Chapter Three
"Hey, Max?", Liz asked as he walked into the living room, a glass of coke in each hand. "Why is part of this blacked out?"
He set the glasses down on the coffee table. "Well,", he said, blushing. "They're...kind of...personal."
"I thought all of this was-" Looking up, she noticed his embarrassment. Understanding dawned on her, causing her to blush too. "Oh." She quickly changed the subject. "So, is this basically telling you you're not a king."
Max sat down on the couch beside Liz. "Well, not exactly. You might say I have a double identity. On one hand, I'm just a teenage boy with alien powers. On the other, I'm the reincarnation of a great king who many want dead out of fear I'll find my way home and claim what's rightfully mine."
Liz sighed. "So nothing's really changed."
Max took her hand in one of his and, gently, turned her face toward his with the other, forcing her to look him in the eyes. "Everything has changed. If I showed up on Antar tomorrow morning, they would have to give me the throne. But I'm not going to. Even this book says it would be suicide and it couldn't have been written less than a year after Khivar took control. If the leaders at the Summit were willing to deal that was a good indication his hold hasn't slipped much - if any. My home is here, Liz."
"It sounded like your mother expected you to come back and save them in that message.", Liz reminded him.
"Isabel and I don't know whether or not we trust that message or not.", Max said. "Naesado could've tampered with it or completely made it up. Besides, we don't know if she's still alive and it's not worth getting killed over to find out."
He leaned closer to her. Liz could feel every fiber in her body awaken as he came near her. She knew this feeling. She had felt it when they were together with every look, embrace and kiss.
It was different this time though - stronger. His touch burned her skin with a white-hot intensity. They had been through so much. They deserved happiness. "Max..."
"Liz," Max swallowed hard. "When I was in that cave, away from you for so long, I thought...I thought I was going to lose my sanity. I could feel it slipping through my fingers, Liz. That wasn't even real. If I was ever truly separated from you, I...I don't know what would happen to me. I don't think I would make it. I need you."
Tears dimmed Liz's vision. "What are we going to do, Max?"
He shook his head. "I don't know where we go from here." He wiped away a tear as it slid down her face. "But I know wherever it is, it's supposed to be with you."
She shook her head. "But Tess--"
"I don't love, Tess. We've grown closer since--" He stopped and swallowed again, unable to finish the sentence. "But not like that. I told you. She can never be you, Liz."
She pulled away as he leaned closer - but only a little. She was tired of feeling this way. Their time apart had been hard on both of them. Her experience in the cave, her heart, everything told her to surrender to this all-encompassing love once again. The Future Max situation she had examined so hard just four days ago still bothered her. Maybe it would always bother her.
Max pressed his lips to her's. Liz hesitated only a moment before allowing his mouth to claim hers, his tongue drawing hers into the dance they had danced dozens of times before.
Visions instantly flooded Max's mind: the crystal ball, the romance between Dhelmanex and Lilith and the awful pain and sorrow she had witnessed toward the end. The last vision caused tears to well up in his own eyes. The pain almost caused him to break the kiss they had waited so long to share - almost.
More visions flashed through his mind. These weren't from the cave. These were older memories and yet....some seemed too impossible to have happened at all.
Flashes of a broken planet - Earth - whirled by, millions of dead people laying everywhere, he and Liz - an older version - in the Granolith chamber, him warping through time and space to land outside Liz's window, asking for help. Flashes of Liz's attempt to severe the tie between them in order to save the world sent a painful jolt of guilt through his heart over the way he'd treated her before he went to New York.
"Oh, Liz!", he whispered, finally breaking the kiss. "I'm so sorry."
Knowing what he'd just seen, Liz leaned forward, sobbing into his shoulder. "Me too, Max. Me too."
Michael stood at the entrance to Maria's room, staring at the mess covering most of the floor. He had seen disasters like this on television. His own apartment had looked similar when Topolsky had ransacked it looking for the orb.
"Maria!"
Her head popped up from the other side of the bed, her long, honey-blond hair covering most of her face. "Yeah?" She sounded like she'd just run a marathon.
"What are doing?"
