Disclaimer: Characters not mine. Story is.
Authors Note:
Okay thanks for the reviews and just to address one issue
I have not seen She's All That but I have asked and been told its about a guy who makes a bet to make the school nerd into a prom queen only he falls in love with her and after a misunderstanding they live happily ever after.
Call me crazy but apart from the fact that a bet was involved (an easy plot device) I fail to see the connection to my story.
If I ever did borrow a storyline, I would reference it, not pass it off as my own.
Here is the next chapter I hope no one thinks I stole the storyline from ER, you know, since it involves sickness and all.
EDGE OF LOVE
Chapter 9 – Bugging Alec
Max barged into Alec's room without knocking as per usual. Taken aback by the pulled curtains and dim light she looked at the un moving heap in the bed. "Alec, your going to be late for class." There was no reaction from the person on the bed. "Alec!" Max snapped her short patience already gone. She bent and picked up a trainer that was lying on the floor by her feet and threw it at Alec.
"Ow, fuck Max." Came the response and Max smiled.
"You're going to be late." She said again.
Alec lifted himself up onto his elbows and glared at Max. "Well if someone hadn't been keeping me up all night playing her music so loud it could wake the dead…" He let the implications trail off as he took in Max's unimpressed face.
"Not my fault you're so lazy you need 10 hours sleep every night." She said shrugging.
Alec flopped back against the pillows. "I'd settle for five." He mumbled drawing his arm over his eyes.
Max frowned as she took in Alec's unusually unenthusiastic behaviour. "You alright?" She asked mildly concerned.
Alec waved his hand in the air blindly shooing her away. "Yeah I'm fine." He told her unconvincingly. "I'm getting up right now." He said without making a movement out of the bed.
Max walked over to Alec and poked at him suspiciously with her finger. "What's wrong with you?" She asked her nose furrowed in distaste. She wasn't keen on this version of the normally chipper Alec. Not that this one didn't have benefits, the ability to keep his mouth shut for longer than 30 seconds for a start.
She poked him again and Alec groaned. "Max will you quit it."
"You're all hot and icky." Max observed. "Are you sick?" She asked with sudden horror, backing away 3 feet as though she had just been told he was highly toxic.
"No." Alec said weakly.
"You are aren't you?" Max accused angrily.
Alec groaned. "Whatever - just leave me alone please Max, my head feels like its going to explode."
Despite how ill he was feeling Alec couldn't help feel some amusement at how Max's eyes widened and she took another step back like he might literally explode.
"What should I do?" Max asked looking from the door to Alec and then back to the door. Alec sighed.
"Go to class Max, I'll be fine, just need to rest and I'll be much better by the time you get home, it's probably just a bug or something."
"What kind of bug?" Max asked suspiciously not moving.
"How the hell should I know? There's always something going around- uhh-" Alec staggered to his feet and pushed past Max as he ran for the bathroom.
"Alec!" Max followed but haltered in the doorway as she watched Alec throw up down the toilet. "You're really sick aren't you?" She worried chewing on her lower lip.
"What gave it away?" Alec asked dryly between heaves. He heard Max leave the room and gave a sigh of relief. He couldn't take Max's verbal rants when he was feeling like crap.
The freezing wet cloth pressed against his neck shocked him and he lost his normally perfect balance and fell backwards, knocking Max to the floor as he did.
"Ow!" Max cried.
"What the hell was that? It's not bad enough I'm sick, your torturing me too?" Alec asked in disbelief.
Max scowled at him. "I was trying to look after you, jerk." She got to her feet rubbing her bum discreetly where she had landed quite hard. As far from gently as she could she helped Alec to his feet.
"Max, go to class." Alec said tiredly unsure if he could take her 'help' despite the warm feeling in his chest when he realised what the assault was intended to be. "I'll be fine, I'm not that ill and we can't both miss the class. Whose work will I copy when I get better?"
"Funny." Max stated sarcastically before giving him a small shove, almost causing him to fall again. "Get in the shower, you're all sweaty and yuck."
"Max go." Alec told her again, ignoring her for now. "Other wise you might catch it as well." Max looked stricken for a moment at the prospect of getting sick." "Go." Alec repeated.
"Just shower, okay? You stink." Max told him before heading for the door.
Sighing Alec decided it was probably easier to just to what Max said than try to argue with her when she was like this. For reasons unknown Max seemed to take his being ill as a deliberate attempt to piss her off.
Max shut the door behind her as Alec started stripping his boxers and climbed into the shower. The cool water felt soothing against his skin once he adjusted the temperature so it didn't give him frost bite as Max had tried to. The cascade of drops sprayed against his hard smooth muscles and he leaned into the water letting it run over his face and slick his hair wetly. Some 10 minutes later he started to feel dizzy though and he weakly got out of the shower to dry off and clean his teeth and use the mint fresh mouthwash.
