Roswell Fanatics

19

“That’s all she said?” Max asked urgently.

“That’s all Mrs. Parker was able to get out,” Jesse explained. “She said Liz just sat up and started screaming about there not being a glow.” Jesse followed Max out of the elevator, matching his long strides. “The nurse came in and gave her something to put her out again, but Mrs. Parker is really shaken up.”

They burst into the waiting room, and Max quickly scanned it. His mother and Isabel were trying to comfort a trembling Nancy. Brushing off his sister’s sympathetic expression, Max strode down the hall toward his Liz.

He stopped short at the door. Jeff Parker sat beside the bed, smoothing Liz’s hair off her forehead. “I – I thought she was by herself.“ Max choked out. “I didn’t want her to be alone.”

Jeff nodded silently, gazing at his daughter, who was now sleeping quietly – a stark contrast to her outburst just minutes before. "She asked for you,” he said finally.

“Liz?” Max’s tone was hushed, watching her from just inside the doorway.

Jeff nodded again, but this time he lifted his red-rimmed eyes to meet Max’s. Clearing his throat, he clasped Liz’s limp hand between his own. “I got here just as they were administering the sedative,” he said quietly. “She was screaming…just screaming…” Jeff closed his eyes and took a deep breath. “She seemed to think you could save the baby, Max. She doesn’t understand…” he trailed off.

Max nodded stiffly, his heart thudding in his chest. I tried, love, I swear I did.

“Max?”

Max snapped to attention at Jeff’s voice. “Don’t let it get to you.” Jeff’s tone was gentle, tired. “She didn’t know what she was saying. There was nothing anyone could have done.” He cleared his throat. “Things…things happen sometimes…” He paused for a long moment before looking Max directly in the eye. “I truly am sorry, son.”

*****

“Mr. Evans?”

Pray God you can cope

Max slowly lifted his head from where it was resting on Liz’s arm at the edge of the bed. He blinked and glanced around, trying to get his bearings. The maternity ward. Liz had been moved to the maternity ward from the ER the night before so Dr. Sinclair could monitor her.

I stand outside this woman’s work
This woman’s work

The young nurse smiled kindly. “I’m sorry to wake you, but I need to get Liz’s morning vitals.”

“She hasn’t been awake at all,” he offered, his voice thick with sleep.

“That’s okay,” the nurse assured. “The sedatives she was given combined with the medication to regulate her blood pressure are going to make her pretty groggy for the next day or so.” Max only nodded in reply. “Um, Mr. Evans,” she continued gently, “The nurse on call before me said to keep an eye on you, that you haven’t left Liz’s side all night. Why don’t you take a little break? Get some coffee, or something to eat?”

Rubbing his hands across his face, Max sighed. “I’m gonna just…get some coffee real quick,” he decided. “I’ll be right back.”

Oh it’s hard on the man
Now his part is over

He slowly made his way out into the quiet hallway, his body stiff from being folded in the hospital chair all night. The faint sound of a baby crying echoed through his mind then, and Max found himself standing before the nursery. Against his better judgement, he stopped and gazed through the large glass windows at the rows of tiny babies.

Now starts the craft of the Father

It was where he should be in six months, a proud father looking in at his newborn son. But that wouldn’t happen now, and Max had to wonder if it ever would. Would it ever be something he’d know? Here he stood – Max Evans, eighteen years old, and he had already lost two sons. It was too much for him to wrap his mind around, and he squeezed his eyes shut, resting his forehead against the cool glass.

Give me these moments back
Give them back to me

The flash came out of nowhere. The vision of himself and his son…the toddler he and Liz had seen in their connection…grinning as Max swept him into the air, lifted him onto his shoulders –

“Max?”

Nancy placed her hand on Max’s shoulder, his pained eyes raising to meet hers. “How’re you doing?” she asked quietly.

“She’s been asleep the whole time you’ve been gone,” he replied, his eyes returning to the baby fussing on the other side of the glass.

“I asked how you're doing,” Nancy repeated gently.

This caught Max off-guard, and he turned his attention from the nursery window. He hurt, he knew that. And he felt completely out of control. “I’m…I’m not sure,” he admitted finally.

Give me that little kiss
Give me your hand

Nancy nodded her understanding. “Michael and Maria came in right behind me, they’re out in the waiting room. Why don’t you go with them to get some breakfast?”

Max started to protest, but Nancy continued. “You haven’t eaten since yesterday afternoon. I’ll stay with her while you’re gone, okay?”

He nodded silently, glancing into the nursery one last time. “Max?” He turned back to Nancy, who suddenly enveloped him in a hug. “You and Liz will get through this,” she murmured.

“I’ll be back soon,” Max said quietly, giving her a squeeze before continuing down the hall.

Michael and Maria rose from their chairs as soon as Max entered the waiting room. “Hey man.” Michael clapped a hand on his shoulder, and Maria looked at him hopefully. “How’s she doing?”

“Sleeping. She’s sleeping,” Max said, rubbing his hand over his eyes and slumping down into a chair.

Michael nodded and thrust a plastic bag at him. “Here. We went by the apartment and grabbed a change of clothes for you to get cleaned up, since we weren’t sure when you’d be able to leave,” he explained, knowing Max wouldn’t stray from Liz long enough to go home for anything.

“Thanks,” Max said sincerely before turning back to Maria. “Don’t you have classes this morning?”

She shrugged. “Skipped em. Isabel has a calc test this morning, but she’s coming by afterward. She left messages for yours and Liz’s professors last night to let them know you wouldn’t be in classes this week.”

Max sighed, leaning back in the chair. It never ceased to amaze him how great his friends and family were. “I…we really appreciate it.”

After Max had changed into fresh jeans and a T-shirt and they’d had a quick breakfast in the cafeteria, the three made their way back to the maternity ward. Isabel, who had since arrived, got to her feet and gave Max a big hug. “Mom and Dad send their love, and they want to stop by once you and Liz get home,” she informed him. “Um…and Mr. Parker just got here. He’s back with Mrs. Parker and Liz,” she added cautiously. “Just, you know, a head’s up. Have things been okay…?”

Max nodded. “We talked for a little while yesterday,” he confided. “We’re getting along okay. I…I think we’re both just concerned about Liz.”

*****

Liz opened her eyes slowly. A gentle voice humming filled her ears, and a cool hand was running across her forehead.

The humming stopped abruptly. “Lizzie?”

“Mom?” Her voice came out as a low croak, and she struggled to clear her throat. “Where…where’s Max?”

“Oh sweetie, he’s been here with you all night. He went to get some breakfast, he’ll be right back.”

Liz nodded slowly, her head feeling as if it weighed a thousand pounds. “I’m so dizzy…”

Jeff got to his feet, squeezing Liz’s hand. “I’ll go get someone, sweetie.” He returned moments later with the same nurse who had urged Max to take a break.

She quickly greeted Nancy. “Dr. Sinclair is in a delivery right now, but he’ll want to examine Liz now that she’s awake,” she explained before turning her attention to Liz. “Hi, Liz,” she said kindly, coming to sit beside the bed. “I’m Serena, and I’m the nurse on –“

Liz’s heart thudded in her ears, the dizziness threatening to overtake her. “Wh-what did you say?”

The young nurse looked at her curiously, tucking her blond hair behind her ear. “My name is Serena, and I’ll be on duty –“

Serena. Serena. Serena. “Oh my god,” Liz gasped, sitting up straight in the bed and clenching the covers in her fists.

“Liz? What’s the matter?” Nancy asked in alarm.

“You – oh my god. Max told me about you,” Liz said shrilly, pointing a shaking finger at Serena. “He told me about you, he told me when he came to me from the future –“

“Lizzie, what are you talking about?” Jeff asked, his forehead creased in concern at his daughter’s sudden panic.

Liz’s breath was coming in shallow gasps, the pounding in her head nearly blacking her out. “When he came to me – Max told me about it!” Her eyes were wide with fear as her tone grew higher. “Oh my god…he was right! I…I did what he said, but it didn’t work!” She grabbed her mother’s hand. “Tess got pregnant! And she went back, and we…we tried to find Max’s son, we did! We got into the convenience store but the spaceship disappeared! And…and Max said it was okay for us to be together. And I believed him…but he died!”

Liz’s voice broke then, and she dissolved into sobs. “Our baby died and it’s all my fault!” she cried. She was breaking…her heart, or her head…or both…it hurt…she couldn’t make it stop.

Nancy hugged her daughter’s sobbing frame to her and stared at Jeff and Serena in horror. “Oh my god, what is happening to her?”

Jeff shook his head, shocked by his daughter’s second outburst. “I’m getting Max.”

Serena watched as Jeff raced out of the room. “Mrs. Parker…I want Dr. Sinclair to see her as soon as possible, but I’m sure this is just a reaction to the sedatives…” She trailed off, knowing how weak her reassurances sounded. She’d never seen this kind of side effect in a patient, and she’d certainly never had a patient react that way to her mere presence.

Moments later, Max skidded into the room with Jeff at his heels. “Liz,” he said breathlessly, making his way around the bed and reaching for her.

I should be crying but I just can’t let it show

Liz pulled away from her mother’s arms, her eyes wide with tears. “Max, I’m sorry,” she sobbed as he pulled her to him. “I’m so sorry.”

I should be hoping but I can’t stop thinking

“No, love,” he soothed, crushing her to his chest and pressing his lips to the top of her head. “You have nothing to be sorry for.” He wanted desperately to reassure her, to stop her tears and her pain.

All the things we should have said
That were never said
All the things I should have done
That I never did

“It’s my fault…I didn’t listen…” she cried. After a time, her body succumbed to the exhaustion, the tears slowing into small gasps and eventually stopping completely as she fell back into a restless sleep.

All the things that you needed from me
All the things that you wanted for me

Max kept her cradled to him, murmuring words that couldn’t quite be made out into her hair as he stroked her back. He’d nearly forgotten there were others in the room until Nancy spoke up.

“Max, what was she talking about?” she asked, her eyes filled with confusion.

Feeling like a deer caught in the headlights, Max slowly looked up at Nancy and Jeff, who was staring at him with his arms crossed.

All the things I should have given
But I didn’t

His heart sank. Without meaning to or even realizing it, Liz had said far too much. He felt sick, knowing how much he had put her through, so much that she was keeping secrets from her family in order to protect him. He knew he could never blame her, but suddenly the situation was becoming more complicated than he could handle by himself.

Oh darling, make it go away

“…a side effect,” the nurse was saying. “I think she’s got some mild delirium right now, Mr. and Mrs. Parker. I’ll find the doctor right away.”

Max looked up at her gratefully, and Serena only nodded slightly and pressed her lips into a tight line as she hurried off in search of the doctor.

*****

Dr. Sinclair called Jeff and Nancy into his office for a meeting about Liz’s condition, but Max had refused to leave Liz’s side. Instead, he had spent the time with her in silence, pondering what he should say to them. There was no way Liz’s second outburst could be explained away by the sedatives. He needed to buy time until Liz woke up, until he could talk to the rest of the group, until they could figure out what to do.

I know you have a little life in you yet
I know you’ve got a lot of strength left

Stroking Liz’s hair idly, Max gazed down at her sleeping face. He marveled at how peaceful she looked now, and he wished they could both just sleep until all the pain went away. He shifted slightly, curled up beside her body in the hospital bed, not caring if it was against the rules. He needed to be close to her, and she to him.

“Max?”

He glanced toward the door, tightening his arms around Liz’s body as Serena slowly approached the bed. She pulled up a chair and sat, holding Max’s gaze evenly. “Do you want to tell me what happened earlier?”

“Excuse me?”

Serena sighed. “I think you know as well as I do that Liz isn’t insane. Or delirious, even. Why is she so afraid of me?”

Max was silent, recalling the night on Liz’s balcony nearly nine months before.

“Max…we have to talk,” Liz said breathlessly, pushing him off of her and pulling the blanket around her partially nude form.

“Okay…” Max didn’t argue, seeing the look of determination on her face.

“I…I don’t know if we should do this.”

Max nodded, his heart sinking as he tried to hide his hurt.

“Oh, Max…” Liz sighed, crumbling at his crestfallen face. “It’s not that I don’t want to. I just…I’m afraid of what might happen.”

He understood. And after what had happened with Tess, he was shocked he was even being given a second chance.

“This isn’t about Tess,” Liz continued quietly, realizing the connection was coursing openly between them. “Well…actually, it is.” She paused, swallowing the bitter taste in her mouth. “It’s about your…your destiny, Max.”

“Which is you,” Max said earnestly, reaching up to caress her cheek. “It’s always been you, Liz.”

Liz could feel her resolve quickly weakening as her body melted at his touch. “Max, you don’t understand,” she whispered. “There’s so much you don’t know…”

Max’s hand froze, and he stared at her in puzzlement from the barrage of images he was receiving. “What, love?”

Clenching her eyes shut, Liz sighed. Her heart, her mind, her body…all were aching to be with Max. She needed to be honest with him.

That night, under the dark January sky, in the very place it had happened, Liz told Max all the details about her visit from his future self. Together, they wept for what they had almost lost…and then for the future. They held one another and cried tears of hope for their faith in one another, faith in their love, and the faith to overcome whatever obstacle life threw them – so long as they were together. And that night, bathed in the soft glow of the winter stars, their love was cemented.

I know you have a little life in you yet
I know you have a lot of strength left

Max broke away from his thoughts, returning his attention to Serena. “I’m sorry about that. It’s complicated, but…it’s nothing personal.”

Serena nodded shortly. “I want to be honest with you,” she said, leaning forward. “I’ll tell you the same thing the doctor is telling her parents right now. They’ve never seen anyone have a reaction like that to the drugs. And we can’t give her anything else, because the stress is effecting her blood pressure.”

“What can I do?” Max asked quietly.

“Max, I’m not going to lie to you. You know this is going to be a struggle for both of you to accept, but it’s something to start working through now. Miscarriages can’t be ignored. You both need to talk about it, because the grief will do more damage if it’s bottled up.”

He nodded, his jaw clenching and unclenching fiercely as he rubbed Liz’s back. The bleak reality of the situation was finally setting in for him, but Liz hadn’t even had the time to start yet. He sighed. It was a long road ahead.

Oh, darling make it go away
Just make it go away now


*lyrics by Kate Bush, This Woman's Work

20

“Hi Liz.”

Liz sat crosslegged in the middle of the hospital bed, staring out the window, and glanced up as Serena stepped into the room. “Hi.”

“Heading home today, huh?”

Liz nodded. “Max is bringing the car around.”

Serena smiled, glancing at Liz’s engagement ring glittering in the late morning sun. “Have you set a date yet?”

“For the wedding?” Liz swallowed hard. “Um…not - not really,” she lied.

“Well, no need to rush,” Serena shrugged.

Not anymore, Liz said to herself. She folded her arms around her waist. She felt so…empty.

Serena watched this, her green eyes clouding in concern. “Liz, it’s okay to talk about how you’re feeling,” she said gently. “You heard Dr. Sinclair. You don’t have to go through this alone. You have parents that love you, and the friends that came to visit you, and Max…Liz, don’t shut them out.”

“I should go,” Liz said quietly, reaching for her purse and getting to her feet just as Max appeared in the doorway. “Hi Serena. Liz, are you ready?”

Liz nodded, allowing Max to steer her toward the door with his arm around her. He smiled a ghost of a smile at the young nurse. “Um…thanks,” he said finally, not really sure what words he was looking for.

Serena returned the wan smile. “Take care.”

Tightening his grip around Liz as they walked down the hall, Max pressed a kiss to the top of her head. “Let’s go home.”

*****

Not surprisingly, Isabel, Michael, Maria, and Kyle were waiting in the living room when they arrived at the apartment.

“Petunia.” Maria jumped to her feet to envelop her best friend in a hug.

Liz returned it weakly, suddenly overwhelmed by the presence of her friends. “I…I’m going to go lie down,” she mumbled, shrugging out of Maria’s embrace.

Max winced inwardly, wishing he’d asked their friends to wait before coming over. “I’ll help you get settled,” he said lamely, following her back to the bedroom.

“Why are they here, Max?” she asked wearily, pulling off her shoes and sinking onto the bed. “I just want to sleep, and I have so much work to catch up on as it is…”

“I’m sorry, love,” he apologized. “I…I told them it was an emergency. We’ve got a lot to figure out, and we don’t have much time. Your parents are asking questions, and if other people hear about it-“

“I know,” Liz sighed, leaning her head on his shoulder. She knew it was because of her, because of what she’d said several days before. She’d nearly given it all away…

“Just get some sleep,” Max murmured, guiding her onto her back and pulling a thin blanket over her body.

Liz gazed up at him, her lower lip beginning to tremble. “Max? Will you stay with me for a few minutes?” she whispered.

“Oh, love.” Max’s heart crumbled, and he swung his legs up onto the bed so he could curl up beside her. Liz let her eyes close as his hand smoothed the hair off her forehead, lulled into an exhausted slumber by his soothing touch.

When he was sure she was asleep, Max slipped out of their bedroom and back to the living room. His friends were talking quietly, but abruptly stopped when he sat down.

“How’s she doing?” Kyle asked, his face drawn.

“How the hell do you think she is?” Michael retorted, ignoring Kyle’s glare.

“Okay, not right now,” Isabel interrupted in frustration. “Max, tell us what’s been going on. You wouldn’t tell us anything at the hospital.”

Max took a deep breath. “Liz’s parents know some things.”

“Can’t it all just be blamed on the medication, as a side effect?” Kyle spoke up again.

“They’re already too suspicious,” Max explained, anxiously running his hand through his hair. “She…she got scared when she found out the nurse’s name was Serena, and it sparked all the memories from when my future self came to her.”

“Oh my god,” Kyle groaned. He’d always known that something incredibly strange had been going on, but when Liz finally came clean with them a few months ago as to why she’d staged them sleeping together, he knew what a toll it had taken on her. “She must have freaked out.”

Max nodded shortly. “I don’t know exactly what she said, and she…she barely remembers it happening,” he continued, swallowing hard.

The phone in the kitchen jangled then, and he hurried to answer it before it could wake Liz.

Isabel’s face had grown pale, and she glanced around at her friends. “This is bad, guys,” she whispered.

“No kidding, Isabel,” Michael said gruffly, getting to his feet and heading toward the bathroom, passing Max on his way.

“Hello?” Max was saying into the phone.

“Max, this is your father.”

“Hi Dad,” Max said, forcing casualness.

“I want to know what the hell is going on,” Phillip demanded without preamble.

Max’s heart dropped to his feet. “Going on…with what?” he asked. “We – we just got home, Dad.”

“What the hell is this about you getting that Tess Harding girl pregnant?” he hissed. “Is it true? Hell, Liz wouldn’t just come up with something like that in that state. For god sake, Max, how could you not tell us? Where is she now?”

“Dad-“

“Jeff Parker called me up this morning. He’s furious, Max, and he asked me what I knew about it. And you know what I had to tell him?” Phillip paused for a beat. “Nothing. Because I don’t know my own son, and I haven’t for over a year. This is going too far, Max.”

“Maxwell!” Michael’s voice came from down the hall. “Get your ass in here now!”

Max gripped the countertop, bombarded by the attacks. “Dad, I’ve gotta go.”

“This isn’t over, Max,” Phillip continued, his voice frighteningly low.

“Maxwell!”

Without giving it a second though, Max slammed the phone down and rushed to find Michael.

The light in the bathroom was on, and Liz sat huddled in a ball on the floor. Michael was crouched before her, trying unsuccessfully to calm her. Max swept to her side, taking her into his arms and silently carrying her out of the bathroom.

Michael stared after them for a moment, then quickly did his business and returned to the living room.

“What happened?” Isabel asked anxiously.

“Liz was in the bathroom, like, hyperventilating,” he sighed, sinking onto the couch beside Maria.

“Oh god, poor Lizzie.” Maria grabbed Michael’s hand. “That’s where it happened, it…it probably all hit her again.”

