Facing Death
By: lfbrox
Story: Set in early second season. Logan can walk (just because I like him to). And lots of transgenics are on the run and the other X-series are all out too. Lydecker, Renfro and White are the enemies – as a team this time.
Rating: R
AN: Here you go guys. Sorry for the long wait but you kina overwhelmed me. Thank you all so much for your date ideas. Also thanks to the one's who said that they have faith in me that I come up with something. That's where the pressure part came in. I kept thinking where would I go with someone I couldn't touch after having had various dinners, movies, a picnic, a motorcycle ride. I couldn't take the cabin idea because they would've been gone for so long. But thanks to everyone for suggesting a sports event. So here you go. I hope you're still with me.
Also thanks for all the great reviews. Both for this story and also for Hormones.
Re-post – now the beta-ed version, thanks Sammi
Chapter 9: Come what may
But pissing him off now wasn't an option. Not when he was devoting so much energy to get her what she wanted – without even knowing that he was doing so. So she turned around and left the room too, deciding to give Deck some time to cool off. She didn't know what had gotten into him and, quite frankly, she didn't really care.
Manticore, Seattle HQ:
Lydecker went straight to his office after leaving the observation lab. He paced the room, waiting for the first indoctrination session to be over so he and Renfro could question 493 and waiting to hear something new from the observation lab. But for some reason he felt that his pacing had little to do with the waiting for news.
He had this feeling. He didn't know how to put it in words – not even in his head. A fluttering feeling in his stomach. Not the good butterfly feeling he faintly remembered from the time he was happily married. No. The feeling that something was pulling at his insides. The feeling that had begun when he looked in 493's eyes. The feeling that had only intensified in its cruelty when 493 shouted at him that his name was Ben.
In that instance he saw the young Ben in front of him. A scared kid who didn't resemble the soldier Manticore was looking to create. A kid who didn't know what was outside the walls of Manticore but prayed to the Blue Lady for her to get him out. He had known about the Blue Lady. And for some reason he hadn't stopped it. Hadn't told anybody about it. He had somehow felt like Ben needed her to stay sane. But it also reminded him that those kids were just that. Kids.
And now that they had captured Ben and were observing Max, Lydecker was reminded that they were adults. Independent, strong adults that had grown up and somehow turned out okay. Better than okay. For more than 10 years they had been on their own and now they were on the run again. In danger again. Lydecker himself knew all about the 'what's past is past' deal. He had kidded himself more than once to believe that the past was history. Only to be reminded again and again that you can't run from your past. He knew the feeling and couldn't help but feel some strange kind of sympathy for 'his' kids.
A buzz of his intercom ripped him out of his thoughts. He welcomed the distraction and answered immediately.
"Lydecker." He snapped.
"Sir. The indoctrination session will end in 15 minutes. 452 and the suspect are awake now. Sir." The observation lab team leader informed him.
"Thanks I'll be right there." Lydecker said and headed out of the office without bothering to inform Renfro.
Logan's penthouse:
Max stirred in the comfortable bed she had slept in. She could tell that it wasn't her bed – or rather her mattress – at home. But in her state of not asleep and not quite awake she didn't care where she was. She felt secure, comfortable and had just woken up from the best night's sleep she had had in a long time. She heard sheets rustling next to her and remembered where she was. Logan's bedroom. She remembered watching him sleep. His slow steady breathing. His hand that rested on his stomach. A hand she wished was hers. She remembered studying his face while he slept. Peaceful, beautiful. She didn't remember falling asleep herself but she remembered that she dreamed of her and Logan sharing a bed. Not one of the X-rated dreams she sometimes had. Just him and her cuddling in bed.
She couldn't help but smile and couldn't stop the small sigh. Soon it might be a reality. She would have loved to lay there a few minutes longer with her eyes closed and remember her dream, but she felt like she was being watched. She stretched out and turned to her side so she faced Logan's bed and slowly opened her eyes.
She wasn't surprised to see Logan looking at her. He looked wide awake and she couldn't help but wonder if he had been watching her for some time now just like she had done the night before. He smiled, knowing that he was just caught staring at her. She returned the smile, letting him know that she didn't mind in the least.
"Morning sleepyhead." He said, his voice sounding a little raspier than usual.
