Echoes of the Past - Chapter 8

It was strange how things had turned out between her and Alec. Of all the members of her new unit, Alec was the last one she would have expected to actually get along with. But to her surprise, things had been going well between them. In fact, she was beginning to suspect that she was falling for him.

The idea disturbed her.

It was simply because she was not sure if this feeling of hers was for Alec specifically, or it was a remnant of her affections for Ben. Although things between her and Ben had been over for years, it still felt weird to be having those kind of thoughts about his twin.

Not to mention she felt strangely guilty to be thinking about such things when Ben might be still live, holed up in some torture chamber. It just did not seem right to be actually feeling good knowing that Ben could be tortured at the very moment.

Her eyes hardened at the thought. When Manticore finally tracked them down, she would make sure that she was part of the offence team. She would like nothing more than to sink her fingers in those militants’ throats and squeeze the last breath out of them. And she hoped fervently that they would be able to find Ben.

If he was still alive.

The uncertainty of not knowing whether or not Ben was alive was worse than the assumption that he was dead. At least there had been some form of closure in his death. But now, Max found herself in a sort of weird limbo. Somehow, with this hanging over her head, she could not help but feel slightly uncomfortable with her feelings for Alec.

“Hey, are you done with the shower?”

Startled, she jumped, almost slipping on the wet floor. Turning, she glowered at a half-dressed Alec. “Do you mind not shouting like that?”

Alec smirked. “I’m just making sure that you won’t drown yourself.”

She rolled her eyes. “As if.”

“Are you done yet? I’m starving.”

“You’re always starving,” she muttered, turning off the showers. Grabbing a towel, she quickly dried herself and donned her Manticore issue kit.

“Finally!” he said with an exaggerated sigh as she joined him.

“Oh, shut up!”

Alec sneaked a look out of the corner of his eyes at the dark haired girl beside him. Seemingly preoccupied with her thought, she was munching slowly on her toast. Ever since the incident outside Lydecker’s room, things had been different between them. She still preferred to keep to herself, but she was no longer withdrawn around him.

In the last few weeks, more often than not, he had found himself waking up earlier than his usual time such that he ended up being in the showers at the same time as her. And then, they would end up in the mess hall together. He had found it surprisingly easy to talk to her, now that both of them had dropped their mutual animosity. Their conversation touched on varied topics, from their missions to their favourite food. Only two subjects were conspicuously absent from their conversation, namely Ben and Sam.

Alec figured that any conversation about Ben would probably not end well, considering her attachment to his twin. As for him, he had avoided talking about Sam simply because anything to do with Sam was too painful for him to drag up.

Staring down at his plate, his hands tightened around his fork and knife as he remembered the last argument that had taken place between him and Sam.

His face was set in a stony expression as he walked rapidly away from the irate female. His heart sank when he heard the softer, but no less rapid footsteps behind him. He really did not want to go through this again. It was as if they were caught in a stalemate.

Neither of them was giving in.

Her attraction towards him made him feel acutely uncomfortable. Much as he enjoyed her company as part of his unit, he simply could not envision himself with her in a more intimate setting. More than once, he had hinted his opinions to her, but she either brushed it off, or ignored him.

Alec gritted his teeth, knowing that he had to put a stop to it, not matter what cost. Subtlety had not worked with her and he knew that unless he was ruthless about it, the same scenario would recur over and over again. She would get over it with time.

Stopping, he turned around abruptly.

Sam skidded to a halt in front of him, placing her palms on his chest to steady herself.

He immediately brushed her hands away. “Don’t touch me,” he hissed.

For a fraction of a second, her eyes widened in surprise before they flashed angrily. “I just want to talk, Alec!”

His jaw ticked. “So talk,” he gritted out.

She hesitated.

He gave her a hard look. “I don’t have all day, Sam!”

“What the hell is wrong with you?” Her tone belied her bewilderment.

“Nothing, apart from the fact that you refuse to leave me in peace.”

“Is this because of what I told you? Are you avoiding me because I have feelings for you?” she demanded to know.

“Whatever feelings you got, you’ll get over it soon enough,” he said flatly, not really answering her question.

She looked hurt. “Is the entire idea of being with me so bad that you have to do this? That you have to treat me so coldly?”

“Honestly, Sam? The whole idea freaks me out. I just don’t see you that way. The whole damned thing is just sick!”

