Chapter Four (Kissing, kissing and more kissing)
At 7 pm that night, Max opened the front door and was shocked when a bunch of flowers were thrust into his face. He pushed them away to see Alex standing there looking nervous. "Alex I'm flattered, really I am but I like girls, sorry man," he said, then smiled when Alex's eyes widened.
Tugging at his collar, Alex stepped inside the house. "No, I was wondering if Isabel was ready. We have a date."
Max furrowed his brows in confusion. Isabel had a date with Alex? "I'm not sure, I'll just check." Without moving, Max yelled her name out down the hall. A few seconds later, Maria walked out followed by Isabel.
Alex almost fainted at the sight of her. She was wearing a red dress that showed off all her gorgeous curves, with a black purse and shoes. Her hair was down and curled and her make up was natural but with a deep red lipstick to add to the whole effect. She was stunning.
Blushing at the way he was staring at her, Isabel smiled and walked towards him. He was dressed in a nice white dress shirt with black slacks and his hair was gelled to create the spiked effect. She'd never seen him look so handsome. "Shall we leave?"
Nodding, Alex held his elbow out for her to take, which she did. "This way m'lady." He said as they walked to his mother's car.
Maria smiled as she watched Alex open the car door for her. The two looked perfect for each other. She shut the door and saw Max standing there, still looking confused. "What?" she asked.
"I'm not sure if that's such a good idea, Isabel dating Alex. Especially since he's been poking about in our business lately." Max said with a frown.
"Look Max," Maria said, walking into the kitchen. "Alex is a great guy and well honestly, I think that it's a great idea for the two to date. Isabel needs to go out more and she certainly needs a life, a normal life, something that she doesn't have right now." She took a seat at the table and Max sat next to her. "Alex is a good guy and he can be trusted. He really likes your sister."
Max nodded and started to play with the tablecloth. "I've never stopped her from having a life," he said with a sigh.
Maria shook her head. "No you haven't, but she's still missing out on so much Max. Look, Isabel is a big girl who can take care of herself… better than most teenage girls out there, so just lay off her a little okay? Let her live her own life."
"You're right," Max nodded. "I just want her to be careful, she's my sister and I don't know what I would do if anything happened to her."
"Nothing will happen, trust me." She glanced at Max and raised an eyebrow. "You know," she said slowly. "Isabel isn't the only one missing out on the pleasures of life, you are too."
His forehead creased in confusion. "What do you mean?"
"Well, all you seem to do is want to protect people, help people and you're not thinking of yourself. You're not thinking about what you want. Why haven't you asked out Liz yet?" Maria asked.
Max shrugged. "It's too dangerous, we can't get involved, I just can't get involved with anyone right now."
"Why?"
Sitting there, Max tried to come up with an answer to that simple question but found that he couldn't. He looked at Maria. "I don't know." Smiling, he suddenly stood as if a weight had been lifted off his shoulders. "I have to go and talk to someone."
As he stood, Maria laughed. "Go get her Max, but one thing first." Max paused. "You hurt her and I'll hurt you, got me?" Max gave a curt nod before running out of the kitchen at breakneck speed.
She stood and headed for the living room, grabbing the remote as she passed the corner coffee table. So far tonight she had sorted out both Isabel's and Max's love life. Now she had nothing to do, no one to talk to. She was alone and that thought made her sad. Everyone had a love life except her. She was alone. As she came across 'Charmed' on the TV, she heard a knock at the door and groaned before getting up to answer it. She opened the door and was shocked to see Michael standing there.
Michael pushed her out of the way and barged into the house, not really caring that she was currently glaring at him for all she was worth. "Where is everyone? Where's Max?"
Maria sighed and stood behind him. "Diane and Phillip are out to dinner with some friends, Isabel is on her date with Alex and Max just went to find Liz."
"Figures," Michael mumbled as he picked up the remote that Maria had haphazardly thrown onto the sofa and took a seat.
Raising her eyebrows in shock and disbelief, Maria stood in front of him, blocking his view from the TV. "You can leave now."
Michael cocked his head to the side so he could see past her. It wasn't working. "Look it's fine, I'm always here." He nudged her out of his way with his foot then clicked the remote to another channel.
Maria plopped herself down next to him and with a huff said, "So I've noticed."
*~*~*~*
They both smiled at each other as they walked out of the cinema holding hands. They had decided… well, Isabel had decided on seeing 'Pirates of the Caribbean' but Alex had said he wanted to see that too. She smiled as she realized he only did it for her. The streets of Roswell seemed busy that night, and Alex could hear music coming from somewhere in the Park.
"Do you want to go and check it out?" he asked her. Isabel nodded and they headed in the direction it was coming from. They walked on the path that led them into the centre of the park where they could see a classical band playing in one of the gazebos placed around the park. Alex noticed that a few couples were dancing and turned to Isabel. "May I have this dance?"
