Thanks for all of the feedback and I hope you enjoy this next part. 
Chapter 9
Tuesday
“Hey sexy!!” A voice called behind Liz as she walked out of the school and into the parking lot.
She saw Kyle leaning up against the building smoking a cigarette. “Go away Kyle!!” She kept walking, not bothering to even stop to give him the time of day. Couldn’t he take a hint? Get the hell away from me meant just that. She was headed to see Max and she didn't want to deal to deal with Kyle right now.
Kyle threw down his cigarette and crushed it with the heel of his shoe. It was time to earn his fifty bucks and he wasn't going to let anything get in the way of that. He patted his back pocket tp make sure he had his camera for the proof.
“Oh come now. Why do you have to always be so mean to me? Is it cause you really want me?” He said smoothly. He roughly grabbed her arm and whirled her around to face him. She could fell the bruise already forming.
“Go fuck yourself Kyle. You know I‘m with Max.” She began to yank her arm away, but he held her firmly in place.
“Why hasn’t he been in school lately?” He smirked. "Fuckin' another chick?"
She jerked out of his grasp. “None of your damn business.” She spat out.
“Well, my good old dad was at the hospital questioning a victim of a robbery. Guess what he heard. Maxie boy finally went crazy and tried to kill himself.”
Before he knew it, he was on the ground, his left eye aching like hell.
“You never cease to amaze me at how much of an ass you really can be.” She said in a calm, firm voice as she towered over him, shaking her throbbing hand.
"You fucking bitch!!" He jumped up grabbing her around the waist.
"Let go of me!!" She squirmed to get away. She grabbed his hand and bit him.
"Ahhhh!! You stupid bitch." He picked her up and threw her over his shoulder, kicking and screaming.
"Liz!?!" Alex and Maria called in unison from across the parking lot. "Maria, go get the principal." He ordered before taking off in Liz's direction.
"Let her go." Alex growled. He didn't want to hit him and risk hurting Liz in the process.
Kyle smirked as he stared at the lanky in front of him. He drew his fist back and Liz took that opportunity and pinched the underside of his arm until he howled in pain.
He dropped her gripped his arm with a scowl.
"What would your friends think when they heard you got beat up by a girl and the computer geek?" Alex said before he punched Kyle in the nose, knocking him down.
"Liz!!" Maria called as she ran over to them, with Mr. Samuels behind her. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah. I'm fine." She stood and brushed off her clothes.
"Hey!! Break it up!!" Mr. Samuels shouted as he pulled Alex off of Kyle. "What happened?" He asked
"Kyle was harassing me." Liz said, gesturing to the boy who was struggling to stand.
Mr. Samuels moved over to Kyle and helped him to stand. "Is this the first time?"
"No. It's been going on ever since I moved here." She explained, rubbing the bruise forming on her arm.
"I need you all in my office. Now!" He grabbed Kyle by the arm and headed inside of the school.
*******************
The little boy hurried through the maze of mirrors as fast as he could. He bumped and banged on the glass, desperately trying to find his way out. He had to find his daddy. He had to find Izzy. They would help him. She was after him and they would help him.
He stumbled backwards as he slammed into another image of himself.
"Daddy!! Isabel!!" He called out as he pounded on the mirrors around him. The maze's dull blue light flickered and he froze when he saw Isabel's face in the mirrors around him. She motioned for him to come forward.
He took a step forward, but slammed into a mirror. "Help me Iz. She's after me. She wants to hurt me." He cried helplessly, spinning around trying to find his way to her. The light flickered again before they cut off completely.
"IZ!!! Isabel?!?" He shouted in panic, as he waved his arms franticly in the darkness, as if that would help him find his way out.
"It's your fault." A menacing voice whispered around him in the darkness. "She can't help you. You killed her."
His eyes widened in fear as the lights flicked back on and the owner of the voice appeared around him. She reached out to grab him, but he stumbled backwards into a mirror. It fell back, crashing into the one behind it, causing a domino effect. A bright light burst into the maze once the last mirror fell. He jumped up, running towards the light as quickly as his legs could carry him. But it seemed as if the harder he pumped his legs, the slower he went. He felt as if he were running against a strong wind. But whatever it was, it seemed to have no affect on her, because he could hear her footsteps quickly gaining on him.
