Title: One Thousand Purple Roses
Disclaimer: I don't own anything
Author's note: This is a one-shot sequel to Providence. It is M/T and Mi/I. It takes place a few years in the future and is basically just me caving to a reviewers request to write more about Max and Tess. It helps if you read Providence first, but if you didn't, then basically all you have to know is that the aliens are together, and everyone is worried about Khivar attacking Earth. The story is pretty much just fluff, there is no action whatsoever.
Summary: Sometimes the reassurance that you don't have to know all the answers is the only thing that's really needed.
One Thousand Purple Roses
Five years after Graduation…
"Okay, what if I buy her a necklace? Girls like necklaces, right?" Michael asked worriedly as he sank onto the sofa in Tess' apartment and stared at the petite blonde in front of him.
"What exactly did you do to upset Isabel?" Tess asked with a smile, taking enjoyment in Michael's obvious suffering.
"Nothing!" Michael protested heatedly. "At least, I didn't mean to do anything. I just…" He waved his hand vaguely and sighed. "I didn't remember our anniversary."
Tess raised an eyebrow. "You what?" she demanded heatedly. "Michael, you two have been dating for six years, God only knows why you won't tie the knot already, and you forgot your anniversary?" She shook her head and stood up quickly. "Sorry, but I'm not helping you with this one. You deserve to endure her wrath for being that incredibly stupid." She turned and walked towards the kitchen.
"Tess, wait!" Michael cried, jumping to his feet and rushing after her. "What if I buy her a car?"
"Izzy has a car already," Tess answered calmly. "And you can't afford one anyway."
"I didn't mean to forget," Michael protested again. "It was an accident. What about diamonds?"
Tess rolled her eyes at him. "What part of I'm not helping you did you not understand?" she asked coldly. She turned away from him again, but he caught her arm.
"Please?" he asked, giving her his best puppy-dog look.
"You're pathetic," Tess said with a frown. "How did Isabel get you to be this… whipped?"
Michael paused at that question, surprised. It was true that he tended to go out of his way to do things for Isabel that he would never have done for anyone else. He was becoming slightly more sentimental than he was comfortable with, but this was important to Isabel, and she was important to him. He was trying to make an effort, trying to make her happy, and five years of this trying was starting to change him into…
Oh, God. With a start, he realized he was turning into Max.
Tess was speaking again, and he forced himself to listen to her words and nod at each of her statements.
"Look, Michael, Isabel just wants to know that you care. She gets that you are busy and that we all have other concerns to worry about," she lowered her voice and said in a whisper, "like Khivar killing us all."
Michael struggled to keep from rolling his eyes. It was a habit that both Tess and Isabel had picked up, this whispering of Khivar's name. They had done it first in public, obviously worried about the wrong people overhearing their conversation. But now they whispered his name in private also, as though if they said it too loudly he might suddenly appear in front of them. It reminded Michael of the Harry Potter books, and he fought the urge to start referring to Khivar as You Know Who.
"So just do something for Isabel that is from your heart," Tess continued, her voice back to a normal volume. She walked towards the door to her bedroom, and pushed it open. At the same time, the front door to the apartment swung open and Max walked in.
He took one look at Michael and his eyes narrowed. "Do you remember all the times I've told you that I'll kill you if you hurt my sister?"
"What, like you've never forgotten anything important?" Michael shot back. "Or, hey… how about that year when you were completely oblivious to all the pain you were causing Tess?"
Max crossed his arms over his chest and said derisively, "At least I still remember my anniversary."
Tess poked her head out of the bedroom and called, "Boys? Do I need to put you two in timeout?"
Max walked over to Tess and gave her a quick kiss on the cheek. He reached into the front pocket of his coat and pulled out a long, thin package tied up with a bow. "I saw this and thought of you," he said, giving her a sappy grin.
Tess eagerly opened the box and pulled out a thin silver necklace with a brilliant sapphire pendant shaped like a star. "Oh, Max… it's beautiful," she breathed. "What's the occasion?"
"Do I need an occasion to buy presents for my girlfriend?" he asked, leaning in to kiss her. Their lips locked, but the moment was ruined by Michael.
