21.
Liz POV
“Are you ok?” Max asks as I walk him out to the car.
After we told everyone about the baby things became slightly awkward. I couldn’t really blame them all for being shocked since we had just dumped all this information on them and then told them we were having a baby.
“Yeah,” I nod. “It's understandable that I shocked them.”
“Yeah,” he agrees. “Are you sure you don’t want me to stay?” he asks unsurely.
I don’t really want him to leave. I won’t lie and say a part of me is still worried that he is going back to the home he shares with Maria. I’m thinking it will take some time for me to get used to it, and to accept it.
“I would love for you to but I don’t think you should,” I reply. “You wanted to take this slow remember?” I remind him.
“I know. I just don’t want to leave you here by yourself,” he tells me.
“It's ok Max. I’m surrounded by friends and family,” I remind him.
“Ok,” he agrees.
He opens the car door before he turns to look at me. “Do you want me to pick you up tomorrow so you can come over to talk to Maria?”
“No, that’s ok. I'll get a lift over.” I tell him.
“Ok, well I'll see you tomorrow.”
He leans in and kisses me softly and briefly. It's not enough but I let it go because it’s definitely a start for us.
I wrap my arms around myself as he gets into the car and drives away.
“Come inside Liz,” Kyle’s voice startles me. I have no idea how long I was standing out there.
“It’ll be ok,” he assures me.
I welcome the hug he gives me as he leads me back into the house. “I missed you Kyle,” I whisper.
“I missed you too Liz.”
***
Maria POV
I walk to the window when I hear the sounds of a car door opening and am surprised when Max is walking towards the house with his bag in his hand.
I never expected him to come back. I have no idea what it means. Where is Liz?
“Hi.” I greet when he enters.
The corners of his lips turn up in his trademark smile. “Hey,” he replies.
He throws his bag down near the door and makes his way to the kitchen, pulling a can of cherry coke out of the fridge.
“Where’s Liz?” I finally blurt out not able to take the suspense any longer.
Max’s hand freezes mid sip. “I dropped her off at Isabel and Kyle’s,” he replies.
“Oh ok,” I nod. “How is she? I mean were you able to heal her?” I ask.
I might be extremely hurt with Liz at the moment but I still care about her and don’t want anything to happen to her. It would break my heart if Max wasn’t able to help her.
Max heads towards the lounge and takes a seat and I take that as my cue to join him, and take the seat across from him.
“I’m sorry that I took off on you without explaining what was going on,” he apologises.
I nod, “Will you tell me now?” I ask.
I watch his face as he considers my question. “We will tell you everything, I promise.”
“We?” I ask. What does that mean? I wonder.
“Liz is coming by tomorrow and I know that she wants to talk to you and that there are things that she wants to explain to you,” he tells me.
“Liz is coming?” I whisper in surprise.
“Yes.”
“Oh,” I frown. I’m not sure I’m ready to see her.
Max frowns when he sees my reaction. “I thought you would be happy?” he says.
“What, that she can finally spare me five minute of her precious time?” I ask sarcastically.
“I know you’re hurt.”
“Don’t patronise me Max,” I snap.
“I’m not trying to. If you give me a chance, I’m trying to explain a little about what is going on.”
“I should have known that you would take her side.”
“Woa!” Max jumps to his feet. “I am not taking sides here. Do you think that any of this is easy for me?” he asks. “I’m the one she walked out on Maria, I more than anyone have reason to be upset, hurt and angry with Liz so don’t you dare act like I don’t understand how you feel or have the right to tell you that you should hear Liz out!” he tells me.
“Is some of this stuff that Liz is going to tell me how she had a premonition that I was sleeping with you behind her back?” I ask.
Max freezes. “How do you know that?”
I laugh sadly. “I ran into Michael who apparently Liz did have time to fill in. He assumed that you had told me and mentioned it.”
“I’m sorry you had to hear about it that way. I couldn’t imagine how much that must have hurt you given how much I knew it hurt me and the circumstances in which I found out were much different,” he says.
“I should have heard about it from Liz!” I yell, “Or the very least you should have told me!”
He nods, “You’re right. I probably should have but I honestly believe that it wasn’t my place. It was Liz’s. It was her story, her mistake, her place.”
I look away as tears fill my eyes. “After everything we’ve been through you should have told me the truth. You owed me the truth,” I whisper hurt.