Soon he fell to his knees, exshausted. "No. Stay away from me!!" He shouted as she came closer.
"No can do Maxie. You have to get what you deserve." She cooed. She reached out for him and he closed his eyes tight, not wanting to see what she was going to do to him.
He waited.
He could just image how much fury burned in her eyes. How much hate and bitterness she had towards him.
He waited.
But nothing happened.
He opened his eyes and found that she was gone. The light shimmered away and suddenly he was at his old house, sitting on the front lawn.
He looked at the blue house with the red shudders. A chill ran through him until he spotted Isabel standing on the porch, motioning him forward.
He dashed towards her, his arms wide open. She smiled sweetly, her eyes sparkling with love, her blond hair blowing in the gentle breeze.
"Iz, I've missed you so much." He said as he crushed her into a tight embrace.
"Max." She gasped before she slumped in his arms.
"Iz?!?" He gently laid her on the porch. Blood trickled from scrapes and deep gashes that appeared on her body. "Isabel!?! Don't leave me!! Not again!!" He cried. He hugged her limp body close, his tears mixing with her blood. "Don't leave me. Don't go. Please...."
He heard the crack of her bones and the snap of her neck. Blood seeped from her mouth as her head turned at an odd angle.
Her blood continued to flow out of her body until she disappeared completely, vanishing right before his eyes.
"No, no, no, no." He chanted, banging his fist into the ground.
"See Maxie. You killed her. It's your fault. You get what you deserve." A voice sounded behind him. He felt cold hands clasped around his neck.
"Noooooooooo!!!!"
************
Max jerked up in bed, right into a pair of warm inviting arms. His chest rose and fell with his labored breathing. He hadn't open his eyes yet, afraid of what he might find, afraid he was still in his nightmare and these warm arms weren't real.
Swallowing down the vomit that rose in his throat, he buried his face in silky, vanilla scented hair. A soft hand stroked his hair and a soft voice whispered soothingly in his ear.
He slowly opened his eyes. He was still at the hospital. These warm arms were real.
"You're safe now. It's okay." Liz soothed while she held his trembling form.
"You wanna tell me about it?" She asked softly.
"I can't." He whispered on the verge of tears.
"Why not?" She pulled back, wiping the sweat off his forehead.
"You wouldn't understand." He said. "No one would."
She cupped his face in her hands. "You assume that no one would understand. You don't know that for sure."
He adverted his eyes, staring hard at the white sheets clutched in his fist. "I don't think I can. It hurts too much." He said quietly.
"Max I know it's hard to talk about something like this, but you can't keep going on like you are." He turned away from her, refusing to let her see his tears.
"I can't."
She sighed and shifted so that she was sitting right in front of him on the bed. "What are you afraid of?" He refused to meet her eyes as his tears began to fall.
He wiped his eyes. "I-I'm...uh I'm afraid that I'll be more alone than I am already after I tell you. And I'll lose you."
She placed her finger under his chin and brought his eyes to hers. "Max, you're not alone and you aren't gonna lose me. Don't ever think that. I'll always be here for you and whether you like it or not, you're stuck with me, because I'm not leaving you alone." She said. "So, whenever you're ready to talk, I'll be here. Anytime, any day."
He nodded and she leaned forward to give him a quick kiss on his lips.
Max panicked as Liz started to get up. He didn't want her to leave. Not yet. He needed her here, even though it was wrong. His hand shot out and grabbed her wrist before she could get to far from him.
Liz stared at him in surprise. He was still staring at the sheets, but he held onto her wrist tightly as if he needed to hold on to her.
He took a deep breath. He slowly brought his eyes to hers.
“I-Isabel was my step-sister." He said suddenly, making Liz jump with the sudden intrusion to the silence. She resumed her former position and waited for him to continue. "I used to live in Albuquerque with my dad, Hank. She was eight years older than me, but she was my best friend. I could tell her anything and she just knew what to say. She never hesitated to put me in my place either. She was actually a taller version of Maria." He shook his head solemly. "I miss her so much sometimes that it hurts.” He adverted his eyes. “I was six and she was fourteen when she died. It’s my fault she’s gone. She was pissed at me because I read her diary.” He let out a bitter laugh. “It’s funny how something so simple could screw up your whole life. We didn’t speak for three days. Those three days were hell for me. I couldn’t stand her hating me. I went to her and I meant to apologize, but we got into another argument.” He stopped to take a deep breath. He clutched the sheets tighter in his fists and shut his eyes, trying to keep the tears from falling, but they fell anyway.
