Casual Viewin'
by
Kel
Disclaimer: I don't claim any ownership of Max, Alec, Original Cindy, or any other of Dark Angel's characters. Or, for that matter, anything related to Dark Angel at all . . . Got both seasons on DVD . . . the DVD's are mine . . . But anyway. I own Danny and his friends, excluding Alec and Max and any of the Jam Pony crew. I don't claim ownership to Casual Viewin' by 54-40 either . . .
Author's Note: Takes place sometime before The Berrisford Agenda. Whether Rachel ever even existed has no effect whatsoever on this story.
"Come on, Max! Live a little!" Alec begged, following Max into Jam Pony like an excited puppy nipping at her heels.
"I know what it's like to be dead, Alec. And I'm perfectly alive as I am," she assured him. She tossed a signature in the general direction of Normal's desk, and went to her locker to get her things so she could head home.
She opened it, surrounded by blissful silence. Finally. He's shut up about this stupid party dealio, she thought, removing her biking gloves. When she was ready to go, she closed the locker, only to find Alec's pouting face where the door had been.
"Pleaaaase," he pleaded in a whiny voice.
Max arched a perfectly shaped eyebrow. "Did you not catch the part where I said 'no'?"
"Threw it in the trash. Come on, Max! It's a once in a lifetime opportunity!"
"Those losers have the same party twice a year, Alec."
"But this time it's gonna be different!"
"How is it going to be different, Alec?" Max sighed out the words as more of a tired statement than a question.
"Why, I'm gonna be there, of course!"
Max rolled her eyes. "You were right, Alec," she said. "That absolutely changes everything, Alec. Can't believe I didn't want to go, Alec."
"No need for sarcasm, Max. Come on, it'll be a blast!"
"Okay, so let me get this straight, Alec-"
"Go ahead."
"Don't interrupt me." She smacked him on the shoulder as she continued, "We'd go to-"
"Sorry."
"Mouth. Closed!"
Alec's mouth snapped dutifully shut.
"We'd go to Danny's place. He and all his loser friends would be there. Who are these people, by the way?" Max knew Danny only because he worked at Jam Pony, but beyond that she hardly saw him. She didn't know enough to know whether he had friends, let alone who they were.
Alec arched his eyebrow at her, and didn't speak. He pointed a finger expectantly at his closed mouth.
"Talk," Max ordered.
"Just a bunch of guys. They all frequent Billy B's. Pretty close knit, friendly group."
"And you came to be invited to their 'close knit' party how?"
"They enjoyed my good nature?"
"Riiiight. So, we go to Danny's place. Listen to loud music, eat pizza and stuff. Then we all do what again?"
"Well, we," –Max's eyes widened in horror at her slip up– "drop by the old abandoned stadium skating rink, and go for a few rounds of manly soccer. Then we go back to Danny's, collapse onto all sorts of furniture, watch a movie, eat more, and drink lot's of beer."
"So, in other words, beat each other up then go get drunk and fat?"
"Doesn't it sound great?" Alec said, dreamy eyed, grinning and bouncing in excitement.
"No." The simple answer came out sharp and cold. Max turned and left the building, leaving Alec to stand alone and rejected in all his deflated glory.
The childlike excitement had slid away, replaced by the look of a tired man who had seen far too much cold with no reprieve in sight.
What I'm really wanting
A brand new machine
One for converting
Plastic to dreams
If you ride upon the tiger
You can never get off
They get hungry
One thing is certain
All the rest are lies
Beautiful and damned ones
Never realize
That the dark is light enough to see
The ignorance of greed
Still she cries
Two Days Later
"So what's up wit' yo' boy lately? He been avoidin' you like the plague, Boo," Original Cindy said, after watching Alec's grand entrance and immediate departure from Crash. He had taken one look into the building, OC assumed at Max, then high tailed it out of there.
"He's not my boy," Max mumbled into her beer glass as she took another swig.
When no further information presented itself, Original Cindy took their time alone at the table to prod a little further. "Well then what's up with him then?"
Max shrugged.
"A woman should be both seen and heard, Boo."
Max sighed. "He's just all bent out of shape 'cause I wouldn't go to Danny's dumb party with him."
