Chapter 10: Part One
Posted: Thu Jan 08, 2004 5:19 pm
hello Dear Readers.
I hope the holidays went well for you. And as promised it is January and I have returned.
I would like to take the time to respond to your feedbacks first...
Roswellluver: As we look at what happened with Future Max’s visit. One thought comes to mind, Isabel is going to need a lot of luck to make everything work out right.
Trude: I can’t say too much… but I loved the Good bye/ Goodnight line as well. But I love it more from Alex. It would be just like him to take her mind off of the fact that she was saying “goodbye forever” but instead getting her to focus on what was before her; A chance with him in another timeline.
SarahWhitman: I hope I cleared your confusion with that e-mail.
You are welcome for the hints/explanations/ secrets. I love my readers. I hope to avail myself to you or any other reader who may need my help.
Yes you are most definitely right when you said that Alex will be alive. She is going back to him.
Neo: I can’t promise that I won’t cliff you again, but… I truly think you will like this next part.
Kittens: Hi, welcome to the story, your name seems to be new to my thread. Yes, Isabel is definitely going back, but the question is where, how far?
Rose is True Blue/Erin: Well I cliffed you to this point, she is en-route to the past. But sing away, because another chance at their relationship is exactly what they are getting.
Now that Isabel has gone back and you shall soon see where… I can’t fully give you answers on what I plan to do with Tess! I’m still working out my “Tess angles.”
NewYorker18/ Keri: Thanks for stopping in to read it, and wow, cover to cover so to speak, thanks…
Now is the other dimension the same?? She really has to be prepared for anything, Alex kind-of hinted that it could be different.
Ian K.: My E-mail responder… So you actually thought that it might be a time travel story, or at least had hoped that it would. I’m impressed. Very good job, keeping up with it.
Tess/Ava, yeah, Tess has been out of the picture for sometime, and her imposter was the one who killed Alex.
And this is to all you Stargazers out there… If you love A/I, I truly think you’ll love this chapter. ENJOY!!!
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A/N… I have a banner for my story, it was created for me by Kay, Stargazing101, (last I knew)… I’d love it if you went and checked it out, at the beginning of this story.
And to you Kay… Thank you so much for accepting the challenge.
It is absolutely perfect. I love it. (kisses you on the cheek.) Thank-you, thank-you, thank-you.
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One other note, The dream has been placed into bold italics as always, to distinguish it from the music. And there are two songs used in this part.
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Shifting Realities
Chapter Ten: Part One
Revisiting the Past
Isabel’s body jerked, and the world went instantly dark, as she crumbled to the floor; having experienced an overload to the system, she passed out. The glass of water that she had apparently been getting slipped from her grasp and hit the floor with a CRASH!! SPLATTER! Water spread everywhere over the surface of the floor, wetness slowly seeping into her clothes, which she didn’t realize as she lay there. She was momentarily incapacitated and was unable to move; as Isabel slowly regained consciousness, the world hazy and unclear, she just lay there staring at the ceiling, blinking in confusion. And she realized that it was her kitchen ceiling… ‘I’m home, literally,’ she thought, in her addled state. She re-closed her eyes to fight off an overwhelming sensation of lightheadedness. CRUNCH, slosh, CRUNCH, slosh!!! She heard footsteps on the broken glass, and she felt a gentle hand on her shoulder. Slowly opening her eyes, she saw a face leaning over hers, her vision bleary from a headache; she was having a hard time making out the features. Isabel blinked as he spoke…
“Izzy, God!! Iz are you ok???”
He helped her to sit up. “Isabel you scared me! What happened???” Max demanded.
She mumbled weakly, “I think I passed out.”
Max had been worried about his sister after the alien secret had been inadvertently revealed to Liz. So when he heard the glass shatter in the kitchen he ran in to check on Isabel. He saw her lying on the floor and his heart skipped a beat. There was broken glass that lay at her side, and water that had splashed everywhere. After he had helped her to sitting, he noticed that she looked dazed, her eyes seemed unfocused, and her hands were trembling, violently. “Yeah, I’d say so.” He replied to her comment of passing out. He concernedly helped her to stand up, and as she righted herself and stood holding onto the counter ledge for support; Isabel remembered having heard the glass shatter and so a few moments later she bent over to clean the mess. Max wondered what was going on with her; as she didn’t seem to be very rational, if that was a good way to describe it. He once again pulled her to standing, motioning her to forget the glass.
Beside the fact that she had found herself flat on the floor, and she was now barely standing, Isabel realized that the time-travel must have worked and she was still experiencing lingering effects of her journey. Her hands were trembling and she couldn’t seem to still them. Also she was a little disoriented, as well as still feeling woozy. And Max was staring at her, with his hand on her back keeping her upright.