"Morning. How long have you been awake?" Max asked and cuddled deeper into the covers of her bed.
"I don't know." Logan replied still staring at her. And it was true. He didn't know how long he had been lying there, propped up on his elbow, just looking at her as she slept. She had never looked more beautiful to him.
"So?" Logan started, figuring he should be saying something in addition to his staring. "Do I snore?"
"Nope. Didn't hear anything." Max answered. "But I slept so well maybe I just didn't hear it."
"Well. Maybe you should give it another try some night." Logan suggested with a twinkle in his eyes.
"Anytime." Max replied, hoping he would suggest that she would stay over again tonight.
"So how about breakfast?" Logan asked, thinking that he might be pushing his luck if he asked her to stay over again tonight. Besides. He still didn't have a clue on what they could do for their date tonight. Their options were limited. He should plan something where they would end up at his place again late at night so she just had to stay over.
"Earth to Logan." Max said sitting up on her bed.
"What?" Logan asked distractedly.
"Well you ask if I want breakfast and then zone out on me before I can answer." Max explained.
"Sorry. I was just thinking about out date tonight." Logan answered and sat up on his bed.
Max wanted to come back with a smart ass remark but was rendered speechless when seeing him sitting there in nothing but his boxers. No glasses. Scruffier than usual, with a severe case of a bed head. Now it was her turn to zone out. She heard a voice in the distance and suddenly realized that it must be Logan who was speaking to her. She quickly turned back to reality and saw him looking at her expectantly.
/Oh. Okay. I guess now he wants an answer to his question. What was the question? Damn Max. Stop being so distracted around him. Okay. I just say yes. No need to have him tease me about my zoning out./ Max thought and followed through with her thought out plan.
"Uhm. Yes." She said looking at him to judge by his reaction if she chose the right answer.
"Yes what?" Logan asked looking slightly irritated but also a little amused.
"Uhm. I mean yes. What you said." Max answered holding down an embarrassed smile. Yep she got caught alright. /I guess it wasn't a yes or no answer kinda question./
"Fine with me." Logan just replied, got up and walked out of the room. Max followed him, curious to know what she just had agreed to. She followed him to the kitchen where he was busy getting out bowls and ingredients to make breakfast. Max sat down on the counter and watched him for a while. He got the coffeemaker going and turned back to make some kind of dough. Maybe they were having pancakes.
She continued watching him in silence. She was wondering why he was still wearing only his boxer shorts but who was she to complain. How often had she envision him cooking for her naked. /Is that what I said yes to/ Max wondered. /I hardly think he asked if he should make breakfast while wearing nothing but his boxers. I could ask him but then he might go and put a shirt on. I can't have that./ Max thought, but eventually curiosity got the better of her.
"Logan?" Max said hopping off her stool to get some cups for their coffee.
"Yes Max." Logan said stirring the dough.
"Not that I don't like what I see. Because I do. But aren't you gonna get dressed?" Max asked and was surprised that she didn't stammer on that one.
"Well that was my original plan." He told her, accepting the coffee she carefully handed him. He took a sip and couldn't help but notice her squirming in her corner of the kitchen. He decided to take mercy on her and explain what she had missed while zoning out on him in the bedroom. "I asked you if you could move the bed so I could reach the closet and put on some clothes. When I got no reaction I asked if you would rather want me to cook in my underwear." Logan explained and he swore he could see her blush.
"Oh." Max said and tried to avoid eye contact. "So that's what I said yes to."
"Yep. You did. Change your mind?" He asked, a big grin plastered on his face.
"Nope. This is quite alright." She said and hopped back on her stool to continue watching him now that everything was cleared up.
"Fine. Whatever you say." Logan replied and got back to the stove to make the pancakes. He thanked god that he wasn't a morning person. Otherwise the looks he received from her would have had a slightly different effect on him than just amusement.
Manticore, Seattle HQ:
Lydecker checked on Ben first but as he was still in a light daze and in no condition to answer his questions yet, he went over to the observation lab to see if anything interesting had come up.
"What do you have?" Lydecker asked. He addressed no one in particular because he didn't know their names and figured that the team leader would report to him.
"Nothing sir. He's fixing her breakfast in his underwear." The team leader replied, clearly annoyed with the progress.
