A/N- Thank you for your reviews! they got me to type up some more.
Ella- i just couldn't have Alex dead, he is one of my favorite characters.
well, on to the main event
New York Madness
Chapter 3: Dreams
Maria jerked awake at the knock on the door she'd fallen asleep while waiting for Alex. Glancing at the clock she walked to the door. 8:30, she'd put the kids to bed an hour ago.
Looking through the peep hole she saw Alex sticking his tongue out at her. Yup, that was her Alex. Stifling a laugh she undid the 5 locks on the door.
"What took you so long to answer the door? I'm freezing out here." Alex laughed. The hall outside the apartment door was in doors and comfortably warm, even overly warm.
"Uh huh, well then maybe you should come in." Maria stepped back, rubbing her eyes to get rid of the sleepy fog.
"Maria, you okay? You look tired." Alex asked, putting a hand on her shoulder.
"Oh, I was just sleeping before you got here." Maria told him, stretching her neck and shoulders, trying to work out the kinks. Note to self, get a more comfy couch. "That is part of what I want to talk about with you."
"Oh?" Alex inquired, finding the lasagna in the oven. Pulling out a fork, but not bothering with a plate he started chowing down. "How so?" he asked through a mouthful of marinara and sausage.
"I've been having weird dreams." Maria told him, fidgeting on the couch.
"I thought only guys had those." Alex commented, completely serious, but not brave enough to make eye contact.
"ALEX!" Maria gasped, completely caught off guard.
When Alex walked into the living room he was greeted by 3 overstuffed pillows to the face. Laughing Alex walked over to the couch and plopped down, careful not to spill any lasagna or beer.
"So, what's this about dreams?" Alex asked, his face suddenly serious. He had had dreams before, and it appeared like they were real. I mean, he just met his past earlier today. Then he completely ruined the image by stuffing a large chunk of lasagna into his mouth. Maria just shook her head then took a deep breath.
"Well," Maria glanced over to make sure Alex was paying attention. "They start out with me kissing this guy. I swear I know him, he must have been my boyfriend back then. Anyway, we are in like his apartment and it's dark. Don't give me that look," Maria commented, seeing Alex's interest with this story rise, even if it was only a joke to make her smile. Again she took a deep breath and continued. "Then the dream/image thing flashes to this white hall way, and he, my boyfriend, is pounding on this one way mirror thing yelling for 'them' to bring my back." Maria paused here, and Alex interjected to ask something.
"Exactly what did he say?"
"Oh, why's that important? Wait, no, never mind. He said, 'Bring back Maria! What have you done with her?' he was pounding on the one way mirror and he couldn't see me walk right by. I think my hands were bound, and I wasn't allowed, no wasn't able to talk." Maria shuddered. It was all so real, like it happened mere hours ago, not years. Putting a gentle hand on her arm Alex thought about her dream.
Taking another deep breath Maria told the rest, "There's more. I see when I got a positive pregnancy test. I knew I was pregnant, and I felt so happy, but scared. I remember feeling happy and a little scared, and I definitely felt stupid for getting pregnant."
"So you feel what you felt then, like a very clear memory. Do you know what you were thinking then?" Alex asked, watching her intently, lasagna forgotten. This was the best lead they'd had on her past in 8 years.
"No, just feelings, except in the white room scene. I 'think' that I want to be with him and out of here, and I regret never telling him. I don't know what I didn't tell him, but I think it's that I was pregnant." Maria's eyes stared off into space hardly aware of what was around her, trying to remember more. "I also see 3 or 4 men in suits dropping me on the side of the road were you found me. They said, 'We could get fired for this.' Then another voice, 'or killed, but this girl has been used, just let her live, her children wont.' Then a door slamming, and then nothing." Maria shuddered with the memory, wanting to rush in and hug her children, see and feel that they were okay. "I didn't know what they meant when they said the twins wouldn't live, I gave birth." Maria finished in a shaky voice.
"Oh, that explains it. When I found you Maria you were delirious. You kept telling me to save the baby, that you wanted the baby. That was actually the first time I tried to use my powers. It was like it was drawn out of me and I could feel the babies. There were two heartbeats and they were strong. Then you passed out and I put you in the truck. I think they gave you a drug to make you miscarry, but somehow I burned it out of your system."