A ringing sounded from Isabel’s purse, and she reached in to retrieve her cell phone. “Hello? Oh hi, honey.” There was a pause. “What? Oh my god…no…no, you’re right, Jesse, don’t say anything. Just stay out of it, okay? We’ll talk about it tonight. Okay…I love you too.”

She tossed the phone back into her bag, closing her eyes and leaning back into the chair. “Damn it. Jesse said my dad is freaking out over at the office. They know something.” Isabel opened her eyes and looked at her friends seriously. “And knowing my father, he’s not going to let this go.”

Max had carried Liz back to their bedroom, sitting on the bed and cradling her in his arms. He lowered his head to press a soft kiss to her temple. “What happened, love? Talk to me.”

Liz shook her head emphatically, burying her face in his chest. “I shouldn’t have gotten up,” she whispered. “I just want to sleep.”

Max rubbed her back soothingly, and after a time figured she’d fallen asleep.

“Max, who was on the phone?” Liz asked suddenly, raising her head and looking up at him.

“Don’t worry about it,” he whispered, trailing his fingers through her dark hair. Liz didn’t respond, and he was relieved she didn’t push the issue. It was the last thing she needed right now.

*****

Max soon asked their friends to leave, promising to call later when he’d be able to focus. He and Liz needed time alone to talk, Max hoped. But seeing Liz finally sleeping so soundly changed his mind, and he let her rest.

And instead, he lay on the bed beside her, staring. Out the window, at his feet, at Liz herself. Thinking. Realizing that, this time, there might not be a way to hide. The evening shadows were beginning to set in across the bedroom when Liz stirred next to him.

“Hey.” Max rolled over onto his side, facing her. He reached out and touched her cheek. “How are you feeling?”

Liz yawned. “I’m…not sure,” she said finally. Max heart constricted at the confusion in her voice, and he moved closer to Liz to hold her.

To his horror, Liz’s body stiffened at the contact. Max shrank back, hurt, but before he could say anything, the doorbell buzzed. “I’ll just…I’ll go get that,” he stumbled, quickly getting to his feet.

Max unlatched and opened the front door, and his stomach tightened. “Hi Mrs. Parker…Mr. Parker.”

“Hi Max.” Nancy held a small casserole dish. “We wanted to bring by some supper.”

“Thanks,” he managed.

Jeff pushed past Max into the apartment. “Where’s Liz?”

“She’s in bed resting,” Max said, watching as Jeff crossed his arms over his chest.

“Well, I’ll just go put this into the oven so it’ll stay warm,” Nancy offered, following her husband inside.

“Thanks,” Max said distractedly, holding Jeff’s stare.

“Alright, Max. I don’t know what the hell it is you think you’re doing, but you’d better start talking.”

“Jeff, don’t start,” Nancy scolded. “Not now.”

“Why not now?” Jeff demanded. “They’ve been hiding for a year, as if they thought that if we didn’t talk about it we’d forget.” He stepped a little closer to Max. “We didn’t.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Max said quietly.

“The hell you don’t!” Jeff exploded. “You got another girl pregnant and…and get involved with drugs and you still think you can have my daughter? She went to prison because of you, Max Evans!”

“Dad, stop it.” Liz appeared in the living room doorway, staring at her father and fiancé. “Don’t attack Max.”

“Lizzie.” Jeff rushed to his daughter and took her by the shoulders. “How could you still be involving yourself with him? You are a smart girl, and this has been destroying your life!”

“Jeffrey, stop,” Nancy pleaded

Still gripping Liz by the arms, Jeff’s gaze softened a bit. “Lizzie, listen. I know what you’ve been through-“

“You know what I’ve been through?” Liz repeated, her eyes welling with tears as she tore from his grip. “You know what I’ve been through? You don’t have any idea!” Her body shuddered with anger, and she yanked away when Max reached for her. “Neither do you!” she cried, her head spinning with frustration and pain. She sank to her knees, the tears coming fast.

Max dropped down beside her, wanting desperately to comfort her. But she was right. He didn’t know what she’d been through…and not just in losing their son.

“I am not doing this right now,” Liz continued fiercely, her attention now solely on her father as she got to her feet. “I know you want to do what’s best for me, but this is just not. You…storming into our home is not acceptable, Dad!” She swiped angrily at her tears. “You need to leave.”

Jeff’s eyes widened. “Lizzie-“

“Jeff, she’s right,” Nancy interrupted quietly. “This is not the time. She just got home-“

“So we’re just letting this go again, I understand.” Jeff threw his hands up in defeat. “You want us out? We’re leaving.” He turned and stormed out of the apartment.

Nancy stared after her husband wearily, and then turned to her equally headstrong daughter. “I love you, Lizzie,” she said, embracing her daughter tightly. “I…I’ll call tomorrow.”

Liz nodded wordlessly as she watched her mother follow after her father, and then abruptly turned and headed back to the bedroom.

And Max stood frozen in the living room, not entirely sure what had just happened or what to do with himself. After a minute he shook himself from his daze and made his way down the hall.

Liz was back in bed, curled in the fetal position with the blanket pulled up to her chin. She looked weak, weary…nothing like the person who spouted such fierce anger only minutes before.

“Liz.” He spoke her name quietly, his heart sinking when she closed her eyes at the sound of his voice.

“Let me sleep, Max,” she said flatly. It was as if the intense emotion had zapped her body of all energy, but that did nothing to ease the sting of being pushed away.

“Baby…you need to eat. Let me bring you something,” he began cautiously. They could talk…

“Let me sleep,” she repeated, rolling over so that she was facing the window. Turning away from him.

21

“So you guys are actually going to the Evans’ tonight?”

Liz glanced up at Kyle from where she stood cleaning the shake machine. “It’s Isabel’s birthday. We don’t have much of a choice.”

“You always have a choice, Liz,” Kyle said in exasperation.

She sighed and leaned across the counter, swiping a fry from his plate. “Max thinks we should try to act as normal as possible so we avoid more suspicion. And that means going to his parents’ house for cake.”

Kyle snorted. “What a bunch of crap. Liz, he’s been avoiding his dad for two weeks.”

“Yes, Kyle, I realize that.” Liz sighed again in frustration. “And I, once again, have been alienating my parents.” She paused. “No pun intended, so just don’t even say it.”

But Kyle’s attention had turned to the front door of the Crashdown. “Damn,” he drawled. “Seriously hot nurse, nine o’clock.”

Liz started to comment on Kyle’s easily distracted libido, but then her eyes widened. “What is she doing here?” she muttered.

“Whoa, whoa, whoa, you know her?” he demanded. “Why must you keep such secrets from Kyle?”

“That’s Serena.”

“Oh.” Kyle paused. “Ohhh. Well hey, not that I mind, but what’s she doing here?”

“That’s a good question.” Liz squared her shoulders. “Excuse me, Kyle.”

Liz marched across the café, but was intercepted by Heather. “Liz, I got it. It’s my section.”

“Oh…I – I know her,” she explained to the other waitress.

Heather shrugged. “Okay, well, whatever.”

“Thanks. Um, can you ask Michael to step it up on table three’s order?” Liz continued on to the booth where Serena sat, flipping through a menu. “Can I help you?” she asked pointedly.

Serena looked up with a kind smile. “Liz, hi.”

“I didn’t realize it was routine for a nurse to check back with a patient after two weeks,” Liz continued dryly.

“I – no, that’s not what this is,” Serena said quickly. “I’m actually a big fan of the, uh, Nebula Salad.”

“Mm-hmm. It’s funny, I’ve never seen you here before.”

“Well, you know, I try to stop by after my shift when I have a chance.” Serena paused. “So how long have you been back at work?”

“About a week,” Liz said, her patience wearing thin. “I came back as soon as I got caught up in my classes. Listen, Serena,” she continued. “I appreciate your concern, but the last thing I need is one more person hovering over me-”

“Liz, that’s not what I’m trying to do,” Serena amended. “And…I’m glad you’re doing well.”

“Thank you,” Liz said shortly. “So a Nebula Salad? Anything else I can get for you?”

Serena tucked her blond hair behind her ear. “Just an iced tea. Thanks, Liz.”

Liz forced a smile and made her way back across the café to place the order.

“What did you say to her?” Kyle hissed, leaning over the counter.

“That I don’t need her spying on me.”

“So you were a bitch to her.” Kyle sighed, and then brightened. “Maybe I should, you know, go over there and make sure she’s okay-“

“No!” Liz said quickly. “Kyle, she’s suspicious. That’s why she’s here. I don’t want her asking a lot of questions.”

He nodded in defeat. “Liz, isn’t it possible that she’s just trying to be friendly? Or even more crazy, that she’s just hungry?"

“I don’t know,” she mused quietly. “But we…we can’t be too careful. Enough people are suspicious as it is.”

*****

“Liz? Are you almost ready?” Max asked gently, leaning against the doorframe of their bedroom.

Liz glanced up at him from her vanity, pausing midsweep with her makeup brush. “Yeah,” she said shortly.

“Listen, I know you don’t really want to go tonight-“

“No, Max, I don’t,” Liz interrupted coolly. “I don’t want to go to your parents’ house to be interrogated by your dad. As a matter of fact, I don’t want to go anywhere tonight. But, you know, we don’t always get what we want.”

Max stood, silenced by Liz’s harsh words, as she returned her halfhearted attention to the vanity. He knew better than to explain again why it was so important they go tonight, that it would be less suspicious that way, that his mother already had Phillip’s vow that he wouldn’t bring up anything that might upset Liz…but it was clearly too late for that anyway.

The last two weeks Max had become increasingly familiar with a side of Liz he’d never seen before. She was cold, distant, barely allowing him to touch her. She rarely left the apartment with the exception of classes and work, and spent the rest of her time immersed in schoolwork or sleeping.

But the worst part was their lack of connection. Liz just wouldn’t have any part of it. He recalled the night, two days after she’d come home, when he’d tried.

“I’m turning out the light,” Liz informed Max, stepping around him as he completed a set of pushups on the bedroom floor. “I’ve got to be up at seven.”

Max got to his feet, stretching his arms over his head and behind his back. “Liz, you’re not going to class tomorrow, are you?”

“Yeah, Max, I am,” Liz responded calmly, pulling back the covers and climbing into bed.

Max watched her, his eyes filled with concern. “But you just got home-“

“So am I supposed to just sit around here all day?” she responded. “The doctor said I can go back whenever I feel ready. And I’m ready.”

“Liz.” Max slowly approached the bed, sitting beside her at the edge. “I just don’t want you to rush back into-“

“Please don’t start,” Liz warned in exhaustion. “The sooner things get back to normal, the better. Whatever that means,” she muttered under her breath.

Max had frozen then, stung by her words, and Liz regretted it as soon as she said it. “Max, I didn’t mean-“

“It’s okay,” he said quietly.

Liz looked at him as if to say something else, but fell silent again. She leaned over to the lamp on her bedside table. “’Night.”

“Liz, wait.” Max reached out and touched her arm, causing her to pull back slightly.

“What?” she whispered, not quite able to meet his eyes.

“Just…let me…” He trailed off, bringing his hands up to frame her face.

For a split second Liz’s weary eyes welcomed him, but then she shrugged away. “Don’t.”

“Why?” he asked mournfully. Why wouldn’t she let him connect with her?

“I…I just need time,” she stammered. “I need to sleep, Max.”

She looked so exhausted at that moment that Max couldn’t argue. “Okay,” he agreed quietly.

Since that night, any attempt Max made at so much as an embrace had been quickly shrugged off. It was her way of coping, he reminded himself. Dr. Sinclair had said it was normal, especially with her hormone levels readjusting. She’d just been through a traumatic loss, he scolded himself. Of course she shouldn’t be expected to bounce right back.

But it was the lack of connection, the very essence of their relationship, that was slowly killing him.

*****

Silently, Max and Liz made their way up to the Evans’ front walk side by side. As they reached the front door, Max reached over and squeezed her hand instinctively.

Liz glanced down at their joined hands, and after a moment Max felt her fingers wrap lightly around his. This encouraged him, so much that he actually managed a smile when his mother opened the door.

“Hi Mom,” he said, leaning down to kiss her cheek. He was so grateful to her, especially over the past couple of weeks. She hadn’t brought up the incident at the hospital once, except to ask how Liz was doing, and she deferred Phillip from talking about it whenever he broached the subject. Diane couldn’t bear to see her son put through more anguish than he was already in, especially at the hands of his father.

“I’m so glad you both came,” Diane smiled, giving them each a warm hug before ushering them into the house. “Isabel and Jesse just got back from dinner, and I’m about to light the candles on the cake.”

“You mean Iz didn’t insist on opening presents first?” Max asked dryly.

“Max, your sister is twenty years old,” Diane reminded, then rolled her eyes. “Jesse let her open one at home.”

They entered the dining room, and Max immediately felt a chill in the air. His sister and brother-in-law greeted them warmly, but his father gazed at them with an unreadable expression.

“Dad.”

“Max. Liz.” Phillip forced a tight-lipped smile. “Sit, sit, we don’t want to keep the birthday girl waiting.”

“Thanks Daddy,” Isabel said lightly, smiling at her father and rubbing her hands together. “Can’t keep those presents waiting, either.”

Diane chuckled and turned toward the kitchen. “I’ll be right back.”

Liz sat down between Max and Jesse uncomfortably, folding her hands over her crossed legs. She jumped slightly when she felt something brush against her leg, but then noticed Max looking at her intently. His hand rested on her knee comfortingly.

She swallowed hard and gave Max a small smile as Diane returned with a bright birthday cake. “Happy birthday to you…” she began, setting the cake before her daughter.

The others joined in, and Isabel beamed at them. She fairly glowed with happiness, illuminated in the light of the birthday candles.

“Make a wish, honey,” Diane encouraged.

Isabel exchanged a glance with Jesse and her smile deepened before she leaned over and blew out the candles. Jesse rested his arm over her shoulders, giving her a peck on the cheek.

“I’m so glad you guys came,” Isabel remarked as she cut and passed out slices of chocolate cake. “It wouldn’t feel like my birthday without my brother and future sister-in-law.”

Max smiled, and Liz took up a sudden interest in the small frosting flowers decorating her slice of cake.

After an uneventful dessert, Phillip excused himself to his study and Isabel went to help Diane with the dishes in the kitchen.

Jesse leaned over, resting his hand on Liz’s shoulder. “How’re you doing?” he asked gently.

“I’m fine,” Liz answered politely.

“How’s my dad been at work lately?” Max asked, his voice low as he leaned over Liz.

“The last week has been quiet,” Jesse admitted. “He’s got a new case out of Las Cruces that’s been keeping him pretty busy, so I think things have settled down a little.”

Max sighed with relief, but deep down he knew it couldn’t possibly be that simple. Still, he said, “Jesse, thanks, man. For everything.”

“Don’t mention it,” Jesse replied. “I can only imagine how hard this has been for you.”

Liz pushed her chair back, tired of the conversation. “I’m going to get some air real quick,” she said. “I’ll be right back.” She got up before either one could say anything.

Slipping out the back door into the cool October night, Liz pulled her sweater tighter around herself. She glanced over her shoulder, half expecting to see Max following her. But he wasn’t. Good. She needed a few minutes to herself. Wandering across the patio and down into the yard, she gazed up into the dark sky at the stars twinkling overhead.

“Isn’t it beautiful tonight?”

Liz turned toward the bench that sat in the Evans’ flower garden, suddenly noticing Isabel sitting by herself. “Mm-hmm,” she said quietly, making her way over and sitting down beside her. “What are you doing out here, Iz?”

“Just thinking.” Isabel continued to gaze up into the sky, her face bathed in the soft glow of the stars. “You?”

“Same.” Liz rubbed her hands together and looked at Isabel intently. “Are you okay?”

A faint trace of a smile crossed Isabel’s face, and she finally turned to Liz with tears glimmering in her eyes. “Remember my eighteenth birthday?”

Grinning, Liz rolled her eyes. “How could I forget the party at the Crashdown? Especially when-“

“Alex came out and started dancing,” Isabel finished, her voice catching in her throat despite the smile that spread over her face.

Liz nodded knowingly. “Yeah,” she said softly. “I really wish I’d been there, but I hear about it so much that it almost feels like I was. Every time I hear that song ‘Ride the Train’ I think of him.”

Isabel burst out laughing, covering her mouth with her hand as the two girls giggled at the memory of Alex. Tall, lanky Alex, stripping down from his police officer top to a white wifebeater, dancing and prancing around as if he’d lost it completely. “Hey, if you’ve got it, flaunt it,” he’d shrugged later.

Stopping abruptly, Isabel closed her eyes and a single tear made its way down her cheek. “A lot of things make me think of him.”

“Me too,” Liz whispered, putting her arm across Isabel’s shoulders and pulling her closer. “I can’t believe that was two years ago,” she muttered incredulously.

Isabel shook her head. “So much has changed since then,” she sighed. “But…but sometimes it feels like it was just yesterday, you know?”

“I know,” Liz sympathized, again gazing up into the night.

“I never stopped caring about him, Liz. I didn’t,” Isabel continued after a few moments. “I…I know it might have seemed that way…”

“Hey…” Liz leaned her head against Isabel’s. “I know you didn’t. You did the only thing you could do. You kept living, Isabel. And I know Alex understands that.”

Isabel nodded slowly, sniffling. “He still comes to me sometimes, in my dreams. Funny, isn’t it? That now he can dreamwalk me?”

Liz smiled, squeezing Isabel’s hand as they watched a shooting star etch across the dark sky. “What does he say?” she asked quietly. It felt so good to be talking about their friend…no one had forgotten him, of course, but sometimes in the craziness of life, they didn’t take as much time as they should have to just talk about him. Remember him.

“He’s proud of us. Proud of you, Liz. For keeping it together, figuring out the truth. He’s not angry, not anymore.” She paused, turning to Liz seriously. “He just wants us all to be okay.”

Blinking back tears, Liz nodded. “That’s just like Alex, huh?”

Now Isabel squeezed her hand. “Things will be okay, Liz. Everything will.” She paused, hoping she hadn’t said too much. According to Max, Liz was still very fragile. You wouldn’t know it, though, Isabel thought. Not from the surface. From the surface, Liz was eager to move on, to regain some semblance of control over her life. She knew how that felt. But she also knew that, on the inside, things weren’t quite as stable as they seemed.

Liz nodded again, silent as she gazed at the stars.

Isabel stretched her legs out in front of her, glancing around the garden. “Hey, I’ve been meaning to get in touch with the florist. I want her to come out here to get an idea of what she’s working with when she starts the floral arrangements.”

Liz’s gaze snapped back to Isabel, and her eyes widened slightly. “Um, no. Iz, don’t worry about it, okay?”

“Hey, it’s okay, Liz. We’re only looking at eight and a half more weeks-“

“No, Isabel.” Liz paused, her stomach clenching anxiously. “Don’t call anyone.”

Isabel stared at her in puzzlement. “But Liz, the wedding-“

“There isn’t going to be a wedding,” Liz said flatly.

*****

Isabel stepped silently into her father’s study, not wanting to interrupt his phone call. Phillip had his back to her and was speaking into the phone in an angry, hushed tone.

“I don’t care if you have to go back three times,” he hissed. “There’s something down there that he was hiding, and I’ve been – no, you don’t understand!” The chair whirled around, and he found himself face to face with Isabel. “Don, I’ll call you back.”
“Um…Jesse and I are leaving now, Dad,” she said quietly.

Phillip got to his feet tiredly. “I’m sorry I missed your gifts, Izzy,” he sighed. “I had phone calls to make regarding the case, and-“

“It’s okay, Dad,” Isabel interrupted. “I’m married to an attorney now, I know how it goes.”

“Happy birthday, sweetheart,” Phillip continued, giving his daughter a big hug.

