As they lay there in the dark, Alec stroked Max's back softly, keeping her in the deep sleep she was in. He inhaled deeply, breathing in her scent, it was sandalwood and jasmine, from the shower gel she used, mixed with something feline and feminine that was all Max. It was so familiar now. He listened to her even breathing and felt her chest rising and falling. She hadn't slept in over two days so he knew she needed to. He, on the other hand, had slept like a log the night before so he knew he would be able to keep watch. He shifted to a more comfortable position and hitched Max higher up against him so her head was tucked under his chin. The last two months had taught him all he needed to know about Max's shark DNA and her weird sleeping patterns. He let his mind wander back as he thought back as to how that had happened.
They had been getting along much better; in fact he had soon felt he could definitely call them friends now. She didn't seem to blame him for all the suck-y things in her life anymore. There was very little yelling except when he had said something that was asking for it. He couldn't resist his smart ass comments and how her eyes spat fire at him when he did. There was no hard hitting either - aside from a quick slap on his arm when he was being 'such a guy!' as she put it. She now joined in with his teasing and joking around and smiled a heck of a lot more often now – bonus!
They were still travelling on the road, stopping here and there to rest, sometimes meeting a fellow transgenic, but mostly making phone calls and getting update reports on the rest of their kind: helping them stay safe, hidden from White and the trannie hating public. Not having shark DNA, he would get some sleep every night, sometimes in the car, other times they would check in someplace. He'd take the bed and she would sit next to him, keeping watch. He had tried to get her to sleep too but she said when she couldn't, she couldn't. However, being wary about what had happened last time, she had at least agreed to get some sleep every other day, when he would keep watch instead. He had argued he could catch up with any missed sleep when they were back on the road. It was probably some 6 days after their relationship had turned that first corner that it had happened, they'd turned another corner.
Alec awoke suddenly, his body was slick with a fine sheen of sweat and his heart pounded within his chest. He noticed he was breathing heavily, gasping in air and his mind was a flurry of images. He couldn't see anything and had no idea of where he was. His mind worked furiously to regain his senses and tell him what was going on. Then he felt it, warmth pressed against his back, strong arms crossed over his chest and a soft voice in his ear. He felt his panic begin to subside as he focused in on all of these sensations. One of the arms had begun to stroke his chest whilst the other reached up and stroked his damp hair. He inhaled deeply to steady his breathing and slow his heart rate down, and his nose picked up that scent.
"Max?" he asked quietly.
"Shh, its ok, it was just a dream, you're ok" her voice whispered in his ear "You're safe". As her words registered, he felt the muscles in his body slowly relax. He was now fully aware of his surroundings and what had happened. He'd had another dream, well, more like nightmare. He'd have them often enough, once, maybe twice a week back in Seattle. And now he'd had one again tonight. But his waking up experience was certainly different this time. Usually he'd wake up in a state of panic and his nerves would be on edge for the remainder of the night, until he had to force himself out of bed and get ready to face the day. He'd shower and use his time to purge his mind from the thoughts that would follow any nightmare and by the time he'd stepped out of his apartment, he'd manipulated his face to mask all those feelings, replacing it with his devil may care smirking expression. No one was ever the wiser of what lurked beneath that mask.
This time, was the first time anyone had ever seen him without it, his guard was down. It was also the first time he'd ever had anyone try to comfort him and it felt 'well, it felt kinda nice' he admitted. He had relaxed within minutes of waking up and was almost certain he could fall back to sleep gain if he wanted to. But he didn't, coz he was too busy wondering what Max thought of all this. 'She could so use this against me, call me a pansy ass sorry excuse of an X5' his mind groaned, 'or worse, she could pity him and baby him, making him feel like one anyway!' and his body tensed again as his fears grew.
