Roswell Fanatics

Title: Who You Least Expect

Author: Jason's Lover

Rating: MATURE

Disclaimer: I own nothing though I wish I so desperately did.

Summary: Post Graduation. The entire gang did indeed leave Roswell with Liz leaving her entrusted journal with Mr. Parker. But what happens when the person you least expect does the unthinkable?

A/N: I tried writing a fic before on the AU board and failed horribly...hopefully history doesn't repeat itself when I try again!




*Thanks to Babylisou for the amazing banner...It looks awesome and I love it!


~Liz~

I can't believe it. I really can't. I'm Mrs. Liz Evans. Today marks the happiest day of my life and what makes it even better is that everyone I truly care about was there to witness it. We're all on the run and we probably won't ever step foot in Roswell again but I can't rid this smile off my face if you paid me to. I look at everyone in this cramped van and can't help but think how incredibly lucky I am. I take in everything. Maria and Micheal arguing about which destination we should take. Kyle sleeping on Isabel's lap while she stares out the window. And lastly Max, my beautiful husband with his hand clasped tightly in mine. Looking at his face now, I just know there's nothing in this world that'll ever make me more happier than he does. He's everything I could ever ask for and more. There was a time when I was positive we'd never make it here. We've lied to each other and done things that at the time seemed completely unforgivable. But if it all led me to this moment right here, I'd willingly do them all over again.

There is one regret though. I'll miss him. I already do. I just wish he'd known the truth before all of this. Before he lost me. Giving him that journal was just a way for him to know that I'll always love him. That he'll always be apart of my life wherever I go. I need him to know that more than anything.

My quiet musing must've peaked Max's attention cause now he's gently squeezing my hand to let me know he's watching.

I turn my face to his questioning eyes already knowing what he's going to say. God I love him.

"What's wrong? You have that crease in your forehead and it's a dead give away that your thinking about something."

I give him a small smile still amazed that he knows me so well. I'll never get used to it. I decide to tell him anyway.

"Nothing's wrong. I'm just worried about my dad and how he's handling all of this. I know I left him the journal and all but if I know my dad, he'll still have questions wanting to be answered. I just hope he understands why all of this happened."

I instantly see the guilt flash upon Max's expressive face and instantly know what he's thinking.

"I'm so sorry Liz. I wish things could've been different. Could've been more better for you."

I turn to face him fully and place his hand in mine close to my heart so he'll really listen to me.

"Max, things are already better. More better than I ever thought they could get. We got married today Max. That's all I ever wanted. You're all I ever wanted and now I have you. To me that's all that matters...it's what always did."

He gives me the biggest grin I've ever seen him give and I know my words were exactly what he needed to hear. He takes my face in his hands and kisses me so lightly I almost imagined it.

But it's what he says next that'll never fail to grace me with the warmest feeling I've ever known.

"I love you Liz. Today, tomorrow, and forever. I love you so much."

I smile so brightly I think I might burst.

"I know. I love you too."

Could anything get any better than this???

~~~~~

"Hi. Um, this is Jeff.. Yes sir, Jeff Parker. I think I might have something you guys would like to see. I'll be here waiting. Bye."


TBC....






*Feedback would be greatly appreciated! I love hearing what you guys think. Shall I continue???


Crystal

~Max~

I never thought I'd say this, but I love my life. It's been the roughest road and I'm amazed everyday at how far we've all come. It seems like just yesterday I risked everything to save this woman's life beside me. And now we're husband and wife. She's everything to me. I reckon our lives are about to get more dangerous but right now the bliss I'm feeling can't be dimmed. I'm on cloud nine and it'll take a lightning bolt from heaven to knock me out of it. Or maybe the bickering that's up front in the van will surely do it.

"Why can't we go to California Micheal? It's the epicenter of dreams and celebrities. The place where you can bet on your life that you'll see Brad Pitt in a towel somewhere. Isn't that appealing to you? I sure as hell know it is to me."

"California is nothing but snotty rich people in the Hollywood Hills to stupid to relocate even though it's earthquake territory. I for one don't care to even visit the damn place. And besides, I'm driving. So what I say goes."

"You are the most aggravating individual ever known to man. Oh, well that's the problem...you aren't one."

"Guys could you please reduce the fighting to a minimum?" I try to intervene to keep the peace but really because Liz is asleep in my arms and I'd hate for her to wake up due to this racket.

"Besides, didn't Valenti steer an anonymous tip that we'd be heading through alburqueque? If we decide on anywhere to go, it should be the farthest from there. Up north sounds like the best alternative now. We don't need anyone finding out our location. Especially from home."

"Max is right Micheal." Isabel says after the longest silence I've ever heard my sister endure through our entire existence.

"The farther we are the better." She whispers quietly. She's right. But I think we all hear the underlying message in her tone. It's hard to miss.

"Fine whatever. I get it already. You guys are right and i'm always wrong. It's the story of my life." Micheal says with all the venom he's known for.

I'd like to think it's the long hours we've been on the road ever since leaving home that has him in such a mood but we all know Micheal. Pissy and unadulterated for no apparent reason.

"Micheal there's no need to blow this up into something it's not alright. We're just thinking about our safety here. It's always been about that. I know we've been on the road for hours now and your more than likely exhausted so I understand. We can stop and rest if you like and continue in the morning. Would everyone prefer that actually?"

"Hell yea! I mean Isabel's legs are pretty comfy but the material of her dress is seriously giving me a face rash. God, is all that lace really that necessary?" Kyle says breaking the tension like he always does with that mouth of his.

"Shut up Kyle." Isabel mutters with a tiny smile on her face. The first I've seen since we left.

"I second with Kyle, Max. We're all beat and you guys need some privacy for your first big night as man and wife. I can't wait to hear how that goes in the morning by the way." Maria smiles smugly noticing the redness that's suddenly become my skin color.

"Maria please. That's the last thing I wanna know about." Isabel says while shuddering as if the very thought is so repulsing.

"Ok enough about...that. So everyone agrees?" I look around and recieve nods from everyone.

"Great. Micheal how far is the next exit?"

"About 5 miles."

"Okay, everyone get ready for their first night on their own." I say apprehensively.

Everybody moans and groans as I expect. They're all here out of choice, but I can't help the guilt for dragging them down this road. If only I had made better choices... wiser decisions and maybe we'd all be safe again. I can't regret it though.

As Liz stretches and yawns lightly, sitting up straight and looking up to me with a smile on her face, I realize right there why I can't have any remorse. I know all the reasons why I won't wish things were different. It's because of her. To see her everyday and be able to call her my wife means more than anything in this world and any other. It makes it all bearable.

"Are we stopping soon?" She whispers. Her voice husky from the remnants of her nap.

I gently remove her hair from out of her face and rub my thumb against her bottom lip before replying.

"Yea in a little while. Micheal's gonna find an exit so we can get a hotel or something. Everyone's cranky and tired." I whisper back.

She kisses the palm of my hand and I smile gently at her. She's so beautiful I can hardly breathe sometimes.

"Yea I can tell. When Micheal and Maria stops bickering for at least a nanosecond, then something's definitely up." She says with a little chuckle.

"I agree completely."

"I can't wait to be alone with you Max. I need you closer than this van could ever allow." She says with need.

Her words echo my feelings exactly and I'm almost tempted to damn everyone in this vehicle and show her what I so desperately wanna do.

We've only made love once. On her balcony right after I proposed. It was everything I knew it would be. Passionate, sensual and just amazing. We didn't have any awkward moments and that's what I loved about it the most. It came naturally and I enjoyed it immensely. I know she did too. I can feel it. Even now I know she's thinking about it.

"I wanna be alone with you too Liz. You have no idea how bad." I say right back to her with the same raw need.

She looks deep into my eyes and I'm sure she sees the same desire in mine. She kisses me then. Slow and thoroughly. God I needed that.

"God, save it for the hotel you nymphos. As if you guys weren't bad enough before you eloped. Now we're expected to see some porn at every turn our head makes. It's disgusting." He says mockingly.

"Shut up Kyle!." We all scream. Some things never change.