"He's just hoping to get lucky tonight," the hybrid General commented crassly. He shook his head and turned away, muttering under his breath, "And I thought seeing him and Parker together made me sick."
"Hey, I heard from Liz today!" Tess said suddenly, ignoring Michael's comment. "She and Alex are going to be in town next week and want to visit us." She hadn't seen either of them since the wedding, and she was looking forward to hanging out with Liz. It was ironic that they had ended up as such good friends, but Liz was a good person and had always meant well.
"Oh, so they're back from their honeymoon?" Max asked as he fastened the clasp of the necklace behind Tess' neck and arranged it so that the pendant hung just as the hollow of her throat.
"Yes," Tess answered. "Wasn't their wedding just beautiful?" she breathed, smiling radiantly as she remembered how extravagant everything had been. Alex had flushed bright red throughout the entire ceremony, but Liz had looked stunning in her elegant simple dress and had even deigned to pick semi-decent bridesmaids' dresses for Maria, Isabel, and Tess.
"It was nice," Michael answered for Max, who seemed to be too busy gazing at Tess to actually listen to what she was saying. "It would have been nicer if I hadn't had to spend the entire six months leading up to the wedding listening to Isabel plan out every single detail over and over and over…"
Tess glanced around Max and Michael and gave him a smile. "And yet you love her."
"Don't remind me," Michael grouched. "Well, if you two don't mind, I am going to leave you to your disgustingly nauseating displays of affection and try to salvage the remains of my relationship." He turned and stalked away.
"Something from the heart, Michael. And don't forget, we expect you and Isabel here for dinner at seven o'clock," Tess called after him. Michael didn't reply, simply slammed the door shut behind him as he exited the apartment, and Tess sighed and commented to Max, "He has no manners."
"No, he doesn't," Max agreed. He brushed a strand of hair out of Tess' face and said softly, "You're so beautiful."
Tess gave him a smirk and moved away, towards the kitchen. "You're not getting lucky tonight Max."
"What did I do?" Max demanded, following Tess.
She looked back over her shoulder at him and answered wryly, "You neglected to remind Michael that he should get something for Isabel for their anniversary."
Max stared at her incredulously. "That's not fair!"
"Life isn't fair, Max," was the reply.
"You forgot Isabel's anniversary?" Maria practically screeched into the phone. Liz and Alex both looked over at her, surprised by her outburst. She ignored them for a moment and ranted angrily, "Space Boy, you are the most obnoxious, idiotic, insensitive Czechoslovakian I have ever met!"
Michael's voice came back to her from the other end of the line, "How many Czechs have you met, DeLuca? And you do realize that Czechoslovakia isn't actually a country any more, don't you?"
"Not the point, Michael," Maria snapped back.
Alex and Liz exchanged a knowing look and a smile before looking back at the photographs from their honeymoon. They had spent it in Fiji, and had several pictures of Liz lounging around on the beach in her bikini. They were the ones that Alex had decided he liked the best, although Liz had attempted to erase them more than once. He always managed to 'spontaneously' realize he had a backup of them, though.
"You have to do something nice for her," Maria continued.
"Something meaningful," Liz added. "Something that shows her how much you love her. Something thoughtful and beautiful. Something that she'll love." Maria dully repeated all of this to Michael, but his reply was not grateful.
"Tell Parker that not all of us enjoy sappy romance," Michael said.
"If you don't want my help, I can hang up on you right now," Maria threatened. She leaned over one of the pictures that Liz was looking at and raised an eyebrow questioningly. In the photograph, Liz was lounging on the beach, sipping a martini and smiling seductively at the camera. "Liz, what are you doing in that photo?" Maria demanded.
"You aren't supposed to see these," Liz retorted, gesturing for Maria to go away. "Alex, you will delete these all now."
"I wanted to send them to the guys," Alex answered with a teasing smile.
Liz swatted his arm and rose to her feet. "I hate all men," she declared.
"A little late for that one, chica," Maria answered. "You already married him." Liz gave Maria an annoyed stare and stomped from the room. Maria and Alex both laughed softly at her retreat, then turned back to the conversation with Michael.
