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ARFC's Most Heartwarming FanFic
Another Morning Stoner Couples/Category: AU/No Aliens, Some UC Pairing in the beginning, M/L, M/M, K/T & A/I Ratings: ADULT Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to Roswell or its characters. I got the title of this story from a song by And You Will Know Us By the Trail of the Dead. I just love the song and the title. While reading the story it will appear as though the title has no significance to the story, but it does. It won’t become apparent until the end of the story. Summary: Liz runs out of Max's life, their senior year of high school and the two meet up un-expectantly in college. Author’s Note: If this story seems familiar, I had it posted in the testing/preview threads of a couple of sites that no longer exist. With the demise of those sites, I realized this story has no cloud presence and I couldn’t have that. Anyway, I’ve changed it up a bit. The prologue is different. You can read the original on my Author’s Page. I’m determined to finish this story. It won’t leave me alone. I’ll post on Sundays. Also, I’ve lost my beta. We haven’t been in touch for years. If anyone is interested in filling the position, please send me a message.
Prologue
Eighteen months ago
The room was dark and eerily quiet with the exception of the storm brewing outside. A tree branch scraped its wooden fingers back and forth against the window, as a light trickle tiptoed across the roof, synchronizing with the raging lub dub of their hearts. The only illumination in the room came from a desk lamp and the occasional strike of white light seen from the window that streaked and sizzled across the firmament, electrifying the air, causing shadows to dance on the walls. The sky bellowed its anguish, as its deafening quake shook the walls with a vibrancy foreshadowing the ruination that was on a collision course with their lives.
Maxwell Evans avoided eye contact with his girlfriend as fat, droplets slid silently down her cheeks. He refused to look at her. One glance and he knew he’d be sucked in, apologizing and comforting her, which was the last thing he wanted to do, for it would be a lie. He didn’t want to feel remorse for causing those liquid drops. He wouldn’t, not when she was making fool-hearted decisions, which would destroy their lives.
~*~
As the tears slowly trickled down her face, she stared at him as if looking at a stranger. Did she even know him? He had the same familiar brown, spiky hair and soulful, hazel eyes. But this couldn’t be her Max, the boy she had given her heart, body and soul to. The boy she had known all of her life, her childhood friend. No…this person standing before her was a complete stranger, a coward and at this very moment he disillusioned her. It was evident in the way he avoided her. He wouldn’t look her directly in the eyes. His perusal of her included her forehead, nose, and shoes, never her eyes. At the rate they darted around, one would think he’d be dizzy. She’d had enough. She’d make him look at her and see…really see.
Squaring her shoulders, she swiped a hand across her cheeks, clearing the tears that marred her face. The moment he looked up, she met and held his gaze. Determined and daring him to look away. The same eyes she would lose herself in, she now openly glared at. For the briefest of moments, she discerned a look of shock flash in his eyes. Good, she thought inwardly. Let him see. She would be strong. She wouldn’t allow him to evade her any longer. Clearing her throat, she voiced the question again, “Are you saying you don’t want it?”
~*~
He looked into her brown, almond-shaped eyes and spied an emotion he’d never seen directed towards him before, hatred. Did she really feel that way about him? Could she feel that way about him? His heart pounded in fear of the answers as he glanced at the floor, unnerved at what the depths of her eyes revealed to him. He was being selfish. He knew this, but in this situation, he couldn’t help thinking of only himself. He heard her question and knew that he owed her complete honesty, no matter what the consequences were. Letting out the breath he was holding, he met her glare once more and answered truthfully.
“Yes… I don’t want it…I’m only seventeen. We’re not even out of high school yet. I’m not ready for this. Think about how this will affect our lives. People will talk and Nancy is going to blow a fuse. Hell, my dad is going to kill me or even worse, disown me,” Max looked down at his shoes and continued, in a small voice, “I…I think you should have an abortion… I’ll pay for it. You should do this as soon as possible. We could even go this weekend. We can go someplace where no one knows our families, so there’ll be no scandalous gossip.”
~*~
The dam that held back her tears gave way and started anew, trickling down the course left previously on her face. She was going to be strong but his words hurt her too much. They cut like a knife through her heart. He was speaking to her as if she were just someone he casually fucked instead of his girlfriend of two years and childhood friend. How could he treat her so coldly? How could a person treat the one they loved so insignificantly? Couldn’t he see what his words were doing to her?
“How can you ask that of me? I can’t kill our baby. It’s us, part of us.” Liz vehemently shook her head, “I won’t.”
“You’re not killing it. It’s not really alive until it’s born,” Max tried desperately to reason. “You won’t be doing anything wrong.”
Liz stood quietly rooted to the spot turning a deaf ear to his futile pleas while gazing upon him with cold, disenchanted eyes of contempt. He was a spineless coward. Twice that night she thought that of him. She didn’t know him at all. It was evident that he never loved her. How could he have with the way he was treating her now. Asking her to have an abortion, to destroy what was created from love, their love, or maybe lack of love. Apparently that was the case. Those endless proclamations of undying love and devotion were all lies. She had experienced so much loss in her life and the one thing she knew was constant, was anything but. His love never existed. How else could he suggest such a thing? She felt stupid. How could she be such an idiot? Elizabeth Parker was stupid. That was one word she would have never associated with herself, but there it was, the honest, brutal truth. That saying…there’s a thin line between love and hate never seemed truer than it did at that moment. Any love she felt for him, or thought she felt instantly evaporated. She hated him with every fiber of her being. Hated him for making her feel this way.
~*~
“How can you even think of doing this to me?” Max angrily panicked at her refusal to cooperate. How could she do this to him? He wasn’t ready for a baby. They weren’t ready for a baby. They were too young. What about school? What about their future plans? Not one of those included a baby. Not yet, anyway. She knew he was headed to Cambridge and she was headed to Evanston. That was the plan, an education and career first. A week ago she was fine with that plan. They had a semester and summer left together and then they’d continue in a long-distance relationship. Marriage and babies wasn’t even on the horizon until their late twenties to early-thirties. That was the plan they agreed to. How the hell did that change? Unless…she had an ulterior plan all along. “Did you plan this? Are you trying to trap me? Ca-ca-cause if you are, it’s not going to work. I’m not going to marry you…I-I don’t want this.” He ran a shaky hand through his hair and croaked out, “I’m not ready…God…Liz, I’m not ready…I-I don’t want it. You can’t have this baby. Please don’t do this to me.”
~*~
“Do this to you?!” She screeched.
Abruptly, she turned her back to him. Her hands balled into tight fists, as her body shook with contained fury. How could he even insinuate that she planned this? She wasn’t that type of person and he knew it. Her career was just as important to her as his was to him. She felt pressure building and building, as her heart beat raced. She had to calm down. There was another to think of. Feeling this way couldn’t be healthy for the baby. She unclenched her hands and placed her right hand protectively on her womb, where their baby lay nestled inside. She had to get out of there. She turned and faced him one last time. “We’re through. I never want to see you again.” she stated, nostrils flared, “I hate you.” With that, a very tearful and distraught Liz ran out of the room, out of the opulent house and into the storm.
~*~
“Damn it!” Max cursed, swiping his arm across his desk effectively causing everything upon it to hit the floor. He was fucked. Everything about this situation was fucked. Moments later, he heard the sound of her car speeding away. Max sat down on his bed and rubbed his temples in frustration; never knowing this would be the last time he would see her until…
Last edited by behrlyliz on Sun Jul 29, 2012 3:16 pm, edited 7 times in total.
I have some good news and bad news. First the good news, my laptop has been rushed to the HP Hospital where it will undergo major surgery for a new mother board. I'm not worried. I have full faith in the surgeon and his surgical team. Secondly, I'd like to give a shout out to Bestbuy's Geek Squad. They were able to retrieve and save all of my music and documents (Yay, Geek Squad!). I'd also like to give a shout out to Farrah for volunteering to be my beta. She's so awesome. She's an amazingly, talented author and I'm very lucky to have her input. She worked her magic and got the part back to me this past Sunday, and I'm really sorry for not posting it then, but I was in Biloxi with my husband celebrating our anniversary. Which brings me to the bad news. I've returned home a tad poorer than I left. Luckily for me...or unluckily depending on how you view it, I didn't lose more than I planned to lose. On a good note, my husband won $540. The bad news, he wasn't willing to share it with me.
I'd like to thank everyone for reading the last part and especially the following for leaving such lovely and encouraging FB.
HypnotiqBlueEyes
Ilonka.Green
begonia9508
Janetfl
keepsmiling7
Michelle17
Roswell_Dreamer
mary mary
Smac
Dziumka
cjensen2
Chapter One
Present Day
“Hurry up, Kyle,” Sean Byrnes, UNM Sophomore and resident, hunky, forward of the Lobos Men’s Soccer Team, yelled as he walked into the kitchen of the four-bedroom, off-campus apartment he shared with three of his teammates. He opened the refrigerator and grabbed the only thing available out of the empty fridge, a Heineken. “We’re running late.”
He was never one to rush to a party, always preferring to be fashionably late. However, two pertinent facts couldn’t deter him from this party. Firstly, yesterday’s win against UNLV deserved a little celebration. Sure, the team partied hard yesterday evening, while in Las Vegas but being home on Lobos Territory warranted a victory celebration of its own. Secondly, someone pretty special promised to make an appearance at this party and he didn’t want to chance missing her. With the team’s hectic schedule, he was always out of town, which scarcely left anytime to be with her and as crazy as it sounded, for only knowing her a short period of time, he missed her. Therefore, he was putting forth an actual effort to be punctual.
He met her six weeks ago in Regener Hall, while he was on his way to Robertson Field for practice. He had drunk a couple of beers with the boys and had to make a quick pit-stop, so he made a detour for the closest building, which just happened to be Regener Hall. She was trying to locate Professor Adler’s Physics Room to no avail. Nature was calling or rather shouting, still never one to turn down the opportunity to meet and converse with an attractive female, he ignored the urgency and stopped to assist her with locating the room.
He took one look into her pretty, brown eyes and was a goner. She knocked him off his feet. They struck up a brief conversation and exchanged telephone numbers. She was a sophomore, transferring to UNM from Florida State University. He asked her out on a non-date later that evening, volunteering to be her tour guide, so he could show her the sites of Albuquerque, to which she accepted. It was his agenda all along to spend some more time getting to know her and being her tour guide provided the perfect guise. They had an amazing time. He couldn’t remember ever having so much fun on a non-date that he invited her to go out on an official date. She was sort of hesitant to accept an actual date with him, but he used his powers of persuasion to change her mind and she eventually consented.
