Hey! Well, first of, I would like to thank my reviewers… THANK YOU! kiwilass, tori49476, lakergirl08, a7xvampire and calistra Thank you! Anyway, hope you like it, lot of angst…thare'sa small cliff hanger at the end… does that make me evil?

Chapter 11

What kind of lame excuse is that? The virus thing wasn't going anywhere and I couldn't afford any more accidents,thought Alec, mocking at her stupid excuse. Yeah, right. Why then, in all Heaven's sakes, did she have to drag me into it? That's right... because she didn't give a shit about me and now, I have to put up with the fact that Logan hates me for stealing his girl.

At least, now I understand why Logan has been acting so weird ´round me. But still! What Max did... I'm the bad guy now, he thought in shock, well, I'm always the bad guy round Max...

After that little talk he had with Max, he left her apartment very pissed. Max was feeling much better so he did not feel guilty about leaving her all alone in there.

Logan had already said it all, but still, hearing Max's excuses for using him like some kind of dickhead who did not have feelings, had been hard.

Alec ended up in Terminal City again. Maybe if he helped with something, he would forget about Max for a while. The problem was that Joshua was in Terminal City too and, as I said before, the Big Fella had a way to see right through him. And that is exactly what he did.

'Hey, Alec.'

'Hey, Josh,' said Alec as he saw the big dog man on the street, near the HQ.

'How's Little Fella?'

'She's just... fine,' said Alec, trying to hide his scorn, but never succeeding in front of Josh.

'What happened?' asked Joshua, knowing something had happened with Max.

'Nothing happened, Josh,' the X5 answered, as he was about to enter the HQ, avoiding Joshua's question. But the big guy stopped the X5's track as he placed his big hand over Alec's chest.

'Alec upset with Little Fella,' simply said Josh.

Alec looked up at his tall, very tall friend, into those honest baby-blue eyes.

'How do you do that?' he asked dead serious.

Joshua stared at the X5 in the eyes with deep confusion.

'What does Joshua do?'

Alec smiled.

'That. You always know what's wrong with me.'

Joshua was not sure what to answer. He did not know how he knew it, he just did. The big Dog-man just shrugged.

'Come on,' said Alec putting his hand over the transhuman's shoulder, 'I'll tell you what happened.'

He didn't even yell at me. He just looked at me, picked his jacket and left the apartment, never saying a word.

And that is what most worries me. Alec's not the kind of guy who hardly talks. I'm used to hear him yap all the freaking time and, even though I used to hate that (still do, sometimes… he can really tick me off), it's really the only way we have to know if he's ok or not. If he's all quiet, Headcliff-like (as Cindy would say), we know there's something wrong with him.

Alec usually tells me what's on his mind… well most of the time, at least. A flashback of their conversation that night at Crash when he had supposedly 'blew' his shot with Asha. He had definitely shown his anger at her; his annoyance, at the fact that Max would never realize how dangerous her closeness to Logan, or other ordinary for that matter, was. He's never afraid to tell me what he is thinking about. If she only knew… To tell the truth, his silence is what annoys me right now… How could he just leave like this! That Jerk! He has all rights to be mad at me... but he could at least tell me he's mad at me! Besides, he should understand why I did what I did! He's always so egocentric. It's always about him!

She was trying to come up with an excuse to be mad at him for leaving before she could explain exactly what had happened, and why she had done it. And maybe, just maybe, if she was brave enough and not so thick headed, she would even have been able to apologize.

She had been on her apartment, walking from her bedroom to the living-room, from the living-room to the kitchen, from the kitchen to the bathroom, from the bathroom to her room again. As small as her apartment already was, she was feeling like the walls were closing in on her and the place was getting smaller and smaller. She needed to walk. She needed to think. But she was not able to neither in her humble apartment.

Max was annoyed, sad and bored, so she picked her bike's keys and left in the hope that by riding through the streets of Seattle, she would find some answers.

After a few hours after leaving her place, the sun had set and night had fallen on Seattle. OC was probably at Crash, so she headed that way. Max had been sure to leave her friend a note letting her know she was fine and that she would meet her at Crash later that day.

She walked through the doors of the place. Cindy waved her from the table. She was alone, no Sketchy, no Logan in the way this time. Max slumped on the chair, and OC could sense something was wrong.

'What happened?' Cindy asked.

'Alec found out what I told Logan ´bout him and me,' Max answered, as she laid both hands, one over the other like fists, over the table and placed her chin over them.

Cindy, not as shock as she should have been, said: 'What did he say?'

'She used me! She totally used me!'

Joshua did not seem as shock as he should have been. Alec could only stare at him. Where's the Joshua who should be comforting me by now?

A bit annoyed, he finally asked: 'Aren't ya gonna say something, advice me, maybe?'

Joshua looked at Alec again in silence, which was driving the X5 crazy. The Dog-man finally found the exact word to describe Alec at that moment: 'Idiot.'

Alec did a double take. 'What?'

'Alec idiot,' said Josh, again.

What! Did I tell the story wrong! 'Why am I the idiot here! I'm not the one who screwed up this time! I'm not he one who used someone else for self reward!' Bad Alec. Bad, bad, bad Alec… said a mocking voice inside his head, like you've never done that a million times during your short existence; during and after Manticore.

'Alec whines because Max's with Logan,' said Josh only to be interrupted by Alec.

'I don't whine! And if I do in fact whine every once in a while, it certainly is not because Max's with Logan!' the X5 complained.

