Author: Ruby
Beta: QBon
Disclaimer: I don’t own Roswell nor anything related to Roswell.
Pairing: Liz and Max plus other CC
Timeline: Set three years after End of The World
Rating: TEEN
Summary: After three years away from Roswell, Max Evans is back looking insanely gorgeous. The only problem is he’s not alone. Much to the dismay of Liz Parker, Max is married or well so it seems.
Author's Note: Thank you to Lilac Stardust for the amazing banner.
Bemused, Bewildered and Brunette
<center>
</center><center>The Prologue’s Prologue </center>
<center>Nothing is how it seems </center>
Max Evans leaned against the hood of his car and stared at the ‘Welcome to Roswell’ sign before him. He wasn’t sure how long he had been staring at it or why he was suddenly finding it so hard to get back into the car and drive the rest of the way into town. Leaving Roswell hadn’t been easy but it seemed like going back now after three years was going to be a lot harder.
The sound of movement bought Max’s attention away from the sign and back to the passenger still in the Chevelle. He smiled at the sight of the brunette curled up a sleep in the back seat and suddenly knew that everything would be alright. He wasn’t the same person he had been when he left Roswell, he had changed and he wasn’t going to waste time staring at a stupid sign anymore.
<center>***</center>
In the three years that Max had been away, it seemed like nothing in Roswell had changed very much. Worryingly, it seemed like he had never even left as he drove the finally few minutes to The Crashdown.
He looked in the rear mirror, checking to make sure that the sleeping beauty was still a sleep before getting out of the car. There was no point waking her until they got to their hotel, she would only be grumpy and he wasn’t planning to stay too long anyway. Just long, enough to say hello and a quick how are you doing?
Max took a deep breath before walking into The Crashdown and it wasn’t long before his sister and friends caught sight of him.
“Max, you’re home!” Isabel squealed as she threw herself into his arms. “I can’t believe you’re finally home!”
“And in desperate need of a hair cut,” Maria laughed as she waited for her turn to embrace him. When Isabel finally released him, Maria ran a hand through his hair and grinned. “Have you been taking hair advice from Michael? I always wondered what you two talked about on the phone but I guess now I can see”
“I wasn’t willing to go as far as sticking my finger in a plug socket.” Max said with a grin of his own.
“Hey! What is it with you guys and picking on my hair?” Michael exclaimed, “It’s because you’re jealous, you are all jealous!”
“Whatever you need to tell yourself Guerin,” Alex said rolling his eyes before grinning at Max. “About time you came home Max! Roswell just hasn’t been the same without you”
Michael groaned in disgust “Man, Whitman you are such a woman. I thought we discussed this already, save your feeling sharing for the women folk! God, next you’ll be crying and begging him never to leave again”
“Which is an excellent idea,” Isabel said, “It would be nice to actually spend some time with my only brother after all…”
Max groaned as Alex smirked at him “Here comes the guilt trip.”
“…he hasn’t been to see us in three years not even for the holidays and he hasn’t been the most reliable person when it comes to returning phone calls and emails.”
“I’m sorry Izzy; I promise I’ll make it up to you over the next two weeks.” Max said glancing down at his watch “I should get going. I wanted to get settled at the hotel before I go and see Mom and Dad.”
“You’ll only staying two weeks? Max, we all thought you would be staying longer. Dad has this weeklong fishing trip planned and why are you staying at a hotel? Mom has gotten your room ready. I thought that it could be like old times!” Isabel stated with a frown.
“Izzy…”
“Max!”
Max tensed at the sound of the familiar voice and felt his heart begin to beat faster. It was an instant reminder that things could never be as they had been before. He took a deep breath before he turned around slowly, preparing his heart for a beating as he laid eyes on Liz Parker for the first time in three years.
<center> *** </center>
Liz could hardly believe that he was standing in front of her. She had dreamt of this moment countless times over the last three years, imagined every possible way their first meeting could go, fantasized about him sweeping her into his arms and never letting go.
But now he was here and it didn’t seem like he was going to be doing any sweeping any time soon.
“Max, it’s so good to see you,” Liz said as she approached him, unsure what to do or say. Should she shake his hand? Should she hug him? Should she declare her undying love for him? What was she suppose to do? The look on his face wasn’t giving her any clues as to what was going on in his head as he stared at her with what could only be described as disinterest.