She wasn’t overtly hot but she had that ‘girl next door’ prettiness factor going for her, with a mane of long, silky, coffee-colored tresses and innocent looking eyes of the same hue. It was that quality of innocence that screamed sex appeal, which perhaps in his opinion was her best attribute, for she was totally oblivious of it. However, it was more than just physical beauty that attracted him to her. She possessed depth and intelligence, which was a rare commodity for any girl he expressed interest in, usually preferring the dimwitted, gullible, and busty-babe types. Elizabeth was definitely a breath of fresh air from his norm. She was a keeper and to the astonishment and disbelief of his roommates, he was turning in his player card.
“Jeez’ Sean, what’s the rush?” Kyle Valenti, one of his roommates and fellow teammates, asked as he walked into the living room. Taking a seat on the leather couch, he propped his bare feet up on the table, and turned on the television to begin a surf of the channels. “It’s just a party. You know we don’t usually show up until way past midnight, anyway.” Settling for watching a hockey game on ESPN, he placed the remote control next to him on the couch. Hearing the rattle of silverware emanating from the kitchen, he quickly deduced that Sean was searching for the bottle-top opener, and bellowed, “Was that the last Heineken?”
“No,” Sean lied making his way into the living room, “Anyway, I’m not in a rush.”
The skepticism evident on his face, Kyle raised an eyebrow and looked pointedly at him.
Sean caved under Kyle’s scrutiny and consented, “Okay, maybe I’m in a little rush. I just don’t want to miss her. She said she’d swing by.”
“Who?” Kyle asked, not the least bit surprised that Sean’s eagerness to attend Charlie Carlson’s party had to do with a female.
“Elizabeth,” Sean answered, unable to stop the goofy grin from spreading across his face at the mention of her name.
Kyle rolled his eyes and coughed into his hand, “whipped.”
“What was that?”
“Nothing,” Kyle chuckled lightly, “so, we finally get to meet the elusive Elizabeth. I was beginning to think she was a figment of your imagination.”
“Yes, you do and be nice,” Sean warned with a look, conveying the graveness of his words, “I don’t want you guys to scare her off. Plus, she’s bringing a friend and I kind of hinted that one of you guys would be available to meet her”
“A friend? Have you seen said friend?”
“Well…nooo,” Sean drawled on the word no, before quickly adding, “but I’m pretty sure she’s hot.” He took another swig of his beer, “Elizabeth says she’s attractive.”
“Since when do females know how to accurately rate their friends? Attractive is just layman’s term for dog. No, thanks buddy. I can fend for myself,” Kyle stood and walked into the kitchen. He opened the refrigerator to retrieve a Heineken but was met with a completely empty fridge, “You motha-fucker. That was the last beer.”
“Someone had to drink it,” Sean shrugged nonchalantly on the couch.
The sound of a key jiggling in the lock was heard, before the front door swung open, revealing their third roommate, Michael Guerin. He entered the apartment carrying two, black, plastic bags, one under his arm and the other in his hand.
“Who’s a motha-fucker?” Michael asked, leaning back against the door, using his body as a wedge to allow Courtney Banks, their attractive, blonde neighbor entrance into the apartment. Courtney, whom they all had crushed on at some point during their time at UNM, lived across the hall and had become a permanent fixture in their apartment, thus earning the title of ‘one of the guys’.
“Sean,” Kyle tetchily answered from the kitchen, “for drinking the last beer.”
“It’s a good thing I went grocery shopping, then,” Michael held up both bags revealing two cases of Heineken beer. Sitting the cases on the kitchen countertop, he removed four bottles out of one case and placed them in the freezer, then placed the two cases in the refrigerator.
“It’s amazing what men consider going grocery shopping is,” Courtney peered into the all but empty fridge, save for the two cases of Heineken. “Haven’t you guys ever heard of food?”
“Yeah, and McDonalds does an excellent job preparing it for us,” Michael answered in all seriousness.
“And you call yourselves athletes,” Courtney tsked, with the shake of her head, “I’m sure your coach has some sort of rule about your diet.”
“Yes, and lucky for him we don’t follow it,” Kyle laughed, “or else we’d be shit on the field.”
Sean joined the others in the kitchen, “What’s up Court? What are you doing here?”
“Hey, Sean,” Courtney greeted, “My car won’t start and Mikey G here, has so graciously offered to give me a jump.”
“I bet he did,” Kyle snorted under his breath, so that only Michael and Sean could hear, causing the three teammates to snigger at their own little inside joke. It was a well-known fact between the roommates that Courtney was considered a prime piece of ass and although she was ‘one of the guys’, that still didn’t stop the guys from shamelessly flirting with her in hopes of one day hooking up with her.
“So, Court, are you going to Charlie’s party?” Sean changed the subject.
“No,” she shook her head negatively and explained, “My best friend is babysitting for her roommate tonight, so I thought I’d keep her company. That’s actually where I was headed, but it seems that my car has an agenda all its own.”
“Babysitting. Sounds like you’re fourteen,” Kyle commented dryly.
“Oh, but wouldn’t you love that,” Courtney seductively leaned in and whispered loudly enough so that Michael and Sean could hear, “Considering that’s the only way I’d be naïve enough to give you some play.”
“Oooh,” Michael and Sean egged on in unison at their playful banter.
“Score! That’s Banks 1 and Valenti zero, zilch, nada damn thing,” Courtney taunted, as she raised her arms up in victory. Kyle gave her a playful sneer. “Oh come on, Kyle. Don’t be like that.”
“Fuck you,” is his clipped retort.
“You want to,” Courtney laughingly responded and continued in a sing-song voice, “but you’re never gonna get it.” She playfully pinched his cheeks and ruffled his hair, “You’re too easy, but I love you anyway.”
“Yeah, yeah,” Kyle swatted her hands away from his hair. “If you love me so much, why don’t you give me a smooch, considering how we have all of this sexual tension between us?”
“Sexual tension? In your dreams, Buddha-boy,” was her cheeky reply. Turning her attention back to Sean and Michael, she asked, “Are you guys going to Charlie’s party?”
“Yup,” Michael answered in brief, never the one to expound on a statement he didn’t regard as important.
Eager to share the recently acquired news about Elizabeth, Kyle blurted out, “Guess who’s going to be there.”
“Who?”
“Elizabeth,” he filled in.
“No shittin’,” was Michael’s surprised response as he and Courtney look to Sean for confirmation of Kyle’s revelation.
“Yes, and I already warned Kyle to be on his best behavior. That goes for all of you,” he deadpanned, pointing a finger. “I mean it. No funny business.”
“Wow, we finally get to meet Elizabeth,” Courtney bounced with joy, imitating a mother’s excitement over meeting her son’s fiancé for the first time. “I might just swing by the party after all.”
“And she’s bringing a friend,” Kyle volunteered with a smirk, nodding at Michael, while conveniently leaving himself out of the equation, “for either you or Max to meet.”
“A friend, as in a blind date?” Michael stated more so than asked. Kyle nodded his affirmation. “Hell, no.”
“Come on, Mikey,” Sean beseeched, “Do it for me. Just talk to her for about thirty minutes. That’s all I’m asking. It’ll be fun. You might actually like her.” As a last ditch effort, he embellished, “She’s hot, plus she loves Metallica.”
“Hmm…Metallica,” Michael internally debated whether to give the chick a look-see. Apparently the chick has great taste in music, but is that enough? Deciding her choice in music wasn’t enough to deem her look-see worthy, he questioned, “Do you have a picture of her?”
“No.”
“Again,” he reiterated, “hell, no.”
“I said she was hot,” Sean pointed out.
“Yeah, you did but your idea of hot and my idea of hot don’t always mesh well together.”
“Oh, god,” Sean groaned tilting his head back in exasperation, “I can’t believe you’re bringing that up again. Paris Hilton is hot.”
“No, she’s not. She’s like an ironing board, straight up and down. Kyle has more curves than she does. The only thing hot about Paris Hilton is her bank account,” Michael countered, “take that away and all you have left is a skinny, blonde, chick babying a critter.”
“He’s got a point, Sean,” Kyle piped in. “That damn mutt lives better than we do.”
“Why don’t you just introduce her to Max,” Courtney suggested trying to diffuse the situation. It was a pointless and idiotic debate, to which she had become accustom to, since becoming an honorary member of their clique. Although she was in agreement with Michael and to her horror, Kyle, if she heard one more word about Paris Hilton she was sure to go postal. “I’m sure he’ll meet her.”
“Sean would stand a better chance of getting Kyle to meet her than Max. Besides, Alyssa will probably be there and I’m really not in the mood to hear her shit tonight,” Michael opened the freezer, retrieving two of the beers for Courtney and himself. “I get a migraine whenever she starts yakking.”
“I hear you,” Sean shook his head, “Alyssa is definitely a drama queen.”
“Psychotic is more like it,” Michael corrected, handing a beer to Courtney.
“I told you all she was cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs. I knew it when he first brought her here and I caught her sneaking through his things,” Kyle reminded. “She has too many stalker tendencies.”
“Well, crazy definitely knows crazy,” Courtney directed her jab at Kyle, to which he reflexively gave her the middle finger.
Ignoring their banter, Sean cogitated, “I don’t see how he can even deal with her. They’re only fucking. Can you imagine if she was his girlfriend?”
Using his bottle top opener key chain to pop the top off his beer, Michael shrugged, before taking a swig of his brew. “He said she gives excellent head.”
Point made. As far as Sean and Kyle were concerned, there was no other reason needed to justify Max’s involvement with Alyssa, for a female who gave nice blowjobs was top commodity in any stage of a man’s life. Psycho tendencies versus great oral sex, was there even a choice?
“That’s definitely important,” Kyle, voiced his concurrence, while Sean nodded his head in silent agreement.
“You guys are so disgusting,” Courtney rolled her eyes in aggravation, wondering why the hell she even put up with them.
As if sensing her internal thought, Michael spoke, “Sure we are. That’s why you love us.” Making his way toward the door, he motioned for her to join him, “Come on. Let’s see if we can get that car of yours started.”
“Bye, Sean. I hope everything goes well with Elizabeth tonight,” she called out from the door. “Bye, monkey face,” she added with a glance at Kyle and quickly closed the door, before he could respond.
Thanks to everyone for reading and especially the following for leaving FB
Michelle17 – Thanks so much for reading. I hope you enjoy the next part.
Discospider – Thanks for tuning in.
Janetfl - Trust me, she won’t be falling for Max any time soon. Max looks like an ass now, but with more of the past being revealed, the tables could turn.
Keepsmiling7 – Yeah, I think it’s safe to say that Max showed his behind in the prologue. I can’t wait for everyone to meet her, too. It’s definitely going to be explosive for at least one person.
HypnotiqBlueEyes - I’m glad you’re enjoying the story. Major shit will definitely hit the fan. As far as who Courtney is helping to babysit, I’m sorry…I can’t say.
LovelyPOM83 – Thanks for reading.