"Tell him I think he's an idiot," Alex requested.
"Alex thinks you're an idiot," Maria said into the phone. "And I agree."
"Thanks," Michael drawled. "That really helps my dilemma."
"Well, you wouldn't be in this position if you had just remembered the anniversary in the first place," Maria replied pointedly. "Anyway, I agree with Liz. Do something nice for Isabel, but not just the standard chocolate and flowers. Something that really means something. You know… something from the heart."
"You know, we might be asking too much from Michael," Liz said suddenly, sticking her head back into the room. "Because I've always been under the impression that he didn't have a heart."
Both Maria and Alex laughed at the comment, and Michael's voice drifted into the room from the phone, "I heard that, Parker!"
"He forgot their anniversary?" Kyle asked into the phone, stunned.
Tess held the phone to her ear as she carefully mixed the pot of soup on the stove, kept an eye on the lasagna in the oven and directed Max in the chopping of the vegetables for dinner. "Yep," she said cheerfully, shaking her head in despair as she did so. "He actually forgot."
"Guerin is an idiot," Kyle decided.
"Yep," Tess agreed again. "Hey, so Alex and Liz are coming to visit us next week. Alex has some computer convention or something like that."
"That's great. You can hear all about their honeymoon," Kyle said. His tone was decidedly mischievous when he added, "I heard that he and Liz have some… interesting… pictures."
Tess was about to inquire further about this, but Max's knife hit the cutting board at an odd angle, causing the cucumber to shoot into the air and scatter across the floor. Tess inhaled in surprised and jumped back.
"Tess? You okay?" Kyle demanded.
"Yeah, I'm fine," Tess answered, glaring at Max. "My darling boyfriend just decided to attack our kitchen with slices of cucumber."
There was a silence, then Kyle asked, "The entire fate of a planet rests on the shoulders of a man who fights people with slices of vegetables?"
"It was an accident," Max said, giving Tess an annoyed stare. She just smiled sweetly back at him as he knelt to pick up each of the pieces of cucumber. For a moment, she watched him crawling around on the floor, then she turned back to her conversation with Kyle.
"Anyway, I told Michael just to do something nice for her, something that comes from his heart. What do you want to bet he's going to mess it all up?"
Kyle laughed. "Well, you have to give him a little credit. He did put up with Isabel while she planned Liz and Alex's wedding. That has to count for something." He knew all too well what Isabel was like when she decided to organize something, and he could easily imagine how much of a nightmare that had been for Michael. He pitied the poor man should Isabel decide to start planning her own wedding.
Assuming Michael ever grew up enough to ask her to marry him.
On that train of thought, he asked, "How's Max? Besides flinging vegetables at your defenseless kitchen floor?"
"Okay," Tess answered, but her voice wavered slightly. Kyle, instantly alert, waited to see if she would say anything else. When she didn't, he decided to press the subject.
"Did you tell him?"
"Not yet…"
"What are you waiting for?"
Tess sighed. She wished that Kyle was here instead of in some different state. She wished she could talk to him in person, see his face and his expressions, bask in his comforting presence. But both he and Jim were far away, and she had to settle for just phone conversations.
As she was thinking about this, Max snuck up behind her and caught her by the waist, pulling her down to the ground along side him. She collapsed on top of Max, startled, and he carefully rolled her off onto the floor and started kissing her. The phone fell from her hand, and she started to kiss him back.
"Tess? Tess?" Kyle's disembodied voice floated from the phone. "Tess, what happened?"
His voice brought Tess back to her senses, and she pushed Max away. Grabbing the phone, she said to her boyfriend, "I told you, Max, you aren't getting lucky tonight." Then, into the phone, she said, "I'm back, Kyle."
"That was way too much information," Kyle said, and she could hear the grimacing in his voice. She laughed, and they continued talking about other things, the serious topic momentarily forgotten.
"I don't want to go to dinner," Isabel announced, reclining on the sofa in the apartment she shared with Michael. "Tell Max and Tess I didn't feel well."
"Isabel," Michael started, but she cut him off heatedly.
