The Fate of Destiny Part 76
Kyle laid back in bed. He just wanted oblivion and Isabel had the light on so she could read one of her law journals. He sighed and rolled onto his side. Isabel quirked up an eyebrow. "What's wrong?"
"Alex didn't eat dinner and his light was off when I came in. He okay?"
"He broke up with Lynette. I think it's really bothering him. When he cools off I'll talk to him." She turned a page and proceeded to highlight a section with her finger. "Did your mom stop by again?"
"What gives her the right?" He sat up. "She just came back and has dinner with us once and feels free to stop in at the station whenever she feels like it."
"She did?" Isabel put the journal aside and slid into bed. After a moment, he slid back into bed. A flick of her finger turned off the lamp. "You want to talk about it?"
"No. She's just trying too hard and it keeps pissing me off. I still don't know why she's here." Kyle let Isabel stroke his temples. "I mean… the reason Dad gave me when I was old enough was that she had met someone. I accepted that. I figured my dad couldn't stand playing second fiddle. I know how it feels I could understand that. When I found out about Maria… it just didn't make sense anymore. If Mom could forgive Dad for his indiscretions, then surely he could forgive hers… right? My whole life has been a series of facts changing facts. My life is hell. My life is hell because Mom left. My life is hell because Mom left and Dad is the Sheriff. My life is hell because my girlfriend is acting weird and falling in love with some guy. My life is hell because my girlfriend is acting weird because she left me for an alien. My life is hell because I was saved by that alien. My life is hell because I'm in love with an alien. My life is hell because there are children. My parents aren't what I thought they were. My family isn't what I thought it was. My life is hell because my brother-in-law is a selfish jerk. My life is hell because the facts keep changing on me."
Kyle turned to look at his wife… and she was snoring… just a little. "And my wife can't stay awake long enough to listen to me vent." Eyes on the ceiling. "Tell me, Buddha, tell me what I've done so wrong to deserve the weight."
--
Michael rubbed Oriel's back but she didn't seem to be getting to sleep any better than he was. He was past angry now. He was downright scared. Everyone told him the same thing. She'd be home by morning. She'd be home any minute. She's just blowing off steam. Kyle had promised he would go looking for her but he had never called. If something happened to Emily, he'd never forgive himself. The light darkened, then lightened and then the phone rang.
"Hello?" A raspiness filled his voice so that he barely recognized it as his own.
"Hey Michael… sorry I didn't go out looking for Em last night. I was all stressed but she's okay."
"You found her?" Michael perked up.
"Yeah. I don't know when she got here but she's asleep right now." Kyle cleared his throat. "She looks pretty bad, like she hasn't bathed in a while… she's been crying."
"Shit." Michael drew a hand over his face.
"I'll get her to school and talk to her. Maybe she'll go home tonight."
"No, I should go get her."
"No, Michael. I will talk to her. I will take her to school. Maybe she'll go home tonight. Being in the same room with you will not do either of you good. I'm your friend, I know you. It's going to be fine. I will talk to her."
"But—"
"No. That Guerin blood is volatile, not to mention whatever temper she inherited from her mother. You are not to come over here until I invite you. I will do my best to see that she goes home on her own tonight."
"Alright… just… keep me posted."
"I will." Kyle took a deep breath. "Just relax, man. Relax and try not to be angry when she goes home."
--
Kyle had just hung up the phone with a groggy Soltero when Alex wandered into the kitchen. "Go bring her in. We'll all have breakfast together."
"What?" Alex turned to his father and blinked.
"Emily. I know she's here. Don't sneak food to her. Let her come in here. I want to talk to her." Kyle poured himself a cup of coffee and took a seat at the table. After a moment, the house was too quiet. "Berty! Kyle! Let's put a move on!"
"Uncle Kyle?" Emily poked her head into the kitchen.
"Your dad has been worried sick about you. He stayed up last night worried that you might be in a ditch somewhere and here you are in my house and I didn't even know it." Kyle motioned for her to take a seat. "I called him. He knows you're okay."
"Is he coming for me?"
"No. Just… get cleaned up and I'll take you to school with Alex. If you wanna talk, we can do that after school but right now… you really need to go get ready."
"Okay."
"Em?" Kyle stopped her for a moment. "Your dad loves you, you know that, right?" She nodded. "Can I ask?"
"No."
--
It was a tense Evans kitchen that received the family matriarch. Diane looked to her son, who just kept on pouring out pancakes. He had come home to an upset Liz, then proceeded to have another Talk with his son. He was really running out of things to tell the boy. "Morning Ma, hungry?"
"No thank you, sweetie. Coffee?"
"In the pot." Max called over his shoulder has he added the pancakes to a stack next to the stove. The plate found its way in front of Bethany. "Let's go, sweetie. Mom's running late and I'm taking you to school before my shift."
"Max, honey, I could take her." Diane sat with her coffee.
"It's on my way." He flashed her a smile. "You and Davey can have all the fun you want today." Another plate fell under his son's chin none too gently. "What did you have planned for today?"
"I thought we'd go to the park for a while. What do you think?" Diane wiped a drop of syrup from the little boy's chin.
"I like the swings, Gramma." Davey grinned.
Liz raced through the room with one shoe and one earring. "Max, could you pour me a cup of coffee?"
"And a couple of pancakes." Max nodded.
"No, I don't have time." She shook her head and left in search of her other shoe and earring. When she reemerged, a forkful of pancake was shoved into her mouth.
"Eat the pancakes and then you get your coffee." Max told her and placed a plate in her hands. "Slow down."
"Sweetie, I'm really late." Liz mumbled around her mouthful.
"No talking with your mouth full, Mom." Bethany chided.
Liz tilted her head at her daughter, then at her husband. "Where's my favorite daughter?"
"Hogging the bathroom." Max nodded his head to the stairs. "Mom, thank you for taking Davey for the next couple of weeks. I really appreciate it. Are you sure you don't want some of my pancakes?"
"I'm fine, sweetie." Diane sipped her coffee slowly.
"Thanks again, Mom. He's been agitated at the day care." Liz nodded to her plate and forced herself to take another bite. "Understandable, of course, but we're trying to get him back into the habit."
"That's okay. I want to spend more time with him." She reached over and ruffled his hair. Then she refused a plate of pancakes once more. "No. I'm fine."
"Kathleen! Come down and eat!" Max called up the stairs after a moment. "Okay, but the kids will tell you that you're missing out."
"Yeah, Gramma, Dad's pancakes are the best." Danny nodded and reached for the bottle of Tabasco sauce.
Liz sat with her plate and gave her son a pointed look. "I suggest you be silent this morning, young man." After a moment, she turned to her mother-in-law. "Was Max really that horrible when we dated in high school?"
"Define horrible." Diane responded, instantly picking up on the source of the tension. "The two of you put Philip and I through some worrisome hours in high school… after high school, during college…" She reached over to pinch Daniel's cheeks. "Do it all again to see that naked toushie running through my house again."
"Gramma." Danny whined and focused on clearing his plate.
"Do you remember when he went through that naked phase?" Diane laughed. Max stifled a chuckle and Liz nearly choked on her pancakes. "Oh dear, we just couldn't keep his clothes on him."
"Really?" Beth bounced in her seat and shot evil looks toward her big brother.
"I'm going to school." Danny put his plate in the sink and disappeared up the stairs. "Kathy! Let's go!"
"Did you see?" Diane raised an eyebrow as she set down her cup. "Humiliation is key to being the matriarch. Max, sweetie, how many times did I make you blush after you started seeing Liz that first time?"
"Too many to count." Max shook his head. "It got the garage clean, the yard done and your oil changed… bought the… feminine products for the house."
"Then how come you won't buy them for me?" Kathy reached up and kissed his cheek before stealing the Tabasco sauce from his hand. "You're a doctor, isn't it all just clinical?"
"It is not." Max shook his head. "I am a surgeon, not an OB-GYN. Eat your breakfast."
"Max was too old to go through a naked phase exactly." Diane continued to whisper to her daughter-in-law. "But we did have a problem with him and mirrors when he thought no one was looking. Come to think of it. I have pictures."
"Mom!" Max spun around, nearly spilling his own breakfast on the floor.
Beth grinned up at her mother. "This is almost as good as getting dirt on you from Grampa."
"I think that's enough for this morning." Liz pushed her plate across the table towards Max and rose from her seat. She hugged Diane and kissed her forehead. "Bye Mom, I have a meeting that I'm still late for. Thanks again for taking Davey. I really, really appreciate it."
"My pleasure. Have a good day." Diane squeezed her hand one last time. She watched Liz grab her bag, give Davey, Beth, Kathy and Max quick kisses. Liz called out her goodbye and shut the door behind her. Diane couldn't help but watch in amusement as Kathy finished her plate and took a couple of big bites from her mother's abandoned plate. She waved to the table then raced for the stairs as Danny yelled for her again. There was a thundering of footsteps when the two made it back down with their bags. Kathy raced back to the kitchen to distribute kisses and goodbyes and reminders that she was working that evening. Silence fell as the remaining Evans worked on breakfast.
"Daddy." Davey's voice caused Max to look up from his plate. The little boy was all sticky. "I done."
"I got him." Beth mumbled around her final mouthful.
Once the two little ones had disappeared to clean up, Diane pushed her coffee away. "So, what's going on?"
"Liz and Danny are having problems. Liz can't let go of her first baby… Danny's growing up." Max took a big swallow of coffee and began clearing what was left of the plates.
"I meant with you." Guilty expression, the only one she needed to see. "If I had been running late, I might not have noticed my husband was not dressed for work. Maybe I wouldn't have noticed the mark on that calendar over there. What's going on Max?"
"I'm taking a week and a half off." Max admitted. "But I can't run around after Davey or pick him up for a while… after my surgery."
"Surgery?" Diane's eyes went wide.
"It's not nearly as bad as you're thinking." Max picked at Liz's leftover pancakes before tossing them in the trash. "It's minor. There's no scalpel actually."
"Liz doesn't know."
"Not really." Max leaned on the counter with his coffee. "I'm having a vasectomy this afternoon. We had discussed it and she's been really busy at the school right now. The science fair is coming up and her mind is completely focused on that."
"Max…" Diane shook her head. "You can't just do something like this without telling her."
"It's what she wants." Max sank against the counter.
"What if something happens?"
"Nothing is going to happen. It's routine and I know the urologist that's performing the operation. It's over and done by the time the kids get out of school. I'm walking by the time I normally come home. With the girls at work, it's just the boys. Danny fends for himself anyway. I just have to look after Davey and have something for Liz when she gets home."
"I believe you're supposed to stay off your feet." Diane pointed out. She sipped on her coffee for a moment. "The reason I never had children of my own wasn't because I couldn't conceive. I just… couldn't ever carry past a certain point. My body went through so much when we were trying. The doctors told us that the older I got, the more dangerous it would be just to go through it all again. The hormones and the worry. Finally… after we had the two of you. Your father had a vasectomy so that we could focus on the two of you. I remember what it was like for him."
"I heal fast, Mom." Max reminded her. "I could probably run around the first day but I need to slow down myself. Focus a little. I'll be fine."
"Did you two really discuss this?"
"Well, yeah. She suggested it. I said no. She got mad at me. I did research. I showed her my research… and I'm having it done today."
"Why didn't you tell Liz that you had scheduled it?"
"Because… ultimately… it's my decision." He met her pointed look with one of his own. "It is my decision. If the decision is up to a woman for everything else… this specific thing is mine. It's my scrotum."
"Point taken." Diane backed down. "Beth isn't going to be late?"
Max looked at the clock and panicked. "Bethany! Let's go. We're late now."
--
The day flew by for Emily. She robotically did everything she was supposed to. She went to class, made up for missed work, she went to lunch and leaned on her boyfriend. She talked to Alex a little and he leant his ear willingly. He seemed a little quiet to her but when she asked, he just smiled and shook his head. After school, her feet took her to Oriel's office. Her apology was accepted with a hug and an offer for a ride home. She helped with dinner. She did her homework and waited for her father to come home and rake her over the coals… but he didn't. Michael came home and they ate in silence.
After dinner, Oriel claimed fatigue and Michael helped her up to bed but returned to help with the dishes. More silence. Emily had to suck it up and go first. "I'm sorry I just took off like that. I didn't mean to make you worry."
"I was worried." Michael admitted, his voice hoarse. "I drove around. I made calls. No one knew where you were. I was scared, Em."
"I'm sorry but you were ignoring me and I couldn't take it anymore. I had to get out and be by myself."
"I'm upset, Em. I'm still very upset and… I don't mean to ignore you but I don't want to say anything to you that I'm going to regret. This is hard for me, Em. Liz told me that… and… I heard her and I wanted to kill him but I could pretend it wasn't real."
"I'm sorry."
"I'm not ashamed of you or what you've done. I'm… scared. I don't want to lose my little girl. We've got another year and then you'll be getting ready to go to a real college…"
"If I were a boy, you'd be slapping me on the back and giving me condoms."
"Probably… but you're not. And as twisted as it sounds… I'm never going to do that. We're not that dysfunctional." Michael nudged her. "Your bike… you completely fixed it and I have nothing to work on until your birthday unless you want to start picking out colors and decals for it."
"My bike?"
--
Liz tried to rouse her sleeping husband but he wouldn't even roll over. He had already been in bed when she got home. At first she thought he was pretending to be asleep but after much prodding, she figured he'd had a hard day. Then she'd noticed that he was asleep on his side. When he was alone in bed, he sprawled across it on his stomach. When they were in bed together, he crowded her. Why in the world would he be on his side on the edge?
--
Kyle thanked Mr. Parker and took his coffee out to his cruiser. He shouldn't have been surprised to see his mother walking down the street. Frozen, he waited for her. Her blue eyes implored to him. "Sweetie, I never did anything to you."
"You didn't have to do anything." Kyle shook his head. "You didn't just divorce him. You divorced me too."
"Jimmy…"
"Kyle. It's Kyle and you left your child. That's what you did to me. I really don't care to see you." Kyle finally found the ability to climb into his cruiser and drive away. It bothered him. It did. The woman really had no clue what it was like for him to suddenly have her in his life once more. She was slowly forcing her way back in and it drove him crazy. There had to be reason but he didn't have the patience to let her get to it… and if his father knew anything, he wasn't sharing.
TBC
The Fate of Destiny Part 181E CC/UC ADULT 09/02/10 COMPLETE
Moderators: Anniepoo98, Itzstacie, truelovepooh, Erina, Forum Moderators
Part 77
The Fate of Destiny Part 77
Max leaned on a post in the high school gym. He felt dead on his feet but he promised Liz he'd come show support for all the hard work and long hours she put in to have it go off without a hitch. Ever since he had his surgery, he had felt a little more than off. His leave was half over and he still couldn't stand up straight for more than a few minutes at a time.
--
Michael put the phone back on the hook and winced when his stereo made an awful sound, the kids said it was music but he wasn't so sure. It was probably a bad idea but better the kids sit in his living room than somewhere else doing what he didn't want to think about. There were five of them and so long as they were in the living room, they weren't out getting into what he considered trouble. Hopefully pizza and coke would keep them home. Taking his seat next to Oriel, he rubbed her stomach and tried to tune out the noise. It wasn't a horrible way to spend a Friday evening.
"I'm gonna go." Alex announced.
"Where are you going?" Emily asked, concerned eyes on her cousin. He had been especially quiet in the last few days.
"Away. I'm a fifth and seventh wheel here. It's not my thing." He reached for his jacket but Michael put his foot on the jacket. "Michael."
"Nope." Michael shook his head. "You're all staying here until your parents call for you to go home. If you want a girl… I'm sure I can find someone's daughter or niece from work."
"No. No set-ups." Alex pleaded. "I'm a free agent for the first time in months. Leave me alone. Let me play the field on my own."
"Sit your scrawny ass down, Whitman." Michael ordered. "I know what I'm doing and you already had a say in what went on the pizza and if you don't eat those damn anchovies, I'll set you up for real."
"I like anchovies." The young man sat back down.
Oriel felt the need to change the subject. "So, what is this we're listening to?"
"Isn't it razor?" Jacobi reached for the case. "The lead singer, her mother is supposed to be this awesome singer from back when you guys listened to cool music."
Michael ripped the case out of his hand and looked it over. "I can't stand this electronica stuff."
"Electronica is to us, is what Metallica was to you." Emily threw an empty bottle to her father, guided carefully as not to strike her pregnant step-mother.
"Don't be so sure." Oriel interrupted. "I happen to be a jazz fanatic. There was next to nothing when I was kid and almost nil now. Every now and again a resurgence comes up but it's always… tainted by the pop trend at the time."
"Jazz, Metal and Electronica. That kid's going to be screwed up." Emily wrinkled her nose.
"The kid will just have a broad appreciation for music." Kathy cut her off. "It's not like with my parents. They have their favorites together and subtle branching off in either direction but it's mostly the same."
Michael wanted to forget that Max had been brought up but it would be fun to poke some fun at his former friend. "I remember we could gauge your dad by his music. Counting Crows were a sure sign that he was upset. Gomez meant he was getting ready to see Liz, or that she was already in the room. Moby was always a good time to ask a favor."
"I'm taking notes." Danny nodded and pointed to his sister. "Moby is prime sucker music." He turned to his girlfriend's father. "Thanks for the heads up. Dad still listens to all that same stuff."
"Well, he never was one for change." Michael spat the words out and proceeded to extract himself from the room. It left a dull silence in the room. Everyone was acquainted with Dad/Uncle Max/Mr. Evans' moods. They were also well aware of Dad/Uncle Michael/Mr. Guerin's opinions.
In an attempt to break up the tension, Kathy leapt to the rescue. "Jr…. who's that new guy working for your mom?"
"With, not for." Alex sighed. "It's uh… Lynette's cousin, Jesse Ramirez. He just moved back from New York. His mom is sick or something."
"Lynnette Trejo? Really, cool." Kathy nodded.
"No, Cervantes."
"You know, it really sucks that you broke up. Lynette was one of my few friends." Emily grumbled from under Daniel's arm.
"No." Kathy shook her head. "Your Lynette's aunt's name is Debra Hernandez. Her only aunt. Lynnette Trejo's mom's maiden name is Ramirez." When everyone looked at her, she shrugged. "She's a sophomore." Still received the stares. "Before my recent falling out with many, many people, I was in the loop. Okay? I knew this stuff."
"Now that we have that straightened out…" Danny sat up. "Let's go take a ride."
"No." Oriel shook her head and lowered her voice, which caused everyone to lean in to hear as she couldn't lean in herself. "Michael let everyone hang out here because he figured if you were in his living room where he could be sure you wouldn't be doing anything… it was better than if he didn't know where you were or what you were doing. That's also why he won't let anyone leave. When people start leaving…"
"Man." Emily slumped onto the floor. "And to think, I used to have the cool dad."
--
Liz watched Max trudge into the house and nearly collapse on the couch. "Max? What's wrong?"
"Tired."
She looked at him then climbed onto his lap. "Too tired for some fun?"
"Yes." His tone broke for no argument or even slight teasing. "I should just go to bed. Don't worry about making anything. My mom brought a spinach pasta thing the other day, it's in the freezer."
"Max?" Liz brushed his hair back. "Are you okay? Are you… sick?"
"Just tired." He didn't have the energy to move her or get up. "If I'm not up on my own in the morning, will you tell the kids to go without me?"
"Yeah." Liz felt his forehead but it felt normal. "Do you want me to get someone?"
"No." He barely shook his head. "Help me to bed. I'm just really tired."
"I hate to suggest it but if the government knew more than they let on, do you think they would know something?"
"Probably not. I doubt whoever gave the info could have anticipated something like this. I'm probably just sick. Least now, I can gripe with the rest of them." Max mustered what energy he could. He wasn't about to tell Liz that he was more than worried at this point. Initially, he had taken to sleep because it was the only useful thing to do at all. Then his lethargy hadn't lifted.
--
Kyle pushed the cart down the aisle while his father threw things in. It felt like old times. They hadn't done this in years. It also reminded him how it started.
["Okay, cereal. What kind do you like?" Jim Valenti rested his hand on his son's head. "Wheaties? Cocoa-Puffs?" Two aisles later… "Do we like pasta? Can we make pasta?"
"Dad, when is Mom coming home?" Jimmy stared up at his father. His wide blue eyes not missing an inch of his father's tired face. Jim smiled a little, his Jimmy was very short for his age. He was a mature nine but looked a young seven.
"Don't know." Jim lied. "I don't know."
"I want macaroni. I can make that by myself." Jimmy finally said. Seven boxes went into the cart.
Jim was looking over the frozen dinners when he realized his child was no longer by his side. The short boy had climbed a shelf to get a box of cookies. "James Kyle, get down." It happened again on the chip aisle. "James Kyle, put that down." By the time they had gotten to the last thing on the list, Jim was tired. His mouth could only eek out hard consonants. "Kyle!" It seemed like hours by the time they made it to the register. "Kyle, let's go. No flowers for Mommy. Not this time."]
"Hey Dad." Kyle called ahead.
"Whatcha need, son?" Jim ran his eyes down the health chart on a bag of pork skins and then on the health chart on a box of micro-pop pork skins.
"Why is Mom back?"
"She hasn't told you?"
"No… not that I gave her a chance." Kyle waited but they made it through three more aisles before he spoke again. "Why did she leave?"
"I told her to."
"Why?"
"She was pregnant with Dan Peterson's baby." Jim cleared his throat. "I’m not proud of it but pride had a lot to do with it."
"I have another secret sibling?"
"No. She miscarried after she left… but she never tried to come back. That's when I filed the divorce papers." Jim grabbed an assorted handful of Kool-aid packets and took a deep breath.
Kyle hung his head. "What's wrong with me, Dad?"
"Nothing."
"Then something is wrong with the people around me." His eyes stung with tears but they weren't going to fall at the grocery store. "I only had Maria for so long and then she was dying and suddenly my sister. If I had known, I might have treated her better. Mom, mystery baby. Tess. Everybody leaves me."
"Not me. Not Isabel." Jim reminded him softly.
"Alex is getting better, right? He was kinda down for a while."
"I was afraid you hadn't noticed."
"I'm a cop. I notice. I just… haven't been feeling worthy enough to give advice."
"I never did. You still turned out okay." Jim chucked him on the shoulder.
Kyle fell silent as he turned things over in his head. When his father wasn't looking, he put some things back on the shelves. It took him a long time to ask. "How much time does she have left?"
"Not much. That's not her hair. The chemo's been bad on her."
"She been talking to you?"
"She calls, I listen. Maybe you take an afternoon and listen to her." Jim shrugged and guided the basket to the meat counter. "Isabel wants to have that new lawyer and his family over this weekend. Barbeque."
"Okay… but I got the beat tomorrow."
"Never ends, son. Never ends." Clapped him on the back and leaned forward to talk to the butcher.
--
Danny jogged just as silently as Kathy. They had a bad feeling but there was nothing they could do about it. When their mother had told them to go ahead without their dad, something was wrong. They had barely seen him all week and he had been home. Kathy had been working but Danny had been spending a lot of time at home. Something wasn't right.
--
Liz sat on the bed with her papers, grading, adding from notations she made at the science fair… and Max slept soundly. Through David and Beth fighting over the last pop-tart to David's fit about a bath. To her relief, he at least seemed comfortable enough to sprawl across the bed like he always did. He had even sought her out for what she realized was the first time in days. His face was pressed against her thigh, his arm draped across her lap. Sleeping. Max had never been one to sleep late, even when tired. The longer he slept, the more worried she got. Maybe if she hadn't been so wrapped up at school, she would have realized sooner.
The more she thought about it, the worse a feeling she got. She reached for the phone.
--
"Speak." Michael frowned at the empty bottle of Tabasco sauce and hunted for a new one. "Hello?"
"Michael, it's me."
"Hey, what's going on?"
"It's Max. I'm worried."
"I don't want to hear it." He abandoned his hunt and knocked his fingers against the counter repeatedly.
"Something's wrong with him. I'm worried."
"What's wrong?"
"I don't know." She explained to him what had been going on and her growing guilt for not noticing sooner. "Michael, has this ever happened to you?"
"He's sleeping?"
"Going on 18 hours now."
"Seriously?" Michael didn't like the sound of that. It had a bad ring to it. "That doesn't sound good. I'll tell you what. I'll put aside my shit with Max just as long as it takes to see what's up… but if I find out it's because of the same shit… I'll kill him."
"With my blessing." Liz agreed.
--
Kyle was buttoning up his uniform when the doorbell rang. He could see Isabel out back with the grill so he saw to it himself. Grabbing his belt, he was adjusting his gun when he opened the door. "Hey cool. Dad! He's got a gun."
He winced. "Hi. Kyle Valenti. You must be Jesse Ramirez."
"Nice to meet you. This is Sebastian, my son and Irene, my mother." They shook hands and they were ushered into the house.
"Sorry, I can't join you but I'm needed down at the station." He led them through the house and out to the backyard. "Izzy."
"Hi!" Isabel turned with a bright smile. Kyle had seen that one many times. The I'm-smiling-this-big-because-you're-new-and-you-will-love-me-or-die smile. "Jesse, I see you've met my husband."
Kyle waited until the introductions to parents and available children were made. "I hate to run… but…"
"Nice meeting you, Kyle." Jesse reached his hand out again.
"You too." Kyle kissed his wife quickly.
"Be careful." Isabel whispered. "Save you a plate?"
"Oh, you better. Bye."
"Bye."
"Bye daddy." Kyle Jr. raced past with what could have been a frog in his hands.
Isabel grabbed him by the collar and inspected his find. "Very cute, sweetie but set it free and go wash up. Tell the other spawn to get out here as well."
--
Michael pulled Max into a sitting position and Max barely cracked his eyes open. Sydney flashed the light in his eyes. "How long has he been like this?"
"Like this? I don't know." Liz wrung her hands together. "He was lethargic yesterday. I don't understand."
"Do you think this could be a reaction to something?" Sydney took vitals and everything seemed sluggish.
"Well, I suppose most of the week he could have been like this. I've been busy."
"Busy?" Michael turned to her.
"Science fair. I… got caught up in it all."
"All week?" Sydney sighed. "Do you think the anesthesia had anything to do with this?"
"Anesthesia?" Liz shook her head and looked to Michael and back to Sydney. She was uncomfortable with the woman in her house but there was no other doctor they could trust. "Did he stick himself at work?"
"No… um… The vasectomy." Sydney looked at Liz. "Dr. Wellbeck performed the procedure. They gave him a local."
"He did what?" Michael rubbed at his forehead.
"I took a look at his chart before I came." Her eyes still on Liz. "Has he ever reacted like this before?"
"No. He's never had more than Excedrin. Tylenol is too much for him." She shut her eyes. "He never told me he was going to go through with it."
"We need to wake him up." Sydney reached into her bag and pulled out a prescriptive pad. "We need to flush what's left out of his system. I'll be back with some meds for him." She rose to her feet. "Wake him up, get some water in him… Tabasco? He probably hasn't eaten if he's been like this. He told me once about that whole thing."
Liz leaped into control. "Sugar-water and Tabasco… and keep him awake."
"Yes."
Michael shut the door after Sydney left. He slapped Max's cheeks lightly. "So, you finally cut him off… you could have done that without cutting his pecker off."
"God, you talk so much." Max murmured. "Did I really want to talk to you again?" Michael kept right on tapping Max's face. "Stop it. What are you doing here?"
"And we have a grumpy Max." Liz sighed. "I'll be back."
"What are you doing here?" Max tried to force his eyes open but they were barely slits, through which he looked his friend over.
"You are freaking out your wife and I'm here to help. I can't believe you did something so stupid without letting anyone know you were doing it."
"I told my mom."
"But Mom isn't here. Mom doesn't know you're sleeping your life away." Michael scooted Max back against the pillows. "Your little friend went to get you something to wash out whatever they gave you."
"I feel like crap."
"Well you look like shit."
"Michael…" Max pushed his eyes open as far as they would go. "I'm sorry."
"Tell me again later when you aren't about to slip away from your body on a permanent basis."
--
Jim threw more meat on the grill. "Jesse, how do you like your steak?"
"Well done." Jesse called over as his cellphone went off. He conversed briefly with the person and hung up. "Um, I hate to leave but could someone tell me where the Crashdown is?" He looked to his mother. "It's Lynnette."
"That Lynette Cervantes or Lynnette Trejo?" Alex spoke up.
"Trejo." Jesse answered and pulled out his keys to go.
"I got it. Sit down. Chat." Alex kissed his mother's cheek.
"I'm blocking you in." Jesse protested.
Alex reached for his keys. "Trust me with your car? I'll be there and back in ten minutes. Besides, she won't know me, just your car."
"Be careful with it." Jesse relented.
"Sweetie…" Isabel turned and she didn't even have to tell him. He nodded and backed off. "Just don't take too long."
"Be back in a flash." Alex winked at her.
TBC
77/105 and counting '-)
Max leaned on a post in the high school gym. He felt dead on his feet but he promised Liz he'd come show support for all the hard work and long hours she put in to have it go off without a hitch. Ever since he had his surgery, he had felt a little more than off. His leave was half over and he still couldn't stand up straight for more than a few minutes at a time.
--
Michael put the phone back on the hook and winced when his stereo made an awful sound, the kids said it was music but he wasn't so sure. It was probably a bad idea but better the kids sit in his living room than somewhere else doing what he didn't want to think about. There were five of them and so long as they were in the living room, they weren't out getting into what he considered trouble. Hopefully pizza and coke would keep them home. Taking his seat next to Oriel, he rubbed her stomach and tried to tune out the noise. It wasn't a horrible way to spend a Friday evening.
"I'm gonna go." Alex announced.
"Where are you going?" Emily asked, concerned eyes on her cousin. He had been especially quiet in the last few days.
"Away. I'm a fifth and seventh wheel here. It's not my thing." He reached for his jacket but Michael put his foot on the jacket. "Michael."
"Nope." Michael shook his head. "You're all staying here until your parents call for you to go home. If you want a girl… I'm sure I can find someone's daughter or niece from work."
"No. No set-ups." Alex pleaded. "I'm a free agent for the first time in months. Leave me alone. Let me play the field on my own."
"Sit your scrawny ass down, Whitman." Michael ordered. "I know what I'm doing and you already had a say in what went on the pizza and if you don't eat those damn anchovies, I'll set you up for real."
"I like anchovies." The young man sat back down.
Oriel felt the need to change the subject. "So, what is this we're listening to?"
"Isn't it razor?" Jacobi reached for the case. "The lead singer, her mother is supposed to be this awesome singer from back when you guys listened to cool music."
Michael ripped the case out of his hand and looked it over. "I can't stand this electronica stuff."
"Electronica is to us, is what Metallica was to you." Emily threw an empty bottle to her father, guided carefully as not to strike her pregnant step-mother.
"Don't be so sure." Oriel interrupted. "I happen to be a jazz fanatic. There was next to nothing when I was kid and almost nil now. Every now and again a resurgence comes up but it's always… tainted by the pop trend at the time."
"Jazz, Metal and Electronica. That kid's going to be screwed up." Emily wrinkled her nose.
"The kid will just have a broad appreciation for music." Kathy cut her off. "It's not like with my parents. They have their favorites together and subtle branching off in either direction but it's mostly the same."
Michael wanted to forget that Max had been brought up but it would be fun to poke some fun at his former friend. "I remember we could gauge your dad by his music. Counting Crows were a sure sign that he was upset. Gomez meant he was getting ready to see Liz, or that she was already in the room. Moby was always a good time to ask a favor."
"I'm taking notes." Danny nodded and pointed to his sister. "Moby is prime sucker music." He turned to his girlfriend's father. "Thanks for the heads up. Dad still listens to all that same stuff."
"Well, he never was one for change." Michael spat the words out and proceeded to extract himself from the room. It left a dull silence in the room. Everyone was acquainted with Dad/Uncle Max/Mr. Evans' moods. They were also well aware of Dad/Uncle Michael/Mr. Guerin's opinions.
In an attempt to break up the tension, Kathy leapt to the rescue. "Jr…. who's that new guy working for your mom?"
"With, not for." Alex sighed. "It's uh… Lynette's cousin, Jesse Ramirez. He just moved back from New York. His mom is sick or something."
"Lynnette Trejo? Really, cool." Kathy nodded.
"No, Cervantes."
"You know, it really sucks that you broke up. Lynette was one of my few friends." Emily grumbled from under Daniel's arm.
"No." Kathy shook her head. "Your Lynette's aunt's name is Debra Hernandez. Her only aunt. Lynnette Trejo's mom's maiden name is Ramirez." When everyone looked at her, she shrugged. "She's a sophomore." Still received the stares. "Before my recent falling out with many, many people, I was in the loop. Okay? I knew this stuff."
"Now that we have that straightened out…" Danny sat up. "Let's go take a ride."
"No." Oriel shook her head and lowered her voice, which caused everyone to lean in to hear as she couldn't lean in herself. "Michael let everyone hang out here because he figured if you were in his living room where he could be sure you wouldn't be doing anything… it was better than if he didn't know where you were or what you were doing. That's also why he won't let anyone leave. When people start leaving…"
"Man." Emily slumped onto the floor. "And to think, I used to have the cool dad."
--
Liz watched Max trudge into the house and nearly collapse on the couch. "Max? What's wrong?"
"Tired."
She looked at him then climbed onto his lap. "Too tired for some fun?"
"Yes." His tone broke for no argument or even slight teasing. "I should just go to bed. Don't worry about making anything. My mom brought a spinach pasta thing the other day, it's in the freezer."
"Max?" Liz brushed his hair back. "Are you okay? Are you… sick?"
"Just tired." He didn't have the energy to move her or get up. "If I'm not up on my own in the morning, will you tell the kids to go without me?"
"Yeah." Liz felt his forehead but it felt normal. "Do you want me to get someone?"
"No." He barely shook his head. "Help me to bed. I'm just really tired."
"I hate to suggest it but if the government knew more than they let on, do you think they would know something?"
"Probably not. I doubt whoever gave the info could have anticipated something like this. I'm probably just sick. Least now, I can gripe with the rest of them." Max mustered what energy he could. He wasn't about to tell Liz that he was more than worried at this point. Initially, he had taken to sleep because it was the only useful thing to do at all. Then his lethargy hadn't lifted.
--
Kyle pushed the cart down the aisle while his father threw things in. It felt like old times. They hadn't done this in years. It also reminded him how it started.
["Okay, cereal. What kind do you like?" Jim Valenti rested his hand on his son's head. "Wheaties? Cocoa-Puffs?" Two aisles later… "Do we like pasta? Can we make pasta?"
"Dad, when is Mom coming home?" Jimmy stared up at his father. His wide blue eyes not missing an inch of his father's tired face. Jim smiled a little, his Jimmy was very short for his age. He was a mature nine but looked a young seven.
"Don't know." Jim lied. "I don't know."
"I want macaroni. I can make that by myself." Jimmy finally said. Seven boxes went into the cart.
Jim was looking over the frozen dinners when he realized his child was no longer by his side. The short boy had climbed a shelf to get a box of cookies. "James Kyle, get down." It happened again on the chip aisle. "James Kyle, put that down." By the time they had gotten to the last thing on the list, Jim was tired. His mouth could only eek out hard consonants. "Kyle!" It seemed like hours by the time they made it to the register. "Kyle, let's go. No flowers for Mommy. Not this time."]