Lyrallya – This story is soooo much more than a Max got Liz pregnant fic. There’s this whole back story taking place. Let’s just say that a certain situation occurred and caused a domino effect and it will/has touch/ed everyone. That certain situation is not Liz getting pregnant.
Jull_ana – What’s up Julls! How have you been? Hope all is well. I’m embarrassed to say that this story is sooooo old, it’s not even funny, but I had to bring it back cuz’ it won’t leave me alone.
begonia9508 – I can’t answer that, but it is possible to have a baby and go to school. The question however, is did Liz do that? And thanks for thinking about my baby (laptop). It’s being discharged tomorrow.
clueless- It was in the testing/preview thread years ago. This story is so old, but I will finish it.
angiebrenna – Thanks for giving the story a read. I hope you enjoy the next part.
sarammlover – Thank you. I love to hear that. The guys together are so much fun to write.
And a special thanks to Farrah, the most awesome beta in the world.
Chapter Two
Max’s bedroom
“Oooh, that feels so good,” a female voice moaned, as Maxwell Evans lied entangled between a pair of long, shapely legs, sucking on a taut, pink nipple.
He lifted his head and gave the young lady an impish grin, “You like that?”
“Mmm hmm,” the feisty, red-head purred, her fingers splayed in his thick locks, causing more spikes to form in his hair, “but what about your roommates?”
“What about them?” he asked releasing the nipple with a pop in favor of peppering kisses along the curvature of her neck.
“Won’t they hear us?” the twenty-year old barmaid breathlessly questioned. “I don’t want them to hear us.”
“They’ve already heard us plenty of times, Alyssa,” Max mumbled nonchalantly, working his way south towards the creamy valley between her breasts.
“What!” Alyssa exclaimed mortified, pushing Max off of her and sitting up, as her perfect, perky, sized D-cups followed suit, sitting up demanding attention, which Max unabashedly gave. “What do you mean by they’ve heard us plenty of times?”
“You’re not exactly quiet,” he muttered, too enraptured and unable to tear his gaze from the rise and fall of her chest. He shrugged, “It’s not like it matters, anyway.”
“It matters to me,” she interrupted indignantly. “I don’t want your roommates knowing what I sound like in the throes of passion when we make love. It’s private and special.”
Max physically tensed, as her declaration acted like a filter, clearing the sexual haze that engulfed the small room. With the spell broken, his state of arousal deflated, much like a balloon releasing its air, as his gaze snapped from her chest to her face. “Well, you don’t have to worry about that happening, since we’ve never made love.” The words spilled out of his mouth before he could stop them. It wasn’t that he didn’t mean them, just that he didn’t mean for them to come out sounding so harsh, but Alyssa definitely needed a reality check. He sat up deftly, swinging his legs over the side of his bed and braced himself for the onslaught of words he knew was sure to come
“How can you say that? How can you say that we’ve never made love? I love you,” she asserted, clearly hurt by his words. Whining she added, “Besides, I thought we were a couple,”
“A couple of what?” Max dumbly replied.
“You know what I’m talking about,” she shook her head despondently. “I can’t believe you.”
He bent down to retrieve his jeans and shirt that lay crumbled on the floor next to his bed. He stood, tugging his jeans up one leg at a time, “Alyssa, don’t try to play the victim here. I’ve always been honest with you. You and I both knew this was a casual thing. No strings attached. We agreed from the very beginning that this was just sex, so don’t try to act surprised that a month later, it’s still just about sex.”
“Every girl agrees to that at first, but we don’t really mean it,” she rolled her eyes, unmistakably vexed. Her attitude went from hurt to annoyed in less than 30 seconds, causing Max to question the validity of her prior performance. Alyssa was a bit of an actress and it was hard for him to take her at face value most of the time.
“I hate to break it to you but when some people say no strings attached, they actually mean no strings attached,” Max set straight, as he pulled the black and gold, Hawthorne Heights t-shirt, he purchased at their recent concert over his head.
Realizing the evening was a bust, with a huff she followed suit and began putting on her clothes, “What’s so hard to understand about a person wanting more? I’m sure you realized at some point I would want more.”
“Sure, in three to six months, maybe…but not after four weeks. We barely know each other.”
“Oh, so now we barely know each other? After a month of fucking your brains out, you barely know me?”
“Basically,” Max shrugged in answer, with one notion prominent in his head. It was time to say adios to Alyssa.
They’d only been having sex for four weeks, not even a full month and with the team’s busy schedule, he was out of the state for a third of that time. Yet, there she was in his room, talking exclusivity and love. And this was the first time he’d ever heard this love crap spewing from her lips and he wasn’t inclined to return the sentiment, for his feelings for her were anything but love.
No, love was the furthest thing he felt for Alyssa. A more accurate description would be lust, maybe, but not love. In fact, there was only one person he ever felt that emotion for and she was gone. Besides, he was no more ready for a serious relationship than he was for a hole in his head. He’d been down that road eighteen months ago and had the T-shirt to prove it.
Even if he did want to settle down with someone, it wouldn’t be with Alyssa. He couldn’t quite put his finger on it but there was just something off with her. Jared Richards, one of his teammates and Alyssa’s ex, tried to warn him about her. Hell, even Kyle told him that she was wacko but he paid no heed. He was too enamored by her “oral talents” to see straight, but now the blinders were lifted and he was beginning to suspect Alyssa of having an agenda of her own. At present count, he was the second person on the Lobos Men’s Soccer Team to hook up with her, which caused him to wonder if she was a groupie, hoping to latch on to some unsuspecting dimwit on his way to a professional sports career. The coaches constantly counseled them to be wary of such opportunist, for they usually appeared in pretty packages, stroking one’s ego and willing and ready to do anything. And boy, was she always willing and ready.
Not to mention the countless discussions his father had with him in regards to taking extra precautions when dealing with people who weren’t of their class, especially women. It wasn’t just the matter of being a soccer star on campus, for in the scheme of things that was just an infinitesimal detail since soccer wasn’t in Max’s future. According to his dad, his future was in politics and being the son of Phillip Evans put him more at risk. He constantly preached how being the governor’s son made Max a prime target for unscrupulous people, including gold diggers, who would do anything to ruin the governor’s reputation or get a piece of the Evan’s fortune.
No, scandal just wasn’t a possibility for Governor Phillip Evans, for he had higher aspirations for himself and Max. Even though Phillip Evans had only just acquired the governorship of New Mexico this year, it still didn’t stop him from looking at the big picture, which included the presidency for himself and if he played his cards right, would lay the foundation for his son to eventually follow his path into the White House. He was on the road towards having it all and the presidency was a sure possibility, having already garnered the interest and support of a few members of his party for the next presidential election at such an early stage in office.
That in its self spoke volumes, for it showed that through dedication and commitment, one could achieve their goals, no matter how unattainable they seemed. That was the quote printed in the Santa Fe Daily Times bought and paid for by friends, of Governor Evans, otherwise known as Governor Evans’ personal publicist and right-hand man, Jesse Ramirez, AKA, Mr. Fix-it and Max’s brother-in-law.
“You’re a fucking idiot,” Alyssa’s words rang out, breaking his internal ramblings. “Do you know how many guys would kill for the chance to be with me?”
Idiot? Who the fuck does she think she is, Max thought to himself. “Maybe you should be wi-” Max lividly suggested, only to be cut off by Alyssa.
Her voice softened, “But I chose you because you’re different. You’re special. You’re not like these other brainless jocks running around. You’re the real thing. Hell, you’re the governor’s son and everyone knows you’re going places and I want to be along for the ride. I figure I can help you get to public office, once you decide to follow in your father’s footsteps. I’d be an asset. I can totally help you with the young adult demographics. I’ve been thinking about this for a while now. Besides, I’ve invested too much of my time and body to just give you up.”
“First of all, I don’t need your help. My father has my future well under control,” Max angrily spit out, upset with himself for falling into her wiles and being used. Everything he was thinking in reference to the possibility that Alyssa was fucking him for ulterior motives was pretty much circumstantial. However, thanks to her little admission, he didn’t need anymore proof, for he had just gotten the confession straight out of the horse’s mouth. She was with him for a one-way ticket to a better life, disguised as interest and a desire of helping him with his future career. “Secondly, you gave of your body and time freely. No one coerced you into fucking me. And if I remember correctly,you came on to me. Contrary to what you said when we first met, I know for a fact that you were well aware of who I was.”
Unfazed by his tirade and staring through him with a glazed look upon her face, Alyssa continued, as if she hadn’t heard him, “I’m not giving you up. Think about everything we’ll accomplish…together. We’ll be the most powerful, wealthy, influential couple to ever take office in New Mexico. Hell, we’ll even be more powerful than your father. We’ll have it all. All because you and I together…is something special…something magical…it’s destined.”
The color drained from his face; as a result, his features turned noticeably pale, as he took a swaggering step back, bumping into the chest of drawers, “What did you just say?” he demanded.
She opened her mouth to answer him but closed it. Taking a tentative step toward him, she placed a hand on his shoulder and inquired, “Max, are you okay? You look a little funny.”
As if being burnt by fire, Max jerked away, side stepping her and repeated his earlier question, “What did you just say?”
“I-I said…a-a lot of things,” she answered confusedly. Taking another look at his face, she noticed the angry look vanished and was replaced with another undistinguishable one. Thinking her words were having a positive affect on him in regards to their relationship, she asserted with more confidence, “I said that you and I being together is special. That’s how I know we’re great for each other. We’re meant to be. It’s destined.”
Taking a look at Alyssa, Max blinked copiously as wavy, red hair morphed into silky, chocolate locks and jade-colored eyes transformed into mesmerizing, brown orbs, while her declaration took him back in time, 3 ½ years prior to one of many memorable evenings, in Roswell, New Mexico.
The crowded fairground of Roswell, commonly known as Buckley Point, was abuzz with activity as swarms of residents and tourist impatiently awaited the start of Roswell’s Annual Crash Festival. This year there were two new editions to the festival, a carnival and free concert featuring two of the town’s up and rising local bands, which accounted for the festival’s record breaking attendance, for the crowd was double its usual size. Typically, mostly tourist attended the Crash Festival but this year with the addition of the carnival and free concert, the locals were out in masses.
As was tradition, the festival would begin at dusk. The fairground’s lights started to shimmer, causing an array of soft colors to prance about the park, signaling the start of the festivities. The whole fairground was illuminated as if it were on fire, creating a picturesque view. Everything was splendid.
However, for two locals, the urgency of the moment was distracting from the beauty, as a couple of lustful adolescents with wandering hands, ravished one another behind the dimly-lit, brick facility, which housed the public restrooms.
Imprisoned between a brick wall and a hard, sculptured chest, Liz Parker’s soft whimper cut through the evening’s air as she and her boyfriend, Maxwell Evans, devoured one another’s mouth. Another quiet moan escaped her lips, granting Max exploratory passage into her mouth, as his tongue enticed her tongue into an impassioned tango. Their lips danced or dueled for what seemed like hours but in reality were only a few minutes, until the need of air slowly vanquished the need to conquer.