~~~~~~

"So what are you trying to tell me here Jeff? That my daughter ran away with aliens?" Amy Deluca shrieks loudly.

"That's exactly what I'm saying. Look I don't agree with this anymore than you do okay. Infact I can't believe Lizzie would do something like this." Jeff says angrily.

"She lied to her mother and I. And all because of that damn Max Evans. I always knew that boy was trouble."

"Now wait just a minute there Jeff." Philip speaks up clutching his wife's hand in his own.

"Max isn't responsible here. All he's ever done was love your daughter and try to keep everyone safe. He didn't choose the cards. He just had to deal with them. What's important now is making sure no one knows where they are or where they're heading to. Now we return the favor. We keep them safe."

"So they're never coming home again?" Amy asks almost to tears.

"I don't believe so Amy. I'm sorry." Valenti walks over to comfort her.

"God, this is so unbelievable. My baby's gone and I'll never see her again. What are they gonna do? Travel the entire west coast like nomads until they find what they're out there for?" Amy says indifferently.

"It doesn't make any sense."

"Look Amy, I know this is all hard to believe and trust me when I say that Diane and I were shell shocked too when we learned of all this. It isn't easy to comprehend and we get that. We can't focus on it. We need to move on like they have. They couldn't have stayed here any longer. Some things happened. Horrible things that..."

"We already know about the damn horrible things that happened Philip. It's all in here." Jeff says holding up Liz's Journal.

"Now I don't know about you but I can't except that. I won't except it. This shouldn't have happened and I'll be damned if I have to live with it." Jeff says angrily.

"What would you have prefered? To let Liz die? Because incase you forgot, Max saved her life." Philip replied.

"I don't give a damn about what heroic act your son seemed to have committed. All I know is that he's turned my life upside down and I won't stand for it. Not while I have life in me."

"What are you trying to say Jeff?" Diane speaks finally. "Liz made it clear what she wants done with that journal after we all knew the truth. You should respect that and remember that those are our children out there."

"Well Liz isn't here, now is she?" Jeff says back sneerily.

"I swear if you bring harm to them in any way, you'll personally be seeing me a lot more closer." Philip says threatingly.

"Now wait a second here guys. Just calm down." Valenti says getting in between them. "I'm sure Jeff didn't mean it that way. We all just need to go home, rethink everything and come up with something logical. There's no need for a confrontation."

"Come on Amy. I'll give you a ride home." Valenti steers her away.

Philip relaxes his stance and assists Diane walking to the door. He turns at the last minute and says warningly.

"Don't do anything you'll regret Jeff. We all depend on it."

As the door shuts behind them, Jeff mutters under his breath "You'll regret it, but i definitely won't."



TBC.....


Crystal

~Liz~

God does it feel good to stretch. Cramped in a van for over four hours with five other people isn't the best idea of a road trip but we make do. After much debating, we finally agreed on stopping somewhere near Colorado. A mediocre hotel called "The Restees". It's not the Marriot or something and the name is more than cheesy but it's better than nothing. I just wanna get into our room and take a nice bath and then relax with my wonderful husband. Well, maybe not really relaxing....just the way we know how.

"So how many rooms are we getting?" Micheal asks definitively.

"Umm, three. Mine and Liz's obviously, one for you and Kyle and the other for Maria and Isabel. Is that alright with you?" Max says with a raised eyebrow.

"Absolutely not." Micheal replies.

"Come on Max. I'm dead tired here. The last thing I need is Kyle and his lame jokes when i'm trying to catch some shut eye. It's not gonna happen so switch me with someone else." He says like it's the final word.

"Excuse me, but I didn't exactly sign up to be your lovely roomate either for the night. Your loud ass snoring is bound to keep me awake and Buddhists such as myself derive all our knowledge from the duration of rest we acquire. In fact..."

"Kyle, please...not tonight." I say wearily.

"Look guys can you please just compromise this once and try to be civil. It's one night and we'll be out of here tomorrow. I'm begging you." I plead hoping it would work.

They finally relent and it's apparent when Micheal finally walks off with the room key and Kyle in tow grumbling all the way.

Maria pulls me to the side for some chatting. It's a shame though. Because I already know what she's going to ask.

"So Liz, tonight's the night. Are you nervous?" She whispers giddily.

I roll my eyes and decide to divulge a little bit of info to put her at ease. She doesn't know about last night. Max and I making love for the first time. If she did, she'd totally be hounding me.

"I could never be nervous with Max, Maria. I'm looking forward to it. To everything from this point on." I say dreamily.

She sighs right along with me and it's all I could manage to not laugh at her.

"Well, have fun. And I want details in the morning. No rubbish about how it's private and sacred and blah blah blah. I want to know it all." She says excitedly.

Before I could even voice my objection, Isabel breaks in and interrupts us.

"Maria can we go now? I'm really tired and you can always ask Liz about her sex life later. Is that fine with you?" She says impatiently.

"Okay, Gees. You'd think I was her bitch." She mutters under her breathe as she walks away.

I laugh at loud at that as Max finally comes over from paying for the rooms and wraps a loving arm around my waist.

"You ready to go?" He whispers in my ear. His breathe deliciously tickling the side of my face.

I turn in his arms and kiss him so gently before replying. "I'm always ready."

He grins that sexy smile that I love so much and lifts me into his strong arms.

"In that case, I hear a king sized bed calling our names. Infact, I hope that's not all I hear calling out a name tonight." He says seductively.

"You'll hear a lot more." I say wickedly.

Max walks purposely to our room and closes the door behind us with his leg. He walks me to the bed and places me gently in the middle of it. He follows me down and looks deeply into my eyes before speaking.

"Let me love you Liz. That's all I ever want to do." He says earnestly.

"Yes Max. Please." I reply pleadingly.

And he did love me. We swiftly undressed and he layed back down on top of me and kissed me so passionately my breathe got caught in my throat. He followed his kisses all the way down past my chin. Towards my neck and finally to my aching nipples. I pulled his head closer as if he'd ever stop and moaned out his name.

He looked up at the sound of his name and moved lower to where I needed him the most. The first touch of Max's tongue on the most feminine part of my body totally sent me out of control. He couldn't do it fast enough. Get deep enough. I finally pulled him up when it became too much.

Flipping him under me proved to be the most powerful thing I've ever done. Just to see his face so marred with passion and to feel his fingers digging into my hips was all the confirmation that I needed.

"Liz please. I need you now." He says shallowly.

I gently take his hardness into my hand and stroke him steadily getting the reaction I so desired. I raise up slightly and then sink myself onto his erection. We both groan our mutual satisfaction as I start to move myself over him.

Feeling Max inside me has to be the most amazing feeling in the world. With this being only the second time we're together like this, it's like he's always made to be here. To fill me up.

His panting starts to get louder and I know that he's close. I move my hips faster while I brace my hands on the sides of his head.

I throw back my head as his thrusts upward gets harder. Moaning out his name, his fingers eases down between our gyrating bodies and rubs my center repeatedly.