He was reliving that day. The day that his life went to hell. “She was so angry. I had never seen her like that before.” He sobbed. “She.....She left to go for a walk, to let off some steam. I watched as she walked out into the street. There was a car coming......" He stopped his sobs overtaking him.
Liz pulled him into an embrace, blinking rapidly to keep her own tears from falling.
"I-I could've helped her. I-I could've warned her, b-but I just stood there. S-She was supposed to come back. S-She was supposed to come home. S-She left me alone. I-I never wanted her to die. It was my fault.” He mumbled against her.
“It wasn’t your fault.” She whispered to him.
Max went rigid against her and abruptly sat up. “Damn it, yes it was!! She told me it was!! S-She said that it was my fault that
Isabel is dead! It was my fault that we were no longer a family. I fucked up my whole family!!”
“Max calm down. You didn’t kill your sister. It wasn’t your fault.”
“I just stood there and watched her die!! I should be dead instead of her!!” He yelled hysterically, his arms waving around him. He didn’t bother to hide his tears. It was no use anyway. “Why am I living, when she’s dead?!? It’s not fair!!”
She pulled him back to her, pressing gently on his head until it rested on her shoulder. "Calm down. It's not your fault. You had nothing to do with her death. You had no control over what happened."
"I-I could've helped her. But I just stood there, watching her die. Why couldn't it be me instead of her?" He cried against her shoulder.
"Shhhh. It's okay. Relax." She soothed, alternating between rubbing his back and stroking his hair. "You couldn't do anything about it Max. What happened, happened and you were not responsible for it."
He nodded, even though he didn't believe one word she said. If it wasn't his fault, then why was he in so much pain? Why was he so alone? Why couldn't he get a full night's sleep without waking up screaming from a nightmare?
He buried his face deeper into the crook of her neck as if it would just make everything okay. As if she would undo all of his wrongs and heal all of his scars. Physically and mentally.
But that was impossible. Because he was never goning to be okay. He'd told Liz half of his story and somehow he managed to fell worse. Because regardless of who he told or how many times he told it, it wasn't going to change what happened.
He was still a screw up.
Liz pulled back after Max's cries began to waver. "Are you okay? Do you want anything?"
"N-No. I'm f-fine." He said, resting his forehead on her shoulder.
She nodded. "Um....what happened to your father?" She asked hesitantly.
He shook his head in shame. "I don't want to talk about this anymore."
She nodded again. At least he told her something. "Max, you should get some rest." She said. But he made no effort to move. Liz's presense and sweet scent calmed him and he wanted to bask in her for as long as he could. "Dr. Mason said that you could leave Thursday. Maria wants you to stay with her. She's at home fixing up the guest room for you."
"I'll be fine at my own apartment." He said.
"Max, we're trying to prevent this," She took hold of his left hand a held up his bandaged wrist. "from happening again."
He sat up. "I'm not a charity case."
"No one said you were." She said, wiping his tears away. "We're just trying to help you."
He rubbed at his temples, desperately needing a drink so he wouldn't have to deal with this. "That won't help me. Nothing will."
"Were you seriously thinking that we would let you go back to your own apartment alone?" He layed down, shutting his eyes. "You may not like it Max, but I'm not coming this close to losing you again." He opened his eyes and cringed when he saw the tears gathering in her eyes. "You may hate us for it Max, but I can live with that as long as you're alive." She cried.
"Liz," He held out his arms to her and she was quick to react. She laid next to him, resting her head on his chest. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."
Max wrapped his arms around her and laid his cheek on the top of her head. He could feel her tears soaking through his hospital gown and it broke his heart to know that he had caused them. He placed a feather light kiss at the top of her head, but stop all movement when she whispered "I love you."
Max felt tears prick his eyes.
It was bittersweet.
It warmed the ice wall he'd built around his heart that someone could actually feel that way about him. No one had ever said that to him, except Isabel. But because she did, he'd hurt her in the most possible way.