Parting lips, Liz slowly opened her eyes to find Max staring intently at her. The sheer intensity with which he gazed upon her was a little unsettling, for it mirrored her own desirous state. She wanted him something fierce and evidently he wanted her just as much, but she knew that behind the public restrooms was not the ideal place to unleash their wanton desire. In an attempt to lighten the mood, she playfully swatted his arm, “You better not have had your eyes open this entire time.”
“What if they were?” Max challenged, as he leaned in and placed a chaste kiss on her right cheek, before trailing his mouth to her ear and whispering, “What if I get off on seeing the look of pleasure on your face? It’s a turn on knowing I was the one to put it there.” He cupped her cheek and began to leisurely trail his fingers down her cheek, down her neck, across her shoulder and down her arm, eventually resting his hand on her side.
Feeling an electric shiver run down her spine at the erotic feel of his fingers running their course, she wrapped her arms around his neck. Fingers interlocked and playing with the soft curls at the nape of his neck, she responded in earnest, “You’re the only one who can put that look there.”
“Good to know,” Max leaned forward, lightly resting his forehead against hers. Kissing the tip of her nose, he diffidently questioned, “But…why…why me?”
Why me? His question resounded in her head. It wasn’t the question itself that surprised her but his tone, for she could hear the uncertainty in his voice, which was a rare occurrence for her overly, confident boyfriend and she wanted to alleviate any self doubts he may have had. Deliberately ignoring his question, she disentangled her arms from around his neck, and walked out of the concealing shadows of the building into the vast openness of the park. With her back towards him, she took a few moments and tilted her head, allowing her gaze to take in the incandescent, chandelier of stars, before turning around and giving him a simple smile. She hooked her finger in a come hither motion, and beckoned him forward.
“You see that star up there,” she pointed out, “the one wobbling slightly.”
“Yeah,” was his simple response, as he obliged her request, taking a step behind her. He encircled his arms around her waist and rested his chin on the top of her head.
“It’s called Barnard's Star and there’s a story behind it. You see, that star didn’t start to wobble until three months ago.”
“What caused it to start wobbling?”
Looking up and catching his eye, she responded, “True love.” Max gave her a disbelieving but I’m going to humor you look, which prompted her defensive reply, “It did.”
“You expect me to believe that love caused that star to wobble,” Max stated, suspicious of her tale. He wasn’t an expert in astronomy like Liz but he knew a tall tale when he heard one, so he questioned, “You wouldn’t happen to be blowing smoke up my ass?”
Unable to suppress her giggle, she placed a finger to her lips shhing him, “No, I am not blowing smoke up your ass. I’ll have you know that I acquired this information from a very reliable source.”
“And what source would that be?”
“RiverDog.”
“Riverdog? Crazy, Old Man Riverdog from the Mescalero Reservation that makes that special tonic,” he clarified, only to let out a gut-wrenching chortle. “Which is actually gin and juice? He’s got a loyal following of the town’s drunks and underage drinkers, especially the student body of West Roswell. What do you think those kegs at JP’s parties are actually filled with? It’s cheaper than going to the liquor store and you don’t have to show ID.”
“He’s not crazy,” Liz laughingly defended. “And that tonic actually works. My Grandma Claudia use to drink it all the time and she swore by it. She said it totally cleared up her cataracts.”
“Wasn’t she admitted to the Betty Ford Center, once?”
“No, Mister Smarty Pants. That was Grandma Ethel and how dare you insinuate that my most beloved grandmother was an alcoholic.”
Max raised his hands up in surrender, “Sorry, my bad.”
“Now please, let me finish my story,” Liz chastised, turning around to face him. “One day during my shift at the Crashdown, I was waiting on RiverDog’s table and he informed me that he’d been watching me for several days. Now mind you, I was seconds away from running over to Sheriff Hanson’s table, demanding a restraining order be taken out on RiverDog for being a total perv, but he corrected himself and said that he meant that he’d been watching me in the stars.”
“Total wacko,” Max chimed in.
“That’s what I thought, too, until he said that the stars were in alignment and something spectacular was about to happen. He said the stars had revealed to him that in three months time, my soul mate would appear from a source I least expect. It would be a life long love, one so rare that the heavens would quake,” Liz explicated, as a nippy breeze swept past them causing a shiver to run down her body.
“I find it hard to believe that you, Miss Scientific America, actually bought that cockamamie story.”
“You know me so well,” she beamed up at him. “I’m a strong believer in there being a logical explanation for everything in the universe, so I proceeded to explain this to RiverDog, which prompted a two hour long discourse on astronomy and let’s just say that I have a new found respect for him. He’s highly intelligent and we had a very stimulating, cerebral conversation about the stars and his life. Did you know that he got his doctoral from UCLA, twenty years ago? Imagine that. He’s really Dr. RiverDog.”
Looking at her as if she’d grown two heads, Max voiced in earnestness, “Cerebral…really? Liz, have you been sipping the Dogman’s Tonic?”
“Don’t be silly. Just because I respected the man, doesn’t mean that I believed his tales concerning my love life at the time. When that conversation took place, I was dating
Doug and even though I really liked him or at least thought I did, I knew he was anything but my soul mate-”
“Thank, god you came to your senses and dumped that clown,” Max interrupted.
“You never liked him, did you?” Liz remembered.
“Hell, no,” Max responded indignantly, “He was lame. Plus he was too old for you. What would a senior want with a freshman, besides the obvious?”
“Yeah,” Liz snorted, as the wind gently blew, playing hairdresser as it lifted her freshly, curled locks about her shoulders. “And I wish you would have shared that logic with me before I had the humiliating misfortune of being practically molested by him at his senior prom.”
“If memory serves me correctly, I did and you told me to mind my own business. Besides, you wised up, though,” he placed a loose strand of hair behind her ear.
“I did,” she concurred with a nod of her head. “And two months later, we admitted our feelings for one another and you know what? That was exactly three months after my conversation with RiverDog. It was also the night NASA noticed that Barnard’s Star was wobbling and I became a believer, for in that night I found my soul mate in the last place I expected. He was right in front of my face for years in the form of a friend and I was too stupid to recognize it.”
“Wow, you get all that from one star and RiverDog’s tonic,” Max teased.
“Don’t mock the stars, for they never lie,” Liz playfully chastised. “You and I together is something special, something magical. It’s fate. So, you see it was inevitable. We were destined to be together, for it’s written in the stars. Elizabeth Parker and Maxwell Evans shall be one for all eternity. Our coming together made the very heavens quake and Barnard’s Star has wobbled ever since.”
“Sooo…in other words…I’m stuck with you,” Max pulled her close and placed his right hand around her waist.
Rising on her tiptoes, she placed a lingering kiss on his lips, “You better believe it. You will love me forever. You already have my heart, my soul and after tonight my body, which will join us forever.”
“Are we really going to do this, tonight?” he questioned, his voice taking on a serious tone, as he began languidly brushing his hand up and down the side of her bare midriff. Feeling goose bumps where smooth skin should be, he placed his second hand on her other side and rapidly ran his hands up and down, attempting to warm her.
Forgoing the typical verbal response to his question, she let her actions speak for herself, as she again rose on tiptoes and wrapped her arms around his neck, as she pulled his head down for one more breathtaking kiss, which prompted another make out session, with Max pulling Liz back into the shadowy curtains of the building.
Fifteen minutes later, the crackling of fallen twigs was heard, along with the sound of Tess Evans’ voice as she stepped out from the shadows, interrupting their make out session, only to shutter once she realized where their make out session was taking place. “We did not come to the Crash Festival so you two could behave like a couple of horn dogs behind the public restroom, no less. Max, could you be any less romantic.”
Max let out an aggravated groan at his sister’s timing, scoffing at her like a six year old, reminiscent of the days when they were younger and she would ruin his fun. Tess was a member of the CBA, Cock Blockers of America, because she always had the uncanny knack of intruding on them at the most inappropriate times. He never had this problem with her before. It only started recently since he’d started dating Liz, her best friend.
Glancing from Tess to Max, Liz strained to hold in her laughter. It was evident that both siblings were pretty ticked with the other. In a desperate attempt to placate the situation, Liz spoke, “Tess, there you are. We were just looking for you.”
“Sure, you were,” Tess snorted sarcastically, giving Liz a pointed, pissed-off look, “Apparently, you thought I was hiding in Max’s tonsils.”
She was beyond tired of this mess. Liz was her best friend. Yet since she hooked up with Max three months ago, she barely had time for her anymore. It wasn’t that she was jealous of their relationship, for she was truly happy that Liz found someone to be with, even if it was her infuriating, twin brother but there were limits, or at least should be limits. Liz needed to set up some boundaries. Max was practically monopolizing all of her time and in the long run that couldn’t be good for either of them. Just because Liz had a boyfriend shouldn’t deem Tess any less important in her life but that’s how Tess had been feeling lately, inconsequential. Besides, she never had this problem with any of Liz’s other boyfriends, so why was Liz’s relationship with Max so different?
There was more snapping of tree branches, as a lone figure emerged from the shadows. The moonlight shined down, spotlighting Michael Guerin, giving the others an unambiguous view of his profile, as he stepped into the clearing. Scratching his brow, he cleared his throat and apologized, “Sorry, man. I tried to keep her out of your hair. She must have known what I was doing cuz’ I lost her in the line for the bumper cars.”
“Don’t sweat it,” Max spoke to his best friend. “My sister has a nose like a Basset Hound. She can sniff out Liz a mile away.”
“Fuck you, Max,” Tess barked. The trenchant words flew out of her mouth, intent on inflicting verbal harm to him. She was tired of her brother acting like she was a nuisance, always interrupting his precious time with Liz. From her vantage point, it was the other way around. Max was the one always crashing in on her plans with Liz, like tonight for instance. It was supposed to be a girl’s night out, but once again, Max invited himself along.
Pasting a fake, saccharine smile on her face, she calmly stated, “From my recollection dear brother, this was supposed to be an evening out for the girls and since I’ve been a pretty, good sport about you and Michael crashing in on our outing, we’re going to follow my itinerary, which at this very moment has us riding the roller coaster.” There was a smile on her face after she spoke the words but it was the manner of her voice, which showed the others that she meant business and no one dared to cross Tess Evans when she spoke using her eerily, venomous, “ if you cross me, I’ll fuck you up” voice. “Come now,” she instructed, as she took off walking.