She cringed visibly. Then, after a long moment, she drew in a shaky breath. When she raised her eyes to meet his, the chocolate brown orbs were hard. “Fine.”

With that, she swivelled round and stalked away proudly.

Alec released a heavy sigh. Every time he thought about it, he wished that he had said something else to her. If he had known that that was the last real conversation they were going to have, he would have curbed his poisonous tongue. Hindsight, however, did not do him any good. Nor did it relieve the guilt he had been feeling ever since he had found her body lying lifeless in the rain.

“Hey…”

He looked up to find Max raising a brow at him. “What’s the deal with that look you’re giving me?”

Calling forth a smirk, he retorted, “Just checking if you’re still staring at perfection.”

As expected, she rolled her eyes. “Get over yourself Alec. You head might explode one day.”

“And I’m sure that will be a sad day for females worldwide.”

Max groaned. “I think I just lost my appetite.”

“More for me then,” he quipped, spearing a piece of toast from her plate.

“HEY!”

Quickly shoving the piece of toast into his mouth, Alec simply smirked at her. “Too late.”

Grumbling under her breath, she finished off whatever remained of her breakfast and stood up.

Grinning at her back, he followed suit.

Almost choking with mirth, Max blurred down the hallway leading to her cell, Alec hot on her heels.

Alright, perhaps she should not have given in to the urge to play that nasty trick on him. But the idea had been too tempting for her to resist. After all, how often did one get to see their CO sprawled ungracefully on the mess hall floor in front of the entire facility at dinnertime? It had simply taken her a couple of minutes to undo the fixings on his chair. The collapse and the subsequent look on his face had been priceless.

But boy, was he mad, Max thought as she skidded into her cell and immediately tried to slam the door shut.

The force from the other side prevented her from doing so and instead, she found herself knocked down onto the floor. Biting her lips to contain her laughter, she stood up and held her hands out in surrender.

“Okay…okay…I’m sorry! But you’re overreacting!”

Advancing, he glowered at her. “You’ll pay for that trick.”

She backed away. “Oh, come on, Alec. Don’t you have a sense of humour?”

 

“Not when it’s at my expense,” he retorted.

Then to her alarm, a gleam entered his eyes as he quickened his steps towards her.

“Hey, wait. What are you-”

Her words were cut short as he tackled her to the ground. As his fingers found her ribs, her eyes shot open at his method of revenge. Laughing at the tickling sensation, she squirmed in his hold.

“No! Let me go, you ass!” she gasped out between her laughter.

Grinning, he continued to tickle her mercilessly. “Beg me.”

“I-I didn’t know you’re the dominating type, Alec,” she choked out, trying to kick him.

He responded to her action by squashing her down with his heavier mass. A gust of air escaped her lips with a loud groan. She tried to escape, but soon realised that he had her pinned down too well. Her eyes shot up towards his, ready to deliver a scathing warning, but her words died on her lips.

He was deeply into her eyes, his mouth slightly parted. The hazel depths flickered in some unnamed emotion and she held her breath. He looked as if he wanted to kiss her. Or was it simply her imagination playing tricks on her?

Her question was answered a moment later when he lowered his head.

Their lips touched in the barest of caress, tentative in its nature. He raised his head slightly and watched her through heady lidded eyes. Her breath caught in her throat. Then, determination crossed his features and he dipped down again. Max let out an involuntary gasp as his tongue stroked her lips before he entered her mouth. With a groan of surrender, she responded to his kisses feverishly. He was just as unrestrained. Their tongues, lips and teeth battled for dominance. Neither winning, neither losing.

She was barely aware that his hands had moved from her sides to slip under her top. The first touch of his hands on her breast made her pull away from his lips, her back arching towards him. A satisfied smirk crossed his lips, eliciting a glare from her.

“Like it, Max?” he teased as he flicked her stiffening nipples through her bra.

Shots of pleasure ran from the tips he was teasing down her body, rendering her temporarily incapable of speech. Those hands sifted and the next thing Max knew, her bra was pushed up and his bare hands were kneading her breasts insistently. She let out a deep moan as her entire body responded heatedly. Her own hands had slipped under his shirt, stroking and grasping his firm muscles convulsively.