My climax springs on me hard and I can feel Max emptying inside me. We continue to move against one another as our climax rides out.

I slump down on his chest and he wraps his arms tightly around me. It's a long time before we can even speak but what he says is totally what I didn't expect for him to mention after what we just did.

"Liz, you think your dad can keep our secret safe?" He says wonderingly.

I look up at him with the most confused look I can muster. I was getting ready to tease him about actually bringing up my dad after we just made love but the furrow between his eyes tells me that he's seriously asking.

"Max of course he can. I know you and my dad have never really been the best of friends over the years but I know him. He's trustworthy and loyal. He'd never do anything to jeopardize us. Do you trust me?" I question watching his face closely.

He looks at me cautiously and answers in the same manner.

"I do trust you Liz. More than anyone else. It's just hard for me. You know, to let more people into this...into this chaos and constant fear everytime you turn around. I just don't want him to hate me for it. To resent me for loving you so much." He finishes looking up into my eyes.

"He won't Max. I promise you. Just trust me okay?" I say soothingly as I kiss his chest.

"Okay." It's the last words we utter before falling into the most peaceful sleep we've ever had.


~~~~~~

"Mr. Parker, how do you know all of this?"

"It's all in here. Just take it. Read everything."

"And what is it that you want in return for this? Certainly this isn't all done out of the goodness of your heart, now is it?"

"No it isn't. Just bring her back to me. Do whatever you can. I don't care about anything or anyone else. Just her. You understand?"

"Sure Mr. Parker, but we'll need a lead. A clue to where she is now won't we? What else do you know?"

"Start with what you have and I'll make sure you get your lead. I'll find out everything you'll need to know. I'll just have to make a call to a former sheriff."

"Are you certain he knows all the details?"

"I'm certain alright. I'm damn certain."

"Alright Mr. Parker. Do what you have to. I'll be back tomorrow evening. Not a word of this to anyone, understood?"

"Of course Agent Stevens. You have my word."




TBC......


Crystal

"Hey Jeff, what can I do for you?"

"I just wanted to talk. Get a few things out in the open. Apologize for some things I might've said the other night...you know?"

"Yea, I think we all got a little worked up over the entire situation."

"Everyone but you for some reason. Why's that Jim?"

"To tell you the truth Jeff, I just can't anymore. It won't solve anything. I've learned that the hard way. They've all been dealing with this a lot longer than you could ever imagine. And so have I. I'll miss my son...I already do but this is what he chose to do and I have to respect that. I think that you should as well."

"Jim, that's my daughter out there. My only little girl and she's out there with that boy doing god knows what. How am I supposed to just let her go? How can I do that and I'm supposed to protect her?"

"She doesn't need your protection anymore Jeff. She hasn't for a long time now. When Max saved her life, he changed her. He changed her for the better and I think we all realize that now. Don't you see Jeff? She already decided since that day. All we can do is hope that their okay and try our best to cope with what's happening. It's the only choice we have now."

"No, it isn't. We can help them. Isn't that what you and Philip have been kindly drilling into my ears for the past two weeks now? Well, I wanna help. If my daughter is going to go down that road then I need to do everything I can to make sure she's safe. But first, I need you to tell me everything that you know Jim. All the things left out in the dark....all the things that Liz didn't document in that journal."

"Okay. What do you wanna know exactly?"

"Everything."


~~~~~~~~

~Max~

We're back on the road again and this time I'm driving. We just exited the border of Colorado on our way north. North to Nevada. And from there, California. I've been there before and to tell you the truth, Micheal's absolutely right about the place. It's an abundance of much too rich individuals succombed to the lifestyle of having everything they desire at their fingertips. It isn't my ideal location to settle down in but it's the safest and that's what matters. We have a protector there and regardless of how much he despises me, he'll do his job. I witnessed that first hand on my last visit.

Everyone's completely wiped out in the back. Even Liz in the passenger seat is dead to the world for as long as she tried to stay awake. They're all sleeping except for Isabel. She's taken to staring out the window. More like she's looking for something. Or perhaps someone. We haven't spoken about Jesse or anything pertaining to him since we left home two days ago. I can't imagine what she must be going through. Leaving the love of your life behind with no way of possibly knowing if you'll ever see them again. I see it in her eyes everyday how much she's fading away. She's here with us physically in this van but emotionally, she's somewhere else. I've been meaning to talk to her but I don't know what the hell to say. I'm afraid of saying all the wrong things and pissing her off or maybe saying all the right things and giving her false hope. Either way I have to get her to open up or she'll never be the Isabel I've always known as my sister.

Taking a much needed deep breathe and looking around to make sure that everyone is indeed asleep, I forge ahead with something to start off any type of communication with her. Anything to make her talk.

"Hey Isabel, it's fine if you wanna....I mean, it would be okay if you wanna sleep a little. I'm okay up here and i'm not really much company either way." I say to try to get her to break a little smile. She doesn't.

"I can't sleep Max. I'll never sleep again." She says so brokenly that everything I was prepared to say just flew out the window.

"Isabel, you can't do this to yourself. You can't." I whisper beggingly.

She finally tears her gaze away from the window to look at me before replying.

"Why not? I have nothing left to keep going for Max. Nothing. I don't know what the hell I'm doing here anymore. What's my purpose now Max? Jesse's all I had and I had to leave him behind too. I loved him, you know? I loved him so much and now he's nothing but a memory that I have to hold on to when i'm feeling sad or angry or just completely useless. Well you know what Max? I'm all of those things right now and that memory does nothing to ease the pain. So you tell me then. Please tell me Max. What can I not do that's already been done. Tell me and I'll do it."

I can't reply and partly because I didn't expect her to tell me all that she did but mostly because I'm shaken at what she did reveal. I calculate my thoughts before answering her and pray to god that she doesn't fall deeper than she apparently has.

"Your right Isabel. You are. I don't know what to tell you or how to ease your pain. I'd like to think that I can but the fact is, I can't. I can't help you. Your my sister and I can't help you. That kills me more than you'll ever know. I just... I can't bear to see you like this Isabel. None of us can. I can't speak for everyone here but I can speak for me and I'm telling you Isabel that you can't do this to yourself. What would Jesse say if you saw you now?"

She looks away from me then and I can tell that my mentioning of his name really affects her. It doesn't deter me from what I need to say to her. It's too important.

"I've been watching you Isabel. Everyday since we left home and the person I see you becoming scares me. Your quiet all the time. Your moody and when you do utter a word it's to snap at someone. I'm not saying the way you're acting isn't justified but it can't continue. It's not you. It's not who you are and the last thing I'd ever want to see is someone I care about so much destroy themself. Especially you Isabel. You're my sister and I love you. Please remember that even when it seems like everything else around you is starting to fade. That won't."

She's still looking out the window now and it's really difficult to see if she's crying or not. Or if she was even listening to me. She shakes her head as if she's convincing herself of something and then turns to look at me eventually.

Her eyes are bright with tears she refuses to cry and I just know how hard this all is for her. I also know that I just said everything she needed to hear.

"I know Max. I know. But this isn't easy for me either. I need time. I just need time for all of it to sink in and to be by myself. It's nothing personal. It's just me and I won't put everyone in this. I don't expect you to either." She says warningly and I know what she means. She doesn't want anyone to know about what we just discussed. I nod my head and she faces towards the window again.

A squeeze to my hand alerts me to the fact that atleast one person will know about what was just said. I turn to my right and see Liz looking at me with a sympathetic look on her face. I gently squeeze her hand in response and I know she understands. She always does.

