Roswell Fanatics

Banner by mrsjbehr

Title: "When the Rain begins to fall"
Author: Kat/Calinia
Email: kat@fadedglow.com
Category: DA Xover, Alec/Liz, Starts during Departure/Dawg Day Afternoon
Rating: ADULT
Disclaimer: I don't own Roswell, DA or any of the characters in this fic except Joint, Calvin (he's all mine ) and maybe a few others, yadda yadda yadda.
Summary: Liz leaves for Seattle after she and Max say good-bye in Departure to find Ava, since she’s started developing powers. While searching for Ava she saves somebody else’s life and is thrown into just the kind of thing she thought she'd gotten away from.
Author's Note: This story is quite different from DDIO. It's darker, more angsty and won't be so lovey-dovey. Liz is a lot more damaged by what happened and that changed her, forever. The parts will be shorter, the updates more frequent (I hope). And it’s written in the first person, something that I’m really enjoying doing. For the rest, you’ll just have to read and see. Oh, and I want to thank Randi (LittleBit) for betaing this for me. You’re time, input and ideas are, as always, very much appreciated.


Awards:

RFF Awards:

Round Five - Best Author of a Crossover
Round Four - Runner-up Best Author of a Crossover

Crossover Awards:

Round One - Best Author of a Crossover
Round One - Best Lead Portrayal of a Character (Liz Parker)

Round Two - Best POV Story
Round Two - Story that made you cry the hardest
Round Two - Most Memorable Line
Round Two - Runner-Up Best All-Around Crossover Story
Round Two - Runner-Up Best Love Story
Round Two - Runner-Up Best UC Writer



Part 1

Can my life get any more pathetic? No, don’t answer that.

I still can’t believe I’m down here in the sewers hunting the ghost of a person my eyes insist came down here while my brain is telling me that that’s ridiculous.

I know it’s ridiculous.

Like Ava would ever return to the sewers. She hated it there, hated the smell, the dirt. It holds too many bad memories. Memories of a family that never wanted her in the first place, that shunned her, looked down on her, made her life hell.

But here I am, grasping at straws, because I’m desperate to find her. I have to find her. She’s the only one who might be able to help me, the only one who might know what’s happening to me, what’s going on with my body.

Because something inside me has changed, grown, developed – I don’t know. I only know that it’s there. My powers, abilities – call them what you want. To me they’re a curse. And before you ask, no, the irony that they showed up right after Max and I were broken apart forever was not lost on me.

They first appeared on the day of Alex’s funeral, right after the big fight between Max and me. I blew up the street lights on my way home. Do I even have to mention that I was freaked?

And that was just the beginning. I started changing the color of my sheets in my sleep, accidentally warmed up drinks on a regular basis, blew up a couple of mirrors, windows, glasses, books – the list is endless.

Then there’s of course the green, electric current that hurts like hell and shows up whenever I’m close to Max.

Needless to say that that didn’t exactly encourage me to rethink my decision of leaving Roswell. Not that it matters anymore. Max isn’t there anyway.

When Max told me that Tess was pregnant and that they were all leaving the planet…it made my decision pretty easy. I would also leave. There’s been this nagging little voice in the back of my head for days telling me that I should just get the hell out of there. The only thing that kept me was the search for Alex’s killer. But with Max and the others leaving, what would an alien killer care about us little humans? I know that Jim will look out for Maria and Kyle, that they will be fine.

And as much as I wanted to find the person who was responsible for Alex’s death, still want to as a matter of fact, I only hit dead ends with my search. I’m stuck, and with my emerging and uncontrollable alien powers, I can no longer focus on that. For once in my life I needed to put myself first, and so after Max and I said good-bye I packed my things, left letters for Maria, Kyle and my parents on my bed explaining that it was just too painful to stay in Roswell with the promise to stay in touch as well as an explanation of what was really going on for Kyle, begging him not to tell Jim or Maria. I know Kyle, and I trust him. It will kill him, but he’ll keep my secret. That’s Kyle for you.

And then in the midst of the night I left, without looking back once. It was a lot easier than I had thought it would be. But then, it’s not like there was a lot still holding me there.

Before she left, Ava had told me that she would be heading to Seattle, making me promise not to tell anybody. She just wanted to be alone. Be normal. Let go of a past that was too painful to hold on to. She sent me a few postcards over the month, all of them from Seattle. And so I figured that she had yet to move on or else she would have mentioned it, or sent me a postcard from her new home. I chose to ignore the fact that there could be a million other reasons for her not letting me know that she was moving on.

And so that’s where I went to begin my search – Seattle, rain metropolis of the world.

Upon arriving – do I even have to mention that it was raining? – I got myself a room in a crappy but cheap motel. And for the first time in my life I was actually glad about my alien powers because I could seal the door to my room with them to make sure that nothing would happen to my things while I was out looking for Ava.

Today, a few days later, I was once again roaming the streets, looking for my friend…if I can even call her that. Is being in love with the two clones of a dead alien king bond enough to qualify as a friendship?

Anyway, by early afternoon I was tired, hungry and lost, not to mention discouraged. Seattle is huge, how would I ever find Ava here?

I was about to give up for today and go back to the motel for some much-needed sleep when a glimpse of blond hair streaked with pink suddenly caught my eye, only to disappear in the ground. Disappear into the ground? Yup, I definitely needed some sleep.

But of course I rushed over to the spot nevertheless and found myself standing in front of a half-open manhole cover. And after giving myself a little prep-talk about how I was strong enough to face the rats and spiders I made my way down into the sewers.

Can I say Eww? Yes, ‘Eww’, with a capital ‘E’.

Now I’ve been down here for more than an hour, aimlessly running around in the sewers, hungrier and more tired than ever before, and once again hopelessly lost.

Not to mention that it’s disgusting. I don’t know how Ava could actually live down here. The stench is unbearable. I already know that it will take forever to get it out of my hair. And I’ll probably have to burn my cloths. But the way my powers are going crackers, chances are high that I’ll set them on fire sooner or later anyway. Let’s just hope I’m not wearing them when it happens.

So now, besides being hungry, tired, lost and discouraged I also smell. Nice.

I think I’ve had just about enough of this for today. I’ll just continue my search tomorrow. And take a more organized approach, meaning I’ll try to find Ava through the official channels. Won’t that be fun? Yes, you heard right, perfect Liz Parker being sarcastic. Didn’t think I had it in me? Yeah, well, that’s what finding out that the love of your life knocked up his wife from a former life mere days after your best friend died does to a person. They become bitter and sarcastic and cynical.

I’ll just go back to the motel and get myself some food and sleep and wallow in self-pity. I really need sleep. We all know that a cranky alien is a dangerous alien, and I don’t exactly want to accidentally blow something up around here. I did enough of that back in Roswell.

On the other hand, maybe it would lead Ava to me.

As well as the FBI.

Yeah, bad idea. I’d better leave that for plan B.

Now if only I could come up with plan A. But first things first, meaning I have to find a way out of this freakin’ maze.

Wait a minute. Did I just hear something?

Stop and listen, waiting to see if my sleep-deprived mind is playing tricks on me or if there is really somebody else down here. But then, who’s wacko enough to willingly spend time down in this dump? Apart from me of course.

A few moments later I hear it again. It sounds like a girl, but it definitely isn’t Ava’s voice. Why the hell would anybody come down here? I know, I’m repeating myself, but seriously, why?

I want to go and check it out, but I hesitate. What if it’s one of those transgenics that have been all over the news lately? They government says their dangerous and should be avoided at all costs. But then, the government also says that it really was a weather balloon…

Yeah, let’s just ignore what the government says. Like they even know what they’re talking about ninety-nine percent of the time.

And so I make my way down the corridor in the direction of where the voice was coming from. After a few minutes I round a corner and see a young girl standing a few yards away from me. She once again asks if somebody is there, making me realize that she must be blind, since she’s looking straight at me.

I’m about to make myself known when a man came out of nowhere, stepping up in front of her. He’s in his early thirties, his brown hair is short and he’s wearing an expensive-looking suit. He’s quite good-looking, or rather he would be if it weren’t for the cold glint in his eyes.

A shiver runs down my spine. Something bad is gonna happen, I can feel it. That guy means trouble. Or rather danger.

“Don’t worry, miss. It’s all over,” he says. The way he says it…let’s just say it gives the word “creepy” a whole new meaning.

And then, completely out of nowhere, he attacks her. He punches her in the face and the stomach, and when she falls to the ground he starts kicking her, hitting her head, her stomach and God knows what else, ignoring her cries of pain.

At first I’m frozen into place, too shocked to do anything, but after a few seconds I rip myself out of my daze and without thinking rush forward with my hand raised.


tbc

First of all I really want to thank you all for the great feedback, I'm so glad you like this story. My plan is to update once a week, which shouldn't be too hard, at least right now. I already have the next ten or so parts written, so you'll get regular updates for at least two more months, hopefully longer.

And because somebody asked, yes, in DA the cause of Annie's death was a snapped neck, but the reporter also said "Witnesses say it would have taken someone with superhuman strength to account for the state in which the body was found." The way I understood it, the "state in which the body was found" means that she was also beaten up pretty badly, because a snapped neck alone isn't a sign for superhuman strength. Also, White's goal is to have the public afraid of transgenic, so a brutal murder makes sense.

Well, here's the part, hope you like it!


Part 2

A shiver runs down my spine. Something bad is gonna happen, I can feel it. That guy means trouble. Or rather danger.

“Don’t worry, miss. It’s all over,” he says. The way he says it…let’s just say it gives the word “creepy” a whole new meaning.

