“911, what is your emergency?” The voice rang out over the line.

“I’m at a party at the Crash Down and one of my friends just passed out.” Alex stated shakily.

“Was he or she drinking alcohol?” The operator asked calmly.

“No, she wasn’t drinking or doing drugs or anything like that, and she never has.

“Was she sick previously to this incident?”

“No not at all, but can you please send an ambulance quickly, she looks as if she’s getting worse.” Alex’s voice trembled as he spoke.

“We’ll send one right over. You said you were at the Crash Down Café, correct? Or are you somewhere else?” The operator asked.

“Yeah, that’s right, we are at the Crash Down, please send some one over as quickly as possible.” Alex responded. “Thank you for all your help.”

“Your welcome, goodnight.” The operator said and hung up.

About five minutes after Alex made the call, the paramedics arrived and Isabel let them in.

“She’s over here,” Max called out to on of the paramedics.

A team of five EMT’s carefully hoisted Liz onto a stretcher, making sure not to move he too much. Max followed close behind the two women and three men, but as he began to enter the ambulance along with them, he was cut off.

“ I’m sorry, sir, immediate family only,” one of the women instructed sympathetically.

“Her parents are out of town, and I’m her boyfriend. If she wakes up and I’m not there, she’ll have a panic attack. We promised each other that if either of us were to ever get into a medical situation that we would be right by each other’s side. Anyway, I am the only one who can give you her recent medical history.” Max pleaded with her.

“Alright, hop in,” the paramedic said reluctantly.

After a fifteen-minute ride to the hospital, Liz had begun to come around.

“Max?” She questioned weakly. “Max where are you?”

“I’m right here, Lizzybeth. Don’t worry, I’m here.” Max whispered soothingly.

“What’s wrong with me, Max?” Liz’s voice was filled with fright.

“They don’t know yet, but we’ll find out soon. Right now, they’re going to take you out of the ambulance and into the emergency room, K’?” Max asked quietly.

“Yeah,” Liz mumbled, still way out of it; and fell back to sleep.

“How old is she?” The Doctor asked as she, Max and two paramedics wheeled Liz into an exam room.

“She’s seventeen,” Max answered plainly, his full attention on Liz.

“Which makes her birthday when?”

“December twelfth, 1983.”

“Do you know how much she weighs?”

“125 pounds, approximately.”

“Does she smoke?”

“No.”

“Was she ill recently?”

“No.”

“Is she allergic to any medications?”

“Yes, Penicillin.”

“Is she sexually active?”

Max hesitated slightly, but he knew that it was needed information that could be crucial to his girlfriend’s health.

“Yes.”

“How long has she been active?” The Doctor questioned, seemingly unpleased.

“Since two weekends ago; that Saturday to be exact.” Max replied, never taking his eyes off of Liz.

“Has she ever been physically, mentally or sexually abused?”

“No, absolutely not.”

“And one last question, did you use protection the last time you had sexual intercourse with her?”

Max blushed slightly. “No, we did not.”

“Mr. Evans, we have to run a few tests on Elizabeth, if we could ask you to take a seat in the waiting room, and we’ll call you when you can come back in.”

Max walked out of the room and down the hall to his friends. The second that he entered the waiting area, all four of his friends stood up in anticipation of good or bad news.

“They’re running some tests on her now, we’ll know shortly, though.” Max mumbled monotonically.

The five friends waited for about thirty minutes or so, until a rather large African-American nurse came out of the patient care area.

“Mr. Evans?” She asked in a calm and kind voice.

“I’m he,” Max responded.

“Your girlfriend’s awake and she’s looking for you.”

Max followed the nurse through a set of double doors and down a long corridor until the women stopped in front of a colorful curtain that was drawn in such a way that concealed the room completely. She opened the curtain and let Max slip by her as he

rushed to Liz’s side.

“The Doctor will be with you shortly,” The nurse offered as she drew the concealment shut. Max sat down on the side of the bed and carefully took Liz’s I.V. tapped hand in his.

“We’ll figure out what’s going on with you, Lizzybeth and whatever it is, we will get through it together; I promise,” Max whispered reassuringly into her hair, kissing her head.

“Promise?” Liz muttered meekly.

“Yeah, promise.”

A few minuets later, the Doctor pulled the curtain open and walked up to the foot of the bed. Max helped Liz sit up and the both of them gave the doctor their full attention.