I hope Isabel can come around eventually. I need her. We all do. I don't know why, but I have the strangest feeling that something unthinkable is about to happen. Something that I can't control.

~~~~~~~~

"Did you get all the information Mr. Parker? Did he tell you everything?"

"He told me everything. Everything that matters anyway. He gave me all the files and anything written. Details to things he couldn't explain. It's all here. Take it and find her. Bring her back to me unharmed."

"Excellent job Mr. Parker. You won't regret this. I assure you."




TBC......


Crystal

~Liz~

We've stopped somewhere in Vegas now. Some local diner to find some dinner. Vegas is full of places like these and the varieties are endless. Like always, we had to all agree on where to eat and which place would be safest. For something so trivial as deciding where you want to eat, we put a lot of thought into it. There's so many things to consider. Like which places are too crowded or which towns we won't attract the most attention in seeing as we're six teenagers driving along the west coast for days upon end. It's all very tricky but we haven't had any close calls as yet. Everything's going according to plan and I couldn't be more happier.

Kyle's currently yakking Isabel's ear off about all the meals on the menu buddhists despise while she pretends to look interested. Micheal and Maria are oddly enough having a quiet civilized conversation in the far corner whispering hushed words to one another. And Max is sitting in front of me staring at something unseeing. He's got that worried look in his eyes and I just know that something's bothering him. I don't wanna disturb him but it's my duty to ask. I am his wife after all.

"Max...Max, what's wrong?" I ask worriedly.

He finally clears his head and looks at me trying to guard his previous expression of worry. The simple fact that he's trying to hide anything from me at all makes me even more nervous.

"Nothing...nothing's wrong. I'm just... tired I guess. Didn't get much sleep." He says nonchalantly.

He's looking everywhere but at me and I know he's lying. "Max, please just tell me what's going on. Don't lie to me and say it's nothing. It's obviously something." I say quickly getting upset.

He sees my demeanor change and sighs heavily. "I'm sorry Liz. I just...i didn't wanna worry you okay? We've got a lot going on and the last thing you need is to get worked up about something."

My expression changes to one of concern and I reach for his hands across the table.

"Max don't spare me alright. You and I...we're a unit and if something's bothering you, I wanna know about it. I wanna help you like I know you'd help me." I say looking into eyes. He nods his head with a rueful smile on his face and then turns serious again. He's going to tell me what's wrong.

"Liz...I..I have this really bad feeling." He whispers.

"What kind of bad feeling?"

"Like something's going to happen. Something terrible that we can't explain nor can we stop. I just....I don't know what it is or if i'm just paranoid for no apparent reason or what, but it's there." He finishes as if he's scared to.

He looks up at me then to guage my reaction and I'm sure he sees my expression.

"Liz, look it's probably nothing. Maybe I'm just reading too much into this."

"Who are you trying to convince Max? Me or yourself?" I say decisively and he looks down at the table before speaking.

"Liz, your my wife and it's my job to protect you. To protect everyone here. I don't even know if I believe it myself."

"I believe you Max. When in your entire life have you ever felt something so strongly and doubted it? You didn't then and you shouldn't now. What we need to focus on now is what to do." I say determinedly.

"I don't know what to do. It's not like I'm getting flashes or like one of your premonitions. It's just a feeling....a strong feeling and I...how do we prepare for something if we don't even know what it is."

"What have we always done Max? We played it safe and trusted no one but each other. The same thing applies now. It hasn't failed us yet. I don't think it ever will." I say with quiet reassurance.

He looks at me with all the love and adoration he can muster and leans across the table to kiss me so softly.

"I...I don't know what I'd do without you. You always know the right things to say and you just....you make everything better." He says earnestly.

I grin at him so coyly and lean in so he can really hear me. "I'll make it even more better tonight." I whisper seductively and pull back to see his expression.

His surprise is easily shown and I laugh at how cute he looks when he's flustered. He clears his throat and replies steadily "I bet you will."

I chuckle a bit more and tug on his hands as we begin to stand.

"Come on, let's tell the others."




~Max~


"So what are you saying here Maxwell? That someone's coming to get us?" Micheal demands impatiently.

"I don't know Micheal. Maybe, maybe not. All I know is that we need to be extra careful." I say direly.

"I can't believe this." Maria says worriedly. "I thought this was what we were running away from in Roswell. And yet here we are dealing with this same crap all over again. Can't we ever catch a damn break?"

"No, we can't and I'm sorry about that. About everything....." I say guiltily.

"Max, that's not what I meant okay. It's just not so please stop." Maria says reprimanding me for my words.

"So what do we do?" Isabel speaks up. " I mean do we just continue on with this escapade or do we actually find out some answers?"

"I don't know."

"Well, that's not good enough Max. Your the damn leader right? So lead!" Micheal says angrily. Before I can retort, Liz steps up and does it for me.

"Micheal, just back off alright. He's doing his best and that's all he can offer right now. We don't know what this something is and until we do we have to stick together. That means no fingerpointing and most importantly we can't argue with one another. As you can see it's not helping."

"She's right." Kyle says from somewhere in the back. "If something's about to go down, the more tight we are the better cos I for one am too young to die."

"No one's dying. Not if I can help it." I say looking at everyone. Liz takes my hand tightly in hers to offer her support.

"So, what's next?" Micheal asks. His ire finally deflating.

I look at him head on and I see that he's just as scared as I am. Only he has a different way of showing it.

"I think...that maybe the reason I'm unable to know exactly what's going to happen is because I don't have a connection to whatever it is. It's not alien and therefore I can't identify it. None of us can." I say looking pointedly at Micheal, Isabel and Liz.

"Oh I get it." Maria says candidly. "You healed Liz. She's changed and Micheal and Isabel are your kind and...it makes total sense."

"But he healed me too." Kyle says wonderingly. "I can't believe i'm about to even utter this, but why aren't I included in this little alien tryst of secret powers?"

"I healed you a year after I did Liz. Your not due to start showing any signs of changing until maybe in a couple months. Your normal, for now."

"Hey guys, sorry to break up the club meeting, but we're getting off topic here. If the invisible threat after us isn't alien, then what the hell is it?" Micheal says with apprehension.

"It's what it always has been Micheal....it's human."








TBC......


Crystal

*Hey guys thanks for all the amazing f/b. I was really nervous with the response I would recieve on this fic and i'm ecstatic to see how wrong I was so thanks! Anyway, this part continues directly from the previous post. It's also slightly longer as well.


~Liz~

"So when you say human, you mean what exactly?" Kyle ponders out loud.

"I mean the FBI." Max says with no preliminaries.

"The FBI Max? Are you sure?" Isabel asks worriedly.

I can tell he doesn't want to upset anyone further but he doesn't wanna lie either.

"What else could it be Iz? It wouldn't be the first time they're after us. I'm not trying to grasp onto loose straws here and completely jump the gun but this is something I can't ignore. I feel it inside me. Something's wrong and we have to find out what it is."

"That's gonna be pretty damn hard to do Maxwell without any clues don't you think?" Micheal points out. "I mean where do we even start?"

Max looks away from him then and I know that he has some idea as to where he'd like to begin. I know that he has a plan. One that he hasn't shared with any of us. It's written all over his face. It doesn't go unnoticed by Micheal either.

"Spit it out Max. This is not the time to play hide and seek with the information. If you know something then just say it."

Max nods his head solemnly before replying. "Maybe we could go home....home to Roswell."

Everyone whips their heads up at that comment to regard him with wary expressions. As expected, Micheal retorts first.

"Have you lost your fucking mind?" Micheal explodes. "We can't go back. If it's the FBI that's after us, why would we go all the way home to hand ourselves over to them. That's fucking crazy Max. Come up with something else. Something less likely to get us all killed."

"He's right Max." Maria says quietly. "It doesn't make any sense."

Max looks over to me then before replying. The expression in his eyes tells me that what he's about to say may be relevant to me.

"Will you just think about it for a minute? If the FBI's looking for us, the first place or rather the first thing they'll do is interrogate our families to find out where we are. Who knows what they'll do to them and i don't wanna take the chance. We brought them into this....their in danger because of us and we can't forget that. We have to go back. For their sake."

"And what would that accomplish Max?" Micheal persists. "The only way they'll be in danger is if the FBI discovers the entire truth and decides to take it out on them because they can't get to us."

"Exactly Micheal. That's why we need to go back. They know the truth for some reason and we need to find out how." Max says wearily.

"But how could they have found out so soon?" Maria interrupts. "Everyone that knows the truth is standing right here...well except Valenti, but he'd never say anything."

"Not everyone Maria." Max says pointedly.

I get his point and so does everyone else as they all turn to look at me.

"You guys can't be serious?" I say shockingly. "My journal was left in the possession of my father alright, he would never even attempt that. And besides I told him what to do with it after he read everything...it's probably burned to a crisp now."

"How do we know that?" Micheal says voicing everyone's concern. "For all we know that journal's in the hands of the FBI as we speak."

"It would add up to why their after us right now." Isabel says out loud.

I can't believe that they would even consider my father as a possible reason for why all of this is happening. I tell them just that.

"NO! Don't stand there and tell me that your blaming my father. I won't accept that. Don't stand there and tell me that it's my fault we're being chased by the FBI. We were always being chased. What makes it so different now?" I sputter out angrily.

Max takes a step towards me and I take a step back beyond pissed that he of all people would even entertain the idea.

"Liz, no one's blaming you....no one's blaming your dad either. We're just considering the possiblities. We can't rule anything out until we know the truth. We have to look at everything as a factor. That's all." Max finishes quietly.

"That's not a factor Max...it's called having an unjustified assumption." I reply still ticked off.

"Liz just think about it will you?" Isabel speaks up from behind. "Your father never was that fond of Max in the first place. Even less now that he knows you married him."

"So why not your folks then?" I challenge back. "Why are we so fixed upon mine?"

"Liz please, don't do this. Don't turn this into a war between us. Between me and you." He begs desperately.

I look at him then and feel just the tiniest bit of my anger recede. I'm still heated but atleast I'm somewhat cooperative now. He must notice the change because he immediately comes to my side and pulls me up against him. I don't pull away. I never could.

"So where do we go from here?" Kyle says resigned with the argument.

Max tears his gaze away from mine now and looks to Kyle to answer him.

"We go home." He says simply.

"That's a day and half worth of driving Max. And I reckon we won't be making any pit stops as well." Maria complains.

"Probably not." Max says with regret.

"This plan totally sucks Max." Micheal says with vigor. "It's entirely stupid and I can't believe i'm about to even go along with the damn thing."

"We don't have a choice Micheal." Max replies still holding me close.

"So when do we ship out?" I finally say with my words slightly muffled due to my face being buried in Max's chest. " Do we call them first to let them know we're coming home or do we just show up?"

"We show up...no one needs to anything until we're there." He says above my head rubbing his hand back and forth over my back. I hold him tighter. "And we leave just after midnight. It's less traffic and no one will suspect anything. Agreed?" He looks around to see everyone nod their heads.

"Okay, so we relax a little....eat or sleep, whichever. We've got a couple hours to kill before we're back on the road." He says tiredly.

We all return to our tables at the diner and sit quietly thinking about the task that lies before us.

It's like the calm before the storm....In some ways, I think it just might be.




TBC......

Crystal

*The song that Jeff is singing in this part are all my words....it's an original song I wrote strictly for this chapter and yeah, it's what I do on the side...I write songs!!!

"If Only She knew"

If only she knew
how much I love her
if only she knew
how I'm so much better
when she's around
I don't hear a sound
the world is a stranger
till' she's out of town

If only she knew
that she was my reason
if only she knew
she's all I believed in
the thought of her smile
I'd travel for miles
just to feel her heart beating
to know she's alive

If only she knew just
how much I cared
she seemed to deny me
didn't know I was there

I love that girl
i love her so
and wherever she is
i know she glows

If only she knew
how much i love her
if only she knew
she'd be here in my arms


"That's a great song there Jeff...did you write it yourself?"

"Oh geez, you nearly gave me a heart attack."

"I apologize. I didn't mean to startle you.... but really that was a sight to have witnessed. I didn't even know you played guitar, much less sing."

"I haven't done so in a while. It just felt like a day to reminisce...what are you doing here Philip?"

"I was just in the neighborhood. Thought I'd stop by....haven't heard from you in a couple days. You okay?"

"Didn't know you cared....much less to ask me."

"I'm trying to do the right thing here Jeff. With our kids out there, all we have left are each other. I'm not your enemy....I never was."

"Well when I need your support Philip, I'll be sure to call you."

"Suit yourself Jeff. Jim stopped by the other night. Told me he gave you all the details about the kids and everything...How do you feel about it? Knowing the complete truth now?"

"And here I was thinking that you were here all concerned about me?
I know you Philip. I know that you and everyone else don't give a damn about me and what I'm feeling so just save me the pity party."

"That's not true Jeff. Far from it. Infact If you should know, I was sent here by Diane and Amy and Valenti. We're all worried about you. I know personally all the things I was feeling and questioned when I found out the truth. It was hard to believe and certainly a shocker but I overcame that all when I realized the bigger picture. You just seem to have the most difficulty achieving that same conclusion. All I'm saying is that I hope you don't do anything irrational because you don't understand this. It would be wise not to."

"No worries Philip. I'm handling it the best way I know how. I'm maintaining my composure to the best of my ability all by my damn self. It's the least of your concern."

"How exactly are you going about doing that?"

"By telling the truth."