And then, completely out of nowhere, he attacks her. He punches her in the face and the stomach, and when she falls to the ground he starts kicking her, hitting her head, her stomach and God knows what else, ignoring her cries of pain.

At first I’m frozen into place, too shocked to do anything, but after a few seconds I rip myself out of my daze and without thinking rush forward with my hand raised.

Before he can react I’ve already blasted him. He flies through the air and hits the wall behind him. I hear a sickening cracking-noise when his skull contacts with the concrete wall. Then he falls to the ground, no longer moving. I don’t know if he’s dead or just unconscious, and frankly, I couldn’t care less right now.

I run over to the girl and drop to my knees beside her. On instinct I place my hand over her heart. After begging her to open her eyes, telling her that it’s the only way I can help her, she complies and I am sucked into her subconscious before I even know what’s happening. Did I just do that?

Once again instinct takes over and I start healing her, concentrating on the major injuries – her broken skull, the punctuated lung and the internal bleeding. After a few minutes I’m drained and break down beside her. We are now both covered in her blood and she still has dozens of scratches and bruises all over her body, but I’m pretty sure I got all the life-threatening injuries.

For a few minutes we lie next to each other panting, trying to catch our breath. The girl then breaks the silence. “Thank you,” she gasps. Her voice is weak and frail, reflecting her physical condition no doubt. I’m not much better, I feel like I was hit by a truck.

“I’m Liz,” I pant, taken aback at how weak my own voice sounds. “And you’re welcome.”

“Annie,” she replies.

It suddenly strikes me how ridiculous it is that we’re lying around in the sewers introducing ourselves to each other after I healed her after she was attacked by some lunatic as if it were the most normal thing in the world. I would laugh…if I had the necessary energy, that is.

I know we can’t stay here. It’s too dangerous. Psycho-bastard might wake up any time. And so I pull myself together and up on my feet, trying to pull Annie up with me too.

“We have to get out of here,” I tell her, once panting from the effort of moving.

She nods and tries to stand up, but her feet can’t hold her. Losing so much blood weakened her, just like healing her weakened me, but we both know that we have to get moving. I put her arm around my neck and pull her to her feet. It takes all my willpower not to fall down again, but somehow I manage.

Annie must be a lot weaker than I am, she’s leaning heavily onto me. Holding myself up is hard enough as it is, but holding her up too is almost impossible. I reach for the wall to support myself and we begin to move forward, very, very slowly.

I have no idea where we are or where we should go to get out of this hell-hole, but I decide to take the direction the man came from. He must have gotten down here somehow, and I’m hoping that we can get out the same way.

We move slowly, due to every step being a huge effort for my weakened body, and hers. I don’t know how long we’ve been walking, it seems like hours have passed but it’s probably only been a few minutes.

Annie suddenly stumbles and falls, pulling me down with her. “I can’t go on any longer,” she pants.

“Yes, you can,” I insist.

“No,” she replies. “Go on without me.”

“Like hell I will,” I mutter. I stand up and bend down to then pull her up to her feet. It’s a good thing that she’s so tiny, I’d have one hell of a time doing that otherwise. Not that I’m not having one hell of a time the way it is.

How I actually manage to pull her to her feet is beyond me, but I don’t have time to dwell on it. She’s standing again, and that’s all that maters right now. I’m supporting even more of her weight than before, and so dragging her along with me becomes even more difficult. I have no idea where I’m supposed to draw the strength from to go on for much longer.

But I don’t know how they guy who attacked Annie is, it’s possible that he’s awake and looking for us right now. That thought drives me on and I force myself to keep walking. It’s amazing what adrenalin can do for a person, isn’t it?

My strength however is coming to an end. After a few more minutes I can’t hold myself up any longer, not to mention Annie, and we both fall to the ground. I fight the darkness that is threatening to overwhelm me, knowing that it’s a lost battle, but I still don’t give in. Yeah, I’m stubborn like that. Or maybe I should say stupid. I mean, what’s the point? Haven’t I learned that sometimes you just need to let go, that hanging on will just make it even worse in the end?

Suddenly I can hear footsteps and muffled voices in the distance, but it is impossible to make out what they’re saying, and so I have no idea if they’re enemies or friends. My initial reaction is to hide, but I’m too weak to move, as is Annie, and so we have no other option than to stay where we are, lying on the floor in plain sight, and hope that whoever is coming in our direction isn’t here to finish what that psycho back there started.

The footsteps are coming closer, and suddenly I see a figure showing up at the end of the tunnel. He must have seen us because he’s running towards us faster than normal people are supposed to be able to run. Or maybe it’s just my mind playing tricks on me in its semi-conscious haze.

A few seconds later he reaches us and drops to his knees besides Annie.

“Annie?” he asks her, and I can hear the fear in his voice, worry. I guess they’re the good guys, here to help us. Especially since he seems to know Annie.

“Joshua?” she replies, her voice barely more than a whisper.

“Joshua’s here,” he tells her. “Annie safe. We get you out of here.”

That’s when I notice that someone else has shown up beside him. I try to open my eyes some more and focus on them, but it’s impossible, I don’t have the strength.

“What the hell happened to them?” a male voice asks.

“We’ll figure that out later,” a female voice replies. “Let’s get out of here first.”

I see they guy Annie called Joshua picking her up, and she mumbles my name, telling him that they have to take me with them. Somebody crouches down beside me and I feel a pair of strong arms picking me up. I suddenly feel safe, something I haven’t felt in a long time, and so I give up the fight and let the darkness take over.


tbc

Guys, you blew me away with your awesome feedback! I am so happy that you're liking this so much. And since it's Tuesday, I have a new part for you. From next week on I'll be updating on Monday though and not Tuesday since I have Mondays off and school from noon till 8pm on Tuesday, hence Monday is more convinient for me.

BTW, I'm not answering any questions right now on purpose since most of them will answer themselves in the next few parts. Only so much, White is alive. But for now, enjoy.


Part 3

The darkness surrounding me is slowly starting to fade as I feel myself being laid on a couch or bed or something like that. Whatever it is, it has a bedspring that’s poking me in the back.

"We need to get a doctor," I hear the female voice from earlier say.

No! They can't get a doctor.

"No," I manage to mumble. "No doctor."

Somebody is suddenly beside me. It's the same guy that carried me to wherever we are right now, I recognize his voice when he starts to speak. "You need a doctor, and so does Annie," he tells me in a soft voice, talking like one would to a three-year-old.

"No," I repeat, my voice firmer than before, but I have to take a few deep breaths before I can continue speaking. "How's Annie?" I ask, hoping that I could do enough for her to bring her out of immediate danger.

"She has a few broken bones, some ugly bruises and scratches, but other wise she seems to be okay," he tells me.

I hear a soft moan only a few feet away form me and realize that Annie's in the same room. And so I roll myself off whatever I’m lying on and crawl over to her.

"Get out," I tell the rest of them. They don't move, and so I tell them again, more forcefully than the first time. They protest and so I growl for them to beat it before they hesitantly obey. When they're gone I turn to Annie.

"How are you?" I ask.

"I’m okay," she rasps out. "Are you a transgenic too?"

A transgenic? Too? What the hell is she talking about?

Ignoring her question I say, "Annie, I can make it better, make the pain go away, but I need you to open your eyes. Can you do that for me?"

She does what I ask her to, and I once again place my hand over her heart. I'm already drained, and so I'm not sure if I even have enough energy left to heal her some more, but I guess it doesn't hurt to try. Or maybe it will, but what the hell. I’ve gotten used to pain lately.

I look into Annie’s eyes and concentrate, or at least try to. A few seconds later I once again feel myself being sucked into her subconscious. Her left arm is broken, as are some of her ribs. Her right wrist is sprained, and she has a few minor injuries in the abdomen as well as a few ugly gashes, bruises and scratches. I concentrate first on her left arm, then on her ribs, her wrist and then the worst of her gashes and bruises. Practice makes perfect I guess, it’s easier this time to locate the injuries and to heal them. But maybe the latter is just because these injuries are less severe. I manage to heal them all more or less completely and fight off the darkness creeping up on me, but it drains the last of my energy and so I can't keep up the resistance very long and once again slip into oblivion.

------

Ugh.

That’s all I think when consciousness slowly creeps back to me.

I stir, then moan. Every little movement hurts like hell. My head feels like it's about to explode and every other fiber of my body is screaming in agony as well.

"Hey," I hear a voice beside me. At first I'm confused, not knowing where I am, not knowing who the guy is, but then it all comes crashing back down to me. The sewers, Annie, healing her.

The guy who carried me out of there is sitting beside me, I recognize his voice. He has a nice voice.

I blink a few time, not able to focus at first. Then the haze clears away and I see him. A concerned look is on his face, mixed with curiosity. For the first time I actually see what he looks like, and I have to admit that I like what I see. He's sorta cute.

"How long did I sleep?" I ask. My voice sounds weak and tired, exactly the way I feel.

"Almost a whole day," he replies.

I slept a whole day and I'm still tired? I definitely need some time to get used to all this alien crap and its effects on my life.

"How's Annie?" I ask next, hoping that I managed to heal everything before I passed out.

"Great, actually. She has a few small bruises, but otherwise she's fine," he tells me, curiosity lacing his voice. “No broken arm, no sprained wrist, barely any cuts.”

He’s obviously fishing for an explanation, but I chose to ignore that. "Good," I reply, once again closing my eyes. God, I'm tired.

"How did you do that?" he asks, apparently not one to beat around the bush.

