(Evans Home, Roswell)

Frustration was eating away all sense of stoicism in Maxwell Evans. He struggled to maintain his composure, because all he wanted to do was explode. It was ridiculous how the king of an entire world could be reduced to a humiliated teenager. There was no time for this, he had to get back to Tess; had to tell her what he'd learned. The longer he stood here, being yelled at by his parents for not going to a counseling session, the harder it was to stay in control. Especially since Isabel kept staring at him, trying to get him to give in to telling their parents the truth.

Michael, as always was his rock. He stood slightly in front of him, but to the side. If the situation hadn't been so precarious, Max would've smiled at the over-protectiveness of his best friend. Michael knew how close he was to just telling them who he was, so he jumped in.

"Mrs. Evans. I'm sorry. It was my fault. I kept Max from going because I had a really bad fight with Maria and just needed a friend to keep me company and to stop me from doing something really dumb. So I called Max. Max is a really good friend, you know. He never thought of leaving me in my time of need. I'm so sorry…" he sniffed, faked a few unshed tears, "If I had known that I was keeping him from something important…"

Isabel could've shook her head at her mother, "Oh, Michael. I had no idea that you and Maria were having problems. No, it's good to have a friend when you need one. I'm so glad that you called Max, instead of drinking or behaving in a self-destructive manner, like so many teenagers do, nowadays. I'm sorry, Max. I had no idea. I guess it was alright to skip one session in order to be there for your best friend." Their father just stood behind his wife, hands on her shoulders, nodding his agreement. "Is there anything that we can do for you?"

Michael wiped at his eyes, still sniffing, "No. No, I'm alright now. Maria said she forgave me, so we're back together now. I feel so stupid."

Max jumped in, "You're not stupid, Michael." He put an arm around his shoulders, "it's like I told you, Michael. There are always ups and downs in every relationship. But as long as you still love each other, you'll get through it."

"Oh, Max. We still have to go to the Crashdown tonight, remember? Liz needs our help with the inventory. I promised her that you and Michael would go help lift the heavy boxes for her." Isabel cut in before things got too unbelieveable for her to listen to.

Michael nodded, "Oh, yeah! I remember. Maria said that she'd kill me if I didn't show!" He got up and started to head towards the door. Before leaving, he turned back to Max, "Hey, Max--Isabel, you comin'?"

Diane jumped in before Max or Isabel could respond, "They'll meet you there, Michael. It was so nice seeing you again. Bye." She walked him over to the door, holding it open for him. He left, reluctantly, without them motioning that he would meet up with them later before it slammed shut behind him.

As he walked away from his friends' home, he heard the faint sounds of a loud argument coming from within. Michael shook his head, taking in a deep breath; the shouting was bringing back old memories of his foster father, bad memories that he would rather forget.

He pulled out the cell phone that Maria had let him borrow to call Sheriff Valenti. The last Michael had heard, Tess was still unconscious. He wanted to check up on her; Hell, he wanted to see her with his own eyes to make sure that she was okay. All the lies, the deceit, all of it, was an elaborate plot to rip the royal family apart. Thinking that, as the king's second-in-command and protector, he should've seen it coming did nothing to help him feel better. His gait shortened as he started to jog. No matter what, he couldn't shake the feeling that something was going to happen. Never once did he think to ignore his gut as he gave up all signs of doubt, running as fast as he could, dialing Valenti as he ran.

It rang, once, twice…Finally someone answered. "Valenti residence," Kyle said half-heartedly.

"Kyle, its Michael. Is everything okay over there? Is Tess okay?"

"Tess. Um…yeah. She's doing, well as okay as she can be. Michael, she says that the pain is less now and that she's feeling better. Dad—he said that's a bad sign—that she might-- Hurry Max up, okay."

"I'm trying, Kyle. Max's parents are being assholes! They won't let them leave! What the hell am I going to do about that? If I were Max, I'd tell them to F-off and get the hell out of my way. But of course, Max has got to be the perfect son…just like Isabel has to be the perfect daughter. Listen, I'm almost by your house now. I'll be there in about five minutes. I'm on Maria's cell if you need me."

Michael ran even faster, ignoring the baffled looks of the neighbors watering their perfect lawns, while their children played in the yard. Something—he didn't know what—made him run past the Valenti house and to the street that ran perpendicular.