She was slowly realizing everything that she was feeling, a piece at a time, as if she had short-circuited and the switches were being reset individually. But the biggest realization was, the fact that she found herself in her own body, her essence having traveled back and connected with her younger self. Thinking about this, she then realized that Future Max, whom she had barely recalled learning about, must have been a mind-warp or something else… He had a physical body to return to, so if it really were Max, he would not have appeared as his older self. Perplexity crossed her face as she thought about this, and then another thought, if Future Max were not real, then he would be something to fix or even avoid altogether in this time-line.
‘Time travel is a bitch.’ She reasoned, hoping to never experience anything along its lines again… ’I feel like I was just pulled inside out and hurtled through space to be rearranged, turned right-side out and dropped off inside myself.’ Thinking about the events as they seemed to feel at the time, ‘Oh Yeah! I think I was.’ She sarcastically thought. Then she smiled to herself about the one main reason she had done this in the first place. ‘It’s a small price to pay for getting Alex back, and fixing everything that went wrong before. Alex is worth it though.’
Because of the broken glass on the kitchen floor, and the fact that Isabel did not seem to be fully functioning, Max did not want to have anything else happen to her and so he pulled his sister to safety. “Come on Iz. You’re ok! I know this is really hard on you but you’ll be ok.” He grabbed her trembling hands and looked her in the eyes.
Isabel took in the sight of Max before her and she knew in that moment that she really had succeeded in her journey to the past, because she was being observed carefully by a younger version of her brother. He seemed relaxed, innocent, almost carefree, compared to the brother she had just left behind; the brother who had just had his world shattered with murder and betrayal in what would be less than two years into the future.
She couldn’t help herself; she threw her arms around his neck and held him, her eyes misty. “Oh! Max.” He pulled out of the embrace and looked deeply into her soulful brown eyes and tried to read the emotion that was playing in them.
“Iz, we’ll get you through this OK? Come on lets go sit you down or something.” He led her to the table. “Maybe its time you talk about it…don’t hold it in anymore. You’re trembling…” Max tightly held her hands in his as they sent little spasms into his arms. “I don’t think you should deal with it alone, let me help.” She stared at him curiously, “This is obviously bothering you, Isabel, more than you let on.” Max continued to speak reassuringly to her, which served to confuse her even further. He looked into her eyes trying to send all the comfort he could. “I heard you get up earlier and I heard the glass crash. I knew that you were at the end and that I needed to be here for you, I never expected to find you passed out on the kitchen floor!” he stated in surprise.
Looking around , I don’t like what I find.
Is this for real or have I lost my mind?
‘What the hell is he talking about?’ she wondered silently. So she decided to play along with whatever was apparently going on, “Yeah Max, maybe I should. Just talk about it and I’ll share when I’m ready.” She sighed, “You’re voice has always had a soothing effect on me, when I am going through things.” The tone in her voice led him to know that she had said as much as she would, there was finality to it. ‘Hopefully I can get answers without revealing anymore questions, like time travel, or where I just came from.’ She thought wryly, as she chewed nervously on her lower lip.
Max started, “When Liz got curious during that day in Science lab and tested my cells, I got nervous.”
Isabel thought, ‘Liz wasn’t shot?’ Confused by the turn of events, ‘…he would have started with that if it had happened. Oh! Boy!’ She bit her lip harder.
“I ended up revealing our alien status when she dragged it out of me,” Max continued… She kept it from Maria for like a week, but that girl is like a bull-dog when she gets an idea in her head. Maria finally made Liz spill what she was trying to hide, and she ran screaming from the place. But you remember all this I’m sure…”
Isabel stared at him and nodded. Her head was actually starting to feel more normal, it wasn’t like a weight on her shoulders anymore.
“Anyway,” Max still was recounting the events of their life and waiting for her to discuss them, “there was that day that the jeep broke down and Maria gave you a ride. Remember using your powers on her car?” He laughed a little at the thought of what Isabel had done to Maria that day. Isabel really hadn’t meant any harm to the girl; she was actually trying to repay the favor and to help her out. Isabel smiled, remembering exactly how freaked out Maria had become, resulting in them crashing into the back of Sheriff Valenti’s Ford Explorer.
“Bad Idea Iz!” stated Max seriously. She just looked at him uncertainly, with her head tilted to the side, she wasn’t expecting that.
“Maria told Valenti.” Max shook his head; “the guy is watching you like a hawk. He talks to anyone who comes into contact with us.” He squeezed her hands, “But you already know all this…”
‘Actually, none of this played this way in my reality.’ Isabel surmised.
Where did the old familiar landmarks go?
I don’t know (where did they go?)
“Isabel,” Max continued, “Of course you’re shaking, you’re like his main target.”
‘I’m his main target?’ her head raised up in question, ‘Maria actually told him? And I’m the one being followed?’ She shook her head in disbelief. ‘This is not how it is supposed to be,’ she sighed to herself.
Have I left them far behind?
“What about Alex?” The words left her mouth before she could stop them. ‘Shit! Can my brain slow down here?’