"Ask me no questions and I’ll tell you no lies," I mumble, knowing that he probably won't just drop it, but that's when the door opens and I'm saved, at least for the moment.

"Alec?" a girl asks. I recognize the voice from the sewers, she's one of the people who found me and Annie.

"I heard voices,” the girl continues. “Is she up?”

“Yeah, she’s awake,” Alec replies, his chair squeaking.

“Good,” she says before coming over to the bed. “What are you? Are you a transgenic? Are you a familiar? Why did you help Annie? What were you doing down in the sewers? Were you there with White?” She’s shooting one question after the other at me, so fast that I can barely take in what she’s saying. So much to being saved for the moment. Why can’t they just keep their noses out of my god damn business?

Not that I know what the hell she’s talking about in the first place. Familiar? And what is it with these people accusing me of being a transgenic? And who the hell is this White-guy?

“Hey, give her a break, will ya?” the guy, who’s obviously named Alec, says coming to my rescue. “Can’t you see that she’s not up for that right now?”

And I, I’m actually grateful. The last thing I need at the moment is someone cross-examining me. And it’s not like they’d actually get any answers out of me. No siree. I’m a pro at keeping secrets. Didn’t I keep it a secret from Max for months that I hadn’t really slept with Kyle? That it was all a set-up? That it had been his future self who had gotten me to do that in the first place?

Yup, I’ve mastered the art of secret-keeping. And where did it get me?

Yeah, so let’s not think about that right now.

The door opens again and in comes yet another person. He comes over to the bed I’m lying on and places something on the nightstand. He’s tall, very tall, with long brown hair. My eyelids are heavy again, my vision blurry, and it’s pretty dark in the room – hence I can’t make out his features. But the way he moves is somehow…strange. He seems to be a bit…clumsy. Like he doesn’t know how to coordinate all his limbs. Or maybe they’re just too long.

“Soup,” he says, and his voice sounds tentative, almost confused. Like he expected something to happen but it didn’t and so now he’s not quite sure what’s going on. “Joshua made it,” he continues. “Will help Liz get better. Liz needs to get back on her feet.”

Eating is the last thing I want to do right now, but something in his voice makes it impossible for me to refuse. He sounds so eager, sort of like a little kid.

And it reminds me of Alex. And so I can’t say no.

I sigh and nod. He picks up the spoon and feeds it to me, but half of the soup lands on my chin and neck instead of inside my mouth.

“Sorry,” he says. I make a weird kind of gesture with my head as if to say that it doesn’t matter, too tired to speak, or move any other part of my body. He feeds me another spoon and this time it all ends up in my mouth. It actually tastes good, and the warmth that’s spreading through my body because of it feels pretty nice.

But the third spoon once again lands on my face and so Alec intervenes. “How about I take over, Joshua?” he asks, already taking the spoon out of his hand.

“Okay,” he replies. “Joshua needs to check on Annie.”

“Yeah, I’ll come with you,” the girl says, giving me one last look before leaving the room.

Alec starts feeding me the soup, and I have to say that it’s strange having someone doing that again. The last time someone feed something to me was four years ago when I broke my wrist and couldn’t use my right arm at all for a few weeks. Alex once fed me some ice cream and ended up spreading wiped cream all over my face. Sigh. Those were the days…

Alec keeps feeding me the soup, not saying anything, and I keep eating it, figuring that that’s the best way to keep him quiet, at least for the moment.

But after a few minutes I’ve had enough, not capable of eating any more, and so I shake me head, not opening my mouth for the spoon that’s hovering in front of my lips. Alec sighs and tries to coax me into eating some more, but I just tell him later maybe.

“Is there anyone we should contact for you? Family, friends who might be worried?” he asks.

I just shake my head, not looking up. That’s sort of a touchy subject for me right now.

He seems a bit surprised at first, but then he stands up and tells me that he’ll let me get some more sleep since I obviously need it. He leaves the room, almost hesitantly. Or maybe my brain is so mushy that I’m seeing things in slow motion, not sure.

A second later I’ve already slipped away into a deep, at least somewhat peaceful slumber.


tbc

Jen C, Liz did only expose herself that much to keep the others from calling a doctor. Besides, Annie already knew, so Liz suspected that she might tell the others no matter what she did, so she wasn't really exposing herself all that much.

As for Alec being surprised that there's no one looking for her, I don't think Liz would strike him as a person with no family or friends, hence the surprise.

polar vixen, I'm glad you like Joshua, he's so hard to write!

tiredmuse, I hope the wait wasn't too long.

Elf, you'll get Liz's reaction to the whole transgenic thing in part 6, as for if/when they'll find out about the alien thing, you'll have to wait and see...

pandas2001, Dream_walker, thanks for the feedback!


Okay, so this part is pretty short and pretty boring, but it's a transition part, and they are, by definition, not exactly very exciting. The next part will be better, and a bit longer, promise.


Part 4

I slowly open my eyes. Blink a few times for them to adjust. It’s dark out, so I’m guessing that I must have slept a few more hours at the least. I carefully roll over to the side and am surprised to find that moving doesn’t hurt. Actually, I feel pretty dandy, rested and refreshed. My headache is gone too.

I tilt my head slightly and am now looking out the window above the bed. There aren’t any curtains and so nothing is blocking my view from the night sky. The clouds are gone too. I can see the stars, and my thoughts automatically go to Max. Has he reached Antar yet? What awaited him there? Is he okay, safe, happy, alive?

I sigh, my annoyance self-directed. Why do I even care? He treated me like shit before he left. He turned his back on me when I needed him most. The one time I could have really used his support, his friendship, he abandoned me.

But I know why I care. Because I still have feelings for him. As angry as I am at him, as much as I hate him at the moment, there’s this part of me that still cares about him. This part that can’t stand the thought of anything bad ever happening to him, no matter how much he would deserve it.

I sigh again, trying to push those thoughts away. But that’s hard, especially at night. When I have nothing else to do, nothing else to occupy my mind with…it’s not easy to keep my thoughts from wandering back to the one subject I really don’t want to think about.

Well, one out of two actually. There’s of course also the fact that my parents are probably worrying themselves sick about me since I only left them a short letter before I disappeared and haven’t even called them. I feel horrible for putting them through this, but I’m afraid of calling them. Afraid that the sound of their voice will be enough to make me abandon my search for Ava and go running home again. And I know I can’t do that. I’m scared to death that I will accidentally hurt them, and so I can’t go home. Not before I get my powers under control that is.

I sit up in bed and rub my hands over my face, willing myself to stop thinking about that, before I glance at my watch. It’s one of those that glow in the dark, and so I can actually read what time it is. 3am. Woah, did I sleep long. If I’d have known that this alien crap is so draining I would have never signed up for it. Oh wait, I didn’t sign up for it.

Yup, that’s me, back to being sarcastic. Because when you’re sarcastic you’re not vulnerable. You don’t feel the hurt like you do when you’re not all cynical. Because you distance yourself from it. Because you pretend that you don’t care, and a small part of you actually believes it.

I get up and in the first moment I sway a bit, but then I find my balance and make my way over to the door. The moon is shining brightly and so I can actually see where I’m going and don’t run into a million things on my way there. Not that there are so many things to run into. The room is furnitured pretty sparsely, there’s not much in it besides the bed, a nightstand and a chair.

When I reach the door I notice that I’m actually not wearing my own clothes. Which I’m happy about since that would be sort of disgusting. All that dried blood? No thanks. But it better be the girl who undressed me or someone is going to be introduced to the wonderful world of alien powers in the most unpleasant way I can think of.

Next to the door I find a bag with my clothes. They’re washed, but even in the darkness I can still see blood stains covering them. And so I wiggle my nose…uh…wave my hand over them I mean, and they’re all squeaky clean again. Yay me. I’m so good at this. I manage to not blow something up at least one time out of ten.

I open the door, cursing under my breath when it squeaks. I’m trying to sneak out here, waking up the whole house is not part of the plan. I wait and listen to see if I alerted anyone, but everything stays quiet and so I make my way down the hall, tiptoeing as to not make more noise than necessary.

I happen to glance into one of the rooms I pass where the door was left open and I see Annie lying on the bed, sleeping peacefully. I want to continue down the hall, but something is keeping me glued to the place, holding me back. I watch Annie for a long time before walking over to her bed.

There’s a silver handprint gleaming on her chest, right above her heart, and I just stare at it. I can’t help it. It’s been almost two years since I last saw one, and it’s just…so strange seeing it again. I shake that thought off, the memories it drags up again, and try to concentrate on the task at hand.

I know that you need to connect to someone to heal major injuries, but I also know that small things can be healed without that. Tess once healed a cut on Max’s cheek right after Nasedo died, and she didn’t connect with him to do that. I just hope that the injury I want to heal is minor enough so that it works while she’s sleeping. Cause tomorrow morning I’ll be gone, and waking her up is definitely not an option.

I place my hand on either side of her face and concentrate. It’s not easy, but the injury isn’t all that bad, just some slight tissue damage. Within a second or two it’s healed and so I turn around and leave her room. I continue creeping down the hall, into something that’s probably the living room and over to the front door. Luckily it isn’t locked and so I open it and slip out to disappear into the night.


tbc

Thanks for all the wonderful feedback, you guys don't know what it means to me.

Okay, since some people mentioned the rather nasty way I left the part, just so you know, most parts in this fic will have a cliffhanger. They're just so much fun! At least for me...

As for what Liz did to Annie, you'll see. And no, Liz will not be able to get/stay away from the transgenics. She's like a magnet for hybrids, they're never far off when she's around, lol. Well, on to the part...