"Sure," she said and turned in his arms. Alex placed a hand on her waist and held his other hand in the air for her to take. As they danced to the soft romantic music, Isabel laid her head on his shoulder and sighed in content. "I've had a terrific night," she said and brought her head back up to look him in the eyes. "Thank you."
Flushing red, Alex smiled shyly then looked away from her piercing hazel eyes. "Why did you say yes, to going out with me I mean? You could have any guy you wanted, so why me?" He didn't know why he asked that but for some reason, he really needed to know the answer. He needed to know if he was being taken for a ride.
Isabel gave a small shrug and played with the collar of his shirt. "I like you Alex, you're not like any other guy I've met, and that's exactly what I've been looking for. You are exactly what I've been looking for."
Alex grinned and looked into her eyes before moving his face closer towards hers. As their faces inched closer, Isabel's eyes fluttered closed and their lips met in a brief kiss. Alex pulled back, unsure if this was what she wanted. He didn't want to pressure her. He then was a little surprised when Isabel grabbed his face and pulled him into a passionate kiss but quickly snapped himself out of it and wholeheartedly kissed her back.
Isabel then pulled back with a shy but happy smile on her face. Laying her head back on his shoulder, the two continued to dance.
*~*~*~*
"Would you give me that damn remote?" Maria yelled. If she had to watch another second of hockey she'd go absolutely nuts. She grabbed the remote out of his unsuspecting hands and changed the channel back to 'Charmed'.
For the past hour, the two had been fighting over who was watching what. Michael wanted to see the hockey game and Maria wanted to watch her bewitching drama. One minute Michael had the remote, then the next Maria had it.
Michael rolled his eyes and snatched the remote back out of her hands, putting it back on the game. He glared at her when it became evident that he had missed a point-scoring goal. "Now look what happened," he said angrily and swatted her hands out of the way when she tried to take it back from him. "We are watching hockey and that is final."
"Final?" Maria indignantly shouted. "Michael you don't even live here, go watch hockey at your place and give me the damn remote. I was here first and I want to watch 'Charmed'."
"My TV is not working and you don't technically live here either, and anyway, 'Charmed' is a crap show. Who wants to watch a bunch of bad, admittedly hot, actresses try to cast spells that never even work right?" he asked and held the remote away from her when she tried once more to gain control of it.
Maria started to get angry. Who did he think he was barging in there and taking command of what they watched? She leaned over his body and grabbed the remote, trying to pry it out of his hands. Michael however, wouldn't let go and the two started a tug-of-war match over it. Michael pushed at her shoulder, hoping that she'd fall on the floor and let the thing go but did she? No, instead she grabbed his shirt and pulled him down with her.
She landed on the floor with a thud then groaned when Michael landed on top of her. "Get off me," she said, pushing him away. Michael lifted himself up using his hands and noticed that they were now in a very compromising position. He was straddling her waist and she was unconsciously holding onto his. He looked into her eyes and saw that the green of them darkened. When she licked her lips, he couldn't take it anymore.
Without warning, he swooped down and captured her lips in a fiery, demanding kiss. Maria brought her hands up to push him away but found herself wrapping her arms around his neck and opening her mouth to kiss him back just as passionately as he was kissing her.
*~*~*~*
"Aren't they beautiful?" Max asked. Taking Maria's advice, he had gone straight over to Liz's and the two were now watching the stars from her balcony.
Liz nodded. "Yeah they are," she said with a smile. She then frowned and faced him. "Max, what are you doing here?"
Summoning up the courage, Max squared his shoulders and let out a breath. "Would you… I mean do you think… what I guess I'm trying to say is…" he trailed off. He hadn't known that asking out the girl you liked was going to be this hard.
Liz smiled at his shyness and decided to take pity on him and help him out. "I'd love to go out with you Max."
Letting out a sigh of relief, Max gave a small chuckle and nodded. "Great." The two then smiled at each other before turning back and looking at the stars.
*~*~*~*
"Michael, oh Michael," Maria moaned when he kissed and nipped at her neck. The sensations he was making her feel made her knees go weak. Somewhere along the way they had managed to move to the couch and were now engaged in a serious make-out session. She was lying on her back with her legs wrapped around him as he covered her body with his.
Maria brought his head up and kissed him hungrily, sucking his tongue into her mouth and massaging it with hers. She started to rock up against his hips and he broke away from the kiss. "G-od Maria," he moaned back and grabbed hold of her thigh. His other hand trailed down her cheek to rest on her breast and he started to knead it. Maria let out a strangled moan of pleasure and that's when they heard someone gasp.
The two broke apart fast, stood and turned to face Isabel who had a secret smile on her face. "Looks like I didn't need to plan to get you two together after all."
Michael started to shake his head. "Oh we're not… I mean we aren't… you got it all wrong," he said, followed by a forced laugh.
"Yeah we're not… you know… it wasn't what it looked like," Maria said, running her hands through her now tangled hair.
