The Dinner

Part Two

"Come on Jim, it's time to go! We're going to be late!" Amy DeLuca-Valenti called from the bottom of the stairs. Muttering to herself, she smoothed down her light pink dress, grabbed her cream jacket and opened the front door. "I'll leave without you mister! You know I will!"

"I'm-a coming Amy, hold your damn horses." Jim thundered down the stairs with his shirt half-tucked and his hat in hand.

"Oh Jim, look at you." Amy fussed, tucking in his shirt as he picked up his dinner jacket from the chair. She glanced over at Maria who had been watching them and smiling to herself at the scene. It was so nice to see her baby-girl smile again. She knew it had to be something to do with this sudden dinner arrangement; as soon as Maria had gotten back from whatever she'd done today, everything about her was so much lighter. For the first time, in a long time, she had seemed like her younger self and it had lasted so far for a full 3 hours.

God her heart hurt when she thought of what her only daughter had been through these past few years. She still cried quietly at night, remembering the day she had finally received the call from the hospital, telling her where her baby had been after 4 years of not knowing. Maria had disappeared four years after Michael had, and she hadn't been seen until that fateful day.

Amy still partially blamed herself for that, if she hadn't kicked her out…if she hadn't driven her to stay at that Deserter's apartment…making things worse for herself, she would never have moved away in the first place. Then she would never have met that asshole that spent those remaining years turning her into the scared, abused and broken girl that she was now.

Shaking her head away from these thoughts she glanced herself over in the mirror; she looked fine, Maria was helping carry her especially home-cooked pies, Jim was finally neatly dressed…that man was worse than a two year old sometimes…everything was ready.

"Well? What are we standing her for, woman? Come on lets go. I thought you were in a rush!" Jim teased good-naturedly and Amy gave him a playful slap on the shoulder as they walked to the car.

Maria frowned. She wanted to warn her mother about Michael, as much as she had teased him earlier that day, she really was afraid of the reaction. Anytime she mentioned his name, her mother refused to hear anything, calling him more names than she had ever heard before. This wasn't a good thing to surprise her with, but if she told her now – then she may refuse to come. Or worse, she would come and make things worse before they had even begun. I guess this day was always going to come, and no matter when or where I told her, it wouldn't matter…the reaction would be the same. At least she can be surprised with everyone else. And with that thought she settled herself, ready for the evening to begin.

"Are you sure it's straight? Isabel notices these things..." Kyle peered into the glass front door and attempted to re-straighten his tie using his distorted reflection. He was always a bundle of nerves when he came to Isabel's, everything was always so perfect, so unlike their own house. In their house they were lucky if the twins had managed to leave one room vaguely resembling a room. But he wouldn't have it any way; he loved his boys and his life.

"Yes Kyle! For the hundredth time now, your tie is straight!" Tess glared at him and smacked his hand away from returning to his collar.

"Mommy, is Auntie Maria coming?"

Tess looked down at her freshly scrubbed son and smiled warmly. "Yes Jimmie, Auntie Maria is coming. I know how much you and James like to play with her. Though remember, this is a grownup party as well and the grownups will need to talk when Auntie Izzy makes her announcement. But Tammy will be there too so you can play with her if Maria is busy."

"Tammy? Oooh James did you hear that? Your girlfriend will be there...hope you're not going to be kissy kissy all night..." Jimmie taunted his twin brother who had flushed an interesting colour at Tammy's name. Out of embarrassment, James punched Jimmie hard on the arm and ordered him to shut up.

Kyle laughed, he never failed to be amused by the twins teasing each other, "Now now Jimmie, leave your brother alone, if James likes Tammy then Tammy is a very lucky girl. Besides, he can't help it if he has a cruush..." Jimmie giggled behind his hands; his daddy was always great fun.

"Enough now, okay, we all ready?" Tess scanned her family. Kyle - smart? straight-tied? Check. Jimmie - smart? clean? Check. James - smart? clean? Check. Herself - hair fluffed? Lip glossed? Check. "Good. Now let's do this." She knocked on the door and was immediately met with the happy faces of Alex and Maria.

"Auntie Maria!" The boys yelled in unison, then simultaneously ran into the hallway and wrapped themselves around her middle.

"Oh -oof! - Wow hey boys!" Maria slightly unnerved looked at Tess and Kyle, who had started to laugh at their sons' enthusiasm.

"They sure do love ya Maria." Kyle smirked. "Careful, they'll love you to death."

Maria grinned. "Well boys, lets take you into the playroom for now, there's some snacks in there because I know you must be hungry and Tammy's waiting in there too."

As the boys ran off, Tess turned towards Maria, "Wow Maria, you look amazing! God how I miss having the figure to wear something like that!" Maria blushed, she had worked hard to look good this evening, butterflies wouldn't stop racing in her stomach as she thought of Michael waiting just up the stairs.

"Now, now sweetie, we talked about this - none of the 'woe is me I'm a pregnant girl' again. I would have believed you were sad about it the first time, but this time it's all on your own." Maria grinned. "Besides, you look positively radiant, doesn't she Kyle?"