"Hey Dad." Kyle called ahead.
"Whatcha need, son?" Jim ran his eyes down the health chart on a bag of pork skins and then on the health chart on a box of micro-pop pork skins.
"Why is Mom back?"
"She hasn't told you?"
"No… not that I gave her a chance." Kyle waited but they made it through three more aisles before he spoke again. "Why did she leave?"
"I told her to."
"Why?"
"She was pregnant with Dan Peterson's baby." Jim cleared his throat. "I’m not proud of it but pride had a lot to do with it."
"I have another secret sibling?"
"No. She miscarried after she left… but she never tried to come back. That's when I filed the divorce papers." Jim grabbed an assorted handful of Kool-aid packets and took a deep breath.
Kyle hung his head. "What's wrong with me, Dad?"
"Nothing."
"Then something is wrong with the people around me." His eyes stung with tears but they weren't going to fall at the grocery store. "I only had Maria for so long and then she was dying and suddenly my sister. If I had known, I might have treated her better. Mom, mystery baby. Tess. Everybody leaves me."
"Not me. Not Isabel." Jim reminded him softly.
"Alex is getting better, right? He was kinda down for a while."
"I was afraid you hadn't noticed."
"I'm a cop. I notice. I just… haven't been feeling worthy enough to give advice."
"I never did. You still turned out okay." Jim chucked him on the shoulder.
Kyle fell silent as he turned things over in his head. When his father wasn't looking, he put some things back on the shelves. It took him a long time to ask. "How much time does she have left?"
"Not much. That's not her hair. The chemo's been bad on her."
"She been talking to you?"
"She calls, I listen. Maybe you take an afternoon and listen to her." Jim shrugged and guided the basket to the meat counter. "Isabel wants to have that new lawyer and his family over this weekend. Barbeque."
"Okay… but I got the beat tomorrow."
"Never ends, son. Never ends." Clapped him on the back and leaned forward to talk to the butcher.
--
Danny jogged just as silently as Kathy. They had a bad feeling but there was nothing they could do about it. When their mother had told them to go ahead without their dad, something was wrong. They had barely seen him all week and he had been home. Kathy had been working but Danny had been spending a lot of time at home. Something wasn't right.
--
Liz sat on the bed with her papers, grading, adding from notations she made at the science fair… and Max slept soundly. Through David and Beth fighting over the last pop-tart to David's fit about a bath. To her relief, he at least seemed comfortable enough to sprawl across the bed like he always did. He had even sought her out for what she realized was the first time in days. His face was pressed against her thigh, his arm draped across her lap. Sleeping. Max had never been one to sleep late, even when tired. The longer he slept, the more worried she got. Maybe if she hadn't been so wrapped up at school, she would have realized sooner.
The more she thought about it, the worse a feeling she got. She reached for the phone.
--
"Speak." Michael frowned at the empty bottle of Tabasco sauce and hunted for a new one. "Hello?"
"Michael, it's me."
"Hey, what's going on?"
"It's Max. I'm worried."
"I don't want to hear it." He abandoned his hunt and knocked his fingers against the counter repeatedly.
"Something's wrong with him. I'm worried."
"What's wrong?"
"I don't know." She explained to him what had been going on and her growing guilt for not noticing sooner. "Michael, has this ever happened to you?"
"He's sleeping?"
"Going on 18 hours now."
"Seriously?" Michael didn't like the sound of that. It had a bad ring to it. "That doesn't sound good. I'll tell you what. I'll put aside my shit with Max just as long as it takes to see what's up… but if I find out it's because of the same shit… I'll kill him."
"With my blessing." Liz agreed.
--
Kyle was buttoning up his uniform when the doorbell rang. He could see Isabel out back with the grill so he saw to it himself. Grabbing his belt, he was adjusting his gun when he opened the door. "Hey cool. Dad! He's got a gun."
He winced. "Hi. Kyle Valenti. You must be Jesse Ramirez."
"Nice to meet you. This is Sebastian, my son and Irene, my mother." They shook hands and they were ushered into the house.
"Sorry, I can't join you but I'm needed down at the station." He led them through the house and out to the backyard. "Izzy."
"Hi!" Isabel turned with a bright smile. Kyle had seen that one many times. The I'm-smiling-this-big-because-you're-new-and-you-will-love-me-or-die smile. "Jesse, I see you've met my husband."
Kyle waited until the introductions to parents and available children were made. "I hate to run… but…"
"Nice meeting you, Kyle." Jesse reached his hand out again.
"You too." Kyle kissed his wife quickly.
"Be careful." Isabel whispered. "Save you a plate?"
"Oh, you better. Bye."
"Bye."
"Bye daddy." Kyle Jr. raced past with what could have been a frog in his hands.
Isabel grabbed him by the collar and inspected his find. "Very cute, sweetie but set it free and go wash up. Tell the other spawn to get out here as well."
--
Michael pulled Max into a sitting position and Max barely cracked his eyes open. Sydney flashed the light in his eyes. "How long has he been like this?"
"Like this? I don't know." Liz wrung her hands together. "He was lethargic yesterday. I don't understand."
"Do you think this could be a reaction to something?" Sydney took vitals and everything seemed sluggish.
"Well, I suppose most of the week he could have been like this. I've been busy."
"Busy?" Michael turned to her.
"Science fair. I… got caught up in it all."
"All week?" Sydney sighed. "Do you think the anesthesia had anything to do with this?"
"Anesthesia?" Liz shook her head and looked to Michael and back to Sydney. She was uncomfortable with the woman in her house but there was no other doctor they could trust. "Did he stick himself at work?"
"No… um… The vasectomy." Sydney looked at Liz. "Dr. Wellbeck performed the procedure. They gave him a local."
"He did what?" Michael rubbed at his forehead.
"I took a look at his chart before I came." Her eyes still on Liz. "Has he ever reacted like this before?"
"No. He's never had more than Excedrin. Tylenol is too much for him." She shut her eyes. "He never told me he was going to go through with it."
"We need to wake him up." Sydney reached into her bag and pulled out a prescriptive pad. "We need to flush what's left out of his system. I'll be back with some meds for him." She rose to her feet. "Wake him up, get some water in him… Tabasco? He probably hasn't eaten if he's been like this. He told me once about that whole thing."
Liz leaped into control. "Sugar-water and Tabasco… and keep him awake."
"Yes."
Michael shut the door after Sydney left. He slapped Max's cheeks lightly. "So, you finally cut him off… you could have done that without cutting his pecker off."
"God, you talk so much." Max murmured. "Did I really want to talk to you again?" Michael kept right on tapping Max's face. "Stop it. What are you doing here?"
"And we have a grumpy Max." Liz sighed. "I'll be back."
"What are you doing here?" Max tried to force his eyes open but they were barely slits, through which he looked his friend over.
"You are freaking out your wife and I'm here to help. I can't believe you did something so stupid without letting anyone know you were doing it."
"I told my mom."
"But Mom isn't here. Mom doesn't know you're sleeping your life away." Michael scooted Max back against the pillows. "Your little friend went to get you something to wash out whatever they gave you."
"I feel like crap."
"Well you look like shit."
"Michael…" Max pushed his eyes open as far as they would go. "I'm sorry."
"Tell me again later when you aren't about to slip away from your body on a permanent basis."
--
Jim threw more meat on the grill. "Jesse, how do you like your steak?"
"Well done." Jesse called over as his cellphone went off. He conversed briefly with the person and hung up. "Um, I hate to leave but could someone tell me where the Crashdown is?" He looked to his mother. "It's Lynnette."
"That Lynette Cervantes or Lynnette Trejo?" Alex spoke up.
"Trejo." Jesse answered and pulled out his keys to go.
"I got it. Sit down. Chat." Alex kissed his mother's cheek.
"I'm blocking you in." Jesse protested.
Alex reached for his keys. "Trust me with your car? I'll be there and back in ten minutes. Besides, she won't know me, just your car."
"Be careful with it." Jesse relented.
"Sweetie…" Isabel turned and she didn't even have to tell him. He nodded and backed off. "Just don't take too long."
"Be back in a flash." Alex winked at her.
TBC
77/105 and counting '-)
Part 78
The Fate of Destiny Part 78
Michael hugged Liz while Sydney worked, she had managed to smuggle some equipment out and had Max hooked up to an IV. "Normally, a reaction to locals would be a seizure or arrhythmia. Now, he does seem to have a slight arrhythmia, which would account for fatigue and dizziness. It's not as slow as most would be, which is good. The fact it's lasted so long and is worsening worries me."
"Why is that?" Liz whispered.
"When Wellbeck administered the local, he may have accidentally hit a vein and injected a good portion into Max's bloodstream. Max's high-caffeine and nicotine lifestyle don't help any. If he stays like this, he could have a stroke or a heart attack." Sydney turned to them. "If the flush doesn't work… can one of you heal him?"
"I… I told Wellbeck to cut the dosage in half." Max whispered. "Did he?"
"No, I don't think so." Sydney shook her head and looked to Liz. "Essentially, the local anesthetic has blocked his mind from feeling sensation all over instead of just the groin area as it was intended. Accidents happen from time to time."
"It blocks on the neuron level." Liz nodded that she understood. "So, if the wash doesn't unclog his synapses… one of us will have to try and to dissolve them ourselves…"
"Right." She checked the bag and turned to them. "I have to get to my shift. This will keep him hydrated, take him to the bathroom often. If he gets worse, call me. I'll see what I can do. Keep him awake. Maybe if he forces himself to be a little more active… it couldn't hurt."
"I'm not invisible." Max complained.
"Of course not, sweetie." Liz smiled at him even though his eyes had shut.
"If I don't hear from you sooner, I'll check in after my shift." She assured them and ducked out of the room.
--
Alex pulled up to the Crashdown and was relieved to find that Kathy had been right about which Lynnette was actually related to Mr. Ramirez. The girl quickly approached the car but stopped short when she didn't recognize the driver. "Why are you driving my cuz's car?"
"He's at my house. Come on. I'll take you to him." Alex unlocked the door. "Unless you want me to take you home."
"No, it's cool." The curly-haired girl climbed in and punched a few buttons on the dash and the music blared out. "Now it's razor."
"Alright, then." Alex threw the car into gear and turned it around to head home.
--
Kyle sat down at his desk and fidgeted over the reports stacked there before pulling a slip of paper from his pocket. He fidgeted some more before he picked up the phone to dial. "Michele Valenti, please."
--
Danny stood in the doorway and watched with pain in his chest as his mother and Michael fussed over his father. Kathy stood just behind him, clutching his back, half afraid to look. They had gotten an abbreviated version of the events and were told to stay clear but neither of them could make themselves leave. Everyone once in a while, Dad would open his eyes and give them a small smile. Kathy couldn't stand it. "Mom, is Dad going to be okay?"
"Yeah." Liz nodded. "We'll just see what happens… if nothing. I'll try to do something for him. I… I don't know if I'll be able to."
--
Isabel set down the phone and turned to her father-in-law. "It's Max. He… should be fine but…"
"Want me to tell everyone to leave?" Jim made her look at him.
"No. It… is not normal and there's nothing I can do… because he should be fine. Um… Liz and Michael and Dr. Davis are doing all they can and I'd just be in the way if I went over there." She took a breath and shut her eyes. "My mom is bringing Beth and Davey over. We're keeping them until we're sure Max will be okay."
"Are you sure you're going to be okay to entertain?"
"It's what I do." Isabel waved a hand over her face to repair any damages.
"Are you sure?"
"If they need me, they'll call me." Isabel made her way outside once more to find her oldest son smiling for the first time in weeks. She leaned over the table and introduced herself. "We had a case of mistaken identity a while back. You're not the evil ex at all."
Lynnette laughed. "Yeah, the hazard of having the same name as an older girl is mistaken gossip."
"Mom, don't." Alex warned.
"Don't what? I was just talking to this pretty girl here. Pretty Girl, are you single?" Isabel leaned on her elbow.
"Mom."
"Isn't she precious?" Irene leaned over and pinched Lynnette's cheeks.
"Tía." Lynnette groaned and turned to Jesse. "Primo… help me out."
"No can do. Don't matter how old I get, she's still the boss." Jesse got up to help Jim out at the grill. "Too much estrogen over there."
"Could be Isabel. There's too much estrogen in this house and there are only two women… one of which is nine." He glanced over at the table before leaning toward Jesse. "Just wait til you know her longer. You'll find my daughter-in-law can be quite controlling."
"Controlling?"
"I'd say wait for Christmas but she'll rear her ugly head way before then."
--
Sydney gathered items into a box, referring to Max's chart and some notes she'd made. Wellbeck crossed his arms and refused to let her pass. "What the hell are you doing?"
"Fixing your mistakes." Sydney grabbed two more bags of saline and made to push him aside.
"What?"
"Dr. Evans told you to cut the dosage and you didn't. You gave him an arrhythmia."
"What?"
"Didn't he present while he was here?"
"No." He rubbed his forehead and thought it all over. "I didn't cut the dosage because there's no way he wasn't going to feel the forceps."
"Dr. Evans is allergic. He can't have much aspirin without presenting like he's taken three Tylenol-3's. Most of this was noted in his chart." She set her box down. "If Dr. Evans came to you, he trusted you to listen to his instructions. He's not fit to come to work. I'm going to recommend he stays home for a while."
"Davis, you can't just treat him at home."
"Well, he's not going to come back here if he can't trust his own doctors."
--
Max drifted in and out of consciousness as the wash did its work. At some point he knew Liz and Michael had stopped keeping the kids from the room.
[Books lay forgotten all over the foot of the bed, assignments half-completed, dirty clothes sat in a pile by the door. The trash can needed to be emptied of its smelly contents. A pile of clean baby clothes waited to be folded and put away. Liz was asleep on her side of the bed. Daniel and Max were the only ones awake in the house. Max kissed his son's little hands. This was one of the rare moments he'd gotten to spend with the baby since he was born.
At six weeks, the boy was growing strong. His little head turned to the sound of his parents' voices. Max's voice had taken a bit longer for him to recognize. He had begun cooing when happy. His hands beat against his bottle and Max wasn't about to take his eyes off him a second sooner than he had to.]
When he was more or less aware, he talked to his kids about their day.
[Max paced with the little girl in his arms but she wasn't going to let him rest. He had two weeks before school started again and he couldn't even use that to rest because Kathy had other plans. She wouldn't take to Liz and she screamed constantly unless he was holding her. Hell, she screamed just to get his attention. She was quiet now but the moment he set her down, she was going to scream until everyone in the house was awake. Occasionally he thought on how sad it was for such a small baby to have abandonment issues but mostly he was content to have her hold onto his little finger as hard as her tiny hands would allow.]
Night fell and he could feel Liz's body next to his. Her hand rested over his heart. Words whispered over him in prayer.
[It was a stolen moment. The radio played softly over the sink. The kids were down for their nap. Mom and Dad were drinking coffee over some papers in his home office. Max had gotten off early and relieved his wife of washing dishes for two dances. He felt as if he hadn't made love to her in a year. They hadn't really been alone in months. He had just ten minutes to be back at the hospital and he would gladly forgo a meal for just one more dance.]
[It was empty. No furniture. A modest house really. A living room and a sunken den divided by a staircase. Through the den was the entrance to the kitchen and the hallway to the downstairs master, maid's room and bathroom. Maid's room made for a good children's room until they could fix up the upstairs bedrooms. Three of them and a small bathroom. Max had made quick work of cleaning up the house that morning so he could properly bless the house with his wife before they were due to pick up their children. No rush. There was no rush now. This house was his… theirs… together, it was their house.]
Morning arrived with a fresh IV bag and more, while scant in dose, drugs. Beth had popped up with huge sad eyes. She had probably been told not to ask about the tube in her father's arm. She had sat under his arm until it was time to go somewhere. His mother's, his sister's… he couldn't even be sure where they had said.
[Max rocked in the chair next to the bed with his tiny daughter and a bottle freshly pumped. His curious eight-year-olds were perched on the bed watching their baby sister eat. Everyone was so quiet for Thanksgiving morning. The parade was on in the den but the only one getting ready to do anything was Liz. Her last words to him after handing the bottle over was that he was a baby hog. Smells wafted through the house. Everyone was sure to arrive soon to celebrate where the new baby was. Just a week old and about to meet her six-week-old cousin for the first time. At one point, he looked up to find he was all alone. The kids had gone to get ready. His mother was organizing things in the den and his father was arguing with the announcer of a pre-game.
He really was a sucker for the women in his family. Bethany had him occupied until the absolute last second. He'd barely been home since the delivery. He deserved time with his newest daughter.]
His first restful sleep in days came in the afternoon. He had been helped to the bathroom many times already and the chemicals were finally washing out.
[Kyle had been the dutiful mid-wife's aid as usual. As soon as Max was done with Liz, Max took the bundle from his friend. Kyle made some crack about adding his skills to his resume for a promotion but Max just waved it off. He crawled onto the bed with his tired wife to show her what they had made. He only allowed little baby boy out of his arms long enough to make the necessary calls. He had bit back a sob when he almost asked his mother to put his father on the phone. That was a habit. Bring a baby into the world and call his father. Three years didn't make a difference.
Outside the bedroom were 12, 11, and 3 year olds waiting to meet their little brother. Tomorrow he would take his boy in for his once-over and paperwork and it would be right back home. Not even Liz calling him a baby hog could bring him down.]
"Dad? You wanna open your eyes for a sec?" Danny had his hands on either side of his father's head. No one else was around and he wanted to get this done before anyone could stop him. Max cracked his eyes open and he could hear breathing. Then there was a whirlwind in his brain.
"Kid, what are you doing?" Michael was careful not to startle but this was not the scene he wanted to walk into.
Danny could see the blockage. It looked minimal but none would be better. Carefully he nudged, calling the residue into the blood stream away from the starving synapses. Max sank back into dreamless sleep when the connection was over.
--
"So, he's okay?" {Isabel?} "Good." Whap, whap, whap!
Max forced his eyes open. His arm hurt. "Ow." Was that his voice? It sounded awful.
"Good." Isabel sank onto the bed next to her brother. The lights were off but dawn poured in around the curtains. "Do you have any idea how worried we've all been?"
"I was pretty worried myself." Max whispered and braced himself for another assault, but it never came. When he looked up, Isabel had tears in her eyes. "Iz?"
"Don't ever do that again." She ordered him. "You've got some nerve. I realize that this… thing of yours was yours to deal with alone but did you ever think we might like to know what's going on with you? What if it had been worse? I talked to Dr. Davis. She said sometimes allergic reactions are fatal. She said you got off lucky. She said that you could have been stuck with an irregular heartbeat the rest of your life. If it weren't for your son, you could be on medication for the rest of your life. Us being what we are saved your life and… God!"
"I'm sorry." Max whispered.
"Would you have told me?" Michael spoke up from the doorway.
"Would you have listened?"
"Fair enough." Michael nodded that he agreed he had his part to blame. "I can't even blame you much… Syd told us about Wellbeck and all that."
"This mean you want me to deliver your kid?"
"Yeah, couldn't hurt… unless you plan to be all doped up then, too." He shrugged.
"God, you two are impossible." Isabel threw her hands up and stalked out of the room. "I'm going to work."
Max enjoyed his clear head and waited a while to ask. "Why'd you really come?"
"Found out the hard way what happens when I don't talk to the people I love. They run away thinking I hate them and I don't like that so much."
"I never hated you… and I never thought you hated me."
"Yeah well… I gotta get home before Oriel thinks I ran off with a hot babe somewhere."
"Soon as I'm on my feet, I'll check her over."
"Thanks."
--
Kyle made breakfast for his kids, and his parents. He was on call but not on duty. His feelings were still hurt but he couldn't be hostile to a woman failing every treatment available to man. When she took the kids to school for him, he knew his dad was going to ask questions. "It's hard."
"I know."
"I look at her and… it's weird to even think she's has female parts but to know… they're gone… The hair, the boobs… all fake. To know it's so aggressive that nothing seems to be working." Kyle sighed heavily. "I can't help but be mad. Even if you did ask her to leave… there was nothing to stop her from coming around after I turned 18. Why does she have to show up when she needs something?"
"She always was an independent woman." Jim sipped his coffee slowly. "A cop needs an independent wife, or else the poor thing drives herself crazy for want of attention. Michele was just the type to demand attention from whoever would give it. I didn't fill the quota she had set for me and so… she found some. You required more attention than she felt… I don't want to badmouth your mother."
"I know." He had come to hate long pauses. "She messed up. You messed up. I got screwed over."
"Maybe."
"I don't want this to be a demand of attention. I don't want this to be a sappy after school special reunion. It's not. You don't get after school specials when you're almost 40. Lifetime movies, maybe. Even those, somebody dies unhappy." Kyle gathered breakfast plates to rinse off. "She said the doctor said she's lived longer than he would have ever guessed."
"Guess she's still as strong as she ever was."
"And stubborn as hell."
"Yep."
"Aside from Alex… the kids… they got just you and Diane… they should know Mom while she's here."
"Yep."
"You've gotten really lousy with the advice."
"Not in my job description anymore. I'm just supposed to spoil my grandkids until I die. They get the pearls of wisdom."
"Great."
TBC
Michael hugged Liz while Sydney worked, she had managed to smuggle some equipment out and had Max hooked up to an IV. "Normally, a reaction to locals would be a seizure or arrhythmia. Now, he does seem to have a slight arrhythmia, which would account for fatigue and dizziness. It's not as slow as most would be, which is good. The fact it's lasted so long and is worsening worries me."
"Why is that?" Liz whispered.
"When Wellbeck administered the local, he may have accidentally hit a vein and injected a good portion into Max's bloodstream. Max's high-caffeine and nicotine lifestyle don't help any. If he stays like this, he could have a stroke or a heart attack." Sydney turned to them. "If the flush doesn't work… can one of you heal him?"
"I… I told Wellbeck to cut the dosage in half." Max whispered. "Did he?"
"No, I don't think so." Sydney shook her head and looked to Liz. "Essentially, the local anesthetic has blocked his mind from feeling sensation all over instead of just the groin area as it was intended. Accidents happen from time to time."
"It blocks on the neuron level." Liz nodded that she understood. "So, if the wash doesn't unclog his synapses… one of us will have to try and to dissolve them ourselves…"
"Right." She checked the bag and turned to them. "I have to get to my shift. This will keep him hydrated, take him to the bathroom often. If he gets worse, call me. I'll see what I can do. Keep him awake. Maybe if he forces himself to be a little more active… it couldn't hurt."
"I'm not invisible." Max complained.
"Of course not, sweetie." Liz smiled at him even though his eyes had shut.
"If I don't hear from you sooner, I'll check in after my shift." She assured them and ducked out of the room.
--
Alex pulled up to the Crashdown and was relieved to find that Kathy had been right about which Lynnette was actually related to Mr. Ramirez. The girl quickly approached the car but stopped short when she didn't recognize the driver. "Why are you driving my cuz's car?"
"He's at my house. Come on. I'll take you to him." Alex unlocked the door. "Unless you want me to take you home."
"No, it's cool." The curly-haired girl climbed in and punched a few buttons on the dash and the music blared out. "Now it's razor."
"Alright, then." Alex threw the car into gear and turned it around to head home.
--
Kyle sat down at his desk and fidgeted over the reports stacked there before pulling a slip of paper from his pocket. He fidgeted some more before he picked up the phone to dial. "Michele Valenti, please."
--
Danny stood in the doorway and watched with pain in his chest as his mother and Michael fussed over his father. Kathy stood just behind him, clutching his back, half afraid to look. They had gotten an abbreviated version of the events and were told to stay clear but neither of them could make themselves leave. Everyone once in a while, Dad would open his eyes and give them a small smile. Kathy couldn't stand it. "Mom, is Dad going to be okay?"
"Yeah." Liz nodded. "We'll just see what happens… if nothing. I'll try to do something for him. I… I don't know if I'll be able to."
--
Isabel set down the phone and turned to her father-in-law. "It's Max. He… should be fine but…"
"Want me to tell everyone to leave?" Jim made her look at him.
"No. It… is not normal and there's nothing I can do… because he should be fine. Um… Liz and Michael and Dr. Davis are doing all they can and I'd just be in the way if I went over there." She took a breath and shut her eyes. "My mom is bringing Beth and Davey over. We're keeping them until we're sure Max will be okay."
"Are you sure you're going to be okay to entertain?"
"It's what I do." Isabel waved a hand over her face to repair any damages.
"Are you sure?"
"If they need me, they'll call me." Isabel made her way outside once more to find her oldest son smiling for the first time in weeks. She leaned over the table and introduced herself. "We had a case of mistaken identity a while back. You're not the evil ex at all."
Lynnette laughed. "Yeah, the hazard of having the same name as an older girl is mistaken gossip."
"Mom, don't." Alex warned.
"Don't what? I was just talking to this pretty girl here. Pretty Girl, are you single?" Isabel leaned on her elbow.
"Mom."
"Isn't she precious?" Irene leaned over and pinched Lynnette's cheeks.
"Tía." Lynnette groaned and turned to Jesse. "Primo… help me out."
"No can do. Don't matter how old I get, she's still the boss." Jesse got up to help Jim out at the grill. "Too much estrogen over there."
"Could be Isabel. There's too much estrogen in this house and there are only two women… one of which is nine." He glanced over at the table before leaning toward Jesse. "Just wait til you know her longer. You'll find my daughter-in-law can be quite controlling."
"Controlling?"
"I'd say wait for Christmas but she'll rear her ugly head way before then."
--
Sydney gathered items into a box, referring to Max's chart and some notes she'd made. Wellbeck crossed his arms and refused to let her pass. "What the hell are you doing?"
"Fixing your mistakes." Sydney grabbed two more bags of saline and made to push him aside.
"What?"
"Dr. Evans told you to cut the dosage and you didn't. You gave him an arrhythmia."
"What?"
"Didn't he present while he was here?"
"No." He rubbed his forehead and thought it all over. "I didn't cut the dosage because there's no way he wasn't going to feel the forceps."
"Dr. Evans is allergic. He can't have much aspirin without presenting like he's taken three Tylenol-3's. Most of this was noted in his chart." She set her box down. "If Dr. Evans came to you, he trusted you to listen to his instructions. He's not fit to come to work. I'm going to recommend he stays home for a while."
"Davis, you can't just treat him at home."
"Well, he's not going to come back here if he can't trust his own doctors."
--
Max drifted in and out of consciousness as the wash did its work. At some point he knew Liz and Michael had stopped keeping the kids from the room.
[Books lay forgotten all over the foot of the bed, assignments half-completed, dirty clothes sat in a pile by the door. The trash can needed to be emptied of its smelly contents. A pile of clean baby clothes waited to be folded and put away. Liz was asleep on her side of the bed. Daniel and Max were the only ones awake in the house. Max kissed his son's little hands. This was one of the rare moments he'd gotten to spend with the baby since he was born.
At six weeks, the boy was growing strong. His little head turned to the sound of his parents' voices. Max's voice had taken a bit longer for him to recognize. He had begun cooing when happy. His hands beat against his bottle and Max wasn't about to take his eyes off him a second sooner than he had to.]
When he was more or less aware, he talked to his kids about their day.
[Max paced with the little girl in his arms but she wasn't going to let him rest. He had two weeks before school started again and he couldn't even use that to rest because Kathy had other plans. She wouldn't take to Liz and she screamed constantly unless he was holding her. Hell, she screamed just to get his attention. She was quiet now but the moment he set her down, she was going to scream until everyone in the house was awake. Occasionally he thought on how sad it was for such a small baby to have abandonment issues but mostly he was content to have her hold onto his little finger as hard as her tiny hands would allow.]
Night fell and he could feel Liz's body next to his. Her hand rested over his heart. Words whispered over him in prayer.
[It was a stolen moment. The radio played softly over the sink. The kids were down for their nap. Mom and Dad were drinking coffee over some papers in his home office. Max had gotten off early and relieved his wife of washing dishes for two dances. He felt as if he hadn't made love to her in a year. They hadn't really been alone in months. He had just ten minutes to be back at the hospital and he would gladly forgo a meal for just one more dance.]
[It was empty. No furniture. A modest house really. A living room and a sunken den divided by a staircase. Through the den was the entrance to the kitchen and the hallway to the downstairs master, maid's room and bathroom. Maid's room made for a good children's room until they could fix up the upstairs bedrooms. Three of them and a small bathroom. Max had made quick work of cleaning up the house that morning so he could properly bless the house with his wife before they were due to pick up their children. No rush. There was no rush now. This house was his… theirs… together, it was their house.]
Morning arrived with a fresh IV bag and more, while scant in dose, drugs. Beth had popped up with huge sad eyes. She had probably been told not to ask about the tube in her father's arm. She had sat under his arm until it was time to go somewhere. His mother's, his sister's… he couldn't even be sure where they had said.
[Max rocked in the chair next to the bed with his tiny daughter and a bottle freshly pumped. His curious eight-year-olds were perched on the bed watching their baby sister eat. Everyone was so quiet for Thanksgiving morning. The parade was on in the den but the only one getting ready to do anything was Liz. Her last words to him after handing the bottle over was that he was a baby hog. Smells wafted through the house. Everyone was sure to arrive soon to celebrate where the new baby was. Just a week old and about to meet her six-week-old cousin for the first time. At one point, he looked up to find he was all alone. The kids had gone to get ready. His mother was organizing things in the den and his father was arguing with the announcer of a pre-game.
He really was a sucker for the women in his family. Bethany had him occupied until the absolute last second. He'd barely been home since the delivery. He deserved time with his newest daughter.]
His first restful sleep in days came in the afternoon. He had been helped to the bathroom many times already and the chemicals were finally washing out.
[Kyle had been the dutiful mid-wife's aid as usual. As soon as Max was done with Liz, Max took the bundle from his friend. Kyle made some crack about adding his skills to his resume for a promotion but Max just waved it off. He crawled onto the bed with his tired wife to show her what they had made. He only allowed little baby boy out of his arms long enough to make the necessary calls. He had bit back a sob when he almost asked his mother to put his father on the phone. That was a habit. Bring a baby into the world and call his father. Three years didn't make a difference.
Outside the bedroom were 12, 11, and 3 year olds waiting to meet their little brother. Tomorrow he would take his boy in for his once-over and paperwork and it would be right back home. Not even Liz calling him a baby hog could bring him down.]
"Dad? You wanna open your eyes for a sec?" Danny had his hands on either side of his father's head. No one else was around and he wanted to get this done before anyone could stop him. Max cracked his eyes open and he could hear breathing. Then there was a whirlwind in his brain.
"Kid, what are you doing?" Michael was careful not to startle but this was not the scene he wanted to walk into.
Danny could see the blockage. It looked minimal but none would be better. Carefully he nudged, calling the residue into the blood stream away from the starving synapses. Max sank back into dreamless sleep when the connection was over.
--
"So, he's okay?" {Isabel?} "Good." Whap, whap, whap!
Max forced his eyes open. His arm hurt. "Ow." Was that his voice? It sounded awful.
"Good." Isabel sank onto the bed next to her brother. The lights were off but dawn poured in around the curtains. "Do you have any idea how worried we've all been?"
"I was pretty worried myself." Max whispered and braced himself for another assault, but it never came. When he looked up, Isabel had tears in her eyes. "Iz?"
"Don't ever do that again." She ordered him. "You've got some nerve. I realize that this… thing of yours was yours to deal with alone but did you ever think we might like to know what's going on with you? What if it had been worse? I talked to Dr. Davis. She said sometimes allergic reactions are fatal. She said you got off lucky. She said that you could have been stuck with an irregular heartbeat the rest of your life. If it weren't for your son, you could be on medication for the rest of your life. Us being what we are saved your life and… God!"
"I'm sorry." Max whispered.
"Would you have told me?" Michael spoke up from the doorway.
"Would you have listened?"
"Fair enough." Michael nodded that he agreed he had his part to blame. "I can't even blame you much… Syd told us about Wellbeck and all that."
"This mean you want me to deliver your kid?"
"Yeah, couldn't hurt… unless you plan to be all doped up then, too." He shrugged.
"God, you two are impossible." Isabel threw her hands up and stalked out of the room. "I'm going to work."
Max enjoyed his clear head and waited a while to ask. "Why'd you really come?"
"Found out the hard way what happens when I don't talk to the people I love. They run away thinking I hate them and I don't like that so much."
"I never hated you… and I never thought you hated me."
"Yeah well… I gotta get home before Oriel thinks I ran off with a hot babe somewhere."
"Soon as I'm on my feet, I'll check her over."
"Thanks."
--
Kyle made breakfast for his kids, and his parents. He was on call but not on duty. His feelings were still hurt but he couldn't be hostile to a woman failing every treatment available to man. When she took the kids to school for him, he knew his dad was going to ask questions. "It's hard."
"I know."
"I look at her and… it's weird to even think she's has female parts but to know… they're gone… The hair, the boobs… all fake. To know it's so aggressive that nothing seems to be working." Kyle sighed heavily. "I can't help but be mad. Even if you did ask her to leave… there was nothing to stop her from coming around after I turned 18. Why does she have to show up when she needs something?"
"She always was an independent woman." Jim sipped his coffee slowly. "A cop needs an independent wife, or else the poor thing drives herself crazy for want of attention. Michele was just the type to demand attention from whoever would give it. I didn't fill the quota she had set for me and so… she found some. You required more attention than she felt… I don't want to badmouth your mother."
"I know." He had come to hate long pauses. "She messed up. You messed up. I got screwed over."
"Maybe."
"I don't want this to be a demand of attention. I don't want this to be a sappy after school special reunion. It's not. You don't get after school specials when you're almost 40. Lifetime movies, maybe. Even those, somebody dies unhappy." Kyle gathered breakfast plates to rinse off. "She said the doctor said she's lived longer than he would have ever guessed."
"Guess she's still as strong as she ever was."
"And stubborn as hell."
"Yep."
"Aside from Alex… the kids… they got just you and Diane… they should know Mom while she's here."
"Yep."
"You've gotten really lousy with the advice."
"Not in my job description anymore. I'm just supposed to spoil my grandkids until I die. They get the pearls of wisdom."
"Great."
TBC
Part 79
The Fate of Destiny Part 79
March 2020
"Sunday, bloody, Sunday."
"Shut up." Daniel groaned and turned over on his bed.
"Birthday boy in a bad mood?" Alex teased and glanced at the clock.
"Trying to figure out the plan for getting out tonight."
Kathy bounced on the end of his bed. Birthday plans had to be done early and there were no plans the night before. This was going to have to be good. "What's the plan? We can get away with staying out pretty late."
"My birthday. Not yours. You can't come." Danny rolled over again.
"Danny." Kathy whined and tugged on his arm. "Come on."
"It's me and Em tonight."
"That's cool." Alex shrugged on his end. "I got plans anyway."
"Right." Danny snorted and shoved his sister off the bed.
--
Max rubbed his eyes and closed another chart and popped out the tape. Michael was just going to love the stack of tapes for this week. If he hurried, he could make it home in time to help Liz with the cake stuff and they could do all that before Danny disappeared. The kid had been especially slick the year before in skipping the party.
