Max Evans held a scared Liz Parker in his arms as she sobbed. After a few minutes, Liz disengaged herself from Max's arms.

"Max, I'm so sorry. I just had nowhere else to go," said Liz, wiping the tears from her face.

"Liz what happened to you?" asked Max, very concerned over her present condition.

"I... I... I don't want to talk about it, Max. Please don't make me talk about it," said Liz, her eyes pleading with Max.

"Of course. At least let me help you." Max raises a hand to the cut above her eyebrow. "I can heal this."

Liz thinks for a moment before reluctantly saying yes. Max puts his hand over the cut and closes the wound. As he does, he has a flash. He sees Liz in a car, laying down on the seat. Josh is on top of her. Max can her fear. He sees Josh raise a hand and hit Liz across the face, his ring cutting her. He feels the pain that Liz felt and her fear of what Josh might do. The connection is broken and Max stumbles away from Liz, tears coming to his eyes. He looks at Liz.

"Max.... what did you see? What did you see Max?" asks Liz. She knows that he saw something.

Max is silent for a moment as he comes to terms with what he saw in that brief vision. He sits down on his bed to steady himself. "Liz.. did Josh do this to you?" asks Max, after a few moments of silence.

Liz comes and sits beside him. "Yes, Max. I'm sorry to drag you into this. I just had nowhere else to go." Her tears start falling again.

"Liz, I want to see what happened. Please. I need to know." asks Max after thinking for a minute.

Liz looks up at him, with tears in hereyes. "No Max. NO," she says.

"Liz... it's the only way I can help you. I need to see it."

"No Max," Liz says.

"Liz...." Max places his hand on hers and has another flash. He sees a rush of images: Josh picking Liz up; them entering the nightclub; Josh drinking several beers; Liz and Josh dancing together very closely; them going back to the car; Josh driving them to a secluded place; Josh and Liz kissing in the car; Josh getting intense, feeling Liz all over; Lizpushing Josh away; Josh hitting Liz across the face and pushing her down on the seat; Josh pushing himself on top of her ripping open her shirt; Liz struggling telling Josh no; Josh hitting her again, cutting her open; Josh ripping Liz's skirt as he tries to force himself on her; Liz kneeing Josh in the groin and hitting him; Liz struggling to get out the car and running away crying; Josh following her with his pants undone, yelling at her calling her obscenities; Liz hiding in a bush hoping Josh would go away; Liz walking back to town alone and scared.

Max falls off the bed, onto the floor. He is visibly shaken over what he has seen. Tears come to his eyes.

Liz looks down at him with concern. "Max... what's wrong?" She puts a hand on his shoulder.

He jumps at her touch and stands up. He still does not look at her.

"Max?" Liz asks, coming up behind him.

Max turns around and looks at Liz. Tears are running down his face.

Liz takes a step back. She sits down on the bed. "You saw, didn't you? You saw what happened to me?" says Liz quietly.

"Yes... Oh god, Liz, how could he do that to you? I'm so sorry, Liz, I'm so sorry," says Max, still crying.

Liz folds her arms over her chest. "It's fine Max. It's okay. I'm okay." Liz is closed off. She doesn't want to talk about it.

"Liz, how can you be fine? I mean, after what he did to you?" Max tries to put his arm around Liz. She recoils at his touch. "Liz you have to let it out. You can't hold this inside." He tries again to hold her, this time putting his arms around her and holding her. She tries to resist at first, but then she starts to sob again. She cries and cries as Max holds her and reassures her.

Liz takes a step back to look at Max. She looks up at him. She sees the love and concern in his deep, soulful brown eyes. "Thank you Max." she says.

"Liz... I just want you to be safe and happy. That's all I've ever wanted for you," says Max, wiping the tears from Liz's face. He leans down and kisses her lightly and tenderly. He looks at her once more before Liz pulls his face to hers and kisses him deeply. After the kiss ends, they lay down on the bed as Max holds her and tells her to sleep. He kisses the top of her head and holds her until she calms down.

As she is drifting off to sleep, Liz whispers, "I love you."

