Disclaimer: I do not own Roswell or any of the characters

Notes: Thanks for the reviews guys! They encourage me to write! As sad as it is, I don't even start writing the next chapter until I have a few reviews to get me motivated! I hope you guys enjoy this chapter!

Chapter Ten: Coming Clean

Maria watched her best friend as she leaned against the door. Could Maria really trust Max after all that had happened? He did save her best friends life…again…well sort of. Her life was never really in danger but that was beside the point. Maria felt strong arms come around her as she continued to watch her friend. She looked up and saw Michael staring down at her.

"Thinking?" Michael asked kissing her cheek softly.

"Yeah it's this whole Max and Liz thing."

Michael nodded and gave his girlfriend a small squeeze. "Yeah, well you have to let her fight her own battles." He replied letting go of her waist.

Maria frowned, he was right and she knew it but the memory of watching her friend crumble into an empty shell wouldn't leave her. "Is it so wrong that I want to protect her?" Maria said turning to look at Michael.

Her chest aligned with his and he lifted his hands to cup her face gently. "No, you're a good person and you love her. We all do. We all want to protect her."

"What are you guys talking about?" Liz asked as she finally made her way over to her friends.

Kyle looked up from his conversation with his dad and shrugged. Maria looked at Michael and bit her lip before turning to face Liz. "Can I talk to you?"

"Maybe we all should talk, I kind of have some things I need to say…" Kyle said joining their conversation.

Jim looked around and felt the tension start to fill the area. He looked down at his watch and gave an exaggerated sigh, "Well, I hate to go but I have to do some stuff…I will be busy tomorrow so I won't see you till graduation." He thumped a hand on Kyle's back "Son, I'll see you at home later. Don't be out till all hours." He finished as he walked towards the door.

"Bye Jim." Liz called before she turned to give Maria a sheepish look. She knew Maria wanted to talk about what happened between her and Max and frankly that was a conversation Liz didn't want to have. She didn't even know what was going on between her and Max, how could she explain that to other people?

Liz sat on the couch next to Kyle and Maria made herself comfortable next to Liz. Michael walked over and sat on his chair and watched the other three. Silence hung in the air as everyone tried to figure out what they wanted to say.

"I guess what I want to know is…what were you and Max doing all afternoon? And what is he doing kissing you all of a sudden? Weren't you supposed to take things slow with him?" Maria bombarded Liz with questions.

Liz's head started to spin and she remained silent.

"Yeah, I mean Max is a good guy and I can tell he loves you." Kyle's words made Liz's heart soar and she broke out into a grin. "But, he has even more baggage now than before…are you sure you want to get mixed up in all that? Is being just friends with Max really that hard? I mean I've done it for this long…being just friends hasn't killed me." Kyle finished cracking a joke.

Liz laughed and then stopped when she saw the serious look on Maria's face. "Uhm…"She searched for the words to say. She looked over at Michael who was scratching his eyebrow and just watching the other three. She wondered what he was thinking and how he felt about this whole situation.

"Look, I know that you care about me." She paused and placed her hands on Maria and Kyle's legs. "All three of you." She looked towards Michael who was still sitting in silence. "But, you have to trust me. I am taking it slow with Max." Skeptical looks shot from around the room. "No, really seriously I am. It was just a kiss…"

"He kissed you?! Like on the lips kissed you?!" Maria exclaimed.

Liz swallowed and nodded. "Well, he needed to connect with me to prove to me that he still cared about me…even when he was back on Antar."

Maria bit her lip and narrowed her eyes. "Why couldn't he just hold your hand or something and connect with you that way? He HAD to kiss you? HA!" She said crossing her arms across her chest.

Liz smiled and grabbed Maria's hand. "Look, Maria, I know what you are thinking and believe me, I would be thinking the same thing if this situation was turned but, I would be giving you the benefit of the doubt. I would trust that you could make your own decisions…we always said we would back each other up right?" Liz said looking into Maria's crystal blue eyes.

Maria rolled her eyes and licked her lips. Liz had her there. "Okay. Chica, listen to me. I trust you. I trust you more than anybody on this planet. You are my rock." Maria squeezed Liz's hand. "But you…"

"Maria, I will still be your rock…but can you please be mine for now?" Liz interjected.

Maria sighed and gave a small smile. "Of course I will. But please, please be careful with him. He is different, not just because he is an alien but because he left…and now he is different. I can see it in the way he talks and the way he walks. He isn't the same Max."