~~~~~~~~

~Max~

Roswell. Thirty six miles ahead. I know I was the one that proposed the idea but forgive me if I'm feeling a little nervous. As much as I wanna see my parents, I know they'll have so many questions that I more than likely don't feel like answering. Questions about me and Liz...about why we're home or why we left in the first place. We didn't exactly give them an explanation before departing. If it's any consolation, I guess I'm relieved to be able to finally answer any question they may have without lying to them. That was always the hardest part of keeping this secret from them. Well that and putting them in danger. I hope it never comes to that. Where I'll regret for the rest of my existence ever letting them know. That's why we have to go back. It's detrimental that we do.

Liz and I talked long last night in bed about everything. All the things that led us here. Why she got so upset last night when we mentioned her Dad's name and why she doesn't wanna acknowledge it. We even talked about going home and what that would mean for us...more specifically, she and I. It doesn't matter what anyone thinks though. She's my wife and I love her more than life itself. She means everything to me and to be able to go home and present her as my partner forever infront of my family is something I've been wanting to do since I first laid eyes on her. I told her just that and that's all I got to say before she mauled me. We made love then and fell immediately asleep fully aware of what laid ahead the next day.

She's in the back talking to Maria now. I assume they're gossiping about me as usual. I don't mean to be nosy but when you keep hearing your name being mentioned and then girlish giggling afterwards, you'd wanna listen up too.

"Hey Max, would you concentrate on the road? You almost ran into the oncoming traffic on the opposite side." Micheal says from the passenger seat beside me munching on some sunflower seeds. Why is he up here again?

