"Change" |
Part 16 by Anne |
Disclaimer: I don't own Roswell or any of the characters. I have no
affiliation with the WB television network or the author Melinda Metz. Category: Max/Liz Rating: R |
He was angry. So, she thought she could upset his plans by running
away--force his hand with her theatrical departure. Ridiculous. This
was much too important. Besides, she couldn't have gotten far . . . --------------------------- Liz was fixing breakfast, and it smelled wonderful. Max was starving this morning. He sat up in bed, and frowned as the dream from last night ran through his concious mind. He didn't have to work today and he was glad. He wanted to spend the day with Liz. He walked out of the bedroom and heard her humming that same song from last night. He made a mental note to see if he could find the CD for her later today. He walked up behind her and slipped his arms around her waist, which was still impossibly tiny. Max: "How are you doing this morning?" Liz: "Starving . . . you?" Max (chuckling): "Me, too. Must've been all that . . . activity last night." Liz: "Careful . . . I'd hate to burn this when it's so close to being done." Max: "Uh, Liz, what is it?" Liz (smiling): "Omelette." Max: (wrinkling his nose) "Doesn't look like any omelette I've ever seen." Liz: "Do I detect a note of complaining in your voice . . . again." Max: "Oh, no, absolutely not, not me, no way." Liz (laughing): "I wanted so many different things this morning that the only way I could have them all was to make an omelette." "I thought about trying to cram it all in a pancake . . . . " Max: (stomach roiling at the thought) "No, no . . . omelette sounds better than pancake . .. I think." Liz: "You don't have to eat this . . . I'll make you a plain one without all this . . . stuff." Max: (kissing her neck) "Thank you. My stomach thanks you." Liz: "No problem." (pouring more eggs into another pan) Max: "How was your meditation this morning?" Liz: "It was good. Last night, though . . . " Max: "I know." Liz: "Scary, huh?" Max: (thinking about how worried he'd been when he saw her) "You have no idea." Liz: "Don't worry. I know everything's going to be fine. We've both already seen her. She's beautiful and perfect . . . " Max: (still worried but not wanting to alarm Liz) "Just like you . . ." Liz: "I love you." Max: "I love you, too. How would you like to go into town today and do some shopping. Maybe go out and eat and go to a movie, or something?" Liz: "Sounds wonderful." (Turning in his embrace to face him) Max: "Good . . . it's a date." Liz: "Can we still do that? I mean, now, that we're old, stodgy married people and all." Max: (chuckling) "Of course we can. (kissing her lightly) "Old and stodgy?" Liz: (smiling) "Not stodgy yet, but I feel certain it's coming soon." Max: (caught up in the idea of Liz with a protruding tummy) "I can't wait to see that . . . " Liz: (mock horror) "You sound like you actually mean that." Max: (seriously) "I do. (wolfish grin) Liz: "I think maybe we should eat before it gets cold." (accurately reading the direction of his thoughts and teasing him) Max: "It will keep." Liz: "I thought you were starving." Max: (a little confused) "I was. I am. I don't know. Besides, I wouldn't want you to start feeling like an old married lady at this stage of the game." Liz laughed as he swung her up off her feet and headed back to bed. ---------------------------------- Wendy wakes up and immediately processes three distinct and separate realities. She was in a bed that wasn't hers, with a guy she didn't know (well, atleast not in the usual sense), and something awful was going to happen to that poor girl in her dream if she didn't do something to help. Kyle was still sleeping and didn't wake up until Wendy kissed him lightly. His first conscious thought was that he could die a very happy man if he could just wake up this way every morning. He opened his eyes to make sure that he hadn't been delusional last night and that she really did exist. Sure enough, in the bright morning sun, she was not only real, but breathtaking. Kyle: "Hi." Wendy: "Good morning." (sitting up) Kyle: "Do you always have nightmares?" Wendy: "No." "I'm sorry if I disturbed you last night." Kyle: "You certainly did disturb me, but I'm not sorry. I would gladly lose a night's sleep to spend the night with you." Wendy: (blushing) "That was a very nice thing to say." Kyle (shaking his head in confusion): "Yeah . . . I'm not usually very good at saying things like that." Wendy: "Well, I don't know about usually, but I think you are quite charming. Kyle: (smiling and turning both hands up in acceptance) "It's a mystery." "Would you like to go out for breakfast before we go shopping?" Wendy: "Sounds good to me." "Just give me a few minutes to get ready." She slides out of the bed and Kyle takes a deep breath as her outfit makes an impact on his lower anatomy. She heads into the bathroom, and Kyle groans quietly thinking about what a long day it was going to be and wondering how long it would take for him to overcome the image of a scantily-clad goddess that had been permanently etched on his brain. ------------------------------------------------------ He watched them leave the apartment building from a safe distance away. So, she had managed to find someone to help her. Not that it really mattered. Of course, he would have to die. No great loss. None of them