Disclaimer: Dark Angel and its characters do not belong to me, but the plot is mine. This fan-fiction had been written purely for entertainment purposes. No infringement was intended and no profit had been made out of this.
A/N: Thanks so much for your reviews. I'm glad you're enjoying it. I think I need to apologise for the long delay in this update, but hey, here it is!
Reunited Or Not - Chapter 4
(by elle6778)
Dee was talking to him, telling him something about the fight that had broke out between Tix and Fay, but Alec was only half listening. Although he was facing Dee, he kept looking out of the corner of his eyes at Max.
Something was wrong. He could feel it in his guts.
She had been excited when they first entered the compound, but now, she seemed to be different. Less enthusiastic. What could have changed her feelings in such a short time? She seemed to be restless, fidgeting even. Her gaze had been directed more than once towards the makeshift gate. It was as if she wanted to leave.
But why?
Unaware of the direction of his thoughts, Dee continued blithely, "And the rest are taking sides now." She paused, taking a breath. "You need to sort this out, Alec. Alec? Hey!"
Snapping his attention back to Dee, he mumbled, "Hmm? What?"
Dee scowled. "You're not listening," she accused.
Alec gritted his teeth. At times like this, he wished that someone else was the CO. It was beginning to feel like he had to be involved in every single petty squabble in the compound. Having Dee around did not help much either. Repressing a sigh, he said levelly, "I heard you, Dee. Tix and Fay are squabbling. Let them deal with it themselves."
"It's causing problems with the rest, Alec," Dee explained, sounding exasperated.
This time Alec sighed out loud. Just what he needed now. Domestic problems in their happy transgenic community. He relented, "Okay, I'll talk to them." Then added, "But later."
"But, Alec-" Dee started.
"Later, Dee," Alec insisted firmly. All he wanted was to get back to Max to find out what was bothering her. He did not want to lose what he had just found.
After flicking a quick glance at Max, Dee gave him a knowing look. Then, she said softly, "That's her, isn't it? The girl in your mind all this time."
Alec smirked. "You're still going on about that?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.
She scowled. "Hard not to considering how you've been."
And he had heard it enough to wish that she would just drop it. "It doesn't concern you," he said flatly.
Her eyes flickered. "Oh yeah? Gee, Alec, you seemed to have forgotten something!" she gritted out loudly.
Max was bound to have heard that, Alec thought in annoyance. But a quick glance towards Max told him that she was preoccupied with Rex. By the way the teenager was gesturing, Alec guessed that Rex was telling Max how their security worked. Alec made a mental note to have a word with the X6 about it. Rex was far too eager to please, and one day, it was going to be at the expense of their safety.
Turning to Dee, he grabbed her arm and yanked her further away from the rest of the transgenics.
"Let me go," she snapped irritably when they moved out of hearing distance into a narrow alleyway. She shook his hand off and glared at him.
He sighed wearily. "Look, Dee. I thought we had a deal."
She stared at him mutinously.
Alec gritted his teeth. He should have known better. But he had thought that she understood. Apparently she did not. Apparently she was just as bad as the rest of the females.
"I made it more than clear what I need and what I don't need, Dee. And you agreed," he pointed out calmly.
She tilted her head up stubbornly. "Well, maybe I've changed my mind."
After all the time they had spent together, he knew that she was just deliberately being difficult, just by her tone. Alec felt like throttling her, but he simply shrugged. "I guess the deal's off then," he said carelessly.
Her eyes widened immediately. "No!" she protested hotly.
"It's not meant to be a permanent thing anyway," he pointed out, his voice calm. "We just agreed to help each other out until we both feel comfortable again."
"What about my side of the deal? How could you just break things off like this?" she yelled, her eyes flashing in anger.
"Keep it down," he growled in warning. Then taking a deep breath, he said in a gentler tone, "We've got to move on. You and I, both of us got to move on."
She sniffed derisively. "You mean now that Max's back, you don't need me anymore because you're moving on back to her."
