leaving him to lock the door and follow me. I would never ever tell a stranger although I have a feeling that Max will tell Liz all in good time.
I flash back to when I first met Liz.
It’s hard to explain. Michael was working one night and I was sleeping all alone at home and I had this strange dream. There was Michael, Isabel, Max and Tess all standing in a circle and then in the middle there was this girl that I have never seen before in my entire life. She was lying on the ground and she was covered in webbing. It reminded me of the time when Michael was going through the balancing.
I cringe every time I think back on that period in time. We almost lost him and I really don’t like to think of losing him. Sure, he pisses me off most the time but that’s just the way we are. I didn’t have much of a home life and neither did he. Granted mine was much better than his was but it wasn’t typical. It wasn’t the same kind that Max and Isabel grew up with.
I get to the jetta and I let him know that I’m still fuming about him even thinking that I would have told a complete stranger our secret. I slam the passenger-side door and cross my arms in front of me. Make him suffer. I learned a long time ago that he hates it when I’m mad at him.
I don’t know what it was that made me have that dream but I got up and went out for a walk. It was early in the morning and maybe it was just me missing Michael but I went to the coffee shop around the corner. I ordered my hot chocolate… I’m not too fond of coffee, love the smell but hate the taste and besides its not good for the aura. I hung around Kyle too much for a brief point in my life, if you’re wondering where the aura thing came from.
Anyway, I get my hot chocolate and grab the club chair in the corner and look out the huge window that overlooked the street. California was different than New Mexico as far as being able to see the stars, both of them had their drawbacks but this was home and would continue to be home for a little while longer.
So there I was sitting in the chair drinking my hot chocolate when the bell above the door jingles. I look up wanting to see what kind of person is up at five in the morning. I’m almost expecting Max but I knew that he wouldn’t be on this side of town at this time of the day. I about fell out of the chair when I saw who had walked in, the girl from my dream.
Now I don’t believe in destiny, because the four aliens that I’ve grown to love had a predestined destiny and they have all chose to ignore it. Max said it best. “The future is to be determined. We make our own destiny.” So I was having a hard time believing that this was meant to be.
She takes a look around and she immediately notices me staring at her. I quickly look down to my hot chocolate that I have and hope that she doesn’t get weirded out. A few minutes later she’s standing beside the empty chair that is next to the one that I’m sitting in and she’s asking, “Is it okay if I sit here?”
I look up at her and nod my head up and down. I didn’t own the chair and if she wanted to sit beside me that was fine. “I couldn’t sleep.” She began before she even sat down. “I feel like I’ve been hit by a freight train.” She takes a drink of her vanilla cinnamon latte and sits down beside me. We sit like that for what seemed like forever.
I realized that time stood still because I was anticipating the worst. Here I was sitting in a deserted coffee shop, with my alien boyfriend clear across town, talking with a girl that was in my dream. “Hi, I’m Liz Parker.” She said as she held out her hand to introduce herself to me.
“Maria…” I shook her hand but didn’t offer her my last name. I was a little hesitant with giving out too much information.
“You look like you do this often.” She said before she took another sip of her hot coffee.
“Not too often. I just had this really weird dream tonight and I couldn’t go back to sleep. So if I’m not sleeping I might as well ingest caffeine.” I too took another sip.
“Oh,” I don’t know if she was going to continue or not. I mean it sounded like she was trying to strike up a conversation but then it quickly died. I took in her attire and noticed that she was wearing a huge coat. Not a coat that natives would wear during the winter months here in “sunny California”.
“You just move here?” I asked her.
“Yeah,” She offered as she continued to look out the window with a far away look on her face.
“Where did you come from?”
She startled out of her stare and looked at me. “Excuse me?”
“Where did you live before you moved here?” I rephrased.
“Oh, Connecticut. New Hampshire, Connecticut. How about you? Where are you from?”
“Roswell, New Mexico.” I tell her. What could it hurt? She seemed nice enough and I always thought I was a good judge of character so I answered a few of her questions.
It was my turn. “What made you move to California?”
