.begonia1508 - thanks, and yeah, mom's do tend to be over protective at times, I can't somehow see Liz and Max letting her get between them though can you...? Maybe a sign for trouble ahead do you think
?isabelle - so glad you're still reading, and delighted to know that you liked the latest part. Also nice to know that the conversation at the counter worked, it was something that I expanded rather more than was present in the original rough copy just on impulse but I had to say I liked the result
. As far as her father being on their side...ever get the feeling they should maybe make the most of that while it's there...?roswellluver - glad you liked the part, thanks for reading.
Anyone else who's been reading, I hope you're still enjoying it too.
Anyway, I'm not going to go making promises about the next part being out very soon, because I probably won't be able to keep to them, but what I will say is that a new part will be coming, and I'm hoping that will by the beginning of next month or there abouts.
Okay, so appologies and thanks over, on with the next chapter, I hope that you'll all enjoy it.
Chapter 11
~Dream~
The dance was long gone and the only people present were the two of them. Both had eyes for no one else as they kissed and their embrace deepened. Max had his hand resting behind her head to stop it touching the sharp rock behind. Dipping his head, he kissed her again and her lips met his, pressing back without any hint of hesitation or second thoughts. Her arms slipped round his neck, her fingers playing with the tips of his hair and her head rocked back, pressing back against his hand as he began to kiss her neck. Backing up further against the rock, her body became more complexly intertwined with his. His fingers flowed through her hair and hers did similar with his. One of her legs hooked round his a little and they continued kissing. And then…
~End Dream~
Liz woke up suddenly in a cold sweat. She shivered in the open air, having apparently pushed her covers down at some point, and wrapped her arms round herself suddenly feeling very self-conscious. There was just something about these dreams… She had dreamt about Max before, even about being with him, but this just wasn’t the same. These dreams were like nothing she had experienced before.
They had started the night after they had been in the cave. Mere hours after she had received those strange flashes, and she couldn’t help but wonder if they were connected.
Every night it was the same, except that they got longer… Each night it started with the dance but night-by-night the story was progressing. Originally she had wondered where it was all leading, but after that last she didn’t think there was much doubt anymore.
Sliding out of bed, she grabbed a bathrobe that lay at the bottom of her bed and pulled it on before going into her bathroom. Running a bowl of water, she splashed her face and shivered as the cold impacted with her skin. ‘I have to snap out of this…it’s getting silly!’ She thought to herself, pushing her long dark tresses back from her face.
It would have been so much easier to simply believe that her imagination was playing, but something inside her said that wasn’t it. There was something familiar about the setting…she was certain that she knew the place, only she couldn’t put her finger on it. Of course it would help if the setting didn’t begin to fade from her mind as soon as she woke up. The content stayed with her, but the surroundings simply faded into a pale mist through which she couldn’t see any distinguishing features.
Until now she had told no one about the dreams… Not Maria, not Alex, not Max… she had wanted to believe that they were nothing, just a case of her imagination having full play and given this she felt awkward about discussing something so personal, even with her close friends. So that explained Maria and Alex, but what about Max…? Well the simple fact, if she were to admit it, was that she had been afraid that Max would think it was SOMETHING, and she wasn’t sure she was ready to face that possibility…
After that evening, she knew she couldn’t wait any longer though…she needed to swallow her fear and talk to Max about them… Breathing hard, she bit her lip for a moment, not feeling the pain as she broke the skin, but needing something to ‘hold’ onto. ‘I can do this…there’s nothing wrong, whatever it is I’m sure we’ve faced worse and gotten through, and we’ll do exactly that again, we’ll get through…’ She told herself as she walked back into her bedroom and sank down on the bed. Reaching out, her hand closed on the handset of the phone that sat on her bedside table and without even looking at the keypad, she dialled a number. Raising the handset to her ear, she listened as it rung on the other end and once she was certain the right person had picked up she finally spoke. “Max…I need to talk to you…I need to tell you something…”
**********
About ten minutes later Liz was sat on her bed when she heard a gentle tapping on her window. Knowing that Max was coming over, she had pulled on a pair of trousers and a t-shirt and no matter how irrelevant it seemed she couldn’t stop herself taking a quick glance in the mirror to make sure she looked ok. It wasn’t that her appearance was important really…they had far more important things to talk about and discuss, and it wasn’t as though it was a date or anything, but still, she wanted to look nice for him.