She took a deep breath. "Well, after our little trip with Laurie, mom bought an answering machine so I could check in if anything like that happens again - which she made clear better not. Anyway, dad called this morning when no one was here. I was going to call him back and I deleted the damn message. I have his number here somewhere. I just can't find it."
Michael waded through the mess, stepping only where he was sure he wouldn't break anything. Gingerly, he sat down on the bed. "Your dad? I didn't know you communicated with him anymore."
"We don't much.", she admitted. That was an understatement. She had only talked to him about ten times in the last ten years. She still blamed him for breaking up their family and leaving her and her mom to rot in Roswell. "He said it was important. I'd like to know what he was talking about."
"You think he's coming back to Roswell?"
"I don't know, Michael. I'd like to find out though."
Michael reached down on the floor, picked up a pair of jeans that looked to be two sizes smaller than the others and reached into the back pocket. Pulling out a piece of notebook paper, he handed it to her.
Maria unfolded it and, finding what she'd been searching for, started making her way through the mess she'd made. "Aliens.", she muttered as she left Michael sitting on the bed.
Sighing, Michael followed reluctantly. He didn't feel as happy as he should for Maria. After all, her dad might be coming home to be more involved in his daughter's life or maybe he was taking a job close by. Michael would believe it when he saw it and not a moment before. People sucked. He'd said before and he'd continue until it became the exception rather than the rule.
Leaning against the kitchen counter, he watched as Maria dialed the number and then hung up a few seconds later. "Your call not be connected at this time. Please try again.", she said, mimicking the prissy operator's voice.
"Don't worry.", Michael said. "He'll probably call back."
She sighed. "Yeah. Probably. Hey, you talked to Liz today?"
"No,", he said. "Me and Isabel left before she got to Max's. Even though they're dealing with stuff important to all of us, we felt they needed some time alone, especially after what you told us."
Covering her face with her hands, she groaned. "I can't believe I said that. That was like super secret and I spilled it."
Michael hugged her, running his hands up and down her back, trying to soothe her worries. "No one's going to say anything.", he assured her.
"God, I hope not."
"Hey, Max?", Liz asked as he walked into the living room, a glass of coke in each hand. "Why is part of this blacked out?"
He set the glasses down on the coffee table. "Well,", he said, blushing. "They're...kind of...personal."
"I thought all of this was-" Looking up, she noticed his embarrassment. Understanding dawned on her, causing her to blush too. "Oh." She quickly changed the subject. "So, is this basically telling you you're not a king."
Max sat down on the couch beside Liz. "Well, not exactly. You might say I have a double identity. On one hand, I'm just a teenage boy with alien powers. On the other, I'm the reincarnation of a great king who many want dead out of fear I'll find my way home and claim what's rightfully mine."
Liz sighed. "So nothing's really changed."
Max took her hand in one of his and, gently, turned her face toward his with the other, forcing her to look him in the eyes. "Everything has changed. If I showed up on Antar tomorrow morning, they would have to give me the throne. But I'm not going to. Even this book says it would be suicide and it couldn't have been written less than a year after Khivar took control. If the leaders at the Summit were willing to deal that was a good indication his hold hasn't slipped much - if any. My home is here, Liz."
"It sounded like your mother expected you to come back and save them in that message.", Liz reminded him.
"Isabel and I don't know whether or not we trust that message or not.", Max said. "Naesado could've tampered with it or completely made it up. Besides, we don't know if she's still alive and it's not worth getting killed over to find out."
He leaned closer to her. Liz could feel every fiber in her body awaken as he came near her. She knew this feeling. She had felt it when they were together with every look, embrace and kiss.
It was different this time though - stronger. His touch burned her skin with a white-hot intensity. They had been through so much. They deserved happiness. "Max..."
"Liz," Max swallowed hard. "When I was in that cave, away from you for so long, I thought...I thought I was going to lose my sanity. I could feel it slipping through my fingers, Liz. That wasn't even real. If I was ever truly separated from you, I...I don't know what would happen to me. I don't think I would make it. I need you."
Tears dimmed Liz's vision. "What are we going to do, Max?"