"Alec, just relax. Go back to sleep. I know, you don't have to worry, its ok, it doesn't make you weak" she whispered into the silence "just human". Alec's eyes grew wide as he took in her words. 'She knows' his mind echoed, 'she understands' He shifted around slowly, her arms helping him turn but never letting him go. He looked at her face to see any signs of pity or recrimination and found nothing but understanding and concern. She gave him a small smile, one which he couldn't help but return and he whispered his gratitude "Thanks Maxie"
She drew him closer to her and he wrapped his arms around her too. His head resting in the crook of her neck, he tried to close his eyes and drift off to sleep but he couldn't. He'd never experienced anything like this before and he didn't know what to do so he just lay there, savouring it, the peace he felt within. A little while later, they were both still awake and aware of one another when she spoke. "You wanna tell me bout it?" Alec raised his head to look into her eyes. She waited patiently. His mind warred with him not to tell her, he'd never opened up to anyone before, not about Rachel, Psy-Obs, reindoctrination, isolation - none of it. But something from within his heart urged him to trust her. Maybe it was coz she was the X5 he'd known the longest on the outside. In Manticore, he'd had comrades like Biggs but they were all soldiers there and he'd only gotten in touch with the human side of himself after Manticore went down – when she'd freed him.
Max had thought he'd decided against telling her and had closed her eyes, hiding her disappointment. So when his voice broke into the silence and they flew back open again he read the surprise in them and it encouraged him. "I get 'em every now and then. About different things" he said in a quiet voice "things that Manticore did to you?" she asked. He nodded "and things I've seen, things that I've done. People I've…" he trailed off and she stroked his back letting him know she knew what he hadn't said and didn't hate him for it. Her easy acceptance seemed to have opened a door that he let his soul step through. They spent the rest of the night talking, letting her see into the darkest recesses of his mind, showing her his guilt, his fears, his pain. And she did the same, confessing her own multitude of sins, her fears, her pain and she'd cried in his arms. It wasn't until the rising sun streaked the sky red and they fell silent, that he'd felt his own tears threaten and he choked back a sob. Max put a hand under his chin and softly spoke "Let it out Alec, let it go" and he had.
Alec pulled Max's sleeping body tighter to him and nuzzled her neck with his face as he felt the emotions within him rise. He clung to her for comfort, the same comfort he'd felt when she had let him cry. That day, he'd finally laid his ghosts to rest, the crimes he had committed as X5-494 and the crimes that had been done against him. He hoped it was the same for Max. in the silence that followed they held one another and contemplated the significance of what had happened that night. In letting one another see what they had allowed no one else to see, they had changed the dynamics of their relationship. They would never be able to go back to what it was before; they understood one another too well now, better than anyone else ever had.
They had moved on later that afternoon, having fallen asleep in the early hours of the day. But the Max and Alec that had stepped out of the motel room were no longer the same Max and Alec that had stepped into it the night before. They had both internally accepted that bonds had formed between them during their whispered confessions that would never break.
The hours had turned into days, days into weeks and weeks into months. During that time, they had become a well oiled partnership. During the day, they would have each others backs, making sure they stayed safe, working to keep their race, their 'extended family' safe and looking for Max's family. But he had taken to getting more sleep during their time in the car so that at nights, he could stay up a little longer with her. They still rented out single bed rooms as it cut down on expenses and they no longer minded being in close proximity with one another. During those hours, they lay side by side, discussing their plans, their hopes for the future, reminiscing their pasts. Every morning, they would wake up with Max pressed against his side, an arm around his waist, her head resting on his chest, whilst he hugged her to him. Even on the nights when she hadn't slept. It wasn't awkward; they both knew that it was an instinctive reaction to the safety, security and comfort they now found in one another.
Dix and Luke still hadn't been able to fully translate the runes for some reason, so they would sometimes examine the ones on her arms and legs and ponder over their possible meanings, throwing out ideas and suggestions. And when things got dark, he'd toss out a cheeky vulgar suggestion and distract her, and she knew that's why he did it, but she let him. He smiled to himself and closed his eyes, letting himself fall into a light sleep. 'So that's how I learnt all about Maxie's freaky shark DNA' he tiredly concluded, 'well, how I learnt all about Max, actually!' he corrected, 'and she finally got to know the real me' was his last thought as he succumbed to sleep.