“What about him?” Max asked.
“Does he know?” Her brain was still running ahead of her mouth.
Max replied, “I don’t know if Liz told him or not, but do you really think we ought to tell another human?” he looked at her sadly. “The way he stares at me makes me think he’s heard something; he acts a little uncomfortable when we are around.” Max stopped to shake his head. “So far this isn’t going well. I know Liz is ok with it, considering she figured it out and all. And Maria is starting to come around, especially after the things you did to her, but should we really involve any others?”
Isabel watched her brother; she really did not know how to answer his last question, it was more than likely rhetorical anyway.
Max continued to unfold the events of their life since Liz had discovered the secret. “It was incredibly stupid to have him exchange his blood for mine with Valenti tailing us, and apparently Ms. Topolsky as well. But I do know that it would really give the FBI something to study if he hadn’t. So I guess sometimes we have to do the less dangerous thing.”
‘Story of my life,’ she remarked silently to herself.
“We owe him something for taking the heat like that, don’t you think?” Max asked.
“Yeah, I guess so.” She quietly replied, but to herself she thought, ‘I know what I owe him personally.’
I’m just a stranger
Looking for an information source.
Max looked deeply into her eyes and touched her hand, “I know you’re scared Iz. Valenti was questioning Alex today, about his involvement with us, not that he can reveal much, because Liz has kept him out of the loop… “ He nodded reassuringly. ”Add to this the fact that Alex discovered that Topolsky is an FBI agent.” Isabel smiled slightly, thinking ‘Well at least things are pretty much the same.’ Max’s next words caught her completely off guard, “At least we have the upper hand on that one, and we can just watch her. She doesn’t know that we are on to her…” Isabel found herself momentarily choking from swallowing wrong at that piece of information.
My indicators
Say I went a little bit off course.
“He managed to get all her files running normally before she re-entered the room.” Max continued when he was sure his sister was ok again. “He took a huge risk hacking into her system like that.” Max stopped to take a deep breath and let it out slowly and emphatically. “I hate this! We have the FBI in our school, watching us/ you, and you, Isabel; You’re more scared than I’ve seen since you were little.” He was very concerned for how his sister was doing, she had not said anything and they were supposed to be discussing it.
‘When I’m with Alex I’m the least scared I’ve ever been.’ She thought to herself, ‘and I think I know where exactly I’m at in this new/old timeline.’
‘This reality is getting weirder the more he speaks... The good thing is that they are all just observing us, nothing to fear because of no silver healing handprints. This might be OK. I’m the least threatening of all of us.’ Isabel thought to herself, hoping that she was accurate in her assumptions. She really had no way to know what she would encounter; major events seemed to be playing out with different twists. She smiled to Max, returned the grip on his hands and said, “I’m going to pay Alex a little visit.” She noticed that her hands were hardly shaking anymore. ‘I guess a little temporal disturbance messes with the balance, my equilibrium was off for a short time there, but I’m definitely feeling better.’
I’ve got this feeling
I’m a hundred- million miles from home
“See you in the morning, Max.” She stood to head towards her room.
“No Isabel! You freaked Maria out so bad she told Valenti. You’ve got to stop walking into people’s dreams.” Max ordered her.
“Not Tonight!” She declared. ‘Definitely not tonight.’ Then she thought to herself, ‘I get my dream-walk with Alex. My most treasured memory, well besides our first kiss, and prom…but I digress.’
And that my heart has crashlanded
In another time zone.
***************
She went up to her room and closed the door, giving it a small lock with her powers. She didn’t want to take the chance that Max might intrude.
This was her night; she knew what was going to happen and she was not going to miss it. She changed out of her wet pajamas into her red satin ones, the same ones she had been in the first time she had attempted this dream walk. Isabel smiled to herself and looked over at her clock. 2:10am. ‘I must have been getting a midnight drink when I interrupted myself,’ she laughed, thinking on the prior events of the last hour or so.
“Shoot, I left a mess of the kitchen. Mom’s sure to notice it. Oh Well! I’ve got a ‘date’ with Alex.” She said to herself happily.
Looking around the room she realized that her younger self did not have any pictures of her beloved. “I’ve gotta use that dorky yearbook picture,” she remarked, as she scrunched up her nose. “And I definitely have to remedy the no picture problem.” She looked over at her vanity table and smiled, knowing the perfect spot for a photo. She slid down under her covers, making herself comfortable. Hugging the yearbook tightly to herself, she then opened it up to the ever-familiar page with Alex Whitman staring back at her. The page was crisp and unmarred unlike her copy of this book in the other time-line, which was so accustomed to this page being opened that it fell open to it automatically. First, she ran her hand over the cool satiny smooth paper. Next she held it to her lips as she gave the page a small kiss, right over his visage. Isabel whispered lovingly to the picture, “I’m back.” Then she touched his image while a wave of familiarity rippled under her finger causing her eyelids to become heavy as she drifted immediately to sleep, with a satisfied smile on her face.