"I am concentrating. You're distracting me." I say avidly.

"I'm distracting you? What's distracting you is a certain chick in the back who shall remain nameless at this point. It's not like you don't know who I'm talking about anyway. You'd think marrying her would reduce the day dreaming and fantasizing. Guess not." He says spitting the shells outside the window.

"Shut up Micheal."

"Now I have to shut up. Hate hearing the truth don't you Maxwell?" He replies smugly.

"Hey Captain Kirk and Spock, how many more miles before we're home?" Kyle interrupts from the back.

Rolling my eyes, I answer him eventually when I really didn't want to. "Twenty five miles."

"God, my mom is gonna freak out." Maria says after hearing my revelation. "I ran off with no goodbye....and with aliens no less. I'll be lucky if she doesn't lock me up in my room for the rest of my life."

"I second that." Liz says laughingly. "I'm bound to hear some lecturing from my dad when I get home. My mom's away on some trip for god knows what but I'm sure she's heard of the news. But I know that Max has got my back. Right Max?" She says and then proceeds to place her face on my shoulder from her seat behnd me to observe my face.

I face her briefly and kiss her nose before replying."Do I really have a choice?" I say with humor in my tone.

She looks appalled for a minute before she realizes I'm joking. "You better be kidding Max Evans."

I smile at her expression before I answer her."Don't worry love. I've got you." She grins at that and plants one big kiss on my lips.

"God, enough with the sucking face already. It's enough to make me wanna gag." Kyle says with a strained expression on his face.

"Bite me Valenti." Liz retorts after she's settled back down in her seat.

"I personally can't wait to get back though." Kyle continues with excitement in his tone. "I'd never thought I'd say this but I miss my home and my dad. And of course my buddha statue."

"Kyle, you utter one more word about buddha for the rest of the drive and I'll turn it into a tomato when we get there. Got it?" Isabel says with mock seriousness.

"Yes Ma'am." Kyle sputters obediently like a child.

"Chill out Iz. And don't pretend like you're unexcited to go home either. It's painfully obvious how much you wanna see Jesse." Micheal says casually.

Isabel drops her gaze before replying the whispered words. "I'm not even sure if he's there anymore. He's probably in Boston...far away from here and me." She finishes quietly.

Liz goes over to her and says reassuringly. "You don't know that for sure Isabel. He just might be there waiting for you. He didn't give up and neither should you."

Isabel nods her head thankfully at her words and I hope she listens to them carefully. She needs to come alive again. I know Jesse can do it for her. I hope he's there waiting for her as well.

"We're almost there guys so brace yourselves." I break the silence.

It was nice to forget about the trouble that lay ahead if even for a little while. Something tells me it won't last. I hope we can handle it.



TBC....


Crystal

"This is unbelievable. I can't understand why'd he'd do something like this. What did you do when he told you what he did?"

"I couldn't even think much more to do anything. I just had to get outta there and tell everyone else. What are we gonna do? Their in danger....out there all by themselves and us knowing what we know can't just sit back and let it happen. I wish there was a way for us to contact Max or something. God...this is just a nightmare."

"Don't worry Philip. We'll figure something out."

"How Diane? How do we contend with the FBI? All this time I thought Max and the others were participating in some kind of illegal activity when all along they were dealing with this mess. This is all so foreign to us. I don't know the first step to take."

"God, I'm so sorry Philip. If only I'd known that Jeff would've taken all the information I gave him and hand it over to the FBI I wouldn't have even bothered. I should've seen this happening. He never really took the news well. I just figured he needed more facts before he accepted it all. I screwed up completely and I'm sorry."

"It's not your fault Jim. No one's to blame for Jeff's stupidity but himself."

"So what do we do? We can't let this pan out. It'll be dangerous not just for the kids but for us too. We're apart of it now and I'm certain they're aware of it."

"I guess I could call a few of my law buddies and ask them to track down a group of teenagers. Or maybe I could call around about some advice on what the FBI is capable of. I'm not sure it'll be enough but it's better than nothing."

"I'm so worried Jim. My daughter's out there and her friends....what if they get hurt or worse...I'll never forgive Jeff for this."

"I know Amy, I know...but we'll figure this out....together. I promise you."

"Your welcome to stay here for the night. It's late and I know Philip and myself would love the company."

"Sure. We'd like that."

Ding Dong

"Who the hell could that be in the middle of the night?"

"Philip, you think it's Jeff or maybe the FBI?"

"I don't know. Jim, can I borrow your pistol? We need all the protection we can get."

"Sure. Just be careful with it."

Slowly walking to the door, Philip raised the pistol in his hand prepared to fire with his other hand opening the door.

"Who's there?"