It scared him. He was told that no one could ever feel that way about him. He was told that he would always be alone, and he believed that.
So to save himself from a lot of pain, he convinced himself that she hadn't said a thing. Because it wasn't possible. She couldn't really feel that way about him. Not someone as beautiful and caring as Liz. She could never feel that way about him.
He rubbed her arm, but stopped when he heard her hiss and he ran his fingers just above her elbow.
"Liz?"
"It's nothing Max. I'll tell you later." She said. She didn't want to get him all worked up right now. She'd wait until Thursday.
**************
Thursday
Max stood in the middle of his new room. He looked at the beaded curtains and colorful bedspread. He shook his head in disgust. This was definitely Maria's doing. He sat his bags on dresser next to the bright orange bean bag chair. At least he had his own bathroom.
There was a knock at the door and he turned to see Maria poking her head into the room. "Max, dinner's ready. Liz and Alex are staying too."
"I'm not really hungry."
She stepped fully into the room, placing her hands on her hips. "Max look at yourself. You're a walking skeleton. We need to fatten you up chico."
He sighed and slumped down on the bed. "Maria, I appreciate your concern, but I'm fine." She raised her eyebrows in qestion. "Really." He said
She closed the door and sat next to him. She turned to him, her eyes serious. "Is it her cooking? I mean, my mom's no Marta Stewart, but it's not bad enough to swear off eating."
"No. I love your mom's cooking." He chuckled, only half serious.
She stood and walked to the door. "Okay then, let's go." She sighed when he made no move to get up. "Max what's the problem?"
"Nothing. I'm just not hungry."
"Bullshit! You haven't eaten all week! And I'm not gonna sit by and just watch you waste away!" She shouted, surprising Max by the intensity in her voice.
"Maria I don't need the mother mode right now." He said tiredly.
"Too damn bad, because you're gonna get it. I don't understand why you can't get it through your head that of yours that you have people around you that want to help you and love you. Do you even realize how much you're hurting everyone around you? Max, what you did was so selfish. I know you're hurt and I know it's hard, but did you even stop to think about any of us? I walked into your apartment that day and found you just....God. I can't even think about it."
Max bowed his head in shame, because he knew exactly how she felt. And he would never want to put his worst enemy through what he's been through, let alone his best friend.
"I'm sorry." He said quietly.
Her eyes softened and she moved to sit next to him. "Max, I know you don't want to be here, and I know you think I'm being a mother hen, but I'm just trying to protect you. I love you and I just want you to be happy and marry Liz and have twelve kids and name the first girl after me." She said very seriously.
He smiled. "That's a nice fantasy but it'll never happen."
She took his hand and pulled him to his feet. "What did I tell you about putting yourself down like that? Stop looking for the negatives in every situation. It's obvious that Liz is crazy about, so why couldn't that happen?"
"Can we talk about this later?"
She sighed "Only if you eat dinner." He quickly nodded and she lead him out of the room.
"Hey Max, I brought your jeep over." Alex said as Max walked into the kitchen. He handed him his keys and the moved into the kitchen.
"Thanks Alex." He sat next to Liz at the table. She leaned over and gave him a quick peck on his lips.
"How are you feeling?" She asked softly.
"Fine." He said simply.
"Okay kids." Ms.DeLuca said as she brought out a steaming bowl to the table. "Eat up!" She said cheerfully.
They all peeked into the bowl and groaned with disgust.
"Um...mom? Can we order a pizza?"
***********
After dinner Max retreated back to his room. Liz just finished telling him about what happened with Kyle. She said that Kyle has gotten expelled from school and that she and her father are pressing charges against him for sexual harassment.
Max felt awful. He felt like somehow this was his fault. He knew this would happen. Everyone he cared about always got hurt. He was a jinx to the people around him.
He walked passed the bed and into the bathroom and flicked on the light. He was surprised to find that Maria hadn't worked her decorating magic here. He walked over to the mirror and stared at his pale features.
Maria was right, he had lost some weight. His facial features were more jagged and the dark circles under his eyes had gotten bigger. But as horrible as he looked, he deserved it.
He splashed some cool water on his heated face. He turned out the light and collapsed onto the bed.