Liz nodded and pulled her hand from Maria's grasp. She closed her eyes and ran her hand through her hair. It was true, Max was different, but not in a bad way. When he left he looked as if the weight of the world had been weighing down on him for a long time, and he acted like a seventy year old trapped in a seventeen year olds body.

"Remember how he treated me Maria?" Liz asked finally opening her eyes and looking straight at her friend. "Remember right before he left how he was always so angry…angry that I was investigating Alex's death, angry at Isabel, angry at himself…do you remember how he was?"

Maria nodded slowly as she remembered all the times Liz would come talk to her about something upsetting Max had said or done to her. "Do you want him to be that Max? This guy, this Max, he seems so much like he was a couple of years ago…not so angry or bitter…and I like him better this way." Liz finished.

"Just be careful, that's all I ask."

"I will, I promise. Trust me."

Maria bit her lip and hoped to God she could trust Liz to take care of herself. "Okay, I trust you." Maria whispered before looking around at the guys who were staring raptly at them.

"Maxwell is different…I can tell. But yeah, Liz, just don't do anything too—"

"Michael like?" Liz joked smiling.

"Exactly." Kyle said in a mock serious tone.

The group laughed and the tension was automatically lifted. Maria clapped her hands together and smiled at Kyle "So, we're done with the dramatics of Max and Liz…tell us about this whole Isabel visit." She batted her eyelashes at Kyle who blushed slightly.

"Yeah, I can go for a story from Kyle." Liz said smiling at him and squeezing his leg.

"Well, after Max told me that she was probably visiting Alex's grave, I went there."

"And she was there?" Liz asked.

Kyle nodded. "Yeah, she was there, and she was upset and crying…and then we started talking and finally I told her that Tess killed Alex and she flipped out."

"Yeah, that is understandable…'Hey uh remember that girl that was your friend well she killed the guy you loved…welcome home.'" Michael said sarcastically.

Kyle frowned and glared at Michael "Hey, I didn't mean for it to come out that way. I didn't mean to make her upset."

Liz and Maria both patted Kyle on the shoulder. "Of course you didn't" Liz said softly.

"None of us think you did." Maria said patting his hand as she turned to glare at Michael.

Michael held out his hands and shrugged. "Sorry, it just didn't seem like a smart move to make."

Kyle shook his head and sighed. "Yeah, well…you would know."

"Hey what is that supposed to mean?" Michael snapped.

"Guys guys! Please stop." Maria said holding out her hands to stop conversation between the two men.

"Maria's right, this is ridiculous. Attacking each other is not an option." Liz paused and looked at Michael. "Michael, Kyle didn't mean to hurt Isabel." She turned to Kyle. "Kyle, Michael didn't mean to sound so rude, he was just expressing his opinion." She looked at Maria. "Now can we all just calm down?"

Michael nodded and leaned forward putting his elbows on his knees and covering his face with his hands. "Yeah, I'm sorry man." He said lifting up his head and scratching the back of his neck.

"Yeah, me too…" Kyle said reluctantly.

"Okay, so we're good now?" Maria asked looking at the two guys.

"Yeah."

"Sure."

Liz and Maria gave each other secret glances and then turned their attention towards Kyle again.

"So, do you think you are going to try to talk to her…you know about all this." Liz asked.

"You think I should?"

"Definitely. You made her upset and now the right thing to do is go and make sure she is okay…apologize if you must." Maria said matter of factly.

Michael scoffed and opened his mouth to say something but closed it when he saw Maria's glare come upon him again.

"Yeah, I feel terrible for making her upset…I don't know." Kyle sighed. "Isn't that telepathy thing crazy though?" He asked changing the subject.

Michael's ears perked up. "Yeah, when they started doing that I was so lost. It looked like they were having an intense conversation."

Liz nodded. "It was so weird to watch…Michael, do you think all aliens can do that?"

"I am guessing…they probably just have to be taught how."

Liz's face broke out into a mischievous grin. "What are you thinking Liz Parker?" Maria asked once she caught sight of Liz's face.

Liz shrugged and smiled at Michael. "Well, maybe I can do it…Michael too! Maybe we can talk to each other through our minds!" Liz said excitedly.

Maria laughed. "Yeah, well have fun with that. I prefer to use my mouth to speak." She stood up and smoothed her shirt down. "Well, I 'm off to bed."

"Yeah, I should probably get going. This has been a crazy day." Kyle said standing up. He reached down and pulled Liz up off the couch.

"Thanks. I'll go to bed too…I feel exhausted." Liz said stretching.

Kyle gave Maria a quick hug and kissed Liz on the cheek before walking to the door. Michael jogged over and stopped him before he left. "Hey." Michael said holding his arm out to give Kyle a one armed hug. "Sorry about earlier…I guess I am just tired and grumpy."