"Don't Isabel me, Mr. I-can't-remember-any-important-dates," she snapped, pushing herself into a sitting position and glaring at Michael. It had been six years since she and Michael started dating, and she loved him dearly, but his inability to remember anything important drove her insane. Especially when she was so good at planning special occasions.
"Isabel…" Michael started again, but, once again, he was interrupted.
"I planned a dinner. With candles. I shaved my legs. I got a manicure. I got a manicure the human way instead of just doing it myself. I bought new perfume. I found the perfect music. I… I planned our perfect evening and you… you forgot!"
"Izzy…"
"Don't call me Izzy. I'm Ms. Evans to you!"
Michael threw his hands up in frustration. "You can't bail on dinner," he said. "Tess and Max want to see you. You know Tess looks forward to these weekly dinners so much. She says you're the only one she can talk to about girl stuff now that most of her friends live in other states."
"Well, I don't want to go with you," Isabel pouted.
"Fine, I'll stay behind," Michael snapped irritably. "You can go all by yourself!" He stalked from the room, slamming shut the door to their bedroom behind him.
"Maybe I will!" Isabel cried back. As she leaned back against the sofa again, something washed through her, a feeling she couldn't quite identify. It started at the base of her spine, creeping slowly up each vertebrate until it hit her shoulders and caused her to shiver in fear.
She closed her eyes for a moment, and the apparition appeared behind her shut lids.
"I'm coming for you, Vilandra," the man whispered, his voice filled with hidden warnings and promises.
She snapped her eyes opened and jumped to her feet, screaming out in fear, "Michael!"
He was by her side in less than a heartbeat, one arm wrapped supportingly around her shoulders. He gently pushed her back onto the sofa and took a seat next to her, his eyes wide with concern. "What happened?"
"I saw him. Khivar. He… a vision. He's coming. He said he was coming for me," Isabel whispered, her words filled with terror she couldn't control. "Oh, God…" She leaned against Michael, her head on his chest, seeking the solace of his steadily beating heart.
"I won't let him get you," Michael murmured. "I promise, I won't let him get you."
Max wandered into the bathroom and turned on the faucet. It had been a long day at work, and he was exhausted. He had decided to take a year off and work before heading to graduate school, and he had somehow miraculously landed an internship at Massachusetts General Hospital, one of the most prestigious medical institutions in the country. And he loved his job, but it did mean that he spent a lot of time at work, missing his girlfriend, sister, and best friend.
He splashed cold water on his face, then looked at his reflection in the mirror. He could hear Tess in the kitchen, now talking to someone else on the phone.
He straightened and reached for the hand towel that hung on the bar next to the sink. As he did so, he glanced down at the trashcan that was pushed in between the sink and the shower. Something caught his eyes, and he stared at it, eyes wide, as comprehension slowly dawned.
Then Tess appeared in the bathroom doorway, her face white. She held the phone tightly in one hand, and her lips were pressed together in fear. "It's Isabel," she said. "We have to go."
And everything else was promptly forgotten as Max grabbed Tess' arm and the two of them rushed to the door.
Isabel paced the bedroom worriedly while Tess tried to calm her down. Max and Michael were in the living room, talking in hushed whispers about what had happened, and Isabel was very close to having a panic attack right then and there.
"Isabel, come on… sit down," Tess begged, catching her friend by the arm and dragging her to the bed. "Just sit down for a moment and take a couple breaths."
Isabel complied automatically, but her pupils stayed dilated and her heartbeat still raced. She leaned against Tess and stared blankly at the far wall, imaging Khivar standing in front of her, trying to convert her into Vilandra, trying to kill her, trying to get her to betray her family, trying…
"Okay, Isabel, listen to me," Tess said firmly, "nothing is going to happen to you. Michael, Max, and I are all here. Okay?"
Isabel looked at Tess and didn't say anything. It had started to rain, the drops of water beat against the window behind them, cascading down the glass and collecting in small puddles on the window sill. From the other room, there was the sound of Michael's raised voice, his words indistinguishable, and then Max's answering murmur, calm and reassuring.
"Michael said that Liz and Alex are coming to visit," Isabel said bluntly.
Tess nodded.
