As she emerged into the café, she was pleasantly surprised to find Max lounging against the counter. He was early. He also had flowers.

“Liz,” his eyes lit up as he saw her. “These are for you.” He handed her a beautiful bouquet of varicolored roses.

Liz had just opened her mouth to thank him when the kitchen door swung open.

“Now, now, now my little chiquita!” Jose exclaimed. “Don’t you be fooled by this imposter. I,” tapping himself on the chest, “am a true lover of beautiful women, not this…boy…with his…cuttings.”

“Jose—“ Liz started, her cheeks tinting a delicate pink. She became even more irritated when, looking at Max for help, she saw him desperately trying to suppress a grin.

“No, no mi princessa, mi amor. Here, let me show you.” With this, Jose dropped to his knees in front of Liz, struck a melodramatic pose, and presented her with a bouquet of beautiful long-handled…spatchulas.

“Um, Jose, how ‘bout we put those back in the kitchen, and then we let me go on my date, OK?” Liz tried very hard to keep from laughing, but it was a hopeless struggle.

“But—“ before Jose could continue, Max had abandoned his lazy posture, looped an arm around Liz’s waist, and led her out the swinging door. Jose looked after them with a mournful look on his face. He pretended to wipe a tear away, then bent and sniffed his fragrant bouquet.

Shrugging, Jose saw a frazzled Maria making her way from table to table. ‘One down, one to go,’ he thought before stalking the other waitress.

***

After fending off Jose for a bit, Maria finally convinced him that the restaurant works better if the cook is actually cooking. Grumbling about how women just don’t appreciate him, he reluctantly went back to his station.

“Excuse me, waitress!” an annoying voice belted from a corner table. She made her way over, stopping to collect some sparse tips along the way.

“Yeah?” she asked trying hard to mask her irritation but knowing full well it was a hopeless battle.

“We’ve been waiting ten minutes now for that water we asked for.”

Resisting the urge to roll her eyes, Maria nodded dutifully and walked away wondering if anyone would miss the man if she murdered him.

Two spills, three checks, and four aggravating customers later, she was hating Liz once again. How could she just up and leave on a Friday? She knew that this was one of their busiest nights.

But as much as she despised working alone, Maria hoped that her shift would not go by too fast. She was terrified of the upcoming night with Michael. What could he possibly want? Why did she invite him over? Why was she thinking about how cute he looked earlier in that black shirt?

“Excuse me!” another impatient customer wailed from across the café.

***

“Max, has anyone ever told you how wonderful you are?” Liz leaned back on the inflatable mattress and sighed in contentment.

“Nope, but I’m sure you can fix that,” Max teased, packing the remains of their picnic dinner in a basket. “But right now, you’re just gonna close your eyes.”

“Why?”

“You’ll see, just do it.” Obediently, Liz shut her eyes and listened to the intriguing clinks and rustlings coming from Max.

“Okay, you can look now.” He said with a smile in his voice.

Liz sat up, opened her eyes, and gasped. The small plateau on which they had made their simple picnic dinner was ringed by a double circle of tall, white candles. They glowed and sparkled like reflections of the stars just appearing in the sky above. Max coughed delicately and placed something in her hand…something very cold.

“Max, how in the world did you keep the ice cream frozen?” she asked in delighted disbelief.

“I didn’t. I refroze it just now.” He replied with a somewhat nervous laugh.

“Oh. Well…how… romantic.” She responded with a grin at his discomfiture. She scooted over and snuggled up against him, sighing happily as his strong arm slipped around her shoulders. They ate their ice cream in a companionable silence which Max eventually broke.

“I love the desert. I don’t understand why everyone is so afraid of it.”

Liz turned to him in surprise. “Really? I thought I was the only one who liked it out here. It’s so quiet, and it really is beautiful. So stark, natural, yet containing so much life. Did you know that the soil of a desert contains the largest percentage of natural resources of any biome? I think that—“

She was cut off abruptly by Max’s chuckle. “What is so funny, Buster?”

“Oh, nothing, you’re just so cute when you are talking about anything science related.” He grinned at her slight blush, and leaned closer to her, staring deep into her eyes. “And yes, it’s beautiful, breathtaking, but I’m afraid it will have to wait.”

