A/N: I know I've been horrible, but sadly its with good reason. Work has been crazy lately with new schedules and new departments and people shifting job positions and stuff and things were finally settling down a bit, or I was getting used to them anyways, when a coworker passed away, actually at work, just this last week. It's been a rough week and I haven't been up for much so I am very glad that this story is already finished, meaning I just have to remember to post the updates. Thank you for your patience and reviews, and especially to Kathy and Ashita for their betaing, and *fingers crossed* next weeks update should be on schedule, oh, and I am posting two chapters today to make up for the long delay
A/N2: So the four of them are now beginning high school. We will start to see the human members of the group more and they will become a more important part of the storyline although maybe not in the order you would expect
Some canon events (not the shooting) may happen earlier than they did in the show. Also you might notice I don’t have any of them driving yet but per the wonderful workup Gioia, EmilyluvsRoswell, Queenie, and Romantic Heart did they can’t drive until they’re 15 and ½ and only Michael and Lyn are that age at this point and I figure they wouldn’t have been able to get drivers licenses while living with Hank, at least not until they got jobs to pay for it. Max and Isabel will be that age soon but wouldn’t be able to drive other people until sixteen anyways so none of them will be driving until the summer after freshman year.
Also in my story Michael may seem a bit OOC as he is going to be attending the majority of his classes and even doing well in them. My reasoning behind this is that the only reason Canon Michael didn't do well in school was choice. He didn't think he'd be staying on the planet; he didn't want to care about the human world because that made the inevitable disappointments hurt more. Now however he has a reason, a sister, who needs him and who he wants to protect. If she is in school then he needs to be as well in order to protect her and since she does well in school, such as taking advanced classes, he needs to as well in order to stay in as many classes as possible with her. However I promise not to sacrifice any of that gruff Guerin charm or loveable rebel tendencies on the altar of academics. His personality isn't going to change, just his grades.
Chapter Eight: Friends Like These
September 5, 1998
Lyn walked through the doors of the high school, Isabel by her side, unable to repress the nervous butterflies in her stomach. She was not sure she could handle it, she was not sure she even wanted to handle it. Ever since her abilities had grown, it had hurt to be around people and large groups were the hardest. High school? She had known the second they were a block away that it was going to be sheer torture. The emotions, the hormones - she shuddered, unable to stop herself or prevent her friend from noticing. Isabel reached out and rubbed her back, concern evident on her beautiful face.
"Are you okay? I know this is hard..." She trailed off as she felt Lyn's distress through their connection. "We could leave?"
Raelyn smiled. "Ditch on our first day? No one would believe that the perfect Miss Isabel would suggest such a thing, much less to me, Miss Bookworm. I'll be fine," she added reassuringly, "It's just...the boys."
Isabel nodded sympathetically. The two of them had both developed early and even in junior high had begun to attract more attention because of it, attention that with their gifts was even harder to take. "I'm just glad I only see it in their dreams. I don't think I could feel it all the time like you do."
Lyn just gave her a brave smile, inwardly flinching from the constant bombardment of unregulated emotions; the students surrounding her were not the only ones directing attention her way lately. Her mind shrank from that thought, repressing it in an automatic gesture of self-defense to preserve what little emotional sanity she had left.
To her relief, the barriers she had been working on snapped up of their own accord and the roar of feelings and occasional thoughts died to a mere whisper. She only hoped it would last. "Let's go to class. I think Geometry is that way," she said, gesturing to the left. They entered the hallway, quickly disappearing into the chattering mass of students, just two more invisible teenagers the same as everyone else; if only that were true.
It was lunch and the four of them were sitting by a tree in the quad, eating silently as they watched the students interact, the ever-shifting groups and cliques. The outsiders watching the insiders; some things never changed.
Except when they did, she thought with a sigh as she saw two girls walk by and give Isabel a wave, a wave she returned. And Max, he had spent their entire lunch break talking about his lab partner, Liz, who had apparently returned to Roswell. She glanced over at her brother who was leaning against the tree and sullenly staring at the ground as Max chattered in his ear.
A small grin slipped over her face; he would always be the same, the angry rebel who didn’t give a damn. His gaze rose from his feet to her face and a small answering smile curved his lips, disappearing a second later as the uncaring mask slipped back over his features. Yeah, some things never changed but she was glad; she would not have it any other way.
