Title: When The Worst Happens
Author: Jenn
Disclaimer: If I owned Roswell, would I really be writing this? I didn�t
think so. Roswell and all its characters belong to Melinda Metz and the
United Paramount Network. Brendan and Jason are another story. I�m still
working on that. LOL.
Category: Mi/L mostly.
Rating: R for now.
Author�s Note: This is Post-Departure with a few twists.
Dedication: I want to dedicate this to DMartinez, SilverSky,
Peachez4MaxEvans and MoonBaby19 who have written some of the most
awesome Polar fics out there. It�s because of them that I am now a definite
Polarist. I want to thank them for inspiring me to write this.
Summary: Just when Liz thought she had gotten her life back
together, a tragedy strikes that could prove to ultimately be her breaking
point. Who will save her from herself before it�s too late?
********
Prologue: It�s Funny How Fast Your Life Can
Change
It was a typical Wednesday night at the Crashdown Cafe. Liz and Ava were
siting in the breakroom going over the books like they always did. It was
their job since Jeff and Nancy had left them in charge when they left for a
much needed one month vacation.
Micheal was in the kitchen cleaning the grill. Isabel was filling the salt and
pepper shakers, while Max and Kyle looked on.
�This is so boring.�
Max�s head shot up at Kyle�s comment. �Kyle I wouldn�t say that if I were
you. Isabel hates it when anyone complains.�
�Yeah I know that. I�m not dumb. I�m just saying that this is what we all do
every single Wednesday night. It�s getting to be a bit of a bore. And as hot
as Isabel may be, watching her filling the salt and pepper shakers for
twenty minutes straight is not exactly my idea of fun.�
�Oh and watching my girlfriend do the books is any more exciting?�
�Ava and Liz are still doing the books?�
Max nodded. �Yep. Ava said I can�t come in there till they�re done because
I�m a distraction.�
�And what did Liz say?� Kyle questioned his friend.
�Liz agreed. She said that Ava would never get any work done. Liz always
agrees with Ava.� He sighed/whined.
Isabel had been listening the whole time and decided to stick her two-cents
in. �Max, they�re sisters. They may not be blood related. But, like it or not
they�re sisters. What did you expect.�
Max sighed. �I know that.� He smirked �But if you really think about it, this
still has to be the weirdest situation ever. My girlfriend is my ex-girlfriend�s
adopted sister. Said girlfriend also happens to be a reincarnation of my wife
from my last life. Yet when Tess, also a reincarnation of said wife, came to
town, I wanted nothing to do with her. Ava showed up just in time to kill
Tess and prevent her from destroying our lives. And if wasn�t for Tess, we�d
still have Alex. But if it wasn�t for Ava, Tess would have gone home and
turned us over to Khivar. Liz wanted to kill Tess whether she said it or not,
for getting in between us. Yet Liz adores Ava. She gave us her blessing when
we got together. Everyone hated Tess yet we all love Ava.�
�Max, Ava and Tess are as different as night and day. Ava is a warm, caring
person whereas Tess was a sniffling little brat. Ava would give her life to
save any one of us, especially Liz. Tess would kill any one of us if it was for
her personal benefit. I think Tess and Ava must have gotten mixed up during
the crash. Tess definitely belonged with Rath and Lonnie.�
�I have to agree with Buddha Boy here. And even though Liz and Ava are
technically two different species, they�re are as close as you and I if not
closer.� Isabel said as she sat down next to her partner in crime.
Kyle in turn slipped an arm around Isabel�s shoulders and replied: �Thanks
SpaceBitch,� to which he promptly received a smack.
�What have I told you about calling me that! I hate that name. I am not a
bitch!�
�Yeah okay,� Kyle mocked. �and I�m completely human.�
She smiled, �Oh that�s right, you�re just as much of a Space Boy as my
brothers.� She laughed. �You�re not normal.� To prove her point, she waved
her hand over his head and unbeknownst to him, he now had
antennae.
Max couldn�t hold in his laugh any longer. �Kyle, buddy, you might want to
check out a mirror.�
�Why?�
�Kyle. Trust Me. Go look in a mirror.�
Kyle stood up and looked straight ahead in shock. Isabel had done it again:
the same antennae that were on the headbands that the waitresses wear,
were now sprouting from his head.
�Oh that�s real funny, Is.� He waved his hand over his head and the antennae
were gone. �Don�t you know that payback�s a bitch.� He said as he started
towards her.
