Part Four
"What are you doing here, Max?" Kyle asked. He moved closer to Liz and put his arm on her shoulder. The gesture was to comfort her, but it also sent a clear message to Max – a message Max didn't like at all.
"I'm here to bring Liz back," Max said. "She belongs with me."
Liz's blood began to boil. Max had no right, earthly or otherwise to decide where she belonged.
"Liz belongs wherever Liz decides she belongs Max," Kyle said. "That's not a decision anybody gets to make but her."
"That's bull, and you know it, Valenti. You were always pissed because Liz dumped you for me. You couldn't stand it, even after all these years," Max ranted.
"Max. Max! Will you listen to me?" Liz shouted. "This isn't helping. What your doing isn't helping anything. Now why don't you come in, and sit down, and we'll talk."
Liz shot a pleading look at Kyle, and he stepped back, giving Max access to the small cabin. He stepped in and looked around at their furniture consisting of thrift store finds and castoffs and snorted contemptuously. Kyle glared at Max before he turned and walked out of the room, slamming the door behind him.
"Why don't you sit down, Max," Liz said, trying to keep her voice calm. "I need to, well, I need to go get dressed. I'll be back in a minute."
She moved gracefully across the small room, and Max felt his heart leap into his throat when he watched her go through the same door Kyle had just gone through. It had to be the bedroom. His heart had already died a thousand deaths when they opened the door together. They looked like they had just gotten out of bed – together.
Max paced the perimeter of the small room, looking at the various knickknacks Liz had dotted around the room. His gaze shifted to the various photos displayed on the walls, and he moved in for a closer look, admiring the beauty of the compositions. One photograph in particular caught his attention. It was of Liz, she was standing beside a waterfall, and droplets of water shimmered in her hair. Max admired the skill and talent of the photographer, as well as the beauty of his subject as he waited for Liz.
He heard a door slam, and he turned to find Kyle pulling on a jacket. He stormed out of the cabin before Max could say anything, and it was only after he was gone that he realized that Kyle had a camera in his hand, and a camera bag on his shoulder.
Kyle took those? he thought with amazement. He turned back to the picture of Liz, and examined it closely and realized he could see the love the photographer had for the subject in the image.
"Kyle took that," Liz said softly, coming to stand behind him.
"Yeah, I kind of figured that," said Max. "I saw him leave with a camera. He's good," he added grudgingly.
"He is," Liz agreed. "But it's more than that. He really loves it, and I think it shows in his work."
"Liz, what happened?" Max asked, changing the subject abruptly. "Everything was fine between us."
"No, it wasn't, Max. "But you didn't want to hear anything I had to say," Liz replied. "I wasn't happy, and we weren't safe, no matter how much you wanted to believe that we were."
"But Liz, I love you so much," Max said.
He looked at her, his eyes shining brightly, and she felt her heart start to melt just a little bit. Forcing herself to stay strong, Liz took a deep breath.
"Max, that's just it, I love you too, but I'm not in love with you, and I need to be in love with the man I'm with."
Max felt his stomach drop at the words 'the man I'm with.' He didn't know if she meant it in the literal sense, but judging from the scene he walked in on, that was exactly what she meant.
"Max, listen, I loved you with all my heart and soul, but I think a part of me loved the adventure too. But things changed, I changed. We grew up, Max, and I wanted more. I wanted more than to always be running and looking over my shoulder, and you couldn't give that too me."
Max looked hurt at her revelation, and she rushed to continue.
"Max, it's because you felt this incredible need to keep us all together as a group. You needed to be the king, Max. There's nothing wrong with that, it's who you are. It's who you were destined to become from the minute you emerged from your pod. And Max, you're a good king, but I'm not a loyal subject."
Liz took his hand in hers and squeezed it gently. "Max, I'm not criticizing you, I just needed something different."
"Well you got your wish," Max said, bitterly. "We all split up, anyhow."
"Are you still in contact with everyone," Liz asked eagerly. "Where did Michael and Maria go? And how is Isabel?"
"Michael and Isabel are in Seattle, and Maria's in New York," Max said. "See, we're all split up."
"You left Maria alone in New York without any protection?" Liz demanded, her face filled with fury. "Max, how could you?"
"Give me a little credit, will you, Liz," said Max. "I've been in New York with her. I only came out here to see if I could persuade you to come home. Oh, and Maria asked me to give you this." He reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out an envelope.
Liz eagerly tore it open, anxious for any news from her best friend. Her eyes scanned the letter rapidly, then she went back to the beginning and read it slowly, savoring each word.
Hey Chica,
Nice disappearing act you pulled. I get why, and I think, on some level, Max does too.
Now, before you ask, I'm really happy that Michael and Isabel hooked up. They're perfect for each other. She's managed to smooth out some of his rough edges in a way I never could, and he doesn't let her get away with any crap.