Part 5

I walk through Seattle, taking in all the junk that’s piled up on the streets. I still haven’t gotten used to the state of this city, the dirt, the poverty. It’s so different from Roswell. Even with the pulse my hometown stayed clean and organized. We don’t have the levels of corruption and crime they have here in Seattle. Actually, you can hardly tell any difference from the way it was before, or so I’ve been told.

After the pulse, when the people realized that life in small towns was so much better than in the big cities, Roswell and other places like it had been overrun by people looking for a better life. That had quickly led to very strict rules and regulations imposed individually by each town that was affected, concerning certain criteria that people had to fulfill to be allowed to move there, making it practically impossible to do so. That and the fact that property prices tripled.

So unless you were filthily rich, already owned property in one of those towns or inherited some it was practically impossible to get a foot in and settle down there. Even tourists or people visiting family and friends were only allowed to stay a certain amount of time, their coming and going carefully monitored by the sector police. Locals could pretty much move around as they pleased, especially since the town was small and the police soon knew all the people who lived there, but for visitors it was not that easy.

I look around, trying to figure out if I’ve already been on this street or not. To me, they all look the same.

At first getting around Seattle wasn’t nearly as easy as in Roswell, not until I faked myself a sector pass with my nifty little powers, that is. Now it’s easier to move from one sector to the next, but my search for Ava has still been fruitless so far. I tried going through the official channels but soon discovered that you only got somewhere if you were willing to do a lot of bribing, something I didn’t want and couldn’t afford to do.

And so I’m back to aimlessly running around the city, going to all the places I think Ava would most likely hang out at, hoping that I’d just run into her by chance. No such luck so far.

Yeah, I know, so that’s not the most sophisticated of plans. But hey, if you got a better idea, I’m open for suggestions. What was that? No, you don’t have a better idea? Yeah, thought so.

One way or another, I’m going to have to change my approach pretty soon. I’m running out of money, meaning that I won’t be able to pay for my motel room much longer, not to mention buy something to eat.

Talking of which, I’m getting hungry. I round a corner, sure that I saw a place where they sell hot dogs somewhere in that direction earlier that day. But what meets my eyes isn’t a hot dog both. I see a person lying on the ground, about half a dozen guys around him, kicking him and beating him with pieces of wood and metal bars.

Shit, what it is with me running into people having the shit beaten out of them?

Then I notice all the people standing around, simply watching, not doing anything to stop it. What the hell is wrong with them?

I close my eyes, feeling physically sick, suddenly wishing that I had the power to mind-warp them into leaving him alone. The queerest feeling suddenly takes over my mind, and when my eyes pop open a second later I see the guys that were beating up the one laying on the ground suddenly running in my direction. “Quick, he’s getting away,” one of them shouts while they rush past me and disappear around the corner.

For a moment I’m confused, then the guy on the floor moans and rolls onto his back and I rush over to him since nobody else seems to be in any kind of hurry to help him.

“Are you okay?” I ask kneeling down beside him.

“Yeah,” he groans, before trying to get back up on his feet. I help him up, as much as lil’ old me can help a guy more than a head taller than myself and who weighs about twice as much.

“Look, maybe we should get you out of here,” I say, “Who knows when they’re coming back.”

“Why did they leave in the first place?” he asks while limping towards a narrow side street, me supporting as much of his weight as I can handle. Hmm, wonder where this weird sense of déjà-vu is suddenly coming from…

“How should I know?” I ask trying to sound innocent, but he gives me a strange look narrowing his eyebrows at me, making me doubt that he believes a word I’m saying.

We continue walking in silence, and my thoughts start to wander. What just happened back there? I mean, I didn’t…I wasn’t…that’s impossible. I don’t have that ability. I don’t want that ability. Well, actually, I don’t want any of them, but this one…the one that killed my best friend…I can’t handle this. I can’t handle the thought of being like her. I don’t want to be like her. I’d rather cut my right arm off.

“This looks like a good place to stay for now,” the guy suddenly says, startling me out of my thoughts. I look around. We’re in another narrow side street, but this one sort of has a niche with some garbage cans in it, making it a pretty good place to hide since the only way for someone to find you is if they’re standing right in front of you.

“Yeah,” I agree.

“You can go now,” he tells me, “I’ll call a friend to come and pick me up. I’ll be fine.”

“I’m not going anywhere,” I say stubbornly. If someone comes I might be able to fight them off, but he can’t do anything to defend himself. Not in the state he’s in.

He obviously disagrees. “Look, you can’t do anything else for me. I appreciate your help, but if they come and find you here with me they’re gonna do the same thing to you that they did to me,” he says, doing his best to convince me to leave.

“I’m not going anywhere,” I repeat. Geez, when are people gonna learn that I mean what I say and that they can’t randomly force their will down my throat whenever they see fit?

He stares at me and I stare straight back at him, and finally he gives in. “Fine. But don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

He pulls out his cell phone and dials a number. “Hey, it’s me….yeah, I’m fine, I got away. Look, can you send someone out to pick me up?...Um, actually, I don’t know where I am, somewhere in sector five, in an alley or something.” He sounds sort of embarrassed at that last sentence, making him look kinda cute. “Okay, thanks.” Shuts off his cell phone and slips it back into his pocket. “People are already out looking for me. They should find us pretty soon…I hope.”

Time goes by and we just sit there in silence, neither of us in the mood to talk. I’m trying my hardest not to think about what I did not even an hour ago, but that’s hard, with having nothing else to occupy my mind with. It’s getting dark and my stomach starts to growl. I haven’t eaten anything since breakfast.

The guy starts cramming around in his pockets and pulls out a cereal bar and hands it to me. “Thanks,” I say before I start eating.

“So, why were those guys after you?” I ask. Anything to get my mind off the newest addition to my nifty little set of otherworldly powers.

“Don’t you watch the news?” he mutters cynically.

“Not much,” I reply. My motel room isn’t exactly equipped with cabel TV. Plus, you can’t believe anything that’s on the news anyway.

He gives me a strange look and is about to say something, but then I hear a soft voice calling “Biggs?”

Wait a minute…I know that voice. I stand up and leave the niche we’ve been hiding in only to find myself standing in front of…Joshua? Is it him? The height’s pretty much right, and he has the long brown hair and the clumsy way of moving, but he’s wearing a helmet and so I can’t see his face. Not that I ever got a good look at it in the first place.

“Liz?” he asks. And then he takes the helmet off and I just stare.


tbc

Oh my, you guys really blow me away with your feedback each and every time. I am so happy that you are enjoying this fic so much, it's lots of fun to write.

I actually wanted to update earlier, but get this, my mom was blocking the computer. She doesn't use the computer more than twice a year, so we're supposed to encourage her when she does, ergo I couldn't shoo her away. But here's the part, a bit longer than they usually are, and it doesn't even have a cliffhanger! Enjoy...


Part 6

I hear a soft voice calling “Biggs?”

Wait a minute…I know that voice. I stand up and leave the niche we’ve been hiding in only to find myself standing in front of…Joshua? Is it him? The height’s pretty much right, and he has the long brown hair and the clumsy way of moving, but he’s wearing a helmet and so I can’t see his face. Not that I ever got a good look at it in the first place.

“Liz?” he asks. And then he takes the helmet off and I just stare.

“You two know each other?” the guy asks surprised, having come up behind me without me even noticing it.

I just continue to stare.

“Yeah,” Joshua says smiling. Or at least I think he’s smiling. The corners of his lips are sort of twitching, and he’s making these weird breathing sounds while nodding his head.

I’m still staring.

“Biggs okay?” he asks the guy. “Not hurt?”

“I’m fine,” Biggs says. And me? Yup, you guessed it. Staring.

“Good,” Joshua says. Then he turns to me, giving me a worried look. “Liz? Something wrong?” His eyes become big, and he moves his face closer to mine to…sniff me?

I manage to shake myself out of my daze, trying to recover from my shock. “You…you…what are you? A transgenic?” I ask carefully.

Joshua is motionless for a minute, probably going through his options. Realizing that he doesn’t have any he nods slowly, looking nervous and scared, which is weird considering the fact that he is about two heads taller than me and could easily beat me to pulp if he wanted to.

I look him up and down. “Well, if you ask me you don’t look half as dangerous as they’re making you out to be on TV,” I finally say.

He seems to take offence in that for a second, but then he smiles and does the weird twitching thing again along with the even weirder sounds, and this time I’m pretty sure that he’s smiling, or rather laughing.

I turn to Biggs. “So that’s why they were after you,” I state.

He just barely nods, taking on a defensive posture, his arms folded over his chest, daring me to say something, express my disgust, back away. But hey, I’ve dated an alien. Why should I have anything against transgenics? They’re hybrids too, just a bit more…normal.

Glance over at dog-boy. Okay, so maybe not that normal.

“Well, that explains a lot,” I simply say. Then I turn around, ready to walk away. “It’s been nice seeing you again, Joshua.”

“Liz, wait! Where do you live? Joshua can give you a ride home,” he says, obviously quite eager to do something for me. I’m about to decline, but I’m hungry and cold, not to mention that I have no idea where I am and how to get back to my motel. A ride sounds pretty good.

“Tampa Road,” I tell him.

Joshua frowns. “Tampa Road? Not a good neighborhood. Not safe,” he tells me, and for some crazy reason he suddenly reminds me of my father.

Is there any place in this city that can actually be called a good neighborhood? “Look, I can take care of myself,” I say getting defensive.

But Joshua is stubborn. “Not safe,” he repeats. Then his eyes suddenly light up. “Liz can come and live with Joshua,” he says sounding way too enthusiastic for my taste.