He hadn't actually been back to work for very long. He and Sydney had agreed that given what she had to divulge to the urologist, it would be best to follow a normal recovery period… especially to pick up on anything they might have missed.
--
Oriel tapped the remote against her glass and threw her head back on her pillow. She was so bored and Max had stuffed her into bed and forbidden her to get up. Michael had been kind enough to inform her of Max's worries but she felt fine. She was taking care of herself and she hadn't been sick hardly at all.
She'd read it all. The maternity books, the tentative manual that Max had been stringing together based off his personal observations of alien pregnancy. He and Kyle had gotten together to do the chapter on denying humanity. Between them all, they had documented eight pregnancies in four women; two humans with alien babies and two aliens with babies, one partly human and the other alien. That was the one she knew they were worried about. Kathy had turned out fine, and so would her baby.
Michael entered the room with a tray of cookies, chips, dips, ice cream and a variety of toppings. "I just wanted to be covered if I came up here and you changed your mind again."
--
Alex traced the lace design on her bra. Lynnette's mother was at work and her little brother was at a baseball game, they had the whole house to themselves. Her fingers slipped over the leftover scars on his face. They were slowly fading but still there as a constant reminder of his own vulnerability.
His dating Lynnette wasn't a secret on his part as much as on her part. She didn't want anyone to know and he respected that because she really wasn't allowed to date. No matter what people said, he thought she was absolutely beautiful. He saw a gorgeous face, more curves than he could handle and a sometimes biting wit that never failed to bring a smile to his face. Everyone loved Lynnette, no question about it. Did most guys run to ask her out? No… but they had no idea what they were missing either.
"What time do I have to leave?"
"In an hour." She dropped kisses on his neck. "I was going to ask my mom if we… if I could go to the Spring formal. If she says yes, I'll ask if you can take me."
"And if she says yes?"
"What do you mean?" Lynnette sat up and reached for her shirt.
"I'd like some bragging rights. Could we let people know we're dating?"
"I don't know. I'd have to talk to her about that." She leaned over to place a kiss on his lips. "If she agrees to let you take me, I'll ease her into it after the dance… but we'll see."
--
Danny endured the dinner and the cake and then snuck out while his mother wasn't paying attention. He picked up Emily with a promise to have her back within a few hours. Then they were off to the windy sandstorms of the desert. The weather restricted their play to inside the jeep but it was worth it to feel her skin against his. To be inside her when they hadn't been together physically in so long. To taste and smell before they came together.
--
David held still while his father pricked his finger and wiped the blood on a slide. His brown eyes watered until Max rubbed his own finger over it and healed the tiny wound. "You're a brave boy. Go play." He placed a kiss on the little boy's forehead before he wrapped a marker on the end of the slide. He put his own blood on the next one and lined them up. Eyes on the computer he wrote up a new chapter in his manual for alien physiology. Variations in Mixed Breeds.
Kathy had sat with crossed-arms and averted eyes during her latest interview for her part. Her remarks had been biting and forced. It wasn't as if he did this often. Once in a long while he brought this thing out for an update. Whenever there were significant finds. It was the only thing he could do for the future of his family and friends. Something to refer to if anything ever happened to him. These last couple of months had given him a reason to get back on it. The book could never be published either in its own accord or as a medical journal but it would help them.
--
Kyle signed the credit card receipt and bent to pick up his box. The manager gave him a copy of the receipt and his card back. "It's not policy."
"I know." Kyle nodded and slipped both into his pocket. "I appreciate you working with me on this."
"Sheriff…" The manager started but let himself be cut off.
"There's no trouble. I can assure you of that. Keep the room clean as possible for however long she stays." Nodding to the man, he headed for the elevator. Two stories up on the left four doors down. He knocked and let himself in once the door was opened. Quietly, he unpacked the box. "I brought you dinner. I don't know what room service will get you but my haystack is a hell of a lot better tasting."
"Jimmy…" Michele couldn't do anything but watch him set about warming up the haystack in the little kitchen microwave. She sat and watched him set several large binders on the table in front of her. "What are these?"
"Scrap books." Kyle motioned for her to stay quiet a moment. For 26 seconds nothing but the hum of the microwave filled the room. "I… I'm relieved that you came back… if you had died without an attempt at anything… I would have… I probably wouldn't cry for you. I'd be bitter and that's not good for the soul, especially when my family would pay the price for what you've done to me. Dad and I… we were never as close as we should have been because I know he was afraid. We understand each other but not the way we should. That's your fault. You made us afraid."
"Jimmy…"
"Hold on. I've had many, many years to revise this speech and I need to say it all. Isabel and I are very careful with our hearts for different reasons but… we waited a long time to be together because we were afraid the other would leave. Do you know how terrifying it is? My mother left me, two of my girlfriends left me… it's a wonder I had anything to give to Isabel… Thanks to Dad, I never had to wonder what it would be like to live fatherless and I don't have the fear my children won't be there." Kyle clasped his hands together, realizing the timer had gone off some time ago. "I do blame you for a lot. I do. My soul is heavy. I just needed to get this off my chest… because I do love you and I don't want to lose you before I really lose you."
"I loved you, Jimmy." Michele whispered. "That's why I left you with your father. I didn't want you to have to look at me once you knew what I had done."
Kyle retrieved the plate and grabbed a fork for his mother. "I've only known for a few days, Mom… but I've known what Dad did a hell of a lot longer. It doesn't bother me so much."
"You—" Michele didn't finish it. "Amy DeLuca." Her face screwed up tight to fight off the coming emotion. "I always knew but…"
"I had a half-sister… but I only knew for a year and a half before she died… but she had been my friend for a good long while. It's a good thing we never dated or anything. Nobody knew for sure until she got sick…" He took a long breath. "I think that knowing now what he does… Dad wouldn't have made you leave. Maybe I would have had another sibling."
"But you know that it was more than just that, right, Jimmy?" She picked at the chips and chili for a good while. "We were in over our heads. Your dad was always trying to prove he wasn’t crazy like his dad. I… I was too independent for my own good. Your grandparents died when I was 16. It was up to me to keep up the house and the bills and go to school and do all those things that needed to be done. I was burned out by the time I was 18 and when your father wanted to share the burden… I leapt into it. I could halve the workload with plenty of ease. I took morning and night classes while I was pregnant and once you were born… I took a little time off. Once you didn't need me so much… I was right back to filling my plate up just to keep it full… and when it couldn't be… I made trouble for myself." She sighed a little. "There hasn't been a day when I didn't think of you. When I first got sick… I figured I'd get better before I came back. Then I would have accomplished something. I fought a disease… but the disease had other ideas. Two surgeries later… It's still killing me."
"You've tried everything?"
"Everything. Things work for a little while. My doctors will be excited for months and then nothing. The meds, the chemo, they stop working. On the up side, my hair is growing back with this new stuff. I might not need the wig in my casket." She stabbed the chips and twirled cheese around her fork. "I know I'm being punished."
"No." Kyle shook his head. "You punished yourself enough without being sick. It happens."
Wiping tears from her face, she opened the scrapbook on top to find several pictures from each of Kyle's sports the year after she left. "Wow. All-star."
"Yeah. I was good." Kyle laughed to himself and smiled a little when she took a bite of her haystack. "We have all the trophies put away. Dad was thinking of making a trophy case to put grampa's stuff and his and mine."
"The kids?"
"Alex isn't into sports… he digs music and all that but he's not into applying it into anything. We've got a couple of charms he's gotten for group efforts in the choir but that's as far as he'll take it. Berty is a spelling champ though. Her mother's influence, not mine. Kyle Jr. thinks he might like sports but we've got a little while before that personality sets itself."
"You really love those kids."
"Yeah. All three of 'em." He reached over and pulled a large scrap book out and opened it to the first page. "That's Alex. Three days old. I… I helped deliver him and I requested a picture to commemorate the event. Probably fell in love with that kid first."
--
Sweaty and half-clothed, the couple sat in the dark just holding each other. Danny took a deep breath and kissed her head. "Em?" She made a noise to prove she was awake. "I'm gonna marry you someday."
"Yeah?"
"Yeah."
"What if I don't want to get married?"
"I'll follow you around like a puppy dog until you say yes."
She laughed and tickled his ribs. "Just promise me that you're not going to ask me until we're almost through with college."
"Speaking of, I was looking at things in town. Assuming rates stay the same… and we both get scholarships… we're still looking at full time jobs in addition to full time school loads." His head bent so he could kiss her neck.
"Ugh, don't start. We're still going to have to convince the parents that us moving in together is a good thing. My dad is still on this kick that I'm going far, far away to school. He's always talking about what's going to happen when I move out."
"Can we not bring up the parents, please?" He was about to shut her mouth for her when the time caught his attention. "We should head back."
--
Max welcomed the distraction when Liz straddled his lap in the dark of the den. The porch light didn't even make it into the room but there was a glow aside from the monitor that danced on her skin. "You're pushing yourself too hard."
"Am not." He shook his head and looked his wife over. "I think I'm healed."
"That right?"
"Syd and I are going to run a couple of more tests before you and I can do some tests of our own." He nuzzled his face into the folds of her robe. "Yellow light until then."
"Ugh." Liz turned to look at the monitor. "What are you working on?"
"Kathy." Max sat up with her and skimmed over all he had written. "I realized something today."
"What's that?"
"She's nearing the age of consent." He sighed heavily. "Should we put her on birth control?"
"I think we should talk to her…"
"Things will happen, Liz. I am terrified about it but things will happen."
"Kathy has her orders. Until she's comfortable approaching you with the request for birth control, she can't have it."
"Oh, is that how you keep her in line?"
"Too bad condoms can't be restricted by prescriptions or else it'd be easier to keep Danny in line." Liz lifted her eyes skyward and whispered a little prayer. "He's giving me gray hair."
"Is not."
"Yes, he is." She lifted her hair behind her ear and several gray hairs shone plainly against the dark tresses. "You or him. One of the two."
"Mommy…" A little voice whined. "I thirsty."
Max reached over and hit the save button. "Go take a bath. I'll get him back to bed."
"A bath?" Liz murmured when his hands started massaging the small of her back.
"With bubbles and those salts… maybe I'll come in and wash your hair…"
"Aren't you supposed to be in early?"
"Don't worry about it. I'll be up and energized." He reassured her.
"Mommy…"
--
"Before I forget. Here is my present to you." Emily showed him the ear cuff before setting it against his ear. She made the hole as painless as possible. "This is my mark. You tell every girl who thinks she has a chance that this piece of silver means you belong to Emily Guerin."
"No worries… because… I only have eyes… for you…"
"You do that again and you'll be looking for someone else to have eyes for."
"Sorry. Always thought it was funny when my dad did it."
"Not funny, corny, baby." Emily planted a firm kiss on his lips but pulled away before he could deepen it. "Happy Birthday… I have to go in." After one last look, she climbed out of the Jeep and rushed into the house. The TV upstairs sent a muffled laugh track into the hallway and a faint glow onto the stairs. Stepping carefully, Emily tried to make it to her room before anyone knew she was there.
"Em? That you?" Michael called out.
Cursing to herself, she turned and headed to his bedroom. "Yeah, Dad, it's me." She peered in and found them on the bed with a big bowl of ice cream and Tabasco sauce between them. "You know, Dad… Oriel's the one supposed to be gaining weight, not you."
Tossing a raisin at her, Michael sat up and rubbed his spare tire. "What'd you guys do?"
"Went for a drive." She shrugged and hoped she didn't look guilty. "Talked, made plans for next year."
He took a deep breath and looked to Oriel, who kept quiet by making sure her mouth was always full of ice cream when he looked at her. "You know I love Daniel. He's great despite his father's best efforts to ruin him…" He cut them both off. "I love the kid, I do… but don't you think it's a little early to be making plans? You don't even know where you're going to college. I don't want your dreams crushed when you get into MIT and he gets into Harvard."
Emily sent a scathing glare to her father. "Right, like I'm going to MIT. I know you never forget what's in my DNA. I'm going to community right here in Roswell, Dad. How the hell do you think I'd explain to a dorm nurse that 'no, ma'am, I can't have my vaccination because I'm an alien and a) don't need the shot, b) am probably allergic to the shot, and c) will have to kill her for what she knows?'"
"Em…" Michael started but it was too late, she had already stormed off to her room. "What's the score?"
"Dad 3, Em 17."
"Thanks."
TBC
79/105
taking off on a mini-vacay. Been biting people's heads off and subconsciously purposefully alienating people. I'll get some writing done and probably have something to post next week on that other stuff. '-)
March 2020
"Sunday, bloody, Sunday."
"Shut up." Daniel groaned and turned over on his bed.
"Birthday boy in a bad mood?" Alex teased and glanced at the clock.
"Trying to figure out the plan for getting out tonight."
Kathy bounced on the end of his bed. Birthday plans had to be done early and there were no plans the night before. This was going to have to be good. "What's the plan? We can get away with staying out pretty late."
"My birthday. Not yours. You can't come." Danny rolled over again.
"Danny." Kathy whined and tugged on his arm. "Come on."
"It's me and Em tonight."
"That's cool." Alex shrugged on his end. "I got plans anyway."
"Right." Danny snorted and shoved his sister off the bed.
--
Max rubbed his eyes and closed another chart and popped out the tape. Michael was just going to love the stack of tapes for this week. If he hurried, he could make it home in time to help Liz with the cake stuff and they could do all that before Danny disappeared. The kid had been especially slick the year before in skipping the party.
He hadn't actually been back to work for very long. He and Sydney had agreed that given what she had to divulge to the urologist, it would be best to follow a normal recovery period… especially to pick up on anything they might have missed.
--
Oriel tapped the remote against her glass and threw her head back on her pillow. She was so bored and Max had stuffed her into bed and forbidden her to get up. Michael had been kind enough to inform her of Max's worries but she felt fine. She was taking care of herself and she hadn't been sick hardly at all.
She'd read it all. The maternity books, the tentative manual that Max had been stringing together based off his personal observations of alien pregnancy. He and Kyle had gotten together to do the chapter on denying humanity. Between them all, they had documented eight pregnancies in four women; two humans with alien babies and two aliens with babies, one partly human and the other alien. That was the one she knew they were worried about. Kathy had turned out fine, and so would her baby.
Michael entered the room with a tray of cookies, chips, dips, ice cream and a variety of toppings. "I just wanted to be covered if I came up here and you changed your mind again."
--
Alex traced the lace design on her bra. Lynnette's mother was at work and her little brother was at a baseball game, they had the whole house to themselves. Her fingers slipped over the leftover scars on his face. They were slowly fading but still there as a constant reminder of his own vulnerability.
His dating Lynnette wasn't a secret on his part as much as on her part. She didn't want anyone to know and he respected that because she really wasn't allowed to date. No matter what people said, he thought she was absolutely beautiful. He saw a gorgeous face, more curves than he could handle and a sometimes biting wit that never failed to bring a smile to his face. Everyone loved Lynnette, no question about it. Did most guys run to ask her out? No… but they had no idea what they were missing either.
"What time do I have to leave?"
"In an hour." She dropped kisses on his neck. "I was going to ask my mom if we… if I could go to the Spring formal. If she says yes, I'll ask if you can take me."
"And if she says yes?"
"What do you mean?" Lynnette sat up and reached for her shirt.
"I'd like some bragging rights. Could we let people know we're dating?"
"I don't know. I'd have to talk to her about that." She leaned over to place a kiss on his lips. "If she agrees to let you take me, I'll ease her into it after the dance… but we'll see."
--
Danny endured the dinner and the cake and then snuck out while his mother wasn't paying attention. He picked up Emily with a promise to have her back within a few hours. Then they were off to the windy sandstorms of the desert. The weather restricted their play to inside the jeep but it was worth it to feel her skin against his. To be inside her when they hadn't been together physically in so long. To taste and smell before they came together.
--
David held still while his father pricked his finger and wiped the blood on a slide. His brown eyes watered until Max rubbed his own finger over it and healed the tiny wound. "You're a brave boy. Go play." He placed a kiss on the little boy's forehead before he wrapped a marker on the end of the slide. He put his own blood on the next one and lined them up. Eyes on the computer he wrote up a new chapter in his manual for alien physiology. Variations in Mixed Breeds.
Kathy had sat with crossed-arms and averted eyes during her latest interview for her part. Her remarks had been biting and forced. It wasn't as if he did this often. Once in a long while he brought this thing out for an update. Whenever there were significant finds. It was the only thing he could do for the future of his family and friends. Something to refer to if anything ever happened to him. These last couple of months had given him a reason to get back on it. The book could never be published either in its own accord or as a medical journal but it would help them.
--
Kyle signed the credit card receipt and bent to pick up his box. The manager gave him a copy of the receipt and his card back. "It's not policy."
"I know." Kyle nodded and slipped both into his pocket. "I appreciate you working with me on this."
"Sheriff…" The manager started but let himself be cut off.
"There's no trouble. I can assure you of that. Keep the room clean as possible for however long she stays." Nodding to the man, he headed for the elevator. Two stories up on the left four doors down. He knocked and let himself in once the door was opened. Quietly, he unpacked the box. "I brought you dinner. I don't know what room service will get you but my haystack is a hell of a lot better tasting."
"Jimmy…" Michele couldn't do anything but watch him set about warming up the haystack in the little kitchen microwave. She sat and watched him set several large binders on the table in front of her. "What are these?"
"Scrap books." Kyle motioned for her to stay quiet a moment. For 26 seconds nothing but the hum of the microwave filled the room. "I… I'm relieved that you came back… if you had died without an attempt at anything… I would have… I probably wouldn't cry for you. I'd be bitter and that's not good for the soul, especially when my family would pay the price for what you've done to me. Dad and I… we were never as close as we should have been because I know he was afraid. We understand each other but not the way we should. That's your fault. You made us afraid."
"Jimmy…"
"Hold on. I've had many, many years to revise this speech and I need to say it all. Isabel and I are very careful with our hearts for different reasons but… we waited a long time to be together because we were afraid the other would leave. Do you know how terrifying it is? My mother left me, two of my girlfriends left me… it's a wonder I had anything to give to Isabel… Thanks to Dad, I never had to wonder what it would be like to live fatherless and I don't have the fear my children won't be there." Kyle clasped his hands together, realizing the timer had gone off some time ago. "I do blame you for a lot. I do. My soul is heavy. I just needed to get this off my chest… because I do love you and I don't want to lose you before I really lose you."
"I loved you, Jimmy." Michele whispered. "That's why I left you with your father. I didn't want you to have to look at me once you knew what I had done."
Kyle retrieved the plate and grabbed a fork for his mother. "I've only known for a few days, Mom… but I've known what Dad did a hell of a lot longer. It doesn't bother me so much."
"You—" Michele didn't finish it. "Amy DeLuca." Her face screwed up tight to fight off the coming emotion. "I always knew but…"
"I had a half-sister… but I only knew for a year and a half before she died… but she had been my friend for a good long while. It's a good thing we never dated or anything. Nobody knew for sure until she got sick…" He took a long breath. "I think that knowing now what he does… Dad wouldn't have made you leave. Maybe I would have had another sibling."
"But you know that it was more than just that, right, Jimmy?" She picked at the chips and chili for a good while. "We were in over our heads. Your dad was always trying to prove he wasn’t crazy like his dad. I… I was too independent for my own good. Your grandparents died when I was 16. It was up to me to keep up the house and the bills and go to school and do all those things that needed to be done. I was burned out by the time I was 18 and when your father wanted to share the burden… I leapt into it. I could halve the workload with plenty of ease. I took morning and night classes while I was pregnant and once you were born… I took a little time off. Once you didn't need me so much… I was right back to filling my plate up just to keep it full… and when it couldn't be… I made trouble for myself." She sighed a little. "There hasn't been a day when I didn't think of you. When I first got sick… I figured I'd get better before I came back. Then I would have accomplished something. I fought a disease… but the disease had other ideas. Two surgeries later… It's still killing me."
"You've tried everything?"
"Everything. Things work for a little while. My doctors will be excited for months and then nothing. The meds, the chemo, they stop working. On the up side, my hair is growing back with this new stuff. I might not need the wig in my casket." She stabbed the chips and twirled cheese around her fork. "I know I'm being punished."
"No." Kyle shook his head. "You punished yourself enough without being sick. It happens."
Wiping tears from her face, she opened the scrapbook on top to find several pictures from each of Kyle's sports the year after she left. "Wow. All-star."
"Yeah. I was good." Kyle laughed to himself and smiled a little when she took a bite of her haystack. "We have all the trophies put away. Dad was thinking of making a trophy case to put grampa's stuff and his and mine."
"The kids?"
"Alex isn't into sports… he digs music and all that but he's not into applying it into anything. We've got a couple of charms he's gotten for group efforts in the choir but that's as far as he'll take it. Berty is a spelling champ though. Her mother's influence, not mine. Kyle Jr. thinks he might like sports but we've got a little while before that personality sets itself."
"You really love those kids."
"Yeah. All three of 'em." He reached over and pulled a large scrap book out and opened it to the first page. "That's Alex. Three days old. I… I helped deliver him and I requested a picture to commemorate the event. Probably fell in love with that kid first."
--
Sweaty and half-clothed, the couple sat in the dark just holding each other. Danny took a deep breath and kissed her head. "Em?" She made a noise to prove she was awake. "I'm gonna marry you someday."
"Yeah?"
"Yeah."
"What if I don't want to get married?"
"I'll follow you around like a puppy dog until you say yes."
She laughed and tickled his ribs. "Just promise me that you're not going to ask me until we're almost through with college."
"Speaking of, I was looking at things in town. Assuming rates stay the same… and we both get scholarships… we're still looking at full time jobs in addition to full time school loads." His head bent so he could kiss her neck.
"Ugh, don't start. We're still going to have to convince the parents that us moving in together is a good thing. My dad is still on this kick that I'm going far, far away to school. He's always talking about what's going to happen when I move out."
"Can we not bring up the parents, please?" He was about to shut her mouth for her when the time caught his attention. "We should head back."
--
Max welcomed the distraction when Liz straddled his lap in the dark of the den. The porch light didn't even make it into the room but there was a glow aside from the monitor that danced on her skin. "You're pushing yourself too hard."
"Am not." He shook his head and looked his wife over. "I think I'm healed."
"That right?"
"Syd and I are going to run a couple of more tests before you and I can do some tests of our own." He nuzzled his face into the folds of her robe. "Yellow light until then."
"Ugh." Liz turned to look at the monitor. "What are you working on?"
"Kathy." Max sat up with her and skimmed over all he had written. "I realized something today."
"What's that?"
"She's nearing the age of consent." He sighed heavily. "Should we put her on birth control?"
"I think we should talk to her…"
"Things will happen, Liz. I am terrified about it but things will happen."
"Kathy has her orders. Until she's comfortable approaching you with the request for birth control, she can't have it."
"Oh, is that how you keep her in line?"
"Too bad condoms can't be restricted by prescriptions or else it'd be easier to keep Danny in line." Liz lifted her eyes skyward and whispered a little prayer. "He's giving me gray hair."
"Is not."
"Yes, he is." She lifted her hair behind her ear and several gray hairs shone plainly against the dark tresses. "You or him. One of the two."
"Mommy…" A little voice whined. "I thirsty."
Max reached over and hit the save button. "Go take a bath. I'll get him back to bed."
"A bath?" Liz murmured when his hands started massaging the small of her back.
"With bubbles and those salts… maybe I'll come in and wash your hair…"
"Aren't you supposed to be in early?"
"Don't worry about it. I'll be up and energized." He reassured her.
"Mommy…"
--
"Before I forget. Here is my present to you." Emily showed him the ear cuff before setting it against his ear. She made the hole as painless as possible. "This is my mark. You tell every girl who thinks she has a chance that this piece of silver means you belong to Emily Guerin."
"No worries… because… I only have eyes… for you…"
"You do that again and you'll be looking for someone else to have eyes for."
"Sorry. Always thought it was funny when my dad did it."
"Not funny, corny, baby." Emily planted a firm kiss on his lips but pulled away before he could deepen it. "Happy Birthday… I have to go in." After one last look, she climbed out of the Jeep and rushed into the house. The TV upstairs sent a muffled laugh track into the hallway and a faint glow onto the stairs. Stepping carefully, Emily tried to make it to her room before anyone knew she was there.
"Em? That you?" Michael called out.
Cursing to herself, she turned and headed to his bedroom. "Yeah, Dad, it's me." She peered in and found them on the bed with a big bowl of ice cream and Tabasco sauce between them. "You know, Dad… Oriel's the one supposed to be gaining weight, not you."
Tossing a raisin at her, Michael sat up and rubbed his spare tire. "What'd you guys do?"
"Went for a drive." She shrugged and hoped she didn't look guilty. "Talked, made plans for next year."
He took a deep breath and looked to Oriel, who kept quiet by making sure her mouth was always full of ice cream when he looked at her. "You know I love Daniel. He's great despite his father's best efforts to ruin him…" He cut them both off. "I love the kid, I do… but don't you think it's a little early to be making plans? You don't even know where you're going to college. I don't want your dreams crushed when you get into MIT and he gets into Harvard."
Emily sent a scathing glare to her father. "Right, like I'm going to MIT. I know you never forget what's in my DNA. I'm going to community right here in Roswell, Dad. How the hell do you think I'd explain to a dorm nurse that 'no, ma'am, I can't have my vaccination because I'm an alien and a) don't need the shot, b) am probably allergic to the shot, and c) will have to kill her for what she knows?'"
"Em…" Michael started but it was too late, she had already stormed off to her room. "What's the score?"
"Dad 3, Em 17."
"Thanks."
TBC
79/105
taking off on a mini-vacay. Been biting people's heads off and subconsciously purposefully alienating people. I'll get some writing done and probably have something to post next week on that other stuff. '-)
Part 80a
The Fate of Destiny Part 80
April 2020
Max ran the scanner over Oriel's belly and then reached for the volume on the monitor. "This is what Baby Guerin sounds like."
"That's fast." Michael gulped suddenly. His palms were sweaty against his wife’s and his heart pounded rapidly but not as fast as the one coming out of the speakers. This was the first sonogram he'd sat in on. "That’s really fast. Max…?"
"Completely normal… for anyone on Earth and that includes us. Sometimes I forget you missed this the first time around. Em’s heart beat just as fast, I can assure you." Max nodded and stared into the blurry little screen. "I know I've asked before but…"
"We know what it is and we're not telling anyone… you're not either." Oriel warned him. "How's it doing?"
"Your child is blossoming but I'm still going to have to insist you take it extremely easy. Bed-rest and plenty of it." Max adjusted the baby a little. "Your weight is fine but I'd put Michael on a diet if I were you." Ribbing his friend a little about the weight he had gained in the recent months.
"Look who's talking." Michael sulked and sat up a little straighter, tucking in the gut just a little.
"I'm getting back in shape. I was bedridden for a while. What's your excuse?"
"Whatever. It's been like nine months, what's the deal? Maria only carried for eight." Michael quickly changed the subject.
"Which I'll bring to your attention now." Max folded his hands and leaned on the end of the bed. "I haven't gotten to that chapter yet but I will, soon. Both Maria and Tess didn't carry to a full normal human term. Eight months a piece. The girls turned out just fine. Both Liz and Isabel normally carry for nine and a half, sometimes ten months. It's not unusual… I guess to carry this long, which is also why you need to stay in bed. We don't know just when Baby Guerin makes its appearance… we just don't want it happening while you're at school. So, to bed, Mrs. Guerin and don't get up until after the baby's born."
"Ugh. I think my doctor is over-protective." Oriel rolled her eyes.
"How's Em doing?" Max began cleaning their mess, wiping equipment and handing Michael a towel to clean his wife's stomach.
"What do you mean?" Michael looked to Max who winced noticeably. "What?"
"It's nothing really." He shook his head. "She came in a few weeks ago, wanted a check up. I thought you knew. She was cramping, not feeling herself. She's fine. I was just wondering. It's no big deal. I… consulted another doctor… we put her on… birth control."
"What?" Michael felt his good mood fading, then it hit him. She hadn't been feeling herself. He began to panic. "Max… is she… oh my god… Max."
"Michael?" Max rushed around to his hyperventilating friend. "What? What is it? If it's about the birth control, that was to regulate her, not permission…"
"No… Is her…" Michael took a deep breath and tried to calm himself. "Is what happened to Maria happening to her?"
Then Max understood and shook his head. "No, nothing like that. She was having girl problems."
"Michael. I'm the one that told her to get checked out. I signed your name to the papers." Oriel admitted at last. "She's a girl and she's… she is active. She needs to be seen… since we have the resources available to us."
"The other doctor?" Michael clutched his chest as if that would get his heart rate back to normal.
"Sydney." Max confirmed. "I would never bring an outsider into your daughter's medical records."
"Okay… just so long as it's a girl thing and not… you know… genetics screwing us again."
"I know what the panic feels like, Michael. It'll pass." Max straightened and adjusted his stethoscope nervously. "I was inspired by Emily's initiative… I had Sydney look over Kathy as well… same treatment."
"But… isn't tonight… you know, the ultimate of… human mating rituals?"
"Yeah, it is." Max ground his teeth. "But Jacobi Wilson better keep his hands to himself."
--
"Mom." Alex warned when she grabbed the camera.
Isabel nearly took a step back at the face he gave her. "Come on, sweetie. It's your first dance and I have to capture you in that suit. You look so… handsome." He straightened his tie and rolled his eyes. "You can take the car but…"
"What?" He groaned and immediately felt guilty when his mother's eyes shot to her camera. She took a deep breath and set her jaw then turned to the hallway where Kyle was adjusting his gun for work. He gave his son a look.
"You can take the car. I had it washed this morning." Kyle continued where Isabel had left off. "Be careful and the one condition of you taking the car is that you have to bring the girlfriend back here so your mother can take some pictures." He walked to the door and threw it open. "We're going to have a talk about your attitude… but not tonight."
The door shut and Alex let his eyes fall to his hands. "Gee, you think he means that."
"Alex." Isabel sighed.
"Well it's not like he's been around to enforce his own rules, lately." He blurted a little more forcefully than he had intended.
"Alex." She protested once more but she didn't have the heart to mean it. He was right.
"And when he's here, he's not really. Ask Berty when the last time he sat down to dinner was." Alex sank down on the couch. "I'm sorry I was rude. I'm not mad at you."
"Sweetie… go pick up Lynnette and bring her back here. I'll take some pictures and then you can go so long as you're back by one."
"Midnight." He corrected her. "Lynnette's curfew is midnight."
"Alright then. Just… promise me you'll have fun. You only get two Spring Formals…" She furrowed her brow. "When did it stop being the prom?"
"I dunno. I'll be back."
--
"Mom! Where's my strapless thingy?" Kathy called down the stairs.
"In the bag still, I think." Liz called back up.
Max blinked at his wife. He had just walked in the door and found himself in Spring Formal central. "What's this about a strapless thingy? Why is our daughter wearing strapless thingies?"
"Max." Liz scoffed at him and returned to scuffing the bottoms of the shoes Kathy had bought that morning. "Wait til you see her, she looks beautiful."
"And the other one?"
"I think he needs help with his tux." Liz pointed to her neck. "He won't let me help." Instead of going to help their hapless son, Max leaned in and lightly bit her neck. "Max!"
"You're kidding." Kathy flounced down the stairs with the phone on one ear. Her skirts rustled as she stepped over the back of the couch and stood on the cushions. "You're kidding… Get out… Seriously? … No way… but… he's seeing Patty Downs… No!… Get out!… What about Patty? …. No, not Downs, Haywood… Well Patty's ugly anyway… No, Downs."
"Kat. Off the couch." Max snapped his fingers at her. She obediently stepped down onto the floor. Then he got a chance to really look her over. "No."
"What?" Liz furrowed her brow at him and handed their daughter her shoes.
Max watched Kathy put her shoes on and hang up with her friend and shook his head. "She's too pretty. She's not going out like that. Go find a potato sack and some pink ribbon. That oughta do it."
"You're not funny, Dad. I've been so busy, I almost forgot to get a dress." Kathy glared at him. "I actually did come this close to wearing a potato sack and pink ribbon. I was lucky to find this dress."
"Shouldn't there be a little more to it? Is there a jacket that comes with it?" Max frowned at the dress. "Where are the sleeves? Shouldn't there be something to help it fight gravity?"
"Mom." Kathy scoffed to her mother. "He better still let me go." She started to storm off until Max grabbed her hand.
"Get your curly head back here." Max hugged her and kissed her head. "You look beautiful."
"Dad! My hair." Kathy shoved him away. "It took us two hours to get my hair like this."
"I'm sorry I touched the hair." Max backed away with his hands in the air.
"Hey Dad! You home?" Danny called down.
"Down here."
"Finally. Maybe you can help me with this thing." There was a light scuffling sound and some muffled speech. When the teen emerged, he had his little sister tucked under one arm and his hand over her mouth. "Maybe we can find a muzzle for this one, huh?"
"Ahahadasoohookikeadak." Bethany tried to speak but her brother's hand was firmly planted over her mouth.
"Dan, let her go." Max ordered and motioned for Bethany to repeat.
"I said, all I said was he looks like a dork."
"And then?" Daniel prompted.
"What this?" She backed up and started making kissy noises.
"Ignore her." Max reached for the ends of the bow tie before Daniel could lunge for his little sister again. "You know, they make these already tied and all you have to do is clip the ends together."
"They also look tacky if they don't fit right." Liz interrupted.
"I wanted to look nice for Em." Danny swallowed thickly. "I'm surprised she wanted to go. She's always spouting off about how high school dances are just part of human mating rituals and shouldn't be given much merit."
"She sounds like her dad." Liz rolled her eyes. "He gave Maria the same speech in high school and I do believe he ended up going anyway."
Max finished the tie and straightened it before looking his son over. His eyes fell on the earring for the millionth time since the boy's birthday. "You have to wear that thing?"
"I'm going to the prom with my girlfriend of ten months and you're asking me not to wear the earring that she gave me." Danny nodded to his father. "Do we find logic in that?"
"Max, it's an earring. It won't keep him out of medical school." Liz looked him over. "I think it makes him look charming." Tears sprung to her eyes as she took in her grown up son. Seventeen. He was almost an adult and did he ever look it. Holding back a sob, she motioned him next to his sister. "I need a picture of you two."
"Mom, are you crying?" Kathy groaned. "It's just a dance. We'll be around for another year."
Max shushed his daughter and pointed to the far wall. "Come on, let's take these pictures."
Liz wiped at her eyes and aimed the camera at them. "Smile."
"Can we please hurry?" Danny smiled brightly for the camera and spoke through his teeth. "I still have to get Em, come back here and do this again all before the reservations."
"Big night?"
"Kind of."
"Your curfew is no later than 1:15. I already talked to Michael and Em's curfew is one." Max shot his son a meaningful look. "That gives you time to have her at the door, do your mushy goodbye and come home."
"Yes sir."
--
Michael stood in his daughter's doorway and froze. She was gorgeous. He swallowed thickly when she turned and motioned for him to zip her up. As he grasped the zipper a vision rolled through his head.