Isabel returned the embrace, glancing over her father’s shoulder at his cluttered desk. Something caught her eye. A file poked out from beneath a stack of paperwork. One word was printed boldly along the tab.

LANGLEY

Isabel gasped, her heart nearly skipping a beat. She tried to calm herself as he father pulled away and held her out at arm’s length.

“What’s the matter, Isabel?”

Her eyes widened. “Oh. Oh! With, ah, with all this birthday excitement I totally forgot about my, uh, Ethics test tomorrow.”

Phillip arched an eyebrow curiously. “I thought you didn’t take Ethics until next semester.”

Isabel chuckled nervously. “You know what, Dad, you’re right. It must be in another class. Wow, I’ve really got a lot of studying to do, huh?” She leaned up and kissed his cheek. “I love you, Dad. We’ll see you soon.”

And with that she hurried from the study. She needed to talk to Max right away.

*****

"I thought that went alright,” Max offered, unlocking the apartment door and letting Liz in before following after.

Liz nodded, having been silent the entire drive home. “Your dad didn’t have much to say.”

Max rubbed the back of his neck. “I know. I want to believe that he’s too involved in his cases to get concerned about it, but it still worries me, you know?”

“That he’ll start investigating again,” Liz said softly, her gaze understanding.

You’re supposed to look into my eyes
Forever and all time

“Yeah.” Max paused, taking a step closer to Liz and holding her gaze. He looked into her eyes intently, and for the first time in almost two weeks, she made full and direct eye contact with him. His eyes caressed hers, taking in the exhaustion and the pain and the supreme strength that emanated from their dark depths. But as he moved to take another step toward her, she tore her eyes from his.

You stopped loving me that way

“I have to go study,” she said hastily, turning and disappearing down the hall.

Max sighed heavily, watching as she walked away from him. How long would this go on? How long would she push him away? How long would it take for her to realize that they wouldn’t find their balance if she didn’t let him in?

And I never thought that I
I would ever have to cry out

He trudged down the hall, into their bedroom. Liz had her back to the door, pulling her blouse over her head and exposing her bare skin. Max longed to touch her. Not in an overtly sexual manner, but just to have the feeling of her warm, soft skin beneath his hand. He wanted to wrap his arms around her, pull her small frame to his, and just hold her. Hold her until she succumbed to his touch and allowed him to connect with her.

That you and I
We belong together again

Max silently moved toward her, reaching one tentative hand out and touching her shoulder.

Liz jumped and whirled around. “Max.” She quickly pulled a nightgown over her head and grabbed her sociology book from the dresser, once again leaving Max to stare after her.

I think I’m feeling lonely again

“What are you reading about?” he asked finally, unbuttoning his shirt and tossing it into the hamper.

“Welfare,” she said, not offering anything more.

“Ah.” Max moved to sit on his side of the bed, pulling off his shoes and socks. He reached for his own backpack on the floor, pulling out his planner to check the date of his own upcoming exam. Flipping through it, a large red circle caught his eye. December twenty-eighth.

“Wow,” he mused quietly. “We’ve got a lot to do, don’t we?”

“For what?” Liz asked, tapping the end of her highlighter against her lips.

“Our wedding,” he said, showing her the circled date in the planner. “Your dress isn’t finished yet, and we still have to get measured for tuxes, and-“ he trailed off when Liz closed her eyes and leaned back against the headboard.

“Max, I don’t want to talk about this right now.” Liz swallowed hard and turned back to her textbook.

He reached over and touched her shoulder. “Hey, we’ve still got time…”

“Max.” Liz’s voice was harsh. “Not now.”

The phone rang then, but Max ignored it. “I’m just saying –“

“Max, we can’t get married!” Liz burst out suddenly.

He stared at her in confusion. “We can’t?”

“No!” Liz tossed her book aside and jumped to her feet. “Max, don’t you see? You can’t marry me!”

“Why not?” he asked quietly.

“Because you’re doing it for the wrong reason!” Liz continued, wringing her hands anxiously.

“Liz, I’m doing it because I love you-“

“Stop!” Liz cut him off. “Our baby died, Max! You’re not obligated to marry me anymore, don’t you understand that?”

Max’s eyes widened in pure shock. “You think that’s why I wanted to marry you? Because I was obligated?”

Liz rubbed her hands over her face. “I don’t know!” She cried, her voice catching. “I-I don’t know. I don’t know anything anymore!”

Max’s heart crumbled helplessly as he watched his Liz, his world, dissolve into tears before him. “Liz, you don’t know what you’re saying,” he tried desperately

Liz’s eyes flew up to meet his. “I know exactly what I’m saying!” The phone rang again, and Liz pressed her hand to her forehead. “Will you answer that?”

Max swallowed hard, reaching a shaking hand for the phone. “Hello?” he choked out.

“Max, it’s Isabel.”

“I can’t talk right now,” Max managed, replacing the receiver without any thought and turning back toward Liz.

“Max, listen to me,” she continued, much calmer now. “I’m not saying you don’t love me, or that I don’t love you.” She took a deep breath and slowly sank down onto the bed. “That’s not what this is about. It’s…Max, I’m not ready,” she whispered, her eyes filling with tears.

Feeling his own tears prickling at the back of his eyes, he sat quietly for a moment. How could he possibly respond to that? He flinched just slightly when he felt Liz’s hand rest atop his. “Max.”

“I do love you,” he murmured, staring down at their hands as he entwined their fingers. “More than anything, Liz.” Max took a deep breath. “And that’s why I would never…never force you into anything.” Their eyes met then, two pairs of shimmering dark pools that reflected more anguish – and love – than many would know in a lifetime. “I want to be your husband, Liz. And I want you to be my wife. As soon as you’re ready.”

Liz nodded, a single tear spilling onto her cheek. She closed her eyes as she felt Max’s thumb brush it away, and whispered, “I love you.”

Max caressed her cheek for a moment and then slowly moved his hand away to pull back the covers. Liz crawled under them, exhausted, and Max reached over to turn out the light. He returned to Liz’s side, surprised when she moved a little closer to him, and within minutes she had fallen asleep.

But it was another restless slumber, and Max’s eyes never left her. He gingerly reached out and touched her arm.

I feel you tossing and turning
I know there are walls we have to climb

Satisfied that he was making some kind of contact with his Liz, Max closed his eyes and waited for sleep to claim him.

I sit here waiting and yearning
Cause I know we can get by

It went unnoticed in both exhausted states of mind, but it was only then, when he was in contact with her, that Liz's tense form finally relaxed.




*lyrics by Hanson, Lonely Again

22

Max shifted his weight from foot to foot outside Isabel and Jesse’s apartment, waiting for his sister to come to the door and wondering what was so urgent that Isabel insisted on talking to him as soon as his last class was done.

“Max.” The door swung open and Isabel ushered him inside.

He shrugged out of his jacket and said, “Sorry about last night. Liz and I…we were talking, and I didn’t-“

“I understand,” Isabel replied. “Is everything…okay?” She didn’t want to let on that Liz had already told her very briefly about her plan to postpone the wedding.

“We called off the wedding,” Max sighed.

“Oh my god,” Isabel feigned surprise. “What happened?”

“We just…we don’t want to rush it, you know?” Max ran an anxious hand through his hair.

Isabel nodded her understanding. “It should be a happy day, Max. You should be able to enjoy it, and right now it might be too much.”

Max wandered into the family room and slumped onto the sofa. “So what is it you needed to talk to me about?”

“I hate to do this right now, Max,” Isabel began, sitting down beside her brother and knotting her fingers nervously. “But you need to know…I think Dad is investigating you again.”

Cursing under his breath, Max braced his elbows on his knees and buried his face in his hands. “How do you know?” he asked, his voice muffled.

“I was in his study last night, and he was on the phone. I didn’t hear much of the conversation, but…it sounded suspicious,” she sighed. “And…there was a file.”

“A file?” Max glanced up at his sister, who nodded.

“On Langley,” she said quietly.

“I don’t believe this,” he muttered, rubbing his hands over his face in frustration. “How does he even know about Langley?”

Isabel sighed. “I don’t know, Max. He must have tracked down some details from when you went to LA last fall.”

“Goddamnit.” He got to his feet and began pacing the room anxiously. “I knew he would do this again, Iz. I thought we were done with this a year ago.”

“Somehow I doubted that,” Isabel admitted. “He’s probably been digging up information all along.”

Max stopped. “But I haven’t done anything since we followed you to La Jolla. And that was almost a year ago. I’ve been here, living a normal life. He hasn’t had any reason to be suspicious.”

“Max, it’s not like he was going to just forget everything that happened,” Isabel argued. “I know how important it was to you, but looking for your son really drew a lot of attention to yourself.”

“I know that,” he defended himself. “God, Iz, that’s the reason I stopped. I couldn’t keep putting you and Michael in danger, and I couldn’t keep hurting Liz.”

“Okay.” Isabel got to her feet and rested a soothing hand on her brother’s arm. “The point is, we need to focus on right now.”

“Izzy, sweetheart, I’m home!” Jesse’s voice called from the front hall. “How are you feeling?”

“I’m fine!” Isabel said quickly. “We’re in here, honey.”

“Max, hey, man,” Jesse greeted, coming into the family room. He gave Isabel a kiss and grinned at her. “I missed you.”

“Me too,” she said with a smile. “Jesse, I was just telling Max about what I saw last night.”

Jesse nodded seriously. “I’m sorry, Max, I honestly had no idea he was still keeping tabs on you. He never gave any indication over at the office. Listen,” he continued. “Can you afford to lay low for a while? I might be able to find out details on whatever it is he’s trying to dig up.”

“Jesse, no,” Isabel argued anxiously. “I don’t want you risking your job.”

Jesse smiled reassuringly. “Iz. I won’t do anything stupid. This effects all of us. I want to keep you safe.”

*****

“I can’t believe we’re doing this.”

“Isabel, we’d get through a lot more of this stuff if you’d shut up and help us look,” Michael muttered, glancing up from the stack of papers he was shuffling through.

Sighing, Isabel waved her hand over the file cabinet and popped it open. “Can’t you give Jesse more than one day over at the office? This is completely illegal.”

Max eyed his sister from across the study. “Do you have any other suggestions?”

“It’s just that a lot of this is confidential information.”

“Iz, I know it makes you uncomfortable, but I don’t see what other choice we have,” Max continued. “If Dad’s investigating again, we need to know so we can be one step ahead.”

Isabel slid the file cabinet closed. “Right, I know. Look, I didn’t find anything in here.”

“Nothing here either,” Michael announced.

“Damnit.” Max slid the files back into place and sighed. “He must keep the information in his briefcase and take it back and forth with him.”

Nodding her agreement, Isabel opened the study door. “Let’s get out of here before Mom and Dad get home.”

Max glanced around the study one last time to make sure nothing was out of place and followed Isabel and Michael down the hall. Suddenly, the back door opened.

“Oh my God!”

“Mom!”

Hurrying into the kitchen, Max found his mother staring at them in shock, her hand pressed to her chest.

“Kids, you almost gave me a heart attack!” she gasped.

“Oh Mom, we’re sorry,” Isabel apologized. “I, uh, I thought I lost an earring here the other night, and I wanted to look for it.”

“Sweetie, you should have called. I could have looked for it,” Diane said.

“I know, I know, but, um, Max and Michael said they’d help me look, and I figure three pairs of eyes are better than one,” Isabel chuckled nervously.

Diane eyed her strangely. “Honey, is everything okay?”

“Fine!” Isabel squeaked.

“You look a little flushed,” Diane continued in concern. She turned to Max and Michael. “Why don’t you all stay for dinner,” she suggested. “Your dad will be home soon, and-“

“I can’t, Liz gets off work in a little while,” Max replied quickly.

“Well that’s fine, have her come on over,” Diane said simply.

“I told her I’d make spaghetti tonight,” he blurted out. “She hasn’t been eating much,” he explained, seeing his mother’s confused face. “And she said spaghetti for dinner actually sounded good, so I really want to do that tonight,” he finished lamely.

Diane nodded blankly. “Well…sure, I understand. Okay, some other night, then.”

“Definitely.” Isabel gave her mother a hug. “Sorry to scare you like that. I’ll keep looking for that earring at home.”

Max embraced Diane as well. “We’ll see you soon, Mom,” he said, kissing her cheek.

“Later, Mrs. Evans.” Michael gave a quick wave.

“Bye kids,” Diane smiled. “Say hi to Jesse and Liz.”

“That was close,” Max muttered once they were down the driveway and out of earshot.

“Too close,” Isabel and Michael agreed in quiet unison.

*****

“So as we finish up our unit on government agencies…”

Liz sighed quietly, flipping open her notebook and uncapping a pen. She glanced over at Maria, who gave her an empathetic eye roll before pursing her lips together into exaggerated fish lips.

Stifling a giggle, Liz was once again grateful she and Maria had this Sociology class together. It made it all the more bearable when after class, Maria would perform her dead-on impression on Professor Keating, sucking in her cheeks and strutting around with her ass sticking out.

Liz smiled to her turned back to the professor, resting her chin in her palm. After a few minutes, her attention wavered again and she found herself gazing out the window into the early November afternoon. Tomorrow, she noted, it would be one month since she lost the baby.

What on earth is going on in my heart
Has it turned as cold as stone

‘Lost the baby.’ What a ridiculous phrase. She didn’t lose her son, she’d known exactly where he was. A dull ache echoed the emptiness that she still sensed within her womb, and she unconsciously moved her hand to her stomach. He should have been safe there.

Maria glanced over and noticed Liz’s faraway expression, her hand resting over her stomach. “Liz,” she hissed.

Breaking from her thoughts, Liz turned to Maria in surprise.

“Are you okay?” Maria mouthed.

Seems these days I don’t feel anything
Unless it cuts me right down to the bone

Liz swallowed hard, nodding ‘yes.’ Maria seemed satisfied with this and returned to doodling in her notebook, while Liz tried once more to focus on the professor’s review.

“The welfare issue obviously raises a great deal of controversy,” Professor Keating was saying as she clicked around the front of the room in her stiletto heels. “The opponents, as you’ll remember, claim that government money only encourages young women to have children. There is no support from a father figure…”

Liz thought about this, realizing again how fortunate she was that Max was so supportive. He took responsibility for their baby immediately, never once leaving Liz to feel alone in the situation.

What on earth is going on in my heart

“…and opponents raise the issue that many young mothers don’t even want the child…”

Liz’s ears pricked up at this statement, and her stomach lurched. She was immersed in thought again, slowly being bombarded and overcome by memories.

My oh my you know it just don’t stop
It’s in my mind I wanna tear it up

No. She did love her baby, more than she thought she was capable of loving anyone. So why…why did she feel like this? Why was the guilt still eating her up inside, slowly filling her heart and her brain and her soul until it was paralyzing?

I’m trying to fight it, trying to turn it off
But it’s not enough

Liz’s hand drifted back down to her stomach as her mind cried out. I loved you, my angel. I still do. I’m sorry…I’m so sorry… The pain was intoxicating, squeezing her heart like a vice, leaving her gasping for breath.

And then she was on her feet, grabbing her things, rushing from the classroom, slamming blindly into the bathroom, retching into the toilet, tears streaming down her face.

“Lizzie!” Maria was right behind her, pulling her hair out of her face, rubbing her back soothingly as Liz gagged and sobbed.

It takes a lot of love
It takes a lot of love my friend

After a few minutes she slumped back into Maria’s arms. “I loved him,” she cried mournfully. “I didn’t want it to happen, Maria. I loved him.”

To keep your heart from freezing
To push on till the end

Maria hugged her tightly, totally unsure of what to say or do. “Liz…are you okay?” she whispered finally. “What’s going on, chica?”

“I don’t know what’s happening to me,” Liz sighed, her voice thick with emotion. “I…I feel so guilty, and I don’t know what to do.”

Maria framed Liz’s face in her hands and looked at her seriously. “Liz, what in the world do you have to feel guilty about?” she demanded.

“Our baby died,” Liz murmured, her brown eyes swimming with unshed tears. “It’s my fault.”

“Liz. No,” Maria argued firmly. “You cannot blame yourself for that. You didn’t do anything wrong. Liz-“

“I didn’t want him,” she whispered, the pain etched visibly across her face. “Not at first.”

What on earth is going on in my head
You know I used to be so sharp

“Oh Lizzie,” Maria sighed, pulling her back into her arms and rocking her back and forth.

“I was so scared, Maria,” she continued brokenly. “And I was selfish. I wanted to go away to school, I had this whole life planned. And…and it did involve Max, and a family...but not so soon. I wanted to do things for myself first...God, I was so selfish."

You know I used to be so definite

“Liz.” Maria’s voice was firm, but threatened to waver as her own tears filled her eyes. “Liz, you are, like, the least selfish person I have ever known. You have no reason to feel guilty for wanting those things. And don’t you dare think for one second that it's your fault."

Thought I knew what love is for

Liz took a deep breath. “Max would hate me if he knew,” she whispered. “He can never know. I don’t know how to make him understand that I didn’t mean it…I don’t know how to explain how much I loved our baby. But Maria…if he saw…”

Suddenly Maria understood why Liz was keeping so much distance from Max. She was afraid to connect with him out of fear of what she thought he’d see. She was afraid he’d think she didn’t love their son.

I look around these days and I’m not so sure
No…not now

“Lizzie…Max knows how much you loved the baby. How could he not? It’s okay that you were afraid. God, no one had ever been in your situation before…” Maria trailed off, knowing she couldn’t go into that aspect of it in a public bathroom. “It’s totally understandable that you would have doubts. But Liz, no one blames you for what happened. It was not your fault,” she repeated. If drilling it over and over into Liz’s head would make her understand, she was willing to do it.

My oh my you know it just don’t stop
It’s in my mind I wanna tear it up

“I don’t know what to do,” Liz murmured.

I’m trying to fight it, trying to turn it off
But it’s not enough

“You need to talk to Max,” Maria said. “You need to let him in, so you can see that you are wrong in blaming yourself-"

It takes a lot of love these days
To keep your spirit free

“No,” Liz said quickly, her eyes wide with fear. “No, Maria, I can’t do that. I can’t lose him, too.”

*****

“Michael, I didn’t know what else to do. Liz said she needed to get away for a few days-“

“So you invited her to stay,” Michael finished. He sighed. “Maria…”

“She’s my best friend,” Maria continued indignantly. “I’m not going to turn my back on her.”

Michael pulled a Snapple out of the fridge and twisted off the cap. “Who said you have to turn your back on her?” he asked. “You can still be best friends without her moving into your place.” He paused. “Look, just because that’s what me and Max-“

“Michael, she’s not moving in,” Maria repeated impatiently. “Besides, a couple of nights exposed to my mom and Jim and she’ll be running home.”

Coughing on his swig of Snapple, Michael fought back a snicker. “Still?”

“Three nights in a row,” Maria moaned. “Can’t they ever go to the Valenti’s and make Kyle deal with it? I mean, come on.”

Michael shrugged and eyed Maria seriously. “Max is gonna freak out.”

“I know,” she sighed. “I just don’t know what else to do for her. You know, when we were in junior high and she was upset, I’d just lend her this blue miniskirt she loved and she’d feel better. It’s not that simple anymore, not with this, so if the only thing I can do is let her stay with me for a few days, I’m going to do it.”

“Hey.” Michael reached over and squeezed Maria’s hand. “I know. Just remember that you can’t solve this for them, okay? She and Max, they need to work through it together.”

Maria nodded. “You’re right,” she said. Sometimes Michael was a lot sharper than she gave him credit for.

*****

“Liz? Are you home, babe?” Max closed the front door behind him and glanced around the quiet apartment.

Swallowing hard, Liz continued pulling clothes from the dresser drawer. “Yeah, Max, I’m back here,” she called.

“How was your day-“ Max stopped short when he hit the bedroom doorway. “Liz, what are you doing?”