***************
Isabel found herself in Alex’s dream; she in her pajamas, and he in his regular everyday clothing, following him down the school hallway past the rows of lockers that lined the walls into a nearby classroom, where she sat down on a large teacher’s desk at the front of the room.
The back of the classroom had been transformed into a ballroom, the walls had been covered by a lavish, softly draped, silver lame’ fabric; and white bare-branched trees decorated with tiny white Christmas lights, or pillar candles on stands were strategically placed around the perimeter of the ballroom creating an elegant and dreamy environment for a dance, a waltz. Alex was sitting at the table waiting for his date…’Me’… she thought happily. ‘And tonight it will be.’
As he was about to place a CD, which he had pulled from his breast pocket, into the player, a live band appeared, and the singer, Monique Powell, walked over to him and gently removed the CD from his hand. She gave him a smile and a nod as she said, “We’ll take it from here.” Stepping to the right side of the room the band stood in front of the silver lame’ backdrop and prepared ….As this was the cue for the music to start Isabel knew it was also her cue to become ready.
She walked over to where the dream version of herself was waiting on the periphery of the fantasy and took over. “Tonight, I’m not observing”…she said to herself, “I’m living it.” Isabel used her powers and transformed herself into his “dream Isabel” where she found herself dressed in a beautiful knee-length red dress with floral accents and black velvet banding running along the top, with black spaghetti straps. Her long blonde hair was flowing freely and was gently curled, while the left side was swept up and held in place with a small clip.
Alex was decked out in a black tuxedo, with a white shirt and black accents.
He thought she was stunning. She knew he looked great already, because she had always wanted to relive this dream. The first measures of the song played out.
“Hello Alex,” she said, while her head was cocked to the side and her hands were on her hips.
Alex sincerely replied, “Hello,” his voice deeper than usual.
“Thank-you for inviting me.” Isabel smiled.
“My pleasure,” he answered as he took her hand and kissed it, preparing themselves for a dance.
The lyrics were sung out in a clear manner, as they danced for a while; she twirled into him. He dipped her, brought her back up and they continued the dance side by side.
“You really think of me?” Isabel asked while gazing into his eyes.
“I think that underneath that beautiful exterior is an even more beautiful interior.” Alex spun Isabel out to the side and twirled her back into him. “But I have a feeling that not too many people get to see that interior do they?” They were now face to face, she with her hands on his shoulders.
The music swelled and undulated as they looked at one another.
She quietly responded,” No, they don’t,” while looking directly into his eyes, as they slowly danced.
“Cause it’s too scary to show who you really are. You can show me.” He said genuinely.
Her eyes sparkled with hope. “I can?” Isabel questioned softly, as a gentle smile graced her lovely red lips.
Gazing into her gorgeous brown eyes, nodding, and gently smiling, he replied, “Yeah!”
Isabel continued to keep her eyes on Alex as she gave a slight toss of her hair. And she trustingly found herself drawing ever closer to him during their dance. It was almost as if a magnet were pulling them together at the same moment.
So let me in
Oh! Please tonight
Edging into each other’s space until their mouths were just inches away.
Don’t let this end
Tonight.
I will fall.
The instrumental portion of the song played as violin, cello, and guitar all converged and crescendoed, melodiously playing out.
In her previous timeline, this was the point where she had awakened, happy inside and confused beyond reason. But knowing what he was dreaming about, she didn’t want this dream to end, so she leaned in and returned the kiss that he was initiating. Placing her arms around his neck, forearms draped on his shoulders, she locked herself in a passionate embrace, as they poured all their love into one another, with that kiss. Isabel, especially, poured all the pent up longing and desire into it that she had not been able to express since his demise in the previous timeline. They stood on the dance floor reveling in each other’s love while they passionately kissed for quite some time, nibbling on each others lips, as the minutes seemed to become hours, and time seemed to stand still.
They both came up a short time later gasping for air; awakening from their shared dream.
Alex’s blankets and sheets were entangled at his feet and he was gasping, “I- I just kissed Isabel Evans; p-p-passionately.” Alex stuttered to himself.
Isabel was smiling broadly, “Now that’s the way a dream-walk should work. Finally, I got to kiss him, and share all the love I have in my heart for him.” She deeply and dreamily sighed, “It’s just a dream; I can’t pass any flashes on to him. I can sleep a happy woman tonight.” She looked upwards with a beautiful smile, “By the way, whoever is watching over me, and brought me back to this night; I know you must know how important it is to me. Thank-you so much.” She uttered it like a prayer, but not really knowing if it was. Isabel rolled over and fell into a deep sleep, for once having happy dreams of Alex…she, reliving the dream-walk.
TBC...
Music: Crashlanded by Crumbacher ~ vs. one
Excerpt: Let Me In by Save Ferris
I hope the holidays went well for you. And as promised it is January and I have returned.
