Story Title : What You Can't Have
Chapter Title : Strained Relations
Disclaimer : All DA characters, references etc belong to Cameron/Eglee and Fox. Katie belongs to me.
Summary : Max re-analyses her feelings for Alec after a new female becomes interested in him. M/A Post FN.
A/N : A shower of hugs and kisses go to my w-o-n-d-e-r-f-u-l beta, Whisper. More x's and o's go to my a-w-e-s-o-m-e reviewers, a reply to each of you at the end of this chapter. On with the show!
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(Outside TC HQ, Present)
Max looked upon the growing number of raucous transgenics outside with horror. Knowing that there was only one person who could get them so worked up was in the middle of it all, she made a mad dash through the cheering melee.
What the hell has Logan gotten himself into now? She wondered as she raced through the crowd of people.
"Move, people, move!" She soon neared the center, where two people seemed to be having a stand-off. Mole was looming dangerously over Logan, his cigar flicking dangerously. Logan, on the other hand, was clad only in his pre-pulse Tweenies boxers and a dirty singlet. His exo-skeleton was clearly visible, and made Max want to flinch away in revulsion.
"Max, thank God you're here!" Logan made to grab her, but withdrew at the last second, remembering the virus. "I don't know what's happening. They just turned on me and dragged me-" he whimpered, desperately trying to earn Max's sympathy.
"He's a filthy, lying ordinary!" Mole's loud voice rang out. "Thinks he's better than us, giving us order-"
"Enough!" Max yelled angrily, cutting him off. She then stomped her foot just for effect, glaring at the crowd. "I don't care what happened or why it happened! Go back to work." With much reluctance the crowd slowly dissipated, leaving only herself and the two antagonists.
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(Max, Alec and Katie's Apartment, 6:00pm)
Katie sighed luxuriously as she slid into the hot water of the small bathtub. She really was lucky, being able to find accommodation so easily. She owed it all to that gorgeous X5, Alec, of course.
The word gorgeous doesn't do him justice, she mused and smiled to herself, picturing his perfect countenance.
He was so sweet when she ran into him at HQ. She'd been desperate for a room to stay in for the night, since she had only arrived in TC. And straight out of nowhere came her knight in shining armour, offering her a permanent residence. A permanent residence with him. No right-minded female would turn him down.
Maybe except Max. But that was a topic of thought for tomorrow's bath. With much reluctance, she rose and looked for a towel.
My fault for not getting one before, I guess.
She picked up a small white piece of material that looked like half a towel, and wrapped it around herself as best she could. Opening the bathroom door, she glanced at the clock on the opposite wall. Six-fifteen. Almost time for dinner.
Sauntering across the room, her thoughts remained on Alec.
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(Terminal City HQ, 6:00pm)
"Logan, I can't believe you did that." Came the cold statement from Max, who was sitting at her desk, staring at her current object of displeasure. After talking to Mole, well, more like lecturing him, she had found out that Logan had been unnecessarily rude in asking for assistance.
He, in Mole's words, "was yellin' at us when we told him we had better things to do than serve him". Max honestly didn't want to believe that Logan could be capable of such insolence, but also knew that it could be her one chance to make sure he was safe, outside of TC.
"All I did was ask them to get me some T4 cables, Max!" Logan whined. "Then Mole was abusi-"
She waved a hand. "I told you before. If anything went wrong in the month I gave you, you were outta here."
"But Maaax!" When he had gotten so whiny and childish, she had no idea. But it was starting to piss her off.
"I don't have time for this, Logan," Looking up at her wall-clock she realised it was 6:15. Crap. Dinner with Katie and Alec. Truth be told, she wasn't looking forward to it. But since Max had agreed to be there, being late wouldn't score her any points with Katie. Not that I care what she thinks of me. Cause I don't.
"You're leaving tomorrow night, with Sketchy and OC. No questions." She rose and left hurriedly, leaving a bewildered Logan Cale to wonder how he could fit all his technological gadgets into a suitcase. This would require assistance, assistance that most transgenics wouldn't be willing to give.
What's going on with you, Max? Logan questioned. There used to be a time where you would do anything for me. What's changed? Something to do with Alec, maybe?
Logan vowed to find out.
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(The Test Tube, 6:00pm)
A sudden flood of transgenics into the bar had Alec startled. Must be happy hour or something, he thought broodingly, as he watched the influx of bodies mingle with one another. He recognised the last person through, a rabbit nomalie named Thumper. Throwing a questioning look in Thumper's direction, Alec picked his way through the over-filled bar.