Liz smiled in pure delight. He was so sweet and romantic. She sighed and wrapped her arms around his strong shoulders as their lips met in a tender kiss.

***

“Well, I’ll see you in like an hour okay?” Max asked as they sat in the jeep outside the Crashdown.

“Sure,” Liz replied, smiling as he ran his hands through her hair. “It’s getting to be so I can’t write in my journal if your not there.”

Max leaned his forehead against hers and stared into the windows to heaven she called eyes. “I love that time with you. So quiet, nobody around. I can stare at the stars…or at you… and just think.”

“I love that time too,” Liz whispered as she leaned in for one last kiss. “So I’m going to go right now so I can get all my stuff done before you come over.”

“Okay,” He replied as he stroked her soft cheek, and then gently kissed it. Smiling a farewell, but a farewell with a promise of more to come, Liz opened the jeep door and slipped away into the Crashdown. Max sat there for a long moment, just gazing after the slim, blue-clad figure. Finally he shook himself awake and started the car. The next hour was going to be an eternity.

***

‘Michael is coming over to my house,’ Maria fretted. ‘At night,’ she added, her worry increasing. ‘And my mom isn't home.’

“I need to stop thinking about this or else I'll have an ulcer or something.”

“Thinking about what?” Liz inquired, joining her friend in the employee room.

“Um. Nothing. Just, um, just the test that we have Monday in English.” Her lies, though stuttered, seemed to be very convincing, which frightened Maria.

“Okay. If you want, we can study tomorrow before your shift,” Liz offered, straightening her dress and fixing a smudge in her lipstick.

“Nah, that’s okay. Thank you, though.” Maria wracked her brain, trying to think of something to change the subject. “Is Max meeting you again, tonight?”

The flush on Liz’s face was apparent. “Yeah. It’s starting to be a ritual now.”

“Does that mean you're not gonna help Jose and me close tonight? I mean, because I could always use another person to help fight him off of me,” Maria joked.

“Hey! I heard that!” Jose yelled from the kitchen. Both girls ignored him.

“Sure, why not. It’s not like I have anything better to do,” Liz shrugged.

“Oh, THANK YOU your highness,” Maria replied sarcastically as she stretched out on the small couch, resting her aching feet.

Both looked up at the clock when they heard the door chime, signifying a new arrival. The annoying red numbers flashed 9:45. Groaning, Maria sat up and pulled on her shoes.

Sighing, Liz shook her head at her friend, grabbed a name tag, and placed it on her dress before entering the dining area with a fake smile.

“Can I help you?” Maria heard her ask in a perky voice.

***

Liz immediately felt something was wrong with this guy. He was young, probably twenty five, and very good looking, but something was… off.

“Can I help you?” she asked, trying to sound normal.

The man sat down at the counter, keeping his eyes on her the entire time. “I'll just have a coffee,” he said without looking at the menu. Liz half-smiled and backed away towards the coffee pot.

“So…” she heard the man start. “Liz, right?”

Liz froze, her legs suddenly turning into Jell-O. “Yeah, h-how did you know?” He gestured down to the nametag clipped onto her summer dress and Liz felt like an idiot. She smiled again, but this time it was real.

“I'm new in town,” the stranger continued. “I’m Corey.” He held out his hand, which Liz took without hesitation.

“Hi. I'm… Liz, but you already knew that…” she trailed off, giggling and looked down at the counter between them, embarrassed.

“So, Liz, would you like to go out with me sometime?”

“I would,” she answered. “But I have a boyfriend.”

“Really? What’s his name?”

“Max.” She placed the steaming cup of coffee in front of him with an assortment of alien-clad creams and sugars courtesy of Maria’s mom.

Slowly, a grin spread over Corey’s face. Liz felt a cold chill run the length of her spine. Taking one step backward, she looked to the door that separated her from Jose and Maria.

“Don’t even think about it,” Corey whispered. Like a frog’s tongue, his arm snapped out and pulled her sharply against the counter in one fluid movement. Liz struggled but to no avail. Finally, inhaling enough air, she shrieked as Corey placed his hands on either side of her head. Then she blacked out.