A stab of guilt pierced Alec when he noted the wounded expression in her eyes. He honestly did not expect this to happen. The way he did not expect to get so close to Max again. He had made the deal with Dee when it all seemed hopeless with Max, when he thought that Max had moved on.
Studying her distraught expression on Dee's face, he said softly, "Things change, Dee. We need to move along with it. And you're much stronger now."
She looked away. "Fine. If that's what you want," she finally said softly.
"Dee…" he started, but unsure how to continue. He felt bad about the entire situation, but he had made it more than clear to her what he wanted from her. It was not right for her to make him feel this way now.
But he had Max to think about now. And that was more important. He needed to bring Max back into his life. When he had finally realised how he felt for her, their time together was suddenly cut short. Everything had ended before they were given a chance to make things work. Now, away from Manticore, it was the time to get everything back on track.
And he could not do it with everyone thinking that he was still with Dee.
Especially not Max. Not if he wanted to pick up where they had left off back in Manticore, he thought.
A muffled sniff from Dee caught his attention. Alec stifled a groan. If he had known that this would happen, he would not have started the whole thing with Dee. But at that time, it had been a good idea. Something which solved a lot of problems for both of them.
With a sigh, he stepped towards her and laid a hand on her shoulders. "I'm sorry, Dee."
A strangled sob escaped her lips as she turned around and wrapped her arms around him. "It's not just you, Alec. It's just…"
"Shh… I know," he said gently as he patted her back.
She lifted her head and dashed the tears from her eyes. Stepping away from him, she exhaled slowly. "You know? I'm being stupid."
"Huh?"
"You're right. I'm just having a hard time accepting it, that's all. It's not everyday that a girl get rejected, you know," she said, frowning a little.
A load suddenly lifted off him. Dee was alright. He held her arms and stared into her face. "You're okay?" he asked, just to be sure.
Rolling her eyes, she said in a steady voice, "I'll survive. Just go back to her. She's probably wondering what happened to you."
Alec turned to go, then after a couple of steps, he looked back at her. "Thanks, Dee."
Dee gave him a watery smile. "Take care, okay?"
"Always."
Max slid to the side and leaned back against the wall, trying to calm her erratic breathing.
He did not even have the decency to tell her. But that one little scene said it all. He did not need to tell her anything. Not anymore.
She gritted her teeth so hard that her jaw began to hurt. Could he not have at least waited until she had left the compound? If he missed his girl so much, why bother bringing her here? Why bother showing her Terminal City. Why bother kissing her earlier?
Max shut her eyes against the sting of hot tears. She would not cry over this. She had cried over many things, but she was not going to cry over Alec, however disappointed and hurt she felt. It hurt, but she would deal with it. Like how she had dealt with the pain of missing him and their baby almost a year ago.
Max understood that he did not owe her anything. They had been just breeding partners. It had been just a job to him. She had been just a job to him.
She snorted derisively. His concern about their baby must have been just his natural paternal reaction, nothing more. After all, he did not care for her enough even to ask about the baby. Or even what she had been up to since her escape from Manticore. All the questions in their conversation had been raised by her, not him. He simply did not care enough.
Everything was crystal clear now.
Pushing herself off the wall, she straightened her spine and made her way towards Mole and Rex. The two of them were arguing animatedly by the gate. A sad smile curved her lips. It would have been nice to have a chance to get to know them better. But Max knew that she could not stay.
Not if it meant having to watch Alec with someone else.
"Hey, Max. Did you find Alec?" Rex asked with a grin as she approached.
She shrugged casually. "No. Maybe he's busy."
Rex frowned.
Mole snorted past his cigar. "Dee must have taken off with him again." The lizard man shook his head disapprovingly. "X5s…." he muttered under his breath.
"Yeah, but Alec said that he's gonna show Max around," Rex said, sounding perplexed.
"Probably busy with Dee now," Mole muttered disinterestedly.
Max forced a smile onto her lips. "Hey, look, guys. I've got to go, alright. Tell Alec I said bye."
"So soon?" Rex asked, clearly reluctant to see her leave.
"Yeah, have stuff to do out there," she explained casually as she walked to the gate.