He'd felt it, sensed it, long before he heard the voice cry out "Watch OUT!" It was pure reaction, thought was not involved. He blasted a hole in the road, focusing on the rock blasting sessions taught to him by Tess.

The truck's brakes squealed as the driver tried to stop from hitting the young woman who had run out in front of him. The driver's heart almost stopped, barely breathing as the truck miraculously stopped, the front wheels falling in a hole in the road that he could've sworn wasn't there before.

Michael ran over as fast as his legs could move, grabbing Ava by the waist and pulling her out of the street. Her face was pure white and she had tears streaming down her face. By the color of her eyes, he assumed that she had been crying before she ran out into the street. The thundering sounds of running footsteps came up behind him. Alex, who had shouted the warning, came up to them and pulled Ava from out of Michael's arms to hold her in his own.

The driver of the truck, an obese balding man, levered himself out of the truck and walked over quickly to see if they were injured. Michael took the lead, making sure that he knew that the young lady was unharmed, merely upset that her boyfriend had broken up with her. Once he was assured that he wouldn't be blamed for anything, he pulled the truck out of the hole and drove off, counting his blessings.

Alex put an arm around Ava's waist as they slowly walked back to Valenti's home. Michael followed behind Ava, putting a hand against her back to steady her.
Max finally escaped the chaos of his home; this was the first time in his life that he just walked out of the house, not caring what his parents thought. He wanted—no, he needed to see Tess. He needed to see her, to tell her how sorry he was. Feelings of shame, anger, and regret filled his mind; it was almost overwhelming. Almost, but not quite.

He stopped himself from practically flying over to the Valenti's. Instead, forcing himself toward the Crashdown to see Liz; before he saw Tess, he needed to make sure…

Taking in a deep breath, he opened the door. As he expected, Liz sat at the countertop writing in her journal. He laughed to himself; she'd have to write a novel to describe all that had happened the last few days.

Max walked over to her, leaning over so that he could glance at her book as he sat in the stool besides her.

"Max!" Liz looked at him, surprised. She swiveled the stool to face him before asking, "What are you doing here? I thought that you'd be…well, with Tess."

Max thought hard at how to answer her. He had loved her once and didn't want to hurt her. "I wanted to see you first. I-I need your help with something and I need to explain..." Looking around the crowded restaurant, he glanced at the door leading to their upstairs home. "Can we go somewhere private, Liz? It's sort of not something that we can talk about here."

Before standing, she looked him dead-on, "Max. I know, alright. I know…it's what Tess has been saying all this time. It's your destiny to be with her. I understand…I mean, you're going to have a baby together. I'd think that it'll bind you for the rest of your life, you know?"

All Max could do was nod; there really wasn't a good response, not one that wouldn't hurt her. He helped her carry her books and walked upstairs with her so they could talk in privacy.

If he was right about what he'd learned…his—no, everyone's life was about to change drastically.

Mr. Parker stood up from behind the counter, picking up the dropped napkins that the customer had pushed over his side. Taking in a large deep breath, he couldn't help but wonder how the Evans were dealing with it. Their son, getting a seventeen year old girl pregnant—not only a high school student, but the adopted daughter of the town sheriff. He took in other deep breath; Thank god his daughter had more sense than to sleep with a boy like that, he thought.

He wiped the counter tops, finally deciding that it was his duty to, at the very least, bring over dinner. Shaking his head, he mumbled to himself, "That poor family. I should call them to see how they're doing…" Finally talking himself into it, walked into the back room for more privacy as he picked up the phone and dialed the Evans.

It rang…Max's mother picked it up. "Oh Hello, Diane. God, I just heard. I'm so sorry. It's a tough break, huh? How are you doing?"

Afterwards, he stared at the phone still in his hands, in complete shock…how was he to know that the boy hadn't told his parents?

To Be Continued…

(Again)

Alright…I actually need some review now, 'cause I'm not sure how I want it to go.

Should the Evans freak out? Or welcome Tess into the family right away?

Then there's the Liz issue… I'm thinking very hard about that one!

--Yes…I made Michael act funny in this chapter. (Well, it's my idea of funny.)