Smiling as she saw her reflection in the mirror, she went over to the window quickly and pulled up the sash.
Outside waiting was Max of course, and he climbed in through the window quickly.
Liz slipped over to her door, turning a key in the lock which had been a recent addition for exactly this purpose…at least they knew there was no danger of being interrupted and found by her father. It wasn’t as though they were doing anything wrong really, they didn’t intend to DO anything, but she guessed that wouldn’t concern her father and didn’t want to risk it. After the incident the previous summer when they ended up finding the orb, he tended to jump to conclusions…not that she could blame him, and it had taken them both a long time to regain the trust of their parents…
Max saw what she was doing and waited until she had finished before walking over and taking her in his arms as they both sat down on the bed.
Liz relaxed into his arms and rested her head against his chest, allowing Max to pull her closer, wrapping his arms around her tightly.
Max smiled, enjoying the sensation, but at the same time she just couldn’t forget the tone of her voice earlier. When she had called, she had been worried and he wanted to know what this was about. “Hey…are you ok…?” He asked her, the concern clear in his tone.
Liz nodded, although the tone of her voice didn’t echo this reassurance. “Yeah, I guess so…I’m just…” She trailed off.
Max didn’t like seeing her like this and took advantage of her trailing off to dip his head and capture her lips with his, kissing her and hoping by doing so to bring a smile to her face.
It worked, for a second, but then Liz remembered why he was here and her tone became serious. “Max…I’ve been having some dreams recently…” She began quickly, knowing that if she waited she might change her mind about telling him. Besides, she didn’t know how long they would have and felt it important to get to the point. Surprised to find that he had no immediate response, she looked up and was a little shaken to see the look on his face. Something was most definitely wrong. “Max…what is it…?” She asked softly, her hand reaching out to touch his.
Max didn’t answer at first, but as Liz touched his hand he looked at her. “What were they about…?” He asked her. There was an urgent tone to his voice, showing his concern and also pointing to the importance of the answer she would give.
“Us…” Liz answered simply. A moment before she would have been elaborating far more but now she just needed to see how he would react. The fact that he didn’t appear surprised told her everything she needed to know, there was definitely something else going on here. “Max…?”
Her boyfriend turned to her suddenly, almost as though he had forgotten she was there and shook his head. “I’m sorry Liz…” He apologised to her, realising that she might think he had been rude.
Liz had more on her mind than that though. She could see that something was wrong and she was determined to find out what. “Max…what is it…?” She repeated her earlier question and the look in her eyes told him she wasn’t likely to let it go.
He forced himself to meet her eyes. “I’ve been having dreams too…” He admitted softly. “I didn’t want to tell anyone because I thought they were just normal ones…” He shifted position on the bed slightly, feeling rather awkward thanks to his virtual admission of the nature of his dreams.
Liz was shocked, and worried, but she tried not to show this, instead concentrating on the fact they might be reacting over nothing… There was always the possibility that their two lots of dreams were completely unrelated. “We were at the prom dancing, then suddenly in the desert. We end up kissing…” She trailed off part way through her explanation seeing the look on Max’s face. “It’s the same for you isn’t it…?”
Max nodded slightly. “We walk up a path and then stop under some rocks…” He continued the story but stopped at that point, not sure either of them wanted to hear the next bit.
His continuation was enough for Liz though, and she felt a shiver go through her spine. “Ok…this is definitely starting to weird me out…” She commented, her voice shaking. “This definitely is not normal…”
“It’ll be ok…” Max pulled her closer, wrapping his arms around her and trying to comfort her.
For a moment, Liz fell silent, resting against him and allowing herself to get lost in his embrace. Finally, she looked up though, knowing that there was something else she needed to say. “Max…”
Liz looked down. “Yeah…?”
Liz bit her lower lip nervously. “There’s something about the dreams…something familiar about the setting, it seems almost real…” She admitted.