So here he was. Back to pretending. Back to feeling all the fear, the pain, the rejection, and the loneliness. He wondered how he could feel so alone while he was surounded by so many people.
His stomach twisted into knots as that image of Isabel from his nightmare unwillingly flashed across his mind. He'd done that to her. He could've saved her. But he didn't. He let her die.
He rolled over on his stomach and buried his face into the pillow. He felt his first tear drop. And then another, and another, leaving hot trails as they slowly rolled down his cheek. He watched as they fell then vanished somewhere in between the pillows. How he longed to vanish, to just disappear. To make all of his pain stop.
His tears were falling faster now, blurring his vision. He didn't dare to close his eyes, for fear of seeing her face and that horrid image of Isabel. He hugged his pillow close and bit down on the edge of it to keep from crying out. Liz, Maria and Alex were still in the other room and he didn't want them to hear.
Through his sobs, he didn't hear the soft knock at the door. And he didn't see Liz walk into the room.
She sat beside him and rubbed his back. She leaned down and rested her head on his back, wrapping her arms around him. Max made no move to stop her. He didn't know whether it was right for her to be holding him. He didn't know how he was supposed to feel about it. He didn't know whether to be outraged that she would just barge into his room without his knowing or to be happy that she actually cared enough to soothe him.
More tears began to fall. It was the only thing he could do to keep from going crazy.
"Shhhh. It's okay. You're okay." She whispered in his ear.
But it wasn't okay. He wasn't okay. Far from it. He would never be okay. So maybe this was his own personal hell. His life was complete torture. And there was no way out. No shortcuts. No blinking exit signs. No cheat sheets. Everything just came at him at once. He could just feel every onuce of pain thrown his way and it just rushed at him. He wasn't sure if he could kept it in any more.
He needed to get away from all of this. Because he was tired of people trying to fix his screwed up life. Because he couldn't stand the fact that everyone he cared about was going to end up getting hurt because of him and it was better if they stayed away. Because he was supposed to be alone and he wasn't worth any of their time. Because he hadn't had any alcohol in three days and it was driving him crazy.
He needed that numbness it brought. He needed something to take this pain away. And that was the only thing that he knew to do.
Liz continued to soothe him until his cries eased and he relaxed under her. He'd cried himself to sleep. His deep, even breathing was music to her ears after hearing his choked sobs.
She eased her way away from him and began to take off his blue jean jacket. She lifted his arm and pulled the sleeve through. She stopped when he stirred and turned on his side, giving her easy access to his other arm. She folded his jacket up and set it on the dresser and took off his shoes. She pulled the sheets from underneath him and tucked him in.
She bent over and gave him a light kiss on his cheek. "Sweet dreams Max. I love you." She whispered in his ear. She walked to the door, giving him one last look before closing the door.
"What took you so long?" Alex asked from where he sat on the couch in the living room. "Where's Max. I thought you were gonna get him so that we could watch these stupid Brad Pitt movies."
Maria reached over from where she sat next to him and smacked him on the head. "They are certainly not stupid!! Brad Pitt happens to be a fine actor." She said. "A very very fine one indeed." She muttered, smiling to herself.
"Max is asleep. He...um wasn't feeling too good. So I stayed with him until he fell asleep." She explained as she plopped down in the recliner next to them and stared at the blue screen on the t.v.
"What do you mean he wasn't feeling good?" Maria asked suspiously.
Liz ran her hand through her long dark hair in frustration. "He was just upset." She sighed. "He told me who Isabel was while he was in the hospital. She was his step-sister. She was killed in an accident when he was six and I think someone blamed him for her death."
"Damn. That's harsh. Did he tell you anything else?" Alex asked.
Liz brought her knees to her chest, wrapping her arms around her legs. "No. We have to do something. It's slowly killing him and I wouldn't put it past him to try and hurt himself again."
***********
Max sprung up from his nightmare, his eyes wide, his breathing quick. He looked around at the strange, dark room in confusion. He threw back the covers and got out of bed.
"Fuck!!!" He muttered when he stubbed his toe against the nightstand.
He fell back on the bed and hissed as he rubbed his foot. He squinted his eyes in the darkest, when realization dawned on him. He was still at Maria's. He remembered Liz holding him as he cried himself to sleep. Her telling him that he was okay when he really wasn't.