I would like to take the time to respond to your feedbacks first...
Roswellluver: As we look at what happened with Future Max’s visit. One thought comes to mind, Isabel is going to need a lot of luck to make everything work out right.
Trude: I can’t say too much… but I loved the Good bye/ Goodnight line as well. But I love it more from Alex. It would be just like him to take her mind off of the fact that she was saying “goodbye forever” but instead getting her to focus on what was before her; A chance with him in another timeline.
SarahWhitman: I hope I cleared your confusion with that e-mail.
You are welcome for the hints/explanations/ secrets. I love my readers. I hope to avail myself to you or any other reader who may need my help.
Yes you are most definitely right when you said that Alex will be alive. She is going back to him.
Neo: I can’t promise that I won’t cliff you again, but… I truly think you will like this next part.
Kittens: Hi, welcome to the story, your name seems to be new to my thread. Yes, Isabel is definitely going back, but the question is where, how far?
Rose is True Blue/Erin: Well I cliffed you to this point, she is en-route to the past. But sing away, because another chance at their relationship is exactly what they are getting.
Now that Isabel has gone back and you shall soon see where… I can’t fully give you answers on what I plan to do with Tess! I’m still working out my “Tess angles.”
NewYorker18/ Keri: Thanks for stopping in to read it, and wow, cover to cover so to speak, thanks…
Now is the other dimension the same?? She really has to be prepared for anything, Alex kind-of hinted that it could be different.
Ian K.: My E-mail responder… So you actually thought that it might be a time travel story, or at least had hoped that it would. I’m impressed. Very good job, keeping up with it.
Tess/Ava, yeah, Tess has been out of the picture for sometime, and her imposter was the one who killed Alex.
And this is to all you Stargazers out there… If you love A/I, I truly think you’ll love this chapter. ENJOY!!!
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A/N… I have a banner for my story, it was created for me by Kay, Stargazing101, (last I knew)… I’d love it if you went and checked it out, at the beginning of this story.
And to you Kay… Thank you so much for accepting the challenge.
It is absolutely perfect. I love it. (kisses you on the cheek.) Thank-you, thank-you, thank-you. --------------------------------------------------------------
One other note, The dream has been placed into bold italics as always, to distinguish it from the music. And there are two songs used in this part.
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Shifting Realities
Chapter Ten: Part One
Revisiting the Past
Isabel’s body jerked, and the world went instantly dark, as she crumbled to the floor; having experienced an overload to the system, she passed out. The glass of water that she had apparently been getting slipped from her grasp and hit the floor with a CRASH!! SPLATTER! Water spread everywhere over the surface of the floor, wetness slowly seeping into her clothes, which she didn’t realize as she lay there. She was momentarily incapacitated and was unable to move; as Isabel slowly regained consciousness, the world hazy and unclear, she just lay there staring at the ceiling, blinking in confusion. And she realized that it was her kitchen ceiling… ‘I’m home, literally,’ she thought, in her addled state. She re-closed her eyes to fight off an overwhelming sensation of lightheadedness. CRUNCH, slosh, CRUNCH, slosh!!! She heard footsteps on the broken glass, and she felt a gentle hand on her shoulder. Slowly opening her eyes, she saw a face leaning over hers, her vision bleary from a headache; she was having a hard time making out the features. Isabel blinked as he spoke…
“Izzy, God!! Iz are you ok???”
He helped her to sit up. “Isabel you scared me! What happened???” Max demanded.
She mumbled weakly, “I think I passed out.”
Max had been worried about his sister after the alien secret had been inadvertently revealed to Liz. So when he heard the glass shatter in the kitchen he ran in to check on Isabel. He saw her lying on the floor and his heart skipped a beat. There was broken glass that lay at her side, and water that had splashed everywhere. After he had helped her to sitting, he noticed that she looked dazed, her eyes seemed unfocused, and her hands were trembling, violently. “Yeah, I’d say so.” He replied to her comment of passing out. He concernedly helped her to stand up, and as she righted herself and stood holding onto the counter ledge for support; Isabel remembered having heard the glass shatter and so a few moments later she bent over to clean the mess. Max wondered what was going on with her; as she didn’t seem to be very rational, if that was a good way to describe it. He once again pulled her to standing, motioning her to forget the glass.
Beside the fact that she had found herself flat on the floor, and she was now barely standing, Isabel realized that the time-travel must have worked and she was still experiencing lingering effects of her journey. Her hands were trembling and she couldn’t seem to still them. Also she was a little disoriented, as well as still feeling woozy. And Max was staring at her, with his hand on her back keeping her upright.
She was slowly realizing everything that she was feeling, a piece at a time, as if she had short-circuited and the switches were being reset individually. But the biggest realization was, the fact that she found herself in her own body, her essence having traveled back and connected with her younger self. Thinking about this, she then realized that Future Max, whom she had barely recalled learning about, must have been a mind-warp or something else… He had a physical body to return to, so if it really were Max, he would not have appeared as his older self. Perplexity crossed her face as she thought about this, and then another thought, if Future Max were not real, then he would be something to fix or even avoid altogether in this time-line.
