"Honey. Are you ok?" my mother asked. "That's the third thing you've dropped today."
"Yeah, I'm fine. Just tired," I answered. "I didn't get much sleep." I still was haunted by the dream. I felt stuck, I was drowning in my past, struggling to find the surface, to start living in the present. But no matter how I tried, I couldn't reach it. That was the real distraction, the real reason I couldn't even stand on my own two feet. Lack of sleep I could deal with.
"Why don't you take off early. I can manage the store. There are no more deliveries for today anyway." She emphasized her offer by handing me my coat and purse.
"You sure? I'm…"
"I'm sure," she interrupted, giving me a light shove towards the door. "I'll be home at around 8:30, I have a date with the sheriff. Is that ok?"
"Yes, I'll be fine mom. I'm a big girl," I said with a smile.
"Ok, then 8:30."
"Have fun," I said opening the door. I got into my car and sighed. It had been a long day. I turned the key in the ignition and drove to the Crashdown, a talk with Liz always cheered me up. I liked having friends. I liked being free. But I wasn't. Chains still attached me to my past. But maybe Roswell would break them. Maybe Roswell would wake me up from the nightmare my father had given to me.
I went into the restaurant and looked around for Liz. She wasn't around so I walked to the back to find her.
"Liz," I called, walking into the back room.
"She's in the bathroom," I heard someone say. Looking to my right I saw Max on the couch. Michael and Isabel were there too. Isabel had the same icy look on her face. I wondered if aliens could read minds, cause if she could…well let's just say the look on her face would have been justified.
I looked to Michael but he was staring at the patterns in the carpet. I just couldn't help remembering the dream, how I had felt with him, how his touch made me tingle from head to toe. "Oh," I finally said. I walked towards the bathroom door and knocked.
"Who is it?" I heard from inside.
"It's me," I replied.
"Come in me," she laughed. I heard the lock click, pulled the door open, and squeezed in. Liz was changing into her uniform.
"Little late for work today?" I teased. Normally her shift started around one in the afternoon, it was nearly three.
"Well you got off early didn't you?" she smirked.
"My mom thought I needed a break after dropping a box of alien stickers for the third time." Liz looked at me concerned, apparently wanting an explanation. "I didn't get much sleep and you know I was always a klutz." Liz tilted her head downward and looked at me, she knew I was lying. She always knew when I lied, well most people can tell when I'm lying.
"It's just all this stuff," I sighed. "I mean my father dying, moving back here, aliens. I can't handle it anymore." I broke down, tears soaking my cheeks and shirt. I slid to the floor, beaten. "I just can't. You and my mother are the only good things in my life since…well I can't even remember."
Liz knelt on the floor. She wrapped me in her arms and pulled me to her. "It's going to be ok. You should have seen me the week after Max healed me. I was even more of a wreck than you, if you can believe it."
I laughed a little and choked, "I can believe it." She laughed too. It was obvious Liz was a very emotional person.
"I shouldn't have told you," she whispered.
"Why? Is Max mad at you? Oh my god, I'm so…"
"No he's not mad at me, he was the one who told me I should tell you. I wanted to tell you so bad. We fought about it a lot, but I won."
"I screwed your life up so much." I felt bad. I had come back here and barged in on their lives. It wasn't fair to them.
"No don't say that. I'm glad you came home. This is where you belong." And I knew what she was saying was true. I finally had a place to belong.
"So what's so special about these 'aliens' anyway?" I said leaning up against the door. Liz sat back next to me.
"Lizzie," we heard from behind the door.
"My dad always had perfect timing," she laughed. I got up and held my hand out to her. She took it and I pulled her up off the floor.
"Lizzie, come on you're hours late," Mr. Parker called.
"I'm coming," she said as she stepped through the door. She turned to me, "I'll talk to you later, unless you want to find out on your own."
"I don't think so," I said, there was definite fear laced throughout my voice. We walked out of the bathroom and Liz hurried out to the dining room to start work. I just sort of looked around at the aliens. I felt trapped, their eyes were all on me, all except Michael's. He seemed to be avoiding me. But the others looked like they were trying to melt me to the ground. They gave me the creeps.
"So you're not gonna tell," Max said getting straight to the point. I felt the nervousness, it made me realize how much they were depending on me. The power made me feel better about this whole situation. Their fate was in my hands.
"Well…" I teased, watching Isabel's face going from 'I'm gonna hurt you' to 'I'm gonna kill you.'