"Oh." Lydecker said not sure why the soldier would mention such a thing. "Interesting. Try to find out what they are doing tonight." Lydecker ordered and left the room, clearly not interested what this Logan guy was wearing.
In the hallway he ran into Renfro who rushed toward the indoctrination room.
"Watch where you're going Deck." Renfro warned him.
"Sorry." Lydecker said but didn't really mean it. "You heading towards the indoctrination room?" He asked, even though he already knew she was.
"Anything new?" Renfro asked, not bothering to answer his question.
"No. Last time I checked he was still in a daze. Let's see if we can question him now." Lydecker said and entered the room in front of her. No need to be a gentleman when there was no lady around.
"Is he conscious?" Lydecker asked the doctor who just set up the equipment to start phase 2 of indoctrination.
"He can talk." Was the doctor's answer. He was not part of the military ranks so he didn't bother calling them sir and ma'am.
"Good." Lydecker said and stepped closer to Ben, who was still strapped to the indoctrination chair. He looked weak and disoriented. But he was awake.
"493. Can you hear me?" Lydecker asked with a voice louder than usual.
"My name is Ben." Came the reply.
"Alright Ben. Let me ask you a question. What do you know about your siblings? Do you know where they are?" Lydecker asked, ignoring the death glare he received from Renfro after saying the word 'siblings'.
"Go to hell." Ben rasped out, struggling to stay awake. He knew they were messing with his mind. He knew that they wanted him to give them the whereabouts of his siblings. And for the first time he was glad that he didn't know where any of them were.
"Tell me about Max." Lydecker tried again.
"I said go to hell." Ben replied before fading into unconsciousness.
"Let's start phase two." Renfro said to the doctor and left the room. She was tired of playing games.
Logan's penthouse:
"So did you have nice dreams?" Max said, sipping her coffee while watching Logan load their plates.
"What makes you say that?" Logan asked hoping he didn't talk during his sleep. He sure had had a nice dream. About him and her and…..But he didn't want to go into that.
"I'm just asking." Max said and took the plate from him.
"Oh. Okay. Well yeah. I did sleep well. Let's eat." Logan said and followed her to the table with his own plate in hand.
"So what are we doing tonight?" Max asked while digging in to her breakfast.
"I don't know yet. I'll think about it while you are at work. Anything in particular you wanna do?" Logan asked hoping Max would think of something.
"I don't know. I trust you'll think of something. Surprise me." She said and finished off her breakfast rather quickly. "I'll call Original Cindy and then take a quick shower." She said while getting up and moving towards the phone. "You clean up the kitchen." She added with a grin and disappeared into his bedroom with the phone in her hand, feeling pretty much at home.
"God I am so whipped." Logan groaned and got up to gather their plates to quickly clean up the kitchen and then check his lately abandoned Informant net for anything urgent.
Jam Pony:
With only half an hour delay Max arrived at Jam Pony. She was in a cheerful mood and was determined not to let Normal's bip, bip, bip's change that. So she ignored him and went to her locker to see if OC actually made it out of bed and into work this morning.
"Hey girl. I called you this morning to wake you up but you didn't answer the phone. What's up?" Max asked and eyed Original Cindy suspiciously. She seemed to be in an awfully good mood.
"And where have you been all night?" Cindy asked noticing Max's unusual relaxed and smiling face.
"Don't go changing the subject on me. What's up with you not being at home in the morning and that happy glowing you got going on? Considering how broke you are and how bad you felt yesterday when I left you seem to be a little too cheery this morning." Max asked sensing that something was up.
"Well you know boo. After catching a couple of hours of sleep last night Original Cindy decided to check if you were at Crash so you could tell her about your date with money bags." Cindy started but was interrupted by Max.
"I don't believe you gurl. You actually went to Crash last night? Do we need to check you into a twelve-step program?" Max asked. Yesterday Cindy had vowed not to drink anymore and yet she had gone out to do just that the same day.
"Don't worry boo. Original Cindy just didn't feel like hanging around alone at home. So are you gonna let me finish this story?" Cindy asked.
"Go ahead." Max encouraged her.