Liz tucked her hair behind her ears and glanced up from her duffel bag. “I’m staying at Maria’s for a couple days,” she said quietly.

Max’s heart slammed against his chest. “You’re…why?” he ventured in confusion.

“I – I just need a few days,” she began lamely. “I need to take a break from things, from this apartment-“

“And from me,” Max finished, his voice tinged with bitterness. “What – what did I do?”

Liz sighed. “Max, this isn’t about anything you did or didn’t do,” she insisted. “I’m doing this for me.”

“But what about us?" he whispered, moving closer to her.

Taking a deep breath, Liz zipped up the bag. “Please, Max, don’t make this any harder,” she said firmly. “I…I need to do this.” She turned to Max, her dark eyes shimmering with tears. “Please…try to understand.”

Max shook his head dazedly. “I don’t know what to understand,” he admitted.

Ding-dong!

“That’s Maria,” Liz announced, slinging the bag over her shoulder and moving to step around Max.

“Liz, wait.” Max grabbed her arm and pulled her to him. He had to fight every urge in his body to keep from kissing her; long and deep and mind-blowing, so she would see that she belonged here, with him. But instead he found himself simply holding her, closing his eyes and burying his face in her hair.

Liz hugged him back tentatively and then pulled away. “I’ll call you tomorrow,” she said softly.

“Are you still coming, Liz?” came Maria’s voice from the front hallway, having obviously let herself in.

“Yeah, Maria.” Liz turned and walked quickly down the hall, with Max following behind her numbly.

“Hey Max.”

Max eyed Maria suspiciously. Was this her idea? Did she put this into Liz’s head?

Liz shrugged into her jean jacket. “I’ll see you in a few days, Max.”

And then they were gone.


*lyrics by David Gray, My Oh My

23

The past we seek
Some certainty
The seasons we remember
The light of May
…and darkest days
The month we call…
November

“That pocket.” Michael jabbed his pool cue toward the corner of the table and made his shot. “And…I rule.” He pumped his fist in the air as the ball rolled into the pocket. “That’ll be fifty bucks, dude. Pay up.”

Max glanced up at his friend. “We didn’t bet, Michael.”

Michael smirked. “Just seeing if you were paying attention. Want to play another round?”

“Nah, man, I should get home.” Max ran his hand through his hair uncomfortably.

“And do what, mope?” Michael countered. “Come on, Max, Liz has been gone for two days. Just…I don’t know, look at it as an extended sleepover.”

Max sighed in frustration. “But it’s not, Michael. She left me.”

“No, Max.” Michael placed his hand on Max’s shoulder. “Liz is coming back. You know that.”

“She packed a bag, Michael. All her books, her-“

“She’s a woman, Maxwell,” Michael reminded. “She’s gonna pack all kinds of crap.” He paused, seeing Max’s doubt. “Listen, I don’t know what you’re going through, so I’m not even going to pretend that I do. But if there’s one thing I know, it’s that you and Liz…you have something really special. I don’t think there’s anything that can change that.” He paused, surprised at himself for being so sensitive, and decided he was on a roll. “You guys have been through some pretty rough stuff in the past, but you’ve always gotten through it. This isn’t going to be any different, Maxwell.”

Nodding somberly, Max tried his best to convince himself that Michael was right. Liz had always been there for him, had supported him no matter how badly he screwed up…but this time was different. He hadn’t been able to stop their son’s death, he hadn’t been able to stop Liz from leaving…Max squeezed his eyes shut. “I don’t want her to hurt anymore.”

Michael sighed. “I know, man. Look, you need to keep your mind off of this for a while, how about another round?”

Max opened his eyes. “If I don’t think about Liz, then I start thinking about Langley. Michael, if my dad finds him…” he trailed off.

“All hell will break loose,” Michael finished. “Then I guess we know what we need to do now, huh?”

“Find Langley,” Max answered quietly.

*****

To leave behind
The wasted time
And every bad decision
…and harder still
What force of will
To feel we are forgiven

Liz wandered into the DeLuca’s family room with a sigh, pulling her jacket off from over her Crashdown uniform. “Well, I just sliced up enough pumpkin pie to feed an army tomorrow…” she trailed off. “Maria, what are you watching?”

“The Osbournes,” Maria grinned. “Michael got me hooked last spring. The re-runs are great.”

Liz squinted at the screen in morbid curiosity. “Do you understand a word he’s saying?”

“Not really, but you can kind of fill in the deleted expletives,” Maria shrugged as Liz sank down onto the couch. “So. Thanksgiving. Tomorrow.”

“What about it?” Liz asked distractedly.

Maria reached for the remote and clicked the television off. “Liz. It’s been two weeks. Tomorrow is Thanksgiving. You and Max should spend the day together.”

“He’s gonna be with his family, I have to work tomorrow night so I’ll be with mine…and plus, I mean, I thought I was having dinner with you and your mom and the Valenti’s.”

Maria rolled her eyes. “Liz. It’s my mom cooking. You won’t be missing much. Don’t you think you should spend it with Max?”

“Yes…no…I don’t know,” Liz sighed. “I mean, it’s not like we’d have a good time. I haven’t been the most pleasant person to be around lately, anyway. I think he’s needed space, too.”

Maria gave her a look. “Liz.”

“I’m serious, Maria. We’ve talked about this. After everything that happened at the hospital, he’s been trying to deal with a million different things. It’s my fault his dad is investigating again. He’s got to find Langley, and that needs to be his priority right now.”

Gritting her teeth, Maria fought the urge to grab her best friend by the shoulders and shake some sense into her. “Liz, you have got to stop this.”

“Stop what? Blaming myself? Maria, I’m not losing my mind, okay? Because of the things I said, Max and Michael and Isabel have a very real chance of being found out. I’ve spent the past three years trying to prevent that from happening.” Liz paused, fighting back tears. “Sometimes I think it would just be easier if…”

“If what, Petunia?” Maria asked gently.

Liz sighed. “If we didn’t have to keep it a secret. I mean, I know how important it is to Max, that his parents never get put into that kind of danger, but…” she trailed off. “Never mind.”

“It’s okay to feel that way, you know,” Maria said. “Hell, it would have made the last month a little easier to cope with. But…Liz, Max doesn’t blame you for anything. Neither do Michael or Isabel. You were practically incoherent when all that happened. You didn’t know what you were saying. You got scared, okay? You’d just been through hell, and-“

“Stop.”

“Liz, I’m just-

“Maria, stop it. I don’t want to talk about it anymore.”

Maria sighed. “Liz, you’ve got to. If you don’t want to talk to me about it, I understand. But you have got to talk to Max.”

Liz was silent for a moment before speaking. “I know,” she whispered.

But something stays
So who am I to say
There’s nothing more between us

*****

…and I don’t know the reasons

Taking a deep breath, Liz punched in the familiar numbers to the apartment. She twisted the cord around her finger, listening anxiously to one ring…then two…three…four…and finally, she heard Max’s voice.

“Hi, you’ve reached Max and Liz. We’re not in right now, but if you-“

“Damnit.” Liz replaced the receiver in frustration. He must have already left for his parent’s house.

Nothing’s clear…
I’ve come to know conclusions
Said and done
Is it all said and done?

Max closed his eyes as he stepped back into the warm spray of water, rinsing the sudsy remains of shampoo from his hair. It was going to be an interesting day, he knew that for sure. He didn’t know how he’d deal with spending the majority of the day at his parent’s house, trying to pretend that everything was normal…that Liz merely had to work, and that things were fine between them. And on top of that, his father…

A faint ringing interrupted his thoughts. The phone? Max groaned, quickly shutting off the water and grabbing a towel to wrap around his waist.

Riiing!

“Hang on, I’m coming,” Max muttered. It was probably Michael, wondering where the hell he was and why he hadn’t picked him up yet. He skidded across the bathroom floor to the door.

Riiing!

“Chill out, Michael.” Max hurried down the hall toward the kitchen just as the answering machine picked up. He reached for the receiver, but then heard the machine click off. Michael wouldn’t bother leaving a message, he figured.

Tightening the damp towel around himself, Max quickly punched in the number to Michael’s apartment.

“’Lo?”

“Hey, I was in the shower. Give me fifteen minutes, okay?”

“Huh? Maxwell?”

“Yeah. I didn’t pick up because I was in the shower, but I-“

“I didn’t call you, dude.”

Max’s stomach dipped. “Oh. Sorry, Michael. I’ll be there in fifteen.” He slowly replaced the receiver, his mind racing.

Liz.

Don’t kid yourself, he scolded. It’s Thanksgiving, she’s going to be busy helping at the Crashdown all day. Max sighed and slowly made his way back to the bedroom.

So here we are
Not very far
From when we said forever
…and all we have
This restless past
The month we call…
November

*****

“Go…go…yes…YES!”

“YEAH!”

Diane arched an eyebrow at her daughter. “Our husbands,” she sighed, shaking her head.

Jesse grinned from the couch, reaching behind him to grab Isabel’s hand. “Hey, it’s Thanksgiving. I’m stuffed from an incredible dinner, the Cardinals are on fire, and I’m with my beautiful wife. Could life get any better?”

Isabel leaned over the couch and smirked at him. “If you think flattery is going to get you a slice of pumpkin pie, you’re wrong.”

“Actually, pumpkin pie does sound pretty good…” Phillip spoke up, winking at his wife.

Diane sighed. “I can take a hint. I’ll go slice it up. Isabel, where did Max and Michael go?”

“Oh. Um, I think Michael left something in the car…and Max is helping him,” she said quickly, glancing at Jesse and then smiling brightly at her mother. She cleared her throat. “I’ll be right back. Save some pie for the rest of us,” she added, pointing warningly at her father.

Ducking out of the family room, Isabel hurried down the hall toward the study and gently eased the door open. “I figured I’d find you here.”

Max whipped around from the desk. “Isabel.”

“You scared the shit out of us,” Michael grumbled from the file cabinet.

“What are you doing in here?” she hissed. “Mom and Dad are right down the hall, and you guys are pawing through his study?”

Max sighed, replacing a file. “Iz, we’re running out of time. It’s been two weeks and we haven’t found-“

“Jesse doesn’t think it’s urgent.”

“Well it’s not Jesse’s ass on the line, is it?” Michael retorted.

“Isabel,” Max continued, his voice low and very serious. “I can’t find Langley. Not in California, not anywhere. I can’t get ahold of him. I don’t know what that means, but if the guys dad hired got to him-“

Isabel shook her head. “No. He wouldn’t do something like-“

“Look, we don’t know anything anymore,” Michael interrupted. “I’m with Max. We have to find out whatever we can.”

With a grudging sigh, Isabel joined Max at the desk. “Anything here?”

“Same as before,” Max said, frustrated. “I don’t think he’s been keeping anything important in here.”

Isabel glanced around the room, her eyes falling on one corner of the study. “His briefcase,” she said quietly.

“Bingo,” Michael muttered, lifting it from the floor and setting it on the desk.

“We’ve got to be quick,” Isabel said anxiously. “We don’t have much time.”

Max waved his hand over the locks on the briefcase, clicking them open. A sudden gasp jolted his eyes toward the door.

“Oh my god…Max?”

Diane stood in the study doorway, staring at the three in shock. “Wh-what is going on?” she asked, her voice and hands trembling as she clutched the study door.

“Mom…” Max trailed off, his heart plummeting to his feet as his mother gaped at them.

“Did you just…how did you…” She shook her head in disbelief, and then laughed nervously. “I’m imagining things. I must be. Because there’s no way you could just…just wave your hand over a lock and open it…”

Isabel looked at Max and Michael in alarm. After so many years of being so careful…

“Diane, what’s-“ Phillip appeared behind his wife in the doorway, his cheeks reddening in anger. “What the hell are you doing in here?” he demanded of his children. “This room is locked!”

“Phillip…I…” Diane gripped her husband’s arm for support.

He looked at her in confusion, his fury momentarily forgotten. “Diane, what happened? You look like you saw a ghost.”

“I…I can explain,” Max murmured, finding his voice. He looked to Isabel, who closed her eyes and nodded slightly.

“You sure as hell better,” Phillip exclaimed, striding to the desk and grabbing his briefcase. “How did you open this?” he demanded. “Answer me!”

Max’s face clouded with anguish. “Dad, it’s complicated,” he began quietly. “But if you’ll just…just listen…we’ll explain.”

Phillip crossed his arms over his chest. “I’m listening,” he said darkly.

“Daddy,” Isabel spoke up. “Please…promise you’ll really listen, okay? We’ll answer anything you-“

“Oh no, I really am curious as to why my own children broke into my personal space and are going through confidential information,” he snapped.

Isabel shrank back at her father’s tone, stepping closer to Jesse, who had heard the commotion and joined the room silently.

“Can we sit down?” Max asked quietly. He had no idea what the hell he was about to do…it was never something he’d let himself plot out in too great of detail, telling his parents. But now…now it was inescapable. So sitting down, he decided, would be the first logical step. His poor mother looked ready to pass out.

They filed silently into the family room, and Jesse quickly clicked off the football game. Max and Isabel sat side by side on one couch, while their parents took the other.

Max and Isabel shared a quick glance with Michael, who sighed and nodded. They were about to bare their identity to two more people. No turning back.

“What we’re about to tell you,” Max began quietly, “is going to change things. But…but it will explain a lot, and…just…please, just hear us out.”

“We love you both so much,” Isabel spoke up, her eyes filling with tears. “Please believe us when we say we would never do anything to hurt you.”

Diane clenched her husband’s hand. “Izzy…you’re scaring me,” she whispered.

“No, Mom, please don’t be scared,” Isabel pleaded. She looked at Max, her heart thundering. They couldn’t lose their parents…they couldn’t.

Max took a deep breath. “Thirteen years ago, you found Isabel and I in the desert. No identification, no information, no known past.” He paused as his parents nodded slowly. “That’s because we had just been born,” he continued. “Well…not born, exactly, not in the human sense.”

“In the human sense,” Phillip repeated. “Maxwell, what-“

“We – Isabel and Michael and I – we came from incubation pods that were onboard the spaceship that crashed in 1947.” Max paused, holding his breath as he waited for a response. And he was met with silence.

Phillip and Diane stared at him blankly. “Are you trying to tell us that you…you three are aliens?” Phillip finally asked.

“Yes,” Isabel said softly.

“But there’s no such thing…” Diane trailed off, gazing at her children with tears glistening in her eyes. These were her babies…not creatures from another planet. “It doesn’t make sense,” she murmured aloud.

“Mom,” Max continued gently. “What you saw me do just now…opening the briefcase…that’s one of the, ah, special abilities we have. We can manipulate objects, the structure of things.” He paused, his eyes searching hers. “Can – can I show you?” he asked.

Phillip nodded numbly, and Max reached his hand to a small wicker cornucopia on the coffee table. Before their eyes, he waved his hand over it and transformed it into clay.

Diane sucked in her breath, and Phillip continued to stare, expressionless. “Do you…know where you’re, ah, from?” he asked finally.

“Antar,” Max said quickly, his mouth developing a bitter taste. “We were sent here because there…there was a war, and we died. Our DNA was mixed with human DNA, and…we were brought here.”

“You make it sound so simple.” Phillip shook his head in awe.

“Have you told anyone about…this?” Diane asked quietly, glancing at Jesse.

“Yes,” Isabel answered. “Jesse knows.”

“So do Maria and the Valenti’s,” Michael finally spoke up.

“And Liz,” Max finished. “Liz was the first person who knew.” His parents listened silently as Max relayed Liz’s shooting…how he healed her…how she accepted him, despite his being different…how she was the first person who saw him…truly saw him…and loved him.

By the time he finished, his mother had tears in her eyes again. “Max…we never knew…” she whispered.

Max smiled faintly. “You couldn’t have,” he said, his voice gentle. “We didn’t want you to.”

“But why, Max? Isabel? Why would you keep this to yourselves for so long?” Phillip asked incredulously.

“We didn’t want to put you in danger,” Isabel whispered. “We wanted to protect you.”

“Oh Izzy,” Diane sighed. “Honey, we’re your parents. We should have been protecting you.”

Both Max and Isabel froze. We're your parents. Your parents. They weren’t turning them away…

“You don’t know how much that means to me…to Max,” Isabel whispered. She slowly rose from couch and stood before her parents.

Phillip stood then too, placing his hands on Isabel’s shoulders. “You are our daughter,” he said firmly. “No matter what you could ever tell us, we will always love you.”

“Always,” Diane whispered, standing up and pulling Isabel into a tight embrace.

As mother and daughter cried in each other’s arms, Max slowly raised his eyes to meet his father’s.

Phillip searched his son’s face, trying to fight back his own tears. “Thank you,” he said after a long silence. “For finally telling us the truth.”

Max nodded shortly, getting to his feet and standing before his father. They looked at one another evenly for a moment.

“Son.” And with that, he clapped his hand on Max’s shoulder and hugged him like he would never let go.

*****

“Maria? What are you doing here?” Michael rushed through the back door of the Crashdown out of the rain and found Maria shuffling through her locker.

“Happy Thanksgiving to you too, Spaceboy,” Maria said dryly.

“Sorry.” Michael pulled her into his arms. “I didn’t mean it like that.”

Maria snuggled into his embrace. “I’m dropping Liz off for her shift, and I need to pick up my Government book.” She paused. “Hey, didn’t your shift start, like, ten minutes ago?”

Michael sighed. “Yeah. Things have been a little crazy today-“

Liz burst into the back room. “Maria, is he here ye – Michael,” she interrupted herself. “Happy Thanksgiving, where the hell have you been?”

“Dinner at the Evans’,” he explained. “Listen, there’s something I-“

“Did you have a good day?” Liz asked quietly. “I – I tried to call Max this morning, but-“

“We told them the truth,” he announced without preamble. “About everything.”

Maria gaped at him. “You’re kidding.”

He shook his head. “I wouldn’t joke about this.”

“Oh my God,” Maria breathed. “Oh my God, how did they take it?”

Michael shrugged, making Maria want to kick him for his lack of specifics. “Better than I expected,” he said finally. Though he really wasn’t sure what he expected after all these years.

Liz continued to stare at him in shocked silence, finally shaking herself from her daze. “I have to see Max,” she whispered.

“Go,” Maria said, understanding immediately. She tossed her keys to Liz. “You take the Jetta, I’ll cover for you here.”

“You are the best,” Liz said gratefully, not pausing to say anything else as she headed out into the rainy night.

She hurried to Maria’s car, already soaked to the bone by the time she fumbled with the keys and got inside. As soon as she started the engine, Sarah McLachlan’s soothing voice floated from the tape deck. Liz peeled onto Main Street and began the familiar trip across town to their apartment. It was a drive she hadn’t made in more than two weeks. And suddenly her breath hitched as the next song on the tape began.

The winter here’s cold and bitter
It’s chilled us to the bone
We haven’t seen the sun for weeks
Too long too far from home

Gripping the steering wheel, Liz felt the words sweep over her. The past two weeks, the past two months came flooding back with such force that it was nearly palpable.

I feel just like I’m sinking
And I claw for solid ground
I’m pulled down by the undertow
I never thought I could feel so low

Liz felt her pain…but she felt Max’s too. They shared pain…but they hadn’t shared it with one another.

Oh darkness I feel like letting go

She’d run away from it.

If all the strength and all the courage
Come lift me from this place
I know I could love you much better than this
Full of grace

Never again. The tears spilled down her cheeks as she vowed with conviction that she would never run from Max. She would never run from their love. She had tried…but without him, she was incomplete.

It’s better this way I said
Having seen this place before
Where everything we said and did
Hurts us all the more

They’d been there before. They’d both known hurt. But they’d known love. Oh, had they known love. And somehow, the love was enough to overshadow the pain, any pain. Why hadn’t she seen that all along?

It’s just that we stayed too long in the same sickly skin
I’m pulled down by the undertow
I never thought I could feel so low
Oh darkness I feel like letting go

Liz shook her head, brushing at the tears. She wouldn’t let go. It was time to let Max in. No more hiding.