"That's it?"
"That's it."
"Well, how do them parties go, anyway?"
"Music, food, soccer, movies, food, beer."
"And tha's what leaves Danny Boy beamin' for a week after, even at Jam friggin' Pony," OC said, the statement hanging as a question, begging for Max's confirmation. Or perhaps lack thereof, as the case may have been.
"Apparently so."
"Small things amuse small male minds."
"Definitely so."
"Maybe somethin' else be weighin' on yo' boys mind?"
"He's not my boy and maybe. I guess I'll have to talk to him." Max took another long swig of her beer, and settled back into her chair.
"Boo, this could be serious. You seen him. Well, when he been around."
"Now then, hey?" Max rose reluctantly from her seat, not expecting any answer. She left the building, in hopes of finding Alec and sorting whatever it was out, so it could be done and over with. She had enough on her plate without all this cryptic Alec-weirdness mumbo jumbo.
The Next Day
"You really startin' to worry people, ya know."
Alec looked up from his sandwich to see Original Cindy standing before him, hands on her hips. "Worrying people how?"
"Clammin' up. Avoidin' people. Slouchin' about all alone. Ya gone all Heathcliff-like, and nobody knows why."
Alec frowned puzzedly. "Gone all what-like?"
"Don't go changin' the subject." She pointed a slender finger down at him accusingly. She lowered herself on the bench beside him. As Alec tried to take another bite of his sandwich, she removed it from his grasp and put it down on the bench as well. "Quit wit' the nourishment and tell Original Cindy what's going on."
"Thanks OC. I prefer my food dirty and disease ridden," Alec drawled with mock thankfulness, studying the bench with disdain.
"What did I tell you?"
"Don't change the subject?" At her expectant look, Alec sighed. "It's just like I told Max. Nothing's going on."
"And from what Original Cindy be hearin', you told her with yo' usual sunshiny grin in place."
"Well, if you heard what I told her, then what are you asking me for?"
"'Cause what you told her was bullshit."
"Well, aren't we direct today." Off Her Originalness's glare, Alec muttered, "Right, don't change the subject. Relax, OC. It's all good."
"Don't make me lay a smackdown on yo' genetically engineered ass. Come clean."
Alec suddenly tilted his head to the side, as if hearing a far off sound. Some indefinable expression passed over his face, and he returned his attention to Original Cindy. "That an order? Am I supposed to spill my soul to you just because you say so? Whether I want to or not?"
Original Cindy sighed, and her expression softened. "No Alec. What you spill is up to you." She placed her hand on his arm in a gesture of comfort and friendship. "Original Cindy's just worried 'bout you. Contrary to your gender and belief system, I do care what happens to you."
Alec ran a frustrated hand through his hair. Where to begin?
Original Cindy's hand moved from his arm to rub his back in soothing circles. Alec leaned almost imperceptibly back into the touch. "Come on Baby Boo, what's got you all tangled up in mangled up knots?"
"It's . . ." Alec sighed. "I . . . it's the party. Did uh, did Max tell you about it?"
Original Cindy frowned. "Music, food, soccer, movies, food, beer right?"
"Sounds pretty pointless, doesn't it?"
"Yeah it does. But there's more to it then meets the eye, ain't there?"
"No."
"No?" Her hand halted it's circular motion. "Then what-"
"It's pointless." Alec took his time speaking, dragging out the words as if to savour their meaning. "No purpose whatsoever. Everything just comes at you from out of the blue, and you've got no real time to prepare. You don't know what it'll be like going in. It's natural, it's not an act." Alec's eyes held a far off dream-like gaze. "When it's over you'll go home. Nothing will have changed, the world will still be waiting . . . but it won't matter at the time. And you don't have to concentrate on getting things right, or completing the mission. All you have to do, is let yourself be, no thought required."
There was a long period of silence. Alec was beginning to doubt OC would say anything when her soft whispered words appeared from out of the blue.
"Sounds like fun."
Fun. He supposed that was what it would be. "I guess so . . ."
"You guess so?" Their eyes met, and Original Cindy found herself looking for the catch; why he thought this party could sound like anything but fun. And then it hit her. "Ah, that's right. Still not quite used to the concept, are ya?"