"Well obviously you weren't there so Original Cindy decided to check out who else is buzzing around the joint. And lemme tell ya suga. It wouda been a waste if she stayed at home last night. Some fine sugas were 'round. Hooked up with this gorgeous brunette. Erin. Played some pool, did some dancing. That gurl is fine. So Original Cindy offers to walk her home and what can I say. She didn't make it home last night." Cindy finished with a big grin that told Max exactly what she'd been up to all night.
"Well good for you." Max replied and nudged her playfully. "Planning on seeing her again?"
"For sure. Original Cindy isn't a girl for a night. And the suga is too good to be true. Her father works for the Seattle Military SuperSonics. She got us tickets for tonight. Front seats. Well Original Cindy ain't much for sports but she's really into it. And Original Cindy is into the girl. So what's the damage? Are you guys up for it?" Cindy explained, proud that she found herself a girlfriend with connections.
"Tonight? Well Logan and I wanted to go out. But I don't think he has anything planned yet. I'll give him a call and ask if he wants to go. But I'm sure he'll be excited. What time is it?" Max asked.
"7 o'clock sharp. Sketchy and Herbal are also coming." Cindy told her.
"Cool. I'll call Logan. Do you think that…." Max started but was rudely interrupted by Normal.
"Hate to break up your little chat-fest. If it's not too much trouble would you mind doing the job that I pay you lousy morons for?" Normal said, his voice turning to a yell at the end of the sentence.
"Aiight Normal. Don't wet your pants. On my way." Cindy said and slowly walked to the front desk to pick up a package. "You call your squeeze boo. Lemme know during lunch what he said. Original Cindy would hate bringing pretty-boy and Mr. Stoic along." She said and rode off.
"Well. Might as well work too." Max said to herself and walked over to Normal.
"Yo Normal. Do you have a package going to sector 9?" Max asked, wanting to talk to Logan in person.
"We are in sector 9 Max. What? You don't wanna move your lazy butt through a checkpoint now?" Normal asked in his usual sarcastic manner.
"Even those packages need to be delivered right? So you got one or not?" Max replied, clearly annoyed with his attitude.
Normal rolled his eyes but tossed her a package for Sector 9. "You better be back within the next 20 minutes." Normal told her and went back to sorting through packages hoping to find one for Sector 10 that he could give Max next so she would have to peddle through the whole city.
Manticore, Seattle HQ:
"Any progress?" Lydecker asked, stepping up next to the doctor who was busy coordinating and controlling phase 2 of the indoctrination.
"Takes a lot out of him sir." The doctor explained and adjusted some controls when Ben started to buck in his seat.
"How long till we can question him?" Lydecker inquired.
"I can't say sir. He struggles against everything we try to feed him." The doctor answered.
"So double the efforts. We don't have that much time." Lydecker ordered.
"That would be too much for him sir. He might suffer a stroke due to the over stimulation of his nerves and brain functions." The doctor defended his decision not to work too aggressively.
"Do it as fast as you can." Lydecker ordered and walked through the adjoining door to check on the status of the surveillance team.
"What do you got?" He asked, startling the men in the room.
"Sir. After 452 left the suspect had a shower and is currently in the process of switching on his computers." The team-leader explained.
"Do we have a clear visual of the computers?" Lydecker asked stepping closer to the monitors that showed various angles of Logan's penthouse.
"Yes sir. A pretty impressive set-up if you ask me sir." The soldier answered.
"I didn't ask you." Lydecker replied coldly while he watched Logan power up his equipment. He was on alert. Maybe now he would find out if this Logan guy was just an Eyes Only informant or Eyes Only himself. He wasn't so sure if Ben could help him with his search for Eyes Only. He didn't know how much contact the X5's kept with each other. Zack's re-indoctrination had left him with blanks in his memory. So observing 452 and Cale's penthouse was his only chance of getting closer to the great Eyes Only.
"Make captures of each new window he pulls up and enlarge them." Lydecker instructed while squinting his eyes trying to read what was on Logan's monitor.
"Looks like a regular e-mail account sir." The soldier informed him after enlarging the first close caption.
Lydecker scanned through the topic lines but couldn't find anything unusual. "Of course they talk in code." Lydecker muttered, more to himself than to anybody else. He just had to wait and see what was written in those e-mails.
