Author: Susan
Category: AU, FF, M/M with others, some UC pairings
Rating: Mature/Adult
Disclaimer: Unfortunately I don’t own anything about Roswell.
Distribution: Roswell Desert Skies, and anyone else that wants it all you have to do is ask.
Summary: In this universe Michael was taken in by the Amy Deluca and Jim Valenti and was raised as Maria’s foster brother. Michael never found Max or Isabel as the Evans’s left Roswell soon after adopting them. Everyone is in their mid 20’s.
Authors Note: I started writing this story about four years ago. I have decided to rewrite some of it and fix the things that had me stuck. I plan to actually finish this story finally.
*****
Maria was dead tired when she walked through the door of her apartment that she shared with her two brothers. It had been a very exhausting day at work. Not physically exhausting but emotionally. She was a social worker and today she had to let a little boy go back to his parents who she knew were abusing him however, she could not prove it. She knew that it was only a matter of time before he was back in her office and there was not a damn thing she could do about it. Sometimes she really hated her job but she knew that this was where she belonged. The children that she had been able to help far exceeded all of the failures.
When Maria was a child she dreamt of being a singer. She knew she had a good voice and that she could write some pretty good songs but her career was set in front of her when her mom took in Michael Guerin.
Maria’s mom found Michael when he was just a little boy in the desert. He couldn’t talk and was scared to death. Amy, of course, fell in love with the little boy as soon as she laid eyes on him but Maria’s dad Brian Deluca would not allow Amy to bring the boy home. Michael was put into the foster care system and was eventually taken in by Hank Whitmore. Maria was the one who discovered that Michael’s foster dad was abusing him and told her Mom. Maria will never forget the look on her mom’s face when she brought a beaten and abused Michael home. Amy looked liked she could kill Hank with her bare hands and then she went into major mother mode and took care of the boy. With the help of the Sheriff Jim Valenti she was able to foster him herself. Normally that wouldn’t have happened because Amy was a single mother, as Brian Deluca had took off and left her to raise Maria by herself, but Jim Valenti had made it happen. Maria could tell the first time she saw them together that the Sheriff, who was also a single parent, had a major crush on her mom. Kyle, Jim Valenti’s son, and herself with a reluctant Michael worked their matchmaker magic and a year later Amy Deluca and Jim Valenti were married. The newly married couple wanted to adopt Michael but for some reason he resisted. He asked that they just continue to be his foster parents. Jim and Amy hoped that Michael would some day change his mind but they never broached the subject with him again because it didn’t really matter because all three kids were still their children no matter what their last names were.
Fifteen years later Maria, Michael and Kyle shared an amazing loft apartment. Michael and Kyle were Deputies in the Roswell Sheriffs Department following in their fathers’ foot steps. Michael had joined the Sheriff’s department right out of high school but Kyle who had always dreamed about being an athlete had gone to college to play baseball at the University of New Mexico. However, his athletic career was cut short after he blew out his knee his sophomore year. After a lot of serious thinking and months of mopping around the house he decided to drop out of school and join the sheriff’s department with his father and brother. Michael and Kyle were a team, they always worked together. Roswell was a relatively crime free town but whenever the police were called the team of Guerin and Valenti were sent out to investigate. Jim Valenti was exceedingly proud of both his sons.
Maria put her keys and purse on the table in the hallway went looking for her brothers. She knew they were home because Michael’s Bike and Kyle car were out front. She knew exactly where to find them, in front of the TV watching some sort of sports.
Maria threw herself on the couch next to Michael. “Who’s winning?”
“Damn Rangers. Bad day?” Michael asked putting his arm around her shoulder.
“Yeah. I had to let the Tompkins kid go back home.”
“Damn.” Both Michael and Kyle said at the same time. They knew Billy Tompkins’ story. They had been the ones to bring him to social services in the first place.
Michael started to curse below his breath. He hated to see this happen especially considering his past. The hell he had endured at the hands of Hank Whitmore should never be felt by a young defenseless child. He had joined the sheriff’s department with his dad in hopes that he could see that nothing like what happened to him happened to anyone else and with Maria’s assistance they had helped a lot of kids but it would never be enough. He felt like he had to help them all.
“I know Michael. I know.” Maria rubbed her hand against Michael’s arm. As always Maria had a way of calming Michael down just by touching him. He used to have horrible dreams when he was younger. Maria would hear him and crawl into bed with him and rub his arms and back and whisper in his ear that everything would be ok that he was safe. Maria could always make things better for Michael.
“So we ready for dinner with the folks tonight?” Kyle asked changing the subject. He knew how this was affecting both Michael and Maria and he wanted to help them forget about it for awhile and nothing would do that better then mentioning their mid-week dinner at Home. It was always an adventure.
Michael groaned. Damn was it Wednesday already? God knows he loved his parents but they could be too much sometimes. “Do we have to go?”
Maria smacked Michael on the back of the head and then pulled him to his feet. “Yes we have to go. Of course you could always stay home. I’m sure Mom would understand that you didn’t feel like coming to dinner this time.”
A look of horror crossed Michael’s face.
Kyle tried to hide his smile. He knew as well as Maria, Michael wouldn’t dare miss dinner because sure as anything Amy Deluca-Valenti would come over here and drag Michael home by his ears.
“Ok, Ok. I'm coming.” Michael relented
Maria just smiled at Michael and put her arm through his. “Well then let’s go or we are going to be late. If we get into trouble I am blaming it on you. You know?”
“What else is new Blondie.” Michael smirked at Maria and gave Kyle a look letting him know he better keep his mouth shut.
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“So honey how was work today? You look tired.” Amy asked Maria.