Begrudgingly, Max wrapped a protective arm around Liz’s waist, pulling her close to his side, as the two, future lovers trailed behind Michael and Tess towards the roller coaster. He was in a sour mood and he couldn’t help but be irked at his twin sister for forcing them to ride the roller coaster. With the promise of what was undoubtedly going to happen between him and Liz when they made it back to her house, he could think of only one thing they needed to do. Although it involved transportation, riding the wooden roller coaster was not what he had in mind. Shooting daggers at the back of his sister’s wavy, blonde locks, his visual assault was interrupted by the soothing, sweet voice of his angel.
“I’ve got a surprise for you,” Liz whispered.
He perked up some, “Really, what?”
“It’s a surprise,” she shook her head. “You’ll have to wait until we get on the roller coaster.”
“Why do I have to wait until we get on the roller coaster?” Max questioned intolerantly, never one to enjoy surprises, which he equated with the unexpected. He liked predictability. In that sense, he took after his father. He liked knowing what was going to happen. He valued plans and detested the unforeseen, for it could throw a monkey wrench in one’s life; although, he did like Liz’s surprises because she always came up with the most inventive, enjoyable kind of surprises.
Liz let out a breath at his impatience, “Trust me, you’ll love it. Just consider it an appetizer of what’s to come.”
Liking the sound of his surprise, his mind went on a safari of possibilities. “Appetizer of what’s to come. That’s all you had to say.” Grabbing Liz’s hand he took off at a blurring sprint, past his best friend and sister towards the winding lines of the roller coaster, with only the sound of their laughter left in their wake showing evidence that they were within the vicinity. If she was giving him an advanced screening of what was to come, he wanted to get the show on the road, because Liz could be very creative when she wanted…
Akin to mist, slowly the memory faded and reality claimed hold of his faculties. Leaving him where he started in his bedroom, as one, blaringly, obvious fact stared back at him… Alyssa. A woman who was the complete opposite of Liz and even on her best day could never measure up to her.
You will love me forever.
How correct those words were. Even now, 3 ½ years after she uttered them, they haunt him, for they still rang true. After eighteen months of being apart from her, despite his best efforts and incessant denial, Liz Parker was still very much on his mind and in his heart.
A/N - Sorry it’s taken so long to get back, but real life is hectic and plus my job was offering a lot of overtime that I couldn’t refuse. I’m exhausted, but my paychecks are looking really good.
CYA – I can’t take credit for the rollercoaster bit. I got the idea from the movie Fear, which starred Mark Wahlberg and Reese Witherspoon. Great movie, by the way.
Again, I feel the need to stress that this story is more than a Max and Liz get pregnant fic. It’s more on the lines of one of my favorite shows that comes on ABC. It’s probably ABC’s most popular show this season. The only other clue I’ll give is that it comes on at 10:PM. So, if you’ve figured out the show, remember this story is along the lines of that show. Not exactly like it, but similar. The title says it all. Anyway, I’m glad that quite a few of you are enjoying the flashbacks. They’ll be more flashbacks. I hope you don’t get tired of them. For the sake of the story, they’re needed cuz’ there are clues/answers in the flashbacks.
This chapter may seem a little unnecessary, but originally chapters 2, 3 & 4 were all one chapter. I figured it was too long, so I broke it up in thirds. This chapter foreshadows a little, but not for the reasons you may think.
Again, a special thanks to Farrah. She’s the best. And also a special thanks to the following for leaving FB. I really appreciate your comments.
Michelle17 – I’m glad Max realized that he still loved Liz, too. Denial is a hell of a drug and maybe now since he’s no longer a denial-addict, he can start dealing with those feelings instead of suppressing them for the sake of others.
HypnotiqBlueEyes – You’re my new best friend. I’m glad you liked the last part. You don’t have that much longer to wait till Max learns who Sean’s Elizabeth is. Chapters 7 & 8 are eye opening ones for Max.
begonia9508 – That last chapter really painted Alyssa as a gold digger and maybe a little crazy. But is she? Pay close attention to the next chapter.
Dreamon – Thanks for reading
keepsmiling7 – At this point, Max feels a lot like you do regarding Alyssa, but sometimes you should keep your enemies closer.
LovelyPOM83 – I think it’s a consensus that we all feel that Max should leave Alyssa alone.
Roswell_Dreamer – Thank you so much for the kind words. I’m glad you enjoyed the peek into Max and Liz’s relationship. And chapter 7 will answer both of your questions.
Smac – I’m glad you liked the star story. Someone will definitely reap what they’ve sown. Chapters 7 & 8 are the chapters to be. They will answer both of your questions. Also, I want to thank you again for reading my story. You were one of the ones that read it way back when I had it posted at Write On and I appreciate your continued interest in this story.
Angiebrenna – It’s definitely a Mark Wahlberg moment on the rollercoaster. To this day, I still love Fear. Mark Wahlberg played the perfect combination of bad boy and sexy…that is until he turned crazy. Then he was the perfect crazy.
AlysLuv – He certainly has…but there’s a reason behind that behavior, as you’ll soon learn.
IceQueenMay – That’s coming up in chapter 7. Rest assured, there will be no Max and Liz happy reunion anytime soon. They have unfinished business…bad business and neither one will be happy with the other for a while.
RoswellMyHeart – Thank you. I’m glad you liked the star story and no longer hate the word destiny. I never had a problem with that word cuz’ I always felt it was Max’s destiny to be with Liz, his soul mate. I always felt that Max recognized Liz when he got off the school bus and that there should have been episodes of their past lives on Antar to delve a little deeper into that recognition. But don’t get me started on that subject. Anyway, a lot of things that happen/ed to Max and Liz during this story can/could be blamed on others/other influences, however, Max’s response to her pregnancy isn’t one of them. Unfortunately, that was all Max and he’ll have to deal with that fall out.
Jake17 – Wow! Thanks for giving my story a read. I am a super, huge fan of yours.
Chapter Three – second part of the previous chapter
Alyssa was nothing like Liz, so it was more than a little disconcerting to hear her utter a choice of words that Liz would have used.
“Max, are you okay?” Alyssa repeated her earlier question, the concern evident in her voice and features.
“Yeah, I’m fine,” he replied tersely, backing away from her, as he took a step towards his bed. It was clear that he was anything but fine.
“No, you’re not,” she contradicted, picking up on his edginess. “Something is wrong. You’re a million miles away.” She raised her hand, starting to reach out to him, but caught herself mid-reach, bringing her hand back down to her side, before cautiously continuing with the topic at hand. “You think I don’t notice but I do. You’re with me in body but…your mind is somewhere else. Why won’t you let me in? How am I supposed to help you or better yet,compete with whatever is occupying your mind?”
“You’re not. You can’t,” Max irritably snapped. He was annoyed with Alyssa for causing him to open old wounds, by thinking of the past. That part of his life was over and he had made a conscientious effort to move on with his life or so he thought.
A pang of regret instantly shot through him at his callous treatment of her, as he realized that he was taking his frustration out on the wrong person. After all, the past had nothing to do with Alyssa and it wasn’t her fault that he’d completely destroyed his relationship with Liz.
Letting out a defeated breath, he took a seat on his bed. The mattress spring squeaked, coiling to accommodate his weight. Bending forward, he placed his elbows on his thighs and his face in his hands, as he inhaled and exhaled, attempting to calm his nerves. Thinking about Liz had really shaken him up.
After about ten seconds he looked up at Alyssa, and clasped his hands together before continuing, “Look, I’ve never led you on and I’m not going to start now. It’s clear that you’ve been hoping this,” using his hand, he motioned between them as he continued, “would lead to something more but it won’t. I’m not in the market for a serious relationship right now. It’s the last thing I want. With that being said… I think… we should stop seeing each other.”
Seconds ticked away representing the calm before the storm, until all heck broke loose.
“You’re breaking up with me!?” she exclaimed in outrage. All traces of worry were gone from her voice. “You little piece of shit. I can’t believe you. You’re nothing but a pathetic, unappreciative ass. I give you the best sex that you’ve had in your entire life and this is how you repay me? By breaking up with me?”
Any regret he felt over his previous words to her was short-lived, for it quickly dissolved in response to her little tirade. She was walking a fine line and his patience was waning. He’d been as tolerant as he could but he was getting tired of her delusions and insults. He reasoned it was only fair that he returned the sentiment. “To break up implies that you’re my girlfriend and we’re in a committed relationship, which we’re not, nor have we ever been. We were fuck buddies. Nothing more. Nothing less. As for you being the best sex that I’ve had in my entire life, you fall way…way… below the mark. Only one girl has that claim to fame and you’re not her. However, I’ll give credit where credit is due. You have a fabulous mouth, babe. That suction thing you’ve got going is crème of the crop, a real money maker.”
“You’re thinking about her, aren’t you?” Alyssa quickly accused, ignoring his vituperation. “Funny how all of a sudden you want to breakup with me after you’ve been thinking about her.”
“What the fuck are you talking about?” Max questioned, truly baffled as to why she would assume he was thinking about a female, even though he had been. There was no way she could know of Liz. Never once had he ever spoken of Liz with Alyssa. In fact, he’d never mentioned her to Sean, Kyle or Courtney. The only person who knew of Liz on the UNM Campus was Michael, so why in the world would she assume he’d been thinking about a particular female?
Answering his question, she replied, “The girl in the pictures.”
“What pictures?”
“The ones you keep in that shoebox on the top shelf of your closet,” Alyssa confessed.
Realization dawned on Max as he recalled a prior conversation he had with Kyle a few weeks ago in reference to Alyssa’s Inspector Snoop-O Skills. Kyle claimed to have caught her red-handed, snooping through his things. It was around this time that Kyle’s stalker jokes started about her. Yet at the time, he didn’t believe him. Boy how he wished he could turn back time. He definitely would have given Kyle’s accusations more credence.
“YOU WERE SNOOPING THROUGH MY THINGS!” Max roared, standing from the bed and advancing menacingly toward her. Fuck her feelings. This bitch had invaded his privacy and it was time for her to go. “Okay…you need to get the fuck out, NOW!”
How dare she search through his belongings. That shoebox contained private items of his time with Liz. Love letters, CDs, significant mementos and pictures…not to mention what kind of pictures. Pictures that would make any woman blush. Pictures that would make any normal, healthy male excited. He hadn’t seen Liz in eighteen months but he knew if she ever learned that someone other than himself had viewed those photos, she’d die of mortification. Righteous indignation swelled in his chest on behalf of Liz and himself for the unwarranted invasion of privacy, “I SAID get out NOW!”
“No,” she shook her head vehemently, as her whole demeanor changed. Unfazed by his tirade, she backed away and took a seat on the bed, crossing her legs before calmly replying, “I’m not going anywhere, especially when you’re talking nonsense. You don’t know what you’re talking about. You don’t want to breakup with me. That would just be crazy.”
“Um, no. Crazy would be you,” Max emphasized with a lift of his brows.
“I’m not letting you breakup with me. I refuse to let you do something this stupid.”