"Come back to visit us, okay?" Rex said with a wave as Mole raised the gate.
The smile threatened to slip from her face. "How could I not?" she said, almost wistfully.
And then, without a single backward glance, she stepped out through the gate.
"What do you mean, she left?" Alec asked with a frown, looking around as if he expected to see her. Not seeing what he was looking for, he turned back to Mole.
"That's what I just said," Mole replied with his cigar dangling out of the corner of his mouth. He nudged at the gate. "Said she had something to do, and then stepped right out."
Perplexed, Alec looked at the gate, then back at Mole. "She can't just step out like that. You'd have to let her out. And you let her leave just like that?"
Mole gave his a disgusted look. "What? I'm her sitter now? Don't remember seeing that clause in the job description, boss."
Alec clenched his teeth. He was in no mood was Mole's attitude right then. As he was about to lash out at the lizard-man, Rex interrupted.
"Max said to say goodbye to you. She seemed to be in a hurry when she left," the X6 said, his apprehensive gaze flitting from Mole to Alec, then back to Mole.
What was so important that she had to take off like that? Without even a word to him? Taking a deep breath, Alec turned to face Rex. "Did she say where she was going?"
Rex shrugged. "She didn't say."
Frowning, Alec looked at the gate again.
Max leaving suddenly was something he definitely did not expect.
Maybe in the time he had been talking to Dee, she had somehow realised what he had done. That he had known her whereabouts for a long time but had made no move to go to her. That was the only reason he could think of that would upset her that much.
Dee.
Or perhaps Max, like everyone else, thought that there was something going on between him and Dee.
Alec ran his hand through his hair in a gesture of helplessness. What was he supposed to do now?
He needed to find her. It was time to come clean. If he had done it earlier, then maybe he would not be in this mess. All the secrets he was keeping were jeopardising everything.
They definitely needed to talk, Alec decided resolutely, and headed towards the gate.
The shock of the discovery wore off just as she approached her apartment. And now, she just felt numb.
But her mind would not rest. All she could think of was that all this time she had been practically pining for him, he was with another woman. His absence, his lack of interest in her condition, everything became so clear.
She felt stupid.
She felt betrayed.
She felt disgusted by herself.
Mechanically, she slotted her key in the lock and opened the door. Entering the apartment, she shut the door quietly behind her.
Zack looked up when she entered the living room. "Hey, Max," he greeted with a warm smile.
She forced herself to return his smile. At least she got Zack with her. Someone she could care for without worrying too much about it.
Zack gave her a worried look. "Are you okay? Is something bothering you?"
Max shook her head. "No. Nothing. Just tired, that's all," she hedge, not wanting to go into it with Zack. Or anyone else for that matter.
He narrowed his eyes. "That might fool others, but not me. Come on, what's wrong?" he coaxed.
"I said, nothing. Now can you drop it?" she snapped tersely before she could stop herself. Then in a softer voice, she pleaded, "Please."
Zack stared at her silently. Then, in a resigned tone, he said, "Okay."
Max sat down on the couch beside Zack, her mind still filled with Alec. Irritated at herself, she shook her head roughly, as if she was trying to dispel the image of his smirking face from her mind. Closing her eyes, she leaned back with a sigh. She could feel Zack watching her from the side, but she did not turn around.
Zack spoke, breaking the silence. "Original Cindy said that she'll be crashing over at her girl's place tonight."
Max looked up. "Oh. Thing are going well then?" she asked, trying to inject some enthusiasm into her question.
Zack shrugged, the corner of his lips lifting. "She didn't say. But I guess so."
Max sighed. Original Cindy would tell her that she needed to talk. To let it all out. She had to admit that sometimes, it actually worked. Maybe that was all she had to do. Talk to someone.
She just was not sure that Zack was the right person.
But what harm could it do? She would not feel any worse than how she was feeling now.
Staring straight ahead, she started, "Something happened today."
Zack shifted on the couch, facing her fully. "What?" he asked a little warily.
"I bumped into Alec," she muttered tonelessly. There. It was not so hard, was it?