/"Could you zip me?" Emily pointed and turned back to the mirror. When he had done it, she turned. "How do I look?"
He stared at her white dress for a long time. "Perfect." He nodded almost to himself. "And very beautiful. Let's get going. I paid for this thing so it better happen." Michael reached for her hand. "Let's go make you an Evans."\
"Daddy? What's wrong?" Emily frowned at her father's reflection.
He zipped her up and turned her around. "Nothing. You look good."
"I didn't even want to go to this thing." Em sighed and smoothed her dress. "Danny loves these things. If I get married, I'm gonna do it just like you. I hate these dresses."
"Somehow I doubt… Liz will allow that to happen." Michael stood and just stared at his daughter until the doorbell rang.
"Maybe…" She whispered and shrugged. "You aren't going to get all picture happy are you?"
"Nah. I'll leave that to Liz." Michael cleared his throat and reached for her hand. "Come on. Your date is waiting."
--
Alex shifted uncertainly under the scrutiny. Mrs. Trejo tapped the camera against her chin. "What do you think, Tino?"
"'bout what?" The elder gentleman turned a page in his paper but never looked up, not even to reach for his bottle, which said to Alex that this was a long-standing routine.
"The boy taking your daughter to the Junior-Senior Prom." She hissed at him.
Mr. Trejo folded the paper away and looked Alex over. "My wife's nephew says you’re a good boy. He's met you?"
"Yes, sir. Jesse works with my mother." Alex nodded and shifted the corsage from hand to hand.
"Oh. Yeah. The woman… lawyer." Tino made a face and blindly reached for his bottle. "Where'd you get that scar?"
"Fight at school." Alex felt the butterflies fluttering in his stomach.
"You win?"
"No." Alex saw the interest fade from Mr. Trejo's eyes and almost let it go. "But it wasn't a fair fight. Four against one."
"And that's all you have to show? Not bad." Tino handed his empty bottle to his wife and reached for the paper again. "You take care of my little girl, tonight. Don't have her home too late."
"Tino." Mrs. Trejo hissed.
"What?" He glared at his wife, hands spread in a helpless gesture. "The boy's been sneaking in and out of her room for weeks. I'm not blind, Mari, or deaf. Lynnette's a tough girl." He turned his eyes on Alex, who shifted nervously. "You know she boxes? Killer right-hook."
"Home by midnight." Mari pointed the camera at the young man.
"One." Tino told her and lifted his paper again.
"Midnight."
"She's not going to have any fun if you hide her in the damn closet for the rest of her life. Let the girl have some fun." Tino didn't lower the paper again. "Mi hija! Your date is here. Come out before your mother scares him away."
"I don't know if we should let her go, he's a junior." Mari crossed her arms.
"Of course he is, or else he wouldn't be taking her to prom. Jesse said he was a good boy. Niña is not a baby. Lynnette!" Tino got to his feet.
"I'm coming." Lynnette appeared in a dress that covered her from neck to knee. "What's with all the shouting?"
"I don't think you should go." Mari glared at her husband. "He's 17."
"Hija." Tino put his arm around his eldest daughter. "This boy is taking you to the prom thingy. He's supposed to be a good boy but if he isn't, you do that combination that Puny taught you. This one looks like a breeze would knock him over." He reached into his pocket. "Anything happens, you call home. This is my work phone."
"Dad…" Lynnette started to protest.
"I'm not in line for another two days, don't worry about it. Go stand over there so Mommy can take some pictures and off you go."
--
Isabel readied her camera for Alex's return, she fixed lamps and moved vases and pictures on the mantle. Her father-in-law dozed in the armchair, an occurrence becoming more and more common in the Valenti house. She was lost in thought, fingering the frame of her wedding picture when his voice startled her. "He's lost, Isabel."
"Well, he's doing a good job of refusing any and all help."
"It'll get better."
"I hope it does. He's alienating Alex and they used to be like best friends." Isabel sighed and listened for her other children. "Did Kyle already leave?"
"They came to get him when you were in the shower." Valenti shifted in his chair. "Berty's around here somewhere. We're going to watch a movie if you want to join us."
"I… uh, I think I'm going to head back into the office. There are some cases that could use some looking at."
"Just don't start hiding there. These kids will run wild." Jim shifted in his chair. "Liberty! Are we going to watch this movie or what?"
"I'm waiting 'til after the pictures." The girl called back. "If we start watching and then Mom gets all weepy, it'll ruin it."
"I heard that!" Isabel shouted back.
--
"Mom!" Liz called into the back room but there was no one back there. Returning to her father, husband and children, she found a seat to pull up to the booth. "Guess she's upstairs."
"She'll be down soon enough." Jeff examined the camera. "So I push this button?"
"No, this one." Max showed him. "See and press this one to go to the next picture."
"Right." Jeff squinted at the little window as he patted his pockets for his glasses. "Look at that dashing young man. My god, is that Maria's girl?"
"It surely is."
"I don't think I've seen her in a few years." Jeff shook his head. "Looks like Maria with a little Michael…"
"Mostly Michael, I'd say." Liz muttered. "They're stubborn the same way. I don't know how they live together in that house. I feel sorry for Oriel."
"Is that my granddaughter?" Jeff turned to Max. "You let her out of the house looking like that?"
"I wanted her to wear a potato sack." Max protested and pointed to his wife. "You talk to her about that dress."
"It's pretty." Liz gave Max a look. "If you let Daniel run rampant, you have to give Kathy a little more leeway than you have been. I don't like this separate curfew thing. I told Jacobi the same thing you told Daniel."
"Liz…" Max started.
"When I'm in high school, can I stay out until one?" Beth asked her dad.
"No. You're not going to high school. I'm locking you in my time machine." Max told her and folded his arms on the table.
"I tried that." Jeff nodded to the pictures in the camera. "My daughter ran away to Vegas to get married when she was 18."
"You said you went to a justice of the peace." Nancy blurted out when she emerged from the back room. "Honey?"
"Jim Valenti told me." Jeff raised his hands in his defense.
"Yeah… well." Max hissed and covered his daughter's ears. "We did… in Las Vegas."
"It was a tasteful… ceremony." Liz averted her parents' eyes.
"Dad." Bethany whined and pulled his hands away.
"Look. Pictures." Max took the camera from Jeff and handed it to Nancy, trying to entice a smile and a change of subject from his mother-in-law. "Look at your grandson and his date."
--
April 2020
Max ran the scanner over Oriel's belly and then reached for the volume on the monitor. "This is what Baby Guerin sounds like."
"That's fast." Michael gulped suddenly. His palms were sweaty against his wife’s and his heart pounded rapidly but not as fast as the one coming out of the speakers. This was the first sonogram he'd sat in on. "That’s really fast. Max…?"
"Completely normal… for anyone on Earth and that includes us. Sometimes I forget you missed this the first time around. Em’s heart beat just as fast, I can assure you." Max nodded and stared into the blurry little screen. "I know I've asked before but…"
"We know what it is and we're not telling anyone… you're not either." Oriel warned him. "How's it doing?"
"Your child is blossoming but I'm still going to have to insist you take it extremely easy. Bed-rest and plenty of it." Max adjusted the baby a little. "Your weight is fine but I'd put Michael on a diet if I were you." Ribbing his friend a little about the weight he had gained in the recent months.
"Look who's talking." Michael sulked and sat up a little straighter, tucking in the gut just a little.
"I'm getting back in shape. I was bedridden for a while. What's your excuse?"
"Whatever. It's been like nine months, what's the deal? Maria only carried for eight." Michael quickly changed the subject.
"Which I'll bring to your attention now." Max folded his hands and leaned on the end of the bed. "I haven't gotten to that chapter yet but I will, soon. Both Maria and Tess didn't carry to a full normal human term. Eight months a piece. The girls turned out just fine. Both Liz and Isabel normally carry for nine and a half, sometimes ten months. It's not unusual… I guess to carry this long, which is also why you need to stay in bed. We don't know just when Baby Guerin makes its appearance… we just don't want it happening while you're at school. So, to bed, Mrs. Guerin and don't get up until after the baby's born."
"Ugh. I think my doctor is over-protective." Oriel rolled her eyes.
"How's Em doing?" Max began cleaning their mess, wiping equipment and handing Michael a towel to clean his wife's stomach.
"What do you mean?" Michael looked to Max who winced noticeably. "What?"
"It's nothing really." He shook his head. "She came in a few weeks ago, wanted a check up. I thought you knew. She was cramping, not feeling herself. She's fine. I was just wondering. It's no big deal. I… consulted another doctor… we put her on… birth control."
"What?" Michael felt his good mood fading, then it hit him. She hadn't been feeling herself. He began to panic. "Max… is she… oh my god… Max."
"Michael?" Max rushed around to his hyperventilating friend. "What? What is it? If it's about the birth control, that was to regulate her, not permission…"
"No… Is her…" Michael took a deep breath and tried to calm himself. "Is what happened to Maria happening to her?"
Then Max understood and shook his head. "No, nothing like that. She was having girl problems."
"Michael. I'm the one that told her to get checked out. I signed your name to the papers." Oriel admitted at last. "She's a girl and she's… she is active. She needs to be seen… since we have the resources available to us."
"The other doctor?" Michael clutched his chest as if that would get his heart rate back to normal.
"Sydney." Max confirmed. "I would never bring an outsider into your daughter's medical records."
"Okay… just so long as it's a girl thing and not… you know… genetics screwing us again."
"I know what the panic feels like, Michael. It'll pass." Max straightened and adjusted his stethoscope nervously. "I was inspired by Emily's initiative… I had Sydney look over Kathy as well… same treatment."
"But… isn't tonight… you know, the ultimate of… human mating rituals?"
"Yeah, it is." Max ground his teeth. "But Jacobi Wilson better keep his hands to himself."
--
"Mom." Alex warned when she grabbed the camera.
Isabel nearly took a step back at the face he gave her. "Come on, sweetie. It's your first dance and I have to capture you in that suit. You look so… handsome." He straightened his tie and rolled his eyes. "You can take the car but…"
"What?" He groaned and immediately felt guilty when his mother's eyes shot to her camera. She took a deep breath and set her jaw then turned to the hallway where Kyle was adjusting his gun for work. He gave his son a look.
"You can take the car. I had it washed this morning." Kyle continued where Isabel had left off. "Be careful and the one condition of you taking the car is that you have to bring the girlfriend back here so your mother can take some pictures." He walked to the door and threw it open. "We're going to have a talk about your attitude… but not tonight."
The door shut and Alex let his eyes fall to his hands. "Gee, you think he means that."
"Alex." Isabel sighed.
"Well it's not like he's been around to enforce his own rules, lately." He blurted a little more forcefully than he had intended.
"Alex." She protested once more but she didn't have the heart to mean it. He was right.
"And when he's here, he's not really. Ask Berty when the last time he sat down to dinner was." Alex sank down on the couch. "I'm sorry I was rude. I'm not mad at you."
"Sweetie… go pick up Lynnette and bring her back here. I'll take some pictures and then you can go so long as you're back by one."
"Midnight." He corrected her. "Lynnette's curfew is midnight."
"Alright then. Just… promise me you'll have fun. You only get two Spring Formals…" She furrowed her brow. "When did it stop being the prom?"
"I dunno. I'll be back."
--
"Mom! Where's my strapless thingy?" Kathy called down the stairs.
"In the bag still, I think." Liz called back up.
Max blinked at his wife. He had just walked in the door and found himself in Spring Formal central. "What's this about a strapless thingy? Why is our daughter wearing strapless thingies?"
"Max." Liz scoffed at him and returned to scuffing the bottoms of the shoes Kathy had bought that morning. "Wait til you see her, she looks beautiful."
"And the other one?"
"I think he needs help with his tux." Liz pointed to her neck. "He won't let me help." Instead of going to help their hapless son, Max leaned in and lightly bit her neck. "Max!"
"You're kidding." Kathy flounced down the stairs with the phone on one ear. Her skirts rustled as she stepped over the back of the couch and stood on the cushions. "You're kidding… Get out… Seriously? … No way… but… he's seeing Patty Downs… No!… Get out!… What about Patty? …. No, not Downs, Haywood… Well Patty's ugly anyway… No, Downs."
"Kat. Off the couch." Max snapped his fingers at her. She obediently stepped down onto the floor. Then he got a chance to really look her over. "No."
"What?" Liz furrowed her brow at him and handed their daughter her shoes.
Max watched Kathy put her shoes on and hang up with her friend and shook his head. "She's too pretty. She's not going out like that. Go find a potato sack and some pink ribbon. That oughta do it."
"You're not funny, Dad. I've been so busy, I almost forgot to get a dress." Kathy glared at him. "I actually did come this close to wearing a potato sack and pink ribbon. I was lucky to find this dress."
"Shouldn't there be a little more to it? Is there a jacket that comes with it?" Max frowned at the dress. "Where are the sleeves? Shouldn't there be something to help it fight gravity?"
"Mom." Kathy scoffed to her mother. "He better still let me go." She started to storm off until Max grabbed her hand.
"Get your curly head back here." Max hugged her and kissed her head. "You look beautiful."
"Dad! My hair." Kathy shoved him away. "It took us two hours to get my hair like this."
"I'm sorry I touched the hair." Max backed away with his hands in the air.
"Hey Dad! You home?" Danny called down.
"Down here."
"Finally. Maybe you can help me with this thing." There was a light scuffling sound and some muffled speech. When the teen emerged, he had his little sister tucked under one arm and his hand over her mouth. "Maybe we can find a muzzle for this one, huh?"
"Ahahadasoohookikeadak." Bethany tried to speak but her brother's hand was firmly planted over her mouth.
"Dan, let her go." Max ordered and motioned for Bethany to repeat.
"I said, all I said was he looks like a dork."
"And then?" Daniel prompted.
"What this?" She backed up and started making kissy noises.
"Ignore her." Max reached for the ends of the bow tie before Daniel could lunge for his little sister again. "You know, they make these already tied and all you have to do is clip the ends together."
"They also look tacky if they don't fit right." Liz interrupted.
"I wanted to look nice for Em." Danny swallowed thickly. "I'm surprised she wanted to go. She's always spouting off about how high school dances are just part of human mating rituals and shouldn't be given much merit."
"She sounds like her dad." Liz rolled her eyes. "He gave Maria the same speech in high school and I do believe he ended up going anyway."
Max finished the tie and straightened it before looking his son over. His eyes fell on the earring for the millionth time since the boy's birthday. "You have to wear that thing?"
"I'm going to the prom with my girlfriend of ten months and you're asking me not to wear the earring that she gave me." Danny nodded to his father. "Do we find logic in that?"
"Max, it's an earring. It won't keep him out of medical school." Liz looked him over. "I think it makes him look charming." Tears sprung to her eyes as she took in her grown up son. Seventeen. He was almost an adult and did he ever look it. Holding back a sob, she motioned him next to his sister. "I need a picture of you two."
"Mom, are you crying?" Kathy groaned. "It's just a dance. We'll be around for another year."
Max shushed his daughter and pointed to the far wall. "Come on, let's take these pictures."
Liz wiped at her eyes and aimed the camera at them. "Smile."
"Can we please hurry?" Danny smiled brightly for the camera and spoke through his teeth. "I still have to get Em, come back here and do this again all before the reservations."
"Big night?"
"Kind of."
"Your curfew is no later than 1:15. I already talked to Michael and Em's curfew is one." Max shot his son a meaningful look. "That gives you time to have her at the door, do your mushy goodbye and come home."
"Yes sir."
--
Michael stood in his daughter's doorway and froze. She was gorgeous. He swallowed thickly when she turned and motioned for him to zip her up. As he grasped the zipper a vision rolled through his head.
/"Could you zip me?" Emily pointed and turned back to the mirror. When he had done it, she turned. "How do I look?"
He stared at her white dress for a long time. "Perfect." He nodded almost to himself. "And very beautiful. Let's get going. I paid for this thing so it better happen." Michael reached for her hand. "Let's go make you an Evans."\
"Daddy? What's wrong?" Emily frowned at her father's reflection.
He zipped her up and turned her around. "Nothing. You look good."
"I didn't even want to go to this thing." Em sighed and smoothed her dress. "Danny loves these things. If I get married, I'm gonna do it just like you. I hate these dresses."
"Somehow I doubt… Liz will allow that to happen." Michael stood and just stared at his daughter until the doorbell rang.
"Maybe…" She whispered and shrugged. "You aren't going to get all picture happy are you?"
"Nah. I'll leave that to Liz." Michael cleared his throat and reached for her hand. "Come on. Your date is waiting."
--
Alex shifted uncertainly under the scrutiny. Mrs. Trejo tapped the camera against her chin. "What do you think, Tino?"
"'bout what?" The elder gentleman turned a page in his paper but never looked up, not even to reach for his bottle, which said to Alex that this was a long-standing routine.
"The boy taking your daughter to the Junior-Senior Prom." She hissed at him.
Mr. Trejo folded the paper away and looked Alex over. "My wife's nephew says you’re a good boy. He's met you?"
"Yes, sir. Jesse works with my mother." Alex nodded and shifted the corsage from hand to hand.
"Oh. Yeah. The woman… lawyer." Tino made a face and blindly reached for his bottle. "Where'd you get that scar?"
"Fight at school." Alex felt the butterflies fluttering in his stomach.
"You win?"
"No." Alex saw the interest fade from Mr. Trejo's eyes and almost let it go. "But it wasn't a fair fight. Four against one."
"And that's all you have to show? Not bad." Tino handed his empty bottle to his wife and reached for the paper again. "You take care of my little girl, tonight. Don't have her home too late."
"Tino." Mrs. Trejo hissed.
"What?" He glared at his wife, hands spread in a helpless gesture. "The boy's been sneaking in and out of her room for weeks. I'm not blind, Mari, or deaf. Lynnette's a tough girl." He turned his eyes on Alex, who shifted nervously. "You know she boxes? Killer right-hook."
"Home by midnight." Mari pointed the camera at the young man.
"One." Tino told her and lifted his paper again.
"Midnight."
"She's not going to have any fun if you hide her in the damn closet for the rest of her life. Let the girl have some fun." Tino didn't lower the paper again. "Mi hija! Your date is here. Come out before your mother scares him away."
"I don't know if we should let her go, he's a junior." Mari crossed her arms.
"Of course he is, or else he wouldn't be taking her to prom. Jesse said he was a good boy. Niña is not a baby. Lynnette!" Tino got to his feet.
"I'm coming." Lynnette appeared in a dress that covered her from neck to knee. "What's with all the shouting?"
"I don't think you should go." Mari glared at her husband. "He's 17."
"Hija." Tino put his arm around his eldest daughter. "This boy is taking you to the prom thingy. He's supposed to be a good boy but if he isn't, you do that combination that Puny taught you. This one looks like a breeze would knock him over." He reached into his pocket. "Anything happens, you call home. This is my work phone."
"Dad…" Lynnette started to protest.
"I'm not in line for another two days, don't worry about it. Go stand over there so Mommy can take some pictures and off you go."
--
Isabel readied her camera for Alex's return, she fixed lamps and moved vases and pictures on the mantle. Her father-in-law dozed in the armchair, an occurrence becoming more and more common in the Valenti house. She was lost in thought, fingering the frame of her wedding picture when his voice startled her. "He's lost, Isabel."
"Well, he's doing a good job of refusing any and all help."
"It'll get better."
"I hope it does. He's alienating Alex and they used to be like best friends." Isabel sighed and listened for her other children. "Did Kyle already leave?"
"They came to get him when you were in the shower." Valenti shifted in his chair. "Berty's around here somewhere. We're going to watch a movie if you want to join us."
"I… uh, I think I'm going to head back into the office. There are some cases that could use some looking at."
"Just don't start hiding there. These kids will run wild." Jim shifted in his chair. "Liberty! Are we going to watch this movie or what?"
"I'm waiting 'til after the pictures." The girl called back. "If we start watching and then Mom gets all weepy, it'll ruin it."
"I heard that!" Isabel shouted back.
--
"Mom!" Liz called into the back room but there was no one back there. Returning to her father, husband and children, she found a seat to pull up to the booth. "Guess she's upstairs."
"She'll be down soon enough." Jeff examined the camera. "So I push this button?"
"No, this one." Max showed him. "See and press this one to go to the next picture."
"Right." Jeff squinted at the little window as he patted his pockets for his glasses. "Look at that dashing young man. My god, is that Maria's girl?"
"It surely is."
"I don't think I've seen her in a few years." Jeff shook his head. "Looks like Maria with a little Michael…"
"Mostly Michael, I'd say." Liz muttered. "They're stubborn the same way. I don't know how they live together in that house. I feel sorry for Oriel."
"Is that my granddaughter?" Jeff turned to Max. "You let her out of the house looking like that?"
"I wanted her to wear a potato sack." Max protested and pointed to his wife. "You talk to her about that dress."
"It's pretty." Liz gave Max a look. "If you let Daniel run rampant, you have to give Kathy a little more leeway than you have been. I don't like this separate curfew thing. I told Jacobi the same thing you told Daniel."
"Liz…" Max started.
"When I'm in high school, can I stay out until one?" Beth asked her dad.
"No. You're not going to high school. I'm locking you in my time machine." Max told her and folded his arms on the table.
"I tried that." Jeff nodded to the pictures in the camera. "My daughter ran away to Vegas to get married when she was 18."
"You said you went to a justice of the peace." Nancy blurted out when she emerged from the back room. "Honey?"
"Jim Valenti told me." Jeff raised his hands in his defense.
"Yeah… well." Max hissed and covered his daughter's ears. "We did… in Las Vegas."
"It was a tasteful… ceremony." Liz averted her parents' eyes.
"Dad." Bethany whined and pulled his hands away.
"Look. Pictures." Max took the camera from Jeff and handed it to Nancy, trying to entice a smile and a change of subject from his mother-in-law. "Look at your grandson and his date."
--
80b
The Fate of Destiny Part 80B
Isabel set her camera down and motioned her son into the kitchen. "Why is she all covered up?"
Alex rolled his eyes. "Her mom didn't even want her to come with me, or at all."
"She's still very pretty." Isabel nodded her approval. "Be careful, okay? Jr.?"
"Yeah, Mom." He eyed her suspiciously.
"What?"
"You haven't called me Junior since before Kyle was born." He pointed out.
"Just go and have fun, okay?" Isabel kissed his forehead.
"Mom…" Alex hugged her. "I really am sorry for being mean earlier."
"I know. Let's cut your dad some slack though, Okay? He's all stressed about work and your… his mom." Isabel straightened his tie. "Go, she's waiting. Show her a good time." She caught his arm as he started to go. "But not too good, you hear?"
"Mom…" Alex made a face at her.
--
Kathy smiled politely at dinner but Jacobi's friends were not hers. They all thought she was a snob and not that they were far off-base but it was intelligence snobbery, not clique snobbery. Discreetly adjusting the bodice of her dress, she looked out the window and hoped dinner would be over soon. Dancing would at least ensure she'd have him to herself for three minutes in a row.
--
Emily sat on her hands in the restaurant that Danny had picked out. It was nice, maybe a little too nice. She felt really out of place but she kept on smiling and trying not to fiddle with the crystal goblets on their table. She had no hankering for anything on the fancy menu so she let him order for her. They were seated too far away from each other. All she had really expected out of him was time with him, not with space between.
"Em? You okay?" Daniel leaned over his plate.
"Fine. You done?"
"You're ready to go?"
"Sure, if you're done."
"I…" He pulled his napkin off his lap. "I just want you to have fun. I had a plan and…"
"Sometimes things don't go according to plan. You have to make things up as you go. We've got half an hour before the doors open. Let's just drive." She pleaded with him. "Come on. We'll drive around and then go to this thing for a while, then we can go somewhere else."
--
"Trust me." Alex led Lynnette into the gym where the photographer was setting up. "We'll see if he lets us, then we'll decide what to do. I hate pictures these days."
"Okay." She nodded and followed him and looked around at the decorations. "You know, these are really cheesey."
"Yep. Another human mating ritual. They make everything shiny so that you'll remember you saw it but the real thing is supposed to be the interaction with your peers, your date. Something to talk about when you get old. But I'm going to have the system beat. We'll take our pictures early, have our fun, skip out and have more fun."
"A man with a plan."
"Oh yeah."
--
Isabel set her dinner on the long table and pulled her notes out of a file cabinet she kept in the room for her active cases. It was nearly an hour when a shadow fell over her notepad. She snapped her head up to find her partner leaning in the doorway. "Is this what life has become for us? We're here all day and we go home for a few hours and then find excuses to come back here."
"Yeah, well… some nights it's better that I'm here being productive than at home feeling like I'm in the way." Isabel shook her head and set down her highlighter. "I thought you came to Roswell to spend more time with your mom and son?"
"Yeah, well, Mom's asleep already and Seb is at a friend's. He got popular really fast… he's got a lot of friends… a lot of sleepovers… mostly family so I don't mind so much…" Jesse took a seat and pulled a book closer for viewing. "I was feeling a bit useless at home myself. I thought you had a whole tribe of kids to keep you busy."
"It only feels like a tribe. Alex went to the prom… Little Kyle is at a sleepover or something and Berty has her grandfather." Isabel's eyes clouded over a bit. "She's really attached to him. Dad's only going to watch half that movie before he falls asleep and then she's going to be the nice quiet girl she is until it's over and then she'll go right to bed."
"And Kyle, your husband."
Isabel set her jaw and twirled a pencil between her fingers. "He's working."
"Well, he's a busy man." Jesse tried to comfort her with words but from the look on her face, that was useless. "Sheriff of a town that I know has gotten a bit worse since I was young enough to cause trouble. He's busy."
"He's hiding." Isabel whispered. "From me, from his mother, from his father…" She sighed and let a weary smile settle on her face. "But I'm glad you're here. At least I won't be alone."
"What are you working on? The… neighbor dispute?" Jesse set his briefcase down and pulled a chair out next to her. "The fence thing?"
"Yeah. Should be simple enough but I like to have my bases covered."
"I know." He breathed with a slight grimace.
"What's that supposed to mean?" She turned her head to look at him.
"Your father-in-law warned me but I didn't quite believe it until that case last month with the… custody arrangement… the materials you showed up with and the ones we actually used…" He made a face. "Overkill."
"It was not overkill. I was covering my bases. I was ready for anything." Isabel protested and then she thought about it. Had they been fighting over sole custody, maybe she would have been justified in her diligence but it was a simple matter of what weekends and holidays. "So maybe I went a bit overboard."
"A bit?" Jesse laughed. "No, it's great that you take your job so seriously and it's even better that you're great at what we do. Maybe you should relax a little…" He trailed off when she stiffened. "But you can't. Cause of Maury and his goons…"
"Just a little shift in the tide and everything that I've fought for is gone… and it ends with me, you know?" Isabel shook her head at her books. "I'm not even really an Evans anymore but… Unless my brother's kids take a sudden interest in law and I can keep this up for eight more years till they take the bar. This firm the way it is, ends with me."
"Maybe we can swing one into law."
"Highly doubtful… the oldest two, they're Alex's age and one wants to be a surgeon like his dad and Kathy… I don't know… we're not as close as we should be, I suppose." She set down her pencil and reached for her dinner. "I'm not going to be so backward as to say that a girl can't carry on the name but… you know what I mean."
"I think that so long as it stays in the family, you'll have no problem keeping Evans on the door and your father's picture in the meeting room." Jesse's voice was soothing and his hand reassuring on her shoulder. After a moment of silence, he hesitantly moved his hand to the back of her chair. "I know that you don't know me all that well but why do you feel so strongly about this? Most people would just let change happen. Why is the firm Evans and Associates when it could so easily be Valenti and Associates?"
"Or the Law offices of Valenti and Ramirez?" She quirked an eyebrow at him as she turned her dinner slowly in a circle, with no real plan to eat it. He had the grace to look sheepishly away. "My father… and my mother were my world. I lived to please them and I really didn't have to do much at all to make them happy but I… I felt I owed it to them to be perfect…" She cut off his would-be interruption with a gesture of her hand. "I'm adopted and I guess a part of me has always tried to make sure I earned their love, that they had no reason to regret taking us in. When I got pregnant… My parents went beyond the call of duty. They just… they were wonderful and after he was born… I got back into school and Dad set me up as an assistant to the secretary who was getting ready to retire…"
"Then you took over for her when she left."
"And when I got my associates, I moved up into the legal assistant's office with the rest of the grunts." She nodded to his appreciative smile. "And don't think it was only nepotism… I earned every step… except the first. I feel like I owe it to my mother at least to keep things the way they are."
"Why?" Jesse cleared his throat and leaned on the table. "Granted, I feel like I have to take care of my mother but she'd rather take care of herself. I doubt that anything could ever change how your mother feels about you, adopted or not. Seems to me like your parents were great, better than most."
"Guess I have some unresolved issues, huh." She laughed at herself, when she turned toward him and rested her hand on the back of her chair, their fingers touched, but only for a second until she moved them away… slightly.
"You and everyone else on the planet." He smiled gently at her. The silence stretched between them, growing slightly awkward. Clearing his throat, he was the first to look away. "You wouldn't happen to know where the hot spots for single middle-aged men are… would you?"
"I've been out of circulation for a very long time. I don't even remember where the hot spots were when I was." She shook her head. The door hit the door jamb hard and the two lifted their heads at the sound. "Kyle?"
"Saw the lights on when I was driving by, thought I'd stop in and see if Alex got off alright." Kyle bent the rim of his hat in his hands.
"Yeah, he did." Isabel stood and lowered her voice as she approached the man she had married what seemed like a lifetime ago. "You need to talk to him."
"I don't know what's gotten into him. That attitude—"
"It's not that." Isabel flicked her eyes to Jesse and took a breath. "He's… you… Kyle, he doesn't need a lecture… he needs his father. He wants to talk to you but he feels like you aren't listening."
"I listen." Kyle pulled her into the hallway to get out of hearing distance of a man he felt to be sitting too close to his wife when he had walked in.
"No, you brush him off on your way to work or to your mother's… the kids never see you anymore and when they do, you don't do more than yell at them… Alex knows he was a pain in the ass today. He apologized but you…" Isabel sighed when she could see that Kyle wasn't hearing her anymore.
"I have to get back on patrol."
"Kyle."
"We'll talk when I come home… and when you get home." He made a point of looking the direction of the research room and turned to go. Isabel didn't know whether to be offended or to feel slightly guilty. But as she watched him go, she decided she couldn't worry about him if he wouldn't let her. She had other things to worry about; the kids going to school, making sure they were fed if she couldn't do it, getting her cases in order, keeping the firm at its peak performance. If Kyle Valenti couldn't bother to attend to his family, they couldn't bother to attend him either.
"Iz, you okay?" Jesse stood in the doorway watching her watch the empty hallway.
"I'm fine. Really. What were we talking about?" Isabel turned to him with her patented drop-dead-gorgeous smile, the one she hadn't had to wear since high school.
--
"Sorry I'm late." Diane rushed in and pulled a chair up to the table at the Crashdown. "Where are they?"
"Right here, Mom." Liz handed over the camera immediately. "You want something to drink?"
"Just water, honey." Diane sighed at the sight of her grandchildren with their dates. "Oh, they're beautiful darlings, aren't they?"
"Jeff and I cannot be the only ones who don't like Kathy's dress." Max groaned. He didn't mean to be that father; the one that locked his daughter up in her room and nailed the bedroom windows shut and covered his daughters from ankle to neck to keep away the boys.
"Oh, she's lovely. Such a beautiful young woman." Diane peered at the photo. "Did she dye her hair?"
"No." Liz furrowed her brow and looked at the picture over her mother-in-law's shoulder. For the first time she noticed that her daughter's hair, while still it's wild and curly self, had lightened somewhat from the dark tresses that easily identified her as Max's daughter. "At least, I don't think so."
"Hey Gramma, did you know that Mom and Dad got married by an Elvis impersonator?" Bethany blurted.
Diane cleared her throat at her son, who was busy cutting David's dinner. "Yes, I knew."
"Ain't that crazy? I didn't know what an Elvis impersonator was until Grampa showed me a picture of an alien Elvis impersonator."
"Dad. I thought you were going to get rid of all those horrible pictures." Liz sighed wearily and took her seat once more.
"I can't. They are a big part of this place. The aliens, the pictures, the fanatics. Without them, the diner has no character." Jeff looked wistfully around at his livelihood. "I was thinking though, of cutting Jose in on the business. It's time for your mother and I to take a step back from it all."
"Dad…" Liz didn't know what to say.
"It'll be good for us. He's got family with experience. They'll borrow the theme and set up a Crashdown on the other side of town. Jose will keep track of the flow from that side and we'll keep this one going just like we always have."
"Where does this step back factor in?"
"Some of his people will be working here so I don't have to so much." Jeff looked to his wife, who had agreed this was for the best. "I never expected to leave you this place and you don't need it…"
"And they'll leave it the same?" Liz looked up at the alien mural that had annoyed her so much after she had found out the truth about Max.
"Yep. That's what he says." Jeff nodded and he had a smile on his face but Liz could see that it didn't reach his eyes. However hard their life had been running the restaurant, he had loved every moment of it. Liz knew that he had probably tricked the tourists himself once upon a time, had probably laughed his ass off while counting his tips. The theme had only been instituted since she was a little girl but the place had been attracting tourists since the late seventies. "Anyway, it might be a relief to have some time off. We've got grandchildren and weekends are free."
"I'm sure Kathy would love to spend her weekends hanging with you guys." Max nodded immediately, wincing only slightly when Liz smacked him. "Danny, David and Beth too."
"Yep." Beth nodded as she bopped around the table filling waters.
"You look just like your mother when she was your age." Nancy stopped the girl to pinch her cheeks. "You are such a pretty little girl."
"I know." Beth sighed as she returned the pitcher to the counter.
"She's not the least bit shy." Liz made a face at her daughter.
"She's beautiful." Jeff agreed. "Looks nothing like her father."
"Dad." Liz chided.
"I'd say she lucked out too." Max kissed his daughter as she passed. "You don't look anything like your old man, do you?"
Beth turned to the table and flicked her hair over her shoulders. She lifted both hands to her ears and flicked them forward. "I got the dumbo ears." She told them all proudly in a sing-song voice. The table burst out laughing. All Max could do was flick his back at her, their game since she was little. She frowned at the laughing table. "Well, I like my ears." Plopping down on her father's lap, she faced in with all the earnest an eight-year-old could muster. "Someday, I'm going to use them to fly."
"High aspirations for someone who can't keep her room clean." Max couldn't help but chuckle.
"I can't keep it dirty all by myself. Davey helps." And the room erupted all over again.
--
Prom. A bust. Emily tried to smile and have a good time for Danny but she hated these things. They chatted idly with classmates from time to time, they danced to the slow songs. Finally, she had to put her foot down. "Let's go somewhere."
"What?" Daniel turned to her. He was having a craptacular time because Emily was somewhere else all night. The short drive before the dance had done nothing to get her in a better mood. "It's only been like an hour and a half."
"Maybe somewhere… alone?" She slipped her arms around his waist, which automatically brought his arms around her but he still wasn't getting it. "Somewhere naked, preferably."