If all of the strength and all of the courage
Come and lift me from this place
I know I could love you much better than this
Full of grace
Full of grace
My love

She was going home. To Max. Where she belonged.


*lyrics by Duncan Sheik, November, and Sarah McLachlan, Full of Grace

24

Max unbuttoned his shirt and lay back on the bed. What a day. In one sense, he no longer felt like half the weight of the world was resting on his shoulders. His parents, the people who had loved and cared for himself and Isabel for almost thirteen years, finally knew the truth. And the most amazing part was that they still loved them. But at the same time, Max also knew confession didn’t come without risks. His parents were two more people who knew the truth, two more people that could be put in danger.

A sudden pounding on the front door jarred him from his thoughts. Max scrambled from the bed and attempted to fasten the lower buttons on his shirt. “Coming!” he called as the pounding grew more insistent. He pulled open the door.

“Liz,” he breathed, cut off as she fused her lips to his in a long, searing kiss. The force of their connection nearly knocked him to his feet, but he held on. The barrage of thoughts and images bombarded his senses – pain, fear, guilt – but above all, love. A love so deep that it rocked him to the core.

After a moment Liz pulled back, leaving them both breathless. There she stood in the dim light of the hallway, her Crashdown uniform soaked by the rain, her wet hair dripping in her face. “I left my key at Maria’s,” she explained simply.

All Max could do was nod as he stared at her, unsure of what to say or do.

Liz continued to hold his gaze, chewing on her bottom lip as they surveyed one another. “You told them,” she said finally.

Max nodded again, slowly reaching out to tuck a strand of wet hair behind her ear. “Hair thing,” he murmured.

Smiling faintly, Liz closed her eyes as Max’s fingers began a gentle caress over her cheeks and down her jaw, finally pausing as he cupped her chin in his palm. “How did it go?” she asked in a voice barely above a whisper.

“We told them everything.” He reached out to close the door behind her, placing one hand in the small of her back in the process. Surprised, Liz stumbled forward into Max’s arms.

The kiss was brief but reacquainting, and after a moment Liz pulled back and looked up at him. “Tell me about it,” she requested quietly.

“My mom caught me using my powers…” Max paused for another kiss. “We were looking for information…” Kiss. “We couldn’t do it anymore. We were hiding too much…” Kiss. “And I couldn’t keep letting my secrets hurt you…hurt us.”

Liz framed Max’s face in her hands. “What did they say?” she asked gently.

Max sighed, pressing a kiss into Liz’s palm. “That they would never turn their backs on us.”

A relieved smile washed over Liz’s features. “I’m proud of you,” she whispered. “I know how hard that was…for you, and Isabel, and Michael…to tell them.” She paused, leaning a bit closer to him. “You did it,” she breathed.

Max captured her lips in his then, pulling her body flush against him. His tongue explored her mouth and his fingers threaded through her hair lovingly.

Liz shivered at his touch, releasing herself into his arms as their kisses grew more urgent, searching. She nearly cried out in frustration when she felt him pull away.

“You’re soaked,” Max whispered, running his hands up and down her arms over the goosebumps. “Let’s get you dried off.”

He led her by the hand, grabbing a clean towel from the hall closet and continuing to the bedroom. Liz stood still before him, waiting to see what he would do next.

Max approached her slowly, holding her gaze as he draped the towel around her and rubbed gently over her back and down her arms.

“Max.” His name came out as a breathy moan, almost pleading. He swallowed hard as she guided his hands to the front of her uniform, helping him unfasten the buttons.

He slowly pushed the green dress off her shoulders, letting it fall into a damp heap on the floor behind them. And then he set to work, rubbing the towel down each arm, over her chest and stomach, and slowly down each leg until Liz was shaking under his touch.

“Are you okay?” he whispered, raising concerned eyes to meet hers.

Liz nodded, her eyes filling with tears. “I’m sorry.”

“Love,” he sighed, pulling her to him and kissing the top of her head.

Liz buried her face in his chest, bare where the shirt failed to cover the muscular planes. “I love you…”

Max’s heart sang at the words, words he hadn’t heard in nearly two months. “I love you.” His voice broke then, and he lifted her chin for another deep, soul-searching kiss.

I say I love you
I say I need you
I try so many ways to say
How my heart beats for you

Breathless, Max rested his forehead against Liz’s, gazing into her eyes intently. “Let me in?” he pleaded softly.

Liz nodded, feeling herself falling effortlessly into the depths of his amber eyes. She was ready to let him see her.

Max sensed it, sensed her guard falling away. It left her naked to him, her soul bare for him to see. Their connection, so hungry as it was for contact, had never been stronger.

I say I’m always thinking about you
There’s no way I’d want to
Face this life without you

And finally he was seeing her again. He experienced each emotion she’d known during the time since they’d last been together so intimately. Every wave of fear, every pang of guilt, every overwhelming rush of sadness.

“Oh Liz,” he breathed. “I’m so sorry, love.”

And even though these words
Come from deep inside of me
There’s so much more
I don’t have the words to say…

Liz traced her fingers over the prominent contours of his jaw, her eyes locking with his. “What for?” she asked incredulously.

“For letting you go through all of this…by yourself,” he murmured, his voice trembling.

“Max,” she sighed, her hands framing his face. “I did that to myself. You – you did everything you could. You’ve been so patient with me, Max…and I thank you for that.”

Cause what I really want to say
Is what the sun would say to the sky
For giving it a place to come alive

“Love…I would do anything for you,” Max whispered reverently. “Please, love, tell me you know that…” He searched her face in near desperation.

But my words get in the way
Of what I really want to say

“I know.” Liz’s breath sighed across his cheek, tingling down over his lips as she claimed them again with her own.

Oh, what I really want to say…

Max drank from her hungrily, his body and soul starved for her. He lifted her into his strong arms and slowly, gently lowered her onto their bed. Liz broke away, her face a mixture of raw desire and hesitation.

I know that sometimes my words can be as hard as stone

“Are…Max, are you sure about this…” she whispered.

And sometimes my words have left you feeling so alone

“Yes.” He nodded firmly, the look in his eyes melting away any last shred of doubt. “Liz…I want you to surround me,” he breathed.

So please forgive me
And hear the words I’m saying now

Their lips met again in a kiss so filled with love and longing that it made Liz’s heart ache from the want of him. More of him. She wanted all of him, back where he belonged. In her arms, her body, her soul.

I will spend my whole life
Looking for a way somehow
To let you know just how precious you are to me

They undressed one another lovingly, discarding articles of clothing to the floor until it was just Max and Liz, together in their truest form.

“I love you,” he murmured into her ear, his warm breath and warm touch and warm weight sending waves of desire coursing through her body.

I’ll use the best words I know
But I still won’t say it all…

“Take me, Max,” Liz pleaded. “Make me yours again…all yours.”

Max needed no further coercion as he guided himself with trembling hands to his Liz.

It’s like a tale too great to be told
It’s something that my heart can only show

He held his breath as he entered her, feeling the rush of her sigh against his cheek and the rush of emotion that flowed from his body to hers. Max was still for a moment, gazing at her silently as the glory of being inside her, being surrounded by her, electrified his entire being.

“Max,” she gasped, willing her body to take him as deep as possible…to take in every piece of the magnificent man above her, touching her so tenderly.

They made love with a new height of passion, their breaths and gasps and sighs creating a beautiful symphony as they joined again and again, completing one another.

I’m gonna take my whole life
Just to let you know

Liz held Max to her as he cried out her name, tightening her hold on him as he shuddered his release. She pressed her lips to his temple as he stilled his shaking body over hers, knowing that they had seen one another in the rawest, truest way possible.

What I really want to say…

“I love you, Max,” she whispered, her eyes searching his face until they met.

His eyes searched hers as well, seeking reassurance. He needed her reassurance…

“It’s time,” Liz continued, her eyes filling with tears. “We have to forgive ourselves.”

*****

“Kyle, thanks again for picking us up so late,” Maria said gratefully, shrugging into her jacket as she followed him and Michael toward the back door. “Happy Thanksgiving, Mr. P.!” she called over her shoulder.

“You too, guys, thanks for all your hard work tonight,” Jeff replied, poking his head out from the office.

“It stopped raining,” Michael noted, looking up into the dark sky now peppered with stars.

Maria smiled at him as she ducked under his arm. “It’s beautiful,” she said quietly.

Kyle unlocked the car and then turned to them both expectantly. “Okay, start talking,” he requested. “What happened tonight?”

“I couldn’t say much on the phone, man, but the Evans’ know.”

He gaped at Michael. “No shit.”

Michael threw his hands up in the air as he climbed into passenger’s seat. “Why does everyone think I’m making this up? We told them everything.”

“Well…not everything,” Maria supplied, getting in behind Michael. “But the basic gist of it all. Michael, you said Max didn’t go into the whole fiasco with that bitch Tess.”

“Not tonight.” Michael leaned back against the headrest as Kyle started the car. “Emotions were running really high as it was, and I guess Max and Iz are going over again tomorrow to talk more.”

Maria leaned over the seat. “Aren’t you going with them?”

“Doubt it,” Michael said shortly. “It really doesn’t involve me anymore. It’s their parents.”

Through the rearview mirror Kyle exchanged a look with Maria, who settled back and fastened her seatbelt. “Whatever you say, Michael.”

By the time they reached the DeLuca’s, Kyle had been filled in on the afternoon and was shaking his head in disbelief. “After thirteen years,” he muttered. “Damn.” He turned off the car and glanced up at the house dubiously.

“What’s the matter?” Maria asked, climbing out of the car and making her way toward the front porch. She paused. “Oh.”

Kyle smirked. “Hey, it’s your house. Tell my dad I’m waiting out here.”

“Ass,” she muttered under her breath, grabbing Michael’s arm. “I’m not going in by myself,” she said, dragging him up the front steps.

They opened the front door cautiously to the sound of faint laughter. “Shield your eyes,” Maria warned in a whisper, peering around the corner.

Nothing. “Uh…Mom?” Maria called. "I'm back! Michael's here, too!”

“Maria?”

Oh god, not the kitchen. “I’m never going to be able to eat off the table again,” Maria moaned to Michael. “This is going too far.” She took a deep breath and headed in that direction, covering her eyes with her hands and groping her way blindly to the doorway.

“Hi honey,” Amy greeted cheerfully. “How was work?”

Maria peeked out between two fingers and then sighed in relief. Her mother stood at the sink innocently washing dishes while Jim stood beside her, drying them.

“What’s the matter, Maria?” Amy asked, arching an eyebrow.

“She’s tired. Busy night,” Michael answered, stifling a smirk.

Jim grinned, rubbing a plate with a dishtowel. “I remember the days of the Crashdown Thanksgivings,” he said. Turning to Amy, he winked. “I think I like the new tradition better.”

Maria rolled her eyes good-naturedly at the gaze being exchanged between her mother and Jim. “That’s just great,” she said. “Uh, Jim, Kyle’s waiting out in the car for you.”

“I’ll walk you to the door,” Amy offered quickly, rinsing off her soapy hands and accepting the clean towel Jim handed her with a sappy grin.

“’Night, Jim,” Maria smiled, shaking her head slightly as she led Michael toward her room. “I’ll drive you home later in my mom’s car,” she said. “I want to talk to you.”

“What about?” Michael asked, flopping down onto Maria’s bed and stretching his arms out behind his head.

Maria quietly shut the door and then curled up beside him. “How do you feel about all of this?” she asked gently.

“Pretty glad I didn’t see your mom and Valenti making out.”

“Michael.” Maria shot him a look. “You know what I mean. How are you with what happened today?”

Michael turned to her seriously. “I’m fine with it,” he said quickly. “Now that Mr. Evans knows the truth, we don’t have to be constantly watching our backs out of fear that he’s investigating us.”

“That makes things a lot easier,” Maria agreed, resting her head on Michael’s chest and listening to his heartbeat vibrate against her ear. “But…you seemed a little weird in the car.”

Michael sighed, weaving his fingers through her long hair. “I guess it was a little weird, in a way,” he admitted. “I mean, I’ve known the Evans’ for years, but…I felt a little out of place. They’re Max and Isabel’s parents, not mine.”

Maria thought about this, understanding how Michael would feel a bit awkward. He’d never really had a family of his own…sure, he had their close circle of friends, but never parents. He’d never known what it was to have a mother or a father caring for him, looking out for him…not the way the others had. She didn’t pity him, she knew he never wanted that…but Maria felt for him.

She reached for his other hand, linking her fingers with his. Unsure of what to say other than what was in her heart, she whispered, “I love you, Michael.”

*****

And the morning light was breaking
Slowly moving across the bed

Max’s eyes fluttered open, noting the familiar warmth beside him. Liz’s arm was thrown across his chest, and her nude body snuggled against his. As his eyes adjusted, his mind slowly cleared of the sleepy haze.

Liz. She had come home to him.

He gets up without her waking
To the voices in his head

Carefully sliding his body out from beside hers, Max shifted his feet to the floor, pulling on the pair of boxers that had been discarded in the previous night’s lovemaking, and wandered into the hall.

Through the shadows in the hallway
To the room they painted blue

Max stood in the doorway of the spare bedroom for a moment, gazing around at the room that was to be their son’s nursery. He’d mostly avoided it in the time since the miscarriage; even closing the door during the weeks Liz was gone. They hadn’t had a chance to do anything with the room; so far it had been used mostly for storage. But in one corner sat an old rocking chair.

He smiled faintly, remembering the day Liz and Maria wrestled it into the apartment. It had belonged to Liz’s Grandma Claudia, but after her death had found a home in the Parker’s family room. Now, she was bringing it to their home.

“It’ll be perfect for when the baby comes,” she explained.

Max crossed the room then, resting his hand along the top of the rocking chair, running it across the intricate designs that had been carved into the wood surface. He traced them with his fingers, and then slowly sank down into it. This was the chair Liz always sat in with their son in those dreams…the horrible dreams that plagued her in the weeks before they lost the baby…it was where she tried so hard to protect their son.

But he had let her down. He’d let them both down.

And on the inside he is frightened
At a loss for what to do

He closed his eyes, desperately willing the guilt to stop. Liz didn’t blame him. That had been clear through their connection last night. And somewhere, deep, deep down, he knew she was right. It wasn’t his fault. He wasn’t God, he’d been reminded of that obvious fact time and time again. And Liz didn’t blame him. For the first time in nearly two months, he was beginning to believe it.

Til he opens up his eyes
And the angels all look down…

The tears welled in his eyes as he came to that realization.

Even closer than this life
Closer than your faith
Closer than the things that you hold dearly
And in vain

And suddenly the tears were falling, cascading down his cheeks in rivers, dripping from his chin onto his bare chest, until it was heaving with the force of his sobs.

Closer than this life
Falling through again
Giving more than anything
That you could hope to win

He wept for the love he thought he’d almost lost. He wept with the conviction that he would never, never let her slip so far from his grasp. He wept for their son, for Liz, for himself. For the first time since they’d lost their baby, Max allowed himself to cry.

And he knows his life is changing
It’s never easy letting go

And then Liz was in the doorway wrapped in his robe, making her way to him, kneeling between his legs. She ran her hands over his cheeks, her thumbs smoothing over the tears, murmuring the same way he had soothed her so many times. Her own tears flowed unchecked from her eyes as she realized that he was finally letting her see him in his most vulnerable state; finally letting himself grieve openly for their baby boy.

For the first time you are mortal
As the child before you grows

Max reached up and captured Liz’s hands in his. He kissed her fingertips and her palms reverently, tasting the salt of his tears. Gazing down into her eyes, the connection overtook them.

And he wonders at the sight
Of the joy that they have found

For the first time in two months, they knew. They would be all right. They would get through it, and they would be stronger because of it. The onslaught of emotion overwhelmed him, and Max slid from the rocking chair to the floor to take Liz into his arms.

And what did you intend to find
Solitude? Your peace of mind?
Holding out for something less
Than touching the hand of God

They were together again, complete. Closer, somehow, than when they had started.

Closer than this life
Closer finally

Because they knew, more clearly than ever before, the strength they possessed together. Together, they found peace.

Living for the only thing
You ever made complete

Together, they had created a child. And together, they would remember him.

Oh, and the one thing that
You both did perfectly

Neither Max nor Liz knew how much time passed while they sat on the floor, wrapped up in one another. After a time, after tears had been dried and tender kisses had been shared, Liz looked up at Max thoughtfully. “I’ve been thinking about something,” she said slowly.

“What’s that, love?” he asked, smoothing her hair from her forehead.

“We didn’t gave him a name.”

She was right. “No, we didn’t.” Max gazed down at her intently, his hands sliding down to capture hers. “What should we name our son?”

Liz took a deep breath. “I want to call him Gabriel.”

“Gabriel…” he repeated slowly.

“After the angel,” she continued, her dark eyes shining. “He – he’s our angel, Max. I want his name to be Gabriel Maxwell – for his father.”

When Max finally found his voice, he stroked her cheek lovingly and whispered, “It’s perfect, Liz. Thank you.” She turned her head and pressed a kiss into his palm as he repeated, “Gabriel Maxwell Evans.”

The one thing that
You both did perfectly…


*lyrics by Steven Curtis Chapman, What I Really Want to Say, and Better Than Ezra, Closer

25

Maria stifled a yawn as she stumbled into the kitchen. “Mom, what are you still doing here?”

Amy looked up from her cup of coffee. “And a lovely morning to you,” she answered.

“It’s 11:30 on the busiest shopping day of the year, I figured you’d be long gone hunting down bargains.”

Taking a sip of her coffee, Amy smiled. “Not until this afternoon,” she said. “Jim has some paperwork to finish up and then we’re going out to find him a new pair of boots. The Kit Shickers have a reunion show over at Cowpies tomorrow night.”

“Wow, they haven’t played a set since, like, Labor Day,” Maria mused.

Amy grinned again and glanced around. “Liz is still sleeping? I didn’t hear her come in last night.”

“That’s because she didn’t,” Maria said casually, the smiled playing at the corner of her lips.

“So does that mean…” Amy’s eyes widened at Maria’s confirming nod. “I’m so glad,” she sighed. “I’ve never seen that girl so depressed. It just…wasn’t Lizzie.”

“Hello? Best friend?” Maria pointed to herself. “You’re telling me.”

Amy leaned a little closer to her daughter. “What made her decide to do it? Go home, I mean?”

Maria paused for a minute. “Epiphany,” she shrugged.

“Jim will be thrilled,” Amy continued. “I know he’s been worried…he thinks of all you guys like you’re his own kids.” She sighed, resting her chin in her hand. “He’s an amazing man.”

“Yeah, Mom, so about Jim,” Maria began. She felt slightly uncomfortable broaching the subject with her mother, but…heck, she was curious. “Exactly how…serious are things?”

“Oh Maria, I don’t know.” Amy got to her feet and padded over to the sink. “We just…we like spending time together.”

Maria rolled her eyes knowingly. “Well, yesterday was a little interesting. A couple years ago who would have thought – the DeLuca’s and the Valenti’s, sharing Thanksgiving dinner.”

Amy smiled, rinsing out the mug and turning back to her daughter. “I thought it was nice.”

“Oh, don’t get me wrong, Jim and Kyle are great…I just…Mom, I want to know if things get, like, really serious.”

Rolling her eyes good-naturedly, Amy returned to the table. “I thought that was my part of the discussion, not the other way around.”

“Mom…”

“I’m serious,” Amy insisted, leaning over the back of the chair. “You and Michael have been back together for a while now, and –“

“Four and a half months,” Maria clarified.

“You’re having sex, aren’t you.”

Maria’s eyes widened at Amy’s blunt statement. “Mom!” She blushed a fierce pink. “What, did Madame Vivian tell you that?”

Amy looked at her daughter seriously. “A mother can tell these things,” she said. “And I need to know that you’re being careful.”

