Note: Some people might consider the alien psychic connection as a metaphor for sex: I don't; I consider it a vehicle for intimacy yes, but in a purer more revealing sense than simply erotic. Hence this story does not condone underage sex or sex outside of marriage. Just know that I'm not going there and enjoy the sandbox that might have been should Colin Hanks have not gotten a lead role on another show thereby allowing the character of Alex Whitman to live on.

i.e. I own nothing.

Chapter 1: Cheating

Ever since he'd gone to Sweden and returned Alex Whitman had changed; He had a pen pal – a girl he had feelings for – whereas he kept his distance to the point of almost avoiding herself but it was his behavior that she noticed the most. He'd grown more confident and apart from the group except for his lasting friendships with Liz and Maria.

There was a time when he would look at her – Isabel Evans – like she was the only one in the room. He'd study her sometimes shyly as if she were a mystery to unravel; he'd gravitate to her side in a crowd or return her gaze whenever she looked at him during their group meetings. But now Alex was closed off. Oh it was attractive – the "unattainable male," "the one who got away" but it was more than that to her.

She missed her friend. The guy who would hang out with her, be a fool just to make her laugh (like at her birthday party), the one guy outside of Max and Michael she actually knew – who not only knew her secret but didn't run away and instead stayed close. Yes, the drama and danger could easily suck someone in and Maria and Liz were also involved so he was there to support and protect them. However the more she watched and grew to know him she realized what a singular person he had become – and still was becoming.

But something had changed: he had left. Her friend, her rock, the guy who wore his heart on his sleeve and despite all of her insistences that they could never be in a relationship but kept being there just walked away for months. Who didn't send emails or letters to her and just came back acting as if their friendship hadn't mattered or he hadn't missed her which cut deeper than she'd wanted to admit.

And seeing all of the couples growing closer with prom, her almost begging Alex to take her and then him in that debonair tux Isabel realized that he would keep changing. Changing, and growing, and finally – eventually – leaving. Because she was tied to Roswell – Max, Michael, the granolith – and he wasn't. Alex would one day go to college on some amazing scholarship across the country to learn computer science and music theory and only come back to this sleepy town on vacations and maybe pop in to say "hi" if she was even lucky.

And if she kept holding him at arm's length he really would leave without a backwards glance. Maybe she was more like Michael than she wanted to admit. But hadn't even overly-cautious Michael been trying to open up to Maria because he too was afraid of losing her?

That's why tonight here at prom she wanted to change. Screw destiny. Screw Max and Michael and their hesitations and their "E.T. phone home" attitudes. She wanted to live – here on Earth – and she wanted Alex to be able to really see her.

Under the streamers and low lighting with the disco ball reflecting off silver balloons of moons and stars she was finally in his arms. He was finally looking at her through those beautiful deep eyes and her emotions just overflowed.

Insides shaking she took a leap, "Alex, I'm going to do something I said I wouldn't do."

Hesitantly, almost apprehensively he answered. "Don't." She could take it as rejection but she wasn't going to accept that tonight, not when she truly knew that if she gave him all of her heart it would make him, and also her, so happy.

So instead Isabel leaned in slowly and gently kissed him. He could have evaded it. He could have turned his head so she would kiss his cheek. But instead he let it happen.

As though coming awake from a dream they both opened their eyes to once again stare at one another until shyly he glanced away before looking back at her again. "I told you not to do that."

A beat. Then this time he met her in the kiss half-way. And then the world was perfect. Soft music and light, his warm strong arms and hands around her, her hand barely cradling the back of his neck with just a whisper of a touch, his lips gentle and loving against hers and she never wanted this night to end.

As they broke apart before a chaperone could chastise them they drew closer with her head on his shoulder. Closing her eyes as she felt his body heat through his evening jacket, and although she didn't want to lose one moment, or cut anything short she didn't want to lose her nerve. Maybe it was too soon but once again…she needed to try.

She leaned over and whispered in his ear "Do you want to get some air? I want to show you something."

He pulled back giving her a puzzled, almost wary expression "what is it?"

She gave him a radiant smile to put him at ease, and for once it felt entirely natural. He was the one she could always be herself around and this was something that she wanted to trust him with it. And so she asked him. "Do you trust me?"

It worked. He relaxed and returned the smile knowing it wasn't a cruel blow coming and she felt a twinge at how contrary she'd been with him in the past. He offered her his arm and escorted her off the floor and out of the transformed cafeteria. Entering the darkened hallways she noticed Max and Tess sitting together out of the corner of her eye. Alex didn't seem to notice them and she wanted the love triangle soap opera to be less than center stage for once in her life, so she kept going with him and turned the corner to walk down the hallway into an empty classroom.

Looking into the dim space he couldn't hold a comment back "Isabel... this is the sophomore English Lit room that I saw last year – all of last year in fact."

She went to the back of the classroom to get out of sight of the door's narrow window so they wouldn't be interrupted and she could hear him follow her. Once she got to the third to last line of desks she turned abruptly and let her eyes adjust so she could read his fact in the darkness. Searching it she felt her nervousness abate at what she was about to offer, about what she was leaving herself open to from him. She could feel herself sweating and wiped her palms on her dress and willed herself to calm down.

"Alex, we've known each other a long time. You're the only one who gets me – who was even willing to get to know me. I trust you and I want to show you something." She could see how confusing she was making this by the awkwardness that his face betrayed. This wasn't going well at all! She was getting more and more scared by the second and maybe she shouldn't have been so vague and now he was really, really confused or thought that she'd had too much punch and finally she just let out an exasperated "UGH!" That got a two eyebrow raise from him. "Alex-"

"Isabel," bringing a hand over his face he sighed "you're making us both nervous. Why don't you just tell me what this is about?"

She closed her eyes and breathed. "That's the problem. I'm no good with words and I keep everyone at a distance." She looked up at the ceiling trying to collect her thoughts. "I'm always following Max, or tempering Michael's paranoia but I don't really take action on my own so this is kind of new for me." Here it goes. "I want to try to connect with you. I want you to see me – all of me – I-I trust you. I love you, Alex."

AN: I'm team Dreamer all the way but I had to get this out of my system because: angst. The first time I ever liked Isabel or was impressed by Katherine Heigl's acting was the scene of Alex's dream of dancing with Isabel. So in a way, he's been the one to frame her in my mind as not only being beautiful but the fact that she could be even more as a person.