Everything in this story corresponds to the show with a few exceptions. Alex never died, Michael and Maria never had that stupid split, Billy doesn't exist and Isabelle realised that she was meant to be with Alex. All characters are 19 years old at beginning of the story.

1.

The Crashdown had been like a sardine can, as usual and Liz was happy as she locked the door. She could hear Maria gently humming in the kitchen.
"Lizzy, how much d'ya think we made tonight?"
"Umm, I don't know Maria. We'll count it later, k?"
Liz heard her humming again, and knew that her best friend was happy with that answer. "Maria, I gotta run upstairs ok? The guys should be here any minute"
"Fine, sure, whatever hun."
Liz ran up the stairs, excited about the outfit she was planning in her head for her date with Max. She was only up there a couple of minutes when she heard the crashing of cutlery off the tiled floor, and a terrified scream.
"Maria !!" Liz yelled.
No answer. She ran as fast as her legs could carry her and pushed open the swinging door. The first thing she saw, were Maria's hands, flailing about wildly, as she tried to fend off her attacker. The man had Maria's back to his chest, one of his hands, subduing her screams and the other trying to stop her nails clawing into his face. He had tears streaming down his cheeks. Liz's heart stopped when she recognised him, it was Future Max. When he saw her, he let Maria go and dropped to his knees. Maria flung herself towards the counter, trying to catch her breath. Liz stared at Future Max; he looked into her eyes and sobbed.
"It didn't work Liz, it didn't work"
Liz turned to her friend.
"Maria, don't panic, ok? Don't cry."
"Liz...I..."
"I know, but, ...I'll explain later."
Laughter was heard on the street outside.
"That's Isabelle."
Liz panicked, if Present Max saw Future Max, they could both end up not existing, and Liz couldn't lose Max, not again.
"Max, come on, you've got to hide."
"What's the use, everyone's dead, there's nothing left. This," he said, pointing at the walls, "is just a fantasy."
"Max..........."
The door opened. Michael was the first to walk in. He saw Maria and stared at her, holding her neck, and crying to herself. He saw Liz, with a stricken look on her face, and he saw a man, sitting at a booth with his back turned to him. Michael felt the anger boil within him. He strode over to the man and lifted him out of his seat.
"What did you do to her? You...."
Michael recognised that face, he'd seen it all his life, it was Max. Isabelle was inside now too, as were Max and Alex.
"What the............."
"Oh My God"
"No fricken way!!!"
Relief was evident on Liz's face when she saw the two Max's looking at each other; there was no poof of smoke, no disappearing act. It was a miracle. It then dawned on her that she had a lot of explaining to do.
"Guys, I think you should all sit down."
They all sat around the table and listened as Liz told her story.
"Why didn't you tell me this earlier Liz?" Max asked.
"Well, he told me not too, and all that stuff with Tess, I just.....couldn't."
Max turned to the future version of himself.
"What are you doing here?"
Future Max took a breath.
"I thought that if I came back, I'd just not exist, and that you wouldn't either. And believe me; you're better off not existing. Everything's just so fucked up. It wasn't worth it, all the fighting, all the pain. No matter how many times I come back, they'll always win."
"They?"
"The skins."
The gang looked at each other, they thought the skins were gone out of their lives forever. "What happened Max?" Liz asked.
"I went back, I don't know how I did, but when I disappeared from here, I went back to my own time. Liz....Future Liz, never told me, that before, the future of myself went back to her. I guess that's why I was sent back, she wanted me back. It's been happening for lifetimes, over and over again. The same story has been played out over and over. I went back and she was lying in the chamber, the skins had got in and left her to die. And she told me, she told me everything, how I had gone back to her when she was seventeen and said the same thing. Why would she do that? We watched so many people die, and now, so was she. Maria, Isabelle, Alex, Michael, Sara, they're all gone, and for what? Why would she want her life to end like that? She wouldn't let me heal her, and the blood...........oh god the blood. She told me, ordered me to go back, to tell you everything that's happened to us. I told her that you wouldn't want to know, that you wouldn't want to see what we've seen. But, she said it's the right thing,......to save the world. As Michael would say, what a load of horse crap!!"
A laughing sob escaped his lips. Maria looked up at him.
"We have to know, you didn't come back for nothing."
"You really want to see yourself die Maria? Do you? If I could go back I would stop myself from watching you die. You were the one that held us together, the glue. The night you died, was the night that our whole world started to fall apart."
"Tell us, please" Liz looked up at him with sad eyes.
Future Max sighed, Liz's voice was ringing in his ears......... 'they deserve to know, you have to show them' ..............
"I can do better than tell you, I can show you. Hold hands. Our story begins about four months from now."
The group found themselves being transported; it was as if they were watching a film from their memories.

That's it. Please review, i'd really appreciate it. Also, if you'd like to see some things happen in the story, tell me and i'll see if i can incorporate it. Thanx xxx