“Yes, Mom,” Maria said as honestly as possible. They were being careful about protection, that was true. But whether or not her mother would see having sex with an alien as being “careful,” that was a completely different story.

“I believe you.” Amy nodded firmly. “And I want you to know that you can come to me about anything. I’m glad we could have this talk.”

“Um…yeah, me too.” Maria cleared her throat and jumped up when the doorbell rang. “I got it.”

She opened the front door to find Liz and Max hand in hand on the porch. “Your keys,” Liz smiled, dangling them before her.

“Lizzie!” Maria pulled her into a tight hug, smiling at Max over her shoulder. They both looked great…more relaxed and content than she’d seen either of them in ages.

“Max…how are you?” she asked then, realizing what an overwhelming twenty-four hours he must have had.

“Really good,” he answered honestly, his eyes shining in understanding. “We came to bring back your car and pick up Liz’s things.” He and Liz shared a quick look that, had Maria not known them and all the things they’d been through, would have made her ill from the sappiness.

“I’m going to toss my stuff in my bag.” Liz stood on her tiptoes to give Max a sweet, lingering kiss. “Wait right here.”

He let go slowly but nodded, watching as his Liz was led away by a very curious Maria. He could already tell it would be a while before he’d be okay with letting her out of his sight.

“Okay, girlfriend, spill,” Maria hissed as soon as they were out of earshot, gripping Liz’s arm.

Liz grinned, a sight that shot waves of relief through Maria, and said, “We’re going to be okay now. We’re…healing. Together.”

“You don’t know how glad I am to hear that,” Maria sighed, hoisting Liz’s bag onto her bed.

Liz smiled again, grabbing her textbooks from the dresser and shoving them into her duffel with a contented sigh of her own. “Actually…I think I do.”

*****

Max eased the Chevelle into park and cut the engine, gazing silently at the house he had grown up in.

Liz reached over and linked her fingers with his. “You’ve gotten through the hardest part already,” she reminded him gently.

He turned his gaze to her comforting smile and immediately felt at ease. “I just…I find myself wondering if they’ll feel differently than they did last night,” he admitted.

“They won’t,” she assured, clasping his large hand between both of her small ones.

“Thank you,” Max said quietly. “And thank you for coming with me. I know this isn’t easy.” He grimaced inwardly, knowing that today he’d have to come clean about some of the most painful aspects of his life, things he knew he’d need to try and clear up.

Liz squeezed his hand again. “I’m right here with you. I’m not going anywhere.”

With that, they made their way up the driveway, around Jesse’s car, and to the front door, where they let themselves in.

Diane heard the door and met them in the front hall, pulling her son into a tight embrace. After a few moments she turned to Liz, awed by the young woman’s loyalty and strength.

“Thank you,” she whispered, touching Liz’s cheek, “for taking such good care of my son.”

“We take care of each other,” Liz answered honestly.

*****

Max didn’t eat much during lunch. He lost his appetite at the mere mention of Agent Pierce, but he knew that they had to start at the beginning for anything else to be made sense of.

Phillip and Diane had many questions regarding the orbs, the pod chamber, the granolith, and their royal background, and continued to exchange bewildered and horrified glances while Max, Isabel, and Liz spoke. How could all of this have been going on right under their noses?

“I believe you, son,” Phillip assured. “I had bits and pieces of information a year ago, but I still don’t understand something. Why did Tess pick up and leave? The four of you were family.”

Max and Liz looked at one another tensely, and Isabel bit her lip. “No, Daddy,” she said quietly. “We thought she was one of us but…she was a traitor.”

Diane’s eyes widened. “A traitor? What exactly do you mean?”

Isabel closed her eyes, and Jesse ran a soothing hand over her back. “She did a lot of evil, evil things. And not just to us.”

“She killed Alex,” Liz murmured.

“Good lord," Phillip muttered. “Is - is she on the run? Is that why she disappeared?”

Max raised anguished eyes to meet his parents. It wouldn’t get any easier to explain, and he knew he had to just get it out. “She went back to Antar. I…I got her pregnant, and the baby couldn’t survive in the earth’s atmosphere.”

Phillip’s eyes moved back and forth from his son to Liz, who was sitting expressionlessly. “So the things you said at the hospital…”

“Were all true,” Liz finished quietly.

Diane lowered her hand from her mouth and turned to Max. “That means you…you have a child…somewhere.”

Max swallowed hard and nodded, finding some comfort when he felt Liz’s hand reach for his under the table. “I got these…these flashes from him. That he was in trouble. I wanted to find him, and we learned that the ship was being stored in an underground facility in Utah.”

“The convenience store…” Phillip said slowly. “I always knew you weren’t holding it up for the money.” He paused. “Did you find it? The…ship?”

Max nodded. “But they moved it immediately after. I…I was desperate, but you can see now why I didn’t tell you.”

Phillip shook his head. “And we thought it might be drugs…”

“Max?” Diane spoke up. “Help me understand something. I never even knew you and Tess were dating. Apparently a lot of things happened without my knowing, but with Liz…it was always so obvious how you felt about one another.”

“That’s because Tess and I never dated. I was never in love with her,” Max said quietly, tightening his grip on Liz’s hand. “It was nothing like that. You remember how we told you about what we learned when Tess first came to Roswell?” He took a deep breath. “There…there was this force that I could feel drawing me to her. I had no feelings toward her whatsoever, but that didn’t seem to matter.”

“We think Tess was mindwarping him,” Liz spoke up. “Just like she did to Alex before…he died.”

Diane’s brow furrowed in confusion. “But your powers…don’t you use them to help people? To do good things?”

Max sighed. “We’d like to think so. But being raised by Nasedo didn’t teach her that. We didn’t find out until it was almost too late that her plan was to get us all back to Antar so we could be delivered to the enemy.”

“What?” Diane burst out. “My god, and I have a grandchild in her care-“ She paused, glancing at Max. “Oh honey, I’m sorry, I didn’t-“

Max closed his eyes and shook his head slightly. “I know, Mom.”

“I still don’t understand something,” Phillip spoke up, his mind reeling from all the information. “If the space ship was locked in a government facility, how did Tess get back to…to Antar?”

“The granolith,” Max answered. “But it could only be used once, and that’s why I had to find a different way to get there. The space ship seemed like the only other possibility.”

“Is that where Cal Langley is involved?” Phillip asked quietly.

“You did know about him,” Max murmured, almost to himself.

“A little,” Phillip admitted. “But I couldn’t understand why you would be involved with a fallen Hollywood producer. And when I started looking into it again last month, I had a hell of a time tracking down anything about him. Couldn’t find anything past July. He just…disappeared. ”

“He didn’t have much of a choice,” Max sighed. “But Langley…he’s our protector. And a shapeshifter.”

“Like Na – Nacee-“ Diane stumbled over the name.

“Nacedo,” Max supplied gently. “Sort of. He didn’t want to help me, but because I’m the…the king, it’s encoded in him. I made him take me to the space ship, but it was too damaged to be of any use.”

Diane pondered this for a moment. “Does that mean you were going to go back?” she asked, the hurt showing clearly through her confusion.

Max sighed, a pang of guilt stinging him. “I didn’t know what I was doing. My plan was to find him and bring him back with me. But I…I realized that I couldn’t risk that. I couldn’t risk never coming back, never seeing my family again…the people I love…” He cast a glance at Liz, caressing her fingers with his. “I could never trade my life here for a world that forces me to choose. That’s filled with so much hate…not when I’ve known so much love.” He lifted Liz’s hand to his mouth and kissed it gently.

Liz tingled, feeling through their connection what he didn’t say aloud. I chose you. Always you.

*****

Later that evening, Max stretched onto their couch with Liz pulled close to his chest. His eyes were closed, though he wasn’t asleep, and Liz knew the past two days had drained him emotionally. She reached a gentle hand up to caress his cheek.

Max sighed at the feel of her soft touch, threading his fingers through the dark strands of hair flowing over his chest. He opened his eyes when he heard he ask, “How are you doing?”

“Good,” he answered honestly. “It’s not easy to try and talk about everything that’s happened the last three years, but…in the end, I have the two things that have always been the most important to me.”

“And what’s that?” Liz asked with a coy smile.

“My parents’ acceptance of Isabel and me, and…and you,” Max answered softly. “I’m glad you’re home.”

“Me too.” Liz leaned up and kissed him, slowly teasing his lips apart with her tongue.

Max welcomed her into his mouth, their tongues dancing languidly as he ran his hands along the small of her back, pulling her closer.

Liz adjusted herself slightly, letting out a soft moan as she felt him stirring beneath her. She looked down into his serious face, scanning his features with a tender smile. “I’m not going anywhere, Max,” she promised. “I’m staying right here with you. Always.”

Reaching up to cradle her face in his hands, Max kissed her hungrily as if to prove he would never let her go. Not tonight, not ever. His lips left hot trails across her jaw and down her neck as Liz’s fingers set to work at the buttons of his shirt. Pushing the cotton aside, she sighed in content at the sight of his bare, muscular chest.

Max sucked in his breath as Liz’s fingers danced across his chest, touching him reverently, and wasted no time easing Liz’s shirt up her body. He needed to feel her skin on his. Waving one hand over her bra, the clasp came undone and he slid both over her arms and onto the floor.

Liz’s warm breath tickled down his neck as she whispered teasingly in his ear. “You cheated.”

“You don’t mind,” he responded promptly, pulling her body as close to his as possible and relishing in their intimate contact.

She sighed at the stimulation of her chest pressed to his. It was times like these, when their heartbeats could be felt one against the other, that made her dizzy with desire. Liz captured his lips in a heated kiss, and he ran his tongue along her upper lip before plunging into her mouth.

Max made love to her mouth in a way that left her breathless. “Touch me, Max,” she gasped, rocking her hips just slightly against his.

He moved his hands from the sides of her face, making a slow, lingering descent down her body. He reached between them to caress the sides of her breasts, his thumbs slipping around to circle her nipples.

Liz gasped and moved over him again, feeling the bulge of his erection press between her legs. “Max…” she moaned, struggling with the buckle of his belt. “A little help?”

“No cheating,” he reminded, groaning when Liz ground her hips against his again. “Well…maybe just this once,” he relented, placing his hand at their sides. The troublesome belt, along with both of their jeans zippers were undone in an instant.

She smiled against his lips. “Thank you,” she breathed as he helped slide her jeans and panties over her hips. Max rolled them carefully onto their sides so that he could discard of his own pants and boxers onto the floor beside the couch.

“Ohh…god, Liz,” he groaned as his erection sprang free and came into immediate contact with her aching center.

Liz gasped as he rubbed his shaft against her mound, her legs spreading to allow him access. “Max…please,” she moaned.

Max gazed deeply into her eyes, feeling her love and desire roll over him. He could deny her nothing. Groaning deep in his throat as her slick folds enveloped him, Max closed his eyes and focused on filling her completely. His love would not be left wanting.

“Max…yes…ohh…” Liz breathed as their hips began to move in a steady rhythm.

Running one hand down the side of her body, Max buried the other in the silky hair at the nape of her neck. “Baby…oh…you feel so good.” His thrusts increased, pushing both of their bodies to the height of desire.

“Yes…oh god…harder…Max, harder,” she moaned, her hips meeting his thrust for thrust.

Max clamped his hand onto Liz’s hip, pumping into her again and again as she began to cry out.

“Yes…yes…Max!” She tightened spasmodically around him, sparking his own release as he continued to slide in and out of her trembling body.

“Liz…Liz…” Max chanted her name over and over as their bodies rocked together and finally began to slow. “Oh…god,” he panted, rolling over onto his back and pulling Liz across his chest.

“You…you are amazing,” she murmured, burying her face in his sweat-dampened neck.

They lay together in peaceful silence for a long while, until Max pressed a soft kiss to her forehead and murmured, “Do you want to go to bed?”

Liz smiled up at Max and shook her head before snuggling back into his arms and closing her eyes. “It’s perfect right here.”

26

Liz stretched, adjusting her sociology book on her lap. Final exams were upon them, and she and Max had holed up in the apartment studying for the weekend. Right now, though, her brain was fried.

Her eyes flitted across the room to the couch Max was occupying, his feet propped up on the coffee table and his philosophy book balanced in his lap. She sighed quietly as she saw how engrossed he was, and decided to return with a bit of disappointment to her own studies.

Max rubbed his eyes. The words were swimming across the page before him, and he didn’t know how much more he could read without them drifting closed. Glancing over at Liz, he saw her studying, oblivious to him. He sighed grudgingly and returned to his book.

Looking over just in time to see Max glance down, Liz smiled mischievously. “Hey Max?”

“Yeah?” His head shot up immediately at the sound of her voice.

Liz untucked her legs from beneath herself and closed her book. “Want to study for English?”

Max made a face. He knew they should, but more studying didn’t sound very appealing at the moment. “I guess,” he agreed with a sigh.

Liz stood and crossed the room, pausing before him. “You don’t sound very excited,” she pouted.

Reaching up to take her hands, Max grinned. “It’s just that English doesn’t excite me very much,” he explained. “You do.”

“Wait, wait, wait,” Liz continued, stepping out of his reach before he could pull her into his lap. “English final, Max. Let’s focus.”

“Right. English final,” Max grumbled, reaching for his book with a heavy sigh as Liz seated herself on the couch beside him.

“Oh! I’ve got an idea!” Liz said suddenly, fighting back her grin. “Let’s play a game. You know, to get the motivation going a bit.”

Max’s eyebrows raised in interest. “A game?”

“Mm-hm.” She leaned toward him conspiratorially. “Wanna learn how to play?”

“Yeah,” he answered immediately.

She took the book from his hands. “I’ll ask you different questions, and for each one you get right, I will take off one article of clothing.” She paused, watching as Max’s eyes widened. “And then we can switch. Sound like a fun game?”

Max nodded wordlessly.

“I was hoping you’d like it.” She smiled brightly and got down to business. Scanning the page, she asked, “What does the cycle of modalities revolve around?”

“Explanation,” Max answered easily.

“That was a simple one.” Liz reached down and pulled off one sock.

Max narrowed his eyes. “Aw, come on, Liz,” he whined.

“Do you want to play or not?”

Max promptly shut his mouth.

“That’s what I thought. Okay, then name the six other modalities.”

“Encounter, background, valuation, resolution, search, and reasoning.”

“Right again!” Off went the other sock. “Now, what is rhetoric?”

“Um…the study of successful strategies for keeping people’s attention and persuading them in any communication situation.”

Liz grinned, shrugging out of her zip-up sweatshirt. “You’re good. Okay, what lies between the surprising encounter and the resolution in a piece of writing?”

Max struggled to focus. He knew the T-shirt would be the next to go, and he was pretty sure she wasn’t wearing a bra. “The explanation core.”

“Correct.” Liz crossed her arms and pulled her T-shirt over her head to reveal…damn. A bra. Just a few more questions, Max encouraged himself.

“What is a quality that should permeate your writing and appear periodically as you show links between the other modalities?”

“Explanations.”

“No.”

“No?”

“Try it again,” Liz said with a smirk.

“Okay…um…significance.”

Liz nodded and studied the book, flipping a few pages. “How about… what are the three central modalities?”

“Encounter, explanation, and resolution…” Max trailed off as he watched Liz reach behind and unsnap her bra. “Guess I got it right.”

“Uh-huh,” Liz winked, sliding the straps off her shoulders and tossing the bra to the floor. “It’s a little chilly in here,” she noted casually. “Let’s see…”

Max watched her, mesmerized by her hardening nipples. He wondered if it would be against the rules to reach over and –

“Max?”

“Huh?” Max tore his eyes away from Liz’s chest to see her staring at him pointedly.

“I said, give one of the goals of reasoning.”

“Oh. Oh right. To follow out the series of consequences that will follow if the idea is put into action.” Max swallowed hard. Sounded good to him.

Liz nodded thoughtfully. “Yeah, that works,” she decided, reaching for the waistband of her windpants. “But you might want to go with something that’s in our notes.” She lifted her hips and began to pull the pants down. “You know, it case Professor Rose wants something specific. You know how he can get.”

Despite the untimely mention of their professor, the sight of Liz in next to nothing was making Max sweat.

“Right,” he managed. “Um…okay. Next question?”

Liz arched an eyebrow. “My, we’re eager all of a sudden,” she noted, tucking one bare leg under the other. “All right, according to the modalities, what are the two qualities of good writing?”

“Umm…” Dammit. He knew this one. He knew he knew this one. But seeing Liz just sitting there, her face betraying her obvious amusement at the rapidly growing bulge in his jeans was driving him crazy. “Um, surprise and significance?”

“Are you asking me or telling me?” Liz questioned, eyeing his erection.

“Telling you,” he stammered.

“Well good. You’re right.” Liz grinned at him and proceeded to hook her thumbs in her panties and drag them down her legs, kicking them to the floor with her other clothes.

Max gaped at Liz, sitting so casually on the couch in all her nude glory, and hoped this meant it was his turn to quiz her. These jeans were becoming painfully confining.

“Here.” Liz handed him the book. “You’ll need this.”

“Thanks,” he managed, his eyes struggling to focus on the words on the page and not the soft curve of her hips, or the way one bare leg stretched out to rest her foot on the coffee table. “Um, okay…‘irony’ is an example of what modality?”

“Valuation, “ Liz answered assuredly.

“Yep.” Max stripped his shirt off, trying to ignore the way Liz ran her tongue over her lips. “Okay, next one. Uh, computer logic describes what kind of modality?”

“That would be reasoning.” She watched with interest as Max worked at the zipper on his jeans and fought back a grin. “I actually hope you’re not going commando.” Seeing the look of surprise from Max, she grinned. “I need to make sure I get some studying done.”

“I get it.” Max nodded knowingly, pulling the pants from his waist and revealing a pair of green boxers. “Well, then I hope you’re up for another question.”

“Looks like I’m not the only one who’s up for it,” Liz noted, chewing on her lower lip as she eyed Max’s lap.

Max growled deep in his throat. “Looks like it.” He paused, attempting to focus on something other than Liz’s amazing body and the effect it was having on his. “Okay, here’s a hard one.“ He groaned softly as Liz’s eyes lit up at his choice of words. “What modalities describe pictures and captions?”

“Hmm…” Liz ran her finger in circles over her thigh thoughtfully. “Encounter describes pictures, and significance describes captions. “

“You’re going to get an A,” he assured, struggling to free himself from his boxers, and then waiting to see what Liz’s next move would be.

“How about a bonus round?” Liz asked, her voice husky at the sight of him, standing proud against his muscular stomach.

“Okay,” he breathed.

Liz moved to her knees, kneeling on the couch beside Max. “Give four synonyms for a metaphor.”

“Similie,” he began, pausing when Liz swung one leg around his hips and planted herself on his lap. “Uh…symbolism.” He shifted uncomfortably as Liz began to trail her lips down from his ear.

She halted her ministrations. “Keep going,” she encouraged.

“Personification…and synecdoche,” he finished, his hands roaming eagerly over her thighs. “Your turn.”

Liz nodded, tearing her lips from his chest. “Lay it on me,” she breathed.

Max groaned, rubbing his aching erection against her. “Why should a writer…shift…modalities…”

“To engage the reader’s…mind…and emotions,” she said, her voice coming out as a breathy moan.

With that, Max lifted Liz up onto him. “You win,” he grunted as she sank down onto him with a gasp.

“Good game,” she breathed as Max grasped her hips and began to pump into her.

When it was over, Max flopped over sideways with Liz pulled across his chest, grinning at one another as they tried to catch their breaths. He kissed her deeply and then smiled against her lips. “Bring on the finals.”

*****

Max and Liz met one another’s eyes across the classroom. Max grinned and got to his feet, quickly turning in his exam and exiting the room. Liz followed suit, biting her bottom lip as she opened the door and slipped into the hallway.

