Disclaimer: Are they up for adoption yet? Currently belong to Cameron etc. blah blah blah.

Authors Note: Okay hope you enjoy this, please review if you want me to continue because without it my muse hides crying in a corner.

FLINT AND FIRE

Chapter 2 - Scorching

Max shifted her feet feeling unusually hesitant. "Hey." She said simply to the man whose head was buried in the rust covered locker. Alec jerked back and saw Max standing there chewing on her lower lip. He eyed her emotionlessly.

"Hey." He said in the type of voice that discouraged any continuation of conversation. Alec turned back to his locker and stuffed a sweater into his back pack.

Max sighed inwardly, this wasn't how she wanted this to go and as always when she felt guilty or nervous she hid it with the emotion she knew best. Anger. "You know it wasn't my fault. I mean your always doing this kind of stupid thing what were Logan and I supposed to think?" Max demanded.

A tight look passed Alec's face and compressed his normally smiling mouth into a twisted line. "So can I take that newest insult to mean you've found out it wasn't me that hit the jewellery store?" He asked sardonically.

Max winced slightly. This wasn't what she had planned. But as always every time she got near Alec he put each one of her raw nerves on edge. "Look I didn't come here to fight Alec-" Max tried to soften her tone but was interrupted by Alec slamming his locker shut.

"No? Well that sure as hell didn't sound like an olive branch of peace to me. Nor did it sound like an apology for baselessly accusing me of fucking up." Alec said challengingly his eyes cold as he surveyed the deceptively fragile looking woman in front of him. Max chose that moment to look up from the ground and she caught his gaze with her own. Warm brown eyes clashed with defensive hazel and for a spilt second Alec thought he saw such confusion and conflict before she shuttered her vulnerability with the best of Manticore training. Instead heat flared in her eyes at his words.

"Its hardly baseless considering how many times you've fucked up in the past! Or do I really need to remind you of getting captured by White, losing me my baseball, costing me and Logan the cure…"

At the recitation of past events Alec felt his own temper snap. "Yeah God forbid you cant get it on with the almighty eyes only. You know Max maybe all you need is a good lay to get over your so called great love!"

Max fisted her hand in Alec's leather coat and fairly threw him against the lockers. "Don't- Don't even talk about what you cant understand. Maybe all you want out of life is some cheap whore in your bed but Logan and I mean more than that. God how could any woman ever trust you enough to love you?!"

Rachel. A car exploded in his head. Her scream echoed in his memory. His heart clenched in his chest.

Alec knocked Max's hand away from where she held him and before she could blink he reversed their positions, slamming her small body hard against metal. His large hands wrapped bruisingly against Max's slender wrists as he pinned her there.

Max felt the first small spark of fear as she felt her back impact and the painful grip on her wrists. His eyes were wild and empty as he stared blindly at her face. "Alec." She whispered his name, afraid to startle him. Why was he acting this way? They had fought so many times and he had never looked like this before.

"Alec?" Another voice came from behind the pair. Sketchy was standing there looking worriedly at the scene before him. Alec's grip tightened instinctively. Max's gaze shifted to her friend and then back to Alec.

"Alec." Max said softly but urgently, trying to break through to wherever he was. Alec blinked slowly and Max saw a glimmer of his old self come through. His eyes darted over her face and then to his hands where he was still clenching her wrists.

Alec released her as though her skin was on fire. Leaping back he stumbled into Sketchy who despite his concern at situation steadied his drinking buddy. "Hey man, you alright?" Alec looked at Max who shakily folded her arms across her chest, subtly pulling her sleeves down to hide the bruises already darkening where he had held her.

"Yeah." Alec shook his head and ran his fingers through his hair, his tell of heightened emotions. He looked at Max. "I just-" He stumbled over what to say. The look in her eyes horrified him. She looked… Afraid. "Max, I'm sor-"

"I gotta go." Max pushed past both Alec and sketchy as she headed out of the locker room. Alec listened to Normal yell after Max as she apparently ran out of Jam Pony at breakneck speed. Leaning his head against wall he cursed himself. He had lost control. He had let himself fight with Max and his feeling and past ghosts got the better of him.

"Fuck!" Alec slammed his fist into the metal of the locker, welcoming the stinging pain that instantly throbbed in his hand. Sketchy stepped back instinctively.

"What's going on dude? Is Max okay?" Alec turned and faced his best friend. The other man looked at him with a cross of wariness and worry, obviously confused about what he had walked in on.

"Everything's fine Sketch." Alec managed to get out over the lump in his throat. "Max and I were just having a few words and things got out of hand."

Sketchy looked distinctively not reassured. "Yeah I could see that. Look man I know you wouldn't hurt anyone on purpose but I gotta say it looked intense." With that Sketchy walked away.

Alec closed his eyes. The caution in Sketchy's eyes when he looked at him hurt. His friend seemed doubtful even when claiming he knew Alec wouldn't hurt anyone. Hurt anyone… God if he knew… So many people, even those I love…

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Max rushed out of Jam Pony with a parcel clutched close to her chest. She was physically and emotionally shaken by what had just occurred. For a moment, just a moment she had been afraid of Alec, afraid that he would hurt her. Shame filled her at the recognition of her fear followed closely by guilt. I pushed him, I just had to keep pushing his buttons didn't I. Max thought angry at herself. Alec would never hurt me, I know he's a jerk but he never even hurt me when I was his mission back at Manticore and he was under orders.

Max jumped on her bicycle and rode off down the damp streets of Seattle, trying to hide from the thoughts that ran riot in her mind. I still have to find this guy who ripped off the jewellery store.

Max mentally rolled her eyes at the memory of Logan's lecture and then instantly berated herself for it. Logan was only trying to help her be a better person, to be more than Manticore had intended. She hated the way she felt herself rebel against his controlling nature sometimes and the instinct to behave as the soldier she had been trained to be and the tough street wise cat burglar she had learnt to be. It was all very well for Logan to preach his morals and ethics on what was appropriate behaviour but he had never been tortured and brain washed as a child, never abused, never had to survive on the streets alone and unloved.

She had done the best she could with what life had given her and sometimes the expectations Logan seemed to have just seemed too - unattainable. Max felt a deep shame inside her betrayal. I'm doing what's right aren't I? She argued to herself. I'm finding this guy, helping Eyes Only, looking out for every transgenic in the city, what more can I do? Yet it was never enough, Max knew this, in the eyes of Logan could it ever be enough to change what she was at the core of her being.

A genetically engineered freak trained to kill. No matter how much Max fought that label, it was what she was.

TBC.