It took all of ten seconds for the words to penetrate the fog in his brain. "Nake—" His eyes darted around to make sure no one had overheard. "Em."
"Come on… I'm bored and my dress is too tight." She pouted up at him. "I'm pretty sure we could sneak into the school for awhile… we wouldn't miss the crowning if that's what you're waiting for."
Alex shook his head at his cousins when they fled through a door in the gym like he wished he was doing. He was tired of Lynnette letting her friends make her feel bad about… everything. When a slow song came up, he pulled her onto the dance floor if just to listen to something other than the shallow girls bickering. It was a few moments before he realized that she was just as relieved.
"There's something that I can't quite explain. I'm so in love with you. Don't ever take that away. And if I said a hundred times before, expect a thousand more. Never take that away."
While they could relax, they weren't having fun and that irked him.
"Expect me to be calling you to see, if you're okay when I'm not around Asking do you love me, I love the way you make it sound. Calling you to see, do I try too hard to make you smile, to make a smile."
"You're not having a good time." He accused her lightly and she just shrugged. "Come on. I'm here with the prettiest girl in the world and I look damn good if I do say so myself. We need to have fun. What do you say we go mingle, with, um, people not sophomores who got asked to the dance by a senior?"
"I will keep calling you to see, if you're sleeping, are you dreaming? If you're dreaming, are you dreaming of me? I can't believe you actually picked me."
"But…" She furrowed her brow and looked up at him.
"I thought that the world had lost its sway (it's so hard sometimes). Then I fell in love with you (then came you) You took that away (it's not so difficult, the world is not so difficult), You take away the old to show me the new and I feel like I can fly when I stand next to you. So while I'm on this phone, a hundred miles from home, I take the words you gave and send them back to you."
"You got asked by a junior, thanks for noticing." He pecked her lips lightly, pleased by her surprise and the blush that spread through her cheeks. "Don't listen to them. In 10 years they're all going to be divorcing the guys that get them pregnant tonight."
"I only wanna see, if you're okay when I'm not around Asking do you love me, I love the way you make it sound. Calling you to see, do I try too hard to make you smile, to make a smile…"
"Alex!" She gasped, then giggled. They danced in silence for a while, just swaying together until she looked up at him again. "You wanted to leave earlier… where did you want to go?"
"I will keep calling you to see, if you're sleeping, are you dreaming? If you're dreaming, are you dreaming of me? I can't believe you actually picked me.
"I just… know a place where we could be alone."
"Ah, ah, ah, ah a-ah. I will keep calling you to see, if you're sleeping, are you dreaming? If you're dreaming, are you dreaming of me? I can't believe you actually picked me. Oh-whoa oh, oh, who-oa, oh, o-oh. Ah, ah, ah, ah a-ah"
Kathy looked longingly at the dance floor where she could see Alex and his date getting along. She liked that girl. She had a pretty face. She rolled her eyes every time one of Jacobi's friends cracked a joke. They weren't all that funny and she wanted to dance, or go mingle or something, anything but the torture of hanging out with these geeks. Even her brother would be preferable about now but he was nowhere in sight. Ever since her snap right before all the ugliness of what happened to Alex and her brother, none of her friends were sure of her anymore. She was reduced to fringe popular and that sucked beyond anything imaginable. She'd like to see any of them deal with a hospitalized cousin, a boyfriend without memory, a missing little brother and alien powers in addition to the high school hierarchy. "Jacobi?"
"Huh?" He turned with only half his attention on his girlfriend.
"The key. I want it."
"Key?" She had his full attention now. She wasn't supposed to know that he had a key much less want it. "Kat…" He allowed her to pull him away from the group. "What?"
"You're having fun and I'm not so I thought I'd take the key and rest up for later."
"Later?" He blinked at her.
"Or now if you're going to come with me but I can't stand another minute of James babbling about Star Trek XX or whose Battleship whatever character can beat whose. It's all a little mind numbing for me, so I'd like to go. I have to be home at one and I don't plan to be bored until ten when this thing ends…"
"Okay, then, we'll go." He nodded and reached to their table for her jacket. "Are you sure?"
"We'll do twenty questions when we're out of here."
--
Isabel set her camera down and motioned her son into the kitchen. "Why is she all covered up?"
Alex rolled his eyes. "Her mom didn't even want her to come with me, or at all."
"She's still very pretty." Isabel nodded her approval. "Be careful, okay? Jr.?"
"Yeah, Mom." He eyed her suspiciously.
"What?"
"You haven't called me Junior since before Kyle was born." He pointed out.
"Just go and have fun, okay?" Isabel kissed his forehead.
"Mom…" Alex hugged her. "I really am sorry for being mean earlier."
"I know. Let's cut your dad some slack though, Okay? He's all stressed about work and your… his mom." Isabel straightened his tie. "Go, she's waiting. Show her a good time." She caught his arm as he started to go. "But not too good, you hear?"
"Mom…" Alex made a face at her.
--
Kathy smiled politely at dinner but Jacobi's friends were not hers. They all thought she was a snob and not that they were far off-base but it was intelligence snobbery, not clique snobbery. Discreetly adjusting the bodice of her dress, she looked out the window and hoped dinner would be over soon. Dancing would at least ensure she'd have him to herself for three minutes in a row.
--
Emily sat on her hands in the restaurant that Danny had picked out. It was nice, maybe a little too nice. She felt really out of place but she kept on smiling and trying not to fiddle with the crystal goblets on their table. She had no hankering for anything on the fancy menu so she let him order for her. They were seated too far away from each other. All she had really expected out of him was time with him, not with space between.
"Em? You okay?" Daniel leaned over his plate.
"Fine. You done?"
"You're ready to go?"
"Sure, if you're done."
"I…" He pulled his napkin off his lap. "I just want you to have fun. I had a plan and…"
"Sometimes things don't go according to plan. You have to make things up as you go. We've got half an hour before the doors open. Let's just drive." She pleaded with him. "Come on. We'll drive around and then go to this thing for a while, then we can go somewhere else."
--
"Trust me." Alex led Lynnette into the gym where the photographer was setting up. "We'll see if he lets us, then we'll decide what to do. I hate pictures these days."
"Okay." She nodded and followed him and looked around at the decorations. "You know, these are really cheesey."
"Yep. Another human mating ritual. They make everything shiny so that you'll remember you saw it but the real thing is supposed to be the interaction with your peers, your date. Something to talk about when you get old. But I'm going to have the system beat. We'll take our pictures early, have our fun, skip out and have more fun."
"A man with a plan."
"Oh yeah."
--
Isabel set her dinner on the long table and pulled her notes out of a file cabinet she kept in the room for her active cases. It was nearly an hour when a shadow fell over her notepad. She snapped her head up to find her partner leaning in the doorway. "Is this what life has become for us? We're here all day and we go home for a few hours and then find excuses to come back here."
"Yeah, well… some nights it's better that I'm here being productive than at home feeling like I'm in the way." Isabel shook her head and set down her highlighter. "I thought you came to Roswell to spend more time with your mom and son?"
"Yeah, well, Mom's asleep already and Seb is at a friend's. He got popular really fast… he's got a lot of friends… a lot of sleepovers… mostly family so I don't mind so much…" Jesse took a seat and pulled a book closer for viewing. "I was feeling a bit useless at home myself. I thought you had a whole tribe of kids to keep you busy."
"It only feels like a tribe. Alex went to the prom… Little Kyle is at a sleepover or something and Berty has her grandfather." Isabel's eyes clouded over a bit. "She's really attached to him. Dad's only going to watch half that movie before he falls asleep and then she's going to be the nice quiet girl she is until it's over and then she'll go right to bed."
"And Kyle, your husband."
Isabel set her jaw and twirled a pencil between her fingers. "He's working."
"Well, he's a busy man." Jesse tried to comfort her with words but from the look on her face, that was useless. "Sheriff of a town that I know has gotten a bit worse since I was young enough to cause trouble. He's busy."
"He's hiding." Isabel whispered. "From me, from his mother, from his father…" She sighed and let a weary smile settle on her face. "But I'm glad you're here. At least I won't be alone."
"What are you working on? The… neighbor dispute?" Jesse set his briefcase down and pulled a chair out next to her. "The fence thing?"
"Yeah. Should be simple enough but I like to have my bases covered."
"I know." He breathed with a slight grimace.
"What's that supposed to mean?" She turned her head to look at him.
"Your father-in-law warned me but I didn't quite believe it until that case last month with the… custody arrangement… the materials you showed up with and the ones we actually used…" He made a face. "Overkill."
"It was not overkill. I was covering my bases. I was ready for anything." Isabel protested and then she thought about it. Had they been fighting over sole custody, maybe she would have been justified in her diligence but it was a simple matter of what weekends and holidays. "So maybe I went a bit overboard."
"A bit?" Jesse laughed. "No, it's great that you take your job so seriously and it's even better that you're great at what we do. Maybe you should relax a little…" He trailed off when she stiffened. "But you can't. Cause of Maury and his goons…"
"Just a little shift in the tide and everything that I've fought for is gone… and it ends with me, you know?" Isabel shook her head at her books. "I'm not even really an Evans anymore but… Unless my brother's kids take a sudden interest in law and I can keep this up for eight more years till they take the bar. This firm the way it is, ends with me."
"Maybe we can swing one into law."
"Highly doubtful… the oldest two, they're Alex's age and one wants to be a surgeon like his dad and Kathy… I don't know… we're not as close as we should be, I suppose." She set down her pencil and reached for her dinner. "I'm not going to be so backward as to say that a girl can't carry on the name but… you know what I mean."
"I think that so long as it stays in the family, you'll have no problem keeping Evans on the door and your father's picture in the meeting room." Jesse's voice was soothing and his hand reassuring on her shoulder. After a moment of silence, he hesitantly moved his hand to the back of her chair. "I know that you don't know me all that well but why do you feel so strongly about this? Most people would just let change happen. Why is the firm Evans and Associates when it could so easily be Valenti and Associates?"
"Or the Law offices of Valenti and Ramirez?" She quirked an eyebrow at him as she turned her dinner slowly in a circle, with no real plan to eat it. He had the grace to look sheepishly away. "My father… and my mother were my world. I lived to please them and I really didn't have to do much at all to make them happy but I… I felt I owed it to them to be perfect…" She cut off his would-be interruption with a gesture of her hand. "I'm adopted and I guess a part of me has always tried to make sure I earned their love, that they had no reason to regret taking us in. When I got pregnant… My parents went beyond the call of duty. They just… they were wonderful and after he was born… I got back into school and Dad set me up as an assistant to the secretary who was getting ready to retire…"
"Then you took over for her when she left."
"And when I got my associates, I moved up into the legal assistant's office with the rest of the grunts." She nodded to his appreciative smile. "And don't think it was only nepotism… I earned every step… except the first. I feel like I owe it to my mother at least to keep things the way they are."
"Why?" Jesse cleared his throat and leaned on the table. "Granted, I feel like I have to take care of my mother but she'd rather take care of herself. I doubt that anything could ever change how your mother feels about you, adopted or not. Seems to me like your parents were great, better than most."
"Guess I have some unresolved issues, huh." She laughed at herself, when she turned toward him and rested her hand on the back of her chair, their fingers touched, but only for a second until she moved them away… slightly.
"You and everyone else on the planet." He smiled gently at her. The silence stretched between them, growing slightly awkward. Clearing his throat, he was the first to look away. "You wouldn't happen to know where the hot spots for single middle-aged men are… would you?"
"I've been out of circulation for a very long time. I don't even remember where the hot spots were when I was." She shook her head. The door hit the door jamb hard and the two lifted their heads at the sound. "Kyle?"
"Saw the lights on when I was driving by, thought I'd stop in and see if Alex got off alright." Kyle bent the rim of his hat in his hands.
"Yeah, he did." Isabel stood and lowered her voice as she approached the man she had married what seemed like a lifetime ago. "You need to talk to him."
"I don't know what's gotten into him. That attitude—"
"It's not that." Isabel flicked her eyes to Jesse and took a breath. "He's… you… Kyle, he doesn't need a lecture… he needs his father. He wants to talk to you but he feels like you aren't listening."
"I listen." Kyle pulled her into the hallway to get out of hearing distance of a man he felt to be sitting too close to his wife when he had walked in.
"No, you brush him off on your way to work or to your mother's… the kids never see you anymore and when they do, you don't do more than yell at them… Alex knows he was a pain in the ass today. He apologized but you…" Isabel sighed when she could see that Kyle wasn't hearing her anymore.
"I have to get back on patrol."
"Kyle."
"We'll talk when I come home… and when you get home." He made a point of looking the direction of the research room and turned to go. Isabel didn't know whether to be offended or to feel slightly guilty. But as she watched him go, she decided she couldn't worry about him if he wouldn't let her. She had other things to worry about; the kids going to school, making sure they were fed if she couldn't do it, getting her cases in order, keeping the firm at its peak performance. If Kyle Valenti couldn't bother to attend to his family, they couldn't bother to attend him either.
"Iz, you okay?" Jesse stood in the doorway watching her watch the empty hallway.
"I'm fine. Really. What were we talking about?" Isabel turned to him with her patented drop-dead-gorgeous smile, the one she hadn't had to wear since high school.
--
"Sorry I'm late." Diane rushed in and pulled a chair up to the table at the Crashdown. "Where are they?"
"Right here, Mom." Liz handed over the camera immediately. "You want something to drink?"
"Just water, honey." Diane sighed at the sight of her grandchildren with their dates. "Oh, they're beautiful darlings, aren't they?"
"Jeff and I cannot be the only ones who don't like Kathy's dress." Max groaned. He didn't mean to be that father; the one that locked his daughter up in her room and nailed the bedroom windows shut and covered his daughters from ankle to neck to keep away the boys.
"Oh, she's lovely. Such a beautiful young woman." Diane peered at the photo. "Did she dye her hair?"
"No." Liz furrowed her brow and looked at the picture over her mother-in-law's shoulder. For the first time she noticed that her daughter's hair, while still it's wild and curly self, had lightened somewhat from the dark tresses that easily identified her as Max's daughter. "At least, I don't think so."
"Hey Gramma, did you know that Mom and Dad got married by an Elvis impersonator?" Bethany blurted.
Diane cleared her throat at her son, who was busy cutting David's dinner. "Yes, I knew."
"Ain't that crazy? I didn't know what an Elvis impersonator was until Grampa showed me a picture of an alien Elvis impersonator."
"Dad. I thought you were going to get rid of all those horrible pictures." Liz sighed wearily and took her seat once more.
"I can't. They are a big part of this place. The aliens, the pictures, the fanatics. Without them, the diner has no character." Jeff looked wistfully around at his livelihood. "I was thinking though, of cutting Jose in on the business. It's time for your mother and I to take a step back from it all."
"Dad…" Liz didn't know what to say.
"It'll be good for us. He's got family with experience. They'll borrow the theme and set up a Crashdown on the other side of town. Jose will keep track of the flow from that side and we'll keep this one going just like we always have."
"Where does this step back factor in?"
"Some of his people will be working here so I don't have to so much." Jeff looked to his wife, who had agreed this was for the best. "I never expected to leave you this place and you don't need it…"
"And they'll leave it the same?" Liz looked up at the alien mural that had annoyed her so much after she had found out the truth about Max.
"Yep. That's what he says." Jeff nodded and he had a smile on his face but Liz could see that it didn't reach his eyes. However hard their life had been running the restaurant, he had loved every moment of it. Liz knew that he had probably tricked the tourists himself once upon a time, had probably laughed his ass off while counting his tips. The theme had only been instituted since she was a little girl but the place had been attracting tourists since the late seventies. "Anyway, it might be a relief to have some time off. We've got grandchildren and weekends are free."
"I'm sure Kathy would love to spend her weekends hanging with you guys." Max nodded immediately, wincing only slightly when Liz smacked him. "Danny, David and Beth too."
"Yep." Beth nodded as she bopped around the table filling waters.
"You look just like your mother when she was your age." Nancy stopped the girl to pinch her cheeks. "You are such a pretty little girl."
"I know." Beth sighed as she returned the pitcher to the counter.
"She's not the least bit shy." Liz made a face at her daughter.
"She's beautiful." Jeff agreed. "Looks nothing like her father."
"Dad." Liz chided.
"I'd say she lucked out too." Max kissed his daughter as she passed. "You don't look anything like your old man, do you?"
Beth turned to the table and flicked her hair over her shoulders. She lifted both hands to her ears and flicked them forward. "I got the dumbo ears." She told them all proudly in a sing-song voice. The table burst out laughing. All Max could do was flick his back at her, their game since she was little. She frowned at the laughing table. "Well, I like my ears." Plopping down on her father's lap, she faced in with all the earnest an eight-year-old could muster. "Someday, I'm going to use them to fly."
"High aspirations for someone who can't keep her room clean." Max couldn't help but chuckle.
"I can't keep it dirty all by myself. Davey helps." And the room erupted all over again.
--
Prom. A bust. Emily tried to smile and have a good time for Danny but she hated these things. They chatted idly with classmates from time to time, they danced to the slow songs. Finally, she had to put her foot down. "Let's go somewhere."
"What?" Daniel turned to her. He was having a craptacular time because Emily was somewhere else all night. The short drive before the dance had done nothing to get her in a better mood. "It's only been like an hour and a half."
"Maybe somewhere… alone?" She slipped her arms around his waist, which automatically brought his arms around her but he still wasn't getting it. "Somewhere naked, preferably."
It took all of ten seconds for the words to penetrate the fog in his brain. "Nake—" His eyes darted around to make sure no one had overheard. "Em."
"Come on… I'm bored and my dress is too tight." She pouted up at him. "I'm pretty sure we could sneak into the school for awhile… we wouldn't miss the crowning if that's what you're waiting for."
Alex shook his head at his cousins when they fled through a door in the gym like he wished he was doing. He was tired of Lynnette letting her friends make her feel bad about… everything. When a slow song came up, he pulled her onto the dance floor if just to listen to something other than the shallow girls bickering. It was a few moments before he realized that she was just as relieved.
"There's something that I can't quite explain. I'm so in love with you. Don't ever take that away. And if I said a hundred times before, expect a thousand more. Never take that away."
While they could relax, they weren't having fun and that irked him.
"Expect me to be calling you to see, if you're okay when I'm not around Asking do you love me, I love the way you make it sound. Calling you to see, do I try too hard to make you smile, to make a smile."
"You're not having a good time." He accused her lightly and she just shrugged. "Come on. I'm here with the prettiest girl in the world and I look damn good if I do say so myself. We need to have fun. What do you say we go mingle, with, um, people not sophomores who got asked to the dance by a senior?"
"I will keep calling you to see, if you're sleeping, are you dreaming? If you're dreaming, are you dreaming of me? I can't believe you actually picked me."
"But…" She furrowed her brow and looked up at him.
"I thought that the world had lost its sway (it's so hard sometimes). Then I fell in love with you (then came you) You took that away (it's not so difficult, the world is not so difficult), You take away the old to show me the new and I feel like I can fly when I stand next to you. So while I'm on this phone, a hundred miles from home, I take the words you gave and send them back to you."
"You got asked by a junior, thanks for noticing." He pecked her lips lightly, pleased by her surprise and the blush that spread through her cheeks. "Don't listen to them. In 10 years they're all going to be divorcing the guys that get them pregnant tonight."
"I only wanna see, if you're okay when I'm not around Asking do you love me, I love the way you make it sound. Calling you to see, do I try too hard to make you smile, to make a smile…"
"Alex!" She gasped, then giggled. They danced in silence for a while, just swaying together until she looked up at him again. "You wanted to leave earlier… where did you want to go?"
"I will keep calling you to see, if you're sleeping, are you dreaming? If you're dreaming, are you dreaming of me? I can't believe you actually picked me.
"I just… know a place where we could be alone."
"Ah, ah, ah, ah a-ah. I will keep calling you to see, if you're sleeping, are you dreaming? If you're dreaming, are you dreaming of me? I can't believe you actually picked me. Oh-whoa oh, oh, who-oa, oh, o-oh. Ah, ah, ah, ah a-ah"
Kathy looked longingly at the dance floor where she could see Alex and his date getting along. She liked that girl. She had a pretty face. She rolled her eyes every time one of Jacobi's friends cracked a joke. They weren't all that funny and she wanted to dance, or go mingle or something, anything but the torture of hanging out with these geeks. Even her brother would be preferable about now but he was nowhere in sight. Ever since her snap right before all the ugliness of what happened to Alex and her brother, none of her friends were sure of her anymore. She was reduced to fringe popular and that sucked beyond anything imaginable. She'd like to see any of them deal with a hospitalized cousin, a boyfriend without memory, a missing little brother and alien powers in addition to the high school hierarchy. "Jacobi?"
"Huh?" He turned with only half his attention on his girlfriend.
"The key. I want it."
"Key?" She had his full attention now. She wasn't supposed to know that he had a key much less want it. "Kat…" He allowed her to pull him away from the group. "What?"
"You're having fun and I'm not so I thought I'd take the key and rest up for later."
"Later?" He blinked at her.
"Or now if you're going to come with me but I can't stand another minute of James babbling about Star Trek XX or whose Battleship whatever character can beat whose. It's all a little mind numbing for me, so I'd like to go. I have to be home at one and I don't plan to be bored until ten when this thing ends…"
"Okay, then, we'll go." He nodded and reached to their table for her jacket. "Are you sure?"
"We'll do twenty questions when we're out of here."
--
80c
The Fate of Destiny Part 80C
Max tucked his son into bed. The boy had been oddly quiet all evening. Good, but quiet… and never out of reach for more than a few minutes. Waving his hand, the night-light came on, the warm glow lighting the path to the door. Leaving a kiss on the boy's forehead, he rose to check on the other little one, the ever-precocious Bethany Evans. By the time he had climbed the stairs and gently pushed open her door, the girl was already tucked in and reading by the light of her Apples Annie lamp. She squinted at the page so he held his hand out and the light grew brighter but still, she squinted. "How you seeing these days, Beth?"
"Seeing?"
"The words, are they blurry?" Max sat on the bed and waited until she took her attention from her book and thought about it. "Maybe only sometimes you don't see clear… things that are far away?"
"Sometimes, I guess." She shrugged.
"Why don't we… put the book away for tonight. We'll bookmark it." Max started to bend the book backward while he searched for a bookmark.
"Daddy, don't, you'll ruin the spine." Beth pulled the book from his hands. "It's page 83. I can remember that." She set the book on her nightstand and looked up at her father. "Is something wrong with my eyes?"
"Maybe." Max kissed her forehead, tempted to take a sneak but he wanted to talk to Liz first. "We'll see. No more reading in the dark. If you're gonna read, turn on the overhead, not the lamp."
"Okay." She nodded. She fiddled with a strand of hair as he stood to go. "Daddy. Is Grandma Parker gonna be alright?" He must have looked confused when he turned back to her. "Her… chest is okay?"
"Beth? What are you talking about?"
"Well, Grandpa Parker sold the Crashdown so he could spend more time at home, with Grandma… because of her chest." When he opened his mouth to ask her how she knew, she was already answering. "No one told me… I could feel him thinking."
"Go to sleep, sweetie, we'll talk more tomorrow." Max bent again to kiss her, trying to keep his mind from whirling with thought until after he was out of the room. When he got to his own bed, he all but collapsed on it. Glasses were what he was thinking when he originally went into her room. Glasses if he couldn't fix her eyes himself. Not a helmet to keep out unwanted thoughts. "Liz… did your mom tell you anything?"
"No." Liz shook her head as she marked pages with a red pen. "Cleavage… yeah, not a word for horny teenagers. I'm not even going to read you what my little group of perverts wrote on the geology exam."
"Geology?"
"I'm subbing for Mrs. Crulick. Mr. Crulick is sick and she's been staying with him… so I get to dabble in geology." She had almost child-like glee in her eyes when he turned. He hated to bring her down. "What were you saying?"
"Among other things, Beth has been… seeing."
"Seeing."
"I don't know what to call it. She said she could feel your dad thinking tonight. She thinks your mom is sick and that's why they sold half to Jose." Max watched her face fall. "On the weird side, while she knows what we're thinking, she can't see too well."
"Don't change the subject."
"Liz, I don't even know if what she said is right." He took a deep breath. "If we confront them, we'd have to tell them out we found out and that means…"
"We'd have to tell them." Liz took a deep breath but it didn't help. "We're going to have to. That's how Mom found out. She was watching the kids and they slipped. They'll be watching our kids and with the way Davey's been acting, there's no guarantees anymore."
"Becca says he's been fighting… over stupid stuff… crayons, chairs."
"That's what little kids do, Max." Liz scoffed at him. "Remember? The black eyes over bears and the right arm of the couch? Or do you not remember anything that happened in your mother's house?"
"This is different, Liz. He's always behaved for Becca, he bit her the other day when she broke up a fight."
"Why didn't you tell me?" Liz demanded. "My son is getting into fights and my daughter's going blind and reading people's thoughts."
"Because you're all stressed out and with what's going on at your folks', this is just making it worse." Max wrapped his arms around her. "Everything's going to be fine. One thing at a time, we'll get this all resolved."
"Okay." She took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "What we can do something about right now. One thing." She turned it all over in her head. She could do this. Double work load or not, she could handle it. "Okay. Beth, we get her eyes checked. If it's not too bad, we let it go. If it's an issue, we'll get her glasses."
"Why can't I just check it out?"
"If you haven't already, that's a good thing. She's a growing girl and fixing a bleed is one thing, reforming the shape of your growing daughter's eyes is another."
"Okay." He nodded, if he caused his daughter any harm, even meaning well, he'd never forgive himself. "David… we should take him to someone."
"Like who? Your old therapist?" She snorted.
"A child psychologist, maybe we look up some people, check out their credentials, get Agent Goldblum to do a thorough background check." Max released her and watched her move around, putting away papers and straightening things she couldn't let wait for the morning.
"Maybe."
"And I think we should tell your parents…" Max gave her a half smile. "I've been thinking about it for such a long time but… I didn't really consider actually doing it until after Mom… and you handled her so well… after."
"Well, she didn't take it well. She needed to understand and for some unknown reason… none of you has ever been able to communicate it very well to us frightened humans." Liz sighed. "I'll consider it."
"Come to bed. We have all day to worry about it tomorrow. Let's enjoy the next few hours before I get…"
"Stressed? Impatient? Murderous?" Liz crawled onto the bed and tilted her head at her husband, in a way that reminded him of his sister. It was probably from her that she had picked up this line of teasing. "Contemplating castrating one Mr. Wilson?"
"All of the above."
"Well, the young one's got a few years before we're sure he'll make a good heir, better leave the older one… just in case. His parents might appreciate that."
"Stop reading that Harlequin crap."
"It's the only romance I get anymore."
"I'm not romantic?"
"Horny, yes, romantic… not really anymore."
--
The first kiss of the night was gentle and promising. Leaning forward, he stretched out over her body, gently caressing a curve here and there. Brushing her hair out of her face, he watched his hand next to her cheek. Dark against light in a striking contrast.
Such beautiful brown eyes. Her hands ran over his chest and around his shoulders as their mouths met and melded. His dark hair fell in his face as she ran her fingers through it to keep the path to his mouth clear. Shifting slightly, she adjusted her skirt so that his body could rest between her legs.
--
Moving her skirt out of the way, he moved between her legs. Her breasts lay exposed to the air, heaving with her every breath, the cool air hardening their points. Palming an enticing breast, he brought their mouths together again for a ravenous kiss. His other hand reached around to slide her zipper all the way down. Bending his head, he nuzzled her breasts before opening his mouth over the smooth mound opposite his kneading hand.
--
She helped him unbutton his shirt, not unpleased with the body underneath. The shirt and his undershirt flew to the far reaches of the room. His smile lit up the half-dark of the room, speeding her heart-rate beyond anything she could remember ever feeling. She fingered the black hair on his head as she guided him down to kiss him again. He released the clasp on her bra, her heavy breasts and gravity pushing the fabric away for him. His mouth burned down her throat and closed over a tender nipple, eliciting a high breathy gasp. Her hands clasped around his head, encouraging through writhing, through moans, through sheer will of thought.
--
He shuddered in pleasure at the feel of her hand on his heated flesh. It wasn't his first time but it could well have been for all the ways she made him feel. Her dress lay on the ground somewhere he couldn't see and didn't care because it meant that she didn't have much on. Her innocent exploration of his raging cock sent tremors through his body. He devoured her neck, that tasted so good, what was she wearing? "Fuck."
He closed her hand over hers to still her motions. He moaned against her throat as he strained to regain control of himself. "Are you okay?"
Letting go of her hand, he reached around to free her breasts. They fell heavy into his hand. Returning to her mouth, he sighed when she released him to wrap her arms around his upper body. He kicked his pants off and rolled with her. God, she had amazing breasts. They heaved with her every breath, she straddled him uncertainly and waited… for him to show her what to do, to reassure her that everything was fine, to… something. "Can you reach my pants? I've got something in the pocket."
She seemed relieved. "Yeah… good."
While he fought with the stupid foil packet, she slipped out of her panties as if she didn't want him to see. There were so few things that he could do well and this was one of them. Making sure she was comfortable, he kissed her lips, her throat, her wonderful breasts, her belly. He nudged her thighs apart and when he breathed on her curls, she closed them again and started to protest. "Sh… it's okay… It'll feel good… I promise."
--
She slid back on the table, the cool shock against her back elicited a gasp before his body rejoined hers for the frantic thrusting they both needed. She burned and she needed and wanted but she didn’t want to talk, not right now. Not when they could be kissing and touching and… yes, doing that… His body slid into hers and the motion began.
--
So good and too much. His mouth on her breasts, his hands everywhere and his body giving so forcefully what she needed. Her mouth opened and a low moan erupted. If she could just move her hips just a little then… yes, that was better and yes, that was just what she needed. Gently she guided his head back to hers. She could feel him shift and then she could think no more. Only gasp against his mouth and the swift new rhythm that had her grasping at every inch of his flesh that she could find that would encourage and maybe drive him faster.
--
The mattress cushioned her body as he moved but it was going too fast, too hard. She gasped as he thrust hard but was slow to withdraw. Again. It was all she could do to contain the cry as again, he thrust hard and drew back just a fraction to do it again. Eyes squeezed shut, she endured. She could feel him, inside her, exploding.
--
She was fine, now. She was passed the pain and her gasps and whispered words were music to his ears. He kissed her gently as need drove him on. She whispered his name as he came, and he could do nothing, not even speak as he spilled himself inside her.
--
He gripped the table as he came, hips rocking against hers. He held on as long as he could, until there… she gasped and her walls convulsed and then… he could release and ride it out with her. He could still hear the music from the dance.
"So tight, so fly. You got me lifted. You got me lifted."
"How long?" He asked her without moving.
"Twenty seconds." She whispered with a smile.
"You got me lifted, shifted, higher than the ceiling. And Ooee it's the ultimate feeling. You got me lifted, feelin' so gifted, suga how you get so fly. Suga suga how you get so fly. Suga suga how you get so fly. Suga suga how you get so fly. Suga suga how you get so fly." The next few words were hard to hear so far from the gym but then… "…When we bangin' rawhide. Doin' what we do, watchin' screens, gettin' high. Girl you keep it so fly with your sweet honey-buns, you was there when the money gone, you'll be there when the money comes. Off the top, I can't lie. I love to get blown, git my little suga, I'm your little chulo. And every time we kick it, it's all to the groove. I treat you like my stickey-ickey or my little ooiee-gooey—" The song was finally turned off, to the groans of the dancers no doubt grinding up the dance floor.
"It was forty." He corrected her.
"Hey-" She stopped and picked up her head. "Someone's out there."
It was a mad rush to find clothes and become decent with as little sound as possible as the footsteps drew near the places to hide were eliminated. Freezing as the steps passed, they were graced with the fading of the footsteps. They were safe. Removing the sticky condom, he tucked and zipped. "That would have been embarrassing."
"Is it glowing?" She peered at the stretchy latex. "You used a glow-in-the-dark condom?"
"I just grabbed one."
"Good choice. Toss it."
--
"Are you okay?" He whispered as he pulled his clothes on. They should be getting home, their separate homes, to their separate families. It was getting late, they'd be missed soon.
"I'm fine." She managed a smile. She really was. She was fine. Her clothes felt gross against her skin but she could fix that… later… at home… with maybe a shower.
His hand caught her elbow as she turned. Their lips crashed together with an urgent kiss. When they parted, the smile was real and that scared her a little. His hands caressed her face before he kissed her lightly one last time. He swallowed thickly. "Should we… maybe have used something?"
"I'm taken care of… unless you were afraid of something… else… in a v.d. category, maybe."
"No."
"Then we're good."
"Okay, just checking."
--
Max sat in his robe on the couch. He thought fooling around would ease his mind but he couldn't do that. Every time he and Liz had gotten into it, he'd pull away and listen for the door. It wasn't late, yet, for either of them but it was just the one he was really worried about. Double standard or not, he couldn't just let his daughter be taken advantage of by this Jacobi kid. He never liked that kid. Never. Liz kept insisting they needed to have him over for dinner, or even his parents. No. So, what if the kid knew, they could always clear his brain after the break up.
"Stop deluding yourself." Liz shook her head at him and handed him a glass of water. She sat beside him but he was concentrated on that damned door. "You know, for once… I'm not faking a headache. I am not not in the mood. I am naked under this robe and very turned on." He didn't answer her. "Is it me? I mean, cause I thought we'd finally get to give you a real test drive. Is Sydney holding you on a yellow light?"
"No, everything should be fine." He answered her robotically, his eyes fixed on the doorknob.
"Max, go put some clothes on." Liz huffed and shed her hot robe.
He looked at her. "I thought you said you were naked under there."
"Oh, so you were paying attention. I was just checking to see if you still had a pulse. They'll be fine." Liz adjusted her pajama shorts. It was already starting to get hot at night. That did not bode well for a mild summer.
"You'll stay and wait."
"Yes." She waited until he was up to propel him forward with her foot to his ass. "Go. Clothes." She checked her watch. 12:50. Ten minutes early. She could hear them whispering at the door. The door opened just as Max returned from the bedroom. "My daughter's home on time. How about your son?"
"He's got." Max checked his watch. "18 minutes."
"It's not fair." Kathy crossed her arms and glared at her father.
"Hi, Mr. Evans. Good night everyone." Jacobi thought better of one last kiss and shut the door before he beat it to his car.
"And he's so polite. Not like that rude little heathen your son dates." Liz crossed her arms and waited for Max's response.
"So now Michael's daughter is a heathen." Max nodded to them. "Wonder how he'd take that."
"With pride, probably." Liz looked to her daughter and pointed up the stairs. "Did you have a nice time?"
"Yep." She kissed her father's cheek, waved to her mother and started up the stairs. Then the door flew open and Danny skidded to a halt.
Max turned to his wife. "10 minutes early."
"What?" Danny looked at his watch. "Man, my watch is running fast. I thought I was twenty minutes late."
Liz looked to her flustered husband. "Well, I'm going to bed."
"Night, Mom."
"Where were you all night?" Kathy jumped on his back as he climbed them, he barely secured her arms around his neck so she wouldn't choke him. She grimaced slightly and just let her legs hang.