"Maria, we're serious," Michael said, his eyes still avoiding me. "We've been through some shit that…" He stopped mid-sentence and looked into my face. I couldn't begin to guess what he was about to say, but he had that same look in his eyes he had had the night before. The same look of horror and pity, and understanding. It must have been some terrific shit, but why that look. The one that told me he knew. But I couldn't figure out how.
"I told you I wouldn't tell. Liz probably told you I wouldn't tell. Why would I care? Why do I care that there are a bunch of aliens living next door to me? Just leave me alone," I said letting my emotions get the best of me. I didn't need to break down again, once was enough for the day, and especially not here. Isabel's expression seemed to soften. Maybe they weren't heartless after all.
"We're not here to hurt you," Max reassured her. "But you can hurt us."
"Fine. I'll stay away from you if you'll stay away from me." I challenged each alien with a stare. My eyes finally resting on Michael, who's eyes seemed glued to my face. He was strange.
"That's not going to work," I thought I heard.
"What?" I spat.
"That isn't going to work," Michael said louder. Isabel turned to face him. I knew what she was thinking. She gave him the same death ray stare she had given me earlier. She wasn't liking me too much.
"And why not?" I questioned.
"Because Liz is always around us," he said, too quickly. "You are friends with Liz. You're gonna run into us sometime." It seemed like a good answer. Although for some reason it didn't piece together right. Michael made me feel like I was trying to put together a puzzle where nothing fit. He also made me feel like a twelve-year-old girl getting asked out for the first time, but I chose to ignore that feeling.
"Fine. Just don't try anything weird on me," I demanded. I was still scared that they had some power to screw up my head or turn me into a bunny or something.
"It's already done," Michael said straight-faced.
"What?" I said skeptically. I'd been through too much to believe someone in these circumstances.
"Michael, cut that shit out," Max laughed.
"But it's fun, Maxwell," he mock whined.
"It's enough. We know she's not gonna tell anyone. Leave her be."
"You ruin all the fun," Michael said. "Right Izzy?" Isabel just leaned down and gave him a quick kiss. My insides flopped. 'Stop,' I told myself. Michael wasn't the type of man I wanted to be with. He was too much like my father, that same fire, the same intensity, the same mean-spiritedness. I could sense it. But then he was very guarded. Maybe it was just a load of shit to keep people away. 'You wish De Luca.'
"Yeah, I'm fine. Just tired," I answered. "I didn't get much sleep." I still was haunted by the dream. I felt stuck, I was drowning in my past, struggling to find the surface, to start living in the present. But no matter how I tried, I couldn't reach it. That was the real distraction, the real reason I couldn't even stand on my own two feet. Lack of sleep I could deal with.
"Why don't you take off early. I can manage the store. There are no more deliveries for today anyway." She emphasized her offer by handing me my coat and purse.
"You sure? I'm…"
"I'm sure," she interrupted, giving me a light shove towards the door. "I'll be home at around 8:30, I have a date with the sheriff. Is that ok?"
"Yes, I'll be fine mom. I'm a big girl," I said with a smile.
"Ok, then 8:30."
"Have fun," I said opening the door. I got into my car and sighed. It had been a long day. I turned the key in the ignition and drove to the Crashdown, a talk with Liz always cheered me up. I liked having friends. I liked being free. But I wasn't. Chains still attached me to my past. But maybe Roswell would break them. Maybe Roswell would wake me up from the nightmare my father had given to me.
I went into the restaurant and looked around for Liz. She wasn't around so I walked to the back to find her.
"Liz," I called, walking into the back room.
"She's in the bathroom," I heard someone say. Looking to my right I saw Max on the couch. Michael and Isabel were there too. Isabel had the same icy look on her face. I wondered if aliens could read minds, cause if she could…well let's just say the look on her face would have been justified.
I looked to Michael but he was staring at the patterns in the carpet. I just couldn't help remembering the dream, how I had felt with him, how his touch made me tingle from head to toe. "Oh," I finally said. I walked towards the bathroom door and knocked.
"Who is it?" I heard from inside.
"It's me," I replied.
"Come in me," she laughed. I heard the lock click, pulled the door open, and squeezed in. Liz was changing into her uniform.
"Little late for work today?" I teased. Normally her shift started around one in the afternoon, it was nearly three.
"Well you got off early didn't you?" she smirked.
"My mom thought I needed a break after dropping a box of alien stickers for the third time." Liz looked at me concerned, apparently wanting an explanation. "I didn't get much sleep and you know I was always a klutz." Liz tilted her head downward and looked at me, she knew I was lying. She always knew when I lied, well most people can tell when I'm lying.