Max nodded slowly. “I know what you mean, I’ve been thinking the same thing…” He was silent for a moment. “Can you remember what the scenery was like…?”
She shook her head. “No…not really, its all a blur…” To be honest that was one of the things which had made it possible for her to convince herself that it they had just indeed been dreams, that there was nothing wrong…because they had that dream-like way of fading in her mind. Well the surroundings did anyway, the content of the dreams never seemed to dim in her recollection much…
Max nodded; it was the same for him. He dipped his head and kissed her gently on the lips. “It’s going to be ok Liz, we’ll get to the bottom this, I promise…”
Liz didn’t say anything at first but nodded silently. She knew it wouldn’t be as simple he made it sound… “So…what do we do next…?” She asked nervously.
Her boyfriend shook his head, “Honestly, I don’t know…maybe we don’t need to do anything, maybe we’re just blowing this all up way out of proportion…maybe this really is nothing more than a co-incidence…”
Liz could knew that he didn’t really think that…he was just trying to reassure her… Unfortunately, it wasn’t working… “Don’t Max…don’t lie… You know as well as I do that this is no co-incidence… One, maybe even two nights, maybe, but this has been for over a fortnight…” She looked at him.
Max could see that she was scared and didn’t want to make it any worse but he knew that she was right. He shouldn’t have tried to say it was, Liz wasn’t stupid… “You’re right…” He admitted reluctantly. “Maybe we should tell the others about them… It could be that some of them have had something similar, or even if not, they might be able to help…” He suggested. Of course he wasn’t delighted with the idea of having to open up and explain the contents of the dreams to the others… They had been private, and he wished that they could stay that way, but whatever his feelings, he knew that it was probably the best idea and right now they need to try anything they could which could provide some answers…
Liz was no keener on the idea but like Max she knew that it was probably the only thing they could do at the moment and nodded. “You’re probably right… I’m just a bit scared…” Her voice was a bit wobbly and it was clear that the whole thing was worrying her. She swallowed nervously and looked up at her boyfriend. “When…?” She asked softly.
Max squeezed her hand in what he hoped was a reassuring manner and pulled her further into his arms. “I’ll ask them to all meet tomorrow, given the circumstances I can’t see any point in contacting them tonight, but at the same time, the sooner we sort all this out, the better it’ll be…” Reluctantly he pulled away and got up off the bed. “I guess I should go…” He commented although didn’t move at first. He just didn’t want to leave her, particularly not when he could see she was upset. His hand lingered on her arm and although he knew he should, he didn’t move away.
Liz nodded reluctantly. She didn’t want him to go any more than he did.
“I really should…” Max trailed off, dipping his head and pressing his lips against hers.
Liz pressed her lips back against his, deepening the kiss, but after a few minutes she forced herself to pull away. If it continued any longer, who knew what could happen…where it could lead…
Max looked down awkwardly as he felt her pull away. He knew that he had nearly lost control again. “I’m sorry…”
Shaking her head, Liz met his gaze. “It’s not your fault…we both…” She broke off, lapsing into silence for a moment.
“I should go…” This time he began to back away at the same time, sure that if he did not, he would never leave.
“Yeah…” Liz bit her lip and swallowed. She walked with him to the window, brushing her lips against his cheek before he climbed out onto the balcony. She wanted to do so much more, but the way they were at the moment, she didn’t trust herself… “Be careful…” She whispered after him seeing him nod and closing the sash after him. Even when he had disappeared from her sight, she didn’t move from the window until she heard the engine of the jeep start up and fade into the distance. Only when she could no longer hear it, did she finally close her curtains and return to her bed. Even then, she didn’t think that she would sleep though, there was too much going through her head, and if she was honest she had to admit she was slightly scared about what might happen if she did.... She had underestimated how tired she was however, and almost as soon as she pulled up the covers, and her head hit the pillow, she was fast asleep.