"You never told me." Maria whispered, holding in her chocked sobs at the thought of loosing her children, her little babies. She wasn't condemning, just stating fact.
"You were almost 4 months pregnant and so confused, but strong. It never really came up. Especially when you were so happy." Alex put an arm around her shoulders and let her lean against him. "Something occurred to me when we were at the hospital in Avila and the nurse asked who the father was. You answered her clearly. You could have said you didn't know but you told her a name. I forgot who you said, but it felt right. I remember thinking you two were perfect for each other, but I didn't know who he was. Maybe we both knew your mystery man?"
"So, I could look at their birth certificates and know who their father is?" Maria snuggled closer to Alex seeking comfort. "Why am I scared to look?"
"Maria? Scared?" Ha! You are just so used to searching and not knowing, that you don't know what it will be like when you do know." Alex wanted to know who it was too. Maybe they could find him. He must have powers like Lizzy and Matt.
A brief thought flitted through his head that maybe he already knew who it was, but the thought faded before he could get a good grasp on the idea. "Do you want to pull out their birth certificates? I know where they are." Alex asked when he realized he'd been staring into space with Maria.
"Okay, you can look at it. When you come back we have more to talk about." She responded, finally remembering her children's new powers.
"Sure thing Ria, more stuff, that's you alright." Alex took the now empty beer bottle and lasagna dish to the kitchen and set them down. Glancing though the door way he saw Maria laying down in the spot he had just vacated. Smiling gently he looked at his best friend and only sister he had ever known.
Alex rinsed his dish and walked into the back-laundry room where Maria kept her fire safe. Alex pulled out his copy of the key and opened the cabinet.
Alex laughed at the note Maria had on the top of the neat little folders, "Alex—don't screw up my organization!" it was rare for her to organize anything, so when she does, don't mess with it.
Pushing the note aside he started through the hanging files until he got to Lizzy's, and he opened it.
Right at the front was her birth certificate. Picking it up all he could do was stare.
"Well that wasn't what I expected." He muttered
(A/N- I could so end it here, but I wont, cause it's not long enough yet)
"Maria, Maria wake up." Came Alex's voice as if it was distorted by water or at a great distance.
"Huh?" Maria rolled over, and right onto the floor. "Oof! Ow, Alex, what do you want? Are those new shoes?" She asked blurrily, rubbing her right shoulder where it had his the coffee table.
"I have the birth certificates, but I thought you might want to see them. I had to get Matt's out too to see something. And it was on both, I mean, I am amazed." Alex explained, still being way too vague for Maria's sleep clogged mind, and helped her up and dusted off her back.
"What? Alex, what are you talking about?" she asked, trying to make sense of what he was saying.
"This." He said, thrusting the two nearly identical birth certificates under her nose. They were the same, down to the smug mark that seemed to cover the father's name.
"You have got to be kidding me." She exclaimed. Upon closer inspection she realized it wasn't a smug mark at all, there was a blur that seemed to hover over the name. "How did that get there?" she asked empty air, not even remembering Alex's presence.
"I think it is how those with power protect themselves. We don't know who the father is, because his powers are protecting him, and probably you and the kids too. I wonder if the same thing would happen to my name in a similar circumstance.
"Oh, like you're ever going to be in a 'similar circumstance' to THIS!" Maria exploded, swinging her arms about her. "Will you ever get a woman pregnant, not be told, then get kidnapped, she disappears with the kids, when who knows what happens to you, and then when the birth certificates are written up the name is blurred, huh, huh?"
"Well, if you put it that way, probably not, but I can still wonder can't I?" Alex finished awkwardly. "So, nice weather we're having." He said, earning an exasperated breath from his friend and a pillow to the face, but she was smiling again.
"Okay, so now that we know that we still don't know, what was that other stuff that you wanted to talk about?" he asked smoothly, lounging out on the couch and giving Maria almost no room to sit.
With a slight laugh she remembered. Pulling out the much abused Rissa. When Alex say the burnt remains of Lizzy's favorite doll his eyebrows shot up under his bangs. "How did this happen?" he asked slowly.