“I don’t know. Something. It’s really hard to explain without me sounding crazy.” I nodded my head to show that I understood and that I wouldn’t be making fun of her. I knew how some things just sounded crazy and there was no possible way of making the truth sound not crazy. I knew aliens existed and I was in love with one so needless to say when someone says that what they’re about to say may sound crazy I knew that it wasn’t anything compared to my life.
“Do you believe in reincarnation?” She starts out saying. I gawk at her. Was she for real and that’s when I notice that she’s not even looking at me anymore. She’s looking out the large bay window that over looks the street. “Most people don’t and I wouldn’t even bring this up but I have a feeling that you won’t think I’m crazy.” She finally turns her head at me and I compose myself the best that I can.
“Anything’s possible.” I finally say realizing that she’s looking to me for an answer to her first question. “So you believe that you are reincarnated.” I sit up from the lounging position that I was previously sitting in.
“Yeah,” I smile at her and she smiles back. “I’ve been to dozens of psychiatrists and none of them can explain why I have memories of another life.”
“You remember your other life?” This was good. I wonder what time period she had lived in?
“I was a queen.” She looks down into her cup of coffee as if her answers were written in there somewhere. “My father was a great king, everyone loved him and he protected me from being harmed. I had guards that protected me and there was one that I loved so very much. He was on some type of military exchange between my father’s country and his, he was in training so one day he would be able to rule his country but we loved each other.”
“And…” She just stopped as if she was caught up in the memory. She really did believe that she had lived another life.
“I was killed on our wedding day just after we kissed and that’s all I know.” She looks up to me with tears in her eyes. “I’m here to find him, my other half. Do you believe in soul mates, Maria?” She dabbed at her eyes.
“I don’t know. I think you’re asking the wrong person, Liz. I believe in love but the kind of love that you’re talking about. The kind of love that surpasses time I’m not so sure I believe in.” I thought back to Max and Tess. They had been married in their previous life and even their love didn’t transcend time and space.
“You don’t think I’m crazy?” She asked with a worried look on her face.
“No, girl. You’re not crazy. In fact, I think I might be able to help you out.”
“How?”
“I know this guy.” She interrupts me.
“I don’t want to be set up Maria. There’s no one here that will ever be my soul mate.”
“Girl, anything’s possible.” I stood up and sat my cocoa cup on the table in front of me. “How about we go shopping. When I’m sad and depressed I go shopping. Just think of it as a way to get your mind off of him. You know, who ever he is.” I leaned over and grabbed her hand.
“Okay… but isn’t it kind of early to go shopping?” She had a point but I didn’t care. Maybe it was my connection with the alien abyss, by something about Liz’s story just seemed to draw me in. She needed a friend and I was bound and determined to be hers.
Michael stopped the car and I was shaken from my memory of meeting Liz that very first time. “If you’re going to go you better get going. I’m not waiting out here all day.” I looked to where we were and noticed that we were outside the dorms on Taylor Street. I turned back and smiled at Michael.
I leaned over and kissed him. “Thanks. I’ll just be a minute.” I hurry out of the car and curse for being fashion conscious. Clogs were not made for running.
I push through the glass doors and make my way to Liz’s dorm room. “Please, don’t be here.” I repeat over and over. I knock on the door and wait. Her not answering was a good sign. It meant that she wasn’t in and that maybe she didn’t come home. I knock again just to be sure but with Michael I know my time is very limited. I see the note that I had left on her door from yesterday. I quickly erase it and put a new one on.
Liz ~
Breakfast… deli… I want details.
~M
She knew how to get a hold of me and she knew what I wanted. I hadn’t known the girl for that long but the past three weeks I feel like I know her pretty well. She reminded me a lot of Max. I hope he found her last night and the more I thought about it the more I began to worry. What if Max didn’t find her? Where was she now? I was itching to dial Max’s number to find out but I knew I better not. He would be embarrassed as hell if he did bring her home. I can wait. I added a few more squiggles that were uniquely me, and left.
Michael was happy that Liz wasn’t following behind me. “Where to next?” He asked. He must have figured that since Liz wasn’t there that I would want to go to Max’s since we were so close.