"I know what fun is, OC."
"Original Cindy ain't debatin' that. I said yo' not used to it."
Another moment passed in silence. "I guess not."
"So why are ya all down? You been invited to the party. You are goin' aren't ya?"
"I don't know . . ."
Original Cindy resumed rubbing his back. "You wanna, but you wanted mah Boo to go wit' ya, is that it?"
Alec was quiet for another few moments, pondering his next words. "How fun can it be without Max?"
"What's the point if ya can't share it wit' yo' best friend?"
"OC, you know you're one of the best people I've ever-"
"Damn straight I am. But Max is Max, and Original Cindy ain't playin' soccer wit' a bunch o' roughnecks." She ruffled his hair playfully.
Feeling like the most callous bitch in the world, Max peeled herself away from the other side of the lockers next to which Alec and Original Cindy sat.
She had never thought the party was actually important to Alec, had never even bothered to consider it. And now it turned out he cared not just about the party, but her as a friend. While she just smacked him aside without a second thought.
Max never even heard Normal's bips as she grabbed a package and high tailed it out of there, Alec and Original Cindy's personal conversation ringing fresh and clear in her mind.
Crash, Later That Night
"Nah, I don't think so," Alec said. He sat at the bar, traditional glass of Scotch in hand.
"What do you mean you don't think so? I thought you were looking forward to it!" Danny exclaimed. He was disappointed, if not offended at Alec's refusal. When he had seen Alec at Billy B's, the club that Danny usually frequented, he had introduced him to the guys and everyone had taken an immediate liking to him.
They had made room for him to pull up a chair, and he sat down and they had a relaxed conversation like Alec had been part of the group for years. Even Annabelle, the one female in the group, who was a bitch to just about everyone thought he was a nice guy.
After a long night of chatter and drinks, which often were on Alec, it had been a unanimous decision between Danny, Terry, Carson, and Annabelle to invite him to their twice annual party. They had explained how things usually went, and Alec had seemed to light up like a Christmas tree with anticipation. And when Danny had told him he could bring a friend, and asked him if he would like to go, Alec had said, "I'll think about it."
But despite the shady answer, Alec had still seemed really excited about it. And now he didn't think so?
"I was looking forward to it . . . but . . ."
"But? Come on man! Why not? We'd all love to have you there!"
"Something came up."
"Fine," Danny sneered. "If you don't want to go, then-"
"Of course he wants to go! Alec, you said you'd take me, you can't just back out! It's not all about you, you know!" Alec's gaze snapped up from the bar, and he turned to see Max standing behind him, hands on her hips.
"Come on Alec! You know if you turn Max down she'll beat the hell out of you!" Danny pitched in. He didn't know Max well, but he'd seen her hanging around with Alec enough at Jam Pony to know how their friendship worked.
Alec grinned for the first time since Danny had walked into Crash looking for him. "I suppose you're right, she can be rather violent . . ."
"That's the spirit man! Save your hide!"
Max raised her eyebrow. "Nothing's gonna be able to save your hide if you keep on talking about me like I'm not here."
Danny took no notice of the comment. "So you'll come?" he asked Alec.
"This is more important than whatever it is that 'came up,'" Max supplied.
Alec nodded. "Yeah, we'll be there."
"Great!" Danny exclaimed, clapping Alec on the back roughly. Caught by surprise, Alec stumbled off his barstool. "See you there!" Danny called over his shoulder as he turned to leave.
"Danny!" Alec shouted after him.
He turned around and came back. "Oh yeah, right. Tomorrow, noon sharp. Apartment 295, Madison Avenue Hotel."
"Thanks buddy."
"No, thank you," Danny said, pointing to Max.
"No problem!" she called as he left.
Max took the empty seat next to Alec's, and he sat back down as well. "Beer!" Max called to the barkeep.
"Refill," Alec echoed, after polishing off his Scotch. As the barkeep gave them their drinks, Alec spoke again, "So Max. What made you change your mind?"
Max's reply was simple. "Someone's gotta kick your ass at soccer."
Come on, come on
Get up, I wanna take you
Away from all of this
And what has got you lost
And feeling down
You just get it off your back
Let it fly away
End