"Yeah. They said it would be all right, and if I prepare you then it's safe. I don't want to go without you." Michael looked deep into her eyes.

Maria knew how much this meant to him. She knew that he had wanted to go home for his whole life, and she didn't want him to stay with her and regret it later. But how could she leave her family, Liz? Her life? She loved him, but suddenly she felt confused on how much she loved him. Enough to go off somewhere that might end up killing her just to be with him? Finally she concluded an answer.

"I'll go."

Michael was shocked by these words. "What?"

"I said I'll go. I'll go to Antar with you." She smiled at him. She suddenly felt like a weight had been lifted off of her and she knew that the decision she had made was a right one.

"Are you sure?" Michael couldn't believe what he was hearing.

"Yes, I'm sure. I love you and I want to be with you, no matter where that may be." She leaned in and kissed him slowly on the mouth.

"God, I love you." He kissed her back. Then he realized something. She was giving up her entire life just for him. He pulled away.

"Maria, are you sure you want to give up everything?"

"I'm not just giving something up. I'm keeping something close to me that has no comparison to anything else. Something much more." She leaned back in and kissed him again. "I just don't know what I'm going to tell my Mom. Liz, it'll be easy to explain, but my mother, God. What am I going to say?"

"We have today. I'll prepare you to go and then we can figure something out. Maybe have Valenti tell her."

"Ok. How exactly do we prepare me?" Michael went over to his table and picked up the printed off sheets of the translation.

"It says here, that all I have to do is look into your soul. It says if I see the color white between flashes, than you're pure and you can go. If I see any other color, you can't travel until they are white. In order to make them white, you have to...be healed by an alien."

"So you're saying that if they aren't white, then I have to go through some kind of injury and have Max heal me?" Maria's face clenched.

"I guess. But last year, I saw you. And every time we kiss, I see you and I get flashes and the color in between is white. I know this, but just to be safe, I'm going to check and see." He placed his hands on either side of her face. She closed her eyes and he closed his and then it happened.

//flash//
Maria as a little girl playing spin the bottle in her back yard with Liz, Kyle and Alex

//flash//
Maria with her father watching football in their living room

//flash//
Maria's first kiss with Michael

//flash//
Maria and Michael at the prom

"I saw it all." Michael said finally. He let his hands drift from her face.

"And...?" Maria asked eagerly.

"All white." Michael hugged her close. "Are you sure you want to go then?"

"Definitely. I love you, Michael." She looked at him.

"I love you, too." He kissed her.

***********

The next morning they all convened at the granolith chamber.

"The granolith takes twenty-four hours to prepare itself. It can be used only once, so this is our only chance. Is everybody ready?" Max said. They all looked at Maria.

"Of course I am." Maria's voice was slightly nervous.