He carried her up the stairs and set her down on the landing. "At school. All night, believe it or not."
"Uh-huh." Kathy leaned on the railing, aware that their parents were still listening.
"We took a walk. Who was it that got them to turn off that song?" Danny saw her panic. "The principal or Mr. Ybanez?"
"Mr. Ybanez." She retorted for her parent's benefit. "Like he would let them play music like that… with the way everyone was dancing." She whirled to her parents. "Not me. We sat that one out."
"Good night." Max pointed and guided his wife to their room. "Go to bed. No phone."
--
Emily stood in the doorway for a few minutes just watching. Her dad and Oriel were making out like a couple of kids on the couch. They hadn't even heard her walk in. It was kind of gross in that they were old and Oriel was doing a major impression of a humpback whale… but it was also a little… sweet. Gross but acceptable… kind of like those nights she'd spent at the Evans as a child. She remembered Grampa Evans and how he kissed Gramma Evans when no one was watching. To be that old and still be in love was… astonishing. Some days she wasn't sure she and Danny would make it to the end of the school year and others she didn't dare picture her life without him. "You guys are gross."
Michael looked up in time to see his daughter disappear upstairs. He checked the clock. It was only a few minutes after her curfew. He could let it slide… he had been distracted but the baby was wild tonight, kicking and playing all over the place. They were celebrating life.
--
Alex sat on the couch with his mother. She was beautiful. She wasn't like other moms. She was young, pretty and most importantly, his friend. She looked up from her notebook, careful not to let her hair drip on it. "Grampa get to bed okay?"
"Yeah. Cursed at me not to treat him like a baby." He reached over and dried her hair for her.
"Thanks, sweetie." She nodded without pausing in her perusal of the case file. "How was your night?"
"Good." He nodded to himself with a smile.
"Are we having Lynnette over for dinner?"
"Maybe."
Suddenly she looked up at him suspiciously. "Did you have fun tonight?"
"Nothing that I haven't done before." He shrugged and when she didn't relent, he rolled his eyes. "Her parents are so weird. Her mom was trying to find a way to get her out of going and her dad was like… 'go, have fun, come home late' while still at the same time 'my daughter took boxing lessons, she can kick your ass if you get happy hands'… weird."
"She took boxing?"
"When she was little… like nine or something. To fit in. Almost all of her cousins are boys and the girls are too little…" He rolled his eyes when she smiled at his knowledge of his girlfriend.
"She is such a pretty girl."
"Trying telling her friends that. They treat her like crap and she lets them. I hate it." He grumbled.
"Why? Because she's not a stick? I think she looks good. Healthy and damn pretty."
"I guess and well, most of them are Mexican or Puerto Rican and they all have this stupid… thing about…" He rolled his eyes. "I think her skin looks good dark. It looks a lot better than when they do her make up for her and it's all red and pale and… I like it better when she doesn't wear any at all."
"See, I knew I raised you right." Isabel kissed his cheek and picked up her highlighter. "So… have you given any thought to this summer?"
"If you want me to help out, I will." Alex groaned and pulled his bowtie off. "Actually, though… I was gonna… you know… part time and… I've been hanging out with Mr. Phipps and he's hosting a music workshop at the school…"
"You want to go?"
"I want to teach."
Isabel lifted her head to look at her son. "Teach."
"He's got this theory about computers and music and I want to prove him wrong. I know a computer better than my own hand and you know I love the music. Mr. Phipps thinks that computer based music has no soul and I don't believe that's true. Some of the popular stuff is all about the radio and music videos but the good stuff, the underground stuff has real soul. I mean, that stuff that Michael listens to, you know? It was the beginning. There was this whole off-shoot from his music that evolved and started this electronic wave age and it's been bastardized for capitalism but the roots are still around."
"Wow. So… this is a job?"
"He'll pay me for hosting a guitar class in the mornings. One afternoon a week, I get a crack at the computer system he has set up for the AV club and the chorale recordings." Alex saw her proud eyes and it made him feel good about himself. "I still want to help out at the office, though. I'm not ruling it out… it's usually the only time I get to see you."
"Maybe you could… help some afternoons at the office and some others… at the station." She saw his face fall.
"I don't know what's wrong with him." Alex bit out. "At Thanksgiving… he was all about making sure I knew that… I wasn't just some step-kid to him but… lately… I've been feeling like Cinderella twice over."
"Yeah, well, you're not the only one." She whispered, her eyes went far away for a second then returned to the present. "He's going through some stuff… he doesn't treat Kyle and Liberty any better, Alex. He's…"
"Going through stuff." Alex shook his head. "Whatever. I could have used him two weeks ago. I could have used him tonight… thanks for letting me take the car though. I'm gotta… bed."
She nodded and watched him walk down the hall like an old man. When she heard his door close, she turned to her husband. She knew he had been standing there for a while. Maybe waiting for them to notice him, maybe waiting for them to go to bed. His blue eyes were hurting but she didn't want to hear it, not tonight. "There are blankets in the closet."
Leaving her books out, she went to their bedroom alone. She couldn't ignore it anymore. Not his lame excuses for leaving the house. Not the smell that rolled off him when he came to their bed. What was she supposed to think when he didn't talk to any of them? He didn't go to work or to his mother's every time he left the house. It didn't make her feel any better to make him sleep on the couch but this way she wouldn’t have to look at him.
--
"Daddy!" Max was up and out of bed at the screech from his son's room down the hall. The little boy was sleeping still, thrashing and screeching. Max gently took the boys in his arms but the boy fought him. "Daddy! Daddy!"
The whole house was waking up and everyone was coming to investigate. Max felt the tears slipping down his face. "Davey, it's Daddy. Sh. I'm here."
When he looked up, Bethany stood in the doorway with tears streaming down her face and her hands over her ears. "It's the bad man, Daddy. He's scared. You're scared… I'm scared."
"Bethany, come with me." Liz led the girl out of the room and it calmed the girl some. "What did you see?"
"I heard… the man." Beth told her mother. "He's pounding on the door cause he can't get in and Davey's hiding."
Kathy watched the circus, feeling so helpless. So she did the only thing she could. She climbed onto the bed with her brother and father. Hands on his little head, she warped her little brother. /The pounding stopped and the door opened. The man stood there and then walked away. Then Daddy walked in and pulled back the curtain. He pulled his little boy into his arms.\ David seemed to calm down and so she backed away, releasing him. "Davey, wake up."
Max stared at his daughter. He knew she hated what she could do but it had worked… but she couldn't do it all the time. Something like that was bound to take its toll, on them both. The scared boy opened his eyes and burst into tears. Max could do no more than hold him, reassure him that he was Daddy and that the bad man was gone for good. "It's okay. I've got you. No one's going to hurt you."
tbc
Max tucked his son into bed. The boy had been oddly quiet all evening. Good, but quiet… and never out of reach for more than a few minutes. Waving his hand, the night-light came on, the warm glow lighting the path to the door. Leaving a kiss on the boy's forehead, he rose to check on the other little one, the ever-precocious Bethany Evans. By the time he had climbed the stairs and gently pushed open her door, the girl was already tucked in and reading by the light of her Apples Annie lamp. She squinted at the page so he held his hand out and the light grew brighter but still, she squinted. "How you seeing these days, Beth?"
"Seeing?"
"The words, are they blurry?" Max sat on the bed and waited until she took her attention from her book and thought about it. "Maybe only sometimes you don't see clear… things that are far away?"
"Sometimes, I guess." She shrugged.
"Why don't we… put the book away for tonight. We'll bookmark it." Max started to bend the book backward while he searched for a bookmark.
"Daddy, don't, you'll ruin the spine." Beth pulled the book from his hands. "It's page 83. I can remember that." She set the book on her nightstand and looked up at her father. "Is something wrong with my eyes?"
"Maybe." Max kissed her forehead, tempted to take a sneak but he wanted to talk to Liz first. "We'll see. No more reading in the dark. If you're gonna read, turn on the overhead, not the lamp."
"Okay." She nodded. She fiddled with a strand of hair as he stood to go. "Daddy. Is Grandma Parker gonna be alright?" He must have looked confused when he turned back to her. "Her… chest is okay?"
"Beth? What are you talking about?"
"Well, Grandpa Parker sold the Crashdown so he could spend more time at home, with Grandma… because of her chest." When he opened his mouth to ask her how she knew, she was already answering. "No one told me… I could feel him thinking."
"Go to sleep, sweetie, we'll talk more tomorrow." Max bent again to kiss her, trying to keep his mind from whirling with thought until after he was out of the room. When he got to his own bed, he all but collapsed on it. Glasses were what he was thinking when he originally went into her room. Glasses if he couldn't fix her eyes himself. Not a helmet to keep out unwanted thoughts. "Liz… did your mom tell you anything?"
"No." Liz shook her head as she marked pages with a red pen. "Cleavage… yeah, not a word for horny teenagers. I'm not even going to read you what my little group of perverts wrote on the geology exam."
"Geology?"
"I'm subbing for Mrs. Crulick. Mr. Crulick is sick and she's been staying with him… so I get to dabble in geology." She had almost child-like glee in her eyes when he turned. He hated to bring her down. "What were you saying?"
"Among other things, Beth has been… seeing."
"Seeing."
"I don't know what to call it. She said she could feel your dad thinking tonight. She thinks your mom is sick and that's why they sold half to Jose." Max watched her face fall. "On the weird side, while she knows what we're thinking, she can't see too well."
"Don't change the subject."
"Liz, I don't even know if what she said is right." He took a deep breath. "If we confront them, we'd have to tell them out we found out and that means…"
"We'd have to tell them." Liz took a deep breath but it didn't help. "We're going to have to. That's how Mom found out. She was watching the kids and they slipped. They'll be watching our kids and with the way Davey's been acting, there's no guarantees anymore."
"Becca says he's been fighting… over stupid stuff… crayons, chairs."
"That's what little kids do, Max." Liz scoffed at him. "Remember? The black eyes over bears and the right arm of the couch? Or do you not remember anything that happened in your mother's house?"
"This is different, Liz. He's always behaved for Becca, he bit her the other day when she broke up a fight."
"Why didn't you tell me?" Liz demanded. "My son is getting into fights and my daughter's going blind and reading people's thoughts."
"Because you're all stressed out and with what's going on at your folks', this is just making it worse." Max wrapped his arms around her. "Everything's going to be fine. One thing at a time, we'll get this all resolved."
"Okay." She took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "What we can do something about right now. One thing." She turned it all over in her head. She could do this. Double work load or not, she could handle it. "Okay. Beth, we get her eyes checked. If it's not too bad, we let it go. If it's an issue, we'll get her glasses."
"Why can't I just check it out?"
"If you haven't already, that's a good thing. She's a growing girl and fixing a bleed is one thing, reforming the shape of your growing daughter's eyes is another."
"Okay." He nodded, if he caused his daughter any harm, even meaning well, he'd never forgive himself. "David… we should take him to someone."
"Like who? Your old therapist?" She snorted.
"A child psychologist, maybe we look up some people, check out their credentials, get Agent Goldblum to do a thorough background check." Max released her and watched her move around, putting away papers and straightening things she couldn't let wait for the morning.
"Maybe."
"And I think we should tell your parents…" Max gave her a half smile. "I've been thinking about it for such a long time but… I didn't really consider actually doing it until after Mom… and you handled her so well… after."
"Well, she didn't take it well. She needed to understand and for some unknown reason… none of you has ever been able to communicate it very well to us frightened humans." Liz sighed. "I'll consider it."
"Come to bed. We have all day to worry about it tomorrow. Let's enjoy the next few hours before I get…"
"Stressed? Impatient? Murderous?" Liz crawled onto the bed and tilted her head at her husband, in a way that reminded him of his sister. It was probably from her that she had picked up this line of teasing. "Contemplating castrating one Mr. Wilson?"
"All of the above."
"Well, the young one's got a few years before we're sure he'll make a good heir, better leave the older one… just in case. His parents might appreciate that."
"Stop reading that Harlequin crap."
"It's the only romance I get anymore."
"I'm not romantic?"
"Horny, yes, romantic… not really anymore."
--
The first kiss of the night was gentle and promising. Leaning forward, he stretched out over her body, gently caressing a curve here and there. Brushing her hair out of her face, he watched his hand next to her cheek. Dark against light in a striking contrast.
Such beautiful brown eyes. Her hands ran over his chest and around his shoulders as their mouths met and melded. His dark hair fell in his face as she ran her fingers through it to keep the path to his mouth clear. Shifting slightly, she adjusted her skirt so that his body could rest between her legs.
--
Moving her skirt out of the way, he moved between her legs. Her breasts lay exposed to the air, heaving with her every breath, the cool air hardening their points. Palming an enticing breast, he brought their mouths together again for a ravenous kiss. His other hand reached around to slide her zipper all the way down. Bending his head, he nuzzled her breasts before opening his mouth over the smooth mound opposite his kneading hand.
--
She helped him unbutton his shirt, not unpleased with the body underneath. The shirt and his undershirt flew to the far reaches of the room. His smile lit up the half-dark of the room, speeding her heart-rate beyond anything she could remember ever feeling. She fingered the black hair on his head as she guided him down to kiss him again. He released the clasp on her bra, her heavy breasts and gravity pushing the fabric away for him. His mouth burned down her throat and closed over a tender nipple, eliciting a high breathy gasp. Her hands clasped around his head, encouraging through writhing, through moans, through sheer will of thought.
--
He shuddered in pleasure at the feel of her hand on his heated flesh. It wasn't his first time but it could well have been for all the ways she made him feel. Her dress lay on the ground somewhere he couldn't see and didn't care because it meant that she didn't have much on. Her innocent exploration of his raging cock sent tremors through his body. He devoured her neck, that tasted so good, what was she wearing? "Fuck."
He closed her hand over hers to still her motions. He moaned against her throat as he strained to regain control of himself. "Are you okay?"
Letting go of her hand, he reached around to free her breasts. They fell heavy into his hand. Returning to her mouth, he sighed when she released him to wrap her arms around his upper body. He kicked his pants off and rolled with her. God, she had amazing breasts. They heaved with her every breath, she straddled him uncertainly and waited… for him to show her what to do, to reassure her that everything was fine, to… something. "Can you reach my pants? I've got something in the pocket."
She seemed relieved. "Yeah… good."
While he fought with the stupid foil packet, she slipped out of her panties as if she didn't want him to see. There were so few things that he could do well and this was one of them. Making sure she was comfortable, he kissed her lips, her throat, her wonderful breasts, her belly. He nudged her thighs apart and when he breathed on her curls, she closed them again and started to protest. "Sh… it's okay… It'll feel good… I promise."
--
She slid back on the table, the cool shock against her back elicited a gasp before his body rejoined hers for the frantic thrusting they both needed. She burned and she needed and wanted but she didn’t want to talk, not right now. Not when they could be kissing and touching and… yes, doing that… His body slid into hers and the motion began.
--
So good and too much. His mouth on her breasts, his hands everywhere and his body giving so forcefully what she needed. Her mouth opened and a low moan erupted. If she could just move her hips just a little then… yes, that was better and yes, that was just what she needed. Gently she guided his head back to hers. She could feel him shift and then she could think no more. Only gasp against his mouth and the swift new rhythm that had her grasping at every inch of his flesh that she could find that would encourage and maybe drive him faster.
--
The mattress cushioned her body as he moved but it was going too fast, too hard. She gasped as he thrust hard but was slow to withdraw. Again. It was all she could do to contain the cry as again, he thrust hard and drew back just a fraction to do it again. Eyes squeezed shut, she endured. She could feel him, inside her, exploding.
--
She was fine, now. She was passed the pain and her gasps and whispered words were music to his ears. He kissed her gently as need drove him on. She whispered his name as he came, and he could do nothing, not even speak as he spilled himself inside her.
--
He gripped the table as he came, hips rocking against hers. He held on as long as he could, until there… she gasped and her walls convulsed and then… he could release and ride it out with her. He could still hear the music from the dance.
"So tight, so fly. You got me lifted. You got me lifted."
"How long?" He asked her without moving.
"Twenty seconds." She whispered with a smile.
"You got me lifted, shifted, higher than the ceiling. And Ooee it's the ultimate feeling. You got me lifted, feelin' so gifted, suga how you get so fly. Suga suga how you get so fly. Suga suga how you get so fly. Suga suga how you get so fly. Suga suga how you get so fly." The next few words were hard to hear so far from the gym but then… "…When we bangin' rawhide. Doin' what we do, watchin' screens, gettin' high. Girl you keep it so fly with your sweet honey-buns, you was there when the money gone, you'll be there when the money comes. Off the top, I can't lie. I love to get blown, git my little suga, I'm your little chulo. And every time we kick it, it's all to the groove. I treat you like my stickey-ickey or my little ooiee-gooey—" The song was finally turned off, to the groans of the dancers no doubt grinding up the dance floor.
"It was forty." He corrected her.
"Hey-" She stopped and picked up her head. "Someone's out there."
It was a mad rush to find clothes and become decent with as little sound as possible as the footsteps drew near the places to hide were eliminated. Freezing as the steps passed, they were graced with the fading of the footsteps. They were safe. Removing the sticky condom, he tucked and zipped. "That would have been embarrassing."
"Is it glowing?" She peered at the stretchy latex. "You used a glow-in-the-dark condom?"
"I just grabbed one."
"Good choice. Toss it."
--
"Are you okay?" He whispered as he pulled his clothes on. They should be getting home, their separate homes, to their separate families. It was getting late, they'd be missed soon.
"I'm fine." She managed a smile. She really was. She was fine. Her clothes felt gross against her skin but she could fix that… later… at home… with maybe a shower.
His hand caught her elbow as she turned. Their lips crashed together with an urgent kiss. When they parted, the smile was real and that scared her a little. His hands caressed her face before he kissed her lightly one last time. He swallowed thickly. "Should we… maybe have used something?"
"I'm taken care of… unless you were afraid of something… else… in a v.d. category, maybe."
"No."
"Then we're good."
"Okay, just checking."
--
Max sat in his robe on the couch. He thought fooling around would ease his mind but he couldn't do that. Every time he and Liz had gotten into it, he'd pull away and listen for the door. It wasn't late, yet, for either of them but it was just the one he was really worried about. Double standard or not, he couldn't just let his daughter be taken advantage of by this Jacobi kid. He never liked that kid. Never. Liz kept insisting they needed to have him over for dinner, or even his parents. No. So, what if the kid knew, they could always clear his brain after the break up.
"Stop deluding yourself." Liz shook her head at him and handed him a glass of water. She sat beside him but he was concentrated on that damned door. "You know, for once… I'm not faking a headache. I am not not in the mood. I am naked under this robe and very turned on." He didn't answer her. "Is it me? I mean, cause I thought we'd finally get to give you a real test drive. Is Sydney holding you on a yellow light?"
"No, everything should be fine." He answered her robotically, his eyes fixed on the doorknob.
"Max, go put some clothes on." Liz huffed and shed her hot robe.
He looked at her. "I thought you said you were naked under there."
"Oh, so you were paying attention. I was just checking to see if you still had a pulse. They'll be fine." Liz adjusted her pajama shorts. It was already starting to get hot at night. That did not bode well for a mild summer.
"You'll stay and wait."
"Yes." She waited until he was up to propel him forward with her foot to his ass. "Go. Clothes." She checked her watch. 12:50. Ten minutes early. She could hear them whispering at the door. The door opened just as Max returned from the bedroom. "My daughter's home on time. How about your son?"
"He's got." Max checked his watch. "18 minutes."
"It's not fair." Kathy crossed her arms and glared at her father.
"Hi, Mr. Evans. Good night everyone." Jacobi thought better of one last kiss and shut the door before he beat it to his car.
"And he's so polite. Not like that rude little heathen your son dates." Liz crossed her arms and waited for Max's response.
"So now Michael's daughter is a heathen." Max nodded to them. "Wonder how he'd take that."
"With pride, probably." Liz looked to her daughter and pointed up the stairs. "Did you have a nice time?"
"Yep." She kissed her father's cheek, waved to her mother and started up the stairs. Then the door flew open and Danny skidded to a halt.
Max turned to his wife. "10 minutes early."
"What?" Danny looked at his watch. "Man, my watch is running fast. I thought I was twenty minutes late."
Liz looked to her flustered husband. "Well, I'm going to bed."
"Night, Mom."
"Where were you all night?" Kathy jumped on his back as he climbed them, he barely secured her arms around his neck so she wouldn't choke him. She grimaced slightly and just let her legs hang.
He carried her up the stairs and set her down on the landing. "At school. All night, believe it or not."
"Uh-huh." Kathy leaned on the railing, aware that their parents were still listening.
"We took a walk. Who was it that got them to turn off that song?" Danny saw her panic. "The principal or Mr. Ybanez?"
"Mr. Ybanez." She retorted for her parent's benefit. "Like he would let them play music like that… with the way everyone was dancing." She whirled to her parents. "Not me. We sat that one out."
"Good night." Max pointed and guided his wife to their room. "Go to bed. No phone."
--
Emily stood in the doorway for a few minutes just watching. Her dad and Oriel were making out like a couple of kids on the couch. They hadn't even heard her walk in. It was kind of gross in that they were old and Oriel was doing a major impression of a humpback whale… but it was also a little… sweet. Gross but acceptable… kind of like those nights she'd spent at the Evans as a child. She remembered Grampa Evans and how he kissed Gramma Evans when no one was watching. To be that old and still be in love was… astonishing. Some days she wasn't sure she and Danny would make it to the end of the school year and others she didn't dare picture her life without him. "You guys are gross."
Michael looked up in time to see his daughter disappear upstairs. He checked the clock. It was only a few minutes after her curfew. He could let it slide… he had been distracted but the baby was wild tonight, kicking and playing all over the place. They were celebrating life.
--
Alex sat on the couch with his mother. She was beautiful. She wasn't like other moms. She was young, pretty and most importantly, his friend. She looked up from her notebook, careful not to let her hair drip on it. "Grampa get to bed okay?"
"Yeah. Cursed at me not to treat him like a baby." He reached over and dried her hair for her.
"Thanks, sweetie." She nodded without pausing in her perusal of the case file. "How was your night?"
"Good." He nodded to himself with a smile.
"Are we having Lynnette over for dinner?"
"Maybe."
Suddenly she looked up at him suspiciously. "Did you have fun tonight?"
"Nothing that I haven't done before." He shrugged and when she didn't relent, he rolled his eyes. "Her parents are so weird. Her mom was trying to find a way to get her out of going and her dad was like… 'go, have fun, come home late' while still at the same time 'my daughter took boxing lessons, she can kick your ass if you get happy hands'… weird."
"She took boxing?"
"When she was little… like nine or something. To fit in. Almost all of her cousins are boys and the girls are too little…" He rolled his eyes when she smiled at his knowledge of his girlfriend.
"She is such a pretty girl."
"Trying telling her friends that. They treat her like crap and she lets them. I hate it." He grumbled.
"Why? Because she's not a stick? I think she looks good. Healthy and damn pretty."
"I guess and well, most of them are Mexican or Puerto Rican and they all have this stupid… thing about…" He rolled his eyes. "I think her skin looks good dark. It looks a lot better than when they do her make up for her and it's all red and pale and… I like it better when she doesn't wear any at all."
"See, I knew I raised you right." Isabel kissed his cheek and picked up her highlighter. "So… have you given any thought to this summer?"
"If you want me to help out, I will." Alex groaned and pulled his bowtie off. "Actually, though… I was gonna… you know… part time and… I've been hanging out with Mr. Phipps and he's hosting a music workshop at the school…"
"You want to go?"
"I want to teach."
Isabel lifted her head to look at her son. "Teach."
"He's got this theory about computers and music and I want to prove him wrong. I know a computer better than my own hand and you know I love the music. Mr. Phipps thinks that computer based music has no soul and I don't believe that's true. Some of the popular stuff is all about the radio and music videos but the good stuff, the underground stuff has real soul. I mean, that stuff that Michael listens to, you know? It was the beginning. There was this whole off-shoot from his music that evolved and started this electronic wave age and it's been bastardized for capitalism but the roots are still around."
"Wow. So… this is a job?"
"He'll pay me for hosting a guitar class in the mornings. One afternoon a week, I get a crack at the computer system he has set up for the AV club and the chorale recordings." Alex saw her proud eyes and it made him feel good about himself. "I still want to help out at the office, though. I'm not ruling it out… it's usually the only time I get to see you."
"Maybe you could… help some afternoons at the office and some others… at the station." She saw his face fall.
"I don't know what's wrong with him." Alex bit out. "At Thanksgiving… he was all about making sure I knew that… I wasn't just some step-kid to him but… lately… I've been feeling like Cinderella twice over."
"Yeah, well, you're not the only one." She whispered, her eyes went far away for a second then returned to the present. "He's going through some stuff… he doesn't treat Kyle and Liberty any better, Alex. He's…"
"Going through stuff." Alex shook his head. "Whatever. I could have used him two weeks ago. I could have used him tonight… thanks for letting me take the car though. I'm gotta… bed."
She nodded and watched him walk down the hall like an old man. When she heard his door close, she turned to her husband. She knew he had been standing there for a while. Maybe waiting for them to notice him, maybe waiting for them to go to bed. His blue eyes were hurting but she didn't want to hear it, not tonight. "There are blankets in the closet."
Leaving her books out, she went to their bedroom alone. She couldn't ignore it anymore. Not his lame excuses for leaving the house. Not the smell that rolled off him when he came to their bed. What was she supposed to think when he didn't talk to any of them? He didn't go to work or to his mother's every time he left the house. It didn't make her feel any better to make him sleep on the couch but this way she wouldn’t have to look at him.
--
"Daddy!" Max was up and out of bed at the screech from his son's room down the hall. The little boy was sleeping still, thrashing and screeching. Max gently took the boys in his arms but the boy fought him. "Daddy! Daddy!"
The whole house was waking up and everyone was coming to investigate. Max felt the tears slipping down his face. "Davey, it's Daddy. Sh. I'm here."
When he looked up, Bethany stood in the doorway with tears streaming down her face and her hands over her ears. "It's the bad man, Daddy. He's scared. You're scared… I'm scared."
"Bethany, come with me." Liz led the girl out of the room and it calmed the girl some. "What did you see?"
"I heard… the man." Beth told her mother. "He's pounding on the door cause he can't get in and Davey's hiding."
Kathy watched the circus, feeling so helpless. So she did the only thing she could. She climbed onto the bed with her brother and father. Hands on his little head, she warped her little brother. /The pounding stopped and the door opened. The man stood there and then walked away. Then Daddy walked in and pulled back the curtain. He pulled his little boy into his arms.\ David seemed to calm down and so she backed away, releasing him. "Davey, wake up."
Max stared at his daughter. He knew she hated what she could do but it had worked… but she couldn't do it all the time. Something like that was bound to take its toll, on them both. The scared boy opened his eyes and burst into tears. Max could do no more than hold him, reassure him that he was Daddy and that the bad man was gone for good. "It's okay. I've got you. No one's going to hurt you."
tbc
Part 81
The Fate of Destiny Part 81
May 2020
"This will just take a second or two, Bethany. Look directly at the red light and relax. Try not to blink."
"Daddy." She whispered and seconds later felt his hands on hers. She could feel him thinking that it was all going to be okay and she felt better. She was so distracted that the puff of air was a surprise on her eye. Blinking rapidly, the red dot shifted to her other eye and again.
"See that wasn't so bad." The ophthalmologist pulled the machinery away and pulled a small bottle from a shelf. "Now, I'm going to dilate your eyes. I'll put these drops in and we'll wait for them to start working." She tilted the girl's head back. "Dr. Evans, you said that she was squinting to see?"
"Reading, she tends to read in the morning and at night… lighting's not the best… but that's just what made it worse, right?" He crossed his arms, he had been mulling it over for a month. Kathy never complained and Daniel was so hard to read. "Hereditary predisposition?"
"Sometimes. How was your eye exam before your clinicals?" She asked calmly as she dropped a cool liquid in Bethany's eyes.
"20/20, still is." Max answered.
"Still." She turned. "Most eye problems are inherited through the mother but we don't rule out fatherly influence. I don't have your chart but I do have your wife's and she has no family history…"
"I don't know if I do. I'm adopted." Max shifted nervously and he couldn't wait any longer. "I… met a… possible relative some months back and he… he wore contacts. I could find out, probably what…"
"That could help formulate a plan of action, maybe see how this condition progresses in your family." Turning back to her patient, she moved another piece of machinery. "Forehead here, chin here. If I could speak with the relative or his doctor."
"He's… passed on but I'll see what I can dig up."
"Dr. Evans… it's probably nothing major. Every is looking fine so far. We'll just test out these beautiful peepers and prescribe some therapeutic corrections and hope her vision gets no worse."
"Glasses aren't the end of the world, Daddy." Bethany stuck her tongue out at her father from behind the contraption and that almost made him laugh. "And I'll have all summer to get used to them before school starts."
--
"You skipped dinner last night but you’re stealing my coffee?" Isabel mock-glared, at least it felt mocking, it could have looked real, at Kyle as he filled his thermos from her coffee pot in the lounge area of Evans, Ramirez and Associates.
"Yeah, sorry about that." Kyle winced slightly. "It’s just, your secretary makes the best coffee in the world."
"He does. He does." Isabel nodded and straightened the books in her arms. Since mid-April he had been making a habit of stopping in at the office for inane purposes but it was really the only time she saw him anymore… aside from waking up to find him sleeping the night off. "You going to be home for dinner tonight?"
"Yeah, I think I will." He held a finger to his lips and then tapped his radio. Their old signal not to jinx plans lest Roswell need him.
"Iz, you have the files on the Morton case?" Jesse wandered in without glancing up from his notebook. When he looked up, Kyle gave him a nod. "Kyle, good to see you."
"Haven’t seen you in a while, Jesse. Maybe we’ll get the families together again for a ‘Q’ or something." Kyle capped his thermos. He paused when Isabel really glared at him and Jesse seemed confused. "What?"
"We are having a barbecue this weekend." Isabel bit out. She could feel Jesse hovering, unsure what to do but there was nothing.
"Alright then, hope I can make it." Kyle lifted the thermos. "I hate to steal coffee and run but I’m on patrol. Tell Bruce that the pot’s running low."
"Good to see you." Jesse took Isabel’s books and wandered away.
"See you at … nevermind." Isabel called after Kyle’s back, but he was already out the door. {That wasn't awkward at all. Not one bit.}
--
Michelle watched the children play on the jungle-gym. It made her smile a bit to know she had grandchildren that were happy and healthy. Jim sat on the other end of the bench, hat in hand and dozing in the warm sunlight. She sighed when she saw the oldest one approach with bags of food. That one hadn't warmed up to her yet but he had made it understood that he already had too many grandparents. There was something odd about him… and his mother, truth be told but somehow more pronounced in the boy. It seemed a little odd to her that he got away with so much where anyone was concerned. Sure, she knew the circumstances of his origins but that was hardly an excuse to treat people the way he did. "That for us?"
"Yeah." Alex nodded and set the bags down between the Valentis. "Grampa, you ok?"
"What?" Valenti sat up suddenly and reached for a gun that was not on his belt. His bleary blue eyes met his grandson and shook his head. "Where have you been?"
"Getting lunch." Alex leaned in and whispered, "There’s a bacon cheese burger with grilled onions with your name all over it. I told Mr. P that it was for me."
"Is that right?" Valenti peered into the bag, suspiciously at his grandson and then back into the bag. "This better not be like the last time. I’m not a cow, I don’t do tofu or whatever that crap is your mother has got me eating these days."
"It’s all on the razor’s edge." Alex sat on the grass and pulled out his own burger.
"Shouldn’t we call them in?" Michelle looked to her ex-husband.
"No. They’ve got to get out of their systems. In about half an hour I’ll call ‘em in, they’ll eat about half, go play, come back eat another half and then we’ll go." Valenti unwrapped his burger and sat back. "Relax, Michelle. We don’t get in trouble for spoiling the grandkids. It’s our God-given right to do so."
"Should they eat such greasy food?" She sighed as she gazed into the bag. At this point it didn’t matter what she ate so long as it didn’t upset her stomach when she took her meds.
"There’s a salad in there for you, I think." Alex shrugged. "All my parents grew up on Crashdown food. They turned out mostly, okay."
"I’ve been meaning to have the food checked out." Valenti dead-panned. "People who eat there tend to be a little more fertile than most."
"Don’t scare me." Alex jabbed his grandfather in the knee.
"Don’t worry. You’re not going to hear the talk from me. I could barely give it to your dad." Valenti reached into the bag for a little baggie of jalapenos. They ate in silence, taking in the summer day, soon it would be too hot and they would be confined to pools or air-conditioned buildings. The grandfather wrapped the remainder of his burger in its wrapper and set about searching for his antacids. His fading blue eyes took in the perimeter of the park out of habit. "Just be careful, son. Don’t want to rush into things before you can think them through. That’s what was wrong with all your parents. Kids having kids. Least Kyle kept his head about him."
"Dad told me he couldn’t get a date." Alex's mind drifted off. Dad hadn't been much of a dad lately.
"That’s not true. He went to prom with that redhead, I think, and he was with that girl… Tracy but she was a bad apple, I think." His mind was playing tricks on him these days. He had no clue whether or not Tracy had been her name but he did remember that she was bad. A Skin, a bad alien. "I’m not judging, I’m just saying. Put more thought into the things you do. Go get your guitar and play me some Williams Jr."
"Grampa…" Alex whined and shoved the rest of his burger into his mouth. He hated playing that stuff but he had learned most of it only for his grampa.
"You don’t gotta sing but some Williams Jr. sounds nice about now. Maybe I’ll teach you some Meatloaf later."
"Meatloaf?"
"Yes, Meatloaf. Go get your guitar, son." Jim waited until the boy was halfway back to the car to turn back to his ex-wife. "He’s a good kid."
"He’s spoiled." She shook her head.
"Yes, but a good kid." Jim looked up to find his other grandchildren wandering over. Liberty dug her food out of the bag and wedged herself between her grandparents to munch. "All my grandkids are good kids."
"Yep." She answered. She had her mother's blonde hair and brown eyes but her father's cleft chin… which was the only way anyone could tell she was related to her grandmother. "Hey Grampa."
"Hey Berty." He leaned back on the bench. Maybe they should go in. he could feel his skin baking.
"Me and Mel are gonna have a sleepover when she gets back from the doctor… we were gonna camp in the backyard. Are you gonna stand guard?"
"I dunno, kiddo. I don't know what kind of guard this old man can be anymore. Anyway, wouldn't you girls rather stay inside and watch a movie or braid hair or… Michelle, what is all that stuff that girls do?"
"You've got a tomboy, there." Michelle smiled at her granddaughter. "You'd rather run around, huh."
"I'm just as purty as my mom. I don't need make up." Berty turned her nose in the air.
"That you are. Don't worry. We'll keep all the gross boys at bay. I can still do that." Jim closed his eyes.
"Boys are gross and I can outrun and outshoot any boy in school. Alex included." Berty smiled up at her brother who had just returned with his guitar.
