They had all searched the entire house as quickly as possible and found nothing.

That is, everyone searched except for Liz.

Max had squirreled Liz away up to his room, away from his parents' prying eyes. He left her sitting ramrod straight on his bed, obviously fighting for control of her emotions.

He rubbed his face wearily as he pulled his thoughts back to the present.

The four of them were having a whispered meeting in the hallway and Max was trying

to ignore Maria glaring at him.

"Okay, Tess is gone. Let's just assume wešll see her at school tomorrow," he said low, even though his gut instinct told him that she wouldn't be there. "I don't know what else to do. Right now, we need to figure out what to do with Liz."

"What to do with her," Maria barely kept her fury to a whisper. "You're talking about her like it's not your total fault that this happened. You and that alien bitch did everything you could to make her life miserable. You should have been the one bleeding on the ground, you bastard! Not Liz!!"

By this point, Michael was not only holding Maria back, but dragging her out into the fourier.

"Maria, calm down," Michael held her close to his side as she punched at him angrily.

"Let me go, you son-of-a-"

"Hey! Išm trying to be a guy here. You like that, remember," he set her down, still holding her arms at her side.

She finally broke down in tears and he pulled her into an embrace.

He looked back at Max who was watching from downcast eyes.

Isabel put her hand on Max's arm, but he shoved it off and headed for his room.

Michael led Maria over to the couch and sat her down, where she immediately leaned into him.

Michael hesitated a moment, then put his arms around her. He looked up at Isabel uncomfortably.

Isabel raised her eyebrows, then suddenly understood his predicament.

She pantomimed petting Mariašs hair and patting her on the back.

Michael nodded and tentatively raised a hand to Maria's hair. He stroked it softly, then used his other hand to rub her back.

Isabel gave him a double thumbs up sign and smiled as she exited the room.

Alex must be rubbing off on me.

******

Max opened the door to his room as quietly as possible, but Liz still jumped up off the bed about a foot.

"Max," she called out as she half-turned to the doorway. "Is that you?"

"Yes," he answered quickly, shutting the door behind him. "I'm sorry, I didnšt mean to..."

He stopped as he noticed her hands gripping the comforter on his bed tightly.

Her knuckles were white.

"Liz, I am so sorry," he whispered as he took a step toward her.

She didn't move a muscle.

Max slowly sat down beside her, wondering how much he needed to explain. And how in the world to begin.

Her next words gave him a clue.

"I saw you kiss her," Liz said faintly. "I was waiting for Alex outside the Crashdown... and there you were. And then I started having the visions...and the warnings...and the pain."

Liz stood up and slowly moved to the window, away from him.

"Oh god, Liz..." Max buried his head in his hands.

He was sorry.

Oh god, was he sorry.

He knew that he had lost every right (if he had ever had it) to comfort Liz or explain his behavior over the last weeks. But he had to try.

"This has been a nightmare for you. And I am so sorry," he finally managed, putting every ounce of feeling into the words that he could. "But she was...is...genetically my mate. Tess is from my world."

Max looked up, hating to speak the name into such a brittle silence.

Liz was standing at the window, head held high, her arms stiff at her sides.

Max rushed on, despising himself for having to say that.

"I don't know how it works on our planet. If there's only one person you can be with or if there are choices. But the orb brought Tess here and tried to make us bond because we're... genetically compatible...survival of the species and all that."

Max stood, waiting for some sign from Liz.

She took a deep, controlled breath, but said nothing.

The door suddenly opened and Maria burst into the room.

Liz whirled around and gasped.

"Oh, Liz, I'm sorry," Maria exclaimed as she rushed over to her. She stopped in front of her and gently reached out to pull her into a hug.

Liz laid her cheek on Maria's shoulder and covered her face up with her hand as she lost her composure.

Maria turned and glared at Max.

"If you donšt mind, Mr. Fixit, I'm taking her to the hospital so we can find out what the hell you've done to her. And if you know what's good for you, you'll stay away."

Max felt tears sting his eyes.

He watched Maria lead Liz carefully to the door, growing more desperate by the second.

"Liz, wait! Tess is gone because I didn't choose her. I told her I loved you," his voice cracked with emotion.

Liz froze.

Max searched her face intently. "Liz?"

She slowly turned toward him and did something that shocked all three of them.

Her hand whipped up and smacked him across the face.

It wasn't the hardest he had ever been hit, but Maxwell Evans felt the blow to the core of his being.

He sat down on his bed, not even raising his eyes to watch them leave.

He was vaguely aware of Maria's whispered words as they walked down the hallway.

"Good girl, Liz."

******

Liz sat in Maria's Mom's car as she had done seemingly millions of times before, but the feelings inside of her were anything but familiar.

She had listened to Maria's ramblings for a minute, but then realized that she was mainly talking to herself. That was Maria's way of dealing.

And Liz's way...well, Liz's way wasn't working.

Her hands were folded neatly in her lap, but their very stillness was evidence of the war of emotions going on inside of her.

At the forefront was genuine panic. Breath-stealing, alogical, spastic panic.

Because ever since the nightmare, the one she still couldn't remember...darkness had terrified her.

And this, this everlasting yawning pit of blackness, was coming very, very close to claiming her sanity.

As if it weren't already hanging by a thread...

She took a shaky breath.

Max had said he loved her.

But Max kissed Tess.

Max had kissed Liz.

Max and Tess were alien something-or-others.

But Max had chosen Liz instead...

And Liz felt...Liz was..completely numb.

She had slapped Max.

She couldn't even see his face or how much it had hurt him.

She had hoped that it would pull away some of the layers of pain built up inside of her.

She had hoped, in that brief second before her hand stung his cheek, that it would make them even. That he would feel as ravaged as she did.

Did he?

Not that it mattered. Now she was on her way to the hospital.

She couldn't even think of what story she could tell to cover their butts this time. She couldn't even make herself care if someone found out what had really happened...that there really were aliens in Roswell.

Not that anyone would believe me...

Liz smiled.