Zack sucked in his breath. "And?"
Max closed her eyes. No. She just could not do it. It was too painful. "And nothing," she said softly.
Confusion marring his expression, Zack asked, "You saw him and then nothing? What happened, Max?"
She exhaled loudly, and then looked down, studying her hands. "I just don't understand. After all this time, he didn't even ask about the baby. It's like the whole thing didn't even bother him."
Zack stared at her silently.
Max shook her head slowly. "I don't know what to think anymore. I thought he cared. But he just moved right on to someone else. I guess it's just me and my crappy luck with men, huh? I just thought that maybe, this time it would be different."
Zack suddenly burst out harshly, "What did you expect, Max? He was in Seattle all this time, but didn't even bother to approach."
His words made her pause. Giving him a suspicious look, she asked softly, "How do you know he's been in Seattle all this time? I didn't say that he was in Seattle."
Zack looked away mutely.
"Zack?"
He glanced at her briefly. His face devoid of expression, he declared, "I saw him one day."
Max's eyes widened, her expression disbelieving. "You saw him one day? What do you mean, Zack?" she asked apprehensively. What Zack had just said could not be true, because if it was, that meant that Zack had been keeping it from her for who knew how long.
"He was watching you, and I caught him at it," Zack explained stonily.
Her jaw dropped. He knew. Zack knew that Alec was around and he did not tell her. How could he keep something like that from her? Was it because of how he felt for her? Was his mind still telling him that there was something between them?
"Why didn't you tell me this before?" she asked angrily.
Zack gave her a hard look. "And what would that achieve, Max? Look at yourself now!"
Her lips compressed. "You could have just told me, Zack."
"Look, his actions didn't make sense to me at that time. And it still doesn't. If he cared, why didn't he just come up to you and just talk? Why did he hide? Something was off and I was just trying to protect you from being hurt like this. Again."
"I don't need that sort of protection. You don't need you to screen who I see," she snapped heatedly.
Zack looked hurt. "Is it so wrong? Is it wrong that I care about you? And before you ask, not in that way."
Max fell silent. His words were uncomfortably close to the truth.
Zack's eyes widened in comprehension. "What? You thought that I did it because of some misplaced jealousy of Alec?" He let out a harsh bark of laughter. "You did, didn't you?" he bit out accusingly. "You thought that I was jealous and that's why I didn't tell you."
Zack sounded angry, but worse, he sounded disappointed.
"It's not like that," she said, looking away evasively.
"Then what is it, Max? You want me to tell you so that you can get hurt all over again? The guy didn't even bother to come up to talk to you." He inhaled loudly. Then, in a level voice, he said, "You've seen him now. But look at you. You're back to being miserable. THIS is what I was trying to protect you from."
"I didn't ask for all this to happen!" she yelled angrily.
He stood up abruptly. "You know what really bothers me? That after all this time, you still doubt me. I thought you understood. It's not easy not remembering myself, and I have to tell myself everyday that we don't have the type of relationship my mind keeps on telling me we have. You think it makes me feel good? Thinking of my sister that way? But I've tried. And it's under control. But you're still cautious. You still suspect the worse of me," he said sadly, shaking his head.
"Zack…"
"It's okay, Max. I'll make this easy."
"What do you mean?" she asked, watching him gather his stuff apprehensively. "Zack, what are you doing?"
"I'm moving out," he said shortly.
A surge of panic rose in her. "You don't have to do that."
Zack gave her a tight smile. "I have to, Max." Then, in a softer tone, he said, "I'm just moving out. I won't disappear. I've been thinking about it for a while now anyway. Something is telling me not to stay in one place." He laughed mirthlessly. "I guess the prolonged Escape and Evade exercise kinda stayed in me."
"Zack, I'm not asking you to leave."
"I know you're not." Then he shrugged. "Maybe it's just time for me to move on."
Max closed her eyes.
Everyone was moving on.
Everyone.
Except her.
t.b.c.
A/N: Hope you've enjoyed that! Not long more till the end review and let me know what you think.