"I don't think they should," Isabel continued, looking away from Tess. She drew her knees into her chest and wrapped her arms around her legs, gazing thoughtfully into space. "It's too dangerous. Alex could…"
"Alex isn't going to be in the same danger now as he was then," Tess countered. "You two aren't…" She gestured vaguely with one hand. She didn't mention anything specific about that particular time, didn't want to think about all the pain that Khivar's presence had caused, but the memory of Matt surfaced before she could stop it, and she had to force back a sob and look away.
"People died last time," Isabel said softly, looking at Tess.
Tess nodded again. "I know. And maybe… Max might be able to convince Liz not to come visit us. She'll still listen to him. At least, most of the time. But Alex… he's going to want to come, Izzy. He's not going to let this stop him from living his life. We both know that."
"I know," Isabel admitted, "but it doesn't mean I have to like it." She hesitated, then added in a quiet voice, "I'm scared."
Tess studied her friend for a moment. There really was no point in lying and presenting false bravado. There was also no point in telling Isabel that everything was going to be alright because they had no way of knowing if that was true, and Isabel didn't need empty reassurances right now.
"Yeah," Tess agreed. "Me, too."
Isabel opened her mouth to say something, then stopped and looked at Tess. It was a piercing look, as though she was trying to see straight into the other girl's mind. Finally, she looked away with a tired sigh. "I just want this to be over," she said grimly.
Tess stood up suddenly. "We should make dinner. We can have it here tonight. If you and Michael don't have anything to cook, we can order takeout."
"Khivar might be after me and you want to think about food?" Isabel asked incredulously.
"If Khivar is coming for you," Tess said, "then he is going to come for you. And nothing we do can change that. When he comes, we'll be prepared, but in the meantime, we can't let our lives be dictated by this fear. If we do that, he's already won."
Isabel raised an eyebrow, but rose slowly to her feet. "I hate it when you're right," she complained.
Tess smiled sweetly and answered, "Funny, because I always like being right."
After dinner, Max and Tess drove back to their apartment in silence. They were both too preoccupied with their own worries to pay much attention to the other. But Max kept glancing at Tess, slanting brief looks at her as though he was trying to figure something out.
Back in the apartment, Tess walked straight to the kitchen. In their rush to get to Isabel and Michael, she'd forgotten to put away the food she'd pulled out for the dinner she was cooking, and it was sitting on the counter and the table. She began methodically clearing everything, placing the fruit and vegetables in the fridge, pouring the soup into a container she would put in the freezer, wrapping the stuffed peppers in tin foil.
Max stood in the doorway, leaning against the wall, watching her.
When she'd finished cleaning the kitchen, she turned and acknowledge Max's presence. "Worried about Isabel?" she asked.
"Always," Max admitted. "She's the one most in danger, the one Khivar will target." He shoved his hands in his pocket and walked into the kitchen. "I wish I could protect her better," he added, sinking into a seat at the kitchen table.
"You're doing all that you can," Tess answered, taking the seat across from him. She wrapped her fingers around his hand and gave him a gentle smile. "You're a good brother, Max, and a good King."
Max gave her an impish grin and said, "I see you don't mention anything about me being a good boyfriend." He raised an eyebrow suggestively, and Tess swapped his arm lightly and laughed. But Max sobered quickly and said, "It took a long time for me to be a good King. I don't have that kind of time anymore. I can't afford to make any of the mistakes I made in the past."
"You're not the same boy you were then," Tess pointed out. "You've grown up." She paused reflectively, then added, "We all have."
"Yeah, well…" Max sighed, "we haven't really had a choice. We've had to grow up, haven't we?" He gave Tess a long look, then asked, "Do you ever regret this?"
Tess gave him a completely blank look. "Regret what?" she asked, confused.
Max gestured between himself and her. "This," he said. "Us."
Tess simply stared. "Why would I regret us?" she asked, not understanding the question. Perhaps a few years ago she would have been insecure enough in the relationship to think that this was Max's way of telling her he had second thoughts, but she knew him better now. If he wanted to take a break, he would have just come right out and said it.
So what was this all about?
"I don't know," Max answered. "It was just a question. If you don't regret us…"
Tess was starting to get really worried. "Max? What are you…?"