***

Maria was drying a pan when she heard Liz’s scream. Smashing through the swinging door, she saw a man, dressed all in black, gripping Liz’s head between his hands. Both of their eyes were closed, his as if in deep concentration. Her best friend’s vacant look terrified Maria.

Without hesitation, Maria swung the stainless steal pan and connected solidly with the back of the guy’s head. His eyes fluttered open and he dropped Liz who slumped to the floor weakly. Before she could react, Maria was backhanded and flew across the room and headfirst into a table.

“Hey! What do you think you’re doing?! Mama huebo! No one messes with mis chicas!” Jose yelled, gallantly flying through the door.

Groggily, Maria peered through her hair and saw Jose get thrown off to the side as well. The stranger looked back at Liz and ran out of the restaurant.

A moan erupted from behind the counter, and Maria pulled herself up off the table into a semi-standing state. “Liz, babe, are you alright?” she asked, leaning over the waking girl.

“Yeah… I just have a really bad headache.”

“Did you see how big those guys were?” Jose blustered in embarrassment.

“What guys? You mean the ONE single scrawny-looking guy?” Maria snapped.

Jose blinked and looked as if he were about to defend his manhood again, but then thought better of it. “Just don’t tell anyone.”

Shaking her head, Maria said, “Just call the police, superman.” Once he left, Maria turned her attention back to Liz. “Who was that guy?” Maria asked.

“I… um… his name was… Corey. Yeah, Corey.”

Maria helped her best friend into a nearby booth and grabbed a fresh cup of coffee. “Here,” she offered. “What happened?”

Liz’s brow furrowed in thought. “I… hmmm… why can't I remember?” Her voice had taken on the quality of a child’s and it broke Maria’s heart.

“What do you remember?” she asked softly.

“He ordered a coffee and he introduced himself and then… then… he asked me… ugh!”

“It’s okay, chica. Don’t push it. It’ll come back eventually. Let’s get you upstairs.”

***

Her reflection revealed a pale and tired face. Maria lifted her hair and examined the large cut above her temple from her abrupt meeting with the corner table. Knowing that she would never be able to leave if she told them about her injury, Maria carefully hid it under her hair.

She slipped back into Liz’s room, just as Mrs. Parker came rushing in. “Oh, my baby! My baby!” she cried, wrapping her arms around her daughter’s body, causing Maria’s jealousy to peek through. She wished that when she got home her mother would do that to her as well, but Amy was off at some candle convention in Phoenix. When Maria went home tonight, it would be to an empty house.

Something inside of her clicked, ‘Oh, Shit!,’ as she remembered that she was meeting Michael at 10. Maria glanced at the clock on the desk and saw that she was eight minutes late already. And to top it all off, her mom had the car, which meant that she was walking.

“Liz, I need to get home, but I'll come by in the morning and check on you, okay?”

Liz nodded as her mom rocked her in her arms.

Maria slipped downstairs and stuck her head in to talk to Mr. Parker who was in the restaurant with Jose waiting for the sheriff. “Hey, I need to get going,” she said, smiling at the way Jose was angrily muttering to himself, no doubt entertaining ideas of kicking some Corey ass.

“Are you sure you don’t want to stay here tonight?” Liz’s dad asked, concerned.

“No, I really want to go home to my mom,” she replied, carefully phrasing it so she wasn’t lying. She DID want to go home to her mom but whether she was or not was irrelevant.

“Okay, sweetie. As long as you're alright. I heard you took quite a fall.”

“Aww, it was nothing. I'm not hurt or anything. Check Jose, though. That guy bruised him up pretty bad.”

Jose glared at her before stalking poutily into the kitchen.

“Are you sure? Your cheek is really red.”

“I'm just flushed. It’s been a long day.”

“That it has.”

“Tell the sheriff to call me in the morning and I will give him a statement.”

“Okay, honey. Let me walk you to your car,” he said getting up.

“No! I'm fine. You need to wait here for the sheriff anyway.”

Mr. Parker, looked at her for a moment then conceded. “If you insist, but call me as soon as you get home.”

“Okay.” Maria turned to go but he stopped her with a hug.

“I'm sorry that this happened to you two. I should have been here.” He kissed the top of her head tenderly.

“It’s okay, Mr. P. really.”

“Bye Maria.”