Leaving the bathroom with only a towel around his waist Alec headed into the living room. "Max?" He called. To his disappointment there was no response. She must have gone to class like I told her to. He acknowledged too tired to fight his emotional confusion on the subject of Max.
His bedroom was a tip and too tired to take care of himself properly Alec collapsed on top of the covers, still in the towel. "I'll move in a minute." He muttered to himself before his eyes drifted shut and he dozed off.
~~~~~~~~~~~
"Alec!" The sharp tone penetrated the fogginess of his brain at the same time as the sting of a hand across his face. Alec opened his eyes to see Max's face hovering over.
"Max I wasn't unconscious!" Alec protested. Max drew her head back a bit and shrugged.
"Just checking." She said unrepentantly.
Groggily Alec sat up. "I thought you went to class." He said, taking in her cheeks still rosy from the outside winter wind.
Max gave him an indecipherable look. "I told you I was staying to take care of you." She reminded him. "I was only gone for 20 minutes."
Alec's intelligent brain automatically did the calculations despite his physical state. "Wow. You let me sleep a whole 10 minutes without waking me up. Must be some kind of record." He joked feebly.
"Wow a whole one minute without you making some kind of wise crack, call the Guinness book." Max retorted. "Get off the bed." She ordered. "And put some clothes on while your at it." She added as an afterthought.
"No respect for the sick." Alec muttered as he got up and pulled on his boxers under the towel before chucking it in the corner of his room. When he turned he witnessed a sight he would never have believed without his own two eyes. Max was changing his bed.
"Max?" Alec queried in a strange voice. "Are sure you're feeling alright?"
"Geeze Alec why don't you just become a comedian." Max said sarcastically as she finished smoothing his new clean sheets and duvet.
Alec got a clear look at the bedding and nearly had a heart attack. "Oh no. No way Max, I'm drawing the line right here."
"What now?" Max said exasperated.
"Its-its pink!"
Max blinked slowly at him. "So?"
"Its got cute little rabbits on it!"
Max took a deep breath to calm herself. "All the other bedding is dirty. Either get in that bed, pink bunnies and all, or I will kick your ass from here to New York." She said very evenly but with a gleam of serious promise in her dark eyes.
Without another word Alec slipped between the pink bunny sheets and pulled the duvet up to his chin, looking at Max for approval.
"Good choice." She said "I'll be back in a second." She added, leaving the room once more.
"Oh goody." Alec laid his aching head back against the pillow. Closing his eyes against the pink shade he found the cool clean material soothed him and lingering on the sheets despite the washing was Max's scent, all vanilla and cherry. Breathing deeply Alec let out a long sigh and relaxed prepared to sleep until he felt better.
The sound of swearing and crashing of plates in the kitchen changed those plans. Alec debated his options but his natural worry for Max took over as usual. "Max?" He called. "You okay?"
"I'm fine!" Came the yell. A few minutes later Max appeared at the door of his bedroom balancing a tray.
"Max I'm really not hungry." Alec was forced to admit despite being touched by her efforts to take care of him.
"You don't have to be hungry to eat Alec, just ask half the country." Max pointed out. "I got you soup and bread, fresh orange juice and I went to the pharmacy and since I didn't know what was wrong with you the guy recommended an assortment of over the counter stuff for you to try."
Alec looked in dismay at the array of pills and syrups. "You're not crazy about sick people are you Max." He observed.
Max shrugged and didn't meet Alec's gaze. "I just…I don't like not being able to help." She muttered. "What if you don't get better?"
Alec frowned and reached out to hold Max's hands in his own. He pulled her down to sit next to him on the side of the bed. "Hey." He said gently. "It's just a bug Max, yeah I feel like crap now, but in a couple of days I'll be as right as rain."
Max tried to smile at him but failed miserably. "You have to eat Alec, or you won't be strong enough to get better."
Alec picked up the spoon and despite his rebelling stomach he managed to eat enough to satisfy Max.
"Drink your juice." Alec rolled his eyes but drank it. He was so tired that Max took the glass out of his hand for him and pushed him down on the pillows.
"Sleep." She instructed softly, smoothing back his short brown hair. Alec's face turned instinctively towards her cool soothing touch and Max hesitated for a moment before resuming her caress, sending Alec into a peaceful healing sleep.
She smiled as he muttered to himself in his sleep and her finger tips traced over his fine features, lingering over his lips and he smiled against her touch. "Max." He murmured. "Love you."
Max froze in shock at the whispered words that crossed the sleeping Alec's lips. He means as a friend, as a sister. Max told herself. Other than the expected innuendo that had become tradition Alec had never shown any real interest in her. He means as a sister. Like Zack. Max smiled at the memory of her older foster brother. She had loved him so much…He had always taken care of her, right until the end.
Unable to make herself leave Max settled in the chair next to his bed and grasped his hand firmly in her own as she watched over her best friend.
TBC.