Kyle looked down at his wife, the love of his life and a dopey grin appeared on his face, "you look beautiful honey." And she certainly did; her dress was a deep shade of shimmering purple that brought out the darker blue in her eyes and her shoulder length blonde hair had been teased into a soft bundle of curls.

Tess laughed and they moved towards garden where the tables had been set up. It looked incredible! There were several tables put together so neatly that it didn't show, covered with a deep blue tablecloth and white candles along its centre. Around the patio there were fairy lights hung around the eating area, giving it a magical glow, and the far view of the table was of a small patch of woodland and a lake. It really was majestic.

Jim and Amy were already seated with a full glass of wine either side of them, they exchanged the usual warm family hellos, smiles and compliments and Kyle settled down in his seat next to his father.

"Wow Isabel, you've really out done yourself!" Tess remarked in surprise and awe. However, to her, it did seem a little much for just a second pregnancy announcement. Furthermore, she hadn't seen Maria smile a real gods-to-honest smile like that in a long time…she knew there was something else going on. Counting the placements, she was surprised to find such a large number, "so who exactly is coming tonight? It looks like you've invited half of the town!"

"Oh just the usual…don't worry, you just take a seat, I remember what it was like to be 7 months pregnant and I bet your feet are aching!" Iz called out, as she busied herself with the food.

"I better go help Izzy with the food, before she starts freaking out about something." Maria smiled, walked back into the kitchen and quietly freaked out to herself instead behind the back garden door.

"Maria you okay?" Isabel asked, but with a knowing smile.

"No Izzy, no I'm not. Do you have any idea what my mother will do the minute she sees Michael? She will either faint, god-willing, or she will throw that table across the lawn and stab him with a serving spoon. Now, do you really want that? Because I don't think that's quite the 'civilised dinner' approach that you're going for here!" Just as Maria started to truly hyperventilate, Isabel grabbed the cedar oil from the side of the kitchen worktop and waved it under her nose.

"Calm Maria, think of calm blue sea…calm forests…" Maria inhaled deeply and exhaled slowly, remembering all of those times when a bottle of cedar oil was never far from her reach. Then again, for a while neither had been a bottle of tequila or a bag of coke….maybe cedar sniffing was what started that kind of dependency. Either way, it worked. Maria was calm once again…barely.

"Right, well I have to go see him. I can't stand around here, waiting for the shit to hit the fan, and I bet he's going stir-crazy up there, you sure he hasn't run off again without you knowing? I would if I was sat up there waiting to be executed in front of all my loved ones."

Isabel giggled, "Yes you're definitely right, we shouldn't leave him up there too long. You should go check on him…both prepare yourselves…this night isn't going to be easy. I invited the Others afterall, I gave Max a ring and asked him to pick them up on the way – best get it all over and done with in one night, right?"

Maria gave her a sideways look, "Iz, I hate to break this to ya but I don't think any of this will be done in one night…"

"Yeah…I know…but a girl can hope right?" Isabel sighed, maybe this was bad idea. Maybe this should have been done more slowly. Oh well, too late now…

Maria walked up the stairs, her high heeled shoes creaking the aged steps as she went. Her chest was tight and she felt like she could barely breathe. The butterflies in her stomach had once more turned to bats and she almost froze from sheer panic. What was it about this guy that made her reactions so violent? She felt like she wanted to throw up or run away, or maybe both.

Michael. Michael. Michael. It still didn't feel real to her, just another coked up dream, Michael was just a head of her, waiting in a room to come down to dinner. Nope, it was all so crazy. Michael was back, they had been in his apartment only a few hours ago, laughing and joking like old times…this couldn't be real. Wouldn't it feel so much bigger? But Maria couldn't possibly picture how bigger it could feel than it already did, she already felt like she was dreaming, just floating down the hallway – ready to wake up.

She could hear signing and muttering from the spare room, and the steady thumps of him drumming his fingers against the bed. She knew he'd be going crazy; patience had never been his strong suit. She betted he was so scared too. The sudden knowledge that Michael might need her cleared away the panicky feelings and the dream-like haze, she felt awake again and in control. She walked confidently towards his bedroom door and rapped lightly on it,

"Michael? You decent?" She smirked. "Well I'm coming in anyway…"

Michael bolted onto his feet, unable to control himself as he watched her come in. By the gods she was gorgeous! Her silk emerald green dress clung to all of her sensual curves. The colour of the dress contrasting against the golden jewels attached throughout her wavy blonde hair made her eyes burn and dance like green fire. Her lips, so full, were covered by a barely there gloss, and boy did Michael hope it tasted of strawberries – as it always had done. He felt like he was looking at some other being, not an alien like himself, but at some mystical beauty. She looked too perfect to be real, if he touched her, she would just melt away. Some Aphrodite conjured by his feverish imagination.

Until, a full-on belly laugh erupted from her mouth and distorted the illusion of a mirage. She couldn't help it; seeing Michael there so gorgeous in a suit, yet so utterly taken aback had made a very amusing image. His slack-jawed expression was the one she had been going for, yet it looked so wrong on his face, she was far too used to his minute expressions, so when there's a reaction as large as this – it just seemed too cartoon-ish to bear.

