Disclaimer:  You know the drill…the characters aren't mine. A lot of stuff in the beginning is taken from End of the World. God knows THAT'S not mine. Anything that makes sense and makes it all better, now that's mine. Seriously, Roswell and all characters belong to Jason Katims, 20th Century Fox etc. I'm just borrowing them.

Rating: PG-13 – possibly to R

Love Changes Everything

Chapter Fifteen – New York State of Mind

Max threw his backpack into the waiting car. He reached over and took Tess's bag from her hand and threw it in after his.
"Get in already, we ain't got all day," shouted Rath. "I wanna get the hell out of this freaky berg and back to the real world. Tess climbed in the car, and Max hung back, waiting for Ava.
"There's no room," she said.
"What! What you talking about bitch? There's plenty of room!" Rath shouted. "Now get in the freakin car and let's get the hell out of here!"
"No, I'm not goin'," Ava said, firmly.
"Don't give me none of your crap," said Rath, climbing out of the car and coming around to the passenger side. "I said we're leaving, now get in the car and let's get the hell out of this stinkin Mayberry, piece of shit, town!"
"Cool it Rath," Ava said, calmly. "I said I'm not goin, and I'm not. You don't need me, you never did."
"Forget her Rath," said Lonnie from the car. "If she wants to stay, let her stay. We got what we need."

Ava watched as Rath stormed back to the driver's side of the car and got in. Max quickly climbed in the backseat, while Rath revved the engine. The tires squealed and the car peeled off down the street. Ava waited until the car was out of site and turned on her heel and walked back toward the center of town. She had walked only about two blocks when a car pulled up beside her.
"Ava!" a voice shouted from the car. She peered into the car and saw Kyle Valenti sitting in the driver's seat.
"Hey," she said
"Hey back," said Kyle. "Max told me to be on the lookout for you tonight. We have a place set up for you to stay tonight. Come on, get in." Ava looked at Kyle distrustfully, but finally gave in and climbed into the car wearily.

"Thanks," she said, leaning her head back against the headrest. "I was beat. That took a lot out of me."
"Are you alright?" asked Kyle, immediately solicitous. "Do you want me to take you someplace and get you something to eat? Some pizza or something?"
"Rath is wrong about a lotta stuff," laughed Ava. "But the pizza in New York isn't one of them. N'ah, just take me to wherever you're takin me." Kyle looked over at the alien hybrid, with her sleek blond bob emphasizing her delicate features. His gaze missed nothing, from the ring, piercing her eyebrow, to the three-inch high heels totally unsuitable to walking more than three feet.
"You know," he said. "It's not that I don't think you have a really unique fashion sense, but you're going to need to blend in a little bit more if you want to fit in here."
"Yeah, well, who says I'm staying is this stupid Podunk little town anyhow?" Ava railed. "What's so freaking great about Roswell anyhow? It's nothing but dirt and dust!"

Kyle pulled his car away from the curb with Ava ranted and railed against everything Roswell. After several miles, he realized there was silence in the car. He looked over at Ava and realized that she was crying.
"Hey, come on, I didn't mean anything by it," he said. "Really, you look great, it's just that what you're wearing isn't typical of Roswell. If you're going to stay, I just want to try and help you fit in."
"I'm not her you know," said Ava. "I'm not Tess. I'm just me, Ava, and I can't be her for you."
"I don't want you to be her, I want you to be yourself, but I want you to be happy here too, and the people here can be mean. If you look different, or act different, they can make your life miserable. It's kind of like you have a New York state of mind. You need to switch gears and get a Roswell state of mind instead." Kyle took his eyes off the road again and glanced at Ava. "Your still crying," he said. "Why?"
"Because this is the first time someone has ever cared about me, that's why," answered Ava as she turned her head and looked out the window.

Kyle and Ava finished the rest of their ride in silence. He pulled into the alley behind the CrashDown and climbed out of the car. Jogging around to the passenger side, he opened the door for Ava and waited until she climbed out. The two walked into the back of the restaurant, and through the kitchen to the main part of the café. Liz and Alex bussed tables, while Michael and Maria cleaned the grill. Isabelle sat over by the register, checking receipts. Ava took one look at the alien themed café and burst into laughter. The gang stared, amazed to here such a cheerful musical sound coming from someone who so closely resembled Tess.
"Hi Ava," said Liz. "I'm Liz, and this is Alex."
"I know," said Ava. "That's Isabelle, and that's Michael and Maria. Max filled me in on everyone when we talked."
"Well, we're all glad you decided to stay with us," said Isabelle, from across the restaurant.
"I'm glad to, but it's kinda scary. They were my family ya know. Leavin them was hard, even though I never really felt like I belonged with them."

Liz looked at her intently, thinking back to the message they had seen from Max and Isabelle's mother. Not he message Tess had wanted them to see, but the real one that was revealed to them after they started wearing the platinum.
"Go on Ava," she encouraged. "What do you mean?"
"Well, it's like, some of the things they've done, and like the way they think, well, I just couldn't be like that. They didn't mind scammin people, or stealin, or whatever. If they saw something they wanted, they just took it. I knew it was wrong, but I wasn't strong enough to go against them. I was afraid if I did, they'd just," she paused.
"They'd just what, Ava?" prompted Liz.
"Do to me what they did to Zan," she burst out.

"What do you mean?" asked Michael. "What did they do to Zan?"
"It was the summit," said Ava, after much coaxing. "We've been contacted before about the summit, but Zan decided it wasn't a good idea for us to go. He turned em down. Rath and Lonnie were pissed at him, but nuthin they said could get him to change his mind. Rath and Lonnie decided that if they couldn't change his mind, they'd," she paused again, and lowered her head, cradling it in her hands.
"Come on Ava," said Liz, soothingly, rubbing Ava's back. "You have to tell us. You loved Zan, didn't you?"
"Yes," she said, nodding. "But he never loved me. Not the way Max loves you."
"That's right," said Liz. "Max loves me. He risked everything for me, to heal me. I would have died. Now, if you know something important, you have to tell me, so that I can save him."
"They killed him. Lonnie held me back and covered my mouth so I couldn't scream, and Rath, he shoved him in front of that truck. Then he used his powers to speed the truck up, and it killed him. It killed my Zan!"

Ava cried inconsolably, while the others digested her news.
"We have to tell Max," said Isabelle. "We have to warn him."
"I'll call him," said Liz, grabbing a phone. She punched the numbers for Max's cell phone in and waited. "It's ringing," she said. As the phone rang, she became aware of a ringing sound in the café. She looked around and tried to identify the source of the sound. Michael crossed the café to the booth where Max frequently sat. He slid his hand down behind the cushion and pulled out a ringing cell phone. Liz slowly hung up the phone and disconnected the call, and the cell phone stopped ringing.
"Now what?" she said.