Note to the new reader: Yea I have no idea how viruses work, I know vaccines are dead or weakened viruses, so I would be agreeing with you, but DA seemed to have other ideas, I guess because it's a highly mutative virus or I don't know honestly. DA said he wasn't cured after Josh, I'm going with what they said. I kept Logan's immune system from rejecting the new cells that were forming because I liked keeping Logan walking because it made him realize just how unimportant his legs really were, stem cells are on a different level than blood cells and I'm guessing virus antibodies. Stem cells create other cells that are individualized, but your body makes new blood cells I think. Probably lying on all of that, probably has nothing to do with it all. Hmm point is Logan's not cured, however I do love you for trying to come up with a cure.

AN: Okay so I'm completely FFN incompetent if you all haven't realized that after the nine million smooshed words (because I always end up changing things when I get to the preview page). I managed to delete a little smidge of story (I have no idea when I did this), only a few lines, but it ties into the previous chapter (not actually important, doesn't tell you anything new). There are a few new readers though, so if you want to the lines I accidentally deleted are at the end of chapter 30. It was just a cute little scene (yes I do give you those on the rare occasion :-D ).

Hey in my defense, even I was saddened by the last two chapters (No late night, already tired writing from now on).

Chapter 55

At Liberty To Say

Terminal City (Feb 16th):

What had once been the makeshift fighting area had changed in the past few months of being able to move freely in the city. It resembled a boxing ring at this point. It worked well for sparing; keeping their skills in top form, in general just doing what came naturally to them after all these years. Kicking ass.

And that's exactly what Max was doing at this moment, she was kicking Alec's sorry little ass. Normally their competition was close, normally with Max coming out on top even if only slightly. Today though...Alec was having the shit kicked, punched, basically just knocked out of him every which way possible. He thanked god for the headgear. It wasn't really a concession to safety, it was a concession to not having to explain why their faces were covered in bruises because no matter how quickly they healed it wasn't instantaneous.

"Come on Maxie, let's call it a day."

She didn't stop moving, "Come on, you can't be done yet." she said appearing to have as much energy as when they'd started, over an hour ago.

"Max I'm starving. It's three. I need lunch."

Lunch equaled diner which equaled two days ago was Valentine's Day and she knew he'd spent it with her...More blows to Alec, she refrained from hitting below the belt, even though it was pretty tempting at this point.

"Come on Max" it was only slightly above a whine, he could keep going, but he didn't want to, this had ceased being fun about five minutes in, "There's a new place I want to try. Supposed to have really good gyros." He tried tempting her with food.

She held back the blow she had been about to deliver, "What about Jake's?" Jake's, the diner at which Lanie worked at.

He laughed, "Yea definitely avoiding that place." He shivered at the icy reception he'd received from her yesterday and had been incredibly thankful she wasn't in charge of making the food and the soda fountain was in plain sight.

"Why?" She completely stopped moving at this point waiting for the answer.

He took the opportunity and ripped off the headgear before she could come after him again, " Logan didn't tell you?" He laughed to himself, "Then again probably not the type of thing Logan would share." He'd only gotten the story out of him after he'd called to find out why Lanie had been shooting daggers at him and Zane all throughout lunch.

"What happened Alec?" her voice took on a harsher tone at not being told immediately.

"Not my place to say." He said hopping over the ropes.

"Alec" she said as she ripped off the helmet.

"They're over Max. That's all I'm at liberty to say."

"You would be dead if it weren't for me Alec."

"Oh no Maxie, you've played that card before. We're even."

They were even? She tilted her head to the side. If he hadn't been an idiot and gotten himself caught by White…They wouldn't even be having this discussion. There would be no Lanie involved in the damn picture. "Alec," she said firmly again.

"Ask Logan Max." He said simply before he took a pull of water.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Max's apartment (Later that evening):

"So what happened between you and Lanie?" she tried to sound uninterested.

"Just didn't work out Max." he said from his seat on her living room floor playing with Cale.

"Why?" She probed watching over them.

"Just didn't Max" His eyes slid over to hers. He had seen her eyes, her lips, her hair, thought about her laughs, her tears, how her touch used to feel, how her touch felt now…He hadn't been able to escape her. Probably not the words Max wanted to hear.

She froze at the intensity his eyes held, her lip quivered just the slightest bit before she spoke again softly, "Why?"

He let out a small breath along with a small smile as he shook his head, his eyes briefly closed, "You know why Max." He tried, he honestly had, he listened to everyone, listened to what his brain had told him. They had to move on, so he'd tried. He'd frozen though at the steps leading up to her apartment…How was he supposed to move on when he could still be with her? When the lips beneath his could still be hers…The hair in between his fingers…

"I love you." She said softly, their eyes still connected.

His head titled slightly and he wondered he'd really just heard that.

She looked confused, scared by her words, she hadn't meant to say them. For so long they hadn't fit in the context of what they were, there hadn't been a time or place to say them. She'd run out of ever having the right moment to say it. "You kinda missed it the last time," she said shakily, "then again I kinda only whispered it." She smiled as tears threatened to well up in her eyes.

He stayed still on the floor, still just looking at her stunned.

"I just thought for so long, I'd get another chance." Her small voice said. She gave a quick shake of her head, "I don't us to be over."

He remained still, his heart breaking over the pain in her tiny voice, tears threatening to mirror her glassy eyes.

"I know we have to be, but it's not fair. We didn't even get a chance Logan."

The desperation and hurt in her voice, finally caused him to snap out of his stunned state and react. He moved up onto the couch and cupped the side of her face still silent, he just wanted to hug her, to take away this pain he'd caused. He'd done this to her, gotten her hopes up for a cure that never came. "I'm sorry," was all he could figure out to say.

She shook her head softly, this wasn't his fault, "What happened between you and her?" she asked looking up, still connected by his gloved hand.

"She wasn't you." He whispered honestly.

She understood what he meant, she'd felt it too. Kisses that had once been pleasant with Jeff now felt like a violation, like she was betraying Logan all over again. How could she kiss another, when she could still kiss him? "I don't want us to be over Logan, not without us having a chance."

He nodded, they couldn't be over without ever having been, "Twenty seven hours Max."

She nodded, "We can cram a lot of memories into that. Far away though" she laughed and his hand raised up to brush away the tears that had suddenly broken loose from her eyes.

He looked down at his now glistening hand and stopped himself from wiping fingers off on his pants, she laughed watching his puzzlement, and he looked up and smiled before wiping it on the couch. "Are you sure about this?"

She nodded, suddenly she had never been more sure about anything, "I love you."

His hand cupped her face again, "I love you too."