Maria looked over at Michael and Kyle who were shaking there heads. She kicked them both in the leg underneath the table. They should know she wasn’t about to tell her mom about Billy Tompkins. The last time something like this happened their mom almost got arrested for harassment. She would have if her husband wasn’t sheriff and her son’s deputies in the Roswell Sheriff Department.
“It was fine Mom. It was just a long day and I stayed up late last night working on a new song.”
“Are you performing at the Jazz club this week?” Jim asked.
“Yep. 8:00.”
“Oh that’s wonderful Honey. I wish I could see you but I have to go out of town for a Convention in Phoenix. Jim is going with me this time.”
Maria silently thanked the Alien Convention god. She loved her mom but she really hated when she came to hear her perform. She always made a scene.
“Don’t worry about it Mom. Kyle and I will be there to cheer her on.” Michael told her.
“Of course you will Michael. You are such a good boy.” Amy jumped up and hugged her son. She then went over to Kyle and kissed him on the cheek. “And so are you. Are you bringing that lovely Liz Parker with you?”
“Uh no. I think she is busy.” Kyle said not looking his mother in the eye.
“To busy to spend time with my beautiful boy? What could she have to do?”
“I don’t know Mom just stuff.”
Amy knew her boy enough to know he was hiding something. “Ok Kyle. What is going on? You know I will find out eventually so you just as well tell me now.”
Maria and Michael gave Kyle a sympathetic look. They knew Kyle’s evening was shot now.
“We sort of broke up.” Kyle looked to his dad for help but Jim just shook his head letting him know that he was on his own.
“What? You broke up. Oh my poor baby. Why didn’t you tell me? She broke your heart didn’t she? I always knew that was going to happen. She wasn’t good enough for my boy.”
“Mom.” Maria tried to stop her mother.
“Don’t Mom me Maria. I know you think Liz is your friend but frankly I don’t care at this moment. She broke my babies’ heart.”
“Mom it is ok. Really. It has been coming for a long time now. It was a mutual decision. We just weren’t right for each other. So please don’t think badly of Liz. It wasn’t anymore her fault as it was mine. We are better off as friends.”
“Ok, but Kyle you have been dating her since freshman year in high school. It still has to hurt.”
Kyle let Amy pull him into a hug. It actually surprised him that he did in fact need his mom’s comfort after all. He closed his eyes and let the love that only a mother could give sink in. He had dated Liz Parker for ten years and he knew that it was expected that they would eventually get married. Liz was getting her Masters in Molecular Biology at the University. She worked as a TA for the Head of the Biology Dept while she was researching her thesis. Things had been bad for awhile now. They had just grown apart from each other, each wanting different things. Kyle was ready to settle down and think about starting a family but Liz only was concerned with her career. It had been an ongoing battle between them for almost a year. After awhile he finally decided that Liz was never going to be ready to commit to him because she really wasn’t in love with him and if he had to be honest he wasn’t really in love with her any longer either. He still loved her very much but he didn’t feel that thing for her anymore. He hadn’t got those tingles that he used to get when she walked in the room in a long time. Kyle should have known then that something was wrong but he just let it go. It wasn’t until this whole marriage thing came up that he finally figured it all out. When he really sat down and thought about it he discovered that he really didn’t want to marry Liz. When Kyle got married he wanted it to be like it was with his parents, Amy and Dad that is not his real mom and his dad. If he had married Liz it would have ended badly. He wanted real true love with loads of passion. That is what he grew up with and that is what he wanted for himself and he decided that he wouldn’t settle for anything less. That is why he broke up with Liz and he thinks she was just as relieved as he that it was over.
“So what are you going to do now?” Amy asked
Kyle shrugged. “I don’t know. I guess start dating again.”
“Well normally I would say to ask your brother and sister about dating but obviously they don’t have a clue either since neither one of them have been on a date in forever.” Amy said giving her wayward children a look of disappointment.
Michael and Maria looked at each other both thinking the same thing. Oh no it is their turn.
“Mom don’t start.” Michael said.
Dating is a very sore subject for Michael. He tried the whole dating thing but he just couldn’t seem to find what he was looking for. Of course there was the whole sex thing to. Sure he had been close with girls but he had never had sex basically because he didn’t know what would happen. He was after all a little different, being not exactly of this world. He doesn’t remember much about where he came from except that he crawled out of a cave when he was six and was found by Amy Deluca. He always knew he was different but it wasn’t until he realized he could do things with his mind and hands that he guessed where he really was from. Roswell after all was the site of the 1947 crash. He thinks he remembers that there were two other children in the cave with him but he isn’t positive. Michael doesn’t remember much of that time, only in his dreams or his nightmares in this case. Maria and Kyle are the only people that know he is different. Not even their parents know. Dating to him has just been too hard. He doesn’t want to get to close because he is afraid what will happen. Besides that, he has never found anyone he wanted to be that close with. At least anyone he could be with.
Michael knows that Kyle broke up with Liz because what he felt for her wasn’t what their parents have. Growing up in the Deluca-Valenti household one thing was always evident, that they loved each other to distraction and often quite loudly. It was their family joke that the kids had to sleep with ear plugs so their parents wouldn’t warp their little minds. No matter how embarrassing it may have been to hear your parents having sex it was also comforting to know that they obviously loved each other very much. Michael also decided along time ago that he wanted what his foster parents had and that nothing else would be good enough. The only problem is that no matter how hard he looked or wanted other wise the only person he could imagine spending his life with, loving as much as his parents loved each other was the only person he could not have, Maria.
TBC...
There will be an interesting scene a number of parts down the line where Isabel gets awful friendly like with Michael but that is as far as I can go. 