"Maria…you okay? What's so funny? It's the suit isn't it? God…I knew I shouldn't have let Isabel talk me into this." Michael stared at himself in the mirror, wishing to anyone who was listening to make Maria stop laughing. Shit, if she finds me so funny looking now, what will it be like when I try to marry her? Wait…Marry her? Fuck, where the hell did that thought come from?

"No…no…" She panted, trying desperately to catch her breath for possibly the third time that day, "You look gorgeous, it was just…your face…when I walked in…" she giggled again quietly, "…it was just comical!"

"Oh." Michael didn't know what else to say. He stopped hearing anything after the throwaway "gorgeous" comment.

Both Michael and Maria turned their heads at the sound of the door, Alex walked up to answer it and three voices could be distinctly heard coming through the doorway. Michael cocked his head to listen but all he could hear were the low baritones of two males and a melodic but shy tone of a girl. He knew one of them was Max - he could feel it – just like he did at that bar. But who were the other two? Liz and….?

"Before you ask, I'm not going to tell you who they are. It's part of the surprise. There's surprises going around for everyone tonight, you included." Maria stated in a wry tone.

She saw a quick flash of panic dart across Michael's face and felt sorry for him, she knew how hard for him this must be, to come back to something after so long, 4 years away had taught her the cycle of running. The longer you stay away, the harder it is to go back. Maria sat down next to him on the bed, interlocked her fingers between his own and gave his hand a warm and comforting squeeze. "Don't worry Michael, what's done is done. After the initial shock, and then after the hurt and pain has poured out, it will get easier. I promise you that."

Michael set his bewildered brown eyes upon her steady green ones, "Why are you being so nice Maria? Why are you helping me? Shouldn't you be throwing me to the wolves? I thought I would ruin your life by staying here with you, but these whispers and half-stories I've gotten from you and Isabel make me think that leaving was worse." Michael's face crumpled as some of the recent events and information began to truly sink in. "I should have been there! I should have been there for you! I should have protected you from this ex-husband of yours. God, Maria, you shouldn't ever forgive me for this. I thought I went through hell all of those years away from you! Jesus! I had a fucking holiday while I let the one woman I have ever loved get put into the fucking hospital by some asshole that shouldn't have dared to touch you in the first place...just tell me why Maria, why are you being so nice?"

Maria stared at him, shaken by his outburst. He hadn't noticed that tears were rolling down his face, but there they were. Tenderly, she wiped away the droplets and kissed his cheek. "Because Michael, if you carry hate for too long it will kill you, what happened wasn't your fault. Yes, you were the catalyst but I learned a while ago to stop blaming my own failings in life on the action of a teenage boy that disappeared 8 years ago. A boy who is standing before me now as a grown man, a man who may never have developed into such a good person had he not made the best decision of His life and left. To be honest Michael, growing up under the thumb of Max and the clucking of Izzy, I don't think you would be the same person you are today and I probably wouldn't feel the same way about that person, as I do about you right now."

Michael stared into those beautiful green eyes and leaned towards her, anticipation was thick in the air, the tops of their lips brushed against each other and he thought he was going to explode…her full, strawberry tasting lips started to melt against his own…

KNOCK KNOCK

They jumped apart; flushed, embarrassed and extremely turned on.

Isabel walks in, smiles and pretends she doesn't notice the discomfort, the tense atmosphere or the tear tracks on Michael's face. "Hi guys, dinners going to be starting soon. I need Maria there as part of the build up, to reassure everyone that she's fine with this…Michael, when I call for you to come down…you come down. We're all in the garden." Isabel gave him a quick hug and a peck on the cheek, "don't worry, it'll be okay." Then without another word, she hurried back downstairs, ready to start serving dishes.

"Right so…I'll see you downstairs then. May god have mercy on our souls." Joked Maria a little woodenly, too stunned by the near kiss to put any emotion behind it. Carefully, she smoothed down her dress, fixed her hair in the mirror and gave Michael a flash of a smile. "It's show-time! And remember, it will get easier." With one lingering look at his lips, Maria left the room and composed herself to see the rest of the people she has grown to call family.

And so Michael was left alone again…waiting…with faint traces of strawberry lip-gloss on his mouth and bats for butterflies in his stomach.

Authors Note:

Gosh, I cannot believe I haven't written anything for this fic in two years!

I am shocked and deeply aplogetic, for those who have been following this fic, I couldn't have disappeared at a worse time for the story - it just started out as writers block on how to approach it, and so I turned to my other fics, and then I stopped writing altogether because I had alot of personal stuff to deal with.

But now I'm back on the horse, sorry about this chapter - I know it's not what was promised. But its very long and I wanted to get all of the potential filler rubbish ou to fmy head first before I get to one of the Big Scenes.

I want to thank spaceboi's pixie, Hayley, Keirah, sunshine-faery (Hollie), Dizzy Moon, AgathaN, Candylovin Fehrian and Magali for your incredible feedback for my last chapter. I just hope some of you will manage to see the new ones as you all have been such amazing readers.

In response to Magali's question, yes Rath may well be dealt with in this story. It is possible there will be an appearance, but I have no idea due to what circumstances yet...so please keep reading.