The next day...

"Max...." Max snapped out of her daze to see Sketchy waving his hand in front of her face. She grabbed his arm and glared at him, "What do you want?" Laughing, OC came to his rescue. "Hot flash here was just tryin' to bring you back to the same place as the rest of us. Where you been boo?"

Max really didn't know. "Just spaced I guess. What time is it?"

OC gave her a look but kept quiet. There were some things that you just didn't talk about in front of Sketchy. "Aiight but it's almost five. You'd better get out of here before you get caught on another late run like yesterday."

Knowing OC was right, Max grabbed her stuff from her locker and snuck out the door. That's how it worked. You might be able to put up with an extra run one day but she'd be damned if she would do it again. Normal might get used to it.

When she got to her bike she noticed something hanging from one of the handlebars. There was a small piece of old string. Attached to it was a note. On the front was a childish picture of a cat's face with whiskers and it said "Meow." When she opened it, Max had to laugh. There, in a child's scrawl was one word...Thanks. "Well, well," she thought, "not only does the girl have skills...she's polite too..."

She was smiling and wondering about it when her pager went off. Impatiently, she reached for it and check. Of course, it was Mr. Grump himself. The wheeled wonder who would rather kill himself before letting anyone help him. Sighing, she put the note in her pocket and headed to Logan's...

*******
As Max got to Logan's door, the lights went out. Adjusting to the lack of light, her eyes focused on the lock as she used her "skills" to get in. She silently closed the door behind her as she heard a muffled curse as a fist hit the desk, "Oh, come on..." She had expected to see him facing his computer but his back was to it...and her.

Between his anger and the brown out, he never saw her come in. Amused, she crossed the room and put her coat on a chair.

"Trouble in paradise?"

Startled, he looked around for her. "Very funny Max. Let's torment those with normal vision who can't see in the dark." She sighed to herself. (So this is how we're going to be tonight...)

He reached around and found a flashlight, turned it on and set it on the desk. "At least I can see now."

Max lost the grin she had been wearing and looked at him. "Sorry. Sometimes us genetically revved peeps get carried away. Want me to get some candles?"

"No thanks. I can do that. I may not be able to walk or see in the dark but I can certainly light some candles." With that, he wheeled out of the room.

Max followed him. Her concern was now developing into irritation. "What is your problem? Did you call me over so you can yell at me? I can go back to work and get that from Normal."

Putting some candles on his lap, he wheeled passed Max into the living room. "No," he said, as he lit the candles and grabbed the flashlight. "I wanted to tell you something."

Her hands went to her hips. "Well?"

"I am thinking of closing Eyes Only."

Max's jaw dropped. She shook her head in disbelief as if she had been hearing things. "You said you are thinking about what?"

"You heard me."

"Why would you do that?"

After a few moments of silence, he rolled himself to the windows. "Maybe I am tired of trying to save the world. Look where it's gotten me..." his voice trailed off. "I can't even save myself."

Max approached his chair and put her hand on his shoulder. She felt him tense under her touch. "Logan, why do you do this to yourself."

He shrugged off her hand and stared out the window. The beam from the flashlight was shining through the window onto the sky. After a second, he turned to Max and shined the light at her. "Well Max, I guess every light has to go out sometime." With that, he shut the light off and sat in the dark.

When the light had gone off, Max had been staring at Logan's eyes. Those eyes that had always been so deep...so passionate. They now looked half dead. It almost sickened her. She knew she had to get out of there.

She brought her face inches from his and stared at him one more time in the dark. "Ok Logan. You want to give up on yourself, go ahead. You want to stop helping people, fine. You can stop living if you want but I'll be damned if I will sit here and watch it. I've paid too much for mine."

With that she turned on her heel and went out the door, not quite as silently as she had come in.