He shook his head. "I don't know where we go from here." He wiped away a tear as it slid down her face. "But I know wherever it is, it's supposed to be with you."
She shook her head. "But Tess--"
"I don't love, Tess. We've grown closer since--" He stopped and swallowed again, unable to finish the sentence. "But not like that. I told you. She can never be you, Liz."
She pulled away as he leaned closer - but only a little. She was tired of feeling this way. Their time apart had been hard on both of them. Her experience in the cave, her heart, everything told her to surrender to this all-encompassing love once again. The Future Max situation she had examined so hard just four days ago still bothered her. Maybe it would always bother her.
Max pressed his lips to her's. Liz hesitated only a moment before allowing his mouth to claim hers, his tongue drawing hers into the dance they had danced dozens of times before.
Visions instantly flooded Max's mind: the crystal ball, the romance between Dhelmanex and Lilith and the awful pain and sorrow she had witnessed toward the end. The last vision caused tears to well up in his own eyes. The pain almost caused him to break the kiss they had waited so long to share - almost.
More visions flashed through his mind. These weren't from the cave. These were older memories and yet....some seemed too impossible to have happened at all.
Flashes of a broken planet - Earth - whirled by, millions of dead people laying everywhere, he and Liz - an older version - in the Granolith chamber, him warping through time and space to land outside Liz's window, asking for help. Flashes of Liz's attempt to severe the tie between them in order to save the world sent a painful jolt of guilt through his heart over the way he'd treated her before he went to New York.
"Oh, Liz!", he whispered, finally breaking the kiss. "I'm so sorry."
Knowing what he'd just seen, Liz leaned forward, sobbing into his shoulder. "Me too, Max. Me too."
Michael stood at the entrance to Maria's room, staring at the mess covering most of the floor. He had seen disasters like this on television. His own apartment had looked similar when Topolsky had ransacked it looking for the orb.
"Maria!"
Her head popped up from the other side of the bed, her long, honey-blond hair covering most of her face. "Yeah?" She sounded like she'd just run a marathon.
"What are doing?"
She took a deep breath. "Well, after our little trip with Laurie, mom bought an answering machine so I could check in if anything like that happens again - which she made clear better not. Anyway, dad called this morning when no one was here. I was going to call him back and I deleted the damn message. I have his number here somewhere. I just can't find it."
Michael waded through the mess, stepping only where he was sure he wouldn't break anything. Gingerly, he sat down on the bed. "Your dad? I didn't know you communicated with him anymore."
"We don't much.", she admitted. That was an understatement. She had only talked to him about ten times in the last ten years. She still blamed him for breaking up their family and leaving her and her mom to rot in Roswell. "He said it was important. I'd like to know what he was talking about."
"You think he's coming back to Roswell?"
"I don't know, Michael. I'd like to find out though."
Michael reached down on the floor, picked up a pair of jeans that looked to be two sizes smaller than the others and reached into the back pocket. Pulling out a piece of notebook paper, he handed it to her.
Maria unfolded it and, finding what she'd been searching for, started making her way through the mess she'd made. "Aliens.", she muttered as she left Michael sitting on the bed.
Sighing, Michael followed reluctantly. He didn't feel as happy as he should for Maria. After all, her dad might be coming home to be more involved in his daughter's life or maybe he was taking a job close by. Michael would believe it when he saw it and not a moment before. People sucked. He'd said before and he'd continue until it became the exception rather than the rule.
Leaning against the kitchen counter, he watched as Maria dialed the number and then hung up a few seconds later. "Your call not be connected at this time. Please try again.", she said, mimicking the prissy operator's voice.
"Don't worry.", Michael said. "He'll probably call back."
She sighed. "Yeah. Probably. Hey, you talked to Liz today?"
"No,", he said. "Me and Isabel left before she got to Max's. Even though they're dealing with stuff important to all of us, we felt they needed some time alone, especially after what you told us."
Covering her face with her hands, she groaned. "I can't believe I said that. That was like super secret and I spilled it."
Michael hugged her, running his hands up and down her back, trying to soothe her worries. "No one's going to say anything.", he assured her.
"God, I hope not."