“No, since you were nice and took me by here I’ll take you to breakfast now. I left her a message to call me as soon as she got home. With any luck I won’t hear from her until Monday morning.” I look at the smirk on Michael’s face and nudge him in the ribs, “Don’t give me that look, it could happen.” Michael just rolled his eyes in response so I lean over and give him another quick peck on the cheek, “Thanks for bringing me by.”
“Well, I would say that it was no problem but I won’t. Let’s just say that you owe me big time when we get home.” He started the Jetta and we were off to breakfast. Finally.
We pulled into the IHOP and got out. The crowd wasn’t too bad, yet. It was still early enough.
“I don’t know why you’re so hung up on her.” He stated as we sat down at the table.
“It’s kind of hard for me to put it into words. Let’s just say that it all happened because of a really weird dream I had one day.”
“What haven’t you told me?” He knows me too well.
“You’ve never asked how I met Liz. Why have you never asked me?”
“I figured you’d tell me when you were ready.” He looked the menu over. Why he was looking the menu over was beyond me. He knew what he was having; he was doing it to keep from looking at me.
“Michael…”
“What?” He finally looks up. “Okay. I saw the two of you in the coffee shop that morning. Matt came into work to turn in his notice and Harry sent me home early. I stop there every morning before going home. I saw the two of you talking and decided not to intrude. How many girlfriends do you have that you can be normal with? None. I wanted you to have something normal so I just kept my mouth shut.” He quickly ducked back behind the menu.
He was too sweet. “Michael, I’ve never complained. You don’t think I want normal do you? I love you and I mean all of you. You guys are my normal and I really don’t know what I would do if I didn’t have you all.” I reached for his hand and took it into mine.
“Well, now you know and how does meeting Liz have anything to do with a dream?” He looked over at me and waited for me to respond.
I quickly picked up my menu to get away from his piercing glare. “Maria…”
“Nothing. What are you having?” I asked hoping to change the subject.
“The usual. What are you not telling me?”
“Well, there’s something more behind me meeting Liz in the coffee shop that morning.”
“and…” I knew I wasn’t going to get out of this so I might as well just tell him.
The waitress coming to take our orders was a reprieve but the minute she was gone he was asking me again to tell him what I meant. “Fine…” I began. “You were at work and I was all alone.”
“Maria I know this part get on to the rest of it.” He scolded me.
“I’m getting there if you would just quit interrupting me.” I huffed and leaned back in my chair and crossed my arms over my chest. I looked anywhere and everywhere but at him.
“Maria, you know I’m not buying this… this mad thing that you’ve been doing all day and it’s not even nine o’clock.”
I ignore him and he starts messing with his silverware. The food finally arrives and he immediately starts to eat.
I push my eggs around a little, nibble a bit of my whole-wheat toast. I’m not really all that hungry anymore. I just happen to look up and I see no other but Max and Liz standing in line waiting to be the next to be seated. I couldn’t help but squeal. They looked so happy… so close.
“I knew it… I just knew it! Am I good or what?” I said a little too loudly at Michael. I start to wave my hands at Max, trying to get his attention.
I briefly saw Michael look at me and then go back as if I was acting normal. I knew what he was thinking. I’ve dated him for five years and I know what was going through that alien head of his. I chose to ignore him. There was no way that he was going to rain on my parade.
Everyone else in the restaurant noticed me so I know Max is purposefully ignoring me. "No way is he going to ignore me!" I snapped at Michael. I really wasn’t the world’s tallest woman so I would need some outside help to get them to see me so I jumped up on my chair and waved my arms frantically to get Max’s attention.
Max slowly turned around as if he wanted to be somewhere else. I can understand where he’s coming from. He waves and then ducks down to whisper something into Liz’s ear. I’m not sure what he is saying but I’m pretty sure that he’s embarrassed to even acknowledge me. She looks my way and waves at me. She has a smile on her face that brightens even wider when she sees me.
“That’s my girl.” I say out loud as I get down off my chair.
“If I were Max I would turn and bolt. I wouldn’t even turn around to see if you were chasing me.”
“Ha ha… very funny. They spent the night together, look at that glow. Just look at the two of them, they are a perfect match. Am I good or what?”
“Yeah, yeah, you said that already.” He shoveled more food into his mouth.