She started backing up. Shit I forgot that Ava was working with Kyle and
Liz on their powers. �Kyle I was just kidding.�
Kyle had an evil grin on his face. �Oh no Is. This time I�m gonna have some
fun.�
�Can�t we call a truce?� She asked helplessly as he backed her into a
wall.
His hands were now on either side of her head. �What do I get if I say
yes?�
�My love and affection?� She said/asked as she slid her hands around his
neck.
He put his arms around her waist and touched his forehead to hers.
�Hmmm...let me think about it. The love and affection of my gorgeous
girlfriend.� He emphasized each word with a kiss to Isabel�s neck. �Or
getting revenge on my gorgeous girlfriend.� He pulled away and looked at
her. �I don�t know. That�s a tough one.�
Isabel pulled him back towards her. �Well option number one gets you this.�
She said as her mouth latched onto his neck. Kyle groaned. She found the
sensitive spot on his neck that she knew drove him nuts.
�Oh. Oh right. I�ll take the love and affection of my gorgeous girlfriend.
Revenge can come later.� He pulled her face up so her could kiss her. �Are
you all done?�
She nodded wickedly. �Yep. All finished.�
�Let�s go then. Later Max.�
�Kyle behave. That�s my sister you know.�
�Oh I will.� Behave? What�s that?
�Max shut up. We�ll be fine.� Especially since the Sheriff�s not home.
She smiled to herself.
�See Max, we�ll be fine.� Kyle grinned.
He yelled into the kitchen. �Micheal we�re leaving.�
�Yeah. Yeah. I�ll see you guys tomorrow then.�
Kyle practically dragged Isabel out to his Mustang. The sound of laughter
was heard as they pulled way.
Max shook his head and smiled.
He walked into the kitchen to talk with Micheal. �You know, as much as I
don�t like Isabel going home with Kyle, he�s good for her.�
�I guess.�
�He is though. He�s one of us now. So there�s nothing to worry about. And he
makes her smile. For a while after Alex�s death, I never thought she�d smile
again.� Max beamed. �I�m gonna pop my head in the break room and say
goodbye to the girls. I have to be up early for work tomorrow. Later
Micheal.� And with that he left.
�Yea. Bye Maxwell.� Micheal grunted.
He didn�t want to discuss Alex�s death. It bothered him too much. Not only
did he lose one of his best friends, he lost his girlfriend too. Maria had done
exactly what Isabel wanted to. She had graduated early and left for some
school in New York. To make matters worse, the letter he had gotten two
months later had broken what little was left of his heart.
Dearest Michael,
I am writing this to you because there is something I need to tell you. But
first, I want to thank you for everything. I want to thank you for all that
you did for me after Alex�s death. If you hadn�t been there for Mom and I,
I don�t know what we would have done. I want to thank you for loving me,
and for letting me love you. I will forever cherish what we had.
Micheal, I�ve met someone. His name is Ashley. He�s caring, sweet and
sensitive. And he can promise me the one thing you can�t: Tomorrow. Micheal
let�s face it, it was fun while it lasted but that�s all it was, fun. I�m convinced
that we were together because of Max and Liz�s relationship. For a time, it
may have been for love. But after Max and Lizzy split, we seemed to drift
apart. I think we had a relationship out of convenience.
So what I�m telling you is this. It is over between us. I hope you have no
hard feelings towards me. I will always love you, but as a friend. You need to
find someone that will make you as happy as you deserve. Lord knows I
couldn�t. You deserve better than me.
Sincerely,
Maria
At Max�s mention of Alex�s death, all the painful memories came flooding
back. Despite what Maria thought, he really did love her. And, the only one
he had ever discussed that letter with was Liz. He had opened it up one
night after work, when no one but him and Liz were around. Half way
through reading it for the first time, he broke down in front of her. And
she didn�t tease him for it either. In fact she had broken down and
confessed that she still loved Max but had grown to realize that him and
Ava were perfect together. She couldn�t risk her sister�s happiness for her
own.
He suddenly remembered the night that Ava had shown up and saved their
lives. It was the night that they were planning on heading back to Antar
because Tess was pregnant and the baby couldn�t survive here. As much as
he didn�t want to go, he was willing to if only for Max and Isabel. Kyle and Liz
had come bursting into the Granolith shouting something about Tess being a
lire. They said that she was the one who killed Alex. Max made everyone
leave the room except for Tess so that they could talk. They started
shouting at each other. Tess came bursting out screaming about how Liz,
Maria, Alex, and Kyle had ruined their lives. They were too human. She
raised her hand and it started to glow.