“Ms. Parker,” the Doctor began, “what exactly did you eat today?”

“Um, I skipped breakfast due to time restraints, I had some carrots and a Diet Coke for lunch and two slices of pizza for dinner. Why do you ask?” Liz confirmed, still a bit out of it.

“Well, you absolutely cannot eat like that anymore; you have to eat for two now.”

“Wait, are you saying that I’m pregnant?” Liz exclaimed in a terrified tone.

“I’m afraid that’s exactly what I’m saying, Ms. Parker,” the Doctor said quietly.

“Oh my god, Max, what are we going to do?” Liz asked trembling, tears streaming down her cheeks.

“I promised you that we’ll get through whatever was wrong together, and you know that I would never break a promise that I made to you.”

“I know, it’s just . . .” Liz couldn’t continue, she burst out in heavy sobs and fell into Max’s arms.

“Doctor? May I bring her home so we can have some time to let things seep in?”

“I don’t suppose that should be a problem, I’ll have the nurse get her discharge papers. However, I am going to give you my card and I would like one of you to contact me sometime time next week so I can refer you to a Doctor that can help you cope with this.” The Doctor said.

“Thank you, Doctor, we will be in touch,” Max replied quickly.

He helped Liz get up and the two of them walked slowly out of the emergency room. They pushed the swinging doors opened and stood before Michael, Maria, Alex and Isabel. Maria rushed up to Max and Liz, followed by everyone else, all wanting to know what was wrong.

“Um, I don’t know how to say this, but I’m pregnant,” Liz shivered, her voice trembling in fear.

“Oh my God, Liz, I’m so sorry!” Maria exclaimed, rapping her best friend in a tight hug. Max, Michael, Isabel and Alex joined Maria in hugging Liz, and for awhile the six teenagers just stood their; some crying, but all verbally silent. After a few minuets, Liz pulled away and everyone parted, pairing off into couples, as usual. Liz was still feeling weak, so Max picked her up in his arms and carried her out to the Jeep. Michael hopped into the driver’s seat, Maria took the front, Isabel sat on Alex’s lap and Liz lay down on Max’s, curling herself up into a little ball so just her calves and feet were hanging off. Throughout the ride, no one spoke, afraid to upset Liz or Max even more than they already were. Once they were back to the Crash Down, Max took Liz upstairs to her room and put her into her bed. He sat down on the opposite side and gathered her up in his arms. He rocked her slowly back and forth, sending bursts of happy thoughts and feelings into her aura and through her body.

“Max?” She spoke suddenly, “I feel really bad about leaving the others downstairs, and after all they are our friends, so they have the right to be a part of this.”

“All right, sweetie,” Max replied empathetically.

Max gently laid Liz down on the other side of her bed and walked slowly downstairs to get the rest of the group. He opened the door to the restaurant and looked out upon his worry-stricken friends.

“Um, Liz said that she really wants you guys to come upstairs and spend time with us because we can use all the support that we can get.” Max spoke slowly.

“Sure Max, but are you positive that you two aren’t just asking us to come up because you feel badly about leaving us down here?” Isabel questioned skeptically.

“Yeah, Izzy, we’re sure.”

Alex, Maria, Isabel and Michael followed Max up to Liz’s room and the group walked noiselessly through the open door. Alex sat down on Liz’s brown wicker chair, pulling Isabel down onto his lap and Maria and Michael curled up on the couch. Max sat on her bed and once again, took her up into his arms.

“Have you guys had a chance to talk about what you’re going to do?” Michael asked suddenly.

“Not really, but we know that we absolutely cannot give it up for adoption, because it will be half alien. And I could never kill part of myself and I know Max feels the same way, so our only choice is to keep it.” Liz blurted out.

All of the sudden the phone rang. Max looked tentatively at his girlfriend and she nodded feebly.

;

Max blushed slightly. “No, we did not.”

“Mr. Evans, we have to run a few tests on Elizabeth, if we could ask you to take a seat in the waiting room, and we’ll call you when you can come back in.”

Max walked out of the room and down the hall to his friends. The second that he entered the waiting area, all four of his friends stood up in anticipation of good or bad news.

“They’re running some tests on her now, we’ll know shortly, though.” Max mumbled monotonically.

The five friends waited for about thirty minutes or so, until a rather large African-American nurse came out of the patient care area.

