Max Evans (upnorth) wrote in beyondwonderlnd, @ 2008-09-26 23:32:00 |
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Liz moved the broom across the floor of the dinner for the 100th time since locking up for the night. She really didn't have anything left to do, but she was waiting for Max and she didn't want to chance missing him in the time it took her to get to her roof patio. So, instead of running upstairs, she shifted, sweeping the spotless floor in another direction, absent-mindedly trying to look busy. In truth she was utterly pre-occupied with a handful of problems. The first and most obvious was the fishy new sub they had in Math, the one who claimed to be a guidance counselor, only after several odd encounters. Maria and Liz had discussed things and nothing added up. If she was a guidance counselor, why had she been subbing for a Math class? They don't just let anyone teach, despite all appearances. You had to be certified in some manner for such a thing. And more importantly, she had seemed entirely too interested in Michael from the moment she arrived. No school would welcome their newest employee with a wrap sheet of their problem students, and from the first moment they had her she had seemed to have a certain understanding and interest in Michael. It was troubling. On top of that there was the whole thing with Kyle. Everything was just...weird now. It was obvious to everyone that she had moved on and yet she wasn't even allowed to. Max Evans had saved her life. Not just saved her, but given her existence this sort of...jolt. Since that day in the Crashdown everything changed. She was more aware of thing, and she felt alive for the first time. She had no idea what was going on, and she hated that she had to lie to her parents and to Alex especially, but in the grander scheme of things that was all just trivial. Suddenly Max had become this big, bold, important factor in her life and she couldn't help that she wanted to protect him, and to be near him. It was like she was drawn to him really, and yet she wasn't allowed to show it. Part of her felt guilty that she had broken her promise to remain distant and she risked his safety by asking him to meet her to discuss Topolsky, but she couldn't help it. She wanted to be around Max, his presence alone seemed to sooth her, and it wasn't right that she had to deny herself that comfort because of Kyle and his father. Unconsciously the corners of her lips turned down into a frown. She was worried, and guilty, and feeling slightly overwhelmed: she couldn't help it. Most of all she was anxious for Max to appear. She knew it would be any moment, but still she was impatient. Sometimes she wondered how it was that life still moved without him near. Amazing what one week and a gunshot wound could do to a girl. A week ago, Max had done the unthinkable. He was well aware that he had been the one to make up the rules, well aware that he always got on Isabel's case for not taking more care when using her powers in public, and more than well aware that laying his hand on Liz Parker's stomach and healing her had changed him in some profound way that his sixteen-year old mind couldn't rationalize. It had also made people take notice of him, specifically Sheriff Valenti. Everywhere Max went, he was subject to random inspections from the Sheriff. It seemed to be enough to pull him over or stroll into the Crashdown when he knew that Max would be there. For now, at least. Max swallowed his sudden bout of paranoia, though he very conscientiously parked the Jeep several blocks off from the Crashdown (closer to the UFO Museum) and walked the rest of the way. Sunnydale wasn't the safest of places, he knew, but he'd never had any trouble. He figured it was probably something in his alien DNA that kept the criminals and "gangs on PCP" away. He wasn't even sure if he bought into that. Given that he knew aliens existed - and what a joke that was! - he had to concede that he couldn't be the only thing with the potential to go bump in the night. Not that he went bump in the night, but humans seemed sold on the idea that aliens wanted nothing more than to destroy the Earth. Unless you counted the occasional healing of the girl he'd been in love with since the third grade. He'd allowed her to see him, really see him, and it seemed to soothe things over between them -- whatever there was -- and he knew he never had to worry about Liz telling anyone his secret. She was different, and he would defend her to the very end. Quite frankly, in the end, the only thing he was sorry for was that he didn't kiss Liz at the Crash Festival that night, that he knew in the end, it would end up costing her safety. They couldn't be seen together, at least not more than their biology partnership. There was only so much fake studying you could do. Sunnydale seemed to shut down the moment the sun went down, all except the main drag where the Magic Box and the Crashdown were. Across the street, Max could see a figure pushing a broom inside the restaurant, and with relief, he could tell it was Liz, still in her uniform, hair pulled back into the smooth ponytail. He watched her for a moment with a soft smile playing on his lips. Then, he took a deep breath, any trace of amusement gone, and crossed the street with his hands shoved in his black jacket. He stood near the edge of the restaurant, in case anyone else came down to see what Liz was doing and held out his hand, fingers splayed in the hopes of getting her attention. If that didn't get it, he was sure the sound of his heart thumping loudly at the thought of being close to her would alert her to his presence. Liz became conscious of someone on her peripherals the moment Max approached the diner. She stiffened for a moment, wondering if he