Logan was just about to open an e-mail that was flagged red when something stopped him.
"Damn it." Lydecker cursed.
Logan's penthouse:
"Knock, Knock." Max said while walking inside the penthouse, heading straight for the computer room.
"Hey. Didn't think you'd be back so soon." Logan said and turned in his chair to greet her, forgetting the important e-mail he was just about to open a second ago.
"I was in the neighborhood. Thought I'd swing by." She said and planted her butt on her usual spot on top of his desk.
"So what's up?" Logan asked, enjoying the view in front of him.
"I talked to Original Cindy." Max started.
"So she made it to work?" Logan asked with amusement. He would never admit it, but he always looked forward to Max telling stories about all the mishaps at work and all the stupid things her friends and co-workers did.
"Yep. And she was more than happy and positively glowing." Max said raising her eyebrows for effect.
"No hang-over?" Logan asked in surprise. It always amazed him how much they could drink. Sure, when he was in college he could hold his liquor. But right now he needed about 2 days to get back to normal after spending a night with Max and her friends at Crash.
"Nope. She actually went to Crash last night." Max explained.
"Wow. That's what I call great stamina. Do we need to set up an interrogation any time soon?" He asked his eyes sparkling with humor. How he loved their usual chats about nothing in particular.
"Turned out that she wasn't there to drink but to score." Max said with a wink.
"Oh. So I guess that glowing you mentioned means she did score?" Logan asked.
"Again. Yep. And she scored big time. Turns out the girl she ended up with is not only pretty, nice and fine but also well connected. Her father works for the Seattle Sonics. She scored us tickets for tonight. Front row. You wanna go?" She asked him already seeing how excited he was.
"Front row? Wow. It's like impossible to get tickets like that. Even with my connections." Logan said with a huge grin. Then he remembered that he wanted to take Max out on a date tonight. Granted he had no idea what to do and where to take her but still. He knew Max really wasn't into sports.
"That's okay Logan. We can go out alone some other night. It sounds like fun. Plus we gonna meet Cindy's new girl." Max said seeing his conflict.
"If you are sure Max. I mean I wanna go but we don't have to." He said knowing he sounded lame.
"No. It's cool with me. We're supposed to be at the stadium at 7 o'clock sharp. So I better get back to work. Don't wanna piss off Normal more than I already have. So are you gonna pick us up at around 6:30? Herbal and Sketchy are coming along too." Max asked.
"Sure no problem. I'll be there." Logan replied and casually waved at Max retrieving form.
"Later." She yelled before shutting the front door.
"Yeah." Logan yelled back even though he knew she couldn't hear him anymore.
Then he turned back to his computer to finally open the e-mail from before.
Manticore, Seattle HQ:
"Give me the close up." Lydecker ordered. He waited impatiently for them to end the conversation so Cale could finally open the e-mail.
"Here you go sir." The soldier said handing him the close capture.
'Logan
Could you score another Gameboy for my son? He really loves that thing. Let's meet up for another round of darts tomorrow.
Matt'
"Great." Lydecker muttered and held his hand out to grab the next capture of the next e-mail Cale opened.
'Hey Logan
How are you doing? Heard you're back on your feet again. Wanne meet up for a round of real basketball now? Lemme know when and where. We need the big guy.
John Smith'
"John Smith. I don't think that's his real name." One of the soldiers reading the e-mail said without thinking.
"I wasn't asking for your thoughts soldier." Lydecker said and dropped the paper back on the desk. "They are talking in code. Monitor the rest of the e-mails. Try to find out who sent them and let me know what Cale replies." Lydecker said and left the room.
Max and OC's crib, 6:20
"I still don't get why we have to go all dress-uppy. We're only going to a ball game." Max whined, while applying some make-up.
"Don't matter boo. It's still a date. Can't look all casual." Cindy replied as she checked her outfit.
"I get it that you have to dress up, seeing that it's your second date and all. But why do I have to do the girly thing? I could wear my work outfit and Logan wouldn't notice." Max said trying to get comfortable in her tight pants and tight top.
"Oh he would notice but he wouldn't drool any less." Logan said, stepping into the apartment just in time to hear Max talk about him.
"Logan?" Max said jumping with surprise and walking out of the bathroom to greet Logan.