‘Time travel is a bitch.’ She reasoned, hoping to never experience anything along its lines again… ’I feel like I was just pulled inside out and hurtled through space to be rearranged, turned right-side out and dropped off inside myself.’ Thinking about the events as they seemed to feel at the time, ‘Oh Yeah! I think I was.’ She sarcastically thought. Then she smiled to herself about the one main reason she had done this in the first place. ‘It’s a small price to pay for getting Alex back, and fixing everything that went wrong before. Alex is worth it though.’
Because of the broken glass on the kitchen floor, and the fact that Isabel did not seem to be fully functioning, Max did not want to have anything else happen to her and so he pulled his sister to safety. “Come on Iz. You’re ok! I know this is really hard on you but you’ll be ok.” He grabbed her trembling hands and looked her in the eyes.
Isabel took in the sight of Max before her and she knew in that moment that she really had succeeded in her journey to the past, because she was being observed carefully by a younger version of her brother. He seemed relaxed, innocent, almost carefree, compared to the brother she had just left behind; the brother who had just had his world shattered with murder and betrayal in what would be less than two years into the future.
She couldn’t help herself; she threw her arms around his neck and held him, her eyes misty. “Oh! Max.” He pulled out of the embrace and looked deeply into her soulful brown eyes and tried to read the emotion that was playing in them.
“Iz, we’ll get you through this OK? Come on lets go sit you down or something.” He led her to the table. “Maybe its time you talk about it…don’t hold it in anymore. You’re trembling…” Max tightly held her hands in his as they sent little spasms into his arms. “I don’t think you should deal with it alone, let me help.” She stared at him curiously, “This is obviously bothering you, Isabel, more than you let on.” Max continued to speak reassuringly to her, which served to confuse her even further. He looked into her eyes trying to send all the comfort he could. “I heard you get up earlier and I heard the glass crash. I knew that you were at the end and that I needed to be here for you, I never expected to find you passed out on the kitchen floor!” he stated in surprise.
Looking around , I don’t like what I find.
Is this for real or have I lost my mind?
‘What the hell is he talking about?’ she wondered silently. So she decided to play along with whatever was apparently going on, “Yeah Max, maybe I should. Just talk about it and I’ll share when I’m ready.” She sighed, “You’re voice has always had a soothing effect on me, when I am going through things.” The tone in her voice led him to know that she had said as much as she would, there was finality to it. ‘Hopefully I can get answers without revealing anymore questions, like time travel, or where I just came from.’ She thought wryly, as she chewed nervously on her lower lip.
Max started, “When Liz got curious during that day in Science lab and tested my cells, I got nervous.”
Isabel thought, ‘Liz wasn’t shot?’ Confused by the turn of events, ‘…he would have started with that if it had happened. Oh! Boy!’ She bit her lip harder.
“I ended up revealing our alien status when she dragged it out of me,” Max continued… She kept it from Maria for like a week, but that girl is like a bull-dog when she gets an idea in her head. Maria finally made Liz spill what she was trying to hide, and she ran screaming from the place. But you remember all this I’m sure…”
Isabel stared at him and nodded. Her head was actually starting to feel more normal, it wasn’t like a weight on her shoulders anymore.
“Anyway,” Max still was recounting the events of their life and waiting for her to discuss them, “there was that day that the jeep broke down and Maria gave you a ride. Remember using your powers on her car?” He laughed a little at the thought of what Isabel had done to Maria that day. Isabel really hadn’t meant any harm to the girl; she was actually trying to repay the favor and to help her out. Isabel smiled, remembering exactly how freaked out Maria had become, resulting in them crashing into the back of Sheriff Valenti’s Ford Explorer.
“Bad Idea Iz!” stated Max seriously. She just looked at him uncertainly, with her head tilted to the side, she wasn’t expecting that.
“Maria told Valenti.” Max shook his head; “the guy is watching you like a hawk. He talks to anyone who comes into contact with us.” He squeezed her hands, “But you already know all this…”
‘Actually, none of this played this way in my reality.’ Isabel surmised.
Where did the old familiar landmarks go?
I don’t know (where did they go?)
“Isabel,” Max continued, “Of course you’re shaking, you’re like his main target.”
‘I’m his main target?’ her head raised up in question, ‘Maria actually told him? And I’m the one being followed?’ She shook her head in disbelief. ‘This is not how it is supposed to be,’ she sighed to herself.
Have I left them far behind?
“What about Alex?” The words left her mouth before she could stop them. ‘Shit! Can my brain slow down here?’
“What about him?” Max asked.
“Does he know?” Her brain was still running ahead of her mouth.