Max, Isabel and he were too shocked to do anything. A white light was
released from Tess�s hand and the next thing they knew, she was on the
floor dead. Ava stood in between Max and Liz, with tears in her eyes. If Ava
hadn�t been there, Liz, Maria & Kyle would have been killed. Liz and Maria
immediately flung themselves at Ava and engulfed her in a huge hug.
Ava later explained that after leaving Roswell, she had decided to travel for
a little bit. But she got so lonely on her own. She returned to Roswell, just in
time. She felt the anger flowing off of Tess and knew that something was
bound to happen.
It was decided that Ava would stay at Liz�s. Jeff and Nancy Parker
immediately took to Ava. They decided to adopt her. One month later, she
was officially Ava Parker. She started going to school and working at the
Crashdown. She fit in perfectly. Ava and Liz became extremely close,
especially when Maria left. She was Liz�s rock during that time.
Liz had kept her mouth shut when she noticed that Max and Ava started
spending a lot of time together. Ava had been through enough. Lonnie and
Rath had treated her like shit. Zan ignored her. She had been all alone. Max
seemed to light up when he was around her. Ava was finally at peace. Though
she was hurt, all Liz cared about was Ava�s happiness. Liz had it all for all
her life. She could at least let Ava have Max. Happiness be damned.
So that�s how he and Liz had become so close. Micheal began to see a whole
different side to Liz. He had always seen her as a stuck-up little Mommy and
Daddy�s girl. He realized she wasn�t. She didn�t get everything she wanted.
She was just as broken as he was.
He walked into the breakroom just in time to catch a glimpse of Max and
Ava sucking face. He then noticed Liz staring at them with jealousy and
adoration in her eyes. He decided that PDA�s were too much right now.
�Okay get a room.� They sprang apart.
�I don�t think Mom and Dad would like that. Do you Liz?� Ava
smirked.
�Nope. You�d be grounded for longer than I was.� Only Micheal noticed the
lone tear slip down her face.
�Ahem.� Max interupted. �I better get going.� He gave Ava one last kiss and
left.
Good idea Maxwell.
Micheal sat down on the couch as Liz and Ava got back to the books.
�I hate Math.� Ava groaned. �I suck at it.�
�You and me both babe.� Liz agreed.
�You guys are still doing the books?�
�Yes Micheal. We have to have everything perfect. Otherwise, the IRS
comes to bother Mom and Dad.� Liz replied.
�And if all the books aren�t done right, you might not get the right amount
of money in that paycheck of yours.� Ava added.
�Can you work it so that I get more than I�m supposed to?� He
smirked.
He was then hit with a pillow from each of the girls. He got up and ran at the
both of them.
�Tickle fight!� He screamed as he proceeded to attack both sisters. He
chased them around the entire cafe for more than twenty minutes.
Their fun stopped when they were suddenly face to face with Sheriff
Valenti. He didn�t look happy.
�Girls, you should sit down. I have to tell you something.�
Both Ava and Liz immediately panicked. Liz had only seen that look on his
face once before. When he had told them that Alex was dead. Ava could
feel what she was thinking. They knew it had to be something about their
parents.
The Sheriff took of his hat and sat down across from the bewildered
sisters. These poor girls. They�re so young to lose both of their
parents.
�Liz, Ava, I�m sorry to have to tell you this but your parents were killed in a
car crash this morning.�
For a few minutes there was silence. The Sheriff stood up and said: �I�ll
leave you alone. If you need anything please don�t hesitate to call. You know
that Kyle and I will be here for the both of you.� With that he left.
Liz and Ava both promptly burst into tears and held onto each other for
dear life, as Micheal looked on.
�No.� Liz cried. �It can�t be true.� She said as she looked at Ava. �Av, our
parents are gone. We�re all alone.� I�m all alone
Ava couldn�t even find words. Jeff and Nancy had given her the life and
sister she had always wanted. They were her parents. And just like that,
they were taken from her and her sister. Now all she had was Liz. I have
Max. But who does Liz turn to?
�Mom and Dad.� She cried. �Why Mom and Dad? We need them.� Ava fell to
the floor crying. Liz immediately joined her.
Micheal looked at the Parker sisters and one thought crossed his mind.
Things will never be the same again.
**TBC**
[Prologue] [Part 1]