"I was in the bathroom this evening," Max said slowly, diffidently. "Before the crisis with Isabel. And I saw…" He drifted off, thinking of what he had seen, what it would mean for the future. "There was a used pregnancy test in the garbage can." He drew a deep breath, met Tess' eyes, and said, "And it was positive."
Tess looked away quickly. "I was going to tell you tonight, after dinner," she admitted slowly. "I know we're still really young and this changes everything, but I…" She drew away from Max, rising and walked to the counter. Leaning against it, her back to him, she added, "I want this baby," and her voice hitched as sobs rained down
A baby. The thought was overwhelming and completely not understandable in any way. Max knew he wanted to spend the rest of his life with Tess, but this was starting a family. This was huge and gigantic and life-altering and he just couldn't comprehend…
Max moved quickly towards the now crying Tess, wondering how he had managed to drive his girlfriend to tears without even doing anything. Or was it his lack of doing something that had made the difference? He tentatively pulled her into a hug, and saw a flicker of something, a flash of the future playing through his vision as he touched her shoulder.
"Daddy!" a little boy cried, propelling himself through the air at Max. Tess poked her head out of the kitchen and gave Max a smile as well, before turning and slipping away. Max stared down at his son, his beautiful baby boy, and grinned.
"Max?" Tess asked, pulling away from him as she felt him stiffen beside her. "Are you okay?"
Max forced himself to smile at her. "Just a flash," he answered calmly. "And shouldn't I be the one asking you that?"
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to get so emotional," Tess apologized, wiping away the tears as she fought to regain a calm demeanor. "It's the hormones."
"It's okay," Max said, pulling her back to a seat and forcing her to sit down. "It's been a pretty stressful day." As he said that, his face became drawn and worried, and he added, "Stress isn't good for the baby. We need to avoid stress in the future." He looked around the kitchen and began to ramble, "And we need to baby-proof the apartment. Kids stick their fingers in electrical sockets and hurt themselves. And move all the kitchen knives away. And we need to buy a crib. I wonder where you buy a crib? Maybe Isabel knows…" He trailed off as he saw Tess staring at him, a bemused expression on her face.
"You're not upset?" she asked.
"Why would I be upset?" Max answered. "I love you, and I want a baby too. So what if he came earlier than expected?"
"He?" Tess asked. "How do you know it is a boy?" An idea occurred to her, and she demanded, "What did you see in that flash?"
Max leaned in to kiss her. "A very perfect future," he replied.
Isabel rolled over in bed and flopped her arm across the empty half of the mattress where Michael was supposed to be. Realizing he wasn't there, she pushed herself up into a sitting position and glanced around quickly, worriedly. The clock on the bedside table blinked 3:30am. Where was he?
She rose quietly and slipped to the bedroom door. The light in the living room was on, so she crept forward, wondering what she would find. The sight that met her eyes caused her to freeze, surprised and confused.
Michael was standing in the middle of the room, trying to organize hundreds of purple roses into papers cups that were clearly meant to serve as vases.
"Michael?" she asked hesitantly, her words catching in her throat.
Michael spun around, clearly surprised to see her. He was holding a few roses in one hand, and the other was turned palm up in front of him. He'd cut himself on a thorn, and was inspecting the few drops of blood that were pooling on his hand.
"You're supposed to be asleep," he said with a frown.
"What are you doing?" Isabel asked, looking at all the flowers.
"It's a belated anniversary gift," Michael answered, looking uncomfortable. "I… well, I was going to make breakfast also… but you weren't supposed to get up for another few hours."
"You're bleeding," Isabel remarked.
"I cut myself on a thorn," Michael answered with a shrug. The scratch wasn't too bad.
"Michael, this is…"
"Everyone I spoke to said I should do something from the heart," Michael said quickly, interrupting her. "You like purple roses, and I… Well, I wanted to get a thousand of them, but I didn't think they would all fit in the house. So… it's actually only three hundred and seventy-two. And we didn't have vases so I used paper cups instead." He stared at her awkwardly, looking pathetically hopeful, and Isabel felt herself smiling.