"Oh My God....Max, Izzy?"


~~~~~~~~

~Liz~

The astonishment on their faces would've been almost funny if Mr. Evans wasn't still pointing a pistol at us. Max protectively pushed me behind him while holding one hand in the air alerting them to the fact that he's no danger. The staring between the two lasted all but a second before Mr. Evans dropped the pistol and engulfed Max into the biggest hug i've ever known him to give. Diane running to the door repeated the same action as she took Isabel into her arms. So did Amy and Valenti with Kyle and Maria. Micheal and I were left there standing awkward waiting for the reunion to be over so we could finally get inside the house.

Eventually we all sat down after the disbelief that we were home resided and the need to inform them about what's about to happen became more necessary. Max took a deep breathe and started with what we did after leaving Roswell. This was gonna be a long night.

"Mom, Dad....before we tell you why we've come back home, I need to say something first. Something about Liz and I."

"What is it Max?" Diane asks curiously.

Max looks to me to see if i'm ready for this and I give him a small nod and take his hand gently in mine.

"Well, Liz and I.....we umm.....we got married." He says finally after his hesitation.

"Married?" Diane repeats slowly. "As in husband and wife married?"

"Yeah Mom." Max says with dread in his tone. He quickly continues before they said anything else. " I know you may not agree with this and you probably think we're too young but that doesn't matter. I love Liz and I want to be with her forever. She feels the same way."

Diane looks utterly surprised while Philip on the other hand doesn't really seem to be shocked at all. Something about his expression says he expected this all along.

"Max I can't say I'm fully behind your decision but I accept it. Liz is a wonderful girl and I'm honored for her to be apart of the family. Congratulations son." Philip says and I can tell he means it with all honesty.

"Thanks Dad." Max says gratefully releasing the breath he had been holding. "And Mom, what about you?"

"Oh Max. I can't believe my baby boy is married. I'm so happy for the both of you." She looks to me and smiles happily. "Welcome to the family Liz."

"Thank you Mrs. Evans." I say with a slight hint of a blush staining my cheeks. I hate to be the center of attention.

"Now on to why we're here." Micheal says rudely. Not much for the subtle way but of course we're all fully aware of that.

"We think the FBI is on our trail and we had to come home to see if you guys were okay." Isabel says hurriedly with tears in her eyes.

"The FBI?" Diane repeats with fear. The parents all look around at one another with a hint of suspiciousness in their eyes and it's painfully obvious that they expected this. But how?

"You guys already knew didn't you?" Max says with certainty."How?"

"Your right Max. We did know." Philip whispers almost as if he didn't wanna tell us.

"How Dad?" Isabel says with a frown on her face."Tell us what's going on?"

Diane looks to me with a sympathetic sorrowful expression in her eyes and I'm clueless to what that means. I feel a knot of dread start to form in my stomach.

"Kids, we know because Jeff told us. He told us what he did." Philip says with unhidden resentment.

I look up at him still not undertsanding what he's getting at. "My dad? What are you talking about? What does my father have to do with the FBI after us?" I say with confusion.

"It was him Liz." Valenti speaks up from his position next to Kyle. "He sold us out. All of us."

"We're in danger because your father gave your journal to the FBI and now they're after us all." Philip finishes.

I knew this night was going to be terrible.



TBC......

Crystal

*Thanks all of you for the wonderful f/b. I appreciate it so much like you have no idea!


~Max~

Closing my eyes briefly, I try to think of the right way to deal with this situation. Deep down in my heart, I think I always knew Mr. Parker played a part in all of this. But for Liz's sake, I tried to deny my instincts...I wanted to be wrong to protect her. Now it seems to have been useless from the very beginning because now the very same person I wanted to be protect is hurt beyond any level I ever anticipated.

It's because of me too. He did it because of me. Because I love her. I didn't want to risk this. But I couldn't stay away. I still can't. I need her in my life....just like she needs me. It's absolutely refreshing to know that but hurts all the same to be aware of all the things she has to give up just to be with me. Finding out that I marrried her had to have been the final straw for him. He never could stand us being together and this just proves how far he would go to rectify that. But it's not worth it to see the complete devastation on her face. Nothing is.

"I'm so sorry Liz." I say with total sincerity. She looks at me and nods knowing I mean the words wholeheartedly.

She looks at my parents first to say what she truly wanted to say all this time. Why?

"Why...why would he do this to me, to all of us?" She whispers underneath a voice weary from tears. I get up from my seat and wrap my arms around her tightly.

"We don't know sweetheart. We really don't know." My mom answers first.

"This is just incredible." Micheal says sarcasticly. "All this freakin' time it was him. We should've known. How come she didn't get a premonition of this?"

"Your not helping Micheal." I say warningly while running my hands soothingly in hair. "None of us anticipated this. It's a shock to everyone."

"I can't believe this." Maria says undoubtedly still grasping the situation. "I mean he's gotta know that contacting the FBI isn't going to solve anything, especially if his intent was to bring Liz back here. They'll definitely take her too. She's not the same anymore."

Liz removes herself from my arms and begins pacing the living room. She's gone from being heartbroken to completely angry now. It's evident in her stance.

"He did it because he doesn't care." She says with venom. "He never could respect my decisions. He always looked for some reason to separate Max and I and he thought this would surely do it. But he's wrong." She says in all seriousness.

"So let me get this straight, he did this because you and Max were shacking up?" Micheals asks evenly. "He contacts the fucking FBI because his daughter's sleeping with a guy he dislikes? That's why were in danger?"

"Micheal!" Maria reprimands for his bluntness.

I look around at all the parents and I see them not really taking effect to Micheal's words though I'm red like a tomato. The current situation's too dire.

"That's exactly what it is." Liz says. "He doesn't even care that Max is an alien or that I'm changed or all of the other possible reasons a regular person would blow a switch. It's all because that I chose Max over him." She finishes even louder than when she started.

Guilt. That's the prominent emotion I feel right now. I'm elated that she chose me. It's all I ever wanted. The fued that's brewing between father and daughter isn't.

"Max don't." Liz says breaking into my thoughts. "Don't blame yourself. It's not your fault. I want you and that's all that matters. The one you all should be blaming is me. I'm the one that left the journal. It's my responsiblity." She says with all her ire dying out.

"No Liz." I say fiercely. "It's not your fault and it's definitely not your responsiblity. You had no idea he was going to do this. You can't blame yourself for someone abusing your trust." I say gently.

"I just....I can't get over it, you know?" She says sadly. "I defended him to no end the other night when you guys just mentioned the possibility. I didn't even want to consider it and look where it got us. I feel like a complete idiot now. I'm sorry guys. I'm really sorry." She says starting to cry all over again.

"Liz." I whisper sorrowly. She walks purposely into my arms and I hold her while she quiets down.

I realize now that besides her anger and hurt at what her father did, that more than anything, she's embarrassed. She hates to be wrong and the fact that the very thing she denied with her whole being turns out to be true is killing her. Leave it to my totally unorthodoxed wife to be embarrassed at something she had no control over.

"What should we do?" Isabel says wringing her wrists. A habit she tends to do when she's nervous.

"What can we do?" Kyle says. "It's already done as it is. Confronting him won't help the situation. He's contacted the FBI for god's sake. I think it's way past trying to negotiate anything with him right now."

"He's right." Valenti steps up and places a hand on his son's shoulder."We can't worry with Jeff any longer. He's done his part. The FBI is out there and looking for us. We have to deal with them. That's most important now."

"We don't even know where they are for sure." Micheals says annoyed. "How do we deal with them when we don't know how to locate them first?"

"I'll go to him." Liz says wiping the rest of her tears with her hands."I'll go to him and make him tell me everything he knows."

"And how the hell exactly will you go about doing that?" Micheal says unbelievingly. "Use your powers on him? I'm sure it won't work."

"It won't work cause she's not going." I speak up. She looks up at me and I know she sees the decision already made in my eyes. She won't let me stay determined first without a fight of course.

"Max, who do you think he'd rather see? Me or you? Let me do this. I need to." She says beggingly.

It's extremely hard to deny her anything but I can't let her do this. Not by herself. Not with the FBI out there looking for her.

"No Liz. It's too dangerous. I won't take the chance of something happening to you. Not when I can prevent it. Don't ask me to." I say looking into her eyes hoping she sees my reason.

"He's right Liz. With everything that's going on, your the least of us all that should be out there." My dad says reaffirming my decision.

She sighs loudly and finally relents the discussion for now. I know she'll bring it up later. It's not her nature to give up. It's one of the many things I love about her.

"So what now? We go to bed and try to sleep with this looming over our heads?" Micheal says unyeildingly.

"There's nothing we can do right now Micheal." I say tiredly. "We've been driving for almost two days non stop to get here. We need to rest and we'll deal with it in the morning. I promise."

"Yeah sure." He says with sarcasm. "We'll just sit back and wait for something else to come up and then it's too late to do anything at all."

"I said we'd take care of it didn't I?" I repeat getting really irritated with his reluctance to just follow the rules for once.

"Whatever." He ends it with a scowl permanently etched on his features."I'm going to bed." He says notedly before walking away with Maria hot on his tracks.