Max replied, “I don’t know if Liz told him or not, but do you really think we ought to tell another human?” he looked at her sadly. “The way he stares at me makes me think he’s heard something; he acts a little uncomfortable when we are around.” Max stopped to shake his head. “So far this isn’t going well. I know Liz is ok with it, considering she figured it out and all. And Maria is starting to come around, especially after the things you did to her, but should we really involve any others?”
Isabel watched her brother; she really did not know how to answer his last question, it was more than likely rhetorical anyway.
Max continued to unfold the events of their life since Liz had discovered the secret. “It was incredibly stupid to have him exchange his blood for mine with Valenti tailing us, and apparently Ms. Topolsky as well. But I do know that it would really give the FBI something to study if he hadn’t. So I guess sometimes we have to do the less dangerous thing.”
‘Story of my life,’ she remarked silently to herself.
“We owe him something for taking the heat like that, don’t you think?” Max asked.
“Yeah, I guess so.” She quietly replied, but to herself she thought, ‘I know what I owe him personally.’
I’m just a stranger
Looking for an information source.
Max looked deeply into her eyes and touched her hand, “I know you’re scared Iz. Valenti was questioning Alex today, about his involvement with us, not that he can reveal much, because Liz has kept him out of the loop… “ He nodded reassuringly. ”Add to this the fact that Alex discovered that Topolsky is an FBI agent.” Isabel smiled slightly, thinking ‘Well at least things are pretty much the same.’ Max’s next words caught her completely off guard, “At least we have the upper hand on that one, and we can just watch her. She doesn’t know that we are on to her…” Isabel found herself momentarily choking from swallowing wrong at that piece of information.
My indicators
Say I went a little bit off course.
“He managed to get all her files running normally before she re-entered the room.” Max continued when he was sure his sister was ok again. “He took a huge risk hacking into her system like that.” Max stopped to take a deep breath and let it out slowly and emphatically. “I hate this! We have the FBI in our school, watching us/ you, and you, Isabel; You’re more scared than I’ve seen since you were little.” He was very concerned for how his sister was doing, she had not said anything and they were supposed to be discussing it.
‘When I’m with Alex I’m the least scared I’ve ever been.’ She thought to herself, ‘and I think I know where exactly I’m at in this new/old timeline.’
‘This reality is getting weirder the more he speaks... The good thing is that they are all just observing us, nothing to fear because of no silver healing handprints. This might be OK. I’m the least threatening of all of us.’ Isabel thought to herself, hoping that she was accurate in her assumptions. She really had no way to know what she would encounter; major events seemed to be playing out with different twists. She smiled to Max, returned the grip on his hands and said, “I’m going to pay Alex a little visit.” She noticed that her hands were hardly shaking anymore. ‘I guess a little temporal disturbance messes with the balance, my equilibrium was off for a short time there, but I’m definitely feeling better.’
I’ve got this feeling
I’m a hundred- million miles from home
“See you in the morning, Max.” She stood to head towards her room.
“No Isabel! You freaked Maria out so bad she told Valenti. You’ve got to stop walking into people’s dreams.” Max ordered her.
“Not Tonight!” She declared. ‘Definitely not tonight.’ Then she thought to herself, ‘I get my dream-walk with Alex. My most treasured memory, well besides our first kiss, and prom…but I digress.’
And that my heart has crashlanded
In another time zone.
***************
She went up to her room and closed the door, giving it a small lock with her powers. She didn’t want to take the chance that Max might intrude.
This was her night; she knew what was going to happen and she was not going to miss it. She changed out of her wet pajamas into her red satin ones, the same ones she had been in the first time she had attempted this dream walk. Isabel smiled to herself and looked over at her clock. 2:10am. ‘I must have been getting a midnight drink when I interrupted myself,’ she laughed, thinking on the prior events of the last hour or so.
“Shoot, I left a mess of the kitchen. Mom’s sure to notice it. Oh Well! I’ve got a ‘date’ with Alex.” She said to herself happily.
Looking around the room she realized that her younger self did not have any pictures of her beloved. “I’ve gotta use that dorky yearbook picture,” she remarked, as she scrunched up her nose. “And I definitely have to remedy the no picture problem.” She looked over at her vanity table and smiled, knowing the perfect spot for a photo. She slid down under her covers, making herself comfortable. Hugging the yearbook tightly to herself, she then opened it up to the ever-familiar page with Alex Whitman staring back at her. The page was crisp and unmarred unlike her copy of this book in the other time-line, which was so accustomed to this page being opened that it fell open to it automatically. First, she ran her hand over the cool satiny smooth paper. Next she held it to her lips as she gave the page a small kiss, right over his visage. Isabel whispered lovingly to the picture, “I’m back.” Then she touched his image while a wave of familiarity rippled under her finger causing her eyelids to become heavy as she drifted immediately to sleep, with a satisfied smile on her face.
