Disclaimer: I don't own Dark Angel or any characters featured in either of the seasons.
With Ben In Between
That night Alec sat down with a beer and began to sift through the folder contents. Another mission, in another country and permanent residence in another country, far, far from Seattle, and Max. Taking a swig of beer Alec sat and thought about his options, and then he began to think how his dad would react if he 'passed up' his mission. It would be hell all over again, the type of hell that had happened when Ben made it clear that he didn't want to be Manticore. "No don't go there," he scolded himself. Living in the past only made things worse. He had come to terms with that stuff a long time ago.
Alec came out of his thoughts when he heard a key jiggle in the lock of his door, and heard Max mutter some profanity. A smile formed from his scowl, she always hated the lock on his door. 'It didn't like her' as she would claim after failed attempts to open it. After only a few seconds, record time, she got the door opened and was greeted with a grinning Alec.
"Alec I need to tell you something." Max stated slowly. Alec furrowed his brow, and his grin faded, slightly; her voice gave way that there was something wrong. That scared him, putting his report down on the island; he turned this stool to look at the woman standing in front of him. She still had the ability to take his breath away.
"What's wrong Maxie?" He asked taking her hands into his, when she took them out, he started to feel panic rise into his chest.
"I need to tell you something," Max, repeated, as if trying to will her self to say the following sentence, "It's about when we met."
"Huh?" That wasn't quite what he was expecting.
"I knew you, I knew who you were." Alec looked confused.
"Um, ok…"
"A few years ago I moved to New York and met Ben." Suddenly everything was making sense.
"Maxie, I know." Max blinked a couple times, now she was confused.
"What?"
"I know you knew Ben," Alec responded rubbing his neck. A habit he had when he knew things were going to get confusing or uneasy. "After Ben died, I went to clean out his apartment and when I did found his portfolio full of photographs and portraits that he did. In there were pictures he took of you." Max felt breath leave her body; he didn't know everything.
"Alec," she started.
"Max, it's fine. So you knew my brother, I don't care." Standing up he made a step towards her, which she responded with a step back. "Max?"
"Alec…I didn't just know Ben." Alec stared at her, that panic feeling rising up again, "I dated Ben while I was in New York; I was in love with him." Everything shattered.