"This is what I wanted to talk to you about. Apparently my children are learning new things. Matt did this, with his mind, at least as far as I can tell. And Lizzy suspended him in the air for at least 5 minutes, which is longer than she can even hold an apple in the air. Oh, it seems that she can now talk with animals, not just draw them to her." Maria said, almost all in one breath.
"Ohh-kay." Alex said finally. "It would seem I need to check in on the chickies. Don't want them doing anything dangerous."
"Oh, and Lizzy used her powers in anger, I nipped that in the bud, I hope, but it worries me. This is really hard. Being a single mom is hard enough, but the single mom of super powered children? This was no where in any of those mom manuals. I'm just glad I've got you and your powers." Maria said honestly, patting Alex's knee.
"Have they been practicing using their powers without us?" Alex asked, noticing a slight shiver when she mentioned their powers.
"I don't think so, or I hope not, but I think they obey that, except in that one case today."
"Hey, Ria, I have some coffee here for you. Want any?" he knew she's been trying to stop drinking it, but this seemed like a coffee worthy problem. At her nod he got up to pore some for her, keeping an ear open as he walked to the kitchen.
"All in one day, I have a vision of who my children's father is, then get disappointed and can't see who he is, my kids' have new powers, my creepy stalker guy is still at it, I have 3 projects with a dead line of next Friday, which leaves me only a week to do all the research and get a team together," Taking a deep breath and a sip of the coffee Alex handed to her she continued, "And I have a distinct feeling that my past hone is here in New York, and I keep running into him, and just not really knowing it at the time!"
"You done? Feel better?" Alex asked, his brows still scrunched in concern about the whole stalker thing. This was the first he'd heard about it, he'd have to ask Amber about this, it was probably some guy at work. Well, not for long.
"Yeah, much better. Thanks Alex, for the coffee and the sympathetic ear." She said, not noticing the evil conniving look that crossed his face as he thought of things to do to her stalker.
"No prob babe, what else am I good for?" he joked, focusing again on the woman that was no wrapped around his torso.
"Alex, have you been cheating on me?" Maria asked suddenly, getting a sudden surprised reaction from Alex, "you smell like another woman." Maria finished, smiling evilly.
"Oh, gees, don't surprise me like that, I think you're smelling Liz. She's one of those friends I was with when you called. She hugged me like 8 times." Alex started to laugh, then noticed Maria's sudden stillness. "Ria?"
"I remember picking Lizzy's name. I picked it because I had a, a recognition or something with that name. It was as if I had a compulsion, or had made a promise to use that name. Then I just chose Matt's, cause it sounded like another name or something. This is odd. Maybe just a little too Twilight Zone for me."
"Your children have super powers, the name of their father is magically blurred out, and your best friend is a man who came back from the dead, and this is too Twilight Zone. Babe, I think you need to reevaluate your life." He said, laughing.
"Maybe, oh, this is all so crazy, I think I just need a break."
"Well, speaking of breaks, I have 3 tickets for your salvation right here!" Alex exclaimed, and with a flourish, produced 3 slips of paper to his show. "They're for opening night tomorrow. I want you there, and I think the kids will enjoy it. It is a romance/action play, with some singing, but not a lot. There is some pretty neat dancing too." He watched her face, and could see the indecision. "How 'bout you sleep on it? I'll even put these under your pillow." Alex said smiling. Maria looked really tired now. He watched her get up and head down the hall to her room. She briefly looked in on Lizzy and Matt's room, then continued on to hers.
Alex followed behind, carting the tickets. Maria was sliding into bed with her close on just as he got to the door. Shaking his head he walked in and as he bent to kiss her forehead and tuck her in, he slipped the tickets under the pillow. "Night babe. See you tomorrow Ria."
He carefully closed the door and left, turning the lock and sliding the safety chain into place with his powers. Tomorrow was a big day for him, but it felt like it was going to be even bigger than just his play.
A/N- this one is a little longer than the others so far. i know it is all about Maria, but it wouldn't have worked as well in this case if i switched back and forth, remember the other guys are sleeping... please R/R! Thanks
Tah