Kyle nodded and patted Michael on the back. "No hard feelings. It's been a rough day. Take care of the girls."

"Always," Michael replied as Kyle left. Michael turned to look at the girls, Liz was trudging towards Michael's bedroom and Maria was making her way towards him.

"Hey." Maria said once she approached him.

"Hey." Michael replied pulling her into a soft embrace.

"I'm going to sleep with Liz again tonight. She needs me." Maria whispered against his chest.

Michael nodded and kissed Maria on her head. "Okay, just don't badger her too much about Maxwell okay?"

"I'll try not to…"

"Maria, listen, I just want to say something."

"I'm listening Spaceboy."

Michael smirked and then continued, "Liz and Max have been through a lot, more than any of us have. Do you know that when Max saved Liz, I fought him every step of the way? I argued with him constantly about staying away from her, so did Isabel."

Maria stared up at him her crystal eyes flashing. "You tried to keep them apart? So did I."

"Exactly. Max and Liz have had people bossing them around every step of the way, maybe we should trust them for once. Maybe we should just let them be."

Maria nodded in understanding. Michael brought his hand to her face and brushed her bangs from her eyes. He put his hand under her chin and lifted her face so he could kiss her soft lips. Her hands came around his neck and he encircled her around her waist. Their kisses were soft and quiet. Maria finally pulled away. "I'll lay off…but if Max…"

Michael quieted her with one last kiss. His lips pressed against hers and he felt her respond with a hard kiss back. "I know." He said as they pulled away.

Maria smiled and nodded pulling away from him to walk towards his bedroom. "Night Spaceboy."

Michael watched her walk away, "Night beautiful." He called as he walked over to the couch and plopped down.

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"Liz?" Maria said softly as she walked into the pitch-black room.

"Yeah." Liz replied from her spot on the bed.

She had come in and gone directly to the comfort of Michael's bed. She was nestled under the covers. She felt Maria sit down on the bed and climb in next to her.

"Here." Liz lifted up the cover and Maria lay down next to her.

As Maria's eyes adjusted to the dark she was able to see Liz's face. She turned so that they were face to face. Liz smiled and then sighed, "Did you need to talk about something?"

"No…" Maria said softly.

"I told Max I wanted to talk to him tomorrow."

"I figured as much." Maria said calmly. "So…how was the kiss?"

Liz blushed and looked away, even in the dark she felt exposed and bashful. "It was…" She paused trying to think of a word that could describe what she felt. "It felt like I was waking up."

"Like you had been asleep this whole time?" Maria asked.

"Yeah, it was electrifying, it reminded me of when we first kissed. I got flashes you know." Liz stated.

"It was that good huh?" Maria said reaching out to poke Liz in a playful manner.

Liz laughed and nodded. "Yeah, it was amazing."

"What were the flashes?"

"I saw him on Antar…I felt what he felt, Maria, I'd never even thought of the possibility that he was as miserable as I was." Liz paused "Well, being without him. You guys are what kept me sane." She smiled.

Maria nodded, "So, he was miserable, what else?"

"I saw our last kiss before he left."

"Ah the infamous kiss." Maria mused.

"I felt the way he felt about Tess. He never really got comfortable with her…he was so suspicious of her and he didn't know why."

"Maybe he knew all along that she couldn't be trusted."

"Maybe." Liz sighed and rolled over so she was on her back staring up at the ceiling.

"You guys have it bad." Maria finally said after a few minutes of complete silence.

Liz turned and nodded slowly. "He's the love of my life Maria…how do you stay away from the love of your life?"

Maria gave Liz a small smile and shrugged, "You tell me."

"I'm going to tell him about future Max."

This caused Maria to sit up. "Really? What do you think he will say?" She turned the lamp that was next to the bed on.

Liz closed her eyes once the light turned on. She blinked a few times to get adjusted to the light. "I don't know. I am scared. I should have told him earlier, I am so stupid."

"At least he didn't leave thinking you slept with Kyle."

"Oh yeah, he thinks Kyle and I have something going on." Liz burst out laughing slightly.

Maria gave a look of disgust and shook her head. "You and Kyle? No way. Girlfriend needs to realize that you two are like brother and sister."

"Like we were with Alex." Liz said softly.

Maria nodded. "I am glad you are going to tell Max the truth. Maybe this will help you two…"

Liz smiled. "You're not upset with me?"

"Oh Chica, how could I ever be upset with you?" Maria said pulling Liz into a hug.

