"Excuse me," Liz asks.

Maria immediately whispers "Mud" and shakes her head. It's as if she is trying to figure out what the word means, like she has never heard it before.

She just couldn't get those words out of her head, mostly because she had know idea what Michael meant. Why did he say that?

Maria looks at Liz and matter-of-factly states, "Mud, I'm thinking of mud."

"Okay, why are you thinking about mud?" "No, no, no," Maria clarifies, "he said it."

"And he would be..." Liz wonders.

Maria looks over at Liz with a 'You-know-who-he-is' look on her face.

"Michael?" Liz guesses. "Did something happen between you and Michael?"

"Humph!" Maria snorts, as she begins taping the steering wheel with her forefinger. Liz watches as Maria's face morphs into a sneer.

"Maria, would you just talk to me? Liz calmly pleads. "Maybe I can help you."

Liz invites Maria to come up to her room so they can talk about what has happened. Neither of them have to work tonight, so they have all night to talk, if they need it.

"Okay, Maria, sit down, take a deep breath, and tell me what the problem is?"

"I've wanted to talk to you all day, but...I just couldn't. I thought you might... well... I thought you might get mad." Maria admits.

Why would I get mad?"

"Because," Maria testifies, "I am a great, big hypocrite, Liz."

"Maria, I promise, no matter what you tell me, I would never think of you as a hypocrite." Liz reassures Maria.

"Don't make any promises just yet."

"Just start talking," commands Liz.

Maria falls back onto Liz's bed, covers her face with her hands, and sighs deeply. "I kissed him." Maria reluctantly confesses.

"Michael? You kissed Michael." Liz states with no sound of surprise in her voice. Why does that make you a 'hypocrite'?"

"Liz," Maria explains, " I was the one preaching to you about getting on with our lives and forgetting about those Czechoslovokians, then I end up kissing that...that guy."

Liz grins. "Why did you kiss him?"

"Liz, he did the most incredible thing for me and my Mom." Maria pauses a moment.

"You know that guy, Ernie, that was supposed to wrestle in the Alien Takedown at the UFO Center, he just cancelled on her at the last minute. Mom had put quite a bit of money into it and we could have been in some major financial trouble. So guess who secretly takes Ernie's place?"

"Michael?" Liz asks incredulously.

"Yep, Michael. Old 'Stonewall' himself."

"Well, Maria, give me the details...about the kiss."

"We go into the UFO Center and inside the ring is this guy, whom we assume is Ernie. He is just lying motionless, like he's been knocked out. Mom asks him if he is okay. He pulls the mask off and it's Michael. Mom gives him a little hug and then leaves. He sits up and there we are alone, staring at each other. It just seemed natural to kiss him. Well, I guess it was kiss; it only lasted like a nano-second when he blurts out "Mud, I'm thinking about mud."

"So," Liz replies, "it was like a 'Thank You' kiss?"

"Um...Sure," Maria lies, knowing there was more than a "Thank you" behind that kiss.

Liz sits on the bed smiling at Maria.

"You seem to be amused by my current crisis," Maria complains.

"No, I 'm not amused. It's just that…. Maria, may I ask you a question?"

"Of course" Liz gives Maria a serious look. "You can't let him go, can you?"

Maria recalls what she said to Liz the night of the camping trip. She smiles slightly. "I'm glad we have each other to talk to, Liz."

"Me, too!" Liz agrees, as she puts her arm around Maria and whispers, "I would venture to say that Michael thinks of Maria Deluca a lot more often than he thinks of mud."

Maria looks at Liz, grins and whispers; "Just between you and me...I hope your right." "Mom, I'm home," shouts Maria, as she tosses her backpack onto the couch.

"Hey, honey. I'm in the kitchen."

"She's in the kitchen," Maria questionably mutters, as she continues across the living room toward the kitchen.

"Mom, what exactly are you doing?"

"Um...I'm cooking," Amy answers.

"...But Mom, you don't cook," Maria reminds her.

"What are you talking about? I cook!"

"Mom," Maria teases, "re-heating Chinese take-out in the microwave is not considered cooking. It's just re-heating."

"Very amusing. So I'm not 'Martha Stewart', but I'm quite capable of boiling water and opening a jar of spaghetti sauce."

"Sorry," Maria apologizes. "So, why the 'big feast'," Maria asks, making quote marks with her fingers.

"Oh, did I forget to tell you?"

"Apparently!"

"Well, tonight is a very special..."

"Hold it, just hold it right there. You met another guy and you're going to impress him with your culinary skills."

"Well, yeah, something like that." Amy smiles. "Now help me set the table. He'll be here any minute."

Maria reluctantly helps her Mom set the table. The wheels in her brain start spinning, trying to think of a believable way to get out of another insipid dinner with another of her Mom's new boyfriends.

"You know Mom, I think Liz wanted me to..."

Maria's lie to get out of the house is cut short when the doorbell rings.