“We did it,” Max grinned, grabbing her by the waist and swinging her around. “First semester of college finals are over.”

Liz smiled and kissed him sweetly. “What’d you think of this last one?” she asked as he set her to her feet.

“I almost bust out laughing on the one about metaphors,” Max admitted as they headed down the hallway hand in hand.

“I know, me too,” Liz groaned, her cheeks turning pink. “But I know I got that one right.”

Max turned to her with a wicked grin. “I’ll bet I get my best grade on that English final,” he predicted. “Somehow I don’t think I forgot anything we studied.”

“Ooh, I’ll have to pick up on your study habits,” came Maria’s voice behind them. “I think my stats final just raped me.”

Liz exchanged a smirk with Max and then turned around to see Maria and Kyle making their way toward them. “You guys all finished?”

“Free at last,” Kyle crowed. “Well, until Isabel gets her hands on me again.”

Max arched an eyebrow at Kyle. “What’s she doing now?”

“Where have you been?” Kyle asked in exasperation. “She’s been on one of those Christmas Nazi rampages for almost a week. I worked my hands raw the last few days stringing up those damn Christmas lights at the festival.”

“And if I’m not mistaken,” Maria spoke up, “I think this is about ten times worse than it’s been the past two years. She practically attacked Michael the week after Thanksgiving to enlist him as Santa again. She said she was only going to put up with crap from someone she can duel with, alien style.”

“She has seemed a little…um, overzealous this year,” Liz noted, searching for the proper words.

Max grinned. “Trust me, guys, this is just how she gets this time of year,” he assured. “When you’ve been dealing with it for as long as I have, you kind of grow immune to it.”

Kyle shook his head. “Whatever, man. I don’t know what kind of intergalactic bug she’s got up her ass, but I sure hope it dies before Christmas Day. I don’t know if I can handle another week and a half of this.”

*****

“Max!”

Whipping around from the line of Christmas trees, Max found himself face to face with a very flustered Isabel. “What’s the matter?”

“Those lights are what’s the matter!” she exclaimed, waving a clipboard in the air. “Apparently our good friend Kyle was unable to spot almost two dozen errant bulbs in the string over there.” She gestured to a patch of trees at the edge of the park. “It looks like crap, Max, and I need you to fix it.”

“Um, Iz, Liz and I are kind of in the middle of picking out a tree,” he reminded. “Besides, it’s two o’clock in the afternoon. The lights aren’t an emergency right now.”

Isabel let out a frustrated sigh, blowing her short hair out of her eyes. “Dammit, Max. I am trying to do thirty-two different things right at this moment. Do you think you can take two seconds out of your busy schedule to wave your hand over a couple trees? Do you?”

“He’ll take care of it,” Liz spoke up, resting a gloved hand on Isabel’s arm. “Don’t worry about it, okay? Is there anything else I can do?”

“You mean it?” Isabel asked, but it was clear the wheels were already turning. “Well…actually, if you would be willing to reprise your role as Candy Cane for a few hours this afternoon? The girl I hired bailed on me at the last minute to go Christmas shopping, and-“

“No problem, I’m on it.” Liz smiled reassuringly.

Max nudged her. “I thought we were supposed to be setting up our tree this afternoon,” he reminded pitifully.

“We’ll do it tonight, Max,” she promised. “Come on, it’s all about the Christmas spirit. You fix the lights and take the tree home, and I’ll get a ride home with Isabel tonight, okay?”

“Okay,” he agreed grudgingly.

“Can you maybe…make some hot chocolate for when I get home?” she asked coyly. “With marshmallows?”

“With marshmallows,” he promised, kissing the tip of her nose. “And can you maybe wear that costume home? I think it’s kinda sexy…”

“Spare me the details of your sex games,” Isabel muttered. “Come on, Liz, we need you now.”

Liz rolled her eyes and exchanged a bemused glance with Max as Isabel led her away. “Marshmallows,” she mouthed over her shoulder.

******

“Wait, wait, don’t drop me!” Liz cried.

“I’ve got you,” Max assured, tightening his grip as he hoisted her up.

“And…got it!” she grinned, planting the star at the very top of the tree.

“It looks beautiful,” Liz announced, surveying their handiwork as she tugged her green Candy Cane turtleneck down and took another sip of her hot chocolate with extra marshmallows. “Not many ornaments yet, but…”

Max nodded, wrapping his arms around her waist and pulling her close as they gazed up at their first Christmas tree together.

Liz looked up at him and grinned. “But I love the popcorn strings you made,” she said, kissing his jaw. “Did you really sit there and string it all yourself or did you use some of that alien mojo?” She tried to imagine Max sitting with a needle and a bowlful of popcorn, but the thought made her giggle.

“Well…I might have cheated a little,” Max admitted. “But maybe this will make up for it.” He gestured to the floor beneath the tree.

“Where’d this come from?” Liz asked, settling onto the floor and picking up the small box.

Max sat down beside her and shrugged mysteriously. “I guess you’ll have to open it.”

“Is this an early Christmas present?” she continued, glancing up at Max with a smile. He shrugged again, gesturing to her to open it.

Liz tore the wrapping paper off the square package and opened the box. “Oh Max,” she sighed, lifting out a delicate glass ornament. “Our First Christmas, 2002," she read.

“Do you like it?” Max asked carefully. He was hoping she would, because even though it wasn’t their first Christmas as a married couple, and he thought it might still be a sensitive subject, it was their first Christmas in their apartment together. They’d been through more together in just a few months than many married couple go through in years, but they were coming out stronger. And he wanted something to show for that.

“I love it,” she murmured, turning his face toward her with one hand and kissing him tenderly. “It’s beautiful, where should we put it?”

“You decide.” Max smiled, stretching out onto his back beneath the tree. “Let me know if you can’t reach.”

Liz shoved him playfully as she rose up onto her knees and hung the ornament on a center branch. “Perfect.” She crawled back to Max and curled up beside him, gazing up into the branches. “It looks neat from down here.”

“I know.” Max looked thoughtfully through the maze of green. “I used to do this at Christmas when I was little.”

“Really?” Liz asked with interest as they continued to stare up into the tree. She liked hearing the stories Max would tell about when he was little, as few and far between as they were.

Max nodded his head slightly. “I was really scared, that first Christmas Isabel and I had with our mom and dad,” he remembered. “I didn’t want to go near Santa Claus, candy canes tasted weird to me, and I didn’t like the music,” he admitted. “But at night, I would go downstairs to the tree and plug in the lights.” He smiled at the memory. “And every morning, my parents would come downstairs and find me asleep under the tree.”

Liz smiled, turning to look at Max. “You liked the lights,” she connected. “They were…comforting to you?”

“I guess that’s what it was,” Max agreed. “And…I guess it just became a habit, until I really felt at home.” He paused, turning to Liz with a smile. “Like I do now.”

Reaching for his hand, Liz kissed him gently. “Merry Christmas, Max.”

27

“What do you suppose she’s got planned for tonight?” Max asked dryly, putting the Chevelle into park as he turned to Liz.

“Good question.” These days, who knew what Isabel had up her sleeve. The inevitable Christmas Nazi had quickly shifted gears to New Years Nazi, and even now, more than a month later, she still hadn’t quite gotten off her organizational power trip. Phillip’s birthday several weeks ago, Maria’s nineteenth just days before, all had been planned, plotted, and put into action by a super-organized Isabel. But since her overwhelming adaption of the Christmas Nazi, no one had the heart – or the guts – to get in her way.

“It’s not anyone’s birthday,” Liz mused as they climbed out of the car. “Maybe it’s some kind of Valentine dinner.”

“Hmm, maybe.”

“But I hope not,” she continued. “It’s definitely not my plan to do any Valentine festivities in the presence of your parents. Or anyone beside you, for that matter.”

Max grinned, reaching for her hand as they made their way through the February twilight. “Is that so? And what exactly are your plans?”

“You’ll just have to wait a few days and see,” Liz smiled mischievously.

“I’ll try to be patient,” Max sighed dramatically as he ushered her into the building.

“Max, Liz,” Jesse greeted as they stepped into the Ramirez apartment. “Your mom and dad are in the living room,” he went on as he took their coats and hung them on the rack. “And Iz…she’s, ah, finishing some stuff in the kitchen.”

Max had to give his brother-in-law credit. He loved his sister dearly, but sometimes he honestly didn’t know how Jesse did it. It took a strong, very secure and patient man to deal with the Isabel Evans-Ramirez Nazi tendencies, especially as of late. The two men exchanged an understanding look as they made their way into the living room.

“Hey guys,” Phillip greeted warmly, shaking Max’s hand and clapping his other hand onto Max’s shoulder as Diane got to her feet and gave Liz a hug.

Liz had to smile as she watched Max’s interaction with his father, marveling at how it had evolved over the last few months. Telling their parents the truth had done wonders for Max and Isabel’s relationship with them. Years of fear seemed almost overshadowed by the level of comfort they finally felt, and Phillip and Diane were so relieved to finally understand their childrens’ past that they were incredibly supportive of the entire group.

“How are classes going, sweetie?” Diane asked, squeezing Liz’s hands.

“Great,” Liz grinned. “The Honors Biology class I was telling you about has been going really well. We just finished up a lab about the reaction of molecules with-“

Max looked on as Liz launched into a detailed explanation of her latest lab activity with his mother. Though things were going much better with her own parents, there was a level of comfort they all now shared with the Evans’, just as they did with Jim Valenti. Liz had decided that it wasn’t something she wanted to bring up with her parents at this point, and Max supported her. The Evans understood, and while they weren’t exactly thrilled with it, agreed to help them downplay the issues of the past few months. Max knew they wouldn’t be able to escape it forever, but for the time being, it was working.

“Dinner’s ready,” Isabel announced, coming in from the direction of the dining room.

“Smells great, Iz,” Max complimented, as the aroma of her infamous Tabasco-laced lasagna filled his nostrils.

“Thanks for having us over,” Liz added as they headed for the dining room.

Jesse exchanged an encouraging smile with his wife as they seated themselves around the table. Once heaping servings of pasta had been served to all, Jesse cleared his throat and again glanced at Isabel.

Max watched this exchange with some curiosity. “Is everything all right?”

Isabel nodded. “I’m pregnant, that’s all,” she said quickly, taking a long sip of water.

After a few moments of surprised silence, Diane finally spoke up. “Oh honey, congratulations!” she said warmly.

A smile spread over Isabel’s face. “Thanks, Mom.” She trailed off, glancing at Max, Liz, and Phillip’s unreadable expressions. “Jesse and I are thrilled,” she added pointedly, reaching for her husband’s hand.

“Izzy, Jesse…I’m really happy for you,” Phillip began gently. “But…honey, are you sure it’s safe?”

“That’s why we waited to say anything,” Jesse explained, squeezing Isabel’s hand. “We wanted to get into the second trimester when the risks go down so people wouldn’t worry so much.”

“In a normal pregnancy,” Diane pointed out. “Has it been safe to go to a doctor?” she asked, fearing for her daughter and unborn grandchild.

Isabel glanced at Liz. “I’ve been to the same doctor you went to, Liz,” she said. “There’s been nothing unusual about the pregnancy at all. It’s…it’s been exactly like a human one.”

“How long have you known?” Max asked quietly.

“I got pregnant at the beginning of October. Right before…” She trailed off. “Anyway, we didn’t even know until a few weeks later, but with everything going on…it just wasn’t the right time.” Isabel paused again. “I’m sorry we kept you in the dark about it-“

“I understand, Isabel,” Liz spoke up finally. “And…it’s okay. I’m happy for you and Jesse.”

Isabel smiled, relieved. “Thank you, Liz. That – that means a lot to us.” She glanced at her brother, whose face was still fairly blank. “Max?”

“Iz, of course I’m happy for you,” Max said, reaching across the table and squeezing his sister’s hand. “Congratulations,” he added, looking at Jesse.

“Thanks,” Jesse grinned, already looking like a proud father as he draped his arm over Isabel’s shoulders.

“So the baby’s due this summer?” Diane continued, beginning to feel slightly more comfortable with the situation. Things were progressing normally – this was a very good sign.

“In July,” Isabel confirmed. “I’ll be able to finish out the semester, and then I’ll take the fall semester off.”

“And I’ll figure out a way to get more time off when you go back, so someone will be able to watch the baby while you’re at class,” Diane added excitedly.

Once dinner wrapped up, Liz excused herself. Max gazed after her, and then followed her out to the back deck. “How are you doing?” he asked as he stopped beside her.

Liz glanced up at him. “Okay,” she answered. “It’s just…I don’t know, I’m kind of worried for them.”

Max slid his arm around her, pulling Liz close. “Yeah?”

She nodded. “I don’t want them to go through what we went through.”

“I know.” Max kissed the top of her head. “There’s still so much we don’t understand. But it…it doesn’t bother you to talk about it?”

Liz thought about this for a moment. “No,” she said finally. “I feel…much stronger than I did a few months ago. I think about Gabriel every day, Max. I know you do too.” She paused as Max nodded fiercely. “But I can’t…I can’t be bitter about it. Not forever. And this, it just shows me that I’ve come a long way in a few months.” She glanced up at Max, gently touching his cheek. "We've come a long way.”

Max nodded again. He was in constant awe of Liz – her strength, her empathy, her compassion. “I love you,” he murmured, pulling her into his arms.

*****

“Isabel is pregnant?”

Liz closed her work locker and faced her best friend. “Yeah, Maria.”

“Why doesn’t anyone tell me these things?” Maria demanded.

“I just found out last night,” Liz assured, trying her apron around her waist. “Did Michael tell you?”

“Yeah, when he came in for his shift,” Maria answered, leaning against the bank of lockers. “So…are they happy about it? I mean, was it planned?”

Liz shrugged. “I don’t know...I mean, I didn't ask them to go into that great of detail. They seem really happy, though.”

“I’m just saying…I mean, you were on the pill but you still got pregnant. And…I think Iz was on the pill, too. So…I guess I’m just curious…does it not work with aliens or something?”

Turning to her anxious best friend, Liz sighed. “I don’t know, Maria. I don’t think any of us know the answer to any of these questions. Just...be careful, I guess."

Maria nodded, her friend’s words sounding ominous. Sure, she wanted kids…but not for a very, very long time. And not until she and Michael were very, very married and very, very ready. “So she’s already four months along? She’s not even showing yet.”

“I know, she’s hidden it pretty well,” Liz agreed. "But you can kind of tell if you know. And she said everything’s been completely normal.” She paused, leaning a bit closer to Maria. “Everything,” she emphasized. “They didn’t feel anything strange when the baby was conceived, and she hasn’t had any glowing…nothing.”

“So you’ve talked to her about it?” Maria asked as they headed for the door. “You were okay with that?”

“She asked me the same thing,” Liz said with a wry smile. “Yeah, I mean, this is really exciting for them. I just…I want everything to be okay, you know?”

“Yeah, chica, I know.” Maria gave a small smile of understanding and pulled her best friend into a hug.

*****

“Liz? Sorry I’m late, babe, Brody needed me to finish some filing.”

Grinning to herself, Liz lit the last candle on their kitchen table and hurried to the door to greet Max.

“Hey,” he grinned, presenting her with a bouquet of white roses. His eyes widened as he took in the sight of Liz, beautiful in a cranberry colored dress. “Wow…Liz…”

“Thank you, they’re beautiful,” she smiled, accepting the roses before standing on her tiptoes and giving him a sweet kiss.

“Wow,” he repeated, his hands resting on her hips. “Is that the dress from Las Vegas?”

Liz nodded, biting her bottom lip coyly as she tucked a strand of her upswept hair behind her ear. “You seemed to like it the first time, so…”

“I loved it,” he replied quickly. “I still do…except now I feel a little underdressed for the occasion.” He glanced down at his typical work uniform.

Sizing him up, Liz slid the vest over his shoulders and tossed it onto the couch, leaving him in black slacks and a short sleeved white shirt. “And…” She reached up and undid another button on it. “…perfect.”

Max smiled again and sniffed the air. “Something smells great.” As if on cue, his stomach let out a low rumble.

“We can take care of that.” Liz took his hand and led him into the kitchen, where dinner was waiting on the table amongst an array of glowing candles. “Happy Valentine’s Day, baby,” she whispered in his ear.

“Liz…wow…this looks amazing,” Max said, his eyes widening again at the feast she had prepared.

“Chicken alfredo, your favorite,” she replied, sitting him in his chair before pulling a vase from the cabinet for her roses and coming around the table to her own chair. “I skipped class this afternoon to make it,” she said with a wink.

Max took a bite and closed his eyes. “Mmm…delicious.”

They finished dinner with the faint sounds of Phil Collins floating from the stereo, sharing tender looks and gentle laughter. “I have something for you,” Max said suddenly, pushing back from the table and disappearing down the hall.

Liz smiled to herself, fingering one of the silky rose petals. She still had a few things for Max, too…

He reappeared in the kitchen with a flat rectangular package and pulled his chair closer to Liz. “Ooh, what’s this?” she asked, accepting the package from him.

“I hope you like it,” he said, suddenly anxious about the gift. Maria promised she’d love it, and Maria was generally right about this kind of thing…he just hoped it wouldn’t upset her.

“Of course I will,” Liz assured, pulling off the wrapping and revealing the back of a frame. “Hmm…” She turned the frame over in her hands and felt her breath catch.

Max watched as her eyes ran over the watercolor painting. Her fingers reached out to touch the image of the dark-haired little angel, blowing a puffy cloud from his cupped hands.

“Oh Max,” she breathed. “Gabriel.”

He nodded, reaching for her hand and gently kissing her fingertips. Did she like it?

“I love it,” Liz murmured, blinking back tears. “It’s perfect, Max. Thank you.”

Max nodded again, squeezing her hand as he gazed at the painting. “I found it and I just thought of him,” he explained quietly. “I was thinking…maybe we can hang it in our room.”

“I would like that,” Liz whispered, leaning forward and kissing him tenderly. “I love you.”

“I love you too,” he returned against her lips. “Happy Valentine’s Day, love.”

Liz gave him a teary smile. “We’re not done yet, mister.” She got to her feet and retrieved a different box, much smaller, and presented it to Max.

“You spoil me,” he mused, pulling the top off and peering inside. He looked up at Liz and then inside the box again. “Address labels…”

Liz fought back her smile, knowing he hadn’t read them close enough. “You don’t like them?” she asked innocently.

Max studied them, trying to think of something to say. “Of course I do, babe, I…” He trailed off, and Liz instantly saw the change in his face. “’Max and Liz Evans’,” he read aloud.

“I’ve always thought that had a nice ring to it,” Liz noted casually, the grin spreading across her face as Max looked at her questioningly.

“Liz, what are you-“

“Heck, Max, I’ve already got the ring,” Liz teased, holding out her left hand. “I think it’s time we make it official, don’t you?” Just so there was no uncertainty, she leaned a little closer to him and whispered, “I want to be your wife.”

Max clasped her hands in his and gazed at her seriously. “Are you sure?”

“Completely,” she said, her dark eyes shining. “I don’t want to wait anymore, Max. I know this is right.”

“Me too,” he murmured, pressing a soft kiss into her palm. “And...I want you to have your June wedding.”

Liz nodded eagerly. “I would like that.” The smile on her face grew as the last song on the album began to play and Max got to his feet.

“Dance with me?” He held out his hand and she accepted, sighing as he folded her into his arms.

When I’m feeling blue, all I have to do
Is take a look at you, then I’m not so blue
When you’re close to me, I can feel your heartbeat
I can hear you breathing near my ear
Wouldn’t you agree, baby you and me got a groovy kind of love

They swayed back and forth in the tiny, candle-lit kitchen, lost in each other’s eyes as the music surrounded them.

Anytime you want to, you can turn me onto
Anything you want to, anytime at all
When I kiss your lips, ooh I start to shiver
Can’t control the quivering inside
Wouldn’t you agree, baby you and me got a groovy kind of love

Max smiled down at his beautiful Liz, turning her in a circle before bringing her back into his embrace.