“No thanks,” I say.

He ignores me. “Joshua likes company. Liz safe. Better neighborhood. Joshua has enough space.” He’s nodding and smiling and looking so eager…I’m having a hard time turning him down.

“Annie lives just down the street,” he continues. “Annie likes Liz. Would like to see Liz again, to thank Liz. Liz and Annie can be friends.” He has this hopeful look in his eyes, making him look like a little boy…or puppy.

I’m about to say something when a light appears at the end of the street and a motorbike rolls towards us. It stops in front of us, the motor is turned off, and a guy gets off. He takes off his helmet.

Alec?

“Hey man, you okay?” he asks Biggs while they do this weird greeting thing guys always do with their hands. Another mystery the universe has to offer that I will never understand.

Then his gaze falls on me. “Liz? What are you doing here?” He’s obviously surprised, but there’s also a small smile on his lips, making me frown. What is he smiling at?

Before I can say anything Joshua speaks up. “Liz coming to stay with Joshua,” he tells Alec grinning.

“Hey,” I protest. “I didn’t say yes.”

Joshua’s grin disappears. “Tampa Road not safe, Liz,” he tells me again.

“You live on Tampa road?” Alec asks, now also frowning. “That’s not exactly the best neighborhood.”

“So I’ve heard,” I mutter, getting only slightly annoyed. It is sort of nice having someone looking out for you again, especially when you’re in a strange city where you know absolutely nobody.

But even though that’s starting to get to me, being alone, I’m still not willing to get all attached to these people. Getting attached only leads to getting hurt, and I’ve had enough of that lately, thank you very much.

“Look Joshua,” I say firmly. “I really appreciate your offer, but I can’t come and live with you.” And then I just turn around and walk away. I barely made it out of the little side street when there’s suddenly a motorcycle beside me.

“Go away,” I tell him.

“Let me give you a ride.”

“No thanks,” I tell him.

“I have the feeling you need one,” he continues, not fazed by my rudeness.

I stop walking and turn to face him, suddenly pissed. “What the hell is that supposed to mean?” I ask. “That I can’t look after myself because I’m a girl? That this big, dangerous city isn’t the kind of place little innocent me should be? Well newsflash Alec, I can take care of myself!”

He’s quiet for a moment. “No, that’s not what I was trying to say,” he says calmly. “But you’re going in the wrong direction. Tampa road is that way,” he says pointing behind him.

“Oh.” I don’t say anything else. Just “oh”. No way in hell am I going to apologize…even though I know I probably should.

I expect some sort of comment from Alec, but he just holds out a helmet to me, not even smirking, even though I can tell that that costs him.

I sigh, reach for the helmet, put it on. Then I hesitate. Do I really want to sit down on that bike behind Alec, my body pressed against his during the whole ride?

Um, no.

I wait another second.

Oh, whatever. Slip into the seat behind him, but make sure that I’m as far away from him as possible.

“You know, I don’t bite,” he says, and I can tell from his voice that he’s smiling again, or rather smirking.

I snort and stay where I am. Somehow I find it hard to believe him.

A minute later a traffic light switches to orange rather suddenly, making him jump on the brake – even though he didn’t really have to – and me slide forward so that I’m exactly where I don’t want to be – pressed against his hard, muscular...oh, suck it up, I tell myself. This isn’t going to kill me.

After five minutes I begin to relax. This is actually sorta nice. I lean my head against his back, enjoying the lights of the city flying past us, the wind in my hair. As far as you can have wind in your hair while wearing a helmet, that is.

When we finally come to a halt I’m almost disappointed that the ride is over, even though I have the slight suspicion that Alec didn’t exactly take the shortest route. I notice that my arms are wrapped around his waist and quickly pull them away as if burned.

I practically jump of the bike, rip the helmet off my head and hand it to him, or rather shove it at him.

And he? He just smirks. Damn cocky bastard. “Good night, Liz,” he says, rolling the words around on his tongue, making it sound all soft and husky. Please. Like girls are stupid enough to fall for that. At least I’m not. Not anymore.

I turn around to start walking towards my motel when I notice police cars and an ambulance parked in front of it, not to mention the crowd of people that has gathered.

Alec obviously saw it too since he’s suddenly standing beside me, his hand resting lightly on my arm to keep me from going any further.

The second he touches my wrist my thoughts rush back to that day at school when Max grabbed my arm in a similar fashion, also to keep me from going somewhere.

Only that this is completely different.

Max’s grip was strong, painful actually, making sure that I knew that my staying or going wasn’t my decision.

But Alec…he’s barely even touching my wrist, his hold protective, shielding, almost caring. He’s not trying to keep me from doing what I want, only trying to warn me that it might not be a good idea.

“What’s going on?” I ask, completely forgetting my earlier irritation with him. What was I upset about again?

“I don’t know,” he replies before stopping a passer-by and asking him.

“Found a guy murdered in that dump of a motel,” the guy says offhandedly. “Apparently was stabbed about a dozen times in the chest. Now they’re looking for all the people who are staying there, probably have a few questions for them.”

“Thanks,” Alec says and the guy goes on.

“Great, just fucking great,” I mutter. A murder investigation. The last thing I need right now.

“You sure know how to pick yourself a nice, homey place to stay,” Alec says, but I’m not going to be baited by such an obvious dig.

“What can I say, I fell in love with the décor,” I reply dryly.

Alec looks surprised, then he smirks. Guess I won this round. “Where’s your room?” he finally asks.

“Ground floor, last door on the left,” I reply. “Why?”

“So there’s a window out back?” he asks.

“Yeah. Why?” I repeat, getting irritated again. When exactly did I start getting so short-tempered?

“I’ll go in through the window and get your stuff out,” he tells me. “Wait here for me.”

“Hold on,” I say. “You’re not going to get the window open.” And why am I so sure of this? Right, it’s sealed shut. Alien powers do come in handy every once in a while.

Alec gives me a smile, sort of like he’s humoring me. “Trust me, that’s not gonna be a problem for me.” And before I can say anything else he’s disappeared into the shadows.

I roll my eyes. He’ll never get in.

Ten minutes later he comes back, looking almost distraught. Must have been quite a blow to his ego.

“Didn’t get in,” I state. I don’t ask, I state.

He nods grudgingly and I can tell that he’d rather chew his right arm off than admit it.

I’m about to throw his earlier cockiness back into his face when I remember that he didn’t make any stupid comments after I was a bitch to him about him trying to tell me that I was heading in the wrong direction. And so instead I just say that I’m coming with him.

We go to the back of the building and I walk up to what I figure is my window. “Look if anybody’s coming,” I tell Alec, and when he turns around I quickly lay my hand on the window frame and unseal it.

By the time he turns back to me I’m already sliding the window open.

“How the…” he begins trailing off. “You know what, I’m not even going to ask.”

“Help me inside,” I hiss.

He comes up behind me and lifts me up with ease. I slip inside the room, quickly throw the few belongings that I bothered to unpack into my bag and shove it out the window. Then I go back to unseal the door, not wanting to leave behind any otherworldly traces, before letting Alec help me back out and hurrying back to his bike.

“Come on,” he says getting back onto his bike.

I don’t move.

How the hell does he think that’s going to work with me and my bag?

He obviously doesn’t see that as a problem, he merely lifts the shoulder strap over his head so that it crosses his chest and hands me my helmet. I reluctantly put it on and get back on the bike behind Alec.

“Where are we going?” I have to shout to make myself heard over the noise of the bike.

“To Joshua’s!” he yells back.

I’m about to protest, but going through my options I realize that I don’t have any. Suck it up, Parker, I mumble to myself. To Joshua’s it is.


tbc

Once again, thank you all for your wonderful feedback. Because some of you asked, finding Ava will not be easy for Liz, and she won't be able to do it alone. But as to who will help her and how she'll find her...you'll just have to wait and see. And for the rest of the things you asked...you'll just have to wait and see. Okay, so not making myself popular right now. I'd better get to the part... Enjoy!


Part 7

“Liz hungry?” Joshua asks me, his eyes wide, his look eager. I gaze at him with eyes that just won’t stay open, peering over the rim of my coffee-filled mug. God I hate coffee. It’s the most disgusting beverage on earth, besides beer maybe. How people can drink this brew every day is a mystery to me.

So why am I drinking it, you might want to ask. Simple. I’m so tired I could fall asleep standing up. And why is that? Yup, you guessed it. Couldn’t sleep. Again. How many nights has it been? Don’t know. I lost count. Finding out you have the alien power that killed your best friend sort of does that to you. Not exactly a cushy pillow for your conscience to rest on.

I tossed and turned all night, every night ever since the day I ran into Biggs being beaten to pulp. Even though physically I’m becoming more and more exhausted, my mind just keeps on spinning and reeling, not letting me get any rest. And God knows I could use some. Just look at me now.

My thoughts keep going back to that day, to what I did, to the power I used before I even knew I had it in the first place.

And here I thought the universe was done using me as its scrap goat. But no. I’m still right smack in the center of this huge, cosmic joke, otherwise known as my life.

I stopped trying to convince myself that I was wrong, that there was some other logical explanation for what happened with Biggs, about five minutes after it took place. I mean, who was I kidding? I knew that it was true, and pretending that it wasn’t wouldn’t make it go away. If there’s one thing the last weeks, scratch that, months have taught me, it’s that. Denial doesn’t get you anywhere. Just look at what it did to Ma…okay, so not going there.

Where was I? Right. My favorite new power. So what do I do about it? I try to deal. And how do I do that? I don’t have a fucking clue.