"Maria, there is no way you're getting out of this. Now be a dear and get the door." Maria opens the door and her jaw drops. "No way," she groans.

Amy enters the living room and welcomes Michael, "Hello, Michael. Come on in. I'm really glad you were able to make it."

Michael doesn't move. He knows that he shouldn't take even one step inside Maria's house. He shoots a glance in her direction and he can see, he can feel her hurt and anger. "Actually, I can't..." Michael begins, but Amy interrupts him.

"No, no, no, I said that I wasn't going to take 'no' for an answer. Now, get in here!" Amy grabs Michael's arm and practically drags him into the house. "Make yourself comfortable."

Michael doesn't think that being comfortable is a possibility tonight, but he hesitantly takes a seat on the couch. Maria stands with her arms folded in fury, glaring at her Mom.

"Dinner's almost ready," Amy replies, "You two can talk, while I finish in the kitchen." Amy winks at her daughter, oblivious to Maria's anger at her. Maria smirks in her Mom's direction. Amy happily returns to the kitchen.

Maria rubs her forehead, as the throbbing in her head becomes more intense. "This is not happening," Maria insists. She grabs her backpack, which is now setting beside Michael, takes out a bottle of cypress oil, opens the bottle and deeply inhales it's contents. Her eyes are closed as she allows the scent waft over her senses, hoping that when she opens her eyes everything that just happened will have been a horrific nightmare. She slowly opens her eyes, "No such luck," she thinks, seeing Michael staring at her.

"Um, I should just go," Michael abruptly announces and rises to his feet.

"Sit, stay," commands Maria. Michael sits back down. "I'll leave," Maria snaps at him. She turns on her heels and stomps off to the kitchen, leaving Michael alone on the couch. He lays his head back on the couch, closes his eyes, and exhales slowly.

"Are you insane?'' Maria yells. "Or do you just enjoy torturing me?"

"Excuse me, young lady," Amy advises, "I don't appreciate being yelled at for no reason at all."

"Well, Mom, I don't appreciate you inviting 'him' over without talking to me first!"

"I'm sorry I surprised you with this, but it was kind of a 'spur of the moment' thing. I saw him at the market last night...and I wanted to think him for his 'random act of kindness'. Maria, he saved our lives!"

Maria's expression softens a little. "I realize that. He did an incredibly sweet and brave thing for us, but you just don't know him...the way I do. Michael is..." Maria pauses.

In the living room, Michael had been trying to 'not' listen to their conversation, but now Maria had his full attention. What was she going to tell her Mom, he wondered. He got up from the couch and stood near the kitchen door, eavesdropping.

"Mom," Maria continues, "Michael is..." Maria searches for the words to explain how she feels about him. "He is complicated...complex...confusing." Maria sighs dejectedly.

"Honey, of course he is confusing; he's a guy. And he is also, probably, very hungry. Go tell him everything is ready."

"Everything but me," Maria mutters under her breath.

"What?" Amy asks.

"I just wish you had talked to me first," Maria answers in defeat, as she heads back to the living room to get Michael.

Michael, Maria, and Amy eat in silence for several minutes. Michael is acutely aware that the silence is because of him. "There is no way these two women could be in the same room without babbling on about something," thought Michael. However, Michael had to admit to himself that, as much as he hated the babbling, the silence was making him very self-conscious. He couldn't believe he was even thinking this, but he found himself wishing that someone would say something...anything.

Maria's stomach was in knots; her head was spinning. She wasn't even hungry, yet she kept stuffing spaghetti and bread into her mouth as an excuse for not talking.

Amy was picking up some extremely intense vibes from Michael and Maria. She knew that there was more going on between them, than either of them was willing to admit to her or to each other…or even to themselves. Amy couldn't stand the silence any longer!

"So," Amy attempts to engage Michael in some 'small talk', just to break the tension, "are you originally from Roswell?"

Michael and Maria both nearly choke on their food.

Amy continues. "I don't recall seeing you around."

Michael and Maria exchange a look, then Michael looks at Amy. "I don't get out much."

Suddenly, Maria chimes in, "Actually, Michael likes to refer to himself as a 'loner'. He doesn't like to get involved; he likes to be alone. Isn't that right, Michael?" Michael sneers at her.

Ignoring Maria's comments, Amy continues to engage in small talk. "So, are you in the same grade as Maria?"

This time Maria doesn't give Michael a chance to say anything. "Michael really isn't into the whole 'school' scene. Which is probably for the best, due to his severe lack of intelligence and social skills."

Maria is pushing all of his buttons, hoping for a reaction from him. Instead, he simply stares at her. After all, he really isn't surprised. She is reacting precisely as he would expect. It's a defense mechanism that he knows all too well.

"I've heard enough from you, Maria." Amy replies sternly.

"I've been trying to tell her that for months," Michael mumbles under his breath, though Any and Maria both heard him.

