But he had to know. Was Sarah right? Had he changed? Had the past changed? The only thing he knew for sure was that his feelings for Liz had not altered in the least. After all he had been through, he just wanted to be with her, hold her...

He climbed out of the jeep slowly and walked back down the alley to the ladder leading up to Liz's balcony.

The last time he had been here, their lives had been altered forever. Their destinies had gone spinning off into different directions. Could that be changed now?

As he hesitated, Sarah appeared beside him.

"She's not up there, Max. She hasn't even started writing in her journal yet. There's nothing for her to write about."

Max stared at her.

"So, we haven't..."

"Nope. Not yet. It's just like you remember it was, before Liz knew anything about you."

Max grinned. "And I'm...human."

Sarah had tears in her eyes at the joy on his face. "Yes. But tonight, you need to rest." She gently smoothed her small golden hand over his brow, and Max immediately felt exhausted.

Somehow, Max drove home, and climbed into bed before falling into a deep sleep.

And Sarah kept watch all night, soothing away the terrors of the fall and bringing sweet dreams of peace and love-yet-to-be.

*********

Max's first thoughts the next day were of Liz. He sat up with a start as he remembered the break-up, the canyon, and his...angel.

He remembered their words from last night..."It's just like you remember it was, before Liz knew anything about you."

"And I'm...human."

At the thought, Max threw the covers off with a smile and headed for the bathroom.

***********

He was already in the shower when he heard the bathroom door open just a crack. "Mom?"

"Yes, honey," his Mom yelled over the pounding water. "Your father and I are having a breakfast date, so we won't see you before you leave. Have a good day!"

"Bye!" he yelled back.

He had just nicked his face shaving and rinsed it under the steamy water. The blood just kept coming, like all surface cuts. Well, that was one thing he would miss about being...from another world. No quick fixes.

He grinned. What was that compared to spending his life with Liz? He would certainly give that up to be with her.

He wondered if there would be any surprises in this world. Maybe Sarah would know. Sarah....he had forgotten about her...and her ability to remain invisible.

Max suddenly felt very...exposed.

He peered through the steam in the bathroom. "Sarah?"

He heard a small giggle. "Don't worry. I'm not looking, Max. Angels don't do that!"

Max was relieved. "Oh."

Nonetheless, he cut his shower short and reached out of the stall for a towel. He grabbed one of the plain brown towels, relieved that he wasn't forced to use one of Isabel's flowery, fluffy, frilly kind. He hated it when all his towels were used.

Suddenly, he realized all the towels in the bathroom were brown.

He glanced around and realized that all of Isabel's stuff was...gone.

A chill crept up his spine.

Max wrapped the towel around his waist and headed for Isabel's room.

A moment later, the open door revealed a weight room. His weight room, from the looks of it, full of wrestling regalia and trophies of past sports he had tried his hand at.

Where was Isabel?

He walked through the house, searching desperately for a sign of Isabel's presence...but there were no pictures, nothing. He finally stopped and ran his hand through his hair distractedly. He couldn't think...

As he fought to keep from imagining the worst, Sarah appeared beside him and touched his arm gently. "It's okay, Max. She's fine. You'll see her at school."

"She's alive?" Max turned desperate eyes to her. "Tell me what happened to her."

Her voice quavered, "She'll be there. You'll see..."

"Sarah..." The barely veiled anger in Max's voice unnerved her.

She gulped once and disappeared.