"Thanks Maria." Liz whispered as they hugged.

"Come on. Let's sleep and you have a big day coming up, we need our rest." Maria reached over and turned off the light.

Liz lay back down and closed her eyes but she didn't sleep. She was lost in deep thought. She couldn't help but wonder how different things could have been had she told Max about future Max earlier. Questions danced in her head as she wondered what Max and Tess talked about or how their life was on Antar.

When Max kissed her, Liz felt complete; she felt all his love pour into her and it felt so good to feel that way again.

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Michael groaned as the sunlight poured in from his window onto his face. He swatted at the sunlight and then finally sat up to close his blinds. He scratched his head, as he lay back down prepared to fall asleep again. Knocking snapped him out of his stupor.

"Michael, open up, it's us."

Michael rubbed his eyes and turned to his door, he felt annoyed and slightly pissed that Max and Isabel had decided to come so early. He looked over and saw it wasn't early at all; it was already ten in the morning. Mumbling to himself about rude people, Michael walked to the door and opened it staring sleepily out.

"Morning Maxwell, Isabel." He said as he walked back to the couch, laying down and pulling his blanket around him.

"Morning." Max replied walking in with Isabel right behind him.

"You're still sleeping?" Isabel asked when she closed the door behind her.

"Yeah, it's called sleeping in…" Michael mumbled his face pressed into his pillow.

Isabel smiled and sat down next to Max on the stools. Max looked around the apartment for any sign of Liz. He looked towards Michael's bedroom and scratched the back of his head. "So, uh, where are the girls?"

As soon as Max said that Michael's bedroom door opened to reveal a very disheveled looking Liz. Max's heart jumped into his throat as he reveled in her beauty. Even in just a large t-shirt and shorts she looked ravishing.

"Good morning." Liz said as she sleepily rubbed her eyes. The world had not yet come into focus for her and she was still half asleep.

"Mornin'" Michael mumbled from his spot on the couch.

"Good morning." Max said standing up.

Isabel rolled her eyes and waved at Liz half-heartedly. "Hey."

Liz smiled sleepily and trudged to the bathroom. Max had the incredible urge to go over to her and ravage her but he sat back down trying to control himself. Liz washed her face and brushed her teeth before walking back out. She walked out and sat on the couch next to Michael's sleeping body.

"How are you feeling today?" Max asked as he watched her intently.

Liz smiled, "I feel kind of weird actually…"

"Yeah, that will happen from time to time…it's the powers settling in."

"So, you up to trying them out?" Isabel asked.

Liz grinned and nodded her head vigorously. "I can try them out already?"

Max nodded and smiled back at her. "Yeah, you can do little stuff I'm sure. Here why don't you try connecting with someone…"

"Can I try on you?" Liz asked Max softly.

Max's heart sped up as he felt himself stand up and walk over to her. He couldn't believe that out of everyone she wanted to connect with him. Michael listened to the conversation and he popped his head up and looked around. "Wait, is that safe? Cause if it isn't safe Maria will kill me for letting you do it." Michael said looking at Liz.

Liz shrugged and looked at Max who looked at Isabel and nodded. "Yeah, it's safe." Max replied.

Liz smiled and stood up making her way to him. She reached out her hands and looked into his eyes, just as he had down three years ago to connect with her for the first time. She felt herself getting lost in his eyes. "What do I do?" She asked after a few minutes of staring at him.

Max gave her a lopsided grin. "Just concentrate on all that you want me to see, then look into my eyes and send your energy to me through our hands.

Liz frowned, how did she know how to send her energy? She shook off her insecurities and squeezed Max's hand. She looked into his eyes and began to concentrate on all the events that had happened when Future Max arrived. She concentrated so hard that she didn't even realize she was pulling him in and showing him what she wanted him to see.

Max continued to stare deep into Liz's eyes and he got a quick flash of a man who looked exactly like him but older and with longer hair. But it was just a flash and then he was back in the room holding Liz's hands and looking into her eyes. In that one moment though he felt sadness, and like all hope was lost.

Liz bit her lip, "Did it work at all?"

Max nodded. "Well, it didn't work for long…but…I saw something…I can't explain it though."

Liz looked down and pulled her hands from Max's grasp. "Yeah, about that...can we talk in private?"

Max wondered what she wanted to talk about as he nodded. She smiled slightly and pulled him towards the kitchen, it was as private as they were going to get for now. Michael and Isabel watched the two of them as they began to whisper. Michael stood up and walked towards his bathroom to brush his teeth, Isabel followed him.