"I'm the king of dodge ball." Alex glared at her and took a seat. "So… Hank Williams, Jr… coming up… and later we will talk about you confusing music with entrees."
"Just play the thing. Jr. slow down there, you don't have to swallow it whole."
--
"Welcome to the Crashdown. What can I get you to drink?" Kathy sighed and held her pen poised. She wrote the full order… regulars. She should just Xerox the order pad and just slap it up on the turnstile every day at the same time. She should be grateful, really. Her grandparents ensured her a job when most girls had to look. Most girls needed jobs, she didn’t. Her allowance wasn’t great and her dad only let her shop twice a year. Still, she didn’t need to work. This was her get out of Roswell fund. Save every penny until graduation, then she and Jacobi could elope and go far, far away…
"What's in the Blood of alien Smoothie?"
"Same thing that was in it yesterday." She muttered.
"What was that?"
"Strawberries, bananas and pineapple, cut fresh every day." She cleared her throat and looked them over. Idiots.
--
Max tugged on the ear cuff when he entered the kitchen. Daniel winced but endured. They hadn't discussed his piercing since his birthday, there had been a slight comment at prom, but the constant tugging on the piece of silver told the boy that his father wasn't at all happy about it. "What are you doing this week?"
"As little as possible." Danny replied in all honesty.
"Your aunt's looking for someone to help out…" Max hinted.
"Maybe I could go up to the hospital and help out in the children's wing." Danny quickly corrected himself. "Let my activities speak for me when I apply to medical school."
"Smart aleck." Max muttered and reached for the newspaper on the counter. "So, I’m taking your mother out to dinner tonight. Did we clear our schedule like we were supposed to?"
Danny winced. He had forgotten. He was supposed to take Emily to a movie but that was out the window. He was stuck watching the munchkins by himself until Kathy got home and that was no guarantee she’d take over when she got in. "It’s not a problem."
"Good. You have any problems and your grandmother won’t mind coming over to help but… you don’t bother her unless you need something."
"Understood." The teenager nodded and reached under the counter.
"They’re not there. I’ve looked." Max commented as he took a seat at the table.
"You just don’t know how to look." Danny reached and there. He pulled two packages from the box and tossed one to his father. "She always hides them in the same spot."
"She ever finds out we’re stealing her brownies and your sister is going to kill us." Max ripped open the plastic and reached for the Tabasco.
"I buy her movie tickets, she owes me."
--
Emily kicked a pillow against the closet door. "I can’t believe you forgot." She barked into the phone. "Daniel Evans."
"I am so sorry. I already asked him if you could come over and he said no."
"Daniel."
"I know. I owe you."
"Yes, you do."
"I love you."
"You had better."
--
Alex could hear the sniffles over the line. That did not bode well for the night. "She said what?"
"That I can’t see you anymore. She’s crazy. She thinks there’s something wrong with your whole family."
"Well, we are a bunch of weirdos." Alex mumbled and listened to her sniff on her end. "So, tonight is out."
"Yeah. It pretty much goes without saying… and I think maybe we need to cool it until she comes around." Lynnette whispered. "My dad comes back next week, maybe he can talk some sense into her."
"Yeah. We'll cool it til your dad comes home."
--
Kathy glared at the cheerleader that sat next to her boyfriend. "Nikki, can I get you something? Another table perhaps?"
"You don’t own this place." Nikki glared right back.
"But my grandfather does." Kathy flicked her eyes to Jacobi but he was being very quiet.
"But he isn’t really, is he?" Nikki smiled maliciously. "The Parkers aren’t related to you in anyway except by marriage, right?"
"Nikki, that’s enough." Jacobi finally spoke up. He wouldn’t look Kathy in the eye either. "We were just talking, Kitty."
"Right." Nikki blinked innocently at the girl in the sea-foam green uniform and the bobbing antennae on her head. "We were just talking."
"Right." Kathy glared at them both and made her way to the soda fountain. She poured a tall glass of fruit punch and set it on a tray with Jacobi’s chili-fries. When she looked over at the table again, Nikki had practically draped herself all over Jacobi. It wasn’t hard to think of what to do next. When she ‘tripped’ the contents of her tray landed all over Nikki’s white outfit. Such a shame.
--
TBC
May 2020
"This will just take a second or two, Bethany. Look directly at the red light and relax. Try not to blink."
"Daddy." She whispered and seconds later felt his hands on hers. She could feel him thinking that it was all going to be okay and she felt better. She was so distracted that the puff of air was a surprise on her eye. Blinking rapidly, the red dot shifted to her other eye and again.
"See that wasn't so bad." The ophthalmologist pulled the machinery away and pulled a small bottle from a shelf. "Now, I'm going to dilate your eyes. I'll put these drops in and we'll wait for them to start working." She tilted the girl's head back. "Dr. Evans, you said that she was squinting to see?"
"Reading, she tends to read in the morning and at night… lighting's not the best… but that's just what made it worse, right?" He crossed his arms, he had been mulling it over for a month. Kathy never complained and Daniel was so hard to read. "Hereditary predisposition?"
"Sometimes. How was your eye exam before your clinicals?" She asked calmly as she dropped a cool liquid in Bethany's eyes.
"20/20, still is." Max answered.
"Still." She turned. "Most eye problems are inherited through the mother but we don't rule out fatherly influence. I don't have your chart but I do have your wife's and she has no family history…"
"I don't know if I do. I'm adopted." Max shifted nervously and he couldn't wait any longer. "I… met a… possible relative some months back and he… he wore contacts. I could find out, probably what…"
"That could help formulate a plan of action, maybe see how this condition progresses in your family." Turning back to her patient, she moved another piece of machinery. "Forehead here, chin here. If I could speak with the relative or his doctor."
"He's… passed on but I'll see what I can dig up."
"Dr. Evans… it's probably nothing major. Every is looking fine so far. We'll just test out these beautiful peepers and prescribe some therapeutic corrections and hope her vision gets no worse."
"Glasses aren't the end of the world, Daddy." Bethany stuck her tongue out at her father from behind the contraption and that almost made him laugh. "And I'll have all summer to get used to them before school starts."
--
"You skipped dinner last night but you’re stealing my coffee?" Isabel mock-glared, at least it felt mocking, it could have looked real, at Kyle as he filled his thermos from her coffee pot in the lounge area of Evans, Ramirez and Associates.
"Yeah, sorry about that." Kyle winced slightly. "It’s just, your secretary makes the best coffee in the world."
"He does. He does." Isabel nodded and straightened the books in her arms. Since mid-April he had been making a habit of stopping in at the office for inane purposes but it was really the only time she saw him anymore… aside from waking up to find him sleeping the night off. "You going to be home for dinner tonight?"
"Yeah, I think I will." He held a finger to his lips and then tapped his radio. Their old signal not to jinx plans lest Roswell need him.
"Iz, you have the files on the Morton case?" Jesse wandered in without glancing up from his notebook. When he looked up, Kyle gave him a nod. "Kyle, good to see you."
"Haven’t seen you in a while, Jesse. Maybe we’ll get the families together again for a ‘Q’ or something." Kyle capped his thermos. He paused when Isabel really glared at him and Jesse seemed confused. "What?"
"We are having a barbecue this weekend." Isabel bit out. She could feel Jesse hovering, unsure what to do but there was nothing.
"Alright then, hope I can make it." Kyle lifted the thermos. "I hate to steal coffee and run but I’m on patrol. Tell Bruce that the pot’s running low."
"Good to see you." Jesse took Isabel’s books and wandered away.
"See you at … nevermind." Isabel called after Kyle’s back, but he was already out the door. {That wasn't awkward at all. Not one bit.}
--
Michelle watched the children play on the jungle-gym. It made her smile a bit to know she had grandchildren that were happy and healthy. Jim sat on the other end of the bench, hat in hand and dozing in the warm sunlight. She sighed when she saw the oldest one approach with bags of food. That one hadn't warmed up to her yet but he had made it understood that he already had too many grandparents. There was something odd about him… and his mother, truth be told but somehow more pronounced in the boy. It seemed a little odd to her that he got away with so much where anyone was concerned. Sure, she knew the circumstances of his origins but that was hardly an excuse to treat people the way he did. "That for us?"
"Yeah." Alex nodded and set the bags down between the Valentis. "Grampa, you ok?"
"What?" Valenti sat up suddenly and reached for a gun that was not on his belt. His bleary blue eyes met his grandson and shook his head. "Where have you been?"
"Getting lunch." Alex leaned in and whispered, "There’s a bacon cheese burger with grilled onions with your name all over it. I told Mr. P that it was for me."
"Is that right?" Valenti peered into the bag, suspiciously at his grandson and then back into the bag. "This better not be like the last time. I’m not a cow, I don’t do tofu or whatever that crap is your mother has got me eating these days."
"It’s all on the razor’s edge." Alex sat on the grass and pulled out his own burger.
"Shouldn’t we call them in?" Michelle looked to her ex-husband.
"No. They’ve got to get out of their systems. In about half an hour I’ll call ‘em in, they’ll eat about half, go play, come back eat another half and then we’ll go." Valenti unwrapped his burger and sat back. "Relax, Michelle. We don’t get in trouble for spoiling the grandkids. It’s our God-given right to do so."
"Should they eat such greasy food?" She sighed as she gazed into the bag. At this point it didn’t matter what she ate so long as it didn’t upset her stomach when she took her meds.
"There’s a salad in there for you, I think." Alex shrugged. "All my parents grew up on Crashdown food. They turned out mostly, okay."
"I’ve been meaning to have the food checked out." Valenti dead-panned. "People who eat there tend to be a little more fertile than most."
"Don’t scare me." Alex jabbed his grandfather in the knee.
"Don’t worry. You’re not going to hear the talk from me. I could barely give it to your dad." Valenti reached into the bag for a little baggie of jalapenos. They ate in silence, taking in the summer day, soon it would be too hot and they would be confined to pools or air-conditioned buildings. The grandfather wrapped the remainder of his burger in its wrapper and set about searching for his antacids. His fading blue eyes took in the perimeter of the park out of habit. "Just be careful, son. Don’t want to rush into things before you can think them through. That’s what was wrong with all your parents. Kids having kids. Least Kyle kept his head about him."
"Dad told me he couldn’t get a date." Alex's mind drifted off. Dad hadn't been much of a dad lately.
"That’s not true. He went to prom with that redhead, I think, and he was with that girl… Tracy but she was a bad apple, I think." His mind was playing tricks on him these days. He had no clue whether or not Tracy had been her name but he did remember that she was bad. A Skin, a bad alien. "I’m not judging, I’m just saying. Put more thought into the things you do. Go get your guitar and play me some Williams Jr."
"Grampa…" Alex whined and shoved the rest of his burger into his mouth. He hated playing that stuff but he had learned most of it only for his grampa.
"You don’t gotta sing but some Williams Jr. sounds nice about now. Maybe I’ll teach you some Meatloaf later."
"Meatloaf?"
"Yes, Meatloaf. Go get your guitar, son." Jim waited until the boy was halfway back to the car to turn back to his ex-wife. "He’s a good kid."
"He’s spoiled." She shook her head.
"Yes, but a good kid." Jim looked up to find his other grandchildren wandering over. Liberty dug her food out of the bag and wedged herself between her grandparents to munch. "All my grandkids are good kids."
"Yep." She answered. She had her mother's blonde hair and brown eyes but her father's cleft chin… which was the only way anyone could tell she was related to her grandmother. "Hey Grampa."
"Hey Berty." He leaned back on the bench. Maybe they should go in. he could feel his skin baking.
"Me and Mel are gonna have a sleepover when she gets back from the doctor… we were gonna camp in the backyard. Are you gonna stand guard?"
"I dunno, kiddo. I don't know what kind of guard this old man can be anymore. Anyway, wouldn't you girls rather stay inside and watch a movie or braid hair or… Michelle, what is all that stuff that girls do?"
"You've got a tomboy, there." Michelle smiled at her granddaughter. "You'd rather run around, huh."
"I'm just as purty as my mom. I don't need make up." Berty turned her nose in the air.
"That you are. Don't worry. We'll keep all the gross boys at bay. I can still do that." Jim closed his eyes.
"Boys are gross and I can outrun and outshoot any boy in school. Alex included." Berty smiled up at her brother who had just returned with his guitar.
"I'm the king of dodge ball." Alex glared at her and took a seat. "So… Hank Williams, Jr… coming up… and later we will talk about you confusing music with entrees."
"Just play the thing. Jr. slow down there, you don't have to swallow it whole."
--
"Welcome to the Crashdown. What can I get you to drink?" Kathy sighed and held her pen poised. She wrote the full order… regulars. She should just Xerox the order pad and just slap it up on the turnstile every day at the same time. She should be grateful, really. Her grandparents ensured her a job when most girls had to look. Most girls needed jobs, she didn’t. Her allowance wasn’t great and her dad only let her shop twice a year. Still, she didn’t need to work. This was her get out of Roswell fund. Save every penny until graduation, then she and Jacobi could elope and go far, far away…
"What's in the Blood of alien Smoothie?"
"Same thing that was in it yesterday." She muttered.
"What was that?"
"Strawberries, bananas and pineapple, cut fresh every day." She cleared her throat and looked them over. Idiots.
--
Max tugged on the ear cuff when he entered the kitchen. Daniel winced but endured. They hadn't discussed his piercing since his birthday, there had been a slight comment at prom, but the constant tugging on the piece of silver told the boy that his father wasn't at all happy about it. "What are you doing this week?"
"As little as possible." Danny replied in all honesty.
"Your aunt's looking for someone to help out…" Max hinted.
"Maybe I could go up to the hospital and help out in the children's wing." Danny quickly corrected himself. "Let my activities speak for me when I apply to medical school."
"Smart aleck." Max muttered and reached for the newspaper on the counter. "So, I’m taking your mother out to dinner tonight. Did we clear our schedule like we were supposed to?"
Danny winced. He had forgotten. He was supposed to take Emily to a movie but that was out the window. He was stuck watching the munchkins by himself until Kathy got home and that was no guarantee she’d take over when she got in. "It’s not a problem."
"Good. You have any problems and your grandmother won’t mind coming over to help but… you don’t bother her unless you need something."
"Understood." The teenager nodded and reached under the counter.
"They’re not there. I’ve looked." Max commented as he took a seat at the table.
"You just don’t know how to look." Danny reached and there. He pulled two packages from the box and tossed one to his father. "She always hides them in the same spot."
"She ever finds out we’re stealing her brownies and your sister is going to kill us." Max ripped open the plastic and reached for the Tabasco.
"I buy her movie tickets, she owes me."
--
Emily kicked a pillow against the closet door. "I can’t believe you forgot." She barked into the phone. "Daniel Evans."
"I am so sorry. I already asked him if you could come over and he said no."
"Daniel."
"I know. I owe you."
"Yes, you do."
"I love you."
"You had better."
--
Alex could hear the sniffles over the line. That did not bode well for the night. "She said what?"
"That I can’t see you anymore. She’s crazy. She thinks there’s something wrong with your whole family."
"Well, we are a bunch of weirdos." Alex mumbled and listened to her sniff on her end. "So, tonight is out."
"Yeah. It pretty much goes without saying… and I think maybe we need to cool it until she comes around." Lynnette whispered. "My dad comes back next week, maybe he can talk some sense into her."
"Yeah. We'll cool it til your dad comes home."
--
Kathy glared at the cheerleader that sat next to her boyfriend. "Nikki, can I get you something? Another table perhaps?"
"You don’t own this place." Nikki glared right back.
"But my grandfather does." Kathy flicked her eyes to Jacobi but he was being very quiet.
"But he isn’t really, is he?" Nikki smiled maliciously. "The Parkers aren’t related to you in anyway except by marriage, right?"
"Nikki, that’s enough." Jacobi finally spoke up. He wouldn’t look Kathy in the eye either. "We were just talking, Kitty."
"Right." Nikki blinked innocently at the girl in the sea-foam green uniform and the bobbing antennae on her head. "We were just talking."
"Right." Kathy glared at them both and made her way to the soda fountain. She poured a tall glass of fruit punch and set it on a tray with Jacobi’s chili-fries. When she looked over at the table again, Nikki had practically draped herself all over Jacobi. It wasn’t hard to think of what to do next. When she ‘tripped’ the contents of her tray landed all over Nikki’s white outfit. Such a shame.
--
TBC
Part 81 b
"Whitman!" Alex’s head snapped up in a panic but only found his amused cousin approaching. "What are you doing out here?"
"Well, see, I found this contraption and I’m bent on figuring out what it’s used for." Alex told her. "It’s got six strings and I think each string makes a different sound and when I do this." He placed his fingers on the neck. "I can make each string make a totally different sound."
"You are an ass." Emily nudged him with her leg before sitting down. "What song are you playing?"
"Eh."
"Eh?"
"Eh."
"We’ll have to remedy that." Emily took a breath and let it out. "What songs do you know?"
"You’ve never taken an interest in my talents before, Ms. Guerin. What if I don’t feel like sharing with a fair-weather fan?" Alex ran a few scales before producing a disc from his pocket that he knew very well she had a copy of. "I’ve memorized all this stuff."
"Me too." The park was fairly empty at the moment and that was the part that made her decide to go goofy. "Track 6?"
"Sure, why not?" He adjusted the strings and counted off before he began his own interpretation of the ancient song.
Emily bit her lip and almost didn’t come in. She didn’t sing much these days but she could and she knew it. "I can feel it coming in the air tonight, Oh Lord. I’ve been waiting for this moment, all my life. Oh Lord. Can you feel it coming in the air tonight? Oh Lord, oh lord."
"Sounds good." Alex commented.
"Why thank you." She winked at him. "Well if you told me you were drowning, I would not lend a hand. I’ve seen your face before my friend, but I don't know if you know who I am. Well, I was there and I saw what you did. I saw it with my own two eyes…" She faltered a little over the words as her mind went far away but her mouth kept moving and her voice carried on. "So you can wipe off the grin, I know where you've been. It's all been a pack of lies." Shaking her head, she returned to the present and her cousin. "And I can feel it coming in the air tonight, Oh Lord. I've been waiting for this moment for all my life, Oh Lord. I can feel it in the air tonight, Oh Lord, Oh Lord. And I've been waiting for this moment all my life, Oh Lord, Oh Lord."
"Go soft now." Alex whispered, his eyes closed as he thumped the side of the guitar. "No less intense."
"Well I remember, I remember don't worry. How could I ever forget? It's the first time, the last time we ever met… But I know the reason why you keep your silence up, no you don't fool me. The hurt doesn't show; but the pain still grows. It's no stranger to you or me." Emily let her eyes drop to the ground. She wanted to stop but Alex rarely got intense about anything and just this moment it was this song and so she belted the chorus because he was playing so loud. "And I can feel it coming in the air tonight, Oh Lord-"
"Holy shit. It’s a ghost." Someone gasped.
Alex stopped playing and looked up to find someone who looked vaguely familiar standing nearby… but this guy was old. "Hey Em, didn’t you date that guy’s son?"
"Shit." The man cursed and looked back at the duo. "It’s been so long… I nearly forgot they had kids. You’re Alex and Maria’s kids, huh."
"Yeah." Alex nodded when Em wouldn’t look up. "You knew my dad?"
"Yeah, actually." The man knelt to examine the once-familiar guitar. "I was the drummer in his band."
"The Whits?"
"The Whits. Yes." He broke out in a broad grin. "Everyone used to call us the Shits, though. I can’t believe that thing is still floating around."
"You’re Mr. Alvarez." Emily eyed the man cautiously.
"Don’t call me that, it still gives me the creeps. But yeah, I’m Marcus." He looked over the guitar with longing. "I didn’t know your mom so well but your dad and I… oh, we had a dream and it was getting us out of Roswell. Those were the days. When we landed that gig, we thought it was going to happen for us…"
"What happened?" Alex pressed.
"Her mom screwed it up. Turns out she had performance anxiety and we didn’t know until she nearly spazzed on stage."
"I didn’t know that." Emily drew her legs us to her chest. "They told me she sang with Uncle Alex but I didn’t know they were good."
"Oh, we weren’t. No, no, we definitely weren’t but we thought we were." Marcus sighed. "Least that bad boy ain’t locked up in a room somewhere. I heard his folks lost it--." He cut himself off and started to apologize. "Hey kid, I'm sorry I didn't mean-"
"No, it’s okay. They did." Alex nodded. "But they got it back together and I rescued his bass, too."
"Oh, man the bass. It was so sweet. Choice instrument if I ever saw one." Marcus shook his head at the boy. "Man… seeing you… it's like I'm 16 again and lookin' right at him. Anyone ever tell you that you're a mirror image of the old man?"
"Once or twice." Alex shrugged it off.
"Oh god… I'm that guy. I swore I'd never be that guy." The older man made a face. "Living in the glory days… and they weren't even all that… glorious." He shook his head and gathered himself to go. "Hey, I got some old discs we did before… you know… if you want to have a listen, come up with some tunes of your own. Contact the kid, he'll know where to find me." Then he nodded to Emily. "Don't keep those pipes a secret, little one. Blast 'em while you can."
Emily watched him walk away. He had never seemed that cool when she was dating Isaac. Mostly she had kept out of his way because he had known her mom. Standard procedure as far as she was concerned. "That was weird."
"What are you doing this summer?" Alex asked out of the blue.
"Nothing. Thought about getting a job…"
"I got this thing with Mr. Phipps this summer. Help me out. Mornings and every Thursday afternoon."
"What?" She shook her head at him.
"I agreed to teach some morons how to strum a guitar but on Thursdays, I get to use the recording equipment and I think if I could sample your voice, I could have my project halfway done for me." His mind was already going off in all directions, "and some samples of your mom off these discs and whatever Isaac's dad's got. How about it?"
"What's the pay?"
"Crappy but it'll get you out of the house for those morning diapers."
"You got it."
--
Oriel leaned on her bed. She didn't want to sit and she didn't want to lay down and she didn't want to walk. Michael was a wreck. He couldn't find Emily and it was time… to wait for Max to show and for the contractions to start again. Not a one since that scary one half an hour before. "This is all your fault."
"My fault?" Michael blinked at her. "For what?"
"This is your child. Your seed spawned this child and he won't come out. I'm overdue by how much? 'Don't worry about it. Liz carried for 10 months.' I'm not Liz. I'm me and I want the kid out." Oriel stopped and gasped suddenly. "Ow. Ow. Ow. Get Max. Get him here."
"See, maybe he does know what he's talking about." Michael raced for the phone again. His fingers fumbled over the buttons. It had been half an hour since they had called Max the first time. He about strangled Max when the man entered with a cup of coffee. "She's started."
"How long ago?" Max asked calmly, which made Michael want to punch him more.
"I don't know… a minute?"
"We've got a while." Max handed Michael the coffee. "You sit with that. It's hot." He helped Oriel onto the bed. "Let's see how we're doing. It's been two minutes?"
"Something like that. It was… not sharp… all over."
"Okay. Good." Max nodded and lifted each leg in turn to rest on the end of the bed. "As long as it isn't sharp. Liz used to sleep through this part, it's the next part that would wake her up in a panic."
"Why?" She thought back to the manual. "Abrupt and intense pain prior to delivery."
"Don't think about that." Max was calm and soothing. The best way to do this. He'd had experience and getting worked up only upset them… while his calmness also irked them. "So, Liz is upset. Not about you having the baby tonight, she's excited about that but we were supposed to go out, tonight."
"How's that working for you?" Michael asked, focused on the cup in his hands.
Max turned at the sound of his friend's voice. He was gripping the cup so firmly his hand had locked. Not squeezing the cup and not relaxing. Firmly holding around the cup. "Michael. Breathe. Breathe."
His breath came out in a whoosh and he inhaled deeply and let it out. "Sorry. Breathing."
"It's okay. You weren't like this when Emily was born."
"Was a little too busy looking for you and fighting with Amy. I didn't have to think about how big her stomach was and how small her body was and how in the hell a person can come out of another person. It's barbaric. I'll bet our people don't do it this way. It's unnatural." Michael ranted.
"Michael, not helping." Oriel winced as another contraction came on. "Much closer than the last interval."
"You're agitating her, Michael." Max whipped on a fresh pair of gloves. "It might be a good idea for you to sit this one out… and get Kyle here. I can always trust him to know that he's doing."
"I can do what Kyle does."
"But you don't have Kyle's sense of humor and trust me, it helps."
--
Daniel shook his head as he hung up. "She's not home." Liz nodded and tugged at her earrings. "We… had a date and I broke it cause I forgot you guys were going out and all… heh… and now we need her and she's… somewhere."
"Yeah, well, it's just her baby brother, she's not that excited about it." Liz shrugged.
"Yeah. She's been pretty resistant about the whole thing."
"Mom. Look." Beth popped into the room with her brand new frames. "Do I look… smart?"
"You do." Liz adjusted the nose piece. "How'd it go?"
"Good. I have 20/30 myopia and…" Beth looked up at her big brother. "You have to go too."
"I see fine." Danny protested.
"Just go." Liz rolled her eyes at her children. "Get your eyes checked, humor your dad."
"Mommy, Mommy, Mommy." David tugged at her hem of her dress. "I love you."
"I love you, too. What are we having for dinner?"
"Mud pie."
"Really."
"No. Mom. No." Daniel shook his head vigorously. He mouthed over David's head. 'It's real.'
"How about pizza?" Liz knelt.
"Mud pizza?" his face lit up.
"Real pizza."
"Okay." He pouted and wandered away.
Liz watched her children. Beth was fine, happy with her new glasses. Daniel was… pouting as only he could. David was cranky. Still, leave it to Michael to ruin her fun. He couldn't have sown his seed a week earlier, thereby the child being born last week when they were all ready for it?
--
Max greeted Kyle outside the room and immediately had to rethink his game plan. The man was stinking drunk. Taking the coffee from Michael, he pressed it into Kyle's hands, made him sit and pulled Michael back in. True to alien form, this pregnancy wasn't going as expected… in that… Like Tess, it was happening very, very fast. He tried not to have doubts but just in case, Michael needed to be near to his wife.
--
Emily set her bag on the counter and stared at it. Could she do it? Did she have the strength to open that bag and find out?
--
Alex couldn't help himself, he crawled in her window and lay beside her as quietly as possible. Her tear-stained face was smiling when she turned to him. "Some times… it's like I'm not feeling anymore… like if you're not touching me, then it's not real."
"Yeah." He kissed her lips.
"She'll kill us both if she finds you in here."
"I'll risk it."
"She found out…"
"What?"
--
Kathy ripped off her antennae and shoved them into her locker. Jacobi Wilson. She wanted to kill him. Yanking off her uniform, she grabbed her clothes and jerked them on. She wanted to die. Had she done something wrong? Ever since prom, things had been different. Curling up on the couch, she hid from the world. She couldn't talk to Mom, she couldn't talk to Emily and no one else could possibly understand. She had thought she was ready and it didn't feel the way it had for Emily. Now he was flirting with Nikki. Nikki of all people. Her one enemy on the planet.
When the arms wrapped around her, she didn't question as the tears flowed freely. She allowed herself to be held and rocked. When she looked up, it was Nancy… grandma… kinda. It made her burst into fresh tears. She got along with the woman okay but much better with Grandpa Parker because of… Tess. Nancy hated Dad because of Tess and the hurt that Mom went through but here. "Sh. It's okay. It's not the end of the world."
"It's not?" Kathy whispered.
"Boys are fickle creatures." Nancy whispered. "That girl isn't any prettier than you. She's just… different. He's curious but… I've seen the way he looks at you and I'm not saying it's right but he cares about you… more than he ever could that awful girl." It was strange to her, to comfort this girl she had never really seen as a part of her family. They hadn't interacted much before the girl was employed and only since the last seven years. The sight of that girl crying the way Liz once did, broke her heart. "Come on, let's get you home. I hear that Michael's wife is having her baby."
--
"Apparently they tried to tell me but I was busy." Jesse sat with his glass. "So, I'm all by myself for the barbecue because they all went to Sierra Blanca for the week."
"Where's Si-era Blan-ca?" Kyle asked as he made a disaster of his hot dog. How, Isabel could never see. He was almost seven and still, with the mess.
"Texas." Jesse informed the boy.
"Cool. I'm gonna be a Cowboy when I grow up." Kyle informed them.
"We talked about this. Saints." Jim told the boy and rubbed his belly. His stomach was still rioting over lunch, so he didn't eat much but he could see damn fine.
Isabel kept glancing between the phone, the door and her dinner guest. She kept thinking and it was easy not to think when she was at work or asleep… but here in front of her father-in-law, all she did was think. In front of her kids… thinking. "Berty, when's Mel coming?"
"She forgot to ask her mom." Berty made a face. "I'm gonna be a cop."
"Really." Isabel blinked at her daughter. "Like Daddy."
"Like Grampa." She made a face at her mother.
When the phone rang, Isabel gracefully rose to answer it, although she felt like she had jumped up at the sound. "Valenti house of insanity."
"Iz, it's boy, definitely a boy. I have a son."
"Michael?"
"Yeah. It was kinda rough but they both pulled through. I have a son."
"Congratulations. I… am so happy for you." Isabel's throat closed with guilt even as she uttered the words.
"I have to call around for Em. If you find her, don't tell her, I want to."
"Ok. Bye." Isabel whispered even as the dial tone rang in her ears.
"Something wrong, Iz?" Jesse began to rise from his seat.
"No." Isabel whipped her head around. "Good news. Oriel had the baby. Mother and child are healthy… and Michael's turned into a babbling idiot." She avoided eyes. Father-in-law. Partner. Children. "A boy. Excuse me."
Jim watched as she fled into the night. Through the window, he could see her hunched shoulders at the fence. He was about to go after her, when Jesse beat him to it. Yeah, old Jim could see just damn fine.
--
Liz lay with her son on her bed. They were ready for bed and waiting for Max to finish his nightly routine. The box in Max's hand had been useless for a couple of months and so… in the trash the pills went. Change into the little ashtray Kathy had made once upon a time and Max rarely used anymore. "When two people love each other, they share their love with each other and sometimes… they make a baby."
"Oh." David furrowed his brow. "And you gotta drive to the 'spital to get one?"
"Kind of." Max turned slightly. Were they seriously explaining babies to his baby?
"But how does the baby get to the 'spital. Where does it come from before the 'spital?"
"I think it's time for bed. You have an appointment tomorrow, chief." Max laid on the bed next to his loved ones.
"But how?"
"Magic." Liz told him.
"Does you have babies?"
"Where do you think you came from?" Liz kissed his head. "Your daddy loved me and I loved him and poof. There you were."
"I don't believe you. I'm gonna ask Beth." With that, the little boy jumped off the bed and ran out the door.
"Magic?" Max raised his eyebrow at his wife and pulled her closer. It was a little disappointing to know he'd never have anymore children. "What happened to telling the truth?"
"It's harder when I don't have my own body to demonstrate with." Liz sighed and burrowed her face into his shoulder. "No date."
"Sorry but babies have their own schedule, you know that."
"I know." Liz saw the photocopies on the dresser and she didn't want to ask but she had to. "Those?"
"Oh… coroner's report for… Burkhardt. They pulled contacts out of his eyes and the prescription was on the report. I was just checking."
"She has your eyes… his eyes?" Liz studied his face. "You think?"
"Things are hereditary and we've ignored it for the most part but our donors… had rare blood defects and those are in us and they contribute to our… everything… I've been toying with the idea of… finding them… the others… Isabel's donor… Tess's… Oriel's… Just to see."
--
Emily waited and waited until the phone rang. "Where is everyone?"
"Finally. Em. It's happened." Michael gushed over the line. "Come to the hospital. I'll bring you up so you can see him. He's beautiful. He… Shit, we didn't name him yet."
"She had the baby?" Emily felt a twinge in her heart.
"Yeah. Hurry. Come meet your brother."
Emily replaced the phone on the cradle. "Wonderful."
--
Her fingers shook as she gripped the stupid square. An ept. One minute and she would be ready to open her eyes. She didn't need to but she had to work up the courage to look. 45 seconds. Pregnant or not. This was life-altering. 30 seconds. This could be very bad. This was not the time for a baby. 20 seconds. This would affect many lives, not just her own. Everyone's opinion of her would change. 8 seconds. No good could come of this. Deep breath. Open eyes. See.
Shaking hands held it before it was tossed. The trash can sat under its counter. Some Q-tips, discarded wrappers of various sorts, wadded tissue paper, old razors and the newest cast off… with a pink plus sign glaring out of its little window. A bad, bad thing.
TBC
"Well, see, I found this contraption and I’m bent on figuring out what it’s used for." Alex told her. "It’s got six strings and I think each string makes a different sound and when I do this." He placed his fingers on the neck. "I can make each string make a totally different sound."
"You are an ass." Emily nudged him with her leg before sitting down. "What song are you playing?"
"Eh."
"Eh?"
"Eh."
"We’ll have to remedy that." Emily took a breath and let it out. "What songs do you know?"
"You’ve never taken an interest in my talents before, Ms. Guerin. What if I don’t feel like sharing with a fair-weather fan?" Alex ran a few scales before producing a disc from his pocket that he knew very well she had a copy of. "I’ve memorized all this stuff."
"Me too." The park was fairly empty at the moment and that was the part that made her decide to go goofy. "Track 6?"
"Sure, why not?" He adjusted the strings and counted off before he began his own interpretation of the ancient song.
Emily bit her lip and almost didn’t come in. She didn’t sing much these days but she could and she knew it. "I can feel it coming in the air tonight, Oh Lord. I’ve been waiting for this moment, all my life. Oh Lord. Can you feel it coming in the air tonight? Oh Lord, oh lord."
"Sounds good." Alex commented.
"Why thank you." She winked at him. "Well if you told me you were drowning, I would not lend a hand. I’ve seen your face before my friend, but I don't know if you know who I am. Well, I was there and I saw what you did. I saw it with my own two eyes…" She faltered a little over the words as her mind went far away but her mouth kept moving and her voice carried on. "So you can wipe off the grin, I know where you've been. It's all been a pack of lies." Shaking her head, she returned to the present and her cousin. "And I can feel it coming in the air tonight, Oh Lord. I've been waiting for this moment for all my life, Oh Lord. I can feel it in the air tonight, Oh Lord, Oh Lord. And I've been waiting for this moment all my life, Oh Lord, Oh Lord."
"Go soft now." Alex whispered, his eyes closed as he thumped the side of the guitar. "No less intense."
"Well I remember, I remember don't worry. How could I ever forget? It's the first time, the last time we ever met… But I know the reason why you keep your silence up, no you don't fool me. The hurt doesn't show; but the pain still grows. It's no stranger to you or me." Emily let her eyes drop to the ground. She wanted to stop but Alex rarely got intense about anything and just this moment it was this song and so she belted the chorus because he was playing so loud. "And I can feel it coming in the air tonight, Oh Lord-"
"Holy shit. It’s a ghost." Someone gasped.
Alex stopped playing and looked up to find someone who looked vaguely familiar standing nearby… but this guy was old. "Hey Em, didn’t you date that guy’s son?"
"Shit." The man cursed and looked back at the duo. "It’s been so long… I nearly forgot they had kids. You’re Alex and Maria’s kids, huh."
