A/N: I was bored. So sue me.

Title: Torrential
Author: jracklesfan77
Rating: PG 13

Summary: More than rain can come down in torrents.

Torrential

It was raining. Scratch that. It was pouring. Angry skies passionately belted out cold, sharp torrents of water, drenching all those unfortunate to be caught unawares in the storm.

The streets were slick; too slippery to risk driving. She was so screwed. Even if she blurred to reach her destination in time, she'd be soaked to the bone in under a minute. Guess the party's a wash, she sighed in exasperation. Leave it to Mother Nature to screw up the one good thing about this whole damn week. Glaring at the storm clouds above and flinching involuntarily with every crash of thunder and flash of lightning, Max pulled the zipper of her sweatshirt up to her chin, tucked her hair under her hood and trudged out into the miserable night.

Meanwhile, on the other side of town, Alec stood inside the doorway of an abandoned liquor store, hugging his jacket to his damp torso and cursing the fates for the appearance of a freak storm, an all-too-common occurrence in Seattle. The bottles he'd snatched from the storeroom of the shop were tucked into the messenger bag over his shoulder and they weighed heavily on his wet frame.

He was late. Being fashionably late was one thing, arriving over two hours after everyone else was plain stupid. Maybe I should skip the party and go home. There's enough booze in the bag for a decent round of drinks. Maybe I'll ask Biggs to join me... He shook his head when he remembered that his friend had already had plans for the evening - plans involving a sweet redheaded cocktail waitress and a bag of tricks. He sighed in defeat. So I guess it's just me tonight, unless...

Picking up a discarded newspaper, Alec gingerly held the dirty tabloid over his head; a pretty pointless gesture given the battery of rainfall pounding around him. His mind made up, he ventured into the dark sodden street in search of a worthy drinking partner.

Alec arrived at the dilapidated old building to find Max seething and sopping, eyes storming harder than the whipping wind and torrential rain.

"Any reason you're standing out here, risking the elements, when you could be home, warm and dry?" he asked pleasantly. His tone seemed to piss her off even more. Watching as her eyes flashed and her face contorted in anger, he drew back slightly.

"Oh, this has got to be the fucking highlight of my day. Do you have some sort of radar that tells you when I'm having a shitty moment so you can come and make it worse?" she replied harshly. "Figures I should have counted on you to screw my day up even more."

Alec flinched at the venom in her voice, her tone, the words she spat at him, and frustration and more than a little anger took him by force. "What the hell is your problem, Max? I was just making conversation."

She scoffed at him. "Conversation? I'm surprised you know how. Isn't it usually 'You're a unique creature unlike any other - let's fuck'?"

He eyed her coldly after that. "God, you're a bitch. It's a wonder you have any friends at all, though all things considered, OC's probably with you 'cuz she's got the hots for you and Sketchy's too oblivious to notice what you're really like." He cocked his head, raised an eyebrow and continued, "The question is, how do you get the bitchiness past Logan? Something tells me he wouldn't put up with you if he knew the truth."

He watched with satisfaction as her lips twisted into a snarl. He was on a roll, and didn't allow her to reply before adding, "You been lying to him all this time? Great way to keep up your pretence of a relationship with Rollerboy."

He caught the brief flash of pain in her eyes and felt a moment of guilt at his response. But as quickly as it came, the look was gone, leaving a furious Max, one hand on her hip, the other one jabbing at his chest.

"Logan's nice to me, Alec. He helps me. He cares about me." She paused to take a breath, eyes still locked on his, their gaze piercing and hard. "He's not an ass. He doesn't lie, cheat or steal."

That's open to interpretation, he mused darkly, balling his fists. But he stood silent as she continued. "He's not a man-whore. He doesn't think with his dick, consequences be damned. You, on the other hand, you are a dick. So if I'm bitchy to you, it's because you deserve it."

Grabbing her hand to still the irritating pokes to his body, he yanked her closer until their noses were mere inches apart. "And I take it that by initiating a civilized chat with you I was being a dick? Being nice to you makes me deserve the shit you just gave me? Fuck you, Max."

Max tried to wiggle free from his grasp, but Alec's fingers dug into her wrists with iron strength. She settled for a verbal attack. "I have to see you every day. I have to hear your incessant chatter and cheesy pick-up lines, watch you flirt your way through life, sleeping with every available female. I have to watch Normal treat you like a god when you're anything but, listen to Logan gripe about you when a mission goes sideways or you don't show up when you say you will. I have to share you with my friends and suffer your presence when all I want is a little peace of mind. And to top it all off, it's a miserable night, my roommate kicked me out so she could enjoy a little alone time with her girl and I'm standing here in the rain, soaking wet and irritated and it's all your fault!"