He needed a drink and he needed one bad. He craved it and he was pretty sure he'd go insane if he didn't get any soon.
He had of get out of there.
He stood again, making sure to steer clear of the nightstand. He walked to the door and poked his head out. The rest of the house was dark. He could hear Maria's heavy breathing from the room next door. He quietly closed the door and hurried to find his shoes and jacket.
He franticly searched his pockets, looking for his keys.
He pulled them out and jumped out the window into the backyard. He ran around to the front of the house, jumped into the jeep and started the engine. He cringed when the it roared to life and he hoped to God it didn't wake Maria or Ms. De..Amy.
He quickly backed out of the driveway and headed down the street.
He drove, without having any real destination in mind. But he found himself turning off the highway and into the desert. He pulled his jeep in front of the cliff.
His safe haven. The only place where he felt free.
He jumped out of the jeep and reached underneath the backseat, pulling out a metal box with a key lock. He took his keys out of the ignition and unlocked the lock with a small silver key.
Inside were many bottles of whiskey and a couple of flasks. He took some bottles out, locked the box and started up the side of the cliff.
He moved to the edge and stared down at the rushing water below. He sat down, his legs dangling off the edge. He popped opened the first bottle and chugged it down and immediately felt the calm overtake him as polished off the rest of the bottle.
Relief washed over him as the numbness began to take effect after the third bottle. Everything seemed to slow down as his vision blurred, his eariler nightmare vanishing from his thoughts. Then he did the one thing that he hadn't done in a long time. So long that he'd forgotton how to do it and how it made him feel.
He laughed.
He opened his fourth bottle. His deep hearty laugh echoed around him. He found it funny at how pathetic and alone he felt. But that's the way it had to be, because it was best for everyone. He laughed, because for a second he was actually contemplating the thought that someone as beautiful and perfect as Liz Parker could ever love him, a drunken teenage screw up. He laughed, because he actually thought he could pretend to be happy for so many years and go on as normal. Just forget about the pain and heartache, and all of the wrongs he'd done. But he couldn't. He was horribly mistaken. He'd screwed up his life from the minute he was born.
Max Evans, a curse to everyone around him and the world. That should be his motto. And he bent over, clutching his stomach with laughter, his body swaying on the edge. His laughing ceased as he stared down at the water at the bottom of the 60ft drop. Would he really care if the wind just happened to blow a little harder at that exact moment and he "accidently" lost his grip and fell?
No.
He wouldn't care at all. He'd open his arms wide and close his eyes in bliss as he fell, the cool air blowing back his hair as he rushed to the water below. He'd whisper a soft goodbye just before the plunge. Goodbye to all the pain, the pretending, the loneliness, the regret, the guilt and the heartache.
In antipation, he scooted up a little farther until he was barely on the edge.
He waited.
He waited for that one small push. That one small gust of wind to push him over the edge.
But it never came.
Sighing in disappointment, he pushed himself back until he was a safe distance from the edge. He finished the rest of the fourth bottle and stumbled back down to the jeep. He threw the empty bottles into a bag in the back of the jeep, to be thrown away later. He hopped into the jeep and started the ignition.
A hour later he managed to get himself home without being pulled over for driving drunk. He pulled up into the DeLuca driveway and literally fell out of the jeep.
"To bad that didn't kill me." He muttered to himself. He stood and leaned against the jeep until his head stopped spinning and his double vision cleared a little. He staggered around the house to the backyard and through the guest room window, tripping over himself the whole way.
He kicked off his shoes and shrugged off his jacket. He moved to the bed and just let himself fall.
He was asleep before his head hit the pillow.
This became Max's nightly rountine for the next month. Every night he would go up on the cliff, bringing with him four bottles of whiskey. And every night he would sit on the edge and wait for that one small gust of wind to push him over the edge. Be it never came. But he kept going, because it was the only thing he had to hope for as his world slowly went downhill.
TBC......
Blame my muse. Thanks for the wonderful feedback. I really appreciate it. So enjoy! 
The next part should be longer. I hoped you enjoyed this part. I'll see you guys later 
I love "The Crush" and I just started reading "Two Weeks". Great job with both of them. 