“Mr. Evans?” She asked in a calm and kind voice.

“I’m he,” Max responded.

“Your girlfriend’s awake and she’s looking for you.”

Max followed the nurse through a set of double doors and down a long corridor until the women stopped in front of a colorful curtain that was drawn in such a way that concealed the room completely. She opened the curtain and let Max slip by her as he

rushed to Liz’s side.

“The Doctor will be with you shortly,” The nurse offered as she drew the concealment shut. Max sat down on the side of the bed and carefully took Liz’s I.V. tapped hand in his.

“We’ll figure out what’s going on with you, Lizzybeth and whatever it is, we will get through it together; I promise,” Max whispered reassuringly into her hair, kissing her head.

“Promise?” Liz muttered meekly.

“Yeah, promise.”

A few minuets later, the Doctor pulled the curtain open and walked up to the foot of the bed. Max helped Liz sit up and the both of them gave the doctor their full attention.

“Ms. Parker,” the Doctor began, “what exactly did you eat today?”

“Um, I skipped breakfast due to time restraints, I had some carrots and a Diet Coke for lunch and two slices of pizza for dinner. Why do you ask?” Liz confirmed, still a bit out of it.

“Well, you absolutely cannot eat like that anymore; you have to eat for two now.”

“Wait, are you saying that I’m pregnant?” Liz exclaimed in a terrified tone.

“I’m afraid that’s exactly what I’m saying, Ms. Parker,” the Doctor said quietly.

“Oh my god, Max, what are we going to do?” Liz asked trembling, tears streaming down her cheeks.

“I promised you that we’ll get through whatever was wrong together, and you know that I would never break a promise that I made to you.”

“I know, it’s just . . .” Liz couldn’t continue, she burst out in heavy sobs and fell into Max’s arms.

“Doctor? May I bring her home so we can have some time to let things seep in?”

“I don’t suppose that should be a problem, I’ll have the nurse get her discharge papers. However, I am going to give you my card and I would like one of you to contact me sometime time next week so I can refer you to a Doctor that can help you cope with this.” The Doctor said.

“Thank you, Doctor, we will be in touch,” Max replied quickly.

He helped Liz get up and the two of them walked slowly out of the emergency room. They pushed the swinging doors opened and stood before Michael, Maria, Alex and Isabel. Maria rushed up to Max and Liz, followed by everyone else, all wanting to know what was wrong.

“Um, I don’t know how to say this, but I’m pregnant,” Liz shivered, her voice trembling in fear.

“Oh my God, Liz, I’m so sorry!” Maria exclaimed, rapping her best friend in a tight hug. Max, Michael, Isabel and Alex joined Maria in hugging Liz, and for awhile the six teenagers just stood their; some crying, but all verbally silent. After a few minuets, Liz pulled away and everyone parted, pairing off into couples, as usual. Liz was still feeling weak, so Max picked her up in his arms and carried her out to the Jeep. Michael hopped into the driver’s seat, Maria took the front, Isabel sat on Alex’s lap and Liz lay down on Max’s, curling herself up into a little ball so just her calves and feet were hanging off. Throughout the ride, no one spoke, afraid to upset Liz or Max even more than they already were. Once they were back to the Crash Down, Max took Liz upstairs to her room and put her into her bed. He sat down on the opposite side and gathered her up in his arms. He rocked her slowly back and forth, sending bursts of happy thoughts and feelings into her aura and through her body.

“Max?” She spoke suddenly, “I feel really bad about leaving the others downstairs, and after all they are our friends, so they have the right to be a part of this.”

“All right, sweetie,” Max replied empathetically.

Max gently laid Liz down on the other side of her bed and walked slowly downstairs to get the rest of the group. He opened the door to the restaurant and looked out upon his worry-stricken friends.

“Um, Liz said that she really wants you guys to come upstairs and spend time with us because we can use all the support that we can get.” Max spoke slowly.

“Sure Max, but are you positive that you two aren’t just asking us to come up because you feel badly about leaving us down here?” Isabel questioned skeptically.

“Yeah, Izzy, we’re sure.”

Alex, Maria, Isabel and Michael followed Max up to Liz’s room and the group walked noiselessly through the open door. Alex sat down on Liz’s brown wicker chair, pulling Isabel down onto his lap and Maria and Michael curled up on the couch. Max sat on her bed and once again, took her up into his arms.

