Disclaimer: I do not own these characters, but I wish I did! Just playing with them for a while.

Summary: Set during season two. A mysterious message from a supposedly dead Lydecker ends up being a trap that Max waltzes straight into. Will Alec be able to save 452, or will his attempt only end up risking his life as well? Hurt/Empathic!Alec.

A/N: This story is dedicated to scifigeek22.

Reaching forward with her free hand, Mia gently turned Alec's face towards her, resting her fingers lightly against his cheek. "Close your eyes, Alec."

He did as she asked with a slow, steadying exhale. He could do this. He'd done it before, and when it was over, he wouldn't have to wear the damned bandana anymore. No more blindfolds, no more manhandling, no more head-splitting visions…

He'd be himself again.

He felt Mia's presence, gently pressing against his own, asking for permission to begin. Alec was ready for all this to end, he really was. But one gnawing thought refused to give him peace.

He pushed Mia back out of his mind and sat up again, eyes opening and seeking out Max. "Wait wait wait… Max, let's think about this."

Max huffed in exasperation, crouching down in front of her fellow X-5 so they were closer to eye level. "We already have, Alec. What's left to consider?"

"What if I can learn to control the visions instead?"

"Alec…" She was already shaking her head but Alec plunged on, desperate to make her understand.

"Just hear me out, okay? Sandeman gave us this link for a reason, right? I mean, it could come in handy when White and his boys decide to take another shot at us. Maybe with a little practice, I could use them to keep you…" He trailed off, his cheeks suddenly adopting a soft rosy hue.

"What?" Max prodded. "Keep me safe? Is that where you're going with this?"

Alec looked away.

Max sighed, then slid onto the couch by 494's side, placing a hand gently on his knee. "Alec, listen to me. After all these years of lying low, I'm pretty good at staying off the radar. I don't need a watch dog, and I definitely don't need you torturing yourself to protect me, okay?"

"I know you don't need a babysitter, Max, but…"

"These visions are gonna kill you if they continue, don't you get that? Let Mia put the wall back up. You've more than earned your R&R, soldier."

Alec dropped his gaze to his knees. How was it possible that after everything they had been through, Max still didn't understand?

He wasn't afraid of pain; it was a constant companion in his life. He wasn't afraid of Manticore anymore either; what could they do to him that they hadn't already?

No. What he really feared was being completely and utterly alone.

With the connection, he could prove himself useful. He could fight the good fight and watch Max's back. But without it, he would go back to always being in the way; a nuisance Max could hardly stand to be around.

He couldn't go back to that after everything they'd been through. He wouldn't.

"Give us a minute, guys," Max asked quietly, then waited for Mia and Bradbury to exit the room. "Talk to me, Alec. What is this really about?"

He stood up and quickly put distance between himself and Max. "Nothin'. Forget I said anything. I don't know where my head's at these days."

"Yet another reason to let Mia do her thing."

"No." He answered so abruptly and so confidently that it actually made Max pause.

"…No? What do you mean 'no'?"

"I mean I can't do this, Max. I can't…" let you go.

Alec shook his head with a hollow bark of laughter at how dependent he had become now that he was free. Back at Manticore, they gave him orders and he obeyed. He rarely second guessed their rules, and he hardly ever stepped out of line. Things were so much simpler then.

He had been his own rock- his own island of solitude. He didn't need anyone else, not even a unit to fight by his side. He was trained for solo missions and he was good at them. When had all that changed?

When had he become so weak that he'd prefer agonizing pain over being alone? Max thrived in the real world, growing into a strong, independent woman everyone looked up to and saw as a leader. And she had only been a nine-year-old girl when her bare feet had first touched the snow-covered land of freedom.

But Alec? He was educated in the ways of the world and deployed as an adult, and yet he felt like cowering in a corner right now, not just bent but broken by the weight of free choice. Life was so much easier when he didn't have to think for himself.

"Is this because she's psy-ops?" Max guessed, trying to understand what had put her fellow X-5 on the defensive.

"It has nothing to do with that."

"Well what then?"

"I… I just… Damn it, Max. Don't make me try to explain this."

