Chapter Twenty-Three
He sat next to Isabel across from Michael and Maria. He half listened to the conversion going on around him as he continued to look to the back of the diner.
"What do you think, Max?" Maria asked. "Max?"
"What…what was that?" Max pulled his eyes back to the others around him. "I'm sorry Maria I didn't get that."
"Well of course you didn't. You haven't pulled your eyes from that door since we sat down." She said shaking her head at how much Liz always seem to occupy his thoughts. "What do you think about us taking a vacation?"
"Vacation? What are you talking about?" He looked around him confused.
"Only what we've been talking about for the past hour. Vacation…a time off." Michael said leaning back in his seat.
"I think it's a good idea. We all need to get away from here…if only for a weekend." Isabel said looking behind her as the diner door was suddenly opened. "Kyle."
Max and Michael's head shot to the entrance. They watched Kyle hesitate at the door when he spotted them at the booth. Watched as he squared his shoulders before he continued forward.
"Kyle." Max said as he made his way pass them. When he ignored him he reached out and grabbed his arm pulling him to a stop.
Kyle pulled his arm out of Max's hold glaring angrily down at him. "Don't touch me."
"Look…we just wanted to…."
"To what Max?" Kyle demanded staring around him at the people he considered his friends until that night.
"I know things got…"
"What? Out of hand?" He demanded his voice laced with his anger. "The next time you decide to make me your…what did you call it…your safeguard…why don't you tell me that I'm being used so when it actually happens I won't be so surprised!"
"Kyle." Isabel cried, her voice catching in her throat.
He couldn't bring himself to look at her. Didn't want to see what emotion echoed from her eyes. Turning he made his way back out of the diner. Pushing Max out of his seat Isabel scooted out of the booth and ran after him.
"Kyle wait… please." She cried running to catch up with him, but he wouldn't stop his fast pace. "God…Kyle pleases." She begged stopping to catch her breath.
He came to an abrupt stop a few feet away from her. Making the distances between them she reached out to touch him, but he pulled away from her turning to face her his anger seething from him.
"If you're here to apology then you've wasted your time." He shouted, his face drawn into a frown.
"We're sorry we put you in the position that we did." She drew back in surprise at the anger facing her. "But we had no choice." She said her tone begging him to understand.
"Yea…well from where I'm standing I see a lot of choices in front of you." He said turning away from her. He took a step away then stopped when he felt his heart slam against his chest at the feel of her hand clutching his arm.
"Please try and understand…Kyle." Isabel begged. "Please. We trusted you to keep things from getting out of control. We trusted you when we didn't trust ourselves. Don't you understand that."? She demanded. "We trusted you."
"What do you except me to say, Isabel? That it's all right that you used me? Well it's not." He said staring angrily at her. "It's not."
"I know…I know Kyle, but try and understand…please."
"Yea…well right now the only thing I can understand is that my friends…the people I thought I could trust used me." He yelled pulling his arm away.
"Kyle…"
"Give it a rest…Isabel. You can't justify what you did out there…you can't." He said, his body shaking as the nightmare of that night came crashing down on him. "You can't." He repeated walking away from her.
Isabel stood there watching him walk away, her heart racing. "Kyle…" She yelled, but he ignored her as he continued down the street. "We trusted you." She cried her tears blinding her. "We trusted you." She repeated.
"Okay…is someone going to enlighten me, because I feel like I'm the only one in the dark here?" Maria demanded as she rotated her eyes from the two people in front of her to Isabel's retreating back.
"Give it a rest, Maria." Michael said a frown on his face.
"Michael, must we learn this lesson over and over again?" She demanded facing him.
"Okay…okay…I'll tell you later." He sighed covering his face. 'God…will things ever get back to normal?' He wondered.
Max's head shot to the back of the diner when he heard the door open. He watched her make her way to the counter a smile on her face. She leaned over it, grabbed her order book then headed to the table closest to her.
Maria followed his stare, taking a deep breath as she sighed. "God would you give us a break here, Max…please get a grip. We still haven't decided if we're taken this vacation or not."
Max heard her, but he couldn't tear his eyes from Liz. From the smile on her face to the way she was moving her body. He glanced at the three bikers at the table his heart slamming in his chest when he saw her reach out and run her hand down one of their cheek. He wanted to snatch her hand away, to wipe the smile from her face. Michael seeing Max's body stiffen turned in the direction he was staring. He watched as Liz flirted with the three bikers. Encouraging their advances. Watched as one of them placed his hand on her waist. Turning back to Max he saw his hand on the table balled into a fist.
"Calm down, Max." He said his heart racing as he sensed the magnitude of Max's anger. "She'll put those guys in their place, just give her a moment." He made himself voice the words trying to avoid the scene he knew was coming. "We can't lose control here. There's to many people around. It's too dangerous, Max."
But Max wasn't listening. "Liz!" He shouted loudly in the diner drawing every eye's in the diner to him.
She glanced his way then turned back to the men in front of her, said something that made them laugh before she turned and made her way to their table.
"This isn't my table today, but what can I get you?" She said.
"What the hell do you think your doing?" Max demanded angrily, his rage racing inside him.
"Max!" Maria said staring at him shocked by the anger behind his words.
Michael touched her hand subconsciously willing her to be quiet. As if she'd understood him she held back the words that fought to be voiced.
"Hey…Maria, Michael what can I get you?" She asked ignoring Max.
Maria looked at her confused then looked at Max's angry face. "Um…um…" She wanted to demand to know what was going on, but Michael's tight hold on her hand kept the words away. "Hey…Liz, I'll have a cola." She made herself say.
"Nothing.' The acute word left Michael's lips so quickly that Maria wasn't sure she heard it until she saw Liz close her order book.
As she turned to walk away Michael's hand reached out and grabbed her. "Didn't you forget someone?" He asked staring up at her. He was completely shocked by her disregard for Max. When he'd talked with Max at school yesterday he assumed that he was only over reacting as he was tended to do where Liz was concerned, but he was right. Something is differently wrong here.
She looked down at Michael. "Did I?" She asked before pulling her arm out of his grip and walking away.
Max felt his anger accelerate to an uncontrollable level as he shot to his feet and followed her. Grabbing her he hauled her through the door leading to the employee's lounge.
"Shouldn't we do something?" Maria demanded staring at Max forcing Liz to the back room.
"Believe me this is something they have to work out on their own. For now it's none of our business, Maria. If Liz wants you to know she'll tell you. Until then leave it alone." Michael said, but as he turned his head to the back of the room he had to fight the desire to race into that room and demand to know what was going on himself. Taking a deep breath he turned back to Maria. "Okay…where should we go on this vacation?"
TBC