had been watching her, feeling a rush of embarrassment as her pulse quickened. It was inexplicable, this reaction to Max, though truth be told it had always been there. No one had ever really asked, but had they, she would have admitted long ago that Max Evans did funny things to her heart rate. How could he not? He was always so quiet, and mysterious, and he was so handsome that even looking at him caused her stomach to give a little jolt. Never in her wildest dreams had she imagined that he would feel the same way about her, but now that she knew, conclusively knew, her own feelings became that much stronger. It was awkward and uncomfortable not to act on them, and it resulted in a quick blush response. This is precisely what happened as she made her way to the door, unlocking it to let him in. Once Max was inside she closed the door behind him and locked it behind him. She glanced up at him, a smile half forming and greeted him with a quick "Hi." The lights were low to indicate they were closed, but also to offer them some measure of privacy for the talk she anticipated having. Standing alone with him in the empty cafe Liz realized it also lent an unmistakable intimacy to the situation, and she ducked her head at that thought, eyes dropping to the broom in her hands, biting her lower lip tentatively while the thought passed. She walked deeper into the diner then, as if to break the spell, or connection, setting the broom down when she felt she was in far enough for privacy from anyone who might walk by on the street. "Thanks for coming." She said, turning back to face him, mustering up her courage and meeting his gaze. Max glanced around the diner, his eyes automatically headed for the back door where he knew that Liz's parents might come out of. He had his usual expression, the one with the "soulful eyes" and almost puppy dog-like pout. The expression that meant he was thinking and feeling quite a bit. He gave Liz the tiniest smile. He thought about leaning against the counter, but wasn't sure how long this would take, if it was appropriate. The usual sorts of things. "No problem," he said gruffly. Clearly, he hadn't uttered a sound in a while; his voice didn't sound used at all. "Any dust bunnies left over might survive a nuclear attack with the way you were sweeping." A flash of confusion crossed Liz's face, and then, just as quickly it was replaced with a shy smile and again her eyes flickered to the floor to hide the embarrassment that seemed ever-present when Max was around. "Yeah," She said, shifting her weight from one foot to another, unable to settle comfortably knowing that he had indeed been watching. Since the moment he had shared himself with her and she was able to feel and see into his memories, she couldn't help but feel flattered by his attentions. There were boys who liked her, sure, but Max... She shook her head, clearing the thoughts, the smile fading when the topic at hand came back into her brain, reminding her that they were not together for social reasons, no matter how much she wanted that to be true. "Max," She said, jumping in without social graces. She knew it was rude, but with Max she felt those things were unnecessary, they were connected now on a level where social graces seemed ridiculous in the face of something so potentially vital, "I think something is up with our new guidance counselor Ms. Topolsky." She paused, giving a moment for this to sink in and then added, "I think she's checking up on Michael. I think she isn't who she says she is." Any smile he might have been about to share died on his lips. Max frowned slightly, and had the grace to look concerned enough. "Why? Because of the questions she asked about him in class? I'm sure she was just taking attendance. Liz, don't worry about it. No one is suspicious of Michael; it's me they think healed you." He was quite touched actually, that she was this concerned about him -- the three of them. There wasn't enough gratitude in the world for what Liz Parker had already done for him and his alien family, and yet, here she was going above and beyond. Though he tried not to, he could feel a small smile spread across his features. If he wasn't in love with her before, he would have been now. Though he knew he should feel bad that he had endangered Michael and Isabel, he couldn't help but feel an overwhelming sense of relief that he could talk to someone -- if he thought it was safe. And even more so that it was Liz. "Don't worry, okay? We've just got to play it safe. Keep our heads down." Liz frowned at his response. She was glad that he wasn't worried, but some degree of concern would have been nice. "Yeah, but Max, what substitute ever takes attendance?" She asked, echoing Maria's own question. It had been a little bit easier having this conversation with her, she tended to think outside the box which suited the situation. "And, Max, she had Michael's permanent record. I bumped into her when she was coming out of the file room, I saw her with it." Even going over the facts gave Liz the chills. She could feel it in her bones that something just wasn't right with the whole situation, whether it made sense or not. Still, paranoia aside she had to grant Max's point, he had been the one to heel her. He would be the one under the microscope, metaphorically speaking. "You and Michael and Isabel are all so close though." She responded, thinking out loud before she could help herself. She regretted her comment immediately though. She knew how close he was to his sister and his friend, and just looking at him she knew he felt responsible for the trouble they were in. She didn't want to make it worse by implying that he was the reason some stranger was looking up his best friend. "I mean, it could be nothing." Her tone was