Alec felt like he was on the verge of panicking again and it made him sick. He angrily brushed away a tear that had somehow escaped his defenses and began pacing the length of the room.

Max wasn't about to let him off that easily though. She quickly rose to her feet and pursued him, standing directly in his path and forcing him to draw up short. He turned his back to her, hands threaded behind his head as he tried to get himself under control again.

"Hey. Look at me."

She gripped his shoulder from behind and spun him around, then drew back at the lost and desperate expression on his face. Even worse was the bolt of emotional pain that flooded through their connection, knocking the breath from her lungs and leaving her temporarily stunned.

"Don't make me let you go, Max," he whispered, no longer bothering to stem the flow of tears that made their way down his flushed cheeks, his gold-flecked green eyes more pronounced than ever.

To say it broke Max's heart would be the understatement of the century.

She forced her body to move again, striding forward and wrapping her arms around Alec tightly enough to strain his bruised ribs. He let out a soft grunt but made no move to break her hold.

"I'm not going anywhere, Alec. With or without the connection, you're part of my unit now. My family. Even if you are a total pain in the ass, that'll never change."

Alec's arms dropped and his hands latched onto the back of Max's jacket like a lifeline. The relief hit him so hard it nearly knocked his knees out from under him, but Max's hold kept him up. She was his stone now; his entire island.

"We'll get through this, Alec. Just like we always do," she stated confidently into his ear, feeling the warmth of his face against her own. "Besides," she continued, pulling back far enough to brush his tears away with her thumbs, "knowing their moves ahead of time kinda takes the sport out of the hunt, don'tcha think?"

She winked at him, and Alec laughed. It was a genuine sound that he realized he hadn't heard in a long time… Maybe not since Rachel. "Yeah, I guess." He wiped harder at his face using the sleeve of his sweatshirt, leaving a raw pinkish tinge to his eyes and cheeks.

"We've made it this far without the connection. We can do it again. Do you trust me?"

With my life, with my soul… Maybe even with my heart.

"Well you haven't gotten us killed yet so that's gotta count for somethin', right?"

Max punched him playfully in the good shoulder. "Go sit your ass down before it lands on the floor, and let's get this bitch over with. Whatdoya say?"

Alec hesitated for a few more seconds, then finally nodded his consent. "Alright, fine. But can I take a piss first?"

"It's a free world, Alec. Bathroom's that way."

Alec flashed her one of his trademark smirks as they broke apart and she gave him a gentle shove in the right direction. It was a mere echo of the cockiness he usually exuded, but it was a start.

He closed the bathroom door behind himself and stood in front of the sink. Time to get his game face back on. He rolled up his sleeves, washed the drying salt tracks from his face, ran a hand through his unruly hair, and let out a rallying sigh.

He could do this. For Max.

When he walked back into Sam's office, Max was waiting for him on the couch and Mia and Bradbury had both returned. They were looking at him anxiously, wondering if he was really up for another mentally invasive procedure.

He clapped his hands together loudly. "Let's do this... Again."

Alec sank onto the plush couch next to Max, shoulders touching for support, and looked to Mia for instructions. She glanced at Max apologetically. "He needs to lay down, hunny."

"Roger that."

Everyone expected Max to jump up and get out of the way, but apparently she had other intentions.

She reached over, took hold of Alec's shoulders, and pulled him towards her, settling his back against her chest. Her right hand slid beyond his shoulder and down across his chest, taking his left hand in her own and resting them both on his taut stomach.

"Comfy?" she asked, his still damp hair soft and cool against her cheek.

"I uh… Yeah. Yeah, I'm good," he fumbled out, fighting the blush that threatened to redden his cheeks even more just from knowing his head was resting against Max's 'pillows'instead of the couch's.

"Good." Max gave Alec's hand an approving squeeze as he settled in for the long haul.

Bradbury gaped at the two transgenics, wondering how much he could've possibly missed during those few minutes he had left the room. Mia, on the other hand, was beaming at them.

The doctor shook off his surprise and moved in behind Max, perching himself on the arm of the chair and giving her something more substantial to lean against.

"Alec, I'd like to monitor your vitals while Mia… does her thing," he finished lamely, not really sure what to call it. "If that's okay with you, of course."

