Rating: PG

Genre: Romance/Drama

Pairing: M/A

Disclaimer: I don't own any of Dark Angel and I have no money so suing me would be pointless.

Summary: You can't control what you hear; you can only pretend its not being said. How will Max cope when something becomes too real to ignore? M/A (as if I'd write anything else)

Truths

Max collapsed on to her bed and sighed, just the feel of finally being off her feet was almost too good. She'd been working non-stop for the last few days. If she wasn't meeting with Clemente or government officials she was out saving transgenics from that psycho White or trying desperately to keep Terminal City stocked. She was so tired she hadn't bothered with food that evening all she wanted was sleep.

She'd been practically asleep at the meeting just over half an hour ago where Alec decided she had had enough and that he would handle heist tonight with Biggs. She had argued of course, not because he wasn't right, he was, but because she hated it when he was right. How many times had he told her that she couldn't take care of everything herself? Alec had this nasty habit of taking charge when it really counted. She sighed at least it meant that he wouldn't be home all night so the apartment was hers and then she really could get some sleep. Sharing an apartment with Alec had initially seemed like her worst nightmare but a week in and she had to admit that she quite liked it. His incessant TV watching and his laughable attempts at cooking aside, his presence in the apartment was comforting and there were little things that made him a good flatmate as well as a good friend. It was the way he always left her enough hot water in the morning, or whenever they were low on coffee he would go without so she didn't have to. He sometimes did her laundry for her but she guessed it was probably just an excuse to look through her panties by pretending he was actually trying to do her a favour.

She let her eyes drift closed and tried to clear her mind waiting for the inevitable darkness and the comforting nothing that was sleep. Just as she was about to go a dim murmur and a low hum caught her genetically enhanced hearing and kept her painfully in the land of the living. She groaned and tried to block it out but the knowledge that it was close by kept her manticore trained senses alert. Whimpering in annoyance she slowly lifted herself from the bed and began to look for the source of her irritation knowing sleep would be impossible if she couldn't turn it off.

Exiting her room it she focused in on the sound that was coming from Alec's room. Max was too tired to be angry but she made a note to herself to kick Alec's ass the next time she saw him. Pushing the door open with the tips of her fingers Max focused again to pin point the origin of the sound. The murmuring was coming from a pile of clothes discarded on a chair in the corner of the room. Max cringed as she sorted quickly through them, she was not in the mood to be dealing with Alec's dirty laundry. Her hand came into contact with a light plastic frame that she recognised immediately. It was one of the com. headsets that they been looking for earlier to take out on the heist tonight which Alec said he had no idea where it was. Either he was stupid or he was just too lazy to go back to their apartment to retrieve it a trip that would have taken all of 5 minutes.

Max tapped the receiver but it wouldn't switch off so she put it to her ear to try and make out if it was working at all or whether it was just a buzz from some sort of feed back.

"... surveillance is looped; you've got a green light Alec." She heard Biggs voice through the earpiece.

"Copy." and there was Alec, it seemed everything was going according to plan. Max tried again to turn it off but it just crackled at her in protest. Max was so sorely tempted to destroy it right there and then but then something in the conversation caught her attention.

"So, are you going to tell her?"

"Tell her what?" Alec replied coolly.

"Don't play dumb, Alec, you know exactly what I'm talking about." Max grimaced, they were probably talking about some poor girl Alec had charmed into sleeping with him and now he was looking for a way out.

"What would be the point of that?"

"You don't think it would make a difference?"

"To Max, no." Max had been about to take the wiring out of the headset when she caught her name and her curiosity spiked. What had he done this time?

"I'm in." Alec continued as he slipped into the pharmaceuticals research building that was his mark for the heist. Trying to bring the conversation back to business and keep it away from more volatile subjects.

"She's going to figure it out you know, we all know."

"How can you 'all know'?" Alec sounded a little unnerved. Max frowned, he should be unnerved he was already down or her list for a good ass kicking and by the sounds of it she was about to mark him up for another.

"It's written all over your face." Biggs laughed.

"Whatever man." Alec seemed annoyed "What's the security on the meds?"

"Nothing major, key card on the door and pressure sensitive flooring, cake." Max listened carefully to Alec's movements it sounded like he was climbing into something probably a ventilation shaft. "She cares about you, you know."

Alec scoffed "Yeah right, what gave you that impression? was it her beating on me, or maybe it was her need to disregard anything I ever say just because I'm the one that said it, oh wait I know it must be all those times she told me to get out of her life." Ouch. Max flinched feeling each statement like a physical blow. Surely she wasn't as bad as all that. She didn't ignore his ideas she just sometimes lashed out because she'd feel somehow inadequate for not having considered them herself. As if he was unwittingly challenging her abilities as a leader, irrational but true. Maybe she had told him before that she was sorry for inflicting him on the world or that she should have just let his head explode, but she didn't mean it. She needed him she just didn't like admitting it.

"Actually Cece told me. And if you really believed any of that then you wouldn't be head over heels in love with her ... or are you just a dog that likes to be kicked?" Max froze her heart jolting in her chest. Alec was laughing lightly.

"You're not recording this are you?" Alec asked.

"No, should I be?"

"I think you've had enough confessions to have me living under you're thumb for the rest of my life." Max was practically choking on her own breath. So it was true? It was all true.

"I think I've got everything on the list." There was the distinct sound of pills rattling as Alec spoke, "Now for the bonus extras ... ooh anti-depressants, do you think I should get some for Max?"

"Yeah, if you want her to hand you your ass." Biggs laughed. Max marked them both down for a good ass kicking. There was a pause "Would telling Max how you really feel about her really be so bad?"

"She's already got enough ammunition against me; I don't need her laughing at me too or running from the building screaming." Alec had probably meant it to sound dismissive and off-handed but it actually sounded more sad and resigned. Max sighed, what would she have said if he had told her he had feelings for her, she probably would have thought he was joking. She probably would have let him pretend that it was just witty back chat designed to piss her off. Let him take it all back so she didn't have to face it because it was just too ... real.

"Shit, tranquilizers, I nearly forgot the tranquillizers."

"Not losing your touch are you Alec buddy?"

"Shut up, It's your fault distracting me. You're just jealous that I get to do all the fun stuff." Biggs laughed.

"It must really kill you, living with her, so close and yet so out of reach." They were just trying to out gun each other now.

"Hey just because you couldn't live with Cece for more than five minutes without jumping her doesn't mean I haven't got any self control." Max slowly took the head set off and pulled the transmitter out finally rendering the piece of equipment silent. She looked a moment at the pieces in her hand before laying them on his bedside table.

She stared at it for a long time not sure what to do. She had no idea that he any feelings for her beyond vaguely friendly ones. She didn't think it was possible for him to want more from her, like he'd said she'd given no indication that she ever wanted him to. New waves of tiredness moved through her and she sighed. She couldn't deal with this now, she was too tired. Then her eyes shot open and she got up determinedly and headed to her own room. She didn't have to; she wasn't even supposed to know. She quickly changed into her clothes and slipped into bed. She didn't need to do anything she just needed to sleep. She closed her eyes and curled up under the covers trying to clear her mind. It doesn't matter, don't think about it, it's not your problem, she began her mantra...

A/N: I'm not sure about this one yet so it could well be deleted. Review and let me know whether it should stay or it should go. Thanks 