Mouth agape, Max stared at her in disbelief. What the hell was going on? This was like an episode of It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia and he was the only sane person in the room. In fact, it would be quite humorous if it were happening to anyone else. However, it was happening to him and he couldn’t fathom the humor in the situation. Alyssa was really crazy. She’d completely lost it. Clearly, she was on some type of roller coaster ride with reality, going from one extreme to the next with no in-between. How do you deal with a crazy person? He strained to remember anything from Psychology 1101 that could be useful. Hell, it was a prerequisite for most majors, so there had to be some credibility in it. Unable to remember anything helpful from Dr. Wagner’s boring-ass class, he weighed his options.
He could physically remove her from the apartment but then again, movies always portrayed psychos with superhuman strength and extremely dangerous. There had to be some truth in that he reasoned, plus his life wasn’t really in danger and he wanted to keep it that way. Besides, he wasn’t sure if manhandling her would actually solve his dilemma or only add to it.
He could as Kyle would say ‘go out like a little biatch’ and call for help from the others but again, she hadn’t threatened him. Plus, the gang would never let him live it down if they had to rescue him from a girl. Hopefully, Alyssa was just ‘out of touch with reality’ crazy and not ‘I’m going to kill you if you don’t be with me’ crazy.
Someone up above must really like him because out of the blue, he got his savior in the form of a knock on his door.
“Hey, Max,” Kyle’s voice permeated through the closed wooden door, “we’re heading to Charlie’s party in a few. Just wanted to know if you were still coming?”
“Kyle, come in for a sec,” Max rushed out, relief in his voice at Kyle’s timing. Never had he been so happy to hear the sound of his wisecracking, roommate’s voice. As the bedroom door opened, he silently sent up a prayer that Kyle’s presence would bring her back to reality. Usually crazy people preferred to appear mad only to the person they were tormenting. He could only hope this was the case with Alyssa, so he could get her out of the apartment.
Opening the door, Kyle sported a grin, as he lazily leaned on the doorframe in a model’s stance, looping his thumb through his belt buckle. Max expected to see him wearing his red and white Lobos jersey but he’d forgotten that Kyle was in his “Bringing sexy back” phase, so he’d forgone his typical attire of jeans, jersey and sneakers in lieu of something more dressier, which he swore “would bring the babes a knocking his way”.
He was wearing a pair of dark, skinny jeans and a blue and white, pinstriped, long-sleeved shirt. His hair, just starting to grow back from an army close cut was spiked just a bit and the five o’clock shadow prominent on his face effectively gave him the Dr. Mc Steamy appearance, while a diamond, stud earring in his right lobe finished out the look. Kyle nodded his greeting oblivious to the tension in the room, “Max…Amy.”
“Alyssa,” she promptly corrected with a huff, tired of him always getting her name wrong. She wasn’t sure if it were deliberate on his part or not. “It was Alyssa the day I met you and has been Alyssa ever since.”
“Riiight,” Kyle smirked at his intentional slipup of her name. It was his little way of making reference to Amy Fisher and in his opinion; Alyssa was definitely an Amy Fisher waiting to happen. Stepping into the room and leaning on the chest of drawers, he turned his attention back to his teammate, repeating his prior question, “So, are you coming to Charlie’s party cuz’ we’re gonna bounce in fifteen minutes?”
“Yeah, Alyssa was just leaving,” Max slowly supplied, all the while keeping his focus on her, trying to gauge her reaction. “Just give me ten minutes to take a quick shower.”
“Okay,” Kyle straightened from his position, turning to leave from the bedroom only to be stopped by Max’s voice.
“Kyle, would you mind showing Alyssa to the door?”
“We’re not finished,” she hissed loud enough for Kyle to hear.
It was that precise moment when Kyle realized that he’d interrupted something heavy, for the room became congested with uncomfortable tension and not even a knife could slice it. Feeling like an intruder and in a move uncharacteristic for Kyle, he chose the awkward moment to hastily leave the room. “I’m just…gonna…” he hitched his thumb in the direction of the door and quietly disappeared out of it.
Letting out a heavy sigh, Max responded, “I believe we’re pretty much over.”
Having calmed down some and in an unexpected move, she turned pleading eyes to him, “You can’t do this. Please, you don’t know what you’ve done. You don’t know what this will mean.”
It was on the tip of Max’s tongue to give her an indecorous comment, ordering her out of his home but it was the beseeching look of her green eyes that stopped him. There was no wild psychotic look about her, only the look of utter fear, along with a desperate need for him to understand, which was quite puzzling.
Biting back his acrid response, he calmly stated, “Alyssa, I’m sorry but this isn’t working. I don’t want to see you anymore, so just…just…leave...please.”
And to his amazement, with one lingering glance in his direction, she quietly rose from the bed, exiting his bedroom with a sullen look and her tail between her legs. The front door resounded with a quiet click, alerting him to the fact that she’d left the apartment.
That was far easier than he’d anticipated. He expected her to blow up some more and act irrational, but the defeated way in which she left his bedroom was completely surprising and he felt himself feeling a little sorry for her.
Still, he had to remind himself that she was a great actress, giving out Oscar worthy performances, so he couldn’t believe one iota of this performance tonight, in spite of the small inkling in the furthest recess of his mind telling him that something was amiss and he should pay attention.
Actually, it was a relief that she did a 180. It saved him from having to deal with her further, especially since he wasn’t a certified therapist with degrees in handling the mentally unstable. But enough of Alyssa, for the last thing he wanted to do was let her monopolize anymore of his thoughts. Mentally shaking all thoughts of her out of his mind, he started getting ready for the party.
Making his way into his walk-in closet, he reached to retrieve his Lobos Jersey and jeans from their perspective hangers, pausing mid reach as a gray and black, Nike shoebox hidden under various fitted, baseball caps claimed his attention. Aside from his memories, that box held almost every tangible item that linked him to Liz.
He grabbed a pair of jeans and his jersey from their hangers, as the overwhelming need to cleanse himself of Alyssa’s lingering perfume defeated the urge to open the box and take a stroll down memory lane. Besides, opening the box and reminiscing about the past would accomplish nothing, for that part of his life had been over for eighteen miserable months.
He snatched a pair of clean boxers out of the top drawer of his chest of drawers, and walked out into the hallway, making his way to the bathroom for a much-needed shower. As he placed his hand on the doorknob, a thought suddenly occurred to him. Alyssa left the apartment crushed, of her own free will. However, he still didn’t want to take any chances, in case psycho girl returned. They always returned. That was another undisputable fact of the movies, the crazy villain always returned with a vengeance.
“Hey, Kyle,” he called out from the bathroom door, “make sure the front door is locked.”
~*~
Stepping under the soothing, pulsating drench of the chrome showerhead, Max leaned forward, placing his head directly under the sprout, allowing the rivulet of water to wet his hair and rain down his neck and shoulders. As the massaging fingers of the water caressed his flesh, he felt the tension in his body slowly start to dissipate. The kneading flow of the water was just the right temperature, as it provided its therapeutic session.
Some evening. What started out to be an evening of kinky sex with Alyssa, turned out to be an eye-opening one, where revelations were unbound. Not only was Alyssa using him, but also she was nuttier than a fruitcake. How the hell did that ever slip past him?
What irritated him the most was the fact that she was using him. How could he be so dense and not catch on sooner? Why didn’t he heed not only Kyle but also Jared’s warnings? The only conclusion he reached was that it was due to his own stupidity. Call it the effects of thinking with his little head instead of his big one. He tended to do that a lot lately. His father would undoubtedly lay into him if he ever found out that he did something so foolish. According to Phillip Evans, real men made decisions with their heads and never let their dicks or hearts lead them astray, for there were always dire consequences when one led their lives by such foolishness. Now from personal experience, Max couldn’t help but agree with him, which gave him a new found respect for his father’s counsel, as he realized his father actually knew what he was speaking of.
After the disastrous way things ended with Liz and all the hell he’d gone through following her departure, he completely gave up on the idea of love. Love hurt, for it ripped you open and tore out your insides, leaving in its wake a depressed, lonely, bitter shell of the person you once were. It sucked out your life force…literally… and he swore to himself and Tess that he’d never allow another female to have that much power over his heart again.
He built a wall around his heart, protecting it and denying access to all who tried to scale its height. And when one chose the path in life of a self-imposed, loveless existence, it typically laid the foundation for a life of selfish gratification and pursuits. UNM provided the perfect playground for self-indulgence, as he embraced his college experience, partying with the best of them and a long line of no strings sex with collegian beauties. Protecting his heart meant that he looked out for number one, which believe it or not, allotted him some control in his life. He craved control, only ever having a small amount of it, which was precisely what Liz took from him when she left and something he never truly had being the son of Phillip Evans. His future was set in stone, whether he liked it or not. Now days, his only true joy was from soccer. It’s the one thing no one could take from him. At least not yet.
Liz…he had successfully avoided thoughts of her until tonight. Damn Alyssa for making him think of the past, for try as he might, he couldn’t stop. Nor could he deny how much those memories were affecting him and as astoundingly wonderful as that memory had been, it left him painfully knotted up inside, with Liz on the brain. And for the first time in months, he finally gave acknowledgement to the fact that his heart ached of loneliness and guilt. And that he truly missed her.
Try as he might, there was no way he could not think of that day. He leaned his forehead against the shower, letting the memory take over as he revisited one of the best days of his life. Surprisingly, he welcomed the memory, for it was better than reality, which was a lonely and empty existence of mapped out plans and his pathetic attempts at controlling what little of his life he could…
Roswell, New Mexico – 3-½ years prior…
The free concert going on to the left of the ride tuned out the mechanical drone of the wooden roller coaster, as it began its journey of thrill defying leaps. Liz couldn’t believe how perfect the evening was. It was completely serene and she couldn’t be happier, as she sat next to Max in the compact, boxed seat of the roller coaster. She couldn’t have planned the evening more perfect than it was. Only one thing could top her evening and she would undoubtedly experience that later on when they were alone in her room.
A gentle breeze swept past them, as the roller coaster slowly began to inch its way up the steep hill of the first drop. In similar fashion, Max’s hand started its ascent up Liz’s thigh. Knowing his objective she smiled to herself. So predictable she thought, before boldly parting her legs, allowing his hand more room to reach its target. His hand continued to snake its way up her thigh at a snail’s pace. In an impatient move, she firmly grabbed his hand and helped aid his quest to its destination.
“Surprise,” Liz rasped out, startling him as his fingers came in contact with silky hair and warm, wet flesh instead of fabric. As if being burnt by fire, he instantly pulled his hand back and his gaze immediately snapped to her face, as he looked upon her with wide eyes displaying a mixture of surprise and awe.
“You’ve been walking around like that all night?” Max incredulously questioned.
“All night,” Liz confirmed with a whisper into his ear, bringing his hand back in contact with her wet, warm mound. Licking his ear, she added, “and I’m nice and wet and in desperate need of your magic touch.”