When I’m feeling blue, all I have to do
Is take a look at you, then I’m not so blue
When I’m in your arms, nothing seems to matter
My whole world could shatter, I don’t care
Wouldn’t you agree, baby you and me got a groovy kind of love

They both leaned closer, sharing a long, tender kiss as the song came to an end. Even after the stereo shut itself off, they continued to sway back and forth to the soothing rhythm of their heartbeats.



*lyrics by Phil Collins, Groovy Kind of Love

28

“It’s a boy!”

Max smiled through his tears, watching as his son was lifted for them to see. The newborn was quiet and content, gazing at the new world around him, shrouded in a peaceful glow.

“We have to take him now.”

“What? No, he’s our son!” Max’s protests went unheard, and he watched helplessly as the baby was taken away. Why were his legs refusing to move? “Wait!” He turned to Liz, only to realize that she wasn’t there.

His heart pounding, Max spun around, suddenly finding himself in a dim, damp room. The pod chamber? No…but it was somehow similar. Where was he?

Max shot up in bed, gasping for breath.

Liz was awake beside him instantly. “Max? Max, what is it?” she asked, smoothing his sweaty hair from his forehead.

Trying to slow his speeding heart, Max gulped in several deep breaths and closed his hands over hers as they cupped his face. “A…a nightmare,” panted.

“Oh Max…” She sighed, pulling him into her arms and stroking his back. “I’m sorry, baby.”

Shuddering, he rested his head against Liz’s chest and focused on her heartbeat. “It’s April twelfth.”

“I know,” Liz whispered, her eyes filling with tears. April twelfth. The day their son had been due to be born.

Max straightened, framing her face in his hands. “I didn’t mean to make you cry,” he murmured sorrowfully.

Liz shook her head, forcing a small smile as his thumb brushed a tear away. “I was thinking about him anyway,” she said quietly, her eyes shifting to the framed picture that hung on the wall across from their bed. She gazed at the image in the painting and pressed closer to Max’s warmth. “It’s so strange to think he should be with us today.”

He nodded and slowly lay back down, their arms still tightly wrapped around one another. Max kissed the top of Liz’s head as she settled it beneath his chin and whispered, “I love you.”

*****

Liz smoothed the creamy silk over her waist, turning to inspect her reflection in the mirror.

“Oh Lizzie…you look gorgeous,” Maria breathed.

“You’re gonna knock Max’s socks off,” Amy gushed as Liz turned again and peered over her shoulder.

Grinning at her reflection, Liz studied the details of the bodice. “It’s beautiful, Ms. DeLuca,” she sighed. “I can’t thank you enough.”

“Don’t thank me yet,” she said, sticking a pin between her lips. “There’s still a lot to finish.” She crouched down and continued hemming the bottom of the gown.

Maria rolled her eyes good-naturedly. “Gee, do you think two months will be long enough?”

Amy swatted her daughter’s leg. “Go get my pincushion.”

A short rap on the screen door drew their attention to Isabel and Michael on the front porch. Amy jumped to her feet and stood before Liz, blocking their view. “Is Max with you?” she demanded. “He is not to see the bride in her dress until the wedding.”

“Max is at work,” Liz assured quickly, stepping down from the footstool. “Well, Iz, does this meet with your approval?” she teased, modeling the gown for their self-declared wedding planner.

Isabel rested her hands on her expanding belly thoughtfully. “As a matter of fact, it does,” she said with a smile. “My brother is going to pass out when he sees you, Liz.”

“I don’t think an unconscious groom is what we’re going for,” Amy said wryly, returning to the hem as Liz stepped back onto the stool.

“What have you got there?” Maria asked, sidling over to Michael and lifting a binder from the stack he carried.

Michael shrugged. “You got me. I was enlisted by the Wedding Nazi to drag this stuff from the Crashdown.”

Isabel rolled her eyes. “You wanted a ride, Michael,” she reminded. “The least you can do is help me carry the reception information. Besides, Jesse doesn’t want me lifting things.”

Michael had to stifle a guffaw at that one. Isabel refused to be fussed over at all unless it got her out of any kind of manual labor. It probably didn’t help that Jesse had become an increasingly overprotective expectant father, but Isabel seemed determined to keep him on his toes.

“Iz, I really appreciate it,” Liz was saying. “My mom mentioned last night that she’d gotten the official catering information so that we’d be sure to get enough supplies.”

“It’s all in there,” Isabel nodded toward the binders now sitting on the coffee table. “Oh, and flowers! The florist said everything will be ready for delivery the afternoon before the wedding.”

Liz fingered the pearls that lined the gown’s bodice. “Isabel, you have been such a big help with all of this. Just promise you won’t push yourself too hard, okay?”

“You sound like Jesse.” Isabel rolled her eyes good-naturedly. “Trust me, I’m fine. I want to be doing this, and besides, it keeps me busy.”

“Everyone else, too,” Michael muttered under his breath. “Heil Isabel.”

“Shut up, Michael.”

*****

“So Liz, I was thinking. I mean, I know you and Max have already picked out wedding bands, but I read about this really cool thing in Modern Bride.”

Liz balanced a stack of dirty plates on her forearm as she cleared off one of the back booths of the Crashdown. “What’s that, Maria?” she asked, blowing a strand of hair out of her face.

Following her with a pot of coffee, Maria grinned. “Tattoo bands!”

Liz stopped short, nearly causing Maria to crash into her. “You’ve got to be kidding me.”

“What?” Maria demanded. “Isn’t that a cool idea? It’s, like, this completely permanent way to show your devotion to one another.”

“Because the wedding vows aren’t enough?” Liz countered amusedly, making her way back to the kitchen with the armload of dishes.

“Liz, you know I’m just as much about the diamonds as you are, okay?” Maria continued, ignoring Liz’s arched eyebrow. “But don’t you think there’s a romantic love-is-pain kind of thing about getting tattoos? Matching wedding band tattoos? No?” she trailed off as Liz continued to shake her head.

“Maria, Max and I have been through enough without requiring needles to seal our marriage,” Liz said dryly as she wiped her hands on her apron and pushed back into the café.

“It’s all about the tattoo, Liz,” Maria insisted, heading behind the counter to replace the pot of coffee.

“Who’s getting a tattoo?” Jeff demanded, looking up from the stubborn shake machine.

Liz made face at Maria and laughed. “No one, Dad,” she assured. “Maria was just offering a suggestion.”

“Which, I might add, is my job as maid-of-honor,” Maria insisted.

Jeff smiled, relieved that his daughter wasn’t making plans to permanently impale her skin. It had been hard enough when his little girl got her ears pierced when she turned ten. “Wedding talk, huh?” he asked.

“Of course,” Liz said with a grin, kissing her father’s cheek. “You know Maria and her Modern Bride magazines.”

Jeff glanced at Maria and chuckled. “I have to admit, I’m glad I won’t be the one financing your wedding.”

Maria stuck out her tongue. “Thanks, Mr. P. I’ll keep that in mind when I send out the invitations.”

“Wait, wait, wait,” Michael protested, clanging on the bell that rested on the kitchen counter as he leaned through the window. “What invitations, Blondie?” All she’d done since Max and Liz’s wedding became finalized was hint at how romantic and exciting weddings were, and he knew he wouldn’t hear the end of it until he popped the question himself. She always insisted it was in his head, that they were too young to get married, but he knew for a fact that she did think about it.

Liz, Jeff, and Maria turned to Michael and burst out laughing at his panicked expression. Sauntering over to the window, Maria leaned over the counter with a smirk. “Don’t worry, Spaceboy, play nice and maybe you’ll get an invitation too.”

The door to the Crashdown opened then, and Isabel rushed inside. She hurried to the counter where the group stood and eased onto a stool. “So,” she began. “Who wants to be the godparent of my child?”

“Excuse me?” Maria asked, trying not to laugh at Isabel’s entrance.

Isabel sighed. “I completely forgot that tonight is my first Lamaze class,” she explained. “And with Jesse being out of town, I don’t have anyone to come along and be my partner. My dad’s at the same convention and I can’t get ahold of my mom, so I was hoping that maybe one of you wonderful people would be willing to accompany me?” she asked hopefully.

“I think that’s my cue to return to the kitchen,” Jeff said, blushing. “Good luck, Isabel.”

“I have to close tonight, Iz,” Maria said. “I’m really sorry, otherwise I’d come with you. Those breathing techniques are actually really helpful for stress relief, not just labor.”

Liz hesitated. “Um…I really don’t know if…I can,” she said quietly. It wasn’t that she didn’t want to help Isabel, but the pain of losing Gabriel was still quite fresh. The thought of spending two hours in a room filled with pregnant couples preparing for the birth of their babies made her stomach clench.

“I understand,” Isabel said gently. She turned her attention to Michael, whose eyes widened again. “Look, Michael, you’re not exactly my first choice either-“

“Oh, you have got to be kidding me,” he groaned.

“Micheal, please?” she continued. “There’s no one else for me to ask. Just…look at it as a learning experience,” she tried.

“The miracle of birth isn’t an experience I want to learn about right now, Izzy,” he argued through clenched teeth.

“Well then, Michael, I suggest you find someone to replace you, because right now you’re the only birthing coach I’ve got,” she said primly.

Just then, Kyle slid onto the stool beside Isabel. “Hey guys, what’s up?” he asked. “Liz, can I get a Will Smith burger with the works?” He paused, suddenly uncomfortable as the group eyed him. “What?”

“Kyle, what are you doing tonight?” Isabel asked sweetly.

Shrugging, Kyle said, “I don’t know, there’s a Diamondbacks game on tonight that I was thinking about watching, but-“

“Looks like you’ve found yourself a birthing coach,” Michael announced, placing an order onto the counter and turning back to the grill.

Kyle looked around blankly. “Wait, what? Me? What’s going on?”

Isabel smiled and patted his hand. “Kyle Valenti, how much do you love me?”

*****

“Chicken or fish, baby?”

Max looked up at Liz and wrinkled his nose. “Chicken. Definitely chicken.”

“Chicken it is,” Liz stated, checking the order form. “I hope we don’t order too much, or we’ll be eating grilled chicken until our first anniversary.”

“But that’s why your dad’s having you file it, right?” Max asked, circling his thumb over the sole of her foot resting in his lap. “So we can keep track of what’s ordered.”

“Mm-hm.” Liz sighed, leaning back against the headboard. “That feels so good. I spent six hours on my feet at the Crashdown.”

Max smiled, focusing all his energy on his hands as they massaged her foot. The pads of his fingers began to vibrate, and Liz groaned in contentment. Grinning again, he tweaked her little toe. “How’s your back, babe?”

“A little tense,” she said, her eyes opening with a smirk.

Max gestured for her to roll over. “We can fix that.”

One mile to every inch of
Your skin like porcelain

Liz turned around and pulled her tank top over her head, revealing her bare back as she lay down on her stomach.

One pair of candy lips and
Your bubblegum tongue

Max knelt between her legs and began his firm yet gentle massage of Liz’s back, his strong fingers searching out even the slightest of knots and melting them from her muscles. Liz voiced her approval with satisfied groans and plenty of “Mmm, harder, baby,” and “Oh yeah, right there.”

And if you want love
We’ll make it
Swimming a deep sea of blankets

When he was satisfied with his work on her back, Max’s hands slid over her shoulders to her upper arms. Liz peered at him over her shoulder, and he leaned a little closer. “How about a full body massage?” he murmured.

Take all your big plans
And break em
This is bound to be a while

Smiling in response, Liz settled back against their bed and allowed his amazing hands to work their magic. He massaged along her shoulders and lower, rubbing her slender arms between his large hands before sliding around to her back again.

Your body is a wonderland
Your body is a wonder
I’ll use my hands

Liz shivered as Max’s hands worked along her sides and across her lower back, and then felt him turn so he was facing her feet. He started at her ankles, rubbing over her calves and across the backs of her knees. He reached the tops of her legs with gentle caresses, and Liz sucked in her breath when his hands strayed to her inner thighs, just under her thin cotton shorts. “Mmm…Max,” she moaned.

Your body is a wonderland

Max shifted slightly, turning around again. “Roll over, baby,” he instructed, moving aside so she could turn onto her back.

Something ‘bout the way your hair falls in your face
I love the shape you take when crawling toward the pillowcase

Liz obliged, gazing up at him as he returned his straddle of her thighs. His hands ran up and down her bare sides and then slid to her stomach. He caressed her gently for a moment, just as he’d done when she was pregnant with Gabriel. Liz swallowed hard and lowered her eyes, resting her hand on his.

“Love,” he whispered, squeezing her hand. After a few moments, she raised her eyes to his again and bit her lip, slowly guiding his hands up her body.

You tell me where to go and
Though I might leave to find it

His hands cupped over her, her nipples hardening into peaks beneath his massaging thumbs. Max could feel the tightening in his groin, continuing his ministrations until she was moaning with desire. Her noises only increased his arousal, but he had to finish her massage. His hands slid away from her breasts, and Liz let out a frustrated cry.

I’ll never let your head hit the bed
Without my hand behind it

“I know, baby,” he murmured, his sultry voice as smooth as silk. Max continued to work his way up her body, this time with his lips and tongue. He left moist trails of kisses along her collarbone, over her arms, and down to her hands. One at a time, he picked them up and bathed them in kisses. His fingers traced her hand, stroking each finger and then slowly sucking them one by one into his mouth before returning to his gentle caresses.

Your body is a wonderland

Liz began to writhe beneath his body straddling hers, her keening sounds an indication that she was close. It was amazing the things Max’s hands could do and she recalled the first time he’d nearly brought her to orgasm just by touching her hand. Of course, sophomore biology class wasn't the best place for this to happen, but now...now her body ached for release.

Your body is a wonder
I’ll use my hands

“Max…” she groaned, raising her hips against him. “Please…”

“What do you need, baby?” he trilled, lowering his head again and sucking on the sensitive skin below her ear.

“Oh god,” she gasped, her eyes closing involuntarily. “Don’t stop touching me.”

Your body is a wonderland

“Not if I tried,” he vowed, running his lips down her over-sensitized skin from her collarbone to her breasts. One hand began playing with her left nipple, while the other received attention from his laving tongue.

After a moment he pulled away and blew lightly, watching as her nipple hardened even more, and then proceeded to suck it into his mouth. With a sharp gasp, Liz came beneath him, shuddering as the orgasm rolled through her trembling body.

Max propped himself up on his side and waited patiently for her to come down. “Hey,” he whispered when she finally opened her eyes.

Liz grinned dazedly as she rolled her head to face him. “Hey.”

Chuckling lightly, Max reached up and touched her flushed cheek. “How’re you feeling?”

“Mmm.” Liz rolled over onto her stomach, half on top of Max, with one thigh pressed between his. “Good,” she smiled. “Better than good, actually,” she corrected, peppering his bare chest with kisses before returning to his lips. “More like totally…and completely…in love with you,” she purred between heated kisses.

“Good,” he grinned, his arousal now clearly defined and poking her in the hip. “Me too.”

Liz arched an eyebrow. “You’re in love with you too, huh?” she teased, reaching down and stroking him once through the fabric of his sweats. “I guess there is a lot to love…but if there’s not enough to go around…” she trailed off.

Damn baby
You frustrate me

He lifted his hips against her, his erection pressing into her center. “There’s plenty, baby,” he panted. “I’ll prove it to you.”

I know you’re mine all mine all mine

“Really?” she breathed, nipping at his chest. “I’d like that.”

Max rolled them onto their sides and swiftly yanked his sweats over his hips. Liz watched expectantly as his straining member sprang up against his stomach as he lay back again.

But you look so good it hurts sometimes

“Mmm…” Liz’s approval vibrated in her throat as she reached out and ran one finger up his length. Max jerked at her touch, letting out a low growl.

“Does it meet your expectations, Ms. Parker-soon-to-be-Evans?” he ground out.

Liz smiled up at him mischievously as she slid down his body. “I better have a little taste,” she decided.

Your body is a wonderland

Max leaned back against the pillows, fisting the sheets as he felt her warm, wet tongue test his burning flesh. His breathing became shallow as she bathed him in moisture and then slowly crept back up his body with her tongue.

“What do you think, baby?” he panted, running his hands down her bare back to the elastic of her shorts, pulling them and her panties from her body.

Your body is a wonder
I’ll use my hands

Liz reached down between them and guided him into her body. The moaned in exquisite unison as she stretched to accommodate him and then clenched around him. “Perfect,” she breathed.

Your body is a wonderland

*****

“I have been scarred for life.”

“Kyle, it wasn’t that bad,” Isabel insisted as they gathered up several pillows and a packet of information the Lamaze instructor had given each couple.

“Um, yeah, Iz, it was!” he shuddered, helping her to her feet. “I will never look at…at one of those in the same way again.”

Isabel smacked his arm. “Kyle, grow up!”

“Iz, I’m a nineteen year old guy,” he reminded her. “The only movies I’ve ever seen involving one of those was scrambled porn on my TV at home.”

Isabel rolled her eyes as they made their way into the hallway of the maternity ward. “Fine, then, you’re wise beyond your years,” she said. “Your future wife will appreciate it.”

“Not if she gets put through that.”

“Kyle? Hello?” Isabel groaned. “Pregnant woman right here. A little comfort instead of a reminder of the inevitable?”

Sighing, Kyle punched the button outside the elevator. “Fine. You’re right. Buddha fully embraces the miracle of life, and that should influence me. Besides, I’m sure it’s totally different for…ah…for your kind. You can probably go into some kind of weird mindframe and not ever feel the excruciating pain of a human being ripped from your-“ He stopped short as the elevator door opened.

Serena was even more beautiful than he’d realized.

“Oh wow, Isabel?” she laughed, stepping out of the elevator and smiling brightly at her.

“Serena, hi,” Isabel said warmly. “It’s been a long time.”

“You’re telling me. Are you-“ she paused, glancing at Isabel’s growing belly with a smile.

Isabel nodded. “In July,” she said, her face glowing with happiness.

“Congratulations! That’s so exciting, you and your husband must be thrilled,” she said, turning to Kyle with a slight look of confusion crossing her face.

“I’m Kyle,” he said quickly, extending his hand. “The friend, not the husband. Or the father,” he quickly added.

“It’s nice to meet you, Kyle,” she said with a smile, returning his handshake. “I didn’t think you looked familiar,” she continued, glancing down as Kyle continued to squeeze her hand.

Isabel cleared her throat and nudged him, snapping him back to reality. “My husband is out of town on business, so Kyle volunteered to come with me for my first Lamaze class,” she explained.

“That’s great, Kyle,” Serena said brightly. “I don’t think many guys would do that.”

“What can I say,” Kyle began modestly. “The miracle of life is such an incredible experience, and I believe we should, you know, embrace every opportunity we have to-“

“Hey, it was really good to see you again,” Isabel interrupted. “We won’t keep you, I’m sure you’ve got patients to see.”

“I do,” Serena admitted, tucking her blonde hair behind her ear. “How are Liz and your brother doing these days?”

“Really good,” Isabel said. “They’re getting married in June, so we’ve all been really busy with the planning and everything.” She nudged Kyle again as he stifled a snicker.

“That’s great,” Serena smiled. “Tell them I said congratulations, okay? I really wish them the best.” She paused, turning to Kyle again. “And it was nice to meet you.”

“My pleasure,” he said quickly.

“And hopefully I’ll be seeing you in few months when you come in to have that baby,” Serena added to Isabel as she started down the hall. “Take care!”

“Definitely, definitely my pleasure,” Kyle said under his breath as he and Isabel started down the elevator.

Isabel rolled her eyes. “Kyle, I can’t thank you enough for coming with me tonight, but remind me to tell Jesse that he is never, ever missing a Lamaze class again. Ever."



*lyrics by John Mayer, Your Body is a Wonderland