"How did you get all these roses?" she asked.
"I bought white and red ones and used my gifts to change them all to purple," Michael admitted sheepishly, "because it is almost impossible to find purple roses at two o'clock in the morning." He shrugged slightly, shifted his weight from one foot to the next, and asked, "Is it… do you like it?"
Isabel nodded, unable to find the right words. At last, she said in a choked voice, "It's perfect."
One week later…
"What about that one?" Max suggested, pointing to a stunningly cut diamond engagement ring underneath the glass counter.
Isabel shook her head. "It's nice, but it just isn't… right."
Liz wandered over and stared down at the ring, then looked up at Max. "I agree. Tess is going to want something more… unique."
"Exactly," Isabel agreed. She walked over to another display case and said, "But what about that one in the middle? With the little rubies around the diamond?"
Liz shook her head. "No, too… I don't know. Too whimsical looking. Tess is going to want something romantic, but not so flashy. She doesn't like attention drawn to herself, remember?"
"I thought all girls liked to show off their engagement rings?" Max questioned, looking between his sister and Liz.
"Most girls do," Liz said, "but Tess isn't most girls. She isn't going to want it to be the defining aspect of her wardrobe." An idea occurred to her and her face lit up. "Maybe they have sapphire? Something to match her eyes?"
"We do have one sapphire engagement ring," the saleswoman who had been listening to the conversation said. She reached into the display case and carefully pulled out a ring with a thin silver band. It was studded with small sapphires on the sides, and the center ring was a tiny blue diamond. It was romantic, but not to flashy. Elegant, but still sensible.
"Oh, that's perfect," Liz said instantly, lifting the ring from it's box. "This is it, Max. This is the one."
Isabel nodded in agreement. To the saleswoman, she said, "That's the one we want. We'll take it."
"Hey," Max protested, "don't I even get to look at it before you buy it for my future wife?"
Liz turned to him and said sweetly, "You have horrible taste, Max. Isabel and I are better at this. Trust me, it's the one you want."
Max stared at the two women in front of him. They were wearing identical expressions and had their arms crossed over their chests in exactly the same way. He sighed. "I guess I'm getting that ring."
Alex watched as the second baseman for the Red Sox's threw the ball with incredibly accuracy and speed to first base, completing the double play that effectively ended the game and secured a victory for the Boston team. He whistled appreciatively, then turned to Michael and said, "That was a good game."
Michael nodded. "It was well played," he agreed. "It's probably the last game I'm going to see for a while though," he added with a grouch.
"Oh?"
Tess had been watching the game as well, but she had excused herself to the bathroom a moment before, giving the men a chance to talk about what they really wanted to discuss; Max's upcoming proposal.
Michael glanced over at the bathroom, but Tess was still out of sight. "After Max proposes to Tess… you remember what Isabel was like when she was planning your wedding? Well, you and Liz are just two of her best friends. Max is her brother. She's going to be unbearable," he explained in a whisper.
Alex chuckled slightly. "True," he agreed with a nod. "I suppose I should be thankful she chose you over me. Idon't have to deal with that kind of problem."
Michael glared at him.
"How is she holding up?" Alex asked, changing the subject and reaching for the remote. He turned off the television and gave Michael his undivided attention.
"You mean because of the contact from Khivar?" Michael clarified. He considered this, then said, "Pretty good, all things considered. She appreciates you guys being here, even if she's worried that you're going to get killed. It means a lot to her, just to have your support."
"She's always had it," Alex answered. "All of you have."
In the bathroom, Tess stood facing the mirror, both hands on her stomach. She eyed her slightly rotund stomach, the bulge that was just starting to appear. Alien pregnancies happened faster than human ones, and she wouldn't carry the child for that long. Soon, he would be born, and she'd have a real, live, breathing son in her arms.
The baby kicked or moved or somehow did something so that she could feel him. She smiled slightly, rubbing one hand up and down her stomach.
"Are you restless?" she asked. "Do you want a bed time story?"
The baby moved again.
Tess grinned. "I know just the perfect story," she said. "You see… this story starts a long time ago on a far away planet that was ruled by a beloved King and his young Queen…"