Thanks for being so patient with me and for the awesome nominations. Tabasco_RB ~ Hey, I dragged a bit but here you go.
_____________________________________________________________
Chapter 11
Pleasure Palace Motel – Room # 4
It must have been the fever that inflamed her delusion, at least that was what Liz was murmuring to herself. ‘It’s the fever.’ She thought to herself when her vision had become blurry and she could no longer see Michael looking down at her. All she could see was the purple ceiling that had become the splitting image of black blue sky from her dream before.
She was no longer in the comfort of Michael’s arms, but back in the quicksand with her head tilted back to grasp for the air she suddenly needed. She could feel the heaviness of the mud that was swallowing her little by little. The pastiness of its substance as it reached the level of her ear lobes. Hot tears started to stream down the sides of her face and into her ear, making a sudden buzzing noise echo in her ear underneath the trace of her name.
‘Liz.’ She heard a faint voice whisper.
But she was already chin deep in the quicksand that she couldn’t see who was calling her name. Letting out a last cry, a coughing cry, the type you force out when it’s tightening it’s hold around your throat and stops you from making a sound, after that…she finally admitted defeat. It wasn’t a thought proceeded by action, it was actually quiet opposite, her actions had vouched for her thoughts. Her arms and legs stopped struggling, the tears stopped flowing and her heart had returned to a normal pace, a pace that translated her sense to a perception that she was no longer in danger.
Then she saw his face.
Michael’s.
It was hard to tell whether if it was her delusion of him or the present him, both aligned perfectly, but point being that he was there, arm deep in mud as he struggled to pull her out.
‘Just let me go.’ She heard herself whimper, seeing Michael realize her defeat and then forcing himself to pull her up until she had fully surfaced from the depths of the quicksand and felt his athletic form fall on top of her after a tumble down a smoggy hill.
‘Liz.’ She heard him call out as she tried to regain her breath.
“Michael.” She mumbled when her vision had become blurry again, almost as if the smog covered her completely until she found herself staring up at the purple ceiling again and covered in the heat of Michael’s body.
Michael watched her attentively, nudging her when ever she would doze off, and even though her eyes would never fully close, he knew she was preoccupied somewhere in her thoughts by the sadden expression she was displaying. Feeling her temperature, he was relieved to see that the damp cool cloths on the forehead were actually stabilizing her fever and decided it was best to continuing doing so. “Wake up Liz.” Michael ordered softly as he tapped her cheek, getting a mumble from her before he climbed off her and rushed to the bathroom.
“Liz. You have to stay up.” Michael advised her, when he returned from the bathroom with a damp wash cloth, placing it over her forehead after he checked her temperature. “Liz.” He called out when he saw her eyes closed again and began tapping her cheek lightly again to get her drowsy eyes to open. “Liz.”
“Yeah. Yeah. I’m up.” Liz mumbled, forcing her heavy eyelids to stay open. Looking up, she noticing Michael watching her very worriedly before he returned to the bathroom to get another wash cloth, where she realized he was walking around bare foot and nearly bare ass if it wasn’t for the cover of his boxer briefs.
‘It was the fever.’ She coached herself as she shook off the bizarre feeling that was lingering in her mind.
“Good. Stay up. Talk to me.” Michael ordered from the bathroom, where he leaned back to see if she was up or not, but found her eyeing him instead and then turned her face the opposite direction when she realized he noticed her looking at him.
Quickly leaning forward again, he listened carefully to see if she would say anything, but she didn’t say a word. “Um, you gotta, um you gotta keep talking or you’re gonna fall asleep.” Michael advised her as he cleared his throat as he held the damp cloth in his hands.
“Uh, about what?” He heard Liz question with a bad attempt to holding back an embarrassed giggle.
“Anything.” He replied coming out of the bathroom and then froze when he saw her sitting up against the headboard, blushing and smiling with the sheets clutched to her chest to cover her as she flipped her hair to the side, exposing her smooth shoulder and thin bra strap.
“Okay.” Liz replied twiddling her thumbs nervously on the sheets’ polyester material as she looked around the brightly colorized room of pinks and purples. “Um, where are we?” Liz asked looking to him skeptically with her nose scrunched up.
“At the Pleasure Palace.” Michael answered nervously as he moved to his clothes that were spread out on the small round table, and just waved his hand over them to dry them.
“Oh.” Liz squeaked, taken by surprise when she heard the name, looking around even more nervously.
“Benson, Arizona.” Michael added as he hopped into his jeans and then slipped on his T-shirt before he sat down on the motel chair by the door and small round table to put on his socks.
“Benson?” Liz repeated in surprise but then nodded her head when she reminded herself of their situation. “What’s in Benson?” She asked curiously, quickly looking behind him to see another flash of lightning highlight the curtains and then returned her attention back to him for his answer.
“Besides cheap motels? Nothing.” Michael replied shaking his head as he shoved his foot inside his work boot.
“But why-”
“We’re going to Tucson.” Michael informed her as he tied his laces and then reached for his other boot.
“Tucson?” Liz repeated even more confused than before.
“Yeah, I figured we’d need a place to hang out for a little bit, until things die down, so maybe Laurie…my… so maybe she might help us.” Michael explained, finally looking up to her when he was done tying his shoes. The Laurie situation was a whole other subject he didn’t want to get into at the moment, not when he was just as confused about it himself.
“Are we going now?” Liz asked holding the middle of the sheets as she swung her legs over, placing her toes on the ground.
“No. No. We’re not.” Michael stopped her, trying to keep his sights on anything other than the smoothness of her bare legs. “There’s a store down the road, I was gonna get you something.”
“Okay, we’ll just let me put my clothes on.” Liz trailed off as she got off fully from the bed, wrapping the sheets around her before reaching for her shirt and realizing it was still damp.
“I don’t think you should be going anywhere, I mean you don’t look too hot right now.” Michael advised, arching his eyebrow to express his concern.
“Thanks.” Liz replied sarcastically and then handed her shirt to him insinuating for him to dry her clothes as he did his. “Besides Michael, you guys have never been sick before, so how do you know what to get me?” Liz asked with a wise smirk.
By reasons of either her being right or her standing right in front of him with the mental notion that she before him in nothing other underwear underneath the veil of the thin sheets, he was unable to come up with a response. Shaking the erotic idea out of his head, Michael straightened his back and took her jeans that she was handing to him and then turned to an angle. Just as he did with his, he waved his hand over the clothes, drying them completely, while Liz watched admirably as she tried to hold back her coughs.
He couldn’t help but think how casual it had become to use his powers in front of her, almost freeing. It was always one of his fears that head have to live a two lives, one as a good, well “normal” human citizen and the other as a undercover alien, frankly it was exhausting.
Once the last layer had been dry, Michael watched as Liz stood up from the end of the bed and took the clothes from his hands, discretely brushing her thumb on the back of his hand before she tossed the clothes on the bed and turned to face him again.
Straightening up in his chair, he watched as she stood before him, with the sheets draped loosely at the sides of her shoulders and rosy cheeks that sent a panic chill down his spine as she looked down to him. Clearing his throat, he nervously shifted his sight to her and to different areas of the room, until she dropped the sheets and stood before him in her bra and panties. Looking from the corner of his eye, he watched as he hugged herself for warmth before leaning over and placing a prolonged kiss on the corner of his mouth.
</center>