There was a moment of pause and suspense as the roller coaster reached the apex of the incline. Before the coaster began its descent, Max gave Liz an impious grin, alerting her to the fact that lurid thoughts were dancing plentifully in his mind, his very dirty mind. He was turned on beyond measure and utterly intent on pleasuring her during the ride.
The first few cars slowly began their decline, only to build up velocity as gravity did its job, pulling the rest of the cars along the metal tracks of the wooden coaster. The brave raised their hands, while the sensible held on to the lap bar. It could be said that Max was neither brave nor sensible. The appropriate adjective that could be used to describe him was lustful, for his hands were neither raised nor holding on to the lap bar. His body was angled towards Liz, as his right arm was hooked around her shoulders, and his left hand was busy at work, slowly tracing her inner lips before sliding his index and middle fingers inside her damp heat.
The wind sailed past them and Liz sucked in a breath, as his digits gently strummed her silken flesh, stroking her like a guitar, setting the rhythm. His fingers definitely had the magic touch, and Liz was in heaven, experiencing the most erotic thing she’d ever experienced in her entire life. Just one touch and she turned into a quivering fool, experiencing so many emotions. Her stomach flip-flopped from the ride and the digital assault of Max’s fingers. The amalgamation of the screaming passengers, wind and the local band successfully concealed the sensual moans that spilled forth from her mouth.
The ride stretched on for hours, while in reality it was only a matter of a few minutes, as it traveled up and down the hills of the tracks. Her breathing quickened and became erratic, as his fingers slipped in and out of her warmth at a turbulent pace, slowly building her up to a crescendo despite the urgent frequency of his ministrations.
Feeling the approach of her peak, her head tilted back and her quivering mouth parted, as her left leg involuntarily began to convulse and the ride became one blinding blur of lights and pleasure, as she literally and figuratively rode out the euphoric waves of her orgasm.
Max’s eyes remained transfixed on her during the entire ride, as he skillfully brought her to a climax. He didn’t lie to her, for he loved watching her face as he pleasured her. The look displayed on her face at that moment could only be described as the masterpiece of his labor, as her eyes remained closed and she tenderly sucked on her lower lip. Her face was flushed with contentment and Max felt pride build up inside him that he was able to bring about such a lovely picture. Leonardo da Vinci had nothing on him.
As the ride emptied of its passengers, Max held his hand out to assist her from the cab. While Liz had her release, his body was displaying the tell-all signs that he was excited and in need of such a release. Therefore, he pulled her body back to his own, using it as a shield to hide his current state of arousal, for his pants were unbearably tight and there was only one thing that would help him. He needed to get Liz to her house…pronto.
Liz couldn’t help the moan that escaped her lips as she felt Max’s straining erection pressed firmly into her backside. Teasingly, she offered, “Need some help with that?”
“What do you think?” Max whispered huskily in her ear, “Why don’t we ditch Michael and Tess and head back to your place?”
“I’d say you’re reading my mind,” Liz smiled in answer as she spied Michael and Tess walking toward them from the front on the coaster.
Michael and Tess sat in the front car, while she and Max sat in the very last car, which allotted plenty of privacy for Max to work his masterful seduction.
“That was so tight!” exclaimed Michael, keyed up from the ride, “even though, Goldilocks’ screaming damn near burst my eardrum.”
Tess stopped mid-step, causing her blonde curls to bounce from the movement. Placing her hands on her hips, she disputed, “Oh puh-leeze. That was you screaming at the top of your lungs like a little biatch.”
Michael opened his mouth to respond but was cut off as Max voiced, “Hey guys, Liz is sort of tired, so I’m just gonna take her back home.”
Michael gave his best friend a knowing smirk and placed his hand over Tess’ mouth before she had the chance to protest about the change of events. “Don’t worry. I’ll make sure her majesty makes it home in one piece.”
Even though at times Tess was the bane of his existence, that still didn’t change the fact that she was his twin sister, sharing a Jekyll and Hyde type of closeness with her. After everything his family had been through the past couple of years, it was his priority in life to keep his family protected. Therefore, he could only be grateful that his best friend would make sure she got home safely.
“Thanks, buddy,” Max grinned, giving Michael’s free hand a pound before he and Liz headed off towards the parking lot.
From behind, the sound of a struggle was heard before Michael’s voice winced through the evening air, “Damn it, Locs! You bit my fucking hand.”
“It SUCKS when your BROTHER and BEST FRIEND start going out. All of a sudden, they don’t have TIME for you anymore. It’s even SUCKIER when said best friend PROMISED that going out with IDIOT BROTHER wouldn’t come between you two,” an infuriated Tess yelled at their retreating forms drawing unwanted attention to herself. “Some people need to get a CLUE and realize that they shouldn’t SHIT on their BEST FRIEND just because they get a BOYFRIEND.”
Yet, Max and Liz were of one accord. Not even the injured sound of Michael or an enraged Tess could deter them from the urgent need to get back to Liz’s empty house…
A/N – This next chapter hasn’t been beta’d yet. Once my beta gives the part back to me, I’ll make the needed corrections. Also there’s a line Michael says about MapQuest that I borrowed from Ronnie on Jersey Shore. It wasn’t used on the show itself, but the reunion show…I think. I wasn’t really sure if I had to do a disclaimer for it since Jersey Shore and the reunion shows aren’t scripted, but I figured better safe than sorry.
Also, I’d like to thank the following for reading and leaving feedback. It’s much appreciated.
mary mary - I wish I would have thought of that, but no the contents of Max’s box are safe and accounted for.
keepsmiling7 – Yes, they do…they always return.
Michelle17 – Next chapter will give us a glimpse at what Liz has been up to.
HypnotiqBlueEyes – I’ve never heard of off the reservation and I love it. That is the perfect description of her. Anyway, drama is definitely on a collision course with Max.
angiebrenna - I think people like her do exist and I think I work with a few of them.
begonia9508 – That boggles my mind, too, how some people think sex automatically equals love.
MP- Thanks for reading.
Smac – Glad you liked the flashbacks of happier times. One would think that Max would learn from the past, but unfortunately he hasn’t.
Roswell_Dreamer- Thanks for reading.
Chapter Four – present day
“I hope that boner is courtesy of Amy Fisher’s protégée leaving you hot and bothered and not because you’re happy to see me,” Kyle’s amused voice intruded on his memory, as he trampled into Max’s bedroom and leaned against the wall, “Although, your shower should have relieved that problem. So, what was all of that about earlier?” Clarifying, he added, “With Satan’s spawn. It looked like things were kind of heavy.”
Max had the decency to blush before grabbing a pillow and covering his state of arousal. Internally, he willed his body in control, which wasn’t hard to do with Kyle in the room providing that much needed dose of cold water. Max looked to him with mild amusement, as he pulled a white, cotton sock onto his right foot “Satan’s spawn? What are you getting at, Kyle?”
“Nothing,” Kyle answered with an innocent shrug of his shoulders, “It’s just that we don’t like Alyssa.”
“I know you don’t like her but who do you mean by we?”
“All of us. Everyone in this apartment and the apartment across the hall,” Kyle informed, including Courtney in the equation. “I know she has a mouth like a Dyson Vacuum, never ending suction and all…but none of us are benefiting from that mouth but you.”
“Are you saying that you want in on the action?”
“You think she would,” Kyle turned hopeful eyes upon his friend, as the thought of partaking of Alyssa’s only valuable commodity quickly silenced any negative comments regarding her person.
“Ummm…” Max pretended to deliberate the question, as he pulled the matching white cotton sock on to his left foot, “No. Besides you yourself said she was crazy, which by the way she definitely is. Why would you knowingly want to get into bed with Satan’s spawn?”
“Are you kidding me?” Kyle answered free of ignominy, “For once in a life time head, I’d slob down your grandma.”
Max’s face skewed in disgust, trying to rid itself of the hideous, mental image Kyle painted, “Number one, that’s my grandmother you’re talking about. Don’t disrespect her like that. And two…dude, that’s disgusting and I’d rather not have that mental picture running around in my head. Anyway, Alyssa and I are done, so you won’t be seeing her around here anymore.”
“About fuckin’ time you bought a clue,” Michael joined in the conversation, as he walked into the bedroom. “I was beginning to think she sucked the brains right out of your head. No pun intended.”
“Whatever,” Max responded. Taking in Michael’s appearance, as smudges of black oil and car grime streaked his face and caked his hands as well as clothing, Max questioned, “Where have you been?”
“Court was having trouble starting her car,” Michael rubbed his nose, placing another smudge of oily car grime on his face. “So I volunteered my services.”
“Soooo…with you and Alyssa being over, does that mean she’s in the clear?” Kyle, in typical fashion redirected the conversation back to his sex life and the possibility of him getting lucky with Alyssa, using their term for girls that were fair game.
“Kyle, do you really want to deal with…?” Michael finished the query by stabbing the air several times with an imaginary butcher knife.
“I’m well aware that Alyssa needs to be on a couple of mgs of something. Hell, I was the one who pointed it out to everyone but we’re talking about a once in a lifetime slob fest. Michael, you can’t honestly tell me that you’re not the least bit curious if she’ll live up to Max’s glowing account of her technique? Besides, what kind of a friend would Max be if he didn’t allow his friends partake of it?”
“You don’t even like her,” Michael pointed out.
“Since when does that matter?” Kyle shrugged off nonchalantly. Eliciting no response from his roommates, he continued, “I’m not saying I want to bone her. I just want her to hit me off once, so I can see what all of the hype was about.”
“Kyle, I’m not even a female and I think you’re a pig,” Sean spoke up from the doorway, having overheard the last bit of their conversation.
Kyle oinked a couple of times in response to his best friend’s insult, “Max doesn’t even like her like that. They went out for…what…a month …if that? I’d totally be crossing the line if they were serious but it wasn’t. So, I don’t see what the problem is. And dude, you’re one to talk. It seems this Elizabeth chick is causing you to suffer from selective amnesia. Do you forget that you were the biggest player in this house? Where do you think I learned this from?” Clutching his heart, Kyle continued, “You were my hero. The person I strived to be most like and now look at you,” he gesticulated with his hand, “You’re a whipped pansy ass.”
“I’m not a whipped, pansy ass,” Sean gritted out defensively. “I’ve just…just…matured.”
Rolling his eyes at Sean’s comment, Kyle continued, “Look, I understand that you’re in love and all,” He used air quotation marks to emphasize the words “in love”. “But don’t get all preachy and high and mighty now that you’re involved with Elizabeth. The rest of us aren’t in any serious relationships, so if we want and choose to have tons of frivolous, meaningless sex…then that’s our prerogative, even if it means boning psychos.”