Max is there with you because I made him go, Chica. So if you're angry, blame me. He needed to see with his own eyes that it's over. I'm hoping that if he sees that, maybe he'll see that there's someone else waiting for him. At least I hope he'll see it. But I guess if Kyle shows up at my door any time soon, you guys will have worked it all out.
I miss you, Liz. Maybe someday we can all be together again, but I know that time isn't now. But maybe someday."
Love,
Maria
Liz smiled and slipped the letter into her back pocket. So that's how it is, she thought to herself. Maria and Max. It seemed pretty fitting actually. The two of them had bonded when she went to Florida that one summer, and their bond had grown stronger when they were on the run. Liz wished them both the best with all her heart.
"You're not going to come back with me, are you?" Max asked.
"No."
"Do you love him, Liz? I mean really, really love him?" Max asked.
"Yeah, I do. It's different than us, Max. We were first love. It was new and different. With Kyle, well, with Kyle it's all that, and more. I wish I could explain it better, but I can't. I'm sorry, but there is no us any longer. You'll always be my friend, and I'll always love you, and I hope you'll feel the same about me, but it's time to move on."
Max sighed; he knew it was over. He'd known it for a long time. Maybe even before Liz left. He'd just never accepted it – now he did.
"Can I talk to Kyle before I leave?" Max asked.
"Why?" Liz asked, suddenly wary.
"Why?" Max asked. "Liz, despite everything, we were all friends. We were together twenty-four hours a day while when we were on the road. I'd like to say goodbye to him. That's all, okay?"
"Okay, Max, I'm sorry," Liz said. "I shouldn't have doubted you. "He's probably out back. I'll go call him."
Liz stepped into her boots and shrugged on her coat before she stepped out into the snow-covered yard. She called out to Kyle, and he appeared before her so quickly, she wondered if he'd been waiting for her.
"Kyle, Max wanted to say goodbye before he left."
"You – you're not going with him, then?" he asked. His eyes shown with joy and his face lighted up, and Liz swore the sun dimmed in comparison to the happiness that radiated from him.
"Did you think I was?" she asked, a bit hurt by his assumption.
"I hoped to hell you weren't, but I didn't know what Max might say to convince you," he admitted.
"He didn't even try," said Liz. "Not really, anyhow. But he's leaving, and he wants to say goodbye to you. I'll wait out here."
Kyle went in through the kitchen, knocking the snow off his boots and shedding his jacket. When he entered the living room, Max was again looking at the picture he'd taken of Liz. He looked hard at Max, and gave him a small shove with his mind. The ability to mind warp was relatively new to him, but he used it on Max, with no compunction whatsoever. Liz didn't want to be with Max any longer, she'd made that clear, and he'd do whatever it took to make sure Max realized that.
"Whatever it takes," he whispered softly.
"Oh, Kyle, I didn't hear you come in," Max said. "Did you just say something?"
"Oh, uh, no," said Kyle. "I was just clearing my throat. So you uh, like the pictures?"
"It's nice," Max said, pointing to the photo. "They all are."
"Thanks," Kyle said. "I had a great subject to work with."
"Kyle, look, I just wanted to say, hell, I don't know, I don't know what to say. I'm mad as hell, but I also realize that there's nothing between Liz and I any longer. She's right. I love her, but I'm not in love with her. That's what she said about me, and I didn't get it at first, but the more I thought about it, the more sense it made. And if she's going to be with anybody, I'm glad it's somebody I know and trust."
Max reached into his wallet and pulled out a slip of paper with some writing on it. He passed it to Kyle.
"These are our addresses and phone numbers," he said. "We shouldn't lose contact with each other."
"No, you're right," Kyle agreed, looking at the paper. Max and Maria together, he thought to himself in amazement. That's the way it is?
He watched silently as Max fastened his coat against the cold. Without thinking, he reached out and pulled the picture of Liz off the wall and handed it to Max.
"Here, why don't you take this," he said. "Maria might like to have it."
Max smiled a sad smile of thanks and slipped the photo into his coat.
"Tell Liz," he began.
"I will," Kyle said.
Max quickly left the small house, and Liz came and joined Kyle as they watched him drive away.
"You okay?" Kyle asked, watching a single tear trace a path down her cheek.
"Yeah, it's just kind of hard, you know?" she said.
"Saying goodbye usually is," Kyle said, remembering the tearful goodbye he shared with his father the night they left Roswell. "Don't worry, we'll be fine. It will all work out. Whatever it takes, remember?"
"That's right," said Liz, smiling through the tears. "Whatever it takes."
Kyle slipped his arm around Liz's waist and squeezed it gently. She looked up at him and smiled, and he dropped a quick kiss on her upturned face.
"Whatever it takes."
The End