Isabel nodded her head condescendingly. "Sure it wasn't," she said grinning.
"I'm going to go," Michael said and rushed past the two girls.
As he slipped out the door, Isabel yelled, "Don't leave on my account." She laughed when the front door slammed shut.
Maria headed for the kitchen. "So how was your date?" she asked casually, trying to avert the subject.
Isabel shook her head and waggled her finger. "Oh no missy, don't even try to escape, you are going to tell me what happened here."
"What do you mean?" Maria said, feigning innocence.
"I mean you, Michael, serious make-out session on the couch," Isabel said waving her hands about to accentuate her point. She walked over to the fridge and pulled out the juice.
Maria went over to the cabinet and grabbed two glasses, putting them in front of Isabel on the counter. "Oh that."
Isabel laughed. "Yes that, now spill," she said in a demanding tone.
Maria gave a non-committal shrug and held the glass up to her lips. "It was nothing, just some kissing and a huge, momentary lapse in sanity," she said, taking a sip then remembering what Isabel had said when she found them. "And what did you mean you won't have to plan to get us together?"
"I saw the way you two were looking at each other when I changed your hair. You like him and he likes you so I had planned to get you two together, but now it seems that you're doing that all on your own."
Maria shook her head but didn't bother denying that she liked Michael. She did, she could admit it, but still, she wasn't completely sure that Michael liked her back. Watching Isabel's gaze cloud over as she slipped back into thoughts about her date, she decided to seize the opportunity to change the topic. "Really, how was your date?"
Isabel gave a dreamy sigh. "It was amazing, we went to dinner then to the movies, I got to pick, then Alex took me to the park where some band was playing and we danced all night. It could not have been more perfect. We're going out tomorrow night as well."
Laughing at the wistful look Isabel had on her face, Maria bit the inside of her cheek. "Is he a good kisser?"
Isabel nodded then stopped and lightly hit Maria on the arm. "I'm going to bed," she announced.
"Way to weasel out of the details, Iz."
*~*~*~*
Later that night, after Max returned from Liz's, Michael crawled through Max's window. "I kissed Maria," he blurted out. "Now I feel… weird."
Max laughed. "It's called being in love Michael."
Michael looked aghast at that comment. "No, no way. I don't love Maria. Nope, not love, definitely not love. No way," he denied, but once again the voice in his head screamed that he was a liar.
"Whatever Michael, fine you like her then, just ask her out already. You know you want to anyway," Max said turning down is bed. "You staying for the night?" Michael nodded and Max threw a pillow and sleeping bag at him.
"Ask her out? No I can't do that, I don't do dates," Michael said shaking his head.
Max smiled at his clueless friend and took off his shirt before crawling into bed. "Well you do now my friend. If you want Maria, then you do dates." He switched off the light. "Night."
Michael unrolled the sleeping bag and lay on top of it. "This liking someone thing sucks."
TBC…
For those who voiced their concerns on some of the aspects of this fic this is what I have to say. I write the way I want to, I write how I see the show and it's characters and most importantly, I write for me. I know that in this fic that some of the characters are out of character and well, sorry to say but that is what you get when you have a slightly AU fic. The reason Maria stayed with Isabel and not Liz was clearly stated in not only the chapter before this one, but also the very first chapter. Liz's parents were going away and Maria knew she couldn't stay with them because of that reason. When she found out that Liz's parents were not going away, she had already told Isabel she would stay with her and I don't know about you, but to me, if she had turned around and told Isabel that she was going to stay with Liz instead, that would be considered very rude. That and the point of the whole fic were to establish a better friendship between Maria and Isabel.
Another thing, yes it is evident in most of my fics that I am not a big fan of Liz's character, however I have no intention of making Liz anything more than a concerned friend in this fic, so it is not always a good thing to judge before you read. Just because I generally write her as a bad, bitter character, doesn't mean that was my intention for this fic. Her character is only minor as this is a Candy/Stargazer fic. I stated no other therefore, even though I am, I should not have to justify the way I write or feel about a character. If you do not like the way I portray a character, simply do not read. I am a Candy writer, not a Dreamer or a Liz writer. Like I said, I write the way I want to, I write how I see the show and it's characters and most importantly, I write for me. If you do not accept that, then don't read my fictions, simple as that. I can accept constructive criticism but when it starts to become mean, I have to draw the line. I have my opinions and you have yours. I respect yours so please do the same for me. I'm not trying to be offensive but please, you know the saying, if you have nothing nice to say…
For those who actually like what I have done with my writing and characters, thank you for all your kind words, it means a lot to me that you understand what I am trying to convey through this fic. I'm sorry for the rant but I had to get it off my chest. I hope you liked the Candy and Stargazer action and expect more in the next and final chapter. I want to send a special thanks to Neo, Dark-moon-angel, treevamp, katydidit, Sam and Em, who took the time to review this fic. -Sarah