“I’m sorry, I’m so sorry,” he whispers. “I don’t want to hurt you,” he tells me. “It's the last thing I want but it seems not matter what I do I hurt someone, including myself,” he tells me.
“Well you won’t have to worry about me soon,” I say then.
He looks at me strangely. “What are you saying?" he asks.
“I’ve been doing a lot of thinking and one thing is obvious to me right now and that’s that I don’t belong here anymore, I don’t belong with you guys anymore,”
“Maria...”
“No Max, don’t! I’ve made up my mind.”
“It's not safe for you to leave by yourself,” he objects.
“Of course it is. I’m human,” I tell him. “And I won’t be by myself,” I add then.
He looks at me confused. “I’m going home Max. I’m going home to Roswell.”
Liz POV
“So you’re really going be a mum hey?”
I turn, slightly startled, at the sound of his voice.
“Yeah,” I smile and pat my stomach.
I look at him as he takes a seat next to me on the porch swing. “I’m glad you’re talking to me,” I tell him.
“Yeah well there’s no reason for me not to. You didn’t do anything wrong,” he replies.
I pat his hand. “Thank you for saying that but you and I both know that I completely fucked up both our lives.”
He remains silent for a few seconds. “No you didn’t.”
“Michael...”
“The truth is Liz, I needed to get away from Maria to break away from the terrible cycle we’d found ourselves in. She felt stuck; she felt that because she was with us that she had to be with me.”
“But you didn’t feel that way,” I point out knowing that deep down Michael still loves Maria.
“No, but things with us were never going to work. She thinks she came to be with me but she really came to be with you.”
I look away to avoid the truth I see in his eyes. Maria and I have been together since we were in diapers and there is nothing we haven’t shared together. She’s been with me through everything, until I deserted her.
“She’s never going to forgive me,” I whisper admitting my biggest fear.
“Yes she will.”
“How can you say that?” I ask, tears filling my eyes.
“Because, just like Max will forgive you if he hasn’t already, it’s you,” he smiles.
“Thank you for saying that but I don’t deserve her forgiveness.”
“Does she deserve yours?” he asks me.
“Huh?” I ask confused.
“You seem to think since your found out your premonition didn’t come true that Maria hasn’t done wrong by you,” he says.
I open my mouth to talk but he beats me to it.
“They might not have acted on it but Maria knew that what she was doing was wrong. She should have sent Max home to talk to you after the first time he showed up on her door step.”
I know Michael is right.
“So before you beat yourself up too much about how you were such a terrible friend, just remember that she wasn’t the best friend to you always either.”
Michael stands then.
“Thank you Michael,” I say.
“It's time to live our lives now Liz, no regrets. You’re about to become a mum and for me it’s time I stopped running.”
“Does that mean you’re going to be sticking around?” I smile.
“Yeah it does. I’ve been away from my family for too long.”
“I’m glad. I was really proud of you today,” I tell him.
He looks at me confused.
“For talking to Max, for apologising to him. I figure that it couldn’t have been easy but you were the bigger man and you said sorry. I just want you to know I’m proud of you for that.”
He smiles a little then before he takes a step towards the door.
“Thanks Liz,” he says before he disappears inside.
Isabel POV
“You look happy tonight,” Kyle comments as I crawl into bed beside him.
“I am,” I agree. “It's the first time in so long that I feel like everything is going to be ok with all of us.” I tell him. “I have both my brothers back, Liz is on the mend, now if maybe we can get things patched up with Maria everything will go back to the way it used to.”
“I don’t think anything will ever be the same again Iz,” Kyle points out.
“I know that, but there’s hope that one day we can all get back to something close to what we used to or maybe even better.”
Kyle smiles at me before he pulls me into his arms. “I love your optimism babe,” he whispers.
“I love you Kyle,” I tell him.
“I love you too.”
“I can’t be unhappy for us getting stuck on this run from the FBI because it brought us together but I really wish it hadn’t come at such a high price to everyone else,” I sigh then.
“Do you honestly believe that this was only brought on by being on the run?” he asks surprised. “Iz, it’s obvious that Liz and Max’s issues had nothing to do with being on the run and they probably would have surfaced regardless.”
“You’re right,” I agree.
“Just promise me that we’ll never get to that point?” I ask then.
“How about I promise that I'll always talk to you if I have a problem?” he asks.
“Deal,” I grin before sealing our conversation with a kiss.
ETA: sorry guys i posted the wrong part. I've deleted it and posted the correct part which hopefully will clear some things up