Mesmerized Part 20 Epilogue
Liz took immediate notice of the spectacle in front of her. There were two people. One was her boyfriend, and the other was a flirt of an ex-girlfriend (who didn’t look like much of an ex anymore, from where she stood gaping) who looked like they were in the middle of something very heavy at the moment.
There was just too much shock for a person to handle. Liz mumbled a quick ‘sorry’, and took off running, ignoring the surprised look that she earned from Max. –and not to mention the smirks of Pam and Sally.
She didn’t know what she wanted at the moment, but there was something nagging at the back of her mind. Something that told her that she would find some sort of explanation from this person, albeit she was not Max. That person was Max’s sister, Isabel.
She ran through the empty halls (classes weren’t dismissed yet), and stopped in front of Isabel’s famous locker. She would be waiting to talk to her, and was pretty sure that Isabel would be nice enough to listen to her speak.
Of all the people she decided to approach, the reason for choosing Isabel was utterly beyond her. Maybe it was because she was very close to her brother, or maybe because she was experienced in relationships, Liz didn’t know which, but she somehow knew that she was doing the right thing.
She waited, trying to hold back tears, and careful to avoid anyone involved in the earlier incident, if they had happened by. A few minutes later, the bell rang.
Crowds and crowds of WRH students walked the halls huddled in groups or two’s. Today of all days was when Liz seemed to notice that no one really walked alone. Most of the people that passed were even couples.
There was a creak on her right that told her that somebody stopped in front of her. It was Isabel, who had just opened her locker door. Her usual throng of friends, -and Alex, stood a few feet back, waiting for her. Isabel was smiling and talking to them, but when she saw the look on Liz’s face, she waved a hand towards her entire entourage and told them that they had better meet her on the way to break. Alex noticed Liz too, but seeing as she looked like she could’ve used Isabel’s help more than his, he walked off onto his own direction, though mildly curious about his friend’s behavior.
“Liz,” Isabel had stopped smiling. She sensed that the problem concerned her brother. You could call it a special sisterly sense. “What happened to the two of you?”
Liz didn’t even feel bewildered that Isabel was so quick to catch on. She merely replied, “He was with Pam, you know. Eraser room.”
Isabel looked sincerely doubtful. She frowned and said, “Max isn’t like that, okay? You might think that I’m just saying it coz’ he’s family. But really, he isn’t like that.”
“I know he isn’t.” Liz said, “Not usually.”
“Then why don’t you talk it over now? It seems easy enough.” Isabel said lamely.
Liz thought about it. She knew that she trusted Max well enough, but there was something wrong that she couldn’t quite figure out. She knew that what Isabel had said was true. It was easy enough. She should have just talked to him and straighten it out. But there were suddenly issues and fears that had arose, all in the minutes that she had seen what had happened.
Feeling that Liz wasn’t completely won over by her explanation, Isabel went on in a much more soothing voice, “He really is in love with you. –I don’t believe that you have to ask me to find out. And I’m telling you, this isn’t him. For all we know, Pam had set this up. –In fact, I’m sure that that is what she did.”
She went on, “Can’t you see it, Liz? It is the fault of neither of you. I don’t see why you’re so broken up about it. –I mean to be more supportive, trust me. But-”
“Okay, I’ll figure this out. But I think I know what I need.” She interjected; knowledge was dawning upon her. Isabel simply nodded. And they went on different directions.
~!~
There was a buzz of a migraine in Liz’s head. It was a hard thing to think of what course of action she would take if she were to talk to talk to Max. There were still classes next, and she wouldn’t have liked to miss, them since there were rumors of a few pop quizzes scheduled. But this occasion meant more to her, that she could afford to miss a period, if it meant getting it straightened out, once and for all.
She passed her locker and saw Max waiting for her there, looking very solemn indeed.
“Liz,” he muttered, as soon as he saw her. His eyes were clouded, as he was fighting to say the truth and not offend her or give her the wrong impression. “Can we take a walk, instead of..?” he asked gesturing to the classrooms that were filling up again.
Liz nodded, and they went to the direction out of school, and to the field.
After a while, Max finally spoke. “-I didn’t-” But was surprised, when Liz cut him off. “I know you didn’t have anything to do with it,” she said quietly.
“There are a million reasons why I should not believe you,” Liz said. “For one, -evidence. But then, I just know to believe you. –maybe its because I really trust you.”
A look of relief replaced the solemnity on Max’s face. He would’ve laughed with joy, but the thought was extinguished, when he saw that he still ought to be worried. Something on Liz’s face assured it.
“However done with we are at this,” she started. “There are problems. Not with you, -with me.”
Max stared at her. “It wasn’t about you. It wasn’t about anyone! How could there be problems with you?” he whispered incredulously.
“Because now I’m going to be weird, and I have to step out of this,” Liz answered. “I haven’t got much to experiencing whatever impact this is going to have on us later. But I can tell you; it is going to be awkward. –And I know that you know that.”
“And what?” he asked.
“I can’t explain it well, I’m still confused myself. But I want you to know that this is the first time that this has ever happened to me. -The first time that a relationship became this serious. And this is the real first time that I’ve broken my own heart with doubts that I have on a regular basis. –Yes, I trust you, -but what about me?
“This is your umpteenth relationship, right?” she continued, not even bothering to get Max’s answer. “For me, it isn’t. And this first time or first few times shit? –It sucks! But I do have to figure it out. –just so I’d learn. And-” she trailed off looking at him.
She took a deep breath before proceeding, “And what I need you to do, is to let me, -‘the novice’, handle it by myself. I’m in this to figure myself out, and I need you to let me.”
“Let you?” he looked shocked as before. “Let you handle this?! This is supposed to be between us. Why can’t we both handle this?”
“Because you’ve handled this before!” Liz snapped. It was the first time that they had fought, -she realized, since they’d agreed on everything else.
“This is different.” He snapped back. “I might have handled it before, -I admit it, but this time it’s different. This time, it’s with you.”
“Please, that’s not what I need right now,” Liz mumbled tearfully. “Just let me. Okay? Let me do this myself, so that I’d be better at this whole thing.”
Max couldn’t understand her, but he knew that that was something that meant a lot to her, so he agreed anyway. “How much time do you need?” he asked.
“As long as necessary.” She replied.
He felt helpless to convince her otherwise, so he nodded.
And just as they were walking into different directions, Liz turned back and called his name. “And another thing: You’re free. Go date whoever you want.” She said.
Max only smiled sadly, and surprised Liz with his reply, “You might not know what you want to do with us, but I do. And if waiting on my behalf is needed, then I’ll wait. I trust you too. And I know that you’re going to decide something with a good reason. So talk to me, when you’re ready. But I want you to know, that if we really do love each other beyond age and experience and all that stuff, then we’ll be seeing more of each other forever. –So I’m not all that worried.”
And as his message started to sink in, they went their separate ways, and hoped that their love really was beyond everything else that the world would give them.
The End.
A/N: Well, there wasn't any sort of Dreamer insurance from the start, so please forgive me.