“Have you guys had a chance to talk about what you’re going to do?” Michael asked suddenly.

“Not really, but we know that we absolutely cannot give it up for adoption, because it will be half alien. And I could never kill part of myself and I know Max feels the same way, so our only choice is to keep it.” Liz blurted out.

All of the sudden the phone rang. Max looked tentatively at his girlfriend and she nodded feebly.

“Hello?” Max answered assertively.

“Max, what the hell happened to Liz? We just got a call from the hospital to verify the insurance, but because now she is legally an adult in the state of New Mexico, they could not disclose any information.” Liz’s father bellowed through the line

“Thank God,” Max thought. “Um, Liz just got a really bad sinus headache and the pain was so excruciating that we had to go to

the emergency room, that’s all.” Max spoke coolly.

“Are you sure that it was only a sinus headache, or is there more to that story?” Liz’s father interrogated, treading much too closely to the truth.

“No, Mr. Parker, there’s nothing else,” Max lied. “Would you like to speak with Liz?”

“Yes, I would. Thank you very much for taking such good care of my daughter. She is really lucky to have you in her life.” Mr.

Parker said kindly.

“Thank you. Here’s Liz,” Max answered, holding the phone up to Liz’s ear.

Liz took the receiver from Max and he lightly placed his free hand on her forehead and stroked it with his thumb. With his other arm, which was around Liz’s waist, her pulled her body completely on top of his and then tugged the comforter up over both of them.

“Hi, papa,” Liz said quietly.

“Oh, Lizzy! You sound horrible! Are you feeling any better?” Her father asked, deeply concerned.

“I’m feeling better, don’t you worry about me. Max and my friends are all here with me, and I know that they won’t let anything happen to me.” Liz assured him. “And don’t you go worrying mama, you know how she can get. Have a wonderful time at your conference, okay?”

“Alright, Lizzy. We love you and we’ll see you Tuesday.”

“Bye, papa.”

Liz put the phone back on its cradle and looked around the room.

“How are we going to keep this a secret?” Liz asked, her voice heavily cast in weariness.

“Well, you only have two or three months until you start showing and until about the fifth month to hide it behind baggy clothes. Then, unless we can do something about it,” Isabel said looking from Max to Michael, “it will be pretty much impossible to keep it under wraps.”

“Would you guys mind if we went to the caves in the desert? I think it might help me to clear my head.”

“No not at all,” Alex piped up.

The six friends left by Liz’s balcony, each climbing down the ladder, and one after the other and hopped into the Jeep. To lighten up the mood, Isabel, who was driving, turned the radio on to their usual station; UFOR, “Today’s Hit Music, Roswell New Mexico”.

“Hey guys, we’re back with the top half of the ‘Twelve at Twelve’ and at number five we have the legendary ‘Sting’ with, how appropriate, Desert Rose!” The deejay announced enthusiastically. All of the sudden, as if on cue, it began to rain; and not just a sprinkle or a drizzle, but a torrential downpour.

“Izzy pull over and put on the top!” Max

screamed to his sister through the thunderous roar the rain pelting onto the desert floor.

“Ha, ha, um, Max? Remember when I told you to put the tarp in it’s compartment and you said ‘no’ because it wasn’t going to rain? Well, guess what, IT DID!” Isabel screamed, obviously pissed.

“Uh, earth to Isabel, I don’t know if you’ve realized, but we’re aliens with powers! And no one else is around, so just use them.” Michael said as the voice of reminder and reason.

“It doesn’t matter anyway,” she retorted angrily, “we’re there.”

Isabel hurriedly parked the Jeep, covered it with her powers and the six friends raced for the caves. Once inside, Michael lit a fire and took out the three sleeping bags that he kept in the rock compartment towards the back of the caves. After the whole group was settled, Alex briefly looked around and finally let his eyes fall on Liz and Max.

“Are you guys doing any better?” He asked slowly.

“Yeah, a bit,” Max replied.

“I’m still getting used to the fact that I have a person well, maybe a person isn’t the right term,” Liz said, smiling up at Max who gave her a playfully hurt look, “but another life growing inside of me and that I’ll be responsible for it after it’s born.”

“Don’t forget, I’m just as, if not more responsible for what happened, Lizzybeth, and you know that I’ll stand by you through anything because I love you more then life itself and I know that I will feel the same way about what we’ve created.” Max said both lovingly and soothingly.