Alec's jaw fell open in disbelief. "Can you hear yourself, Max? You do realize you're blaming me for making friends? For getting along with my boss? I can understand that you got upset that I never showed for last week's E.O. mission, but gimme a break! You're blaming me for the weather! Manticore cooked up some really weird shit, but God, I'm not."

"So he admits he's not God. That must have been so hard for you," she sneered. Alec knew he shouldn't have been shocked that she'd disregarded all he'd had to say and only focused on that, but he was. Pulling a typical 'Max' on me. Pretending I don't have feelings so she can feel good about herself.

All the arguing was turning him on. The flush of her cheeks, despite the cold, the tenseness of her muscles, her short, angry breaths, her stance. Everything about her was making him hot. And he was more than a little angry that his response had been dismissed so easily. So he decided to speak his mind and let fate decide the rest.

"That wasn't hard," he growled. Leaning into her shoulder, lips grazing the shell of her ear and sending tingles down her spine, he whispered, "But I am."

With that said, he pulled her flush against him, settling her between his thighs. She tensed, incensed at his suggestiveness and manhandling. Unable to free her hands or legs, she used the only body part available to attack - her head.

When her forehead cracked against his, Alec released her to clutch at his head. "That's it, bitch. You've taken it one step too far this time," he hissed. His head ached painfully. It wasn't like she hadn't deserved it. She was asking for a little payback, and he was more than ready to inflict a little damage. He was tired of holding back.

He attacked. A sharp kick to the gut that forced her to stumble a few steps and expel a sharp gasp from between her lips. Without giving her time to recover, he swept her feet out from under her. She fell to the ground with a loud grunt.

Flipping back to a crouch she leaned back on her hands and kicked both feet up at a grinning Alec, catching him beneath the chin. The snap of his jaw was all too satisfying and she smiled, eyes flashing triumphantly at having caught him off-guard. Alec narrowly missed her swinging fist, sidestepping the punch and retaliating in kind. He blurred, coming up behind her and grabbing Max in a headlock with one arm, the other pinning her hands behind her, slamming her against the wall with a strength she hadn't known he possessed. Brick crumbled and fell around them. She felt the rough surface scrape her cheeks, nose and forehead as he ground her against the structure. Holding her firmly in place, Alec began to speak, the tone of his voice hard, his breath warm against her skin.

"What could I ever do to make you like me, Max, Huh? Should I cut my hair, get glasses? Maybe shoot myself in the spine so I can get a wheelchair or an exo like Logan? Would you like me better if I was crippled and you had the upper hand? Can't deal with the truth that I'll always be stronger than you? Does that intimidate you, Maxie?

"I never understood, but now it's perfectly clear. You like feeling stronger, better, in control. Got a bit of dominatrix in you, Max? I could act that fantasy out for you, if you like. Come to think of it, when was the last time you got laid?"

Max glared at the wall, unable to see Alec from her current position, anger stirring as a result of both the truth of his words and the insinuations. "None of your fucking business, asshole! My sex life is none of your fucking business!"

Alec released his hold and she spun around to face him. He smirked knowingly, eyes glinting strangely in the moonlight, water dripping down his face and off his chin. He wiped at the trickling rivulets and licked his lips. "Methinks she doth protest too much. C'mon, Maxie! What got your panties so twisted? The fact that I'm right or the fact that you want me and you hate it?"

"Or both?" he sneered, leering at her. Her eyes widened with the realization that he was closing in for the kill. Oh shit, she thought wildly. He's gonna kiss me.

She closed her eyes against the inevitable, anticipating and even welcoming the move, but it never came. Instead, a hard boot made contact with her stomach, propelling her backward onto her ass, down into a deep puddle of muddy water.

Glaring daggers at her male companion, her face twisted in rage. "What the hell was that!"

Alec's lips thinned to a tight line, eyes still smouldering with a mixture of passion and anger. "That's the only physical contact you and I are gonna have," he replied darkly. "For now," he added under his breath. He knew Max would never back down from a challenge, and the one he'd just issued her would simmer and stew beneath the surface. But she'd be back, he knew. She'd find him when the shock wore off.

Turning on his heel, he chuckled to himself. He could almost hear the steam rushing from her ears as he summarily dismissed her and walked off.

- FIN -