November 2nd, 1998
“She actually talked to me today, asked me to hand her a beaker,” Max said quietly, a dreamy smile on his face, and Michael groaned as his head thudded onto Max’s desk.
“I agree that she’s hot and all Maximillian, but either ask her out or get over it!”
Max frowned at him. “We can’t let anyone in, Michael; you know that, you say it more than any of us.”
“Dating doesn’t mean telling her your deepest secrets Max,” Michael replied dryly, knowing exactly how strong the pull of hormones was for both of them, alien or not. “I didn’t say tell her you have extra terrestrial tendencies but I don’t think any of us would mind if you took her to dinner or a picnic or whatever sappy thing you fantasize about.”
In truth it was something he had considered himself when he realized, grudgingly, that Lyn was most likely going to want to date in a few years and that the only two people they knew who were in on their secret were family and not an option. But the only girl he thought remotely worth taking a chance on, was the same one his brother was over the moon for, so he would stick with glaring at any guy who looked at his sisters and ribbing Max every chance he got, hormones be damned.
Max looked lost in thought, maybe actually giving credence to something Michael had said. Michael did not know whether to be happy at that small victory, or depressed at the thought of Max getting over himself and starting something with the tiny brunette that he could not help but find intriguing.
“Come on, let’s go play Mario Kart. I still owe you an ass kicking.”
The dreamy haze on Max’s face cleared and he snorted as he leapt off the bed and shot Michael a grin. “In your dreams. That trophy is and will stay mine.”
For the moment, Michael refrained from commenting, instead waiting until they were in the hall outside Isabel’s room before calling out loudly, “Who wants to play Mario Kart?”
Both girls popped out of the room a moment later and followed them towards the family room with happy smiles. Max groaned and Michael smirked, punching his shoulder. “You might beat me but Isabel trounces you every time.”
“She trounces you too,” Max pointed out with a raised eyebrow and Michael frowned, then shrugged, his next words putting the scowl back on Max’s face.
“Still worth it.”
December 20, 1998
Michael stared around the crowded store and mentally berated himself for agreeing to help Max with his shopping. Although, he thought with a smirk, he was better off than poor Lyn, stuck with the Christmas Nazi.
"How about this?" Max asked as he held up a red sweater with reindeer embroidered across the front.
"Sure, whatever," he replied, barely giving the sweater a glance before returning to glaring at the store clerk, who kept glancing their way as if expecting them to grab clothes and run. He followed Max silently as he walked around the racks after putting the sweater back, occasionally picking up things and muttering to himself, clearly having given up on getting any sort of feedback from his glowering companion.
Michael glanced at the clock on the store's wall and repressed a grin as he realized that they were going to be late for the scheduled lunch with the girls at the food court. Isabel was going to flay Max. Apparently Max too had noticed the time, evidenced by the frantic rush to the counter. In his hurry to pay for his choices he dropped his money on the counter, sending coins bouncing on to the floor.
Michael let a rare public smile cross his face as Max went chasing after the rolling bits of metal, enjoying the priceless sight of his usually serious friend crawling around on the floor, weaving in and out of shocked female customers to find his money.
Ten minutes later they made their way towards the food court while Max clutched his bags with an almost panicked expression on his face and Michael just smirked, hands in his pockets as he walked as slowly as Max would let him and cheerfully ignored his pleas to "Hurry!"
Spotting Lyn he gave a real smile. Her eyes were closed and she was leaning back in her chair as Isabel ranted to her. The two of them were surrounded by piles of bags, and, to his dismay, several groups of boys had sat close to them and were eying them with expressions that made him want to pummel their sneering faces into the linoleum floor. Glowering he sat down in a chair next to his sister, staring menacingly at the surrounding tables, and then smiling inwardly with satisfaction as he saw several faces go pale.
“Finally!” Isabel exclaimed, her voice heavy with impatience. “I expect tardiness from Michael but really, Max, you know better.”
Her tirade continued with Max’s blushes growing more and more intense, reaching a particularly awe inspiring shade of red when a gaggle of girls walked by and tittered his way, pointing and whispering behind their hands.
Michael and Lyn exchanged wry glances before Lyn decided to intervene, hoping to prevent Max from melting into a puddle of embarrassment on the mall floor.
“Come on Izzy, I’m starving and the line at Orange Julius is really short right now.”