"Sorry. I guess you didn't hear me knock." He said letting his eyes roam over Max' body.
"Apparently not." Max said turning in front of him like a model. "So you taking me out like this?" She said in a flirty manner.
"I would take you anywhere." Logan replied adoring her curvy body.
"Original Cindy would ask you to cut it out. But seeing as she's doing the flirty thing herself tonight I shouldn't dare to." Cindy said stepping out of her room.
"So are you ready to go girls?" Logan asked deciding to let the flirty subject drop.
"Never been readier in my life." Max and OC answered at the same time.
"Let's go then." Logan said and held the door open for the girls to step out.
Manticore, Seattle HQ:
"Come in." Lydecker yelled from behind his desk.
"Sir. Here are all the e-mail Cale read. He answered three of them. Setting up meetings to play basketball and darts. No phone calls. We couldn't figure out who sent the mails without having access to his computers. We have hackers trying to get in, sir. Cale, 452 and her co-workers are at the basketball stadium. X5-599 followed them. Sir." The soldier reported.
"Okay. Let me know if something new comes up. And tell the Doc to call me once 493 is ready for questioning." Lydecker barked already scanning the documents the soldier handed him.
"Ay sir." The soldier said and stood at attention.
"Dismissed." Lydecker said with a wave of his hand and continued studying Cale's e-mails for anything suspicious.
Military SuperSonic Stadium:
"Go, go, go, go. Ahhhh." Logan, Sketchy and even Herbal shouted while the game was in full blow.
Original Cindy and her new girl Erin were busy looking in each others eyes, touching each other and sharing some kisses.
Max entertained herself watching Logan interact with her friends. They were so different when you looked at their background. A spoiled rich kid. A Rastafarian. An idiot. A confident lesbian and her girlfriend. A genetically engineered killing machine. Yet when you looked close enough you could see that they were all really comfortable around each other. Even friends. Family. At least to her.
She loved to watch Logan hang around her friends. She loved the little looks he gave her to make sure he knew she was around. To tell her that he wanted her around. Enjoyed being there. With her. Together.
She was ripped out of her musings when the last break was loudly announced. She saw the players leave the court and watched the cheery perky cheerleaders take their place to satisfy yet another male craving.
While Sketchy, Herbal, Cindy and Erin turned their full attention to the cheerleaders, dancing raunchily to a pre-pulse rap song, Logan turned to face Max.
"You having fun?" He asked her trying to make sure she wasn't too bored while he had the time of his life.
"Yeah. Never been to a game before. Quite entertaining actually." Max said also turning to face him, but careful not to touch him.
"Yeah. It's great. I've never had seats this great." He said offering her some popcorn.
"Guess this is our last date, huh?" Max said a little uneasy.
"Yep. Tomorrow at 9 o'clock we have an appointment with Dr. Richmond. I can't believe it's already been 6 days now." Logan said, feeling a little nervous himself.
"Try to work for Normal for a week and you would notice that 6 days are a real long time." Max joked to lighten the mood. But seeing Logan deep in thoughts she couldn't hold the grin she wore for very long.
"Logan? Should we talk about what we're gonna do if it doesn't work?" Max asked grabbing some popcorn to keep herself from staring at Logan.
"What do you mean? We keep looking for a cure and torturing ourselves by dating." He said in a joking tone. But on the insides he feared that she would just give up on them if it didn't work.
"No matter how long it takes? That could be a lot of torture." Max said in an equally light and joking tone but her eyes showed the same kind of fear Logan felt.
"I'm game if you are. Speaking of which." He said gesturing to the court where the players just got ready to play.
"Right." Max said also redirecting her gaze to the game.
"So? You enjoying yourself?" Cindy asked her with concern in her voice. She couldn't help but overhear Max and Logan's conversation and was a little worried.
"Sure. What about you? I bet you couldn't even tell me the score." Max teased her, seeing how Cindy concentrated fully on Erin the whole time.
"What can Original Cindy say. She's just a sucker for Erin-candy." Cindy said and hugged Erin tighter. Erin shrugged her shoulders at that and started to nuzzle OC's neck.
