Random Chance
The girl's black hair was coiled into a tight bun and covered by an artist's beret. Her eyes were hidden behind dark shades and her only other distinguishing marks were concealed by a draping wine colored peasant shirt with long sleeves that ended in ruffled triangles at the center of her palms. Her 'disguise' was completed with long dark blue jeans mostly concealing the black boots that added a good three inches to her normal height. Her thumb restlessly moved against the base of her ring finger, rubbing back and forth with increasing friction against the bare skin.
Though she had only had the ring for one day she already missed its presence and felt its lack as much as if she had been wearing it for years, even decades. She sighed and resumed staring intently at the doors, a smile lighting her face as the tall muscled figure she had been waiting less than patiently for appeared from the tall glass panels that fronted the airport's main lounge. She slipped quickly through the few people milling in between her and her dark haired handsome lover and flung herself into his arms, planting a loving and very thorough kiss on his sensual mouth. A rush of images entered her mind, flashing one after the other in lightning quick succession;
A bright light filling his vision as he looked out over a sea of faces.
A tiny baby cradled in a woman's arms.
A flash of New York's skyline and other distinctly familiar faces, but oddly distorted in his mind.
A white room filled with pain and fear.
A girl, dark haired and dark eyed, her gaze overflowing with love...
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Kyle sighed, tapping his foot in a restless staccato pattern on the tiled floor and watching the other five with his usual sardonic gaze. The past few weeks had left them all in a high state of tension and the original aliens were the worst of the lot, well one of them at least, utterly paranoid and totally focused on their safety, completely ignoring the inherent fun potential in a road trip across the United States, even if it was spurred on by the constant threat of discovery. He glanced around the large room, no one was even paying attention to the group of teens, and no one had, not for over two weeks.
He sighed again, his gaze once more resting on their little band of intrepid adventurers. He snorted under his breath and waved his hand dismissively at Liz when she looked at him questioningly, one eyebrow raised. She gazed at him a moment more, then turned her attention back to the quiet discussion Michael and Max were having about their next move, his own attention drifting to the tall silent brunette standing at the very edge of their circle. Isabel had been silent far too much since they had left Roswell and he was worried about her, even beyond his pointless infatuation. He sent a silent prayer winging its way to Buddha and approached her.
"What's up babe?" He asked, putting on his best chauvinistic male smile. She turned her head to look at him, her perfectly arched eyebrows tilted slightly and one corner of her mouth raising up in a half smile.
"Hello Kyle."
He grinned, feeling a faint sense of relief and accomplishment at the smile on her face. "Hello Isabel, how it's hangin'?"
She shook her head and sighed, "Its 'hangin'' just fine I suppose."
He kept his grin up but it took an effort, the lack of enthusiasm, the lack of life in her voice made him worry even more. He knew leaving Jesse had been the hardest thing she ever had to do, in a long list of hard things she'd had to do in her life and he was worried that it might permanently change her personality, a personality that he loved despite his best intentions. He was about to speak again when he heard the two voices behind him grow louder, the sounds of a disagreement becoming evident. He and Isabel exchanged similarly resigned looks and turned to join the two arguing hybrids.
"We need to keep moving, we can't stay here. We should at least get out of town, camp out or something, away from people." Michael said, his voice intense.
Maria sighed, albeit internally; this was how it had been since they left. Max trying to get them to hide in plain site, live as normally as possible with Michael preaching extreme caution, staying away from people, avoiding big cities, doing without everything that wasn't necessary for survival. She loved the boy, but, they couldn't go on like this, she was not going to camp out like some savage when she could stay in a perfectly respectable hotel and maybe even enjoy a little night life. And the constant paranoia was driving them all insane, you couldn't live and be afraid of everything, it just wasn't possible. She felt Isabel and Kyle come up behind her and join the group, noting the resigned looks on their faces and knowing her own probably mirrored it.
Leaving their problems behind them had sounded a lot easier than it was turning out to be, despite seeing no signs of pursuit since a few weeks after they left Michael refused to let down his guard and his motto of Constant Vigilance was getting on all of their nerves.
"This isn't a discussion Michael, we are getting a hotel room and getting some rest, we all need a chance to relax and strategize and we can't just keep town hopping with no sense of overall direction. We ditched the van, our only link to Roswell, they can't trace us anymore."
"You're not the King anymore Max, you said so yourself."
Max threw his hands up, "You're right, I'm not, we'll make it a vote, who wants to find a hotel?"
Everyone's hands rose into the air except Michael's, and Maria's. Her eyes met Liz's and understanding passed between them, she couldn't desert him, not after he had come back for her, had finally admitted and accepted his love for her. Not after she had abandoned him and realized almost too late that she couldn't bear to lose him.
"Alright, we're going to a hotel." Max said, his voice quieter this time, less frustrated.
Michael remained silent but Maria could feel the tension in him as she laid her hand on his arm. He looked down at her and a faint smile crossed his face, his eyes expressing the gratitude that he could not. She smiled back and rested her head against his shoulder, drawing comfort from his presence and knowing he was drawing comfort from hers.
Max blinked as the sun hit his eyes. They had been flying all night and the inside of the airport lounge was quite dark compared to the bright Missouri sky. He scanned the crowds, trying to sense if there was anyone who wished them harm. No one seemed to be paying any attention to him and he was about to turn around to let the others know it was ok when a girl's body collided with his, her lips pressing against his own and her mouth parting as she kissed him as passionately as he had ever been kissed. He was about to shove her away when the flashes penetrated his mind, images flowing through his suddenly established connection with the girl.
They were blurred and short; barely distinguishable from one another.
He did see his face but not his at the same time.
And a laptop screen, fuzzy, but clearly containing symbols like the ones in the cave.
He also saw the white room or a room nearly identical to it and felt intense pain, this image even more indistinct than the rest.
The connection suddenly stopped and he was left gasping, his wide eyes locked on the girl in front of him, her expression eerily similar to his own.
Michael had not liked the idea of ditching the van and flying to a different state. He had felt far too exposed while buying the tickets and the process of getting on and off the plane had worked him to a fever pitch of paranoia by the time they reached their destination. After their 'discussion' he had watched as Max stepped out the building, waiting for him to assess the situation before bringing the others out after him.
He had seen the girl running towards Max and moved instinctively forward, fear gripping a hold of him and a swell of anger rising at the thought that their enemies, any of them, had at last found them. When the girl kissed Max he had thought for a second that he was hallucinating or that he was experiencing some sort of mindwarp but then he had heard Liz's gasp and looked down in time to see her running for the doors, faint green electricity barely visible around her fingertips.
Liz ran, not even noticing that the others were following her, Michael calling her name in an urgent tone. She had felt the power build up inside of her instantly just as it had that fateful day when Tess came back. She shoved through the swinging doors and reached Max's side an instant later, her angry eyes falling on the oddly dressed girl in front of him, the power dimming as she saw the shocked expression on the girl's face and looking up saw the same expression on the face of her husband. She took his hand in hers and turned back to the girl, her eyes doing their level best to bore angry holes into her skull, fully prepared to bring that swell of power back if necessary.
She had pulled her mouth from his and taken two steps back, her lips parted in surprise, her eyes taking in the similar look on the young man's face and the looks of anger, confusion, and fear on the faces of the five people who had followed him out of the building and now stood ranged around him, all staring at her intently, one with a particularly accusing look in her dark brown eyes. The other girl's fingers moved to interlace with the man she had just so passionately kissed, revealing the wedding band she had failed to notice in her impatience. A faint flush moved over her features and she gave an apologetic smile. "I'm sorry, I thought he was mine."