“Liz?” Joshua asks again, and I realize that I have yet to answer his question.

“No, I’m not really hungry,” I say. And it’s true. Much too tired to eat.

But Joshua ignores me and starts cramming around in the kitchen cupboards, obviously looking for something suitable for a human to have for breakfast. He pulls out a box of cereal, or at least I think that’s what it is. It’s covered in so much dust that you can’t make out the writing. Hmm, guess I know what I’m not gonna be eating for breakfast today.

He blows off the dust and I see that it’s a box of Fruit Loops. Didn’t they stop producing them right after the pulse? Mmm, yum.

He places it on the table in front of me and then continues his search, probably looking for a bowl or something.

I grab the box and start looking for the best-before-date. “Um, Joshua,” I begin. “I don’t think this is good anymore.”

“Not good?” Joshua asks, sounding surprised.

“Yeah. See, it says ‘Best before January 2007’ here, and we have the year 2021 right now. So I sort of think it would be better not to eat this.”

“Oh,” Joshua says, looking disappointed. Guess he was pretty set on providing me with a decent breakfast.

“Don’t worry,” I say, feeling bad for putting that look on his face. “I’m really not hungry.”

“Breakfast the most important meal of the day,” he lectures me sternly.

“Yeah, yeah,” I reply almost chuckling. But I’m too tired to chuckle. “I’ll grab a bite after leaving the house.”

“Liz going out?” Joshua asks frowning. “Again?”

“Yup,” I simply reply.

“Where?” he asks.

“Out,” I say, not wanting to elaborate.

Glancing at my watch I see that it’s already past 10am. Gulp down the rest of the bitter, black liquid in my cup, reach for my backpack and head for the door before Joshua can give me another one of his “City not safe” speeches. God knows I’ve heard enough of those lately.

“Gotta bounce,” is all I say. Then I stop. Gotta bounce? Geez, I have been spending too much time in Seattle. When exactly did I pick up the local slang?

Shake my head and reach for the doorknob. Go out, close the door behind me and start walking down the porch steps. I barely make it down to the sidewalk before somebody suddenly crashes into me, wrapping their arms around me so tightly that my breath is knocked out of me.

“Thank you, thank you, thank you!” the person keeps saying over and over again, their voice thick with tears.

It takes a moment before my sleep-ridden mind comprehends that it’s Annie. After a few minutes I manage to extract myself from her crushing hold on me. God, how can someone so small have such an iron grip?

She’s looking at me, her eyes shining with tears and…woah, wait a minute. She’s looking at me? So I guess it did work.

“You can see,” I say, sounding slightly surprised, even to myself.

“I don’t know how you did it, and…I don’t care. It doesn’t matter to me who you are or what you are. I…I don’t know how to thank you. Nothing I could do would ever be enough. But…if there is ever anything I can do for you, all you have to do is ask. No matter what it is. I…I didn’t think I’d ever get to see the smile of a child again, or a sunrise, or the blue of the sky…”

She trails off and glances up at the gray, cloud-covered sky, a huge smile on her face lightening up her features.

I glance up too. “Well, if you stay in Seattle chances are high that you really won’t ever see that again,” I comment, not knowing what else I could say. I’m not used to people gushing over me like that anymore, it’s embarrassing. The last time somebody did that was actually the night right before I left Roswell and went over to…okay, this is so not the right time to think about that. Damn it, why do my cheeks suddenly feel so hot?

Joshua suddenly opens the door. “Heard voices,” he says. “Everything o…” He trails off upon seeing who’s with me.

I know exactly that he knows exactly that he’s supposed to stay in the house, especially during the day, but upon seeing Annie he seems to forget all the things people have tried to drill into his canine brain for months. He comes down the steps with the silliest grin on his face – in the mean time I recognize his grin when I see it – and I quickly glance around to make sure nobody else is heading in our direction.

What? You sort of get the drill after keeping someone else’s secret for the better part of two years.

“Hello Annie,” he says.

“Joshua,” she replies looking at him.

After a moment he frowns, then waves around in front of her face with his hand. She backs away a bit. “Joshua, that’s a bit irritating.”

“Annie can see?” he asks. Then his jaw hits the floor, his eyes go wide. “Annie can see! Can see Joshua!” he shouts before making a weird howling sound, almost as if in pain, and quickly covering his face with his hands. He turns around and stumbles up the stairs, tripping once before he runs smack into the door, wrenches it open and disappears into the house. And the whole time he’s making these weird crying sounds.

What the hell?!?

I turn to Annie, who is staring at the front door of Joshua’s house. She looks just as surprised at Joshua’s display of queer behavior – even for him – as I am. “You didn’t tell him that you can see?” I ask.

“No,” she says, still sounding a bit shocked. “At first my vision was so blurry and the light hurt my eyes so much, I could hardly open them. I thought that maybe it was only temporary and I would lose the little sight I had regained again and so I didn’t want to get my hopes up. It got better over time and a few days ago that I got my sight back completely.”

“Oh,” is all I say. I mean, what else am I supposed to say to that?

Annie is still looking at the door Joshua disappeared behind. “Maybe I should go and talk to him. I don’t want him to think that I don’t want to be his friend anymore now that I can see what he looks like.”

“Yeah,” is all I say, once again not really knowing what else to say. She smiles at me one more time before heading up the porch steps and I turn around and make my way towards downtown for another fun-filled day of running around Seattle till I have blisters. Thank God for alien healing powers.


tbc

Thanks for being so understanding, guys. Midterms were okay all in all, I'm glad their over though. Sorry for not updating in between, I did get some writing done, but unfortunately not as much as I would have liked to. Anyway, here's the new part. Hope you like it. And Randi, your parts did not keep me away from my writing. You know I love to read the parts you send me.

Oh, and since some of you mentioned it, don't worry about Joshua, he's fine.


Part 8

Call me a country hick, but this place is a fucking freak town. I am…well, I actually don’t know where I am. Still somewhere in Seattle, I guess. Not that you could tell from the way this place looks. The houses are dumps, just like everywhere else in this shit-hole of a city, but there’s graffiti practically everywhere – and when I say everywhere, I mean everywhere. That actually includes the street. And the people…well, let me just say that they make the Dupes look like nice little catholic school girls. Jesus Christ. And I thought Ava had a lot of piercings.

But hey, to each their own. I’m not complaining. Not after finally finding a place where I can actually picture Ava settling down.

Now, since Plan A, which consisted of cluelessly running around the city while praying for a wonder, didn’t quite work out the way I’d hoped it would, I came up with Plan B. No wait, Plan B was going through the official channels. So this is Plan C. Or is it? Did I even call Plan A Plan A? Because if I didn’t – which wouldn’t surprise me, seeing how Plan A wasn’t actually anything you could call a plan – Plan B would actually be Plan A, and this would be Plan B. And don’t you just hate it when people go on and on about some minor detail you don’t give a rat’s ass about instead of getting to the point?

Any-hoo, to my point. Yes, I actually have one. Drum roll please. Plan C consists of actively looking for Ava.

Well, you might say, and what exactly is the difference between looking for Ava and actively looking for Ava? That’s easy. This time I’m gonna ask random people if they know her, or if she at least looks familiar to them, if they’ve seen her around. Okay, so you might say that that’s a tad bit difficult without some sort of visual aide. And I would have to agree with you but – where is that frigin drum roll? – I actually have a picture of her. Well, not exactly of her. It’s a picture of Tess. I simply stopped by at an internet café, logged on to my high school’s homepage and browsed through the pictures of various school activities. Found one of the queen-bitch, printed it out and I’m all set. The downside is of course that I’ll be forced to spend my days looking at the witches face, but considering that I scorched my sheets last night and almost set my bed on fire while I slept, I don’t think I have much of a choice. I’m getting sort of desperate here.

So here goes nothing. First I approach a girl about my age, one of the more normal people, who has less than a dozen piercings in her face. Before I can even get two words out she tells me to stick it where the sun don’t shine. Charming, really. A bit fazed, I decide to approach a guy next, but he somehow seems to think that what I want is to have is a threesome with him and the girl on the photo. Um, no? Since I can’t convince him otherwise, I decide to move on. Oh, and can I saw ‘Eww’?

Okay, so maybe I’m quick to give up, but I don’t think this is getting me anywhere. Instead of asking people on the street I decide to go into the shops and ask the people working there if they know Ava. If she really lives in this area someone is bound to recognize her. Right? Right.

----------------------

Jesus, this is a drag. On it goes, through the door and into the next shop. What is this place? A tattoo parlor, backslash supermarket? Charming, really. What an amazing business idea. I wonder why no one has copied it yet. I’m sure this would be a hit in Roswell.

Looking around, I spot the counter, or at least I think it’s the counter. It’s actually a giant scull with a wooden panel on top. But there’s a guy standing behind it, and something that might be a register on top. Guess I might actually be right.

I head over to it, and the guy behind it glances up. He’s black, as big as a house with rippling biceps and a very well developed chest that’s on the brink of making his shirt pop. Damn scary-looking if I may say so. His hair is shaved off and replaced by tattoos that wind their way down over his neck and then disappear in his black t-shirt which, by the way, has a scull surrounded by green flames on it that’s eating a naked woman. He has more piercings than I can count, and his irises are red. Yes, red. Contacts, of course. Jesus Christ, I hope they’re contacts. All in all not the kind of guy I’d want to run into in a dark alley.

He flashes me a smile that looks more menacing than friendly and looks me up and down. “You lost, dollface?” he asks in a deep, booming voice that makes me flinch. “Or you’s want a nice little tattoo somewhere? Maybe on your cute lil’ white ass?”