I couldn’t stand it any longer I had to go get them. “Oh, goody, goody, goody.” I had to hug my girlfriend first. Max could wait besides I wanted to make him squirm a little. He of so little faith in my match making, I’m still a little ticked at the way he and Tess acted last night but all was well. I made my way over to him and hugged him anyway. While he was bent over I couldn’t resist giving him a hard time. I knew Max well and I knew that he wasn’t one to act on the first date so I had to tease him. “How’s it feel to get laid?” I pull back from him and I have to squeal again because he’s actually turning red. Maybe I didn’t know him all that well after all. I grab hold of Liz’s hand and began to drag them to our table. “I knew the two of you were going to hit it off famously. I just knew it.”
I let them get settled in and Liz kept on giving Michael a strange look over the top of her menu. I kicked him from underneath the table to tell him that he was being rude to our guest.
“Damn it, Maria. Those clogs are going in the trash if you kick me again.”
“You’re being rude, Michael.”
“Hi, guys.” He finally said.
“Hey.” Max said quietly. He looked nervous to me. Maybe it was being in Liz’s company with the two of us watching their every move? Who knows? I’m just happy that another one of my matches works.
The waitress quickly comes to our table. I’m sure it has something to do with my behavior from earlier. It’s amazing what kind of service you get when the manager thinks you’re crazy and tells everyone to hurry us out because he doesn’t want another scene like the one I just displayed to happen again.
“She’ll have the short stack with a side of…” Max looked to Liz for some reason. “Scrambled?” She nodded her head yes. “Yes, add a side of scrambled eggs and I would like the same and could you bring me some Tabasco sauce too, please.” Max folded up the menu and then took Liz’s from her as she handed it to him.
I was smiling. He already knew what she liked to eat for breakfast. That is just too cute. “So, you’re ordering her food for her now?”
Max turned bright red again. “Maria.” I held up my hand to stop him from denying anything.
“No, no. That’s quite all right. I understand completely. It’s like being newly weds. No explanation needed.” My appetite suddenly reappeared and I started eating my western omelet.
Max and Liz’s breakfast came and I watched as the two of them prepared their food. Max had to send the waitress back for peanut butter and I was surprised that it was for Liz. That was Max’s favorite way of eating pancakes. They were more like each other than I realized. I about fell out of my chair when Liz took the Tabasco sauce and doused her eggs in it. I looked over to Michael and he sat there and watched as well. I’m sure he was thinking that she had to be crazy because no one ate Tabasco like that. No one not unless…
Both of our heads shot to Max. He looked up at us moments later. When Michael motioned ever so slightly towards Liz, Max shook his head a little. Liz continued to eat; she was still unaware of the silent communication that was occurring between the three of us.
“Excuse me, I’ll be right back.” Michael stood up and headed in the direction of the restrooms.
“Max…” I let the sentence hang and Max understood what I was wanting. “Could you…”
“Sure, I’ll go see what’s wrong.” Liz finally looked up from her food. “I’ll be right back.” He leaned over and kissed her. She smiled and when he was gone she looked at me.
“What’s wrong with Michael? It’s not me is it?” I couldn’t quite read her expression but she was actually concerned whether Michael liked her or not.
“No, no… I’m sure it’s nothing. I just really wanted to have some time to talk to you. You know. To see what you thought about everyone and to find out what happened last night.” She paled visibly and I wondered what I had said to make her so uncomfortable.
“It was just one of those things. I had to…” She paused and closed her eyes. She sat her fork down and took a drink of her orange juice. “Well, it’s complicated.” She finally looked back up to me and when her eyes met mine it looked like she was gauging what my reaction would be if she told me something.
“You can tell me anything. Believe me, there’s nothing that you could tell me that would make me any less your friend.” I reached over and grabbed her hand; “I wouldn’t have introduced you to all of them last night if I didn’t want you to become a part of our group. We’ve all been friends since like…forever but it always seemed like we were missing one person and I think that person is you. I haven’t seen Max smile like that in a really long time and the only thing I can think of for him smiling that big is because of you. I don’t know…”
Liz pulled her hand out of mine even as she leaned closer and quietly said, “That’s just it, Maria… I don’t know what happened last night. I wasn’t there.”