**********
The next morning Liz woke up with a start as her alarm went off. I guess I slept after all… Covering her mouth with her hand, she tried to stifle a yawn. She was still very tired, but that wasn’t surprising really…after all she hadn’t exactly had much sleep that night, her dreams hadn’t exactly been restful.... Usually the dreams were limited to one a night, or so she had thought, but then again how many times she had managed to get back to sleep after one she wasn’t sure… It was getting to the stage where one dream a night would last the whole night, so when she woke up, it would be time to get up anyway.
Struggling to keep her eyes open, she yawned and seriously considered going back to sleep but in the end decided against it. There was nothing she wanted more than to stay in bed and tell her mother she wasn’t feeling well… Well no…I suppose that’s not completely true…I want to see Max… She would have given anything not to have to face the others though…not to have to explain about the dreams and face the discussion that would follow… She had told Max that she was fine with his powers, his unique abilities…they were all part of who he was, and she meant that… But at the same time, other than the fact that he had saved her life, she had never thought too much about just how they could affect her… He was just Max, the guy she loved, and everything that came with him was just stuff that she would deal with…all of which was still true, but it didn’t stop her being scared about what might be about to come…
Shaking her head, she forced herself to get up though. It wasn’t as though there was any point in putting this off any longer, they had to talk to the others…maybe one of them would have some answers…
Moving about her room, she had a wash and got dressed. She was moving slower than usual however, and by the time she got downstairs, Max was already waiting. With a simple ‘see you later…’ to her mother, she headed over to him and the two of them started towards the door.
Her mother had other ideas though and moved to intercept them. “What are you doing…?” Come and sit down, you have to have something to eat!” She told her daughter.
Liz shook her head. “I’m fine, see you later…”
“Honey please, you can’t leave without having something to eat, you have to have some breakfast!” Nancy insisted.
Her daughter sighed. “Mom…” She looked at her. “I just don’t have time, we have to get to school…” Mrs Parker was clearly still not happy and opened her mouth to object further but Liz cut her off, waving her purse at her mother. “I’ll get something at school, promise…” Without waiting to see how her mother would respond, she turned to Max. “We’d better go…”
He nodded in agreement and the two of them continued quickly out of the door.
Liz opened the passenger door of the jeep in silence and got in. Max did the same on the driver’s side and once both were safely settled, he turned the key in the ignition to start the engine. Pulling away from the curb, he headed towards school.
For the first few blocks, the two of them sat in silence. Eventually Liz could wait no longer though, and opened her mouth to speak. “I-“
At the same time, Max did the same but stopped as he saw she wanted to speak. “You first…”
Liz shook her head. “No, it’s ok, I can wait…” She wanted to hear what he was going to say.
Max looked as though he was going to object again, but then nodded, accepting what she said and looking over at her briefly before returning his eyes to the road. Fighting to keep his tone level, he took a breath. “I had another dream last night, when I got home…” His eyes darted to her once more, searching her expression. “You did too…didn’t you…?”
Although it was phrased as a question, the way it came out was more a statement and Liz simply nodded. She wondered for a moment whether or not to mention what it had contained, but in the end decided against it. If truth were to be told, she had a feeling that he would already know, that the one he had mentioned, and the one she remembered having would be exactly the same…and she wasn’t sure she was ready to face what that could mean.
Max could see that she had been shaken by his comment and knew that his ‘question’ had been answered. She had had a dream last night after he had left, and there was no doubt in his mind that it would be the same one he would have had. Although he had to direct his attention back at the road, his right hand reached over and slipped over hers. “I’m here Liz…whatever happens, that’s not going to change…” He told her softly. “Whatever this means, we’ll face it together…”
. Honestly, I didn't realise it was getting to be this long as I typed it up, but I think for the first time I'm going to have to split it into two posts (or maybe not quite, but this is definitely the longest I've done so far anyway). As far as the dreams, all I can say is that all will be revealed...maybe not soon, I'm afraid I can't promise that, but eventually it will all come out. I hope you'll continue to enjoy and read and bare with me when I'm not posting much 
. 
. I've been struggling so much with my writing that I became so desperate last week that I gave in... I started a new fic on the AU board (the link's in my sig if you're interested - When Love and Loss Collide). It's got aliens, and is CC for information lol. 
. Hi, welcome to the story. I'm glad you're enjoying it, here's more.