"How did you find out?" he asked.

Michael and Isabel shot him the most evil looks they could muster, why was he just coming out and confirming their secret? Max shrugged them off, what was the point in denying it? He knew for some reason that they couldn't lie to this guy. It was time to find out if they could at least trust him.

Jason felt cool as cucumberness rapidly fade away. Great…questions, the hard ones. The kind he feared most of his adolescent life.

"Well, um when Liz over there touched me…" It was just so hard to say this out loud.

"Yeah, yeah" Michael said with distinct impatience. "Tell us how damn it, you know about us. I think we deserve to know just how the hell you found out. None of us would ever say a word to anybody, especially some stranger who just shows up out of nowhere."

"You didn't have to say anything at all," Jason responded quietly.

"What is that supposed to mean?" Michael said rising from his seat.

"You only had to think it, well they did anyway," Jason replied pointing at Liz, Maria and Alex.

"Wait, wait, wait," Liz piped up. "Are you saying you know what we're thinking?"

"Basically yeah, that's exactly what I'm saying," He flinched a little as the last words escaped his lips. He was expected chants of 'freak' and 'weirdo' but instead found only silence. He looked up to see them all staring quietly.

"I don't do it on purpose," He assured. "I usually try to block out people's thoughts."

"What was that earlier then?" Liz asked.

"I have no idea," he replied. "Something like that has never happened before."

"So you know about us from them?" Isabel asked.

"Uh huh," Jason said. "I get nothing from you guys. I guess that's because you're not…human."

"What else did you see?" Liz asked shyly.

"Don't worry," Jason replied sympathetically. "Nothing too personal, except…"

"Except?" she questioned.

Jason didn't know if it was his place to say it in front of the whole crowd, so he projected his thoughts to her.

"I saw that you love Max," he thought. "More than you care to admit, even to yourself."

"Whoa," said Liz flinching. "How did you do that?"

"Do what?" Max said stepping closer to her. "What did you do?" he said glaring at Jason.

"It okay Max," she said. "He just kind of spoke in my head."

"I didn't think you would have wanted me to say that out loud." Jason stated.

"Well, thanks" Liz said.

Maria stared at Jason with a frightened look on her face.

"Did he see how I feel about…?" she thought.

"I'm not going to say a word to Michael," he promised sending his thoughts directly into her mind.

She trembled a little but smiled that cute little smile of hers, knowing he would keep his word.

"Well," Alex said, "What do we do now?"

"Yeah," Isabel agreed, "How do we know we can trust you?"

"Same way I'll know if I can trust you," he responded. "Did you already forget I'm not your usual cup of joe? Any thought you've had about being carted off in some government bandwagon, I've had too. Except that I wouldn't be dissected, more like trained into some sort of killing machine. I don't know about you, but that doesn't seem like a grand old time to me."

He watched as Michael, Max and Isabel all glanced at each other, knowing they could relate to everything he'd said. Maria, Liz, and Alex remained silent. They couldn't begin to imagine all the fear and worrying each of them went through. Jason was right; he may be human, but those abilities of his would also make him a target for anyone hunting down the alien trio.

"I have an idea," Alex said. "Max why don't you make a connection with him. You know, like you did with us so you'd know we were trustworthy."

"Sound like a good idea to me," Michael said still giving Jason that stone glare.

"Does this guy ever let up?" Jason thought. "I'm game," he said aloud, "How does it work?"

"I have to touch you," Max said. "And what happens is pretty much like what you saw from Liz."

"Okay," he replied putting on his brave face. "Let's do it."

Due to Jason mental abilities the connection was instantaneous. The images of Max's mind raced across his closed eyelids. He saw a small child around 6 or 7 crawling out of some sort of pod. A new image flashed before him, three children naked on the side of the highway. Max's house, his parents. Isabel his sister. The way she squeezed his hand the first day of school. Finding Michael. Seeing Liz for the first time. The three discovering what they were. The fear. Their powers. High school. Liz a little older. Liz in a pretty black dress and at a winter dance. Liz at the crashdown, on the floor bleeding, dying. Max saving her. Valenti suspecting. An old Indian man named Riverdog. A guidance counselor named Topolsky spying on them. Michael sick. 1000's more seemed to fly by mostly pictures of Liz. Jason saw all he needed to; Max was much too noble to spread his secret around. Even if he was human.

Max was surprised. He didn't even have to try to connect, the second he touched Jason the images came. The first one flashed before him. Jason around 3 learning to ride a bike. Him 5 years old starring in a cereal commercial. 7 years old, his mother nursing a scraped knee. 11 wanting a toy off the top shelf and moving it with his thoughts. Him lying in the corner trying to figure out what was wrong with him. Reading his father's mind. The fear it caused him. The day he decided to tell no one. Jason 13, having no friends because he was afraid he couldn't control himself. The sleepless nights when he couldn't block out the voices. Getting his car. His parents saying they were moving. Driving through the desert at peace. Valenti pulling him over, seeing his suspicion. The terror of being discovered when he spotted Alex and Isabel running from his window. 1000's more seemed to fly by, mostly of Jason mastering his powers. Max let go and the connection broke.

"Wow," Jason said. "I mean…wow."

"Yeah," Max agreed, "That was pretty intense."

"Well I know I can trust you," Jason said. "What about me?"

"We can," Max replied looking at everyone in the room. "I know we can."

Jason smiled and breathed a sigh of relief. Maybe Roswell, New Mexico wouldn't be so bad after all.

***

Epilog.

It had been three months since Jason moved here and everything seemed to be going just fine. The group had come to accept him as one of their closest friends. Everyone but Michael at first, but that was just because he was…well Michael. Jason eventually won him over when he convinced Maria that Michael felt the same way about her. The two are almost inseparable now and Michael seems to thank him everyday for making him a happy guy for once. Little happened in the way of any government agencies cracking down on either of the 'special' ones. Valenti finally gave up his pursuit of them after awhile, due to a little help from Jason erasing a few choice memories from the sheriff's mind. Max and Liz finally declared their undying love for each other and were pretty much oblivious to life in general. Alex and Isabel continued to be Alex and Isabel, in the way of her still denying she has any feelings for him. But anyone could see that little sparkle in her eye whenever he was around. Jason was happy enough himself; he was glad he now had these close friends and absolutely no secrets to hide behind. However with the six splitting off into the three little couples he couldn't help but the feel like the odd man out. He'd confided his loneliness to Liz and she reassured him that there was someone out there for him, maybe that new girl they've seen around. I think her name was Tess…