by Kirsten Tapp
Disclaimer: Dark Angel doesn't belong to the author, but to James Cameron, etc. No copyright infringement intended.
Summary: What went on between Rising and The Kidz Are Aiight.
Spoilers: Rising and The Kidz Are Aiight
Rating: PG
Category: Drama/Romance
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Roaring through the night on Max's motorcycle, Logan had never imagined it could be so exhilarating. Maybe it was the wind hitting his face or the fact that Max was letting him drive her most precious pocession. He couldn't put into words how it felt to have Max's arms around his waist. To smell her perfume because she was so close that the wind was blowing her hair against his neck.
They rode down to the pier and sat and stared out at the water. It was a beautiful sight. The calm black water lit up multi colored splashes of reflected lights from the surrounding buildings. For once the world seemed so at peace, but Logan knew it was only an illusion.
"I can see why you love the night so much." Logan turned slightly so that he could see Max's face. "It's almost as though nobody has a care in the world." He had come so close to kissing her tonight. His confidence to do so had slipped along with the stability of his legs.
"Yeah. It's almost as though nobody has any problems." Max looked into Logan's blue eyes and saw such hope in their beautiful blue depths. "It helps you forget your own problems too." She had been so sure that he was going to kiss her back at the apartment. At least before his legs had given out on him, she had been pretty sure that was what he was going to do.
"Thanks for letting me drive." Logan grinned. "I know how precious your baby is to you." He had always thought that it was only guys that were overly protective towards their cars and motorcycles. That was, until he met Max. But then Max wasn't your average woman.
"No problem." Max beamed back at him. "Just don't expect it to happen too often." She couldn't remember when she had seen Logan this happy. It didn't matter to her if Logan had the use of his legs or not. However, she did know how much it meant to Logan to be able to get back on his feet.
They sat staring at each other for a while, savoring the magic of the night. The courage that Logan had felt earlier when he had manage to stand for a brief time, was fighting to resurface.
"We'd better get back." Max had seen Logan shiver and was worried that he would catch cold. She tended to forget sometimes that she could take temperatures colder than Logan could. "Besides you haven't fed me yet."
"Can't have you fading from hunger." Logan teased before starting up the motorcycle again. Part of him felt as though another magic moment had been broken. The other part of him was getting cold, so was relieved to be going back to his warm apartment.
Max didn't want the night to end, but Logan was only human. He needed rest if he was going to continue healing and be able to walk unassisted. She had never thought of herself as a miracle. That was what Logan had called her, a miracle. If she had known her blood was what would get Logan back on his feet and bring that gorgeous smile of his to the surface sooner, she wouldn't have hesitated for a second to give him the blood transfusion.
Logan was disappointed when Max left not long after they had eaten dinner, but the excitement of the evening was starting to catch up with him. There was always tomorrow. He had just been given a second chance at life on his feet and he was going to appreciate every second he was given.
This was also a chance to take things a step further with Max. His wheelchair was no longer standing in their way. The plan was that he would get a good nights sleep and see if his legs would hold out long enough for him to go for a walk with the aid of a walking stick.
When he had been testing his legs out earlier under Bling's watchful eyes, he thought that he could feel his limbs getting stronger with every step. Perhaps he had overdone it a bit, considering he had collapsed into Max's arms. Not that he was complaining about having Max's arms around him. In fact if all went well, that would be happening more often without him having to collapse first.
Max entered her apartment deep in thought. She was glad that Kendra was still at Mr Multiples as she needed to think without any banging the gong comments from her friend.
With Logan regaining the use of his legs, it brought forth a whole lot of new possibilities. She just hoped that he wouldn't revert to the overconfident man who had stood her in front of the mirror all those months ago. Not that she wanted him to stay bitter at being stuck in a wheelchair. She'd be happy if he stayed the happy in between guy he had been tonight.
Although she knew that Logan being in a wheelchair didn't mean that he couldn't make love, it did to him. She had discovered a long time ago that to Logan, the wheelchair represented all of the things that he used to be able to do and now couldn't.
Still, that wasn't a problem anymore. Max settled down on her bed and tried to read a book. On the third attempt to read the same page she gave up. Instead she let her mind drift back to the bike ride she and Logan had shared.
It had been so perfect looking out at the water, having a reason to put her arms around Logan while they rode. It occurred to Max that she didn't have to be into work until the afternoon. She had been intending to got the farmers markets anyway. Maybe she could find something to convince Logan to cook up another Cale culinary miracle.
Satisfied that she had come up with a plan, Max realized that she now had someone else to talk to about her screwed up DNA. Of course being kidnapped by Red Soldiers wasn't the way Max had wanted Original Cindy to find out that she wasn't your average girl. She was still glad to have a female shoulder to lean on when her feline DNA kicked in and produced some sort of freaky behavior.
The next morning after checking that Original Cindy wasn't having any after effects from her kidnapping, Max headed for the farmers market. Normally she didn't enjoy shopping of any kind, but today she felt as though she was adventuring into a new exciting part of her life where she wouldn't be so alone.
Deciding that chicken was the best choice for dinner as her favorite Cale culinary miracles usually had chicken as one of the ingredients, Max headed for Fogle Towers. She picked the lock and let herself into Logan's apartment knowing as soon as she set foot inside the door that Logan wasn't home.
After leaving the chicken with Bling once she had found out that Logan had gone for a walk, Max went in search of the man of the moment. Trusting her instincts she headed for the water. She remembered that Logan had told her once that he was out sailing when the pulse had hit. When she saw the tall figure walking on the beach barefoot with the assistance of a cane, she knew that her instincts had come through for her again.