***************
Isabel found herself in Alex’s dream; she in her pajamas, and he in his regular everyday clothing, following him down the school hallway past the rows of lockers that lined the walls into a nearby classroom, where she sat down on a large teacher’s desk at the front of the room.
The back of the classroom had been transformed into a ballroom, the walls had been covered by a lavish, softly draped, silver lame’ fabric; and white bare-branched trees decorated with tiny white Christmas lights, or pillar candles on stands were strategically placed around the perimeter of the ballroom creating an elegant and dreamy environment for a dance, a waltz. Alex was sitting at the table waiting for his date…’Me’… she thought happily. ‘And tonight it will be.’
As he was about to place a CD, which he had pulled from his breast pocket, into the player, a live band appeared, and the singer, Monique Powell, walked over to him and gently removed the CD from his hand. She gave him a smile and a nod as she said, “We’ll take it from here.” Stepping to the right side of the room the band stood in front of the silver lame’ backdrop and prepared ….As this was the cue for the music to start Isabel knew it was also her cue to become ready.
She walked over to where the dream version of herself was waiting on the periphery of the fantasy and took over. “Tonight, I’m not observing”…she said to herself, “I’m living it.” Isabel used her powers and transformed herself into his “dream Isabel” where she found herself dressed in a beautiful knee-length red dress with floral accents and black velvet banding running along the top, with black spaghetti straps. Her long blonde hair was flowing freely and was gently curled, while the left side was swept up and held in place with a small clip.
Alex was decked out in a black tuxedo, with a white shirt and black accents.
He thought she was stunning. She knew he looked great already, because she had always wanted to relive this dream. The first measures of the song played out.
“Hello Alex,” she said, while her head was cocked to the side and her hands were on her hips.
Alex sincerely replied, “Hello,” his voice deeper than usual.
“Thank-you for inviting me.” Isabel smiled.
“My pleasure,” he answered as he took her hand and kissed it, preparing themselves for a dance.
The lyrics were sung out in a clear manner, as they danced for a while; she twirled into him. He dipped her, brought her back up and they continued the dance side by side.
“You really think of me?” Isabel asked while gazing into his eyes.
“I think that underneath that beautiful exterior is an even more beautiful interior.” Alex spun Isabel out to the side and twirled her back into him. “But I have a feeling that not too many people get to see that interior do they?” They were now face to face, she with her hands on his shoulders.
The music swelled and undulated as they looked at one another.
She quietly responded,” No, they don’t,” while looking directly into his eyes, as they slowly danced.
“Cause it’s too scary to show who you really are. You can show me.” He said genuinely.
Her eyes sparkled with hope. “I can?” Isabel questioned softly, as a gentle smile graced her lovely red lips.
Gazing into her gorgeous brown eyes, nodding, and gently smiling, he replied, “Yeah!”
Isabel continued to keep her eyes on Alex as she gave a slight toss of her hair. And she trustingly found herself drawing ever closer to him during their dance. It was almost as if a magnet were pulling them together at the same moment.
So let me in
Oh! Please tonight
Edging into each other’s space until their mouths were just inches away.
Don’t let this end
Tonight.
I will fall.
The instrumental portion of the song played as violin, cello, and guitar all converged and crescendoed, melodiously playing out.
In her previous timeline, this was the point where she had awakened, happy inside and confused beyond reason. But knowing what he was dreaming about, she didn’t want this dream to end, so she leaned in and returned the kiss that he was initiating. Placing her arms around his neck, forearms draped on his shoulders, she locked herself in a passionate embrace, as they poured all their love into one another, with that kiss. Isabel, especially, poured all the pent up longing and desire into it that she had not been able to express since his demise in the previous timeline. They stood on the dance floor reveling in each other’s love while they passionately kissed for quite some time, nibbling on each others lips, as the minutes seemed to become hours, and time seemed to stand still.
They both came up a short time later gasping for air; awakening from their shared dream.
Alex’s blankets and sheets were entangled at his feet and he was gasping, “I- I just kissed Isabel Evans; p-p-passionately.” Alex stuttered to himself.
Isabel was smiling broadly, “Now that’s the way a dream-walk should work. Finally, I got to kiss him, and share all the love I have in my heart for him.” She deeply and dreamily sighed, “It’s just a dream; I can’t pass any flashes on to him. I can sleep a happy woman tonight.” She looked upwards with a beautiful smile, “By the way, whoever is watching over me, and brought me back to this night; I know you must know how important it is to me. Thank-you so much.” She uttered it like a prayer, but not really knowing if it was. Isabel rolled over and fell into a deep sleep, for once having happy dreams of Alex…she, reliving the dream-walk.
TBC...
Music: Crashlanded by Crumbacher ~ vs. one
Excerpt: Let Me In by Save Ferris
I got a lot of that as a descrioption this time.. it seemed to be the general consensus, that and speechless. 
So this is part b of Part One Sorry for the Inconvenience.