Liz Parker opens her eyes. She sits up, forgetting where she is. She looks around, bewildered. Suddenly she remembers she is in Max Evans' room and she remembers why she is here. Tears come to her eyes as she remembers what happened to her the previous night. She looks around the room and doesn't see Max. She remembers how he held her and comforted her until she fell asleep, but where was he now? "Max?" she asks, getting up from the bed.

"Yea?" says Max as he walks in with an arm full of clothes.

"Oh, there you are. I thought you had disappeared or something,"said Liz.

"Nope," says Max. He holds out the clothes he is holding. "Umm...these are Isabelle's. I didn't know what size you were so I grabbed a bunch of different stuff. You know in case you wanted to change or something."

"Thanks, Max," Liz says. There is a moment of silence between them.

"Listen, Liz. About last night...." Max says, uncomfortably.

"Umm... yea... It was..." says Liz.

"A mistake..." says Max

"Great..." says Liz at the same moment. Liz looks up sharply at Max. "You think the kiss was a mistake?"

"Umm.. yea.. I mean.. I shouldn't have taken advantage of you and all.... Wait you're happy about it. What happened?" says Max, it finally dawning on him what she had said.

"Of course I am, Max.... I've waited a long time for this," says Liz.

"Really?" asks Max, hopeful. He stretches out a hand and carresses her cheek.

"Max.... All I've wanted for these past 3 months was for us to be together." She takes a step closer to him.

"Liz... you said something last night... as you were falling asleep. Did you mean it?" asks Max, not looking at her, but still caressing her cheek.

"What did I say, Max?" asks Liz, confused.

"I love you," says Max, so quietly that Liz can't hear him.

"What? I didn't hear you Max."

Max looks directly into her eyes. "You said 'I love you'."

"Oh," says Liz, stunned.

"Did you mean it?" asks Max.

"Ummm... yea I guess I did," she looks up at him. "Of course I did Max. I love you." Max breaths a sigh of relief. Liz looks up at him. "Do you...." she asks timidly.

Max takes her face in his hands and looks directly into those big brown eyes.

"Liz, I've loved you since I first saw you in the third grade. You're the only one I've ever wanted to be with. These past few months, I've just fallen deeper and deeper in love with you. You're my soulmate, Liz." Max leans down and kisses her tenderly. The kiss grows more and more passionate.

They are interupted by a cough at the door. They break away from each other and see Isabelle at the door.

"Sorry to interrupt.... Oh my god.. What happened to you Liz?" asks Isabelle in concern. She sees Liz's black eye and torn clothing.

"Ummm.. Josh tried to rape me.... but I got away," Liz answers, avoiding Isabelle's stare.

"Are you okay?" She takes a step forward.

"Umm... yea. Just a little shook up, but Max calmed me down. I just wanna get cleaned up and changed. Can I use your shower?" she asks Max.

"Sure," says Max.

"Max, why don't you go make breakfast and I'll help Liz," says Isabelle.

Max looks at Liz and reluctanly says yes. He doesn't want to leave her.

"Liz, the bathroom is the third door on the right. I'll be there in a sec," says Isabelle.

Liz leaves and goes to the bathroom. Max is about to leave to go make breakfast when Isabelle stops him. "Max... is she okay?" she asks.

"She was upset last night, but she slept pretty well. She must be feeling better." says Max.

"Poor Liz.... she didn't deserve this." says Isabelle.

"Damn right she didn't. I'm gonna kill this Josh guy," says Max, angrily.

All his anger over what had happened to Liz was now coming to the surface. He wanted to hurt Josh for hurting Liz.

"For God sakes, Max, calm down. Violence never solves anything. What Liz needs from you right now is for you to help her. We can deal with Josh later. I'm gonna go help her get cleaned up and you go downstairs and make her something to eat. Promise me, Max, that you won't do anything to Josh until we discuss things with Liz."

"Fine. I won't do anything. Go help Liz. I'll be downstairs."

Isabelle leaves and goes to help Liz. Max ponders his options. It hurt him that Josh had done a horrible thing to Liz, but Isabelle was right, violence wouldn't solve anything. He had to help Liz through this. That should be his main priority right now.

Making Josh pay for what he did would come later.