He nodded with indifference and Liz tried to swallow the lump that had formed in her throat as he turned his back on her. She had been stupid to think that it was possible for him to still love her. Three years was obviously going to change a person, she just hadn’t thought it would happen to Max.
He hadn’t changed much looks wise, his hair was slightly longer then she remembered and had a certain disheveled rock star style about. The tight black t-shirt he wore left little to the imagination and the scruffy jeans had been quite clearly been made just for him. It was also obvious that the Californian sun hadn’t done him any harm either since he glowed with health and looked like he had just stepped out of a glossy magazine.
“I really should be going,” Max was telling Isabel while trying to inch closer to the exit.
Liz dragged her eyes away from his back and looked towards Maria. She attempted to smile at her best friend but failed miserably. Maria gave her a sympathetic smile and gestured to the empty seat beside her which Liz happily filled. From her new position she got a clearer look at Max’s face, he was still gorgeous.
“But you haven’t even spoken to Liz or told us about your journey? We need to catch up! You must be hungry or thirsty or something” Isabel said grabbing her brother’s arm and holding him in place.
“Can’t you stay for a little longer?” Maria asked giving Liz’s hand a reassuring squeeze under the table.
“I have something I should tell you actually…”
“You know Max Evans; this is why I’m divorcing your ass! Did it ever cross your mind to crack open a window? Or maybe wake me up? I could have suffocated it was so damn hot in that car and do you honestly want to be a widow after only two days of marriage? People would think that you married me for my money and you know…oh…”
Everybody but Max turned to look at the new comer. Liz was in a state of shock and it was clear by the looks on the others’ faces that she wasn’t the only one. Max was married! It had to be some sort of joke, she had to be dreaming, Max couldn’t be married. It wasn’t the way it was suppose to be. He was meant to be her soul mate. How could he be married to someone else?
Liz tightened her grip on Maria’s hand causing Maria to tear her eyes away from the new couple and look at Liz with concern and pity
“Are you okay Liz?” Maria whispered in her ear.
Liz tried to smile, she tried to nod but she just couldn’t. She couldn’t do anything but stare at the curly haired brunette who was stood beside Max. She watched the expression on Max’s face change to a look of tenderness as he smiled at the other woman.
She was going to throw up!
<center> *** </center>
“Max, why is everyone staring at me?”
Max rolled his eyes heavenwards as Serena’s question was followed by a dozen others.
“You’re married! When? How? Why? Why didn‘t you tell us? Why didn‘t you invite us? How did you meet? How long were you dating? Why have you never mentioned that you were engaged? Do Mom and Dad know? How could you not tell us?”
All the questions seemed to overlap and Max waited patiently for everyone to shut up. Max couldn’t stop himself looking at Liz. He had been fighting a losing battle since the moment she had walked into The Crashdown and back into his life. She was still as captivating as ever and it took all his energy just to turn away from her.
He couldn’t deal with these feeling again. The feelings that he had thought were well and truly buried were now back and invading every inch of his being. How could he still love her after all these years, after everything that had happened between them, after all the pain she had caused him? Why couldn’t he hate her?
“Max, are you going to answer me?” Isabel demanded and Max looked nervously at his sister. She looked mad, really mad and he was sure if looks could kill Serena and him would be as dead as William Shakespeare.
“What can I say?” Max asked as he mentally calculated the distant between him and the nearest exit. “We met, we fell in love, we got married. The end”
“Say what?” Serena said, staring at him in complete disbelief.
Max smiled down at her in what he hoped appeared to be adoration and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. “Guys, allow me to introduce you to Serena Macalister Evans. Serena this is Isabel, Alex, Michael and Maria.” There was uncomfortable pause “Oh and Liz”
Serena looked up at him and searched his eyes for some clue as to what was going on inside his head and received a pleading look that told her that she should just go along with whatever Max said. She didn’t like not knowing what was going on but Max was her best friend and if she couldn’t trust him then she couldn’t trust anyone.
Max nearly sighed in relief when Serena turned and smiled at the group who were still staring at him in complete horror.
“Would it be too much of a cliché to say that I’ve heard so much about you all?”
Isabel stared at the brunette with narrowed eyes “That depends, would it be too much of a cliché to say that we haven’t heard a damn thing about you”
“That’s easy enough to change.” Serena smiled graciously obviously unaffected by the glares she was receiving not just from Isabel but from Liz and Maria as well. “First thing first, Max could you show me to the restroom please?”