"Knock yourself out, Doc," the young transgenic responded, trying not to jerk away as the man slid the cold end of his stethoscope beneath the collar of Alec's sweatshirt. Mia smiled kindly down at Alec, taking hold of his right hand with both of hers.

An unfamiliar sense of serenity flooded through Alec as the constant fear suddenly abated. It had plagued him for so long that he almost forgot what it felt like to not be afraid. He had been trained in the art of fight or flight his entire life, spending every minute in a state of hyperawareness that left him jittery and on edge.

Out in the field, it was a necessary evil. But here, in a neutral location with the knowledge that his biggest enemy was laying in a ditch somewhere, he could finally find peace and surrender to his fate.

For the first time in his life, Alec felt truly safe. He was surrounded by people who really cared about him, nestled in the arms of his closest friend, and they were all working together to fix what was broken in him- to make his pain go away.

He could do this. And no matter what the outcome of their little experiment turned out to be, he knew he'd be able to get through it as long as he didn't have to face it alone.

"Nice and easy now," Mia encouraged, resting one hand against the side of his face. "Just let me do all the work."

Alec let his eyes drift closed and allowed his body to relax. Trust wasn't something he gave easily, but he was willing to make an exception, just this once. He was too exhausted at this point to keep fighting anyway.

He felt Mia invade his thoughts for the second time that night and, with nothing more than a barely noticeable flinch at the discomfort, he gave her full access and was relieved to find the intrusion wasn't nearly as horrible as he remembered.

Mia carefully eased her way in a bit deeper until she found her targeted area and set to work. Giving in to the inevitable, Alec let his mind drift away until his exhaustion won out.

Max felt Alec go limp in her arms and looked up at Bradbury in alarm. He smiled down at her. "Heartbeat's slow and steady. I think he's finally getting some real sleep."

"He's okay, Max," Mia assured. "I may have over done it with the endorphins, but trust me, he's in a happy place right now. I'll try to keep him there till I'm done."

Max nodded, reflexively tightening her protective grip on Alec.

Mia worked as slowly as she could to make the process as painless as possible, placing one metaphorical brick in the wall at a time to allow Alec his much-needed rest. If only she had been strong enough to keep him relaxed when he was a child, it wouldn't have been such a nightmarish experience for him. But alas, she hadn't been much older than he was at the time and she had still been learning how to control her abilities.

She kept a close eye on his face, watching for any signs of pain, and asked Bradbury to keep her apprised of his heart rate and pulse so she could regulate the amount of neurotransmitters flooding his system. It was an extra strain on her, but she had grown fond of Alec and knew he deserved her absolute best this time around.

Max had taken to humming softly, breaking the silence and helping to pass the time. To be honest, she was on the verge of falling asleep herself. Alec was draped over her like a heated blanket, and though she didn't tend to sleep much on a regular basis, these past few days had been more than a little taxing.

But she wasn't about to let her guard down until she knew Alec was in the clear. She owed him that much, and he was trusting her to watch his back. She played with his hair while he slept, curling it around her fingers before brushing the soft strands back out.

Bradbury moved the stethoscope around on Alec's chest and checked the pulse in his neck every once in a while but otherwise acted as a fly on the wall, simply watching and listening for any signs of distress. There were none.

Almost two hours later, Mia slumped forward, dropping her head into her hands with a weary groan. "It's done," she stated, and those two words were both comforting and heart wrenching for Max. She reached out tentatively to brush against Alec's mind but felt no resonating response.

Their mental connection was gone.

TBC

I want to apologize to all of you who have been waiting so patiently for a new chapter! When I put up my last post asking if anyone was still reading, I didn't get any responses so I figured the story was dead in the water and walked away from it. Then about two weeks ago, I went looking for a missing email in my spam folder and found over 150 messages from Fanfic I was completely unaware that I had! Needless to say, I've been working on this new chapter ever since to make up for my negligence.

Thank you all so much for your continued support and I hope this update was worth the wait! I'm finally wrapping this story up so Alec can get the happy ending he deserves. Happy Easter, everyone, and please review!