I swallow and gather my courage, fighting my instincts that tell me to just run, run, run! “Um, no. I’m looking for a friend of mine. Her name’s Ava. Here’s a picture,” I say, annoyed with the tremor in my voice that just won’t go away. Wonder why.

He stares at the picture for a long time. “Um, you have to imagine her with a few more piercings, and colorful hair. She had pink streaks the last time I saw her,” I add.

“I’ll be damned,” the guy says. “What the hell’s got into my girl to dress up like that? Got her lookin’ like a freak! Didn’t think Ava used to have the Miss-Prissy-look going on.”

“It was for Halloween,” I say quickly. “So you know her?” I ask, not daring to believe my luck.

“Sure do,” he answered with a drawl, and this time I almost don’t flinch. “Used to work here. One of the best people me ever had, drew male customers like honey draws bees.”

“Do you have an address?” I ask hopefully.

“Dollface, we’s in Seattle,” he tells me chuckling. “No one’s got no address here, people’s livin in these dumps illegally. Cheaper to bribe them cops than to pay rent.”

“And you haven’t seen her lately?” I ask, discouragement washing over me. “You have no idea where I can find her?”

“Sorry dollface, she ain’t been around to see good old Joint.”

“Joint?” I ask.

“’S my name,” he explains grinning. I don’t even want to know…

“Well, thanks anyway,” I say and turn around to leave.

“Second there, dollface,” he yells, making me stop and back turn around again. “Just remembered something. She used to hang at this dive, name’s Crash. Might wanna check that out. Just three blocks down the street, dingy little place, easy to overlook from the outside.”

“Thanks,” I say smiling, relieved that this hasn’t turned out to be another dead end.

“My pleasure, dollface,” he replies grinning at me. “And come back when you change your mind about that tattoo. You’s ass is prime.”

I guess that was supposed to be a compliment, I think while heading out and making my way down the street to the place called ‘Crash’. Then I realize that it’s too earlier for a bar to be open, and so I decide to find something to eat instead. I’m starving.

----------------------

By the time I push open the doors of the Crash it’s almost eleven pm. It was still early after I’d eaten, and realizing that I wasn’t too far away from Joshua’s I decided to go home and change. I really need to get myself a new wardrobe for Seattle, I’m way too stand-offish in my old clothes from Roswell.

Digging around in my bag I found black jeans, black boots and a black top. And because I felt like it, I added some dark eye shadow and eyeliner. I considered doing something to my hair, but since I hate it no matter what I do, I just left it open. Everything else would be too much trouble. It looks boring either way.

The Crash is in the basement of the building, and so I head down the stairs and push my way through the crowd to the bar. I find an unoccupied space and wait for the bartender to come over to take my order so that I can ask him about Ava, maybe have a drink too cause I’m thirsty, and tired. I’ve had one hell of an exhausting day.

While waiting I glance around, taking in my surroundings and the people hanging out here. Most of them are in their mid-twenties and look pretty normal, but quite a few look anything but. There’s actually a guy that looks like a frikin’ lizard – I kid you not. He has green tattoos of scales covering his whole face and arms, his eyes are yellow and even his tongue is split at the tip. Jesus Christ, what some people are willing to do to themselves in the name of fashion…if you can even call that fashion.

Turning back to the bar I start tapping my fingers impatiently on the rough wooden surface beneath them. I hate waiting. In case you haven’t noticed, I’m not exactly the most patient person in the world. Feeling the in the mean time familiar tingle under the skin of my hands, I force myself to take deep breaths and calm down. I really don’t want to blow anything up here. Too many witnesses. I’d hate to have to kill them all.

I’m just kidding.

Anyway, so I’m standing here still breathing, feeling like a woman in labor doing those silly exercises the doctors believe will help them through the pain, when a guy suddenly comes up beside me and drapes his arm around my shoulder.

“Hey pal,” I begin while turning to him, ready to smack him, when my gaze falls onto the smirking face of Alec.


tbc

First of all, thank you all so much for your wonderful, wonderful feedback! It means so much to me. My midterms did go pretty well btw.

To answer some of your questions, Alec is at Crash because that's the usual hangout of the Jam Pony crew. Liz has seen Alec since she moved to Joshua's, but nothing worth mentioning ever happened. Up to know that is... For the rest, wait and see.

And since you've been asking, I'm gonna start posting the sequel to DDIO as soon as I have the next part of NUF done, which should be soon...I hope.

For now, here's the next part. Enjoy!


Part 9

Anyway, so I’m standing here still breathing, feeling like a woman in labor doing those silly exercises the doctors believe will help them through the pain, when a guy suddenly comes up beside me and drapes his arm around my shoulder.

“Hey pal,” I begin while turning to him, ready to smack him, when my gaze falls onto the smirking face of Alec.

Before I can stop it, a jolt of pleasure rushes through my veines, and I actually almost smile. I can stop that though, and so I just scowl at him. “What the hell are you doing here?” I demand to know, more than just upset that some stupid part of my brain actually thinks that running into Alec is a good thing.

He ignores my rudeness and keeps on smiling at me. “Hello Liz,” he says in that low, melodious voice of his. I could smack him just for that. “Long time no see.”

“Not long enough,” I mutter under my breath, but he hears it anyway. Damn enhanced hearing.

“You wound me,” he replies dramatically while clutching his chest.

“You’re ego’s a bit farther south,” I inform him dryly and turn back to the bar. Where is that damn barkeeper? I just want to show him the picture, ask him if he knows Ava and then get the hell out of here.

Alec actually laughs. What the hell? I was trying to insult him. I glance over at him, wondering if he’s lost his mind, but he just keeps on chuckling.

“That was a good one,” he admits, and this time I’m really having a hard time keeping from smiling. It’s hard to find fault in a guy who can take a joke even if it’s at his own expense.

My scowl deepens. Liking Alec is not part of the plan, I remind myself.

“You know, you look a lot prettier when you smile. You should try that every once in a while,” he tells me softly, flirtatiously. “Not that you don’t look amazing tonight,” he adds looking me up and down. “You should dress up more often too.”

“Well of course!” I say overdramatically while smacking my forehead. “Considering that I’m female, looking pretty should of course be my number one priority! Thank you so much for showing my the errors of my ways,” I grind out, sarcasm oozing off every word I utter.

Alec just smiles at me. “Glad I could be of service.” His cocky manner is back, and I start to reconsider the possibility of blowing something up here. Zapping Alec would almost be worth the mess it would cause.

But I know that I really shouldn’t, and so I just turn away and roll my eyes. “Men,” I mutter.

Alec ignores my very obvious dismissal and keeps right on talking. “So, what are you doing here?”

“None of your god damn business.” I don’t even bother looking at him.

He doesn’t say anything, but from the corner of my eyes I can see him shrugging. Does nothing faze this guy? How insulting do I have to become for him to back off?

“Hey Chad,” he shouts at the barkeeper. “Can I have another pitcher of beer? And I think the lady here wants to order.”

I just huff while being thoroughly annoyed that Alec helped me, even just a tiny little bit, and he grins at me, causing my scowl to deepen even more. If my mother were here she’d tell me to wipe the frown off my face or else it might get stuck. I quickly push that thought away. I don’t want to think about my parents. It makes me feel guilty and homesick, which is a bad combination considering that I’m in a strange town hundreds of miles away from them.

The barkeeper comes over to us and hands Alec a new pitcher of beer. Alec smirks at me one last time. “See you around,” he says and then disappears into the crowd.

Relieved that he’s gone – or at least that’s what I’m trying to tell myself – I turn to the barkeeper and show him the picture of Tess and ask if he knows her. He studies the foto for a few moments before telling me that he’s seen her around a few times, but that she hasn’t been there in over a month or so. He can’t tell me where she works or where she lives either, doesn’t even know her name.

Disappointed I turn to go when the guy standing beside me stops me. “Sorry,” he says smiling shyly, making him look sort of cute. Too bad I don’t go for the shy type anymore. “I couldn’t help but overhear your conversation. I think I know the girl you’re looking for.”

“Really?” I ask, not believeing my luck. “This girl?” I pull out the picture of Tess and shot it to him to make sure.

He studies it carefully for a minute before nodding his head. “Yeah, that’s her alright. I wasn’t sure at first, she’s hard to recognize without the piercings and the hair dye.”

“Halloween,” I explain quickly. “So how do you know her?” Excitement chases away my weariness and a few other emotions I prefer to keep nameless.

“Well, she used to come here almost daily, hung out with a couple of friends. We played pool a few times, but that’s pretty much it.”

“Oh.” Disappointment seeps back in. So he can’t help me either.

“But I know where she lives,” he adds quickly, his voice sounding eager to help. I smile. “She’d always complain about how she lives in the worst neighbour hood in the city, joking about how it just beat living in the sewers.”

Sewers? Yup, that sounds like Ava. “And where is the worst neighborhood in town?” I prompt.

“Oh, that’s sector 9,” he tells me, blushing slightly. Hmm. That’s where my motel was. Figures.

“Are you new in town?” he asks me after a second. “Cause if you are, maybe you could use someone to show you around. I’m Brian by the way.”

“Liz,” I say after studying him carefully for a moment. “Maybe I’ll get back to you on that.”

“Well, I’m here almost every night. Chad, he’s a friend of mine, so I come by quite often. Free drinks and all,” he explains smiling.

“I’ll keep that in mind,” I say. “Well, I should get going. See you around, Brian.” I give him one last smile before heading up the stairs towards the exit of the bar.

