Break

Chapter Three

Disheveled

            Max awoke with a start.  She rarely slept for long and she almost never let her guard down when she did sleep.  She had, though, after her shower last night.  She'd crawled into the overstuffed bed and fallen asleep instantly without much thought to Alec.  They hadn't discussed the sleeping arrangements.  She'd assumed Alec would sleep on the other side of the bed when he was tired enough without asking her permission.  He hadn't asked, but as Max became more conscious of her surroundings, she realized he hadn't been in bed at all.  She scanned the room for him, suddenly worried.  Alec was staring out the window, looking quite disheveled, his hair sticking up all over.  His jacket and T-shirt were strewn on the couch next to him; he looked plain exhausted.  Max sat up, cocking her head to study him further.  He didn't even seem aware of her presence, which worried her even more.  Usually he had some smart-ass comment to grace her with, along with a sly smile.  But he seemed far away. 

"Alec?"

He didn't respond right away.  He seemed to be processing that someone was speaking to him.  He didn't turn to face her, either, just stared at the sun rising.  He shook his head, clearing his mind, or maybe trying to bring it back to earth.

"Max.  How long have you been awake?"

"Just a few seconds.  What were you thinking about?"

Alec didn't turn to look at her.  "Thinking about? Come on, Maxie, you know better. My mind is usually blank.  You tell me that everyday."

Max sighed.  She'd known better than to ask Alec about his issues.  He could never be serious.  He wouldn't tell her anything; he liked keeping any real information to himself.  He would blather on and on about stuff she never even wanted to hear about, but she finally wanted him to talk, and of course, he wouldn't.  Max threw back the duvet cover and climbed out of the bed.  Her shirt was wrinkled and her hair was wavy from not drying it.  She looked refreshed, despite the unkempt appearance.  Alec, on the other hand, looked like he'd downed three bottles of scotch and been up for a week with one awful hangover.

"Fine.  Forget I even asked.  Not like I care anyways."

"Well, I'm not disabled and ugly, so obviously you wouldn't want to listen to me."

Max whipped around, her eyes slits.  So much for the slightly sweet Alec she'd overheard last night.  That had only been a fluke.  Why she thought Alec might be remotely human was beyond her.  Alec was a smart ass.  He would never change. A little voice inside of her said she wouldn't have Alec any other way.  Still, the louder voice that reminded her of her irritation won out.

"You're just jealous that Logan is a good man and you can never be."

"I hate to break it to you, but you aren't exactly pure as the driven snow."

"At least I make an effort."
"And what an effort it is.  'I only steal from bad guys.'  What an improvement!"

"You do it, too."
"Yeah, but I'm honest about it."

"Isn't that an oxymoron?"

The two transgenics stood off, neither willing to back down.  Unfortunately, transgenics were bred to be stubborn, so neither would move from their position.  Max folded her arms and shifted her weight.  They stared at each other with a passion not seen in most.

"You know what, I'm starving.  I'm going to get some food."

Max skulked away, slamming the door behind her.  Alec growled and entered the bathroom, returning the slam with a louder bang.

            Alec turned on the faucet.  Max wasn't the only one who deserved a hot shower.  He pulled off his undershirt then checked the temperature again.  He waited for a few more moments, still seething from his fight with Max and then stepped underneath the hot spray.  He didn't want to think about Max anymore.  Sure, he'd been crabby with her this morning, but she returned it full force.  No, he wasn't going to think about her anymore.  Maybe the water would make him feel alive again.  He hadn't been able to sleep.  He had given Max her space, not even bothering to ask her if he could sleep in the bed.  He'd taken the couch, which wasn't too uncomfortable, but he had been too wired to sleep.  After finally telling the Log off, he'd felt great.  Logan annoyed him.  He was self-righteous and he used Max, which typically meant he was dragged into it.  He was tired of having to take orders from Chinchilla boy, even if they were indirect.  Logan was no better than Manticore.  Just thinking about Logan irritated him more and he couldn't even enjoy his shower.  He moved on to think about the rest of his night.  He'd finally started to doze off and suddenly he felt a slap and a scream of Daddy.  Images of Rachel hit him consecutively.  Rachel had come back to haunt him in his dreams and his waking hours.  Suddenly any desire to sleep vanished as he saw her pale face with tears streaming down her face.  No, he couldn't sleep at all.  He'd tossed and turned, paced and stared in a daze, all happening without Max awakening, surprisingly.  He'd watched the sun rise, which was supposed to warm human's hearts.  Not him.  It made him bitterer, thinking how Rachel would never see another day and how much he'd missed in his life being a damned genetically engineered soldier.  Alec turned off the water, feeling more upset than he had before.  This just wasn't his day.  He stepped out and pulled a towel on.  The door opened slowly and Max stepped in.

"I checked us out.  We've got to be gone by 12."

"Thanks for knocking.  I knew you just wanted to see me naked."

Despite the anger Max felt towards Alec, she had to admit that Alec looked nice in that towel.  Twice in a week she'd seen him in just a towel, all wet.  And he looked good.  She'd never admit it, not even to herself.  She simply couldn't bring herself to do it.

"You're so full of yourself.  I just didn't want you to make us late."

"I'll be out in a second."

Max shut the door loudly, not quite a slam, but close, leaving Alec inside.  Little did Alec know she'd left so angrily because she'd realized how attracted she was to Alec.  And that was the last thing she'd wanted.