Joshua just carried on, raising a finger for every statement, 'Alec whines because Max's not with Logan, Alec whines because Little Fella told Logan she's with you. Alec idiot.'

Alec was now very irked. He did not understand what Josh was trying to say. Why was he the idiot here? Technically, he had only whined because Max lied to Logan and dragged him into the whole mess.

'Ok, Josh, I have no idea where you going with this,' said Alec.

'Alec ever wondered why Max lied to Logan?' Joshua asked.

'Cause she's a bitch and she's more fucking confuse than a 15 year-old.

'I don't know. Knowing Max, she's just freaking out because now there's nothing between her and commitment,' said Alec with disdain.

'How come?' asked Joshua, now quite interested in Alec's answer.

'Why else? We were not built to love or get attach to people.' Alec said, more mechanically than he would like. It was, after all, the perfect Manticore answer he knew so well. But that did not make it any less true. Even Max, who had lived out of Manticore for over 10 years, could not get emotionally attach to anyone. Perhaps Cindy was the only ordinary (no offence) Max would always be attached to. Still, he was not better than Max. Although he always acted as if Max's affection towards Logan was her big flaw, at some level he knew it was not. To love was the one true thing Manticore never thought their kids, and some how she learnt. In a clumsy, twisted way, yes, but she knew what love was. And she knew how it felt. He… he was not so sure. Maybe he was afraid of it. Loosing Rachel had scarred him for life.

'Max would not lie to Logan because little fella is scared,' said Josh, after Alec's words sunk in. 'There is something else.'

'Like what? 'Cause I can't think of anything else,' the X5 retorted.

'Or someone else?' tried Joshua, hoping Alec would get the hint.

Alec was getting more and more annoyed. What the hell was Josh talking about!

'Someone? What?'

Joshua, who was the most patient person man in the entire face of the earth, was now losing it. He hit the X5's head, not too hard, otherwise he could have killed him.

'What was that for!' asked Alec, very surprised and quite exasperated.

Ok, this is it! thought Josh.

He grabbed Alec by the shoulders, and said: 'Virus bitch gone, Max's not with Logan and she told him she's with Alec! Understand! Max wants to be with medium fella!'

Alec let out a little laugh after a moment. 'Josh, are you hearing yourself? Max wants me? She wouldn't even want me if I was the last guy on the earth, ok? Where the hell do you get these ideas?'

'Why would Max not want Alec?' asked Josh, feeling a bit insulted.

'First of, she's got Captain America with glasses… Logan,' he clarified a moment after for he understood by Josh's face that the dog-man did not know who Captain America was. 'Why would she want to be with a screw up like me? She's enough screwed up and has enough problems without me on the picture.'

'But little fella cares. She helped you with police when you got mistaken by your twin,' Josh argued.

'No, she helped me because she was afraid of exposure. I'm not stupid Josh,' said Alec.

He had always known he was only one more pain in Max's ass. Helping him was like helping any other transgenic she had set free. He was not that special. He was not Logan.

Alec sighed. Joshua did not know what else to say. He knew in his heart that Max felt something for their beloved 494.

Or maybe, he wished she would.

'Listen, I gotta blaze. Thank you for the talk, anyway,' said Alec as he placed a hand on the big guys shoulder.

'So he just left? Without saying a word?' said OC. Max nodded. 'Well, girl, you fucked it real time.'

'Gee, thanks, that makes me feel sooo much better,' said Max as she crossed her arms over her chest.

'Sorry, boo, but what kind of friend would Original Cindy be if she lied to you. The boy's aiight.'

'Aiight 'bout what? He didn't say a word!' the X5 retorted, her bitchy-self taking over.

'He's aiight ´bout being angry at ya.' Her friend answered, as she looked at her eyes. OC had never been afraid of her hot-headed friend, and she was not going to start now. "Look, ya and I both know OC ain't the biggest Alec fan, but lately the boy has shown that he's growing up. Right or not?'

'I guess so. But he's still a dick," said Max, trying to control that beast that always made her act before thinking. If she could blame him at least a little bit, though, for all of this, maybe she would not feel so guilty.

'Well, he's a man after all,' she said with one of her faces. She then carried on with her point, 'The boy has been doing a pretty damn good job becoming a little good man, trying to make ya feel proud of him.' At this, Max looked at her in disbelief. Since when Alec really cared what she thought about him? 'And then you go and do that ta him? OC understands the poor boy,' she finished, and took a sip of her beer.

Thanks OC! I come here so you can make me feel a bit better, and I leave feeling worse!

But OC was right. Yes, Alec had done many stupid things, and she had always saved his ass. But he always thanked her, or apologized to her. And, ok, yes, I've notice that he's growing up! Maybe that's why I like him…

'Maybe I should-' Max started to say, as the bitch inside was defeated by her reason, only to be interrupted by Cindy, who, as if she had read her friend's thoughts, said: 'Yeah, you should.'

The X5 glanced at her friend one last time before leaving Crash towards Alec's apartment.

She arrived at her destination, but she had been standing in front of her X5 fellow's door for over 10 minutes, debating whether to knock the door or not. The answer was: NOT. Max turned around and started to walk towards the stairs in order to leave. No! Stop! Get a grip soldier! Now, go back there and apology to that boy, before I get there and kick yo´ ass! Now! Strangely, the voice of Max's conscience sounded a lot like Cindy's. Weird.

So, she heard that little voice, turned around again towards Alec's door, took a breath and knocked it, before she could regret it.

The door opened but she did not find the person she was hoping to find.

'Who are you?'

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