I’ve barely made it out the door when I hear Alec’s voice behind me. I stop, roll my eyes, but I don’t turn around.

“You’re not thinking of going home all alone at this time of night?” he asks me, and even without looking I can tell that there’s a scowl on his face.

Now I do turn around. “What I do is none of your god damn business!” My temper’s flaring. I hate having to repeat myself.

“Look Liz, you don’t have to like me, but I’m not letting you walk home alone.” Uh-oh. Looks like someone’s getting angry. Ooh, now I’m scared. Do you see me shaking?

“That’s crazy,” Alec goes on. “You’ll get mugged half a dozen times before you reach Joshua’s house if you’re lucky, and if you’re not you won’t reach his house at all.”

I glare at Alec. “I don’t need a babysitter,” I spit out. “I can take care of myself.”

“So you’ve told me,” he says, a bit more calmly now, almost wearily. “Only about a million times. And no one said anything different. I’m merely offering you a ride home. You look tired. So why don’t you just say ‘Thank you Alec, that’s awfully kind of you. I’d love for you to take me home.’ It’s not gonna kill you to accept someone else’s help.”

We stare off for a couple of minutes. “Fine,” I huff out.

Alec shruggs. “Good enough,” he mutters before leading me over to his bike and handing me my helmet. He gets on and sighing, I climb on behind him. This time I don’t even bother trying to keep my distance from him. It’s nice feeling his body against mine. Too nice, actually, but that’s not something I want to think about tonight. And so I let my mind go blank and enjoy the ride, enjoy the feeling of the heat radiating of Alec’s body. The ride to Joshua’s is over much too quickly, and when I close the door behind me after barely even saying good night to Alec I can’t help but wonder what I’m going to do about my growing attraction to him.


tbc

Guys, I am so sorry for not updating on Monday. I know it's gonna sound stupid but I simply forgot. And then I was always either busy or I forgot again...anyway, I think this part will make up for the wait though, and the next one will be up either Monday or Tuesday. Hope you like it, and once again, thanks for your wonderful feedback.


Part 10

Don’t you just hate rain? I do. It’s funny, when I still lived in Roswell I loved it when it rained. It was a nice change to the dry, dusty heat we normally had. I loved hearing the drops pattering against my window, loved the way it smelled once it stopped. Everything seemed so fresh and clean afterwards.

But here it’s always wet and cold and…well, rainy. It sucks. I haven’t seen the sun in days, no weeks actually. And there are holes in the roof, so we have pots and pans and buckets standing around all over the house to catch the rain water. Not that it would really make a difference. The whole house is damp and moldy-smelling, and every time it rains it gets even worse.

Right now I’m in the living room, starring at the three pots and pans on the brink of overflowing, trying to decide which one to switch with the empty bowl I’m holding. No matter what I do, by the time I’ve emptied the one I take, the other two will have overflown, hence it’s a lose-lose situation.

Hmm, where does a soaked carpet bother me the most? I ope for the one right in front of my favorite couch, since I’m most likely to step into that puddle and quickly exchange it with the bowl. I take the pot and head for the front door while liberally spilling water on the floor on my way out. Once it’s emptied and I’m back in the living room, the other two are of course overflowing, and so I don’t even bother hurrying up with emptying them.

When I’m done and back in the living room Max is suddenly there. Jesus, how the hell did she get in here? Did she sneak past me? Damn transgenics.

“Hey M,” I say, smiling pleasantly while she narrows her eyes at me. She hates being called ‘M’ instead of Max, and I just love rilling her. No wonder Sean got a kick out of doing the same with Maria. Besides, I don’t really like her name, and so I prefer not to say it outloud. No idea why, just a weird quirk of mine.

“You’re not a transgenic,” she suddenly says out of nowhere. Well, give the girl a prize. How’d she figure that one out?

I guess that’s what the sneaking-into-the-house-thing was about. Some sort of test that I obviously didn’t pass.

“Wow, it’s really amazing how that superior brain of yours works. Nothing escapes you, huh?” I’m still smiling pleasantly while she narrows her eyes at me. Max is just too easy.

She – get this – hisses at me. “Your feline DNA coming through?” I ask in a tone one might use to talk to a mentally retarded child. And I’m still smiling. Pretty sure that she’s on the verge of scratching out my eyes, I turn my back to her and pretend to be busy cleaning up the desk that’s standing there.

Once I think it’s safe again I turn back to her. “You really hate that, don’t you?” I ask. “Me knowing what you are while you know nothing about me.”

“Why don’t we change that?” she suggests sweetly. Her temper is back under control, but just barely.

I pretend to think about it. “Nah, sorry, no can do.” Then I go back to cleaning. Wow, it’s amazing how easy it is to act like a complete bitch. Should that worry me? Nah.

Then Max speaks again, and I can hear from the strain in her voice just how hard it is for her to hold back from strangling me. “I guess you think you’re awfully clever the way you have Joshua wrapped around your little finger, but you’re not fooling me. I know you have some hidden agenda, and I’ll find out what it is, and if it’s the last thing I do.”

Okay, that did it. Now I’m mad too. “Oh please,” I hiss turning around. Yes, I can hiss too. “What kind of hidden agenda could that be? I’ve know that you're all transgenics for weeks. So what? I don’t care. I obviously didn’t rat you out yet, so why should I do it in the future? The last thing I want is to be wrapped up in something like that again. Stay out of my business, and I’ll stay out of yours. It’s that easy.”

Then Joshua comes into the room, and I think he’s scowling. I’m still having one hell of a time reading his facial expressions. They all look the same to me. “Max and Liz fighting?” he asks.

“No,” we both say staring at each other.

“Joshua don’t like fights. Stop.” His tone almost makes me wince. Joshua is so sensitive when it comes to that sort of thing.

“We weren’t fighting,” Max says never taking her eyes off me. “We were just discussing something.”

“Were fighting,” Joshua states. “Stop fighting. Liz saved Annie. Liz different, on our side. Don’t have to be afraid.”

“I’ll believe that when I see it,” Max says, and with one last glare she leaves.

I turn to Joshua and he’s still scowling. “Liz must stop making Max mad,” he tells me, sounding awfully fatherly for a moment.

“But it’s just too easy,” I say, almost whining.

He gives me a look. “Fine,” I huff out. “I’ll try to be nicer to her. Satisfied?”

Now he grins. “Yes, Joshua happy.”

-------

The next day Joshua, Alec and I are gathered in the living room, each of us stretched out on one of the sofas.

It’s raining. No surprise there, huh? It’s been raining for hours, actually. Pouring. Go out there and you’re soaked to the bone in two seconds flat.

Which explains why Alec and I manage to be in the same house for more than five minutes without killing each other. Simple. We have to. Nowhere else to go. Not without catching your death in cold, that is. But then, do transgenics even get sick?

“So,” Alec says breaking the silence. Oh, he just has to go and bring an end to the peace, doesn’t he? Cuz’ within the next two minutes he’s sure to say something so completely stupid and smart-assy and annoying that it will make me want to just strangle him.

“Left any broken hearts behind when you left…wherever it is you used to live?” he asks me, his trademark-smirk in place. And I…I just want to slap it off. Hmm, that’s a new record. Only took him five seconds to piss me off. In case you haven’t noticed, my love life isn’t exactly my favorite subject at the moment, especially the part about how that led to me leaving Roswell. But Alec of course has to go and bring it up.

I simply send him a glare. Smooth Alec, really. That’s the way to get information out of a girl.

“Ah come on Liz, don’t be such a prude,” he says teasingly.

Okay, he went too far with that one. Haven’t guys learned yet not to go there? I tense up and just glare at him again, trying hard to keep the electric surge I feel under my skin at bay. Don’t want to blast him after all. On second thought…

“Well Alec, I guess compared to you, who falls into bed with anyone who wears a skirt, everyone is a prude,” I say still glaring at him.

He has the grace to look insulted, and I just smirk. “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” he says.

Yeah, right. “I had a little talk with Max,” I say still smirking. “She seems to dislike you even more than me. Told me a bit about your dating habits, advised me to steer clear off you.”

“Since when do you take anything Max says at face value?” he asks, and if I didn’t know better I’d think he was upset.

“She sounded pretty convincing to me. Besides, why should she lie?” I ask getting up, my arms at my hips.

“Why should she know anything in the first place?” he shoots back also getting up.

“You know Alec, guys who can’t keep it in their pants are one thing, but guys who can’t keep it in their pants and then deny it or have some stupid double moral about it really piss me off,” I snap. Too close to home? You bet.

We’re only an inch apart now, glaring at each other, as we keep on bickering. Joshua tries to stop us, but he gives up pretty quickly, holds his hands to his head and leaves to room howling. I ignore him, too mad at Alec to care that I upset Joshua.

We’re still at it, fighting as if our lives depended on it, when Alec’s lips are suddenly pressed against mine, knocking the wind right out of me. I’m too shocked to react, too shocked to do anything but stand there and let him have his way with me. And if I didn’t at least still have a thread of dignity in me, I might have actually admitted that I was enjoying it.

He pulls back just when I regain control over my body, a smart move on his part since I would have seen myself forced to inflict great bodily harm on him otherwise.

“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” I ask, practically spitting the words out.

He just smirks at me. “Shutting you up. It’s the only way I’ve found so far.”

I just stare at him, still having a hard time believing what just happened here.

“Bye sweetheart, see you later,” he says smiling at me. Then he kisses me again and leaves a very flabbergasted me behind.

Damn it. I’m in trouble here. Serious trouble.


tbc