C is for Chemistry

"Chemistry is the bond that connects people, or more scientifically, is the bond that...?" The X-5 teacher, who had named herself Claire, looked around the room at her students.

One of the students, an X-8, raised his hand. "The science that deals with the composition and properties of substances and various elementary forms of matter."

Alec watched with a sort of awe through the open window. When Max had first proposed the school for the younger X series', and for the transgenics themselves, he had thought it would never work. They'd argued back and forth about it for almost a full day.

Then, Max had stalked off, and Alec had sighed about it all night. The next morning, because he was a chump maybe after all, he woke up early and recruited some of the soon-to-be students to clean up one of the many abandoned warehouses that hadn't already been reserved for something else. Chairs and tables had been scavenged (and built) and even an old marker board was set up in front of the school.

Terminal City was turning into a real civilization, regardless of the world around it. Maybe despite the world around it. They had all worked together to clean up the dilapidated apartment buildings and warehouses. Homes had been established, a mess, and even a gym and bar. Warehouses were organized and stocked with supplies (well, sparsely, anyway). They had lives now.

Alec had never wanted to protect anything more in his entire life.

"Hey, Alec, what's going on?" Max asked as she walked up to stand next to him, and peered in the window. She looked back and forth for a few seconds, dumbfounded. "What's going on?"

Several students turned towards them at the sound of her voice.

"Schools in session, Maxie, keep your voice down." Alec grinned as she blushed. He turned away from the school and started walking down the street, hands in his pockets. "What's on the agenda for today?"

"Looking into the plumbing in the apartments. And Mole wants one of us to help him re-inventory the weapons now that more of us are sneaking in."

Alec grinned, hearing the reluctance in her voice. "I guess I'm volunteering for Mole duty."

"What's going on with you, Alec? The last couple of weeks, you've been... I don't know, helping out more than usual."

"You think I wasn't helping out enough?"

"No! I didn't mean it like that." Max punched him lightly in the shoulder. "If I didn't have you around, I don't think we'd have lasted a week."

Alec glowed for a moment with pride, then shrugged. "I like it. Helping out. More than I thought I would. I'm useful here."

"Damn right you are." Max walked in silence for several seconds as Alec nodded greeting at the people they passed. "Logan went to get the cure," she said suddenly.

Alec stopped for a moment, then continued, watching her from the corner of his eye. "And?"

"He's bringing it today, for testing."

"You don't seem too excited, Maxie."

"Don't call me Maxie," Max muttered. "I am excited. It's just...last time..."

"Was a disaster." Alec said helpfully.

Max gave him a dirty look, then sighed. "Yeah."

"How's it work?"

"Don't know. Bonds with my blood somehow. Yay for Manticore chemistry," Max muttered sarcastically.

Alec was silent for several seconds. "Okay, Maxie, here's the dealio."

Max raised her eyebrows at him, and he held his hand to his hand up in a Boy Scout salute.

"I give you my word that I won't let White, kidnapped kids, or TC business interrupt your first virus-free evening."

Max smiled. "You'd do that for me?"

Alec grinned widely, and slung his arm around her shoulders. "I'd do anything for you, Max. Don't you know that yet?"

Max shoved him off good-naturedly. "Go harass Mole. Lunch at 1300?"

"Absolutely."

Alec had decided several weeks ago that Mole didn't hate Max as much as he liked everyone to believe. Not only did he stand behind her decisions more than half the time, he liked annoying her, goading her. Alec was starting to realize Mole liked the people whose lives he made a living Hell.

The people he didn't like, he ignored until the last possible second.

Mole and Josh had joined them for lunch, and Mole was in the middle of a story. Alec heard Logan first, the whirring of the exoskeleton. Max noticed, and seconds later, Big Guy noticed the Ordinary.

Mole kept right on talking, even when Logan was standing at the end of their table, waiting semi-patiently.

They all laughed, and Max looked up at Logan. "Well?"

"I brought it."

There was silence for a long, tense moment.

Then Mole lit up a cigar, and blew smoke in Logan's direction. "Better jump to, Max."

Max glared at Mole, then led the way out of the Mess, explaining as they walked. "Santa set up a lab where we can test it."

"Santa?" Logan sounded wary.

"Santa likes red," Max said with a chuckle.

Alec fidgeted for almost a full minute. "I'm going to make my rounds."

Mole made a sound that could have been a laugh. "The only guy you're fooling is yourself, boy-toy. Go catch up with your girl."

Alec frowned. "I like checking up on TC. And Max is not my girl."

"Yeah, yeah."

Alec took his time getting to Santa's lab, arriving about thirty seconds after Logan and Max. He grinned when he saw Santa. She'd been bred with a deer's DNA, or a close relative, and even had slight antlers on top of her head, and her jaw was slightly extended. She really did love red. Today's outfit was a red-dyed lab coat.