"Yeah." Alex nodded when Em wouldn’t look up. "You knew my dad?"
"Yeah, actually." The man knelt to examine the once-familiar guitar. "I was the drummer in his band."
"The Whits?"
"The Whits. Yes." He broke out in a broad grin. "Everyone used to call us the Shits, though. I can’t believe that thing is still floating around."
"You’re Mr. Alvarez." Emily eyed the man cautiously.
"Don’t call me that, it still gives me the creeps. But yeah, I’m Marcus." He looked over the guitar with longing. "I didn’t know your mom so well but your dad and I… oh, we had a dream and it was getting us out of Roswell. Those were the days. When we landed that gig, we thought it was going to happen for us…"
"What happened?" Alex pressed.
"Her mom screwed it up. Turns out she had performance anxiety and we didn’t know until she nearly spazzed on stage."
"I didn’t know that." Emily drew her legs us to her chest. "They told me she sang with Uncle Alex but I didn’t know they were good."
"Oh, we weren’t. No, no, we definitely weren’t but we thought we were." Marcus sighed. "Least that bad boy ain’t locked up in a room somewhere. I heard his folks lost it--." He cut himself off and started to apologize. "Hey kid, I'm sorry I didn't mean-"
"No, it’s okay. They did." Alex nodded. "But they got it back together and I rescued his bass, too."
"Oh, man the bass. It was so sweet. Choice instrument if I ever saw one." Marcus shook his head at the boy. "Man… seeing you… it's like I'm 16 again and lookin' right at him. Anyone ever tell you that you're a mirror image of the old man?"
"Once or twice." Alex shrugged it off.
"Oh god… I'm that guy. I swore I'd never be that guy." The older man made a face. "Living in the glory days… and they weren't even all that… glorious." He shook his head and gathered himself to go. "Hey, I got some old discs we did before… you know… if you want to have a listen, come up with some tunes of your own. Contact the kid, he'll know where to find me." Then he nodded to Emily. "Don't keep those pipes a secret, little one. Blast 'em while you can."
Emily watched him walk away. He had never seemed that cool when she was dating Isaac. Mostly she had kept out of his way because he had known her mom. Standard procedure as far as she was concerned. "That was weird."
"What are you doing this summer?" Alex asked out of the blue.
"Nothing. Thought about getting a job…"
"I got this thing with Mr. Phipps this summer. Help me out. Mornings and every Thursday afternoon."
"What?" She shook her head at him.
"I agreed to teach some morons how to strum a guitar but on Thursdays, I get to use the recording equipment and I think if I could sample your voice, I could have my project halfway done for me." His mind was already going off in all directions, "and some samples of your mom off these discs and whatever Isaac's dad's got. How about it?"
"What's the pay?"
"Crappy but it'll get you out of the house for those morning diapers."
"You got it."
--
Oriel leaned on her bed. She didn't want to sit and she didn't want to lay down and she didn't want to walk. Michael was a wreck. He couldn't find Emily and it was time… to wait for Max to show and for the contractions to start again. Not a one since that scary one half an hour before. "This is all your fault."
"My fault?" Michael blinked at her. "For what?"
"This is your child. Your seed spawned this child and he won't come out. I'm overdue by how much? 'Don't worry about it. Liz carried for 10 months.' I'm not Liz. I'm me and I want the kid out." Oriel stopped and gasped suddenly. "Ow. Ow. Ow. Get Max. Get him here."
"See, maybe he does know what he's talking about." Michael raced for the phone again. His fingers fumbled over the buttons. It had been half an hour since they had called Max the first time. He about strangled Max when the man entered with a cup of coffee. "She's started."
"How long ago?" Max asked calmly, which made Michael want to punch him more.
"I don't know… a minute?"
"We've got a while." Max handed Michael the coffee. "You sit with that. It's hot." He helped Oriel onto the bed. "Let's see how we're doing. It's been two minutes?"
"Something like that. It was… not sharp… all over."
"Okay. Good." Max nodded and lifted each leg in turn to rest on the end of the bed. "As long as it isn't sharp. Liz used to sleep through this part, it's the next part that would wake her up in a panic."
"Why?" She thought back to the manual. "Abrupt and intense pain prior to delivery."
"Don't think about that." Max was calm and soothing. The best way to do this. He'd had experience and getting worked up only upset them… while his calmness also irked them. "So, Liz is upset. Not about you having the baby tonight, she's excited about that but we were supposed to go out, tonight."
"How's that working for you?" Michael asked, focused on the cup in his hands.
Max turned at the sound of his friend's voice. He was gripping the cup so firmly his hand had locked. Not squeezing the cup and not relaxing. Firmly holding around the cup. "Michael. Breathe. Breathe."
His breath came out in a whoosh and he inhaled deeply and let it out. "Sorry. Breathing."
"It's okay. You weren't like this when Emily was born."
"Was a little too busy looking for you and fighting with Amy. I didn't have to think about how big her stomach was and how small her body was and how in the hell a person can come out of another person. It's barbaric. I'll bet our people don't do it this way. It's unnatural." Michael ranted.
"Michael, not helping." Oriel winced as another contraction came on. "Much closer than the last interval."
"You're agitating her, Michael." Max whipped on a fresh pair of gloves. "It might be a good idea for you to sit this one out… and get Kyle here. I can always trust him to know that he's doing."
"I can do what Kyle does."
"But you don't have Kyle's sense of humor and trust me, it helps."
--
Daniel shook his head as he hung up. "She's not home." Liz nodded and tugged at her earrings. "We… had a date and I broke it cause I forgot you guys were going out and all… heh… and now we need her and she's… somewhere."
"Yeah, well, it's just her baby brother, she's not that excited about it." Liz shrugged.
"Yeah. She's been pretty resistant about the whole thing."
"Mom. Look." Beth popped into the room with her brand new frames. "Do I look… smart?"
"You do." Liz adjusted the nose piece. "How'd it go?"
"Good. I have 20/30 myopia and…" Beth looked up at her big brother. "You have to go too."
"I see fine." Danny protested.
"Just go." Liz rolled her eyes at her children. "Get your eyes checked, humor your dad."
"Mommy, Mommy, Mommy." David tugged at her hem of her dress. "I love you."
"I love you, too. What are we having for dinner?"
"Mud pie."
"Really."
"No. Mom. No." Daniel shook his head vigorously. He mouthed over David's head. 'It's real.'
"How about pizza?" Liz knelt.
"Mud pizza?" his face lit up.
"Real pizza."
"Okay." He pouted and wandered away.
Liz watched her children. Beth was fine, happy with her new glasses. Daniel was… pouting as only he could. David was cranky. Still, leave it to Michael to ruin her fun. He couldn't have sown his seed a week earlier, thereby the child being born last week when they were all ready for it?
--
Max greeted Kyle outside the room and immediately had to rethink his game plan. The man was stinking drunk. Taking the coffee from Michael, he pressed it into Kyle's hands, made him sit and pulled Michael back in. True to alien form, this pregnancy wasn't going as expected… in that… Like Tess, it was happening very, very fast. He tried not to have doubts but just in case, Michael needed to be near to his wife.
--
Emily set her bag on the counter and stared at it. Could she do it? Did she have the strength to open that bag and find out?
--
Alex couldn't help himself, he crawled in her window and lay beside her as quietly as possible. Her tear-stained face was smiling when she turned to him. "Some times… it's like I'm not feeling anymore… like if you're not touching me, then it's not real."
"Yeah." He kissed her lips.
"She'll kill us both if she finds you in here."
"I'll risk it."
"She found out…"
"What?"
--
Kathy ripped off her antennae and shoved them into her locker. Jacobi Wilson. She wanted to kill him. Yanking off her uniform, she grabbed her clothes and jerked them on. She wanted to die. Had she done something wrong? Ever since prom, things had been different. Curling up on the couch, she hid from the world. She couldn't talk to Mom, she couldn't talk to Emily and no one else could possibly understand. She had thought she was ready and it didn't feel the way it had for Emily. Now he was flirting with Nikki. Nikki of all people. Her one enemy on the planet.
When the arms wrapped around her, she didn't question as the tears flowed freely. She allowed herself to be held and rocked. When she looked up, it was Nancy… grandma… kinda. It made her burst into fresh tears. She got along with the woman okay but much better with Grandpa Parker because of… Tess. Nancy hated Dad because of Tess and the hurt that Mom went through but here. "Sh. It's okay. It's not the end of the world."
"It's not?" Kathy whispered.
"Boys are fickle creatures." Nancy whispered. "That girl isn't any prettier than you. She's just… different. He's curious but… I've seen the way he looks at you and I'm not saying it's right but he cares about you… more than he ever could that awful girl." It was strange to her, to comfort this girl she had never really seen as a part of her family. They hadn't interacted much before the girl was employed and only since the last seven years. The sight of that girl crying the way Liz once did, broke her heart. "Come on, let's get you home. I hear that Michael's wife is having her baby."
--
"Apparently they tried to tell me but I was busy." Jesse sat with his glass. "So, I'm all by myself for the barbecue because they all went to Sierra Blanca for the week."
"Where's Si-era Blan-ca?" Kyle asked as he made a disaster of his hot dog. How, Isabel could never see. He was almost seven and still, with the mess.
"Texas." Jesse informed the boy.
"Cool. I'm gonna be a Cowboy when I grow up." Kyle informed them.
"We talked about this. Saints." Jim told the boy and rubbed his belly. His stomach was still rioting over lunch, so he didn't eat much but he could see damn fine.
Isabel kept glancing between the phone, the door and her dinner guest. She kept thinking and it was easy not to think when she was at work or asleep… but here in front of her father-in-law, all she did was think. In front of her kids… thinking. "Berty, when's Mel coming?"
"She forgot to ask her mom." Berty made a face. "I'm gonna be a cop."
"Really." Isabel blinked at her daughter. "Like Daddy."
"Like Grampa." She made a face at her mother.
When the phone rang, Isabel gracefully rose to answer it, although she felt like she had jumped up at the sound. "Valenti house of insanity."
"Iz, it's boy, definitely a boy. I have a son."
"Michael?"
"Yeah. It was kinda rough but they both pulled through. I have a son."
"Congratulations. I… am so happy for you." Isabel's throat closed with guilt even as she uttered the words.
"I have to call around for Em. If you find her, don't tell her, I want to."
"Ok. Bye." Isabel whispered even as the dial tone rang in her ears.
"Something wrong, Iz?" Jesse began to rise from his seat.
"No." Isabel whipped her head around. "Good news. Oriel had the baby. Mother and child are healthy… and Michael's turned into a babbling idiot." She avoided eyes. Father-in-law. Partner. Children. "A boy. Excuse me."
Jim watched as she fled into the night. Through the window, he could see her hunched shoulders at the fence. He was about to go after her, when Jesse beat him to it. Yeah, old Jim could see just damn fine.
--
Liz lay with her son on her bed. They were ready for bed and waiting for Max to finish his nightly routine. The box in Max's hand had been useless for a couple of months and so… in the trash the pills went. Change into the little ashtray Kathy had made once upon a time and Max rarely used anymore. "When two people love each other, they share their love with each other and sometimes… they make a baby."
"Oh." David furrowed his brow. "And you gotta drive to the 'spital to get one?"
"Kind of." Max turned slightly. Were they seriously explaining babies to his baby?
"But how does the baby get to the 'spital. Where does it come from before the 'spital?"
"I think it's time for bed. You have an appointment tomorrow, chief." Max laid on the bed next to his loved ones.
"But how?"
"Magic." Liz told him.
"Does you have babies?"
"Where do you think you came from?" Liz kissed his head. "Your daddy loved me and I loved him and poof. There you were."
"I don't believe you. I'm gonna ask Beth." With that, the little boy jumped off the bed and ran out the door.
"Magic?" Max raised his eyebrow at his wife and pulled her closer. It was a little disappointing to know he'd never have anymore children. "What happened to telling the truth?"
"It's harder when I don't have my own body to demonstrate with." Liz sighed and burrowed her face into his shoulder. "No date."
"Sorry but babies have their own schedule, you know that."
"I know." Liz saw the photocopies on the dresser and she didn't want to ask but she had to. "Those?"
"Oh… coroner's report for… Burkhardt. They pulled contacts out of his eyes and the prescription was on the report. I was just checking."
"She has your eyes… his eyes?" Liz studied his face. "You think?"
"Things are hereditary and we've ignored it for the most part but our donors… had rare blood defects and those are in us and they contribute to our… everything… I've been toying with the idea of… finding them… the others… Isabel's donor… Tess's… Oriel's… Just to see."
--
Emily waited and waited until the phone rang. "Where is everyone?"
"Finally. Em. It's happened." Michael gushed over the line. "Come to the hospital. I'll bring you up so you can see him. He's beautiful. He… Shit, we didn't name him yet."
"She had the baby?" Emily felt a twinge in her heart.
"Yeah. Hurry. Come meet your brother."
Emily replaced the phone on the cradle. "Wonderful."
--
Her fingers shook as she gripped the stupid square. An ept. One minute and she would be ready to open her eyes. She didn't need to but she had to work up the courage to look. 45 seconds. Pregnant or not. This was life-altering. 30 seconds. This could be very bad. This was not the time for a baby. 20 seconds. This would affect many lives, not just her own. Everyone's opinion of her would change. 8 seconds. No good could come of this. Deep breath. Open eyes. See.
Shaking hands held it before it was tossed. The trash can sat under its counter. Some Q-tips, discarded wrappers of various sorts, wadded tissue paper, old razors and the newest cast off… with a pink plus sign glaring out of its little window. A bad, bad thing.
TBC
Part 82
The Fate of Destiny Part 82
June 2020
"It's bald." Emily sighed for the millionth time over her father's shoulder. "I'm way cuter."
"He does kinda look like Bob Barker." Michael tilted his head at his son.
"Bob who?" She looked to her father.
"He's… never mind." He shook his head and gently washed his son in the tub they had set up in the bathroom. "So… think you'll be helping out at all?"
"Not planning on it."
"I can barely remember doing this for you." Michael looked up at his daughter. "Rare occasion but I did, I think."
"So… I'm going to work."
"Could you check on Oriel and see if she needs anything before you go?"
"Whatever."
"Em."
Emily ignored his call and poked her head into the master bedroom. "I'm going, you need?"
"Just my baby." Oriel shook her head.
"Taking a bath." Emily nodded and continued on down the stairs. Her dad and Oriel had just gotten home the night before. Max had kept them in the hospital for observation, just in case. Nothing was wrong but… precautions.
--
Isabel sat on the edge of the bed to put on her shoes. She could feel Kyle behind her. He wasn't sleeping and he was doing a bad job of pretending. "Company picnic is tomorrow."
"Mmf." He grunted.
"Are you coming?" She shoved her foot into another shoe. She sat there staring at the wall as his arm wrapped around her waist. "Well?"
"You've lost weight." He told her, his head turned so that he could see her.
"I do that sometimes." It was a whisper. Accusatory. Connotative. She didn't look at him. She couldn't. "So, everyone is going to be at the park all afternoon."
"We'll see." He started to pull her to him but she stood up out of his grasp.
"Just… make an appearance at least and don't forget to talk to the kids today."
"What about?" Kyle rolled over to watch her pull on her jewelry and fix her lipstick.
"Something. Anything. Let them know you're alive and you're still their father. Be a miracle if they still knew what you looked like." Isabel stormed out of the room, dropping kisses on four faces on her way out the front door with her briefcase. Kyle flopped back on the bed and reached for the phone. "Room 315."
"Pardon?"
"315. Michelle."
"Sheriff Valenti… the paramedics just left. We were about to call you."
--
Max watched as they rushed a woman into the ICU from where he stood in the lobby. He was on his way home. He got into the car and turned onto Main. He waved to Liz as he passed her on the drive to work. When he got home his mother was cleaning the breakfast table. Kissing her cheek, he made his way to bed… but he couldn't sleep. He just listened to the house waking up and embracing the summer.
"Bye Gramma." Beth and Kathy called. They were going to work.
"How do I look?" Daniel.
"Very smart. How are those working for you?"
"I didn't even realize I needed them… and that's pretty scary." He admitted. Why could his kids talk to Gramma and not to him?
"You didn't notice? What about in class? And reading?"
"I don't actually do a lot of reading as much as scanning."
"Daniel Evans. Shame on you. There is so much beauty in the written word. School is more than acquiring knowledge. It's about experience. Learning to learn. Different ways to approaching an understanding. I could spout facts, oh so many facts about law but… I can't claim to understand it all. Isabel does. She can apply what she learns about law. A gift. What are you going to do when you're at the operating table and you know what you're supposed to do but you don't understand why or how and you make a mistake?"
"I guess I never thought about it that way."
"Driving?"
"I could probably drive this town with my eyes closed—I wouldn't. Ever. I'm just saying… I don't look for street signs. I just know. This is where the turn is. This is how I get home. This is how I get to Em's. How do you think people did it in the old days? Before signs? They just knew. This is the route. They didn't need glasses."
"They didn't have glasses but now we do and now we have to go to the DMV and get your license corrected."
"I know. I'm going. Then I'm going the hospital for a few hours."
"Have fun." Clinking of dishes. Shutting of doors. "Look at that handsome young man."
"Hi Gamma."
"How you doing, Bubba?"
"Bubba? I Davey."
"I know, sweetie."
"Davey."
"I'm sorry. Davey, what are you doing?"
"Going to play."
"Okay. I'm in here. Sweetie?"
"O-tay."
The door opened. "Sweetie? Shouldn't you be at work?"
"I have to talk to you. Is … he… here?"
"He went to bed as soon as he got in. Everyone else is gone except for the baby."
"Okay. I… I don't want you to think… I don't know who else to go to."
Max sat up and listened. He couldn't help it. He scooted to the edge of the bed to hear better. When he looked up, she was looking back.
--
Alex looked up when Emily walked in. "Where have you been?"
"Sorry. Took the scenic route. Testing the bike." She shrugged and went to the corner with her charges. Pulling the music from a sack, she cleared her throat. "I don't know about you guys but that chorale crap doesn't cut it for me. We're going to do something different in this workshop."
--
Kyle sat by her side. She didn't look well. His father stood at the doorway, the kids, save for Alex, outside. She was sleeping through the morphine and there was nothing anyone could do but watch her. "She's okay. She's just been in pain. It will pass. It usually does."
"Usually."
"She goes through these spells." The doctor explained. "I talked to her other doctors. This medication interacts with her body's hormones and she'll go through a spell of pain and then it passes in a day or so with some pain killers. She'll go home in a few days."
"I don't understand."
"Frankly, neither do we. She's a strong woman. She's been fighting this thing off for longer than we thought humanly possible. She's outlived anyone's expectations and I believe she'll continue to do so as long as her spirit holds out. Actually, I believe she's improved since she's come to Roswell. Here, she's got family, something worthwhile to fight for. Human spirit is the biggest mystery of all, Sheriff."
--
Isabel set her briefcase on her desk and stared at it for a full five minutes until she realized that Bruce was talking to her. "Um, what? Yes. Yes. I am on it."
"You're late."
"Took the long way to work today. No big." Isabel shook her head. She had work to do. "Tell Jesse that the Mortons called me last night. They will be in this afternoon to discuss a settlement with us. He's got the current files on that."
"Will do, Boss. You okay?"
"Fine, Bruce." She smiled at him. "Really. I'm fine."
"You just… look a little pale."
"I need a tan. Tomorrow will be good for all of us." She gave him a brighter smile and the man blushed despite himself.
--
Kathy pointedly ignored her boyfriend when he stopped in for lunch. He had to go after lunch anyway. His dad had him apprenticing at the shop all afternoon. She hadn't taken his calls in a week and he had better get a clue before things got worse. Then came the supreme embarrassment of her life. Her grandfather plucking his guitar behind the front counter, teaching Bethany a song he had written a long time ago. People she knew were eating and her grandfather was singing a sappy love song.
Rushing to the break room, she waited for the urge to cry to pass. Then he was there, holding her and whispering to her. She blurted it all out in a mighty rush. The tears came as he held her against his body but said nothing.
--
Alex sat with Lynnette at lunch. She was in charge of overseeing the summer school lunch bar and she got her break just as he came out of his workshop. This was their time. Her mother was nowhere in sight. Her brother was at summer camp and so long as her father's runs were short, they could spend as much time together as they wanted. She was in trouble after her mother had let them know she knew about them. That they had been dating for months, that they had on at least one occasion made love, that she was going to try her hardest to keep them apart. But lunch was theirs. No stress, no mess. All he needed was to hold her in his arms. No more surprises.
--
Max sat at the table with his mother sipping coffee when Kyle entered the house with barely a knock. "Am I interrupting?"
"No, I was just about to take Davey to his session." Diane rose from the table to get the boy ready.
"Long time, no see." Max gestured to the seat across from him.
"My mom is in the hospital."
"Oh dear, is she alright?" Diane hugged her son-in-law.
"Yeah, doctors say she'll be fine. It's no big deal but it's… a little much to take. The needles and the tubes." Kyle shrugged as he took a seat.
"Max, I'll be back in an hour." Diane told him as she grabbed her keys and scooped up the little boy.
"Liz is going to meet you up there." Max told her as they left. He sat with his brother-in-law in silence for a few minutes. "What's up?"
"Isabel talked to you?"
"Not really."
"I know that I've been screwing up…" Kyle got up to pour himself some coffee and fidgeted. "I've…"
"Been drinking."
"That too." He nodded. "Um… I love Isabel. I do. Sometimes, though… I feel like… there's nothing inside me. Like… this isn't my life. I'm living it but I'm not. Like… it's a dream that I can't wake up from… especially now that it's going so bad."
"What is it?" Max watched him carefully.
"I used to get… flashes… you know? Over time… they faded. I can accept that but it's like… as the flashes faded… so did everything else inside me. I feel… unworthy of Isabel and the kids and… I've been sober… since that night… when little what's-his-name was born."
"Stephen."
"Right." Kyle tossed his hat and his badge on the counter so he could run his hands through his hair. "I… messed up. I know but I don't know how to fix it. Why do I feel this way, Max?"
"I don’t know, Kyle." The words felt wrong even as he spoke them and Max couldn't pinpoint why.
"I'm losing her. I was doing a fine job of keeping it together until my mom showed up. I could pretend that I was still a part of the world. Then she showed up and it all went to hell. Isabel's tried to be there for me but I wouldn't let her and now that I need her… she… I… I'm afraid she might be seeing someone, Max." He watched his brother-in-law wince. "That… partner of hers is always around. He's even in my house… do you know? Are they having an affair?"
"Rightly," Max looked up sharply, "I'm not the one to ask about that."
"Yeah." Kyle lost his steam. "The kids don't have any sort of respect for me… except Kyle Jr. but he's so young… I still kind of look like a hero… in a few years… he'll look at me the same way Alex does. Liberty… I hurt when she looks at me. I can't stop this spiral, Max. Maybe I've been sober for a few weeks but… I… I don't feel it coming back together at all. It's like I’m being punished for something I'm not sure I did."
"I don't know what to tell you, Kyle."
"I slept with someone." Kyle blurted out. "I… it was when I was drinking… more than a few times and… I… Maybe I only think Isabel's having an affair because I am… did. Did. I… I'm going to lose her and I can't stop any of it from happening. I'm being punished."
"I'm sure that's not… true." Max furrowed his brow. It didn't feel right to say it. There was something he was trying to remember.
"I can't go on like this. Why don't I feel real, anymore?"
[Max nodded and waited until she was out of earshot. “What is it?”
“You can’t?”
“You know it doesn’t work like that.” Max sighed. “I wish I could help her. You know that.”
“But you saved Liz. And Kyle.” Michael hugged his daughter tighter.]
Kyle poured his coffee down the drain. Max stared at him. He was rail thin and jaundiced. He'd been punishing himself for his ills and the effects of the drinking had taken their toll. Max hadn't thought about it in years but he thought it about it all over again.
["But you saved Liz. And Kyle." Michael hugged his daughter tighter.
“That was different. It wasn’t their time. You saw it with Liz for yourself.”
“Ok, yeah, so it wasn’t Liz’s time. It was Kyle’s...” Michael let the sentence trail off. “You know it and I know it.”]
"I shouldn't have bothered you with this stuff but I had to talk to somebody." Kyle picked up his hat. "I'll leave you be. Just… let me talk to Isabel."
"Hopefully things will work out." Max told him feebly. His words came out thick, his stomach turning.
TBC
June 2020
"It's bald." Emily sighed for the millionth time over her father's shoulder. "I'm way cuter."
"He does kinda look like Bob Barker." Michael tilted his head at his son.
"Bob who?" She looked to her father.
"He's… never mind." He shook his head and gently washed his son in the tub they had set up in the bathroom. "So… think you'll be helping out at all?"
"Not planning on it."
"I can barely remember doing this for you." Michael looked up at his daughter. "Rare occasion but I did, I think."
"So… I'm going to work."
"Could you check on Oriel and see if she needs anything before you go?"
"Whatever."
"Em."
Emily ignored his call and poked her head into the master bedroom. "I'm going, you need?"
"Just my baby." Oriel shook her head.
"Taking a bath." Emily nodded and continued on down the stairs. Her dad and Oriel had just gotten home the night before. Max had kept them in the hospital for observation, just in case. Nothing was wrong but… precautions.
--
Isabel sat on the edge of the bed to put on her shoes. She could feel Kyle behind her. He wasn't sleeping and he was doing a bad job of pretending. "Company picnic is tomorrow."
"Mmf." He grunted.
"Are you coming?" She shoved her foot into another shoe. She sat there staring at the wall as his arm wrapped around her waist. "Well?"
"You've lost weight." He told her, his head turned so that he could see her.
"I do that sometimes." It was a whisper. Accusatory. Connotative. She didn't look at him. She couldn't. "So, everyone is going to be at the park all afternoon."
"We'll see." He started to pull her to him but she stood up out of his grasp.
"Just… make an appearance at least and don't forget to talk to the kids today."
"What about?" Kyle rolled over to watch her pull on her jewelry and fix her lipstick.
"Something. Anything. Let them know you're alive and you're still their father. Be a miracle if they still knew what you looked like." Isabel stormed out of the room, dropping kisses on four faces on her way out the front door with her briefcase. Kyle flopped back on the bed and reached for the phone. "Room 315."
"Pardon?"
"315. Michelle."
"Sheriff Valenti… the paramedics just left. We were about to call you."
--
Max watched as they rushed a woman into the ICU from where he stood in the lobby. He was on his way home. He got into the car and turned onto Main. He waved to Liz as he passed her on the drive to work. When he got home his mother was cleaning the breakfast table. Kissing her cheek, he made his way to bed… but he couldn't sleep. He just listened to the house waking up and embracing the summer.
"Bye Gramma." Beth and Kathy called. They were going to work.
"How do I look?" Daniel.
"Very smart. How are those working for you?"
"I didn't even realize I needed them… and that's pretty scary." He admitted. Why could his kids talk to Gramma and not to him?
"You didn't notice? What about in class? And reading?"
"I don't actually do a lot of reading as much as scanning."
"Daniel Evans. Shame on you. There is so much beauty in the written word. School is more than acquiring knowledge. It's about experience. Learning to learn. Different ways to approaching an understanding. I could spout facts, oh so many facts about law but… I can't claim to understand it all. Isabel does. She can apply what she learns about law. A gift. What are you going to do when you're at the operating table and you know what you're supposed to do but you don't understand why or how and you make a mistake?"
"I guess I never thought about it that way."
"Driving?"
"I could probably drive this town with my eyes closed—I wouldn't. Ever. I'm just saying… I don't look for street signs. I just know. This is where the turn is. This is how I get home. This is how I get to Em's. How do you think people did it in the old days? Before signs? They just knew. This is the route. They didn't need glasses."
"They didn't have glasses but now we do and now we have to go to the DMV and get your license corrected."
"I know. I'm going. Then I'm going the hospital for a few hours."
"Have fun." Clinking of dishes. Shutting of doors. "Look at that handsome young man."
"Hi Gamma."
"How you doing, Bubba?"
"Bubba? I Davey."
"I know, sweetie."
"Davey."
"I'm sorry. Davey, what are you doing?"
"Going to play."
"Okay. I'm in here. Sweetie?"
"O-tay."
The door opened. "Sweetie? Shouldn't you be at work?"
"I have to talk to you. Is … he… here?"
"He went to bed as soon as he got in. Everyone else is gone except for the baby."
"Okay. I… I don't want you to think… I don't know who else to go to."
Max sat up and listened. He couldn't help it. He scooted to the edge of the bed to hear better. When he looked up, she was looking back.
--
Alex looked up when Emily walked in. "Where have you been?"
"Sorry. Took the scenic route. Testing the bike." She shrugged and went to the corner with her charges. Pulling the music from a sack, she cleared her throat. "I don't know about you guys but that chorale crap doesn't cut it for me. We're going to do something different in this workshop."
--
Kyle sat by her side. She didn't look well. His father stood at the doorway, the kids, save for Alex, outside. She was sleeping through the morphine and there was nothing anyone could do but watch her. "She's okay. She's just been in pain. It will pass. It usually does."
"Usually."
"She goes through these spells." The doctor explained. "I talked to her other doctors. This medication interacts with her body's hormones and she'll go through a spell of pain and then it passes in a day or so with some pain killers. She'll go home in a few days."
"I don't understand."
"Frankly, neither do we. She's a strong woman. She's been fighting this thing off for longer than we thought humanly possible. She's outlived anyone's expectations and I believe she'll continue to do so as long as her spirit holds out. Actually, I believe she's improved since she's come to Roswell. Here, she's got family, something worthwhile to fight for. Human spirit is the biggest mystery of all, Sheriff."
--
Isabel set her briefcase on her desk and stared at it for a full five minutes until she realized that Bruce was talking to her. "Um, what? Yes. Yes. I am on it."
"You're late."
"Took the long way to work today. No big." Isabel shook her head. She had work to do. "Tell Jesse that the Mortons called me last night. They will be in this afternoon to discuss a settlement with us. He's got the current files on that."
"Will do, Boss. You okay?"
"Fine, Bruce." She smiled at him. "Really. I'm fine."
"You just… look a little pale."
"I need a tan. Tomorrow will be good for all of us." She gave him a brighter smile and the man blushed despite himself.
--
Kathy pointedly ignored her boyfriend when he stopped in for lunch. He had to go after lunch anyway. His dad had him apprenticing at the shop all afternoon. She hadn't taken his calls in a week and he had better get a clue before things got worse. Then came the supreme embarrassment of her life. Her grandfather plucking his guitar behind the front counter, teaching Bethany a song he had written a long time ago. People she knew were eating and her grandfather was singing a sappy love song.
Rushing to the break room, she waited for the urge to cry to pass. Then he was there, holding her and whispering to her. She blurted it all out in a mighty rush. The tears came as he held her against his body but said nothing.
--
Alex sat with Lynnette at lunch. She was in charge of overseeing the summer school lunch bar and she got her break just as he came out of his workshop. This was their time. Her mother was nowhere in sight. Her brother was at summer camp and so long as her father's runs were short, they could spend as much time together as they wanted. She was in trouble after her mother had let them know she knew about them. That they had been dating for months, that they had on at least one occasion made love, that she was going to try her hardest to keep them apart. But lunch was theirs. No stress, no mess. All he needed was to hold her in his arms. No more surprises.
--
Max sat at the table with his mother sipping coffee when Kyle entered the house with barely a knock. "Am I interrupting?"
"No, I was just about to take Davey to his session." Diane rose from the table to get the boy ready.
"Long time, no see." Max gestured to the seat across from him.
"My mom is in the hospital."
"Oh dear, is she alright?" Diane hugged her son-in-law.
"Yeah, doctors say she'll be fine. It's no big deal but it's… a little much to take. The needles and the tubes." Kyle shrugged as he took a seat.
"Max, I'll be back in an hour." Diane told him as she grabbed her keys and scooped up the little boy.
"Liz is going to meet you up there." Max told her as they left. He sat with his brother-in-law in silence for a few minutes. "What's up?"
"Isabel talked to you?"
"Not really."
"I know that I've been screwing up…" Kyle got up to pour himself some coffee and fidgeted. "I've…"
"Been drinking."
"That too." He nodded. "Um… I love Isabel. I do. Sometimes, though… I feel like… there's nothing inside me. Like… this isn't my life. I'm living it but I'm not. Like… it's a dream that I can't wake up from… especially now that it's going so bad."
"What is it?" Max watched him carefully.
"I used to get… flashes… you know? Over time… they faded. I can accept that but it's like… as the flashes faded… so did everything else inside me. I feel… unworthy of Isabel and the kids and… I've been sober… since that night… when little what's-his-name was born."
"Stephen."
"Right." Kyle tossed his hat and his badge on the counter so he could run his hands through his hair. "I… messed up. I know but I don't know how to fix it. Why do I feel this way, Max?"
"I don’t know, Kyle." The words felt wrong even as he spoke them and Max couldn't pinpoint why.
"I'm losing her. I was doing a fine job of keeping it together until my mom showed up. I could pretend that I was still a part of the world. Then she showed up and it all went to hell. Isabel's tried to be there for me but I wouldn't let her and now that I need her… she… I… I'm afraid she might be seeing someone, Max." He watched his brother-in-law wince. "That… partner of hers is always around. He's even in my house… do you know? Are they having an affair?"
"Rightly," Max looked up sharply, "I'm not the one to ask about that."
"Yeah." Kyle lost his steam. "The kids don't have any sort of respect for me… except Kyle Jr. but he's so young… I still kind of look like a hero… in a few years… he'll look at me the same way Alex does. Liberty… I hurt when she looks at me. I can't stop this spiral, Max. Maybe I've been sober for a few weeks but… I… I don't feel it coming back together at all. It's like I’m being punished for something I'm not sure I did."
"I don't know what to tell you, Kyle."
"I slept with someone." Kyle blurted out. "I… it was when I was drinking… more than a few times and… I… Maybe I only think Isabel's having an affair because I am… did. Did. I… I'm going to lose her and I can't stop any of it from happening. I'm being punished."
"I'm sure that's not… true." Max furrowed his brow. It didn't feel right to say it. There was something he was trying to remember.
"I can't go on like this. Why don't I feel real, anymore?"
[Max nodded and waited until she was out of earshot. “What is it?”
“You can’t?”
“You know it doesn’t work like that.” Max sighed. “I wish I could help her. You know that.”
“But you saved Liz. And Kyle.” Michael hugged his daughter tighter.]
Kyle poured his coffee down the drain. Max stared at him. He was rail thin and jaundiced. He'd been punishing himself for his ills and the effects of the drinking had taken their toll. Max hadn't thought about it in years but he thought it about it all over again.
["But you saved Liz. And Kyle." Michael hugged his daughter tighter.
“That was different. It wasn’t their time. You saw it with Liz for yourself.”
“Ok, yeah, so it wasn’t Liz’s time. It was Kyle’s...” Michael let the sentence trail off. “You know it and I know it.”]
"I shouldn't have bothered you with this stuff but I had to talk to somebody." Kyle picked up his hat. "I'll leave you be. Just… let me talk to Isabel."
"Hopefully things will work out." Max told him feebly. His words came out thick, his stomach turning.
TBC