"Maria, where do you think you're going?" Amy yells to her daughter as she follows them down the corridor.

"I'll just go diffuse that upcoming disagreement." My mom says with a slight smile. "Come on Philip, let's go to bed."

"I'm coming. Let's show Jim and Kyle to their room for tonight."

"Come on Jim. You too Kyle." She beckons them forward. "And Max and Isabel, it's so wonderful to have you home again." She says with all genuine love in her tone.

"It's good to be home." I say with all honesty.

"Max you have your room up there still and I expect you to use it wisely with eight other people in the house. Are we clear?" She says all motherly.

"Yes Mom, very clear." I say while tugging on my ear. Liz has her arms wrapped around my waist and I feel my embarrassment highten.

"Yea, I'm gonna turn in too." Isabel says unsuccessfully hiding her yawn. "Nite guys."

"Nite" Liz and I both say. I turn to her to observe if she's feeling better. Her tears are gone but she still looks broken.

I gently cup her cheek to garner her attention. "You ready for bed?" I say quietly while holding out my hand for her take.

She nods her head solemnly and takes my offered hand to lead her up the stairs. As we enter the room, I lead her to the bed and gently help her lay down and cover her up with the blanket. I sit down beside her and try to soothe her worries. If even for just tonite.

"Liz, I promise you this'll all work out. I love you too much to see it all end badly. I'll take care of you. Whatever it takes, I'll protect you. Do you trust me?" I say looking into her eyes for the answer I'm desperately looking for.

She takes my hands and links them with hers before replying. "I trust you with my life Max. I know you mean every word."

I lean down to her and take her lips gently with mine before pulling back and resting my forehead on hers. "I love you." I whisper. Needing her to hear the words more than my next breathe.

She kisses me again and tangles her fingers with the hair at the nape of my neck."I love you too."

I smile at her and pull away reluctantly before standing from the bed.

"I'm gonna go see if Isabel has anything for you to sleep in okay. I'll be right back." She nods her head before turning over.

I walk down the hall and as gently as I could, proceed to harrass Isabel for anything she might have for Liz to wear. After she gives them to me, I return back to my room to see the bed empty and Liz no where in sight.

Before I panic, I drop the clothes on the floor and search the entire room. There's no way she could've went back downstairs without me having noticing her. I turn around and that's when I see it. My window wide open and the curtains blowing with the night air.

She's gone.



TBC......

Crystal

~Liz~

I'm standing infront the Crashdown doors right now peering through the glass at my father sitting there ringing up the bills for the days profit. It's what he does every night. I used to come downstairs and help him and we'd usually talk for hours about everything we had to endure that day. Then he'd kiss me goodnight and we'd wake up the next day falling into the same routine night after night. It was our thing. Now this night it's different. Now I don't care to tell him about my day. I don't care to help him out at all. I don't even care about how apparently old he's looking since I left. He's a stranger to me now. I have no emotion for him. No love, no sympathy, no nothing. He betrayed me and I trusted him. It's time for this to all end now.

I know Max is probably worried out of his mind right now but I had to do this. He wants to take care of me and I know he will. He always has but now it's my turn to take care of him. I promised him this wouldn't turn out badly. I asked him to trust me and he did without a doubt. And I failed. It's going down hill and I can't let that happen. I won't let it happen to him. We've both made mistakes and he's more than redeemed himself in my eyes. All the guilt that still haunts him, all of the regrets he has regardless of how many times I tell him it's in the past, he never forgets. Even tonight I could see the conflict he's waging within himself while outwardly he's strong for my sake. I want it to be over. This is the last time I want him to ever feel this way. I need this for him as much as I do for myself. We wanna be free. It's the only thing standing in our way. After tonight, it won't be.

I hesistantly knock on the glass and wait for his attention to shift to whose at the door. I know the exact moment when it does.

He drops the checks to the table and removes a pencil from between his ear. His expression is a mixture of disbelief and hope. I don't know what he's hoping for, but I surely won't give him any.

He walks to the entrance with his eyes still on me and slowly unlocks the
doors. Stepping aside, he lets me in and resumes locking back the doors. He turns to face me and the minute he does, I slap him so hard across the face, it takes him a moment to realize what I just did. I don't wait for him to respond though. I've got too much to say to him and not enough time. I know Max will be here soon.

"How could you?" I slap him again. This time more forcefully than the last.
"I trusted you. I leave you my journal and you do this? You try to ruin my life, all of ours! For what? Why?" I yell.

He holds his cheek and doesn't even pretend to act like he doesn't know what I'm talking about. I feel my anger rise even more with the knowledge.

"Liz, let's just talk about this. Let's sit down and....."

"Tell me why?" I yell again interrupting what ever suggestion he was going to make.

He looks frustrated and sighs loudly before replying. "I did it for you Liz. You don't belong with them.... you don't belong with him. You belong with your family, the people who love you. The ones that really matter. Don't you see that? We're your family Liz.....not them. How could you leave to be with him? Leave all of us behind." He yells right back at me. I barely restrain from smacking him again.

"You wouldn't know the first thing about family." I retort. "All you cared about was that your perfect daughter did whatever you wanted and never questioned you. You never respected my decisions or anything I had to say so don't you dare preach to me about who I belong with. Who I don't belong with is you!" I angrily sputter out.

"Who are you?" He says with disgust on his face. "The Liz I knew never placed strangers infront of her family. She never abondoned the people that cared about her. I care about you Liz....your my only daughter and I love you....."

"I don't give a fuck about your love!" His eyes open wide and I know he's surprised that I just swore at him for the first time in my life. I really don't care anyway. I won't back down from this. "As far as I'm concerned, the only family I ever had is waiting for me at home. The only love I need is from them....from Max Evans. The only man I'll ever love."

I know the mentioning of Max's name raises his ire and the words he says next doesn't prove me wrong.

"Max huh? Is he here with you now? Did he tell you to say all of this? Did he use his intergalactic powers on you to make you this way?" He retorts angrily inching his way closer to me.

"Don't taunt him you bastard. He's more of a man than you'll ever be." I say directly in his face. He visibly shakes and grabs my arms.

"How did I ever create anything like you? You think you can just show up here and say all of this to me? You think because your fucking an alien you've garnered all the rights in the world to disrespect me?" He says shaking me roughly before throwing me down to the floor.

I quickly get back on my feet and shoot my hand out releasing a blast that catapults him across the room.

He slowly tries to get up and looks up at me with astonishment on his face.
"What the fuck are you?" He says while holding onto a table to regain his balance.

I ignore his question and tell him exactly what I came hear to say with my hand still outstretched incase he attacks me again.

"You're gonna call the FBI off this search." I say with venom clearly evident in my voice. "I don't care how you do it but just make sure it's done. If you have to lie or pretend that your a fucking schizophrenic bastard then do it. Do what the fuck you have to because I promise you that if you don't, I'll kill you myself. Do you hear me?" I scream at him with angry tears running down my face.

"Your gonna kill me?" He snorts with disbelief. The next thing I know he's thrown a chair at me unexpectedly and I'm flat on my back with him pinning my hands above my head.

"If you were gonna kill me, you would have done it already." He says with a carnal grin set on his face.

"Let go of me." I say with clenched teeth.

His grin widens and he pulls my hands up higher. "Or what?" He snorts again. "You see Liz, the funny thing about life is that you never expect the things from people that they end up doing. You never expected me to inform the FBI of your alien lover just like how I never expected you to run off with one and get married. We can't always win Liz. You've made your choice and now I've made mine."

"So that's what it's about?" I say as realization dawns on me. "Getting even for me and Max being together? How long were you planning this? How long did you know the truth?"

"A while now. Let's just say, I heard about a ship underneath a Utah convenient store long before you did. Isn't that why you and that punk robbed it? Agent Burns and I always had a suspicion but I got the full picture when he was murdered. It's not a coincidence. Nothing is in Roswell. Don't you agree Lizzie?" He says strengthing his hold on me.

A look of shock flashed across my face before I realize what he's referring to.

"They took you against your will didn't they? Like they did Jesse? They told you about everything and after Agent Burns was murdered, you were convinced. You always were out to sabotage us weren't you...to sabotage me? Your own flesh and blood!" I say struggling to get out from underneath him.

"Your no daughter of mine now Lizzie.....you said it yourself. The FBI is gonna find him and once they do, they'll finish what they started." He says matter of factly.

"NO!.....I'll die first before I let that happen." I say while using all my strength to get him off me.

"Now there's an idea." He says menacingly before releasing my arms and bringing his hands to my throat.

I try to knock him off with my now free hands but his hold on my throat gets tighter. I hear someone screaming my name as the air is slowly leaving my lungs.

It's Max. I know it's him. I can feel it with everything inside me.

"NO!..... Let go of her!" I hear him yell.

It's the last thing I hear before everything turns to black.



TBC.....


Crystal