were. ----------------------------------------------------- SEVERAL HOURS LATER - Max and Liz have slipped into a store carrying a wide assortment of infant accessories. The sheer quantity of "stuff" that a baby needed was staggering to both of them. Max had bailed out after only a few minutes in the store to go to a neighboring shop. He said, he was looking for something, but Liz suspected he was just overwhelmed and needed the respite. He said he'd be back in a few minutes, so Liz had spent her time going through all the adorable outfits they had for little girls. A smile lit up her face as she thought of all the wonderful fun it was going to be to dress her daughter. Their daughter. Sometimes, she felt light-headed at the very idea. Last night's dream hadn't had the same lingering affect on her as the previous one. Must've been something about Max rushing to her rescue. As a knight in shining armor, he was spectacular. She made her way to the cash register with one of the outfits. She handed it to the salesclerk who smiled and approved her choice. Salesclerk: "Is this a gift for someone? Would you like it wrapped?" Liz (surprised): "No. It's mine, that won't be necessary." Salesclerk: (looking Liz up and down) "Yours? You don't even look pregnant. How do you know it's a girl?" Liz (feeling a little cornered, didn't hear Max come back in): "Uh . . ." Max: (supremely irritated with the woman) "It's our first baby, she's just not showing yet." Salesclerk: "Oh, I see . . . (but not looking like she really did)" "Well, you really shouldn't put too much faith in those sonograms, you know. They're wrong as much as they're right." Liz (smiling up at Max and silently communicating her gratitude): "Hi. Did you find what you were looking for?" Max: (looking very pleased with himself) "I sure did." "How about some lunch?" Liz: "Sounds good. I'm starved . . . again. (looking a little perplexed by this discovery) Max: "After that horrible conglomeration that you had for breakfast, I'm not surprised. Are you going to eat something normal for lunch?" Liz: (sounding vaguely confused) "I have no idea." Max (laughing): "Well, let's go find out." RESTAURANT -- Max sighs in relief as Liz gives her order to the waitress, and it's not something that's going to turn his stomach watching her eat it. She turns her attention to him as soon as the waitress is out of ear shot. Liz: "How did you know to say I just wasn't showing yet to that nosy saleslady?" Max: (smugly) "I've been reading . . . again. Apparently, first babies take quite a while to show." Liz: (shaking her head in bemusement) "You never cease to surprise me." Max: (grinning) "Well, then I must be on a roll. Here. (handing her a small, flat package) Liz: (smiling at his thoughtfulness and opening the gift) "Edwin McCain . . . is this the song from last night?" Max: "Yeah. I thought you might like the CD." Liz: (close to tears) (quietly) "You, uh, thought right. I love it. Thank you." Max: (grabbing her hand and squeezing it) "I'm glad you like it." Liz: (feeling grateful all over again for such an understanding husband) "I love you. . . . . Now, I'll have to think of something nice to do for you." (flirting) Max: (chuckling) "Oh yeah. That's a real brain teaser." "I do have one request, though." Liz: (curious) "What's that?" Max: "Can we please be in a bed?" Liz: (laughing) "Actually, I was thinking that a bed would be just the thing." Max: (suspicious) "You were?" Liz: (grinning mischieviously) "Yeah . . . I have this ongoing fantasy about tying you to it." Max (shock giving way to intense arousal) (fairly growling): "You do this on purpose." Liz (slipping off her shoe and sliding her barefoot up his leg under the table): "Yes, I do." Max: (almost jumping out of the chair when her foot reaches his crotch) (strangled) "Liz!" Liz (laughing): "O.k. I'll stop . . . (wiggling her toes before slipping her foot back down to the floor) . . . for now." Max closes his eyes and tries very hard to bring his racing pulse back under control. He takes a drink of his ice water, but unfortunately it doesn't make it to where it's needed most. Just then, Kyle and Wendy walk in, and are seated at the table next to them. Liz and Max both stare at them in surprise. Liz is secretly cheering on the inside for Kyle. He looked very happy with his date. Kyle gets up and walks over to them holding Wendy's hand and dragging her along with him. Kyle: "Hey Max. Liz. This is Wendy Daniels. She's new in town." Liz: (smiling warmly at them and wondering why Wendy looked so familiar) "Nice to meet you Wendy. Would you guys like to join us?" Kyle looks at Wendy to gauge her reaction to this and she shrugs just a little, as if to say, "If you want." Max gets up and slides into the booth beside Liz, giving Kyle and Wendy the other side. As Max's leg brushes up against hers, Liz can feel the connection between them begin to open. The first thing she notices is how tense he is. Liz looks at his face, but it is completely unreadable. If she hadn't been touching him, she would have never known how upset he was. She looked back across the table at the couple, and studies Wendy a little closer this time. Her face was as expressionless as Max's, which was odd all by itself, but Liz had a sneaking suspicion that Wendy was a little unnerved, too. Kyle and Max were chatting about the hockey game, and that left Liz in the position of needing to start a conversation. Liz: "So, Wendy, how long have you been in Roswell?" Wendy: "Not long. I actually just arrived last night." Liz wonders at how she and Kyle could appear so close so fast, but says nothing about it. They carry on a benign conversation, but underneath Liz's mind is stringently trying to place where she has seen this girl before. Wendy feels like she's sitting on a time bomb. This was her! The girl from her dream. The one "He" was going to destroy because she was such a threat. Oh yeah, she really looked like a threat! She sighed inwardly. Liz wasn't the threat but the baby that she carried was. He wouldn't care about that, though. He'd just kill them both and that would be it. And her husband . . . he must be . . . oh boy, no wonder she could feel the tension coming at her in waves. He must also know that she was one of them. She would've laughed out loud at his predicament if she hadn't felt so trapped sitting here. Finally, the waitress brought their food. Kyle and Liz ate their lunch in short order, while Max and Wendy pushed their food around on their plates. Liz, wiping her mouth daintily and feeling like all was right with her world again now that she'd had something to eat, decides to shake things loose a bit. Liz: "Kyle, how about helping me pick out some songs on the jukebox?" Kyle (startled at the strange request but not sure how to get out of it without being rude) "Uh, o.k." (looking at Wendy apologetically, but she seemed fine with it) Liz and Kyle walk away from the table, and Max pounces on the opportunity. Max: (without preamble) "Who are you?" Wendy: (looking resigned) "I'm exactly who you think I am." Max: "How?" Wendy: "I have always lived with my guardian until very recently. He is also one of us." Max (mind reeling): "There's more?" Wendy: "Just he and I as far as I know." . . . "There's something else you should know." Max: "What?" Wendy: "He means to kill your wife and baby. He was incensed when he discovered her pregnancy." "I'll do whatever I can to help you." Max: (inwardly struggling with the worry and shock of her bald statement, sits quietly for a moment) . . . (sensing her sincerity) "Thank you." "Does Kyle know, about you I mean?" Wendy: (shaking her head) "No." Max: "Are you in any danger from your guardian?" Wendy: (blowing out a quick breath) "I don't know. At this point, probably." Max: (sensing her loneliness and feeling very sorry for her) "I'll do whatever I can to help you, too. There are two others of us, as well." Wendy (eyes widening): "Really?" "I didn't know." Max: "Also, another one of us is recently married and expecting." Wendy: "Wow." (rocking back in her seat a little) . . . "Thank you . . . for trusting me." Max: (sensing her complete openness with him) "I have an unfair advantage." Wendy: (smiling a little) "Yeah, well, so do I." Max: (looking to see Kyle and Liz approaching fast) "One more thing, we live out at the Mesolika. If you ever need us . . . . . . ." Wendy: "Thank you." "I'm in an apartment that belongs to a, uh, . . . Guerin? Yeah, that was it." Max: (shocked): "You're kidding." Wendy: "No. Why?" Max just looks at her, and comprehension dawns. Wendy can hardly believe the sea change her life had just undergone in one brief conversation. All of a sudden, she had relatives. Family. Her guardian had been a lot of things to her, but never that. It was a wonderful feeling. She would do whatever she had to in order to protect them. Liz smiles at Max as she sits back down and he puts his arm around her kissing her on the cheek. She could sense how grateful he was for the time alone with Wendy. He couldn't wait to tell her what he had discovered. The four of them walk out together and say their goodbyes on the sidewalk before going their separate ways. Unbeknownst to the two couples, someone was watching this exchange and eyes filled with rage stared after them. Max and Liz climb in the jeep to head back to the reservation and Liz can hardly contain herself. Liz: "What was up with that?" Max: (chuckling at her) "You are never going to believe this." Liz: (smiling) "You'd be surprised what I can believe these days." Max: "She's one of us, Liz." Liz: (smile fading) "You're kidding." Max: "No. I'm not." "I could tell the minute she sat down. It was like I could feel it." Liz: (murmuring) "No wonder . . ." Max: (not wanting to worry her but not seeing any way around it) "We need to be careful, Liz." Liz: "Why?" Max: "Wendy said that there is one more of us, her guardian. He knows about you and the baby." Liz: "And . . ." Max: "Don't worry, Liz. I won't let anything happen to you. I promise." Liz: "What could happen?" Max: "Wendy thinks he's enraged about the baby." Liz (color draining from her face): "Max . . ." Max: "Just be careful. We'll be fine." Liz: "What about Maria?" Max: "I don't think he knows about them yet." Liz: "Oh . . . good. (distractedly running her fingers over her stomach and wondering if this is what her nightmares had been about, and then all of a sudden she knew) Liz: "Max . . . Wendy was in my dream last night. I saw her. She was there." Max: "Are you sure?" Liz: "Yes. She was trying to help me before you got there." "I only saw her for a second before you came." Max: "Weird." Liz: "Max, I'm trying not to be, but . . . " Max: "I know. I'll take care of you, Liz. Trust me." Liz: (smiling at him inspite of her fear) "Always." |
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Part 17 |