Max and Michael glanced at one another, sharing a common thought. Sean had been acting a tad sanctimoniously of late and although Max and Michael somewhat agreed with Kyle, they chose to remain relatively mute on the subject, because Sean really liked this girl. They’d never seen him act this way towards any girl before and they didn’t want to put a damper on that. However, if they heard one more comment about how childish they were or some idiotic, feministic bullshit, they would undoubtedly take a page from Kyle and give Sean a reality check. It was either that or go postal on his ass.
“So, Michael what happened between you and that girl?” Max questioned, changing the subject to a safer topic. He snapped his fingers trying to remember the name of Michael’s date, “uhh…what’s her name…uhhh…Brooke?”
The diversion being a success, Kyle dropped the subject of Sean’s new holier than thou attitude and joined in, “Oh yeah, did you finally bang her?”
In obvious avoidance of the question, Michael cleared his throat and scratched his brow, which only served to cake more oily car soot on his face, as it became a Picasso of dirt and black-streaked grime, “That’s a done deal.”
All three roommates looked surprised over this change of events, for Michael’s pursuit of Brooke Baker lasted a few weeks, the longest time he’d ever waited for a girl and she’d finally allowed him to spend the night.
“Was she a lousy lay?” Kyle voiced the obvious conclusion everyone had reached.
“I wouldn’t know,” Michael shrugged off.
“What do you mean, you wouldn’t know? Either you fucked her or you didn’t.”
“There was an…um…” Michael struggled, trying to find the right words to articulate his response, “an…unforeseen complication.”
“Well, what was the complication?” Max inquired. “I mean…something had to have happened for you to change your tune about her.”
Michael fidgeted with the UNM key chain in his hand, before doing something uncharacteristic. A sudden burst of blood spread upward, coloring his neck and cheeks a warm, rosy hue, which did not go unnoticed by his friends and quite a few surprised brows were raised in response. “Everything was fine until she took off her dress.”
“What happened?” three voices questioned simultaneously, all focused on Michael. Michael was a man of few words, never truly confiding in anyone but Max, so if he was soberly willing to divulge his inner most thoughts with the masses, Sean and Kyle were sure to give him their undivided attention.
“Did she have a dick?”
“No,” Michael quickly rushed out, disgusted at the inquiry.
“Well, what?”
“She um…she had…man pits,” Michael replied, as if that one statement should be explanation enough. Sensing that no one was catching on, he emphasized as another cast of embarrassing sanguine splashed his cheeks, “Man pits.”
“What the hell are man pits?” Sean questioned his thought, which was in line with Max’s way of thinking.
“No way,” Kyle burst out, picking up on the inside meaning. “That’s just disgusting.”
“Tell me about it,” Michael voiced in appreciation that Kyle picked up on what he was implying and not having to elaborate further.
“How is that even possible?” Kyle shook his head in wonder, “I mean…Brooke is hot. It’s totally knocked her down a peg or two in the book.”
“Alright, am I missing something?” Max turned to Sean hoping he could shed some light on exactly what man pits were.
Sean’s face was just as perplexed as his own, “I’m lost right along with you, Evans.”
“She has man pits,” Kyle enunciated, placing emphasis on what he viewed as the key words. Letting out a sigh at his roommates’ appalling nescience, Kyle explicated, “She has hairy underarms.”
A light bulb of understanding went off in Max’s head and his face scrunched in disgust at the revelation, “Eww.”
“Now you feel my pain,” Michael grimaced at the memory.
“Although that’s a bit gross, what’s so god awful about her having a little hair under her arms?” Sean tried to be the voice of reason.
“It wasn’t a little hair. It was a jungle…plus she’s a female,” Michael stated as if that was reason enough.
“Girls aren’t supposed to have hairy underarms. They’re supposed to shave them or something.”
“That’s right,” Kyle nodded his head in agreement. “Just like they’re not supposed to belch, fart or shit -”
Cutting him off mid rant, Sean intellectualized, “Correct me if I’m wrong but I believe everything you just named are human functions and not just gender based ones.”
“I’m not saying that women aren’t supposed to do those things, only that they aren’t supposed to do those things around us,” Kyle defended his position.
Max spoke up, voicing his consensus, “He’s right. There are certain rules that women live by and she broke a cardinal rule.”
“She certainly did,” Michael mumbled under his breath and shuddered. “I felt violated. I felt like I was lying on the bed with another dude.”
“You did the right thing, Michael,” Kyle reassured, “Although, I would have still laid the pipe first and then dismissed her.”
Sean looked at his friends as if they’d grown additional heads, for this was the most asinine conversation they’d ever had, which was saying a lot because he had been privy and a participant in many of them, “What are you guys…like six or something?”
“Don’t look at us like we’re idiots,” Michael defended. “We know what we’re talking about.”
“It’s a proven fact that women spend hours getting ready for a date. They have a regimen that must be followed, which includes shaving their legs and underarms. It was blatant disrespect for her not to follow the routine,” Max vigorously nodded his head. Supplying his credentials, he added, “I have two sisters, consider me an expert on this.”
“That’s a load of ignorance you’re spurting there, Evans. Do you hear yourselves?” Sean shook his head, glancing around the room at each person, feeling like he was running an adult day care. “Mikey, you just broke up with a great girl because she had hair under her arms. What sense does that make? That’s considered normal in some cultures.”
“I don’t care what you say. They’re supposed to hide that shit. It’s not attractive,” Kyle contravened.
“And I suppose you consider your atomic farts and belches, along with the aftermath of your time in the bathroom attractive?” Sean questioned. Turning his attention back to Michael, he queried, “Mikey isn’t she pledging Phi Gamma Phi?”
“Yeah, and?”
“Last week was Hell Week. Isn’t it possible this may have been part of hazing? Remember when I dated Samantha Kelly last year? She was pledging Phi Gamma Phi and they made her do all of this crazy shit. Like…she couldn’t wear makeup for a month and she couldn’t take a bath for two days.”
“Shit,” Michael muttered a curse under his breath, letting the enormity of Sean’s words sink in. Brooke was pledging Phi Gamma Phi, he thought to himself. Shit! How could he have forgotten that? Feeling the beginnings of a self-induced headache, he rubbed his temples and briefly closed his eyes, as another terse expletive left his mouth, “Damn.”
“Sucks to be you,” Kyle laughed, knowing the inner dialogue playing through his friend’s head. He could almost hear the self-demoting word of jackass flash in Michael’s mind.
“You just said that he did the right thing,” Max pointed out.
“But I also said that I would have boned her first and then dismissed her. Michael rejected her when she took off her clothes, making her feel utterly unattractive, which probably somehow messed with her confidence. It seems that my piggish ways would have saved the day.” Tilting his head back in contemplation, Kyle tapped his index finger to his closed lips, “I can totally use this. It seems that Michael being a jackass is actually going to contribute to me getting lucky tonight. I’m sure Brooke will need to be reassured on how desirable she really is. What better man for the job than me? Thanks Michael,” he boasted, his arrogance congesting the room. Getting a jibe in, he patted Michael on the back and teased, “Maybe you can have that look see at Elizabeth’s friend after all. You know what they say; beauty is just four shots of Jack and a click away.”
Michael reflexively gave him the middle finger.
“That’s a great idea,” Sean piped in, his voice taking on a conspiratorial tone, yet unable to keep the goofy grin from gracing his lips at the mention of Elizabeth’s name. “Your fuck up is actually working for the good of all. Now you’ll have all the time in the world to meet her friend. It’s amazing how justice has a way of working things out.”
“What’s this about a friend?” Max inquired.
“Apparently, Sean promised Elizabeth that one of us would meet her homely, desperate friend,” Kyle exaggerated the truth. “You interested?”
Giving him a look that more than displayed his repulsion at being set up on a blind date, he sarcastically replied, “I’d rather have a dog fart in my face.”
Laughingly, Kyle retorted, “That can be arranged.”
Taking a look at his wristwatch, Sean headed to the door, “Seriously guys, we’ve gotta bounce. I’m not taking any chance on missing Elizabeth.”
“You heard the man, so let’s get a move on,” Kyle clapped his hands together, his spirits high. “Got a victory against UNLV to celebrate and a Phi Gamma Phi ass to tap.”
As Sean and Kyle left the room, Max pulled Michael to the side and shared, “I hate to say this but you’ve definitely paved the way for Kyle to swoop in for the kill…and you know he’ll do it.”
“There’s nothing I can do to fix this, huh?”
“Nope. This definitely isn’t a Hallmark moment and I really don’t see flowers and candy doing the trick, either.”
“What about the truth?” Michael suggested as a last ditch effort.
“I know they say the truth shall set you free but in this case, it’ll actually make things worse. You’ll come off as shallow and Kyle, if he plays his cards right will come off as Mr. Sensitive and might actually hookup with Brooke tonight,” Max stated as he stepped into the hallway. “You coming?” he questioned when he noticed Michael paused in the doorway.
“Nah, I need to hit the shower. You guys head on and I’ll ride my bike to the party,” Michael voiced deep in thought. “Since Kyle is celebrating our win tonight, there’s no way he’ll pull it off.”
Max nodded his head, considering his words, “Maybe. But I guess tonight is the night we’ll find out which is more important to Kyle, the bottle or the booty.”
“It’s not gonna happen,” Michael shook his head, confident in his prediction. “Kyle couldn’t find his way into her pants with MapQuest, Google Maps and a GPS. Besides, he’s wearing nut hugging jeans,” Michael sniggered, as he referenced the pair of skinny jeans that Kyle wore. “Why is he wearing them anyway and why haven’t any of you told him to stop borrowing Courtney’s jeans?”
Max had eagerly waited in anticipation to see if anyone would crack on Kyle’s jeans. He should have known it would be Michael. He was never one to disappoint. “According to Kyle, Cherry told him he looked sexy in them.”
“I’m assuming he had a hand full of ones at the time?” Michael laughed, referencing Cherry’s occupation.
“Of course,” Max answered and joined in with laugher as they made their way into the living room; they found Sean dressed in his jacket ready to go.
Sending them a knowing look, Sean walked over to them. “We’ve gotta hurry. Kyle is looking for his keys. Ready?”
Max and Michael nodded their heads in agreement, before balling their hands into fists to play a covert game of rock/paper/scissors.
“Damn, it,” the loser proclaimed, sounding much like Homer Simpson did whenever Bart got the best of him.
“I found them,” Kyle announced triumphantly, stepping out of the kitchen, keys dangling from his finger oblivious to what had just transpired. “Let’s get a move on.”
Michael started to head towards the hallway, “I’ll meet you guys there.”
“Later,” Sean, Kyle and Max voiced in unison, walking out of the front door.
In blissful ignorance they made their way to the party for a night of fun and debauchery, never knowing that the events of this night would be the prelude to the opening of Pandora’s Box, affecting everyone in ways they’d never imagine. Never would their lives be the same.