"So, you've know each other for months," Amy asks in surprise.

"It seems like years," they reply simultaneously.

Michael looks at Amy and rises from his chair. "Thanks for supper, but I think it's time for me to leave."

"I won't argue with you there." Maria states.

"That's a first," retorts Michael. He heads into the living room.

"Maria, go after him." Amy pleads with her.

"Huh...No way, Mom!"

While Amy and Maria argue, Michael quietly slips out of the Deluca house.

"Maria, I'm not going to pretend to know what is going with you two, but I really think you should go after him. You and Michael have a connection...a strong connection."

"Mom, you just don't understand, I'm tired of trying. He's a 'stonewall' and it just hurts too much to try to knock it down."

"Well, honey, of course you are going to get hurt when you keep banging your head against it. There are other ways to break through the wall...maybe instead of using your head to tear down this 'stonewall', you should try using your heart."

Maria's facial expression softens, and she surprises herself by turning and running out of the door.

She hears herself calling his name. "Michael, wait."

Deluca, what are you doing? She asks herself. Aren't you tired of playing these games? Things aren't going to be different; he's not going to react differently to you. But to her astonishment she sees that Michael has stopped, and he is standing on the sidewalk with his back to her.

"What do you want?" He asks without turning around.

She slowly approaches him until she is only inches away from him.

"Well," he snaps, then turns around quickly, surprised at how close she is.

"I guess I just wanted to…apologize."

"Apologize," he asks incredulously. "Apologize for what...telling the truth. "

"But I didn't...tell the truth," Maria admits.

Michael just stands there staring at her. She has no way of knowing what he us thinking. He seems stunned; Maria continues with what she has to say.

"Michael, what you did for my mom and me was so incredibly sweet."

"I told you it was easy money," Michael insists.

"Yeah, yeah, you keeping telling yourself that, Buddy, but we both know why you did it."

Was that a smile from him, or her imagination, Maria wonders.

"I am really sorry," she apologizes.

"For what?"

"For kissing you."

Michael looks at the ground, then raises his eyes and looks into her eyes. "Don't apologize for that."

They are silent again, and they both look down at the sidewalk, trying to hide the feelings that are stronger than their will to fight them. Still looking at the sidewalk, Michael stammers, "I guess I made another bad impression."

Maria smiles, "I thought you didn't care about what kind of impression you made."

Michael looks back up at Maria, his lips from a half-smile.

"Tell your Mom that she makes a mean plate of spaghetti."

"Oh no, if she hears that her cooking is even slightly edible, then she'll be trying it all the time. I don't think my stomach could handle that," Maria jokes.

"Well, it beats cornflakes and beer," Michael whispers.

"What?"

"Nothing...I'll see you around."

"Not if I see you first," Maria chides, laughing.

Michael smiles, his eyes are expressive, revealing all the things he can't say with words. He turns and starts to walk away.

"Michael wait," Maria calls, "thank you for saving us."

"I didn't save anybody," Michael denies.

"Yes...you did! I guess we're even now," Maria offers.

"You know what? Maybe we should just stop keeping score."

Maria isn't sure if she heard him right. "Stop keeping score," she asks, "so...we wouldn't owe each other anything?"

Michael advances toward Maria. "Well, there is one thing I owe you," he states, looking intensely at her. He clenches his jaw, waiting for her response.

"What would that be?" she asks, as her breath catches in her throat.

"Well, actually, I guess it would be two things...an apology for being such a..." Michael searches for the right word.

"...jerk?" Maria fills in.

Michael nods in agreement.

"And second," she asks. Michael steps closer to her. "I owe you a chance to clear my mind of this 'mud'."

Maria takes a step closer to him. "And how do I do that?"

Michael places his forefinger on Maria's lips. "You shut up," he answers softly. Then, moving his hand up to her cheek, he whispers, "...and kiss me."

Maria obeys. As they kiss, a connection, not-of-this-earth, is made and explosions of colors, smells, and sounds encapsulate them until nothing exists but Michael and Maria.

They reluctantly break connection. "Wow," Michael manages to gasp.

"That was...amazing." Maria whispers. "Like the 4th of July," she clarifies.

Michael leans in toward Maria, wrapping his arms around her waist. Maria thinks he is going to kiss her again, instead he envelops her in an impassioned hug. She reciprocates.

"I'm sorry. I don't want to run from you anymore," Michael confesses.

"You don't have to," she reassures him.

"I need to go," he sadly states.

"I know."

Michael starts to walk away, again. Walking away from has now gotten harder than ever. Before he disappears into the darkness of the night, he turns and looks back at Maria, smiling. "The 4th of July, huh?"

"Definitely!" Maria responds.

Michael's smile widens. Maria has never seen him smile like that, especially at her. She stands alone on the sidewalk watching as he finally walks away. They are both unaware of the 'Independence Day' that awaits them.