“Yeah it’s just over…”
“I want you to come with me!” Serena said giving him meaningful look. A look Max knew better then to ignore.
“Could you guys excuse us for minute?”
He didn’t bother waiting for anyone to reply before wrapping an arm around Serena’s waist but he was sure that he heard someone (most probably Michael) mutter the word “whipped” as he dragged her towards the toilets. He pushed her into an empty washroom and locked the door behind him.
“Okay, did I miss something?” Serena asked when Max finally turned to face her. She did not look impressed as she narrowed her hazel eyes and glared at him, her arms folded tightly across her chest and her foot tapping on the floor tiles as she waited impatiently for his reply.
“What are you talking about?” Max asked deciding that playing dumb was the best course of actions.
“Geez, I don’t know. Maybe the whole ‘we met, we fell in love, we got married’ thing.” Serena said, “I thought it went more like we met, we became best friends and then went to Las Vegas. When did we fall in love?”
“I love you,” Max said giving her a lopsided smile that would have made any other girl’s knees go weak. He tugged one of her curls playfully and grinned even more when she swatted his hands away.
“Pfft, not enough to stay married to me forever. So do you want to give me the cliff notes on what’s going on in that head of yours before I decide to commit first-degree murder?”
Max instantly sobered up. There was no point in trying to lie to her, she knew him too well by now not to see through his lies straight away. “I didn’t think it would be this hard to see her again. I thought I had managed to put that all behind me now but as soon as I heard her voice it all came rushing back!”
Serena already knew without having to ask whom he meant. “Maybe if you talked to her you would be able to put it behind you. Maybe if you could forgive…”
Max didn’t allow her to finish “She betrayed me!”
“But maybe if you could talk to her about…”
“I don’t want to talk to her!” Max declared running a hand through his hair. “I don’t want to know the details or the reasons. I just want to get through the next two weeks here and go back home”
Serena decided to give up while she was ahead. There had been countless times over the last three years where she had attempted to get Max to call or write to Liz so that he could finally move on and stop dwelling in the past. She had tried numerous tactics and all had failed. Max Evans was one stubborn cookie but she loved him anyway.
She sighed signalling her defeat, “Talk to me then. Explain to me how us pretending to be married helps the situation.”
“We’re not pretending, we are actually married if you remember correctly,” Max pointed out causing Serena to stare at him in irritation.
“Vegas weddings aren’t real! Just ask Britney”
Max smiled. Serena’s insane logic was always a source of amusement and never failed to astound him. It was impossible for life to be boring with Serena Macalister around.
“I don’t want Liz to think that I’ve been moping about her the last three years…”
“Moping? Ha! I don’t think that Amanda, Maggie, Lucy, Scarlett, Joey and Claire count as moping”
“…I want her to know that I moved on with my life.” Max said ignoring Serena’s input.
“And I’m pretty sure that Sabrina, Haley, Cordelia, Brooke and Kimber count as moving on with your life.” Serena snorted while Max sighed.
He had spent the last three years trying to move on, trying to find someone to fill the void that Liz had left but at times, it seemed hopeless. Each and every girl that he would date he would find himself comparing them to Liz. He didn’t mean to do it but he just couldn’t stop himself. He really was a sucker for punishment.
“You’re not helping Serena!”
“Honestly Max, I really need you to explain to me how our charade of a marriage is going to do anything other then cause more problems.” Serena said but then it suddenly dawned on her. “Oh my god! You’re planning to use me as a human shied. You think that because you have a wife she won’t try to get close to you again. You’re going to use me as a barrier between you and Liz! Ha and you say that I have a twisted sense of logic! Well I’m telling you right now that it isn’t going to work. If Liz still loves you then nothing is going to be able to prevent her trying to get you back not even me”
“You don‘t know Liz.”
“And neither do you anymore. She might not even have feelings for you anymore. This whole pretence could be for nothing and if she does still have feelings for you…” She paused as she reached for his hand and grasped it tightly with hers. “You know Max you’re going to have to risk your heart one day. You can’t keep hiding from love!”
“Serena, the heart is a hollow muscular organ that pumps blood around the body and love, well that just a whole load of chemical reactions that…”
“Blah, blah and more blah” Serena said rolling her eyes. “We should get back to your friends before they send out a search party. I bet they’re just dying to know all the details of our supposed engagement and wedding.”
“Thank you, I‘ll make it…”
“You can thank me with ice cream and chocolate later but now we better go and face the wolves,”
TBC…