"It's just all this stuff," I sighed. "I mean my father dying, moving back here, aliens. I can't handle it anymore." I broke down, tears soaking my cheeks and shirt. I slid to the floor, beaten. "I just can't. You and my mother are the only good things in my life since…well I can't even remember."
Liz knelt on the floor. She wrapped me in her arms and pulled me to her. "It's going to be ok. You should have seen me the week after Max healed me. I was even more of a wreck than you, if you can believe it."
I laughed a little and choked, "I can believe it." She laughed too. It was obvious Liz was a very emotional person.
"I shouldn't have told you," she whispered.
"Why? Is Max mad at you? Oh my god, I'm so…"
"No he's not mad at me, he was the one who told me I should tell you. I wanted to tell you so bad. We fought about it a lot, but I won."
"I screwed your life up so much." I felt bad. I had come back here and barged in on their lives. It wasn't fair to them.
"No don't say that. I'm glad you came home. This is where you belong." And I knew what she was saying was true. I finally had a place to belong.
"So what's so special about these 'aliens' anyway?" I said leaning up against the door. Liz sat back next to me.
"Lizzie," we heard from behind the door.
"My dad always had perfect timing," she laughed. I got up and held my hand out to her. She took it and I pulled her up off the floor.
"Lizzie, come on you're hours late," Mr. Parker called.
"I'm coming," she said as she stepped through the door. She turned to me, "I'll talk to you later, unless you want to find out on your own."
"I don't think so," I said, there was definite fear laced throughout my voice. We walked out of the bathroom and Liz hurried out to the dining room to start work. I just sort of looked around at the aliens. I felt trapped, their eyes were all on me, all except Michael's. He seemed to be avoiding me. But the others looked like they were trying to melt me to the ground. They gave me the creeps.
"So you're not gonna tell," Max said getting straight to the point. I felt the nervousness, it made me realize how much they were depending on me. The power made me feel better about this whole situation. Their fate was in my hands.
"Well…" I teased, watching Isabel's face going from 'I'm gonna hurt you' to 'I'm gonna kill you.'
"Maria, we're serious," Michael said, his eyes still avoiding me. "We've been through some shit that…" He stopped mid-sentence and looked into my face. I couldn't begin to guess what he was about to say, but he had that same look in his eyes he had had the night before. The same look of horror and pity, and understanding. It must have been some terrific shit, but why that look. The one that told me he knew. But I couldn't figure out how.
"I told you I wouldn't tell. Liz probably told you I wouldn't tell. Why would I care? Why do I care that there are a bunch of aliens living next door to me? Just leave me alone," I said letting my emotions get the best of me. I didn't need to break down again, once was enough for the day, and especially not here. Isabel's expression seemed to soften. Maybe they weren't heartless after all.
"We're not here to hurt you," Max reassured her. "But you can hurt us."
"Fine. I'll stay away from you if you'll stay away from me." I challenged each alien with a stare. My eyes finally resting on Michael, who's eyes seemed glued to my face. He was strange.
"That's not going to work," I thought I heard.
"What?" I spat.
"That isn't going to work," Michael said louder. Isabel turned to face him. I knew what she was thinking. She gave him the same death ray stare she had given me earlier. She wasn't liking me too much.
"And why not?" I questioned.
"Because Liz is always around us," he said, too quickly. "You are friends with Liz. You're gonna run into us sometime." It seemed like a good answer. Although for some reason it didn't piece together right. Michael made me feel like I was trying to put together a puzzle where nothing fit. He also made me feel like a twelve-year-old girl getting asked out for the first time, but I chose to ignore that feeling.
"Fine. Just don't try anything weird on me," I demanded. I was still scared that they had some power to screw up my head or turn me into a bunny or something.
"It's already done," Michael said straight-faced.
"What?" I said skeptically. I'd been through too much to believe someone in these circumstances.
"Michael, cut that shit out," Max laughed.
"But it's fun, Maxwell," he mock whined.
"It's enough. We know she's not gonna tell anyone. Leave her be."
"You ruin all the fun," Michael said. "Right Izzy?" Isabel just leaned down and gave him a quick kiss. My insides flopped. 'Stop,' I told myself. Michael wasn't the type of man I wanted to be with. He was too much like my father, that same fire, the same intensity, the same mean-spiritedness. I could sense it. But then he was very guarded. Maybe it was just a load of shit to keep people away. 'You wish De Luca.'