"You just enjoy yourselves." Max said with a wink and turned to watch the game. She did understand the whole concept of the game, but she didn't understand the fascination with it. She watched Logan play wheelchair-basketball. She found that fascinating. And not only because she could watch Logan. It was a real skill where you had to overcome your disabilities to make it work. But the real basketball. Just some huge guys trying to get a ball into a basket. She didn't really get it.
She grew tired of watching the game after about five minutes and turned to Logan who could barely stay seated in his chair from excitement. She turned to Herbal who looked like he was very far away. That would explain his long toilet break. Then she turned to Sketchy. He was mesmerized. But not by the game. He had turned around in his chair, a huge bowl of popcorn in his lap watching Original Cindy and Erin make out.
"Yo Sketch. Would you hand me the popcorn please?" Max asked with a wicked smile on her face.
"Uhhm. Oh. Not a good idea right now. Logan has some too." Sketchy stuttered, knowing that he had been caught and turned back to the game.
"Gottcha." Max said with a satisfied smile.
Manticore, Seattle HQ:
"What?" Lydecker answered his phone.
"Colonel Lydecker, sir. 493 just finished phase 2 of indoctrination. He'll be ready for questioning in 20 minutes. Sir." The soldier reported.
"Okay. I'll be there. Let me know when 599 checks in." Lydecker ordered and hung up. So far none of the e-mails had helped him to figure out how Cale was related to Eyes Only. And that frustrated him. He knew that 493 probably didn't have any information on that. He just hoped that he – Ben – knew about the whereabouts of some of the other escaped X5's. Otherwise he would be back where he started.
Max and OC's crib:
After a quick pitcher at Crash with Sketchy and Herbal, Max and Logan decided to go home so they – or at least Logan – would be fit in the morning for their doctor's appointment. OC and Erin had taken off together right after the game for some 'good-ole-lesbo-lovin' as Cindy put it.
"So are you gonna be alright all by yourself?" Logan asked once they had arrived at Max's place. He would have loved to just take her home with him but couldn't think of a good enough reason to do that.
"Yeah I guess I can take care of myself." Max replied sarcastically. She wanted to ask him if she could just stay at his place again but couldn't think of a good enough reason to do that.
"So you want me to pick you up in the morning?" Logan asked.
"Yeah. That would be great. Okay. So. I'll see you in a little while." Max said and hesitantly opened the door.
"Yeah. Later." Logan said hating to see her go.
"Night." Max said and got out of the car. She was just about to shut the door when Logan stopped her.
"Max." He said hurriedly.
"What?" She replied breathlessly.
"No negative thoughts tonight. Let's not think about tomorrow. Deal?" Logan said almost desperately.
"Deal." Max said knowing what he meant. She awarded him one last time with one of her rare warm and bright smiles and shut the door.
He stayed there and watched her until she disappeared in the building and then drove off. He doubted that he would get a lot of sleep that night. It was a natural reflex. Telling Max not to think about negative things related to their doctors appointment brought all the negative thoughts. What if it didn't work? What if it did work? What if the cure worked and the two of them together just didn't work? How fast could he move? How slow could he take it? How long would he stand this if it didn't work? He shook his head as if he could shake off the negative thoughts. But it didn't work. He told Max that they didn't need to talk about the 'what if's'. Now he wished they would've just gone to his place to talk about it. But in less than 12 hours he would find out. He could wait that long. And tomorrow would take care of itself. Come what may.
Max was equally troubled. All those negative thoughts, those worst-case scenarios played out in her head. She couldn't stop it. She cursed her portion of shark DNA that wouldn't let her sleep tonight even though she was convinced that without it she wouldn't be able to sleep as well. She was used to the fact that everytime something good seemed to happen to her, something bad was lurking around the corner to bring her back down. But what if this time everything went well. What if she and Logan finally had a chance. Did they deserve it? Hell yeah. Would they ever get it? You never knew. She wished Cindy would be there to talk her out of her negative thoughts. She wished she could just will the time to run faster. But in less than 12 hours she would find out. She could wait that long. And tomorrow would take care of itself. Come what may.
AN: There you are. I hope some of you are still with me. I appreciate if you review. I love all the great reviews but I also welcome criticism ala Firmament. Helps me to improve. Thanks for reading and I won't keep you waiting that long the next time. Please leave a review. Thanks.
Lfbrox