"Michael, we need to talk too…you, me and Max." She stated running a hand through her hair.

Michael looked up with the toothbrush still in his mouth and his mouth full of toothpaste. "Okay." He said and toothpaste flew out of his mouth onto the wall. Isabel's face contorted in disgust and she shook her head.

"That's disgusting Michael." She said laughing slightly.

Michael spit out the toothpaste and grinned at her. He wiped his mouth and turned off the light as he left his bathroom.

"You're different." Isabel said softly but loud enough so he heard.

Michael stopped and turned around looking at Isabel. "Yeah, I am." He said simply as he walked over to the couch and sat down trying to hear what Max and Liz were saying.

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"Max, I have something to tell you. I want to come clean with you…" Liz said in a hushed tone. She didn't want Michael or Isabel to hear what she was about to tell him.

"What is it?" Max asked starting to feel concerned.

"Do you remember that whole incident with Kyle…and us in the same bed…" Liz asked blushing bright red.

Max felt his face heat up, even though Liz had told him she never slept with Kyle, it still stung to think of that night he walked up and saw them laughing together in bed without and clothes on. He swallowed as the vision of that night came back to him, seeing her in that bed with Kyle, laughing without a care in the world. He remembered his heart shattering into a billion pieces; nothing was ever the same after that.

"Yeah, I remember." He said his voice a low growl.

"Well, I need to tell you why I did that. Why I pretended to sleep with Kyle." Max nodded. He had always wondered why she did what she did and now that he was about to find out he felt a pit of dread fall in his stomach.

"Okay." He whispered his voice caught up in his throat.

"Oh God, how do I say this?" Liz asked herself as she ran a hand through her hair. She had thought time and time again about telling Max the whole story but she never really thought about how to start the story out.

"Just start from the beginning…" Max said reaching out for her hand.

Liz felt herself calm down as he rubbed circles on the palm of her hand. She smiled and nodded, worried about what he was going to think. "Okay, well one night I was in my room and I heard this loud noise outside my window…and it was you. Except it wasn't you you" She pointed at Max and continued. "It was you from the future…" She paused and looked at Max who now was raising an eyebrow.

"The future? Liz, time travel isn't possible." He finished.

"No, it is, the granolith, you told me it had enormous power that could be modified…and you—uh we in the future did that and you were sent back to talk to me." She scratched her head wondering if she made any sense. "You came from the future because the world was ending."

"What?" Max asked shocked at what he had just heard. His head filled with questions and he looked down at Liz who was struggling to find the words to say.

"The world was ending because of me and you. Because of our love. We chased Tess away and because she was gone you couldn't defeat the skins…and then the world was ending…" Liz's voice trailed off.

"Liz that doesn't make sense? Why didn't I go to myself?" Max frowned. "Whoa that sounds so weird to say."

Liz gave a small smile, "Because, you told me that if you and the future you were to ever meet, you would both…die." She looked down.

Max swallowed. "Okay, so it was a good thing he didn't…but…okay, so what did he want you to do about the world? What could you possibly do to save it?" He asked.

Liz ran her hand through her hair and looked down. "I had to make you fall out of love with me."

"Fall out of love with you? That is impos-" Max stopped and looked down at Liz who was fighting back tears. "That's why you pretended to sleep with Kyle…"

"Yes."

"And why you tried to get Tess and I together?"

"Yes and it worked." She said flatly.

"You did all that? Liz, I can't believe you did that…why didn't you come to me? Isabel? Michael? Anybody."

"I didn't think it would be right…it wasn't anybody else's problem."

"Liz, it was everybody's problem! It wasn't just your own. We could have figured out a way to keep Tess in Roswell and still be together." He stepped forward and pulled Liz into a strong hug.

Liz let out a sigh of relief; it felt so good to get that all off her chest. She leaned against his chest and felt his heart beating, it was faster than usual and she pulled him closer to her. Max smiled and leaned his head on her own; he smoothed a hand through her hair and breathed in her scent.

"What did I ever do to deserve you?" He asked as he pulled her away from him. He looked down and pressed his forehead against her own. "You, did all that, just because you trusted me…even if it wasn't me, future me…you did that. You are such a good person." He cupped her face in his hand and pulled her towards him for a kiss.

Their lips met and they were hit with an intensity that they had never experienced before. His lips pressed roughly against hers as his hands came around her waist to pull her closer to him. He ran the other hand through her hair pulling her face closer to his. Her lips felt so soft against his and he felt drunk off of her taste. His head was spinning and his heart racing as she kissed him back with renewed vigor; they didn't realize that everybody was staring at them from the living room.

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