Logan was staring at her when he thought she wasn't looking. Santa saw Alec enter and discreetly rolled her eyes at Logan's behavior. Alec rolled his eyes back.

"Alec," Logan said, with (very) false cheer. "What are you doing here?"

"Checking out the chemistry," Alec said simply, smirking, as he watched Max and Logan. "Santa, where'd you get your lab coat?"

Santa beamed. "Josh did it for me."

"Nice."

"Alec," Max said in a warning tone. She knew him so well. "What time's your meeting with Mole?"

"Whenever I decide to go." When Logan and Max both looked at him, he put on his serious face, and meant it. "I'm waiting for the results. Big day for you two."

Max turned back to the microscope, and Logan hesitated, not wanting to stare at Santa, and not willing to meet Alec's watchful eyes.

There was definitely tension in the room, mostly from Logan.

Alec wondered how the Ordinary felt at having him in the room. Logan knew Max and he weren't an item, but he doubted Max had explained they never had been. Alec almost smirked again, and would have if Santa hadn't turned at that moment, beaming. "Okay, it'll take a few hours, kids."

Max and Logan looked at each other, and Alec felt the tension go up, and not in a sexual way. Both were worried, and afraid. Alec slipped out of the building and made his rounds, then went back to the lab, checking to make sure Max and Logan were gone before he made his way in.

Santa was working on a collection of the toxins from the TC area. Trying to neutralize them. She didn't even glance up. "Back so soon?"

"Felt like hanging out." Alec jumped onto a counter and then sat as though he didn't have a care in the world. "Think it'll work?"

"Do you know what chemistry is, Alec?"

Alec rattled off the definition he'd heard that morning. "It's the science that deals with the composition and properties of substances and various elementary forms of matter. Also, an excuse you use for people to get busy. For example: 'You and I have a special chemistry." He waggled his eyebrows.

Santa grinned. "It's not just science though, you know. It's a bond between people. It's feelings and interactions, reactions to an interaction." She shrugged. "It's complicated."

"Everything's complicated. That's life." Alec said, uncomfortable at the way Santa kept watching him. "Do you think it'll work?"

"I don't know." She tilted her head at him, her brown eyes watching him. "Do you want it to?"

"Of course," Alec said automatically.

"I think Manticore fucked up," Santa said softly.

Alec tilted his head back and laughed. "That about sums it up. Why?"

"I think they spent too much time worrying about genetic matches and forgot about basic chemistry."

Alec frowned. "You totally lost me."

"You and Max were paired as breeding partners because you were genetically compatible. But I'm betting the moment you met, you had a sort of chemistry with each other."

Alec laughed."Yeah, the chemical bond of 'Oh, let's kick Alec."

"Chemistry is chemistry, Alec, in any of its forms." Santa gave him a small smile. "What will you do if it works?"

Alec shrugged. "Who knows? Keep doing what I'm doing."

"Find a mate?"

"Sure, eventually." He realized what Santa was implying. "I'm not looking for Max to be my mate."

"You sure? That's how chemistry works. You're made to be her breeding partner, she frees you, becomes your partner, your friend, and bit by bit, your chemicals are communicating with hers, and they're forming their own bonds. And then, naturally, emotions form."

"You make it sound pretty harsh," Alec huffed.

"Disappointment is a chemical reaction too."

"Okay, crazy lady, that's enough for me." Alec jumped off the counter. "I'll see you later, Santa."

He was halfway out the door when he heard a small beep. He stopped, looking back, ignoring the way his heart seemed to speed up when he realized it was the results for the cure. "Well?"

Santa checked the results twice, glanced at him, then away, and went back to her toxins. "It'll work."

Alec nodded and headed towards HQ. He found Max and Logan looking over a map of TC. She was explaining plans for some of the buildings. It made him smile when Logan tried to make a suggestion and Max shook her head, and said it was Alec's plan, a good plan.

"Hey, Maxie, Santa's looking for you," he called out, the entire room hearing without any effort.

The room went quiet, and Logan tensed up. Max turned to Alec with a question in her eyes. When she didn't get an answer from him she nodded once. "I'm going to grab something from my office, Logan. I'll be right back."

Alec strode over to where Logan stood. He only had a few seconds. "Logan, don't watch her get the shot. She'll be nervous enough about the needle."

Logan's face transformed. "It'll work." Then he frowned. "Max doesn't mind needles."

"Max never told you she doesn't mind needles. " Alec gave him a long look. "She was Manticore, she doesn't like needles." Then he turned and went up to his office, passing Max on his way.

"You coming?" Max asked, nervous.

"Nah. Just let me know when our deal starts. No getting busy without warning all of us with super-hearing first," he smirked.

Max rolled her eyes, grinning, and no longer nervous. "Why are you such a dick to me?"

"Chemistry in all it's forms, Maxie," Alec said, smirking as he continued past her. "In all its forms."

Wow, that was longer than I planned. Please REVIEW!