“What? I don’t understand.” Okay, call me lost. Hand me a road map to this conversation because I’ve taken a wrong turn somewhere.
“Some times I’m here… and some times I’m not. I have what most people call a split personality or at least the equivalent of one.”
I grabbed my drink and took a huge gulp. I couldn’t believe that I didn’t know. “You didn’t think about telling me first before I introduced you to my friends. You should have told me.” I ran my hand through my hair as I think for a moment, “Michael doesn’t trust you and if I would have known I could have eased some of his suspicions, I could have explained things to him.” I took another drink and finished off the last of it. I raised my glass and wasn’t surprised to see that the waitress was already on her way to the table. “Michael’s probably reaming Max out royally right about now.” I sunk my head into my hands. “Why me?”
“I’m sorry, Maria. You have to understand that not everyone looks at me the same way once they find out about my condition. When I first met you I had no idea that you would understand.” Liz tried to explain. “I thought I was the only one like me. When you look at it the way I do you’ll understand my reasoning behind wanting to keep it a secret.”
“So when you told me you were looking for your other half, were you referring to your split or were you referring to a soul mate kind of person.”
“When I told you about searching for that someone I meant I was looking for Max.” She must have seen the shocked expression on my face because she quickly continued, “I just didn’t know that that was his name. I knew him as…”
The guys have impeccable timing. Just when I was so close to getting the information that I so needed Max and Michael decided to come back. “Are you done?” Michael asked.
“Why what’s wrong?” It wasn’t like Michael to just leave, there had to be something wrong.
“Remember our conversation this morning?” Okay Michael you have to give me more information. We talked about a lot of things this morning. I shook my head anyways. “Well, now is one of those times. I need to go.” He held out his hand to me and I took it. No questions asked. Whatever Max told Michael, had freaked him out and I wanted to know what it was and the only way I was going to find out what it was was to go with him.
“This conversation isn’t over. I’ll talk to you later, okay, chica?” I leaned down and hugged her.
“Sure,” she said.
“Maxwell.” Michael turned and I followed him.
I didn’t want to say a thing until he did. It would only make matters worse. We were almost home and the silence still wasn’t broken. I couldn’t take the silence any more. “She’s one of you, isn’t she?”
He turned and looked at me. “Did she tell you that?”
“No, not in so many words. I should have known. That morning at the coffee shop, I should have put two and two together.”
“What did she say that day?” He made a sharp turn and I was pushed against the car door from the force of it.
“I don’t know…”
“Think!” He yelled at me. I was becoming more and more scared.
“Is she your enemy?”
“Damn it! What did she say, Maria?”
I was almost in tears. How could I have been so wrong about her? “She asked me if I believed in reincarnation. She said that she remembers her other life. She was a queen and was heavily guarded to keep her safe.”
“Who was she?”
“I don’t know. She was just about to tell me when the two of you came back from the restroom. What did Max tell you?”
“She’s like us but not the same as us.” That sounded like Max. Very cryptic probably because he wasn’t sure whether or not she could be trusted.
“What are we going to do now? Is she good or is she evil? Are we going to tell Alex and Isabel as well as Kyle and Tess?
“We don’t do anything. We don’t do anything until Max tells us what to do. As far as telling Alex, Isabel, Kyle and Tess we don’t tell them a thing. As far as they know we never saw them this weekend.”
“How am I supposed to do that? I can’t lie to them. Alex and Kyle will know that I know something.”
“You will tell them nothing.” He said through clinched teeth.
We pulled into our parking space and we both got out. I guess when Michael thought I was wanting normal I was actually getting deeper into the alien abyss. “Did Max say whether or not we’re still on for our usual Sunday morning ritual?”
“What do you think?” Well, I don’t really know. I sat down heavily onto our worn out couch. I looked at the clock that sat on top of our TV it was only ten o’clock in the morning.
“I don’t feel so well.” I got up and went to our bedroom. I crawled into bed and pulled the covers up over my head. I wished that I wasn’t so much of a busy body. I would have ten times less the hassle if I would learn to keep my nose out of other people’s business.
When will I learn?
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