Liz Parker gathered her books and placed them on her desk so she wouldn’t forget to take them the next day. She tucked the finished homework into her backpack and turned off the desk lamp.

Walking into her bedroom, she noticed the picture tacked up on her bulletin board. Carefully, she took it off and looked at it for a moment.

*sigh* She looked at the happy eight teenagers sitting around the tree. There was Isabel- widely known as the ex-Ice Queen. She was laughing and kicking around... Alex was tickling her while the picture was being taken.

Maria sat on the tree hugging Michael, who was standing in front of her. Michael tried to look annoyed, but if you look closely, you could see the faint smile tugging in the corners of his mouth.

Tess had put bunny ears on Kyle, and Kyle had his revenge by pulling her ears. They were both cracking up by the time the picture was taken.

Liz scanned the picture, deliberately avoiding the right half of the picture. There, she knew, was she and Max sitting on a picnic blanket. Max would have his arms around her waist, and she’d be resting her head on his shoulder.

Liz put the picture back on the board and sighed again. She showered and changed into a big shirt, which had of course belonged to Max. She lay on her bed and looked around her room. It was small. In fact, the whole apartment was small. Her school funds weren’t exactly small, and her job as a secretary wasn’t that high-paying. She unconsciously put a hand over her stomach. “How am I ever going to take care of you?” she thought.

************

I drank too much last night, got bills to pay
my head just feels in pain.
I missed the bus and there’ll be hell today...
I’m late for work again.
But even if I’m there they’ll all imply that I might not last the day.
And then you call me and it’s not so bad... it’s not so bad.

Max Evans walked down the streets of New York City. He’d been there before long ago with the dupes of Michael and Isabel. He walked into his apartment and immediately sprawled out on the couch. His job at the hospital had been unusually draining today. In fact, he felt bad from the moment her woke up. Max walked over to the calendar and immediately knew why. It was September 29th. four years ago, he’d saved Liz from dying at the Crashdown.

He brushed his hand through his hair and lay back on the bed. High School relationships didn’t work out because of mainly one thing.. colleges. He had chosen a different one than Liz. He remembered the last day they spent together. They walked around Roswell and lived the memories of their two years together. They could’ve worked it out, but they knew it would probably end up in flames. Max was going to New York, and Liz attended College in Oregon.

They ended up in Liz’s room. Liz started crying, and he tried his best to comfort her. That night was the first and only time they’d been together.

Max walked into his kitchen and picked up the post-it note he’d stuck on a while back. He could read the numbers clearly on the paper. He’d found Liz’s phone number through Maria, and was very grateful towards her for it.

He stared at the paper in his hand. He didn’t need to, he’d memorized it ages ago. “Just pick up the phone and call her.” He told himself. “Pick it up... you know you want to...” With a sigh, he put the note down and walked into his room for a much-needed night’s sleep... and dreams of his beautiful Liz.

************

And I want to thank you for giving me the best day of my life.
And oh, just to be with you... is having the best day of my life.

Liz woke up with a gasp and rubbed her eyes. She ran to the bathroom and gave up last night’s dinner. She wiped her mouth and brushed her teeth again. Walking back to her bed, she rubbed her abdomen and just sighed. “If you didn’t like chicken soup, why didn’t you just tell me?” She looked at her stomach and thought... “Maybe it’s time he knew.”

*************

Max woke up to the ringing of the phone. He looked at his clock, it read 3:28 am in neon green. He stretched and picked up the phone. Who could it possibly be?

“Hello?”

“....Max?”

Max’s heart stopped right then and there. It was Liz.

“How’d you get my number?”

“Oh... I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have called.... I’ll hang up.” Reality had just hit her. He might not even want to think of her right now. Maybe he was happy without her... maybe he even had a girlfriend.

“NO!” Max thought he’d have a heart attack. “I mean.. I’m not mad. Just... curious.”

“Oh.... Michael.”

Max laughed... figures, they both asked the other’s best friend for updates on the other. “That’s funny, beca-”

“Max, I need to talk to you... but not on the phone. Look... I’ve been in Florida for a while, and I know you’re in New York, but... this is important, Max.”

Max thought for a minute. He would lose his job, he knew. But then again, he’d find his heart again. “I don’t ...”

“It’s beyond important.” Liz interrupted. “Max... if you don’t get on a plane to here soon... I... I don’t...”