Isabel shot a few last parting remarks at Max but grudgingly allowed the other girl to pull her to her feet as they headed for the smoothie bar, Lyn distracting her by debating the calorie count of regular hot dogs versus polish dogs.
Michael just laughed at the pathetic expression on his friend’s face before ‘gently’ shoving him, the other boy almost falling out of his chair. “Go get us some food. Isabel will freak if we leave her bags unguarded.” Not to mention, he thought with an internal scowl, the fact that he did not have the money for food and that was the least embarrassing way for both of them since Max would insist on paying anyways.
Max nodded and jumped to his feet, heading for the pizza stand after receiving a ‘what do you think?’ look from Michael when he asked what the other boy wanted.
The rest of the mall trip passed in relative peace until Mrs. Evans dropped them off at the trailer. Luckily Hank was not home yet and they were able to safely ensconce themselves in their room, still shared despite their ages, and hide the few things that Lyn had purchased with the money she earned from tutoring.
“I’m going to start looking for jobs tomorrow,” Michael said after a few moments of silence, his sister looking up from her notebook to stare at him.
“Just don’t work too hard,” was all she said after a moment and gave him a soft smile before turning her attention back to her homework.
He grunted and they fell into a companionable silence until they turned their lights off the moment they heard Hank’s truck pull in and silently wished that Winter Break was already over.
Chapter Nine: New Horizons
January 11th, 1999
Lyn dropped her bag next to a chair in the back of the computer lab and brought the screen up with a few clicks of the mouse. It was her second semester taking the computer class, and the instructor had stated that he was going to leave her to her own devices unless one of his less competent students needed help.
To her surprise someone else sat next to her and away from the rest of the class after he received a familiar greeting from the Professor, and when she looked up she saw a tall lanky boy smiling engagingly at her.
“Hey, I’m Alex. Mind if I sit here?”
Shyly she shook her head and looked back at her computer screen, occasionally darting glances at him out of the corner of her eyes. Boys had learned not to talk to her or they would face the wrath of Michael Guerin, and other than Isabel she had found the freshman girls to be entirely too giggly and annoying for her tastes.
Part of her wanted to approach Liz again, try to strike up their friendship, but she was too afraid of rejection and felt too guilty when she remembered pushing the girl away after Isabel and Max started school.
“You’re Raelyn right?”
The boy’s question interrupted her thoughts and she nodded again, blushing faintly before working up her courage and speaking. “You already took this class?”
Alex nodded. “I was supposed to be in the Programming class this semester until they cancelled it so they stuck me in here. Officially I’m the TA but Mr. Redmon doesn’t need much help. What about you?”
“I took it last semester and had an open period so he said as long as I helped tutor if he needed it I could use it as an extra study hall.”
The dark haired boy grinned and raised one eyebrow as he glanced at the internet browser she had pulled up with a site showing ‘scientific’ proof of psychic abilities. “I didn’t realize we had a class on paranormal studies.”
She giggled softly, still blushing, but gave him a raised eyebrow of her own after seeing the page he had just pulled up. “We don’t teach blogging either.”
“Touché!” he said with a chuckle. “It’ll be our little secret.”
Raelyn smiled warmly, blushes gone as she realized she had just made her first friend outside of her family. Maybe high school was getting better.
February 1st, 1999
Michael watched the brunette girl intently as she studiously took notes, her eyes never wandering from the teacher or the notebook in front of her. Most people were open books to him, despite the fact that most people thought he did not notice anyone but his family and, of course, the boys who talked to Lyn.
He was far more observant than people gave him credit for and very rarely did he see anyone worth watching for any length of time; their conversations and reactions were so predictable he often mentally projected their responses ahead of time to Lyn, who would just smile and roll her eyes when he gloated over his percentage of correct guesses.
That girl, though he had discovered, was rarely predictable although he knew almost everyone would disagree with him. Max talked about her intelligence and sweet nature for hours a day and her reputation as the perfect Miss Parker certainly seemed well deserved, but neither his best friend’s passionate ramblings nor the student bodies’ opinions had included mentions of the personality he had seen her show when she thought no one was watching.
Like the way her lips would curve into a barely noticeable smile when the teacher quoted certain passages from King Lear and The Tempest, passages rife with double meaning and innuendo that most of the class missed in their Shakespeare induced stupor.