"Hey, what's with the home crowd?" he knocked fists with Thumper.
"Alec, my man, you haven't heard?" the nomalie lisped, smiling comically. "The Ordinary was finally taught a lesson in transgenic manners."
What's he talking about? Alec was confused. Ordinary… that would be either Logan, OC or Sketch, he debated. But then he realised the only person idiotic enough to piss off a transgenic would be have to be Logan. Yep, has to be exo-boy, he concluded.
"Really? Well I would get you to tell me more, but I gotta go. Been down here too long. I'll see you later." Planning to head on back to his apartment, Alec pushed open the doors of the Test Tube. Fully expecting to be blinded by the sunlight, he was momentarily surprised that it was already dark. He checked his watch.
Six-fifteen. Damn. Well that was a waste of a few hours.
He reached the apartment block, and then climbed the inside stairs with ease. Knowing that he should probably care about what was happening with Logan made him feel a tinge of guilt. But not much. Hell, the only reason he should be caring was because of Max, since she obviously thought so much of Logan.
To hell with them. Alec unlocked the apartment door and was greeted by the sight of Katie, clad in nothing but a small white towel. He stood frozen in the doorway.
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X's and O's (kisses and hugs) to all my reviewers (I get the feeling the thank-you notes are longer than the actual chapter):
Sam: I had a lil mind-blank on what stupid thing Logan could have done, so I used the most obvious (well, duh, I think that if Mole hadn't killed him eventually the whole of TC would have made plans). But there's more to it than him just ordering the transgenics about though. More info in later chapters.
constar494: Thank you for your compliments! It's always great to get feedback from readers (especially good feedback *hint hint*), and I'm grateful you took the time to click that lil blue button down the bottom. *sal's lil ego puffs a bit* I'll try to keep up the 'good work'. :o).
Deb/BHG: I don't think anyone can compete with perfection, but then again no one in this world is actually perfect, right? Thanks for your review!
fuko: Yes, dear, I updated *grins*. So proud of myself heh. Hope this chapter answers your question (somewhat) about what Log-boy did. Enjoy.
Kriki: Thank you! I try to write as best as I can, but credit is also due to my beta, Whisper. No fanfic author is a real author without their beta. And I like the layout too :o). *lil ego does the Macarena … oh wait, is that 'uncool' now? Doing the Ketchup Dance then*
gemma: Howdy ho to you too :o). Thanks so much for your encouraging comments, you have no idea how much more motivation it gives me to write (not to mention how bloated lil ego can become). I'm honoured that this might be one of the best DA fanfics you've read in a while. I'll try to keep the standard. Thanks for reviewing.
lakergirl: Trust me, Katie is definitely going to be tough competition for Max. In Deb's words, who can compete with perfection, right? I'm planning on making it hard and sufferable for Max (since on the actual show she was such a bitch 24/7 to Alec). Don't get me wrong, I don't hate her. :o). I just think she deserves to suffer. Thanks for reviewing!
Whisper: Thanks for getting me over that whole 'low self-esteem' thing I had going on. :o). And don't argue with me, your stories are so successful it's just not funny. The dinner chapter should be arriving in your mailbox asap. Well … gimme a few weeks, kay? I start school tomorrow. :o(.
Dominique: I'm not the best at writing action/fighting scenes, but I'll see what I can do. Maybe Max and Katie will, literally, fight over Alec. Hmmm… *lil ego wanders off and adds new plot thread to current storyline*
Down-Ass-Bitch: Don't hate me . ! I updated as soon as I could :o) And now you know a lil about the 'stupid thing that Logan did'. Thanks for reviewing.
jg: I try to be cruel when I can. Heh. J/K. Updated, Chapter 3 of WYCH, just for you lol. Thanks for reviewing.
Baloo: Oops, I'll brb, going to give you a reply in a sec after I watch Days of Our Lives (Jensen lovin', here I come!). Back. That was one mighty good ep! Anyway, thank you for reviewing and I hope you like today's cliffhanger ;o).
RagingConfusion: Thanks for reviewing, and I thought it was a good cliffie in the last chapt too.
Mystik87: I updated :o). Thanks for reviewing both chapters, I'm glad you're following the story.
choca: Thanks for your enthusiasm! This is my first DA fanfic, not my very first story ever. :o). Check out my profile if you like my writing.
starlight: No, I'm not a god :o). But I'd love to be one. Any offers? Thanks for reviewing, and hope you enjoyed this chapter.
pinay: You asked for a Katie POV, I delivered… well, kinda. Tell me what you think :o). Thanks for reviewing Chapter 2.