Zack stood tall, staring up at the tall tower in front of him. There was a light on in the penthouse window, and for some reason he had the desire to go see the person living there. He thought he knew them, he had a pulling memory that there was some unfinished business that needed to be taken care of. He knew it was insane; he had never been to Seattle, never met anyone from Seattle. He had spent almost his entire life on the farm, but for some reason he felt himself pulled into the building and up to the top floor.
***
Half an hour later, Max and Cindy pulled up to Foggle Towers. They both jumped off, and Max led Cindy to the elevator. After they were in the elevator, Max wondered if she should have really brought Cindy with her. She had brought Cindy as an innocent girl, someone who could go see if Zack was in Logan's apartment without actually risking Zack recognizing her. Max, however, now realized that if Zack was pissed, it was not a good idea to send Cindy in to try and hold off a X5. Max turned to Cindy as the elevator slowed. "You go back to the lobby, wait for me. I'll meet you there in an hour-- if I'm not back, then call the police."
Before Cindy could respond, Max slipped out of the elevator and the doors closed behind her. As she neared the door to his apartment, she noticed the door was open. Her heart froze, but before she went to see what had happened she heard footsteps. She stood against the wall, hiding behind a corner. She saw a blond man walk out of the apartment, and push the button for the elevator. As the doors slid silently open and the man walked in, Max saw, for a brief second, his face. His face was enough to make her heart break-- it was not the face of Adam, or Zack, it was the face of X5-___. His eyes were empty, and he did not seem human. All that he stood for was gone, and it was all her fault. As she heard the elevator leave, she rushed into Logan's apartment. She headed to the study, where he would have been sitting. She found him, sitting in his chair. She felt a flood of relief, but as she said his name and he didn't respond, she felt a single tear run down her face.
She walked around to the front of the chair, pulling it back. He was frozen, eyes frozen open with fear. There was no show of any beating, no blood. Max reached out tot ouch him, any thought of the virus gone-- what good would it do now, now that he was dead?-- and his empty body fell forward. Against the back of the chair was a huge stain, crimson like blood. It looked fake to Max's eyes, but she knew the truth when she examined his back. A single tine hole, not a gun shot but more like a tiny knife of needle, lay right below the base of his neck, between his shoulder blades. She ran her fingers over it, the gash still bleeding freely. As Max looked in shock at warm blood on her fingers, she was lost in time. Almost in slow motion did she watch a single drop of blood fall off her fingers. She blood, a perfect tear drop, fell to the carpet. Right before it hit the carpet, Max flashed through her life-- or at least, the time when she had been REALLY alive. Logan had done that for her, she knew, and as her time flashed the tears welled up.
::From
the first time I crashed into his life::
"You're a thief?"
"Girl's got to make a living."
"Thank God."
"First time I ever heard that one."
"I was expecting someone else."
"Guess it wasn't the pizza delivery guy.
"We're just a little tense right now.
"You have good taste. French, 1920s, a tribute to Chitarus."
"Whoever that is."
"Oh. So... What, you liked it 'cause it was shiny?"
"No, because it's the Egyptian goddess Bast, the goddess who comprehends
all goddesses, eye of Ra, protector, avenger, destroyer...giver of life who
lives forever."
(pilot, meeting)
::He tried to give me a soul::
"So you miss the good old days. Even though there were still poor people
who died from diseases when they didn't need to and rich people who still spent
obscene amounts of money redecorating the house to match the cat. Those good
old days?"
"Even if they took it for granted, they still had a choice. Now they
don't."
"So what are you going to do about it?"
"Something."
"Personally, I'm more interested in going fast on my motorcycle than
giving myself a headache over stuff I can't do anything about."
"You accept the way things are...you're an active participant in making
them worse."
(pilot, logan recruiting max)
::and our chemistry was undeniable, but always working against us, getting
us in trouble::
"I haven't been able to get you off my mind."
"You need to get out more."
"Come here. I want to show you something."
"American, neoclassic gold leaf detail, late 1800s. I could probably fence
it for two or three grand."
"No, I meant this. Probably the most singularly beautiful face I've ever
seen."
"Expensive gifts, surprise late-night visits, over-the-top flattery. Do
you always come on this strong?"
"Only when I meet someone I have to know everything about."
(pilot, logan finds out about max)
::he was always looking out for me, and doing what was right; even if meant
sending me away::
"You're
going to be okay, you know?"
"Oh, yeah. I'll be better than okay. It's the way I'm made. It's you I'm
worried about."
"I'll miss you."
"You could always ditch it all and go on the lam with me. Great way to visit
exotic places meet new people."
"I'd just slow you down."
"It's okay."
"I have to go back. Someone has to watch out for the downtrodden. Blah, blah,
woof, woof, right?"
"Right."
"Take care of yourself."
"You, too."
(blahblahwoofwoof, goodbye kiss)
::and the first time I kissed him was…. amazing. I never forgot that, or
anything we shared::
"Dance with me."
"I can't."
"Sure, you can. Mind over matter."
"See, my problem is I can't walk."
"I'm not asking you to walk. Just dance."
"Whose dream is this, anyway... Yours or mine?"
"Don't ask me."
"You okay?"
"Yeah. I'm just a little dizzy."
"Do you want to stop?"
"No. Don't let go."
"I won't."
"Promise?"
"I promise."
(blahblahwoofwoof, dream sequence)
::still, we were so stupid to just brush it off- we never really had a
chance again::
"Will you look at us?"
"Pathetic."
"Hopeless."
"Lucky we hooked up."
"Happy anniversary."
(meow, anniversary)
::after our anniversary, fate turned against us::
"Max…
Max. Oh, God. Okay, it's okay. You're going to be okay… This isn't bad."
"Logan…"
"It's okay. You're going to be all right."
"I'm sorry."
"No, no, no, no. No, we're going to get you out of here. Okay, it's going to be
all right."
"There's something I've got to tell you. I should've said something a long time
ago."
"It can wait."
"Logan..."
"Max."
(ajbac, max's 'death')
::and that night, I never got to tell him I loved him… he never heard the
words::
"Max."
"We gotta get you out of here. They're coming to get you."
"We gotta go. They're coming to get you."
"Who? What's going on? How did you—"
"I'll explain later. Come on."
"No, I have to finish my broadcast."
"Forget it. It's not important."
"What's wrong?"
"I don't know. I—"
"Logan, what's happening?"
"You killed
him, that's what's happening."
(designate this, max's return)
::the final kiss that almost killed him; now he's dead anyway- and we never got
to say the words::
"Logan, I know I never said it, but I love you. Always and forever." Max found herself whispering. As the tears poured from her eyes, she forced herself to not break down.
Max reached out to push Logan's empty body back into the chair. As she did that, she brushed her hand over his forehead, down his face. She traced her hand over his eyes, gently closing the lids, and with one final gesture she kissed the top of his head. She turned and walked out, the only sign some had been there a single drop of red blood on standing out like fire on the pale carpet.
A/N: Okay, I'm going to post an epilogue now, and then hopefully I will have gotten all this depressing stuff out of my system.