softer, trying to erase her faux paux, "There's no real reason to suspect her, but..." She trailed off, looking him in the eyes again. He always had this little hint of sadness about him that was detectable in his deep brown eyes. It was part of the reason she was drawn to him, as if he felt and saw things a little differently than everyone else. She couldn't even stomach the idea that some stranger could be in town to take him away. She didn't know how she would go on living the rest of her days if she didn't get to look into those eyes anymore. "Just, I think you should be careful." She finished softly. "I know, and we are. I promise," he told her, not unkindly. His smile turned rueful. It was just like Liz to think of others before herself. "You need to be careful, too. You know that I would never do anything to put you in harm's way." Though he ached to reach out and touch her hand, her arm, her cheek, he did none of these things. He did, however, step a little closer to her, catching her scent and smiling softly. "Thank you, Liz. You have no idea what your concern means... to me," he said. Despite herself, the corners of Liz's lips lifted in a slight smile. It was hard not to when Max said things like that. Though the two had only really started talking a week ago he treated her with a reverence that seemed reserved for his sister and his best friend. She knew she couldn't reach out to him. It would violate whatever agreement they seemed to have come to, but she wanted to. She wanted the comfortable that came with contact--to fool her senses into thinking everything would be okay. That was a prospect that her brain hadn't been able to reconcile itself with, no matter what Max said. Still, she had warned him, she had done what she could on that front, and now all she could do was stay vigilant. "I know Max." She reassured, "I promise, I'm not going to do anything that would get anyone hurt, or make anything worse." Though this wasn't to say she'd do nothing. She knew flat out insisting on watching Topolsky would cause Max more anxiety than he needed, so she would simply do it on her own. She was sure Maria would help too. "I think it's safe to say that we all just need to be careful for a little while." She said, unconsciously leaning in toward him. "Just until things settle down at least." With her lean, Max found himself leaning in a little closer to her, as if they were sharing intimate secrets. Of course, they were; just not the kind of secrets he would have liked to share with her. "We'll go about things as if the Crashdown thing never happened. We'll go back to being biology partners, and put the whole thing behind us. The Sheriff's not going to find anything because there will be nothing to find." That was a lie, and Max knew it. All he wanted now was to protect his family, and that had somehow suddenly included Liz. He thought it was funny and ironic that he'd found the courage to talk to Liz only after he'd healed her, only after he'd risked his life (and hers, he begrudgingly admitted) to save her. All those years he'd watched her from afar, and he'd never gotten up the courage to let any of his personality really show. He glanced backward toward the door. If he stayed much longer, he knew he wouldn't want to leave. "Yeah," She nodded, noticing that the space between them seemed to have shrunk down to almost nothing. He was so close... she found her eyes sinking, leaving his own and landing on the smooth skin of his lips. She wondered what it would be like to kiss them. Was it even possible? Could aliens kiss? It seemed likely. Why else would he have lips? Then again, maybe there was some adverse reaction to kissing an alien. Maybe it was harmful to a normal human. She didn't know for sure, but she wanted to find out. "We'll just pretend like nothing happened." She agreed, half mumbled, though the her expression implied that that wouldn't be possible. How on earth could she just ignore him? Especially when he was so close--so touchable. When Max turned to glance outside, he broke whatever spell Liz had felt she was under: he reminded her that the real world was still out there, and it didn't want them together. She didn't sigh, but there was a trace of disappointment when he exhaled the breath that had been suspended in her lungs. "I guess you should probably head home?" She commented, unintentionally phrasing it as a question. She didn't mind if he stayed...she even wanted him to, but Max wasn't the type. "Yeah, I need to get home before my parents start sending me angry text messages or worse," Max said, attempting levity and somewhat failing. He took a few steps backward and gave Liz another half-smile. He would have stayed, but it was getting harder and harder to leave. He cleared his throat, wondering if he should wave or shake her hand or something. He figured that any sort of touch would leave him wanting more, and he found himself wanting to touch her hair and cheek again like he had at the Crash Festival. It's not safe, Maximillion, he heard Michael tell him in his head, and saw Isabel's angry glare. He'd been on the outs with those two ever since that day. "I'll see you at school, Liz. Don't worry about Topolsky; she's just a teacher." "Yeah." Liz nodded, looking a little deflated herself. "Just a teacher." She echoed, seeing him to the door. She paused, unlocking and then opening it for him. "Goodnight Max." She said, leaning against the door as she propped it open. She was afraid that if she didn't she'd get a little weak in the knees, or worse, she wouldn't let him go without a proper goodbye. "Good night, Liz." Though he did glance back, he was gone around the corner in a flash. Once out of sight, he breathed a sigh of relief. He didn't know how much longer he could hold out. |