Or the time she had helped the teacher pass out papers and pressed a sticky note over his A ‘And one man in his time plays many parts’ before giving it to him with an amused smile.
There was certainly more to Miss Parker than met the eye and for the first time he found himself glad that he had worked hard enough to take the AP English class with his sister, although he was hard pressed to hide his fascination from her. The last thing he needed was her teasing or Max discovering that he was not the only alien with a growing obsession for the petite human girl.
March 16th, 1999
Alex and Lyn were talking quietly in the back of the classroom when one of the students approached them. He was a sophomore and Liz’s cousin, who had come to stay with them for a year; there were all sorts of rumors why but Lyn did not keep up with the gossip and Alex was one of Liz’s best friends so both of them smiled friendlily at him.
At least until he gave Alex a polite smile before turning the full force of his considerable charm onto Lyn with a wide grin. That was when Alex stopped feeling so friendly.
“Hi, Raelyn?” At her nod he smiled wider, causing her to blush faintly. “The teacher said you were the one to ask for help with spreadsheets, think you could give me a hand?”
Lyn nodded and locked her computer before walking around the table and following the boy back to his desk as Alex watched every move and tried not to glare. He was sure that the teacher had told Nick that both of them could help, if he had not specified Alex as the actual TA, which meant the other boy just wanted someone to flirt with while they worked, assuming he even needed help.
Alex groaned and forcibly turned his eyes away from where Lyn was sitting at Nick’s computer, the boy hovering oh-so-attentively over her, and tried to think charitable thoughts towards him.
That resolution lasted two minutes, then Lyn giggled and he hit the keyboard so hard a key popped off. Ignoring the teacher’s amused glance he reattached the key and went back to surreptitiously watching the other two over his monitor, suddenly grateful for his awkward height.
When Nick’s hand brushed Lyn’s shoulder and she blushed again, he gave it up as a lost cause and just stared at them, irritated by the fact that they were clearly too involved with each other to even notice his intense scrutiny.
Liz had told him he should just ask her out. She liked Lyn although he knew they never spoke outside of class, and even Maria, once he assured her that she would always be one of his girls, had encouraged him to go for it. Clearly he should have taken their advice, he thought sourly as Lyn laughed again and stood up. They exchanged a few more comments and then Lyn turned around. Alex quickly diverted his gaze to the computer screen and prayed she had not seen the glare on his face.
Apparently she had not and she sat down next to him with a happy sigh. Gritting his teeth he bit back the sarcastic comments he was dying to make and waited. Suddenly Lyn touched his arm and he looked up to see her beautiful always changing eyes staring worriedly at him. “I’ve never been on a date before, Alex. What am I supposed to wear? What are we supposed to talk about?”
Alex felt the blood drain out of his face as he realized that once again he was relegated to being the male friend girls talked to for advice about the boys they were really interested in. But he cared about her and so he smiled and tried to think of something encouraging to say.
Maybe he should let his dad send him to military school, no girls there to torment himself with.
Later that day...
“You’re what?!” her brother exclaimed, eyes wide with shock as he stared at her.
“I’m going on a date,” she stated firmly, her tone leaving no room for opposition.
Unless, of course, you were an overprotective older brother. “With who?” he asked as he racked his brain for everyone who had ever looked at his sister and realized with a sinking feeling that the list was far too long for his liking, even though it was not nearly as long as Isabel’s.
“Nick, Liz’s cousin. We’re going to a movie this Friday night and you are not coming along to chaperone, spy, or threaten him.”
Michael both relaxed and tensed at hearing the name. Nick had developed a reputation as a bad boy and he knew plenty of girls who wanted to go out with him, girls older and more popular than Lyn. Why did he want to go out with his sister, a freshman even if she was older than most? Michael could think of plenty of reasons and none of them made him very happy.
On the other hand he was Liz Parker’s cousin and he trusted her judgment despite the fact that they had spoken all of ten words to each other since he accepted his fascination with her. Still, it was his sister and he was not going to let anyone sweep her off her feet without going through him first.
A/N: The quote Liz used on Michael’s paper is taken directly from Shakespeare’s As You Like It, Act II, Scene VII. Oh and in response to some of the reviews, Tess is different than canon, but won't be revealed until the sequel, and from now on there will be more polar moments.
so I'm glad you enjoyed that cameo.