“Alec,” she whispered. Did she really want to do this? Was she comfortable enough with Alec to do this? She could not lie to herself. She did not know when it had begun, but she definitely did not want this to stop.

With a hurried move, he managed to pull her top and her bra over her head, leaving her bare to his gaze. She watched as his hazel eyes darkened as he took in her form. It was nothing he had not seen before, considering their encounters during the morning showers. Nevertheless, his unwavering gaze made her feel conscious of the numerous scars marring her body. This must be a far cry from what he was used to seeing, she thought humourlessly.

Lifting her arms, she made a move to cover herself.

Before she could shield her body, Alec grasped her wrists gently. “No. I want to see you.”

She blinked hesitantly, unsure what to do. “Um…I…”

Leaning down to one side, he nuzzled her neck and whispered into her ear. “You’re beautiful. And your body drives me crazy. Did you not realise that I’ve been taking cold showers?”

Flushing at his words, she slowly dropped her arms.

A second later, she found herself moaning uncontrollably as his tongue and lips played with her exposed breasts. Each nip and lick aroused her further until she thought that she could not stand it any longer. The heat between her legs grew more intense and she clenched her thighs together in an attempt to relieve it.

Alec lifted his head to kiss her fully on the lips. As their eyes locked, she saw a knowing gleam in his. She held her breath, wondering if he was planning to go any further. If he did not, she would kill him, she thought darkly.

His eyes never left hers as his hands travelled south. In a quick move, she found her pants unzipped and his fingers tangled in her damp curls.

“You’re wet for me,” he whispered smugly as he slid his hands further into her pants.

A loud moan was issued from her lips when his fingers pressed against her aching core. Her eyes fluttered shut. Yes, she knew she was very wet down there. His slow, stroking movements were clouding her mind, making her forget everything except the feel of his fingers between her legs.

Her eyes shot open when he drove into her for the first time, her mouth parting in a gasp. Then he pumped his fingers into her steadily. It did not take long for her to reach the peak.

Even before her tremors had subsided, she grabbed him and pulled him down for a rough kiss. Standing up unsteadily, her fingers were rushed as she undressed him. She only stilled when his muscular body was fully exposed to her, its lean ridges and lines egging her to touch what she had only been allowed to see before then.

She touched him everywhere, as if she wanted to memorise the feel of her body. His hand clenched spasmodically in her hair and his rasps of pleasure brought her body to a new heat.

With a growl, she found herself lifted up and pushed against the wall. Her breath caught in her throat as he entered her in one strong thrust, stretching her walls with his generous size. Eyes locked onto hers, he began to pump into her with long, hard strokes. Her mouth open in a silent gasp as the pressure began to build inside her.

Their lips locked together in a heated kiss as she bucked to meet him. Soon, their breaths became more erratic and their movements more jerky. As she screamed her completion into his mouth, he thrust hard into her and shouted his own release.

Her body sated and drained, she slumped into his arms.

Propped up on one hand, Alec watched as the girl beside him slept. Tendrils of her dark hair framed her face, making her seem almost like a child. Sighing, he stroked her cheeks softly.

Their coupling had been explosive, mimicking the trend of their relationship so far.

He had slept with many females, but something told him that he would never find someone else like Max. He wondered if she felt the same. Snorting inwardly, he suddenly realised what he was thinking. This sort of contemplation was highly unusual for him. He must be growing soft. But still, he could not deny that he felt something for this fiery female.

Sighing again, he dropped his head to lie down fully beside her.

He had almost nodded off when he heard her voice.

“Ben…”

The instant her sleepy murmur registered in his mind, Alec tensed. His blood ran cold at the implication of that one single word. His mind protested vehemently but he could do nothing except to clamp down on his urge to wake her up to demand an explanation. He needed to think about it first.

Slowly, as to not wake her, he inched himself off her bunk, staring at her all the while. Oblivious to his movements, she snuggled deeper into her pillow. He waited with bated breath to see if she would say anything else but she slept on silently.

Tearing his eyes away from her, he went to the door and let himself out of her cell. As the door clicked shut behind him, he made his way back to his own cell somewhat numbly. He only allowed himself to breathe normally when he was seated on his bunk.

It was more than evident that consciously or unconsciously, Max had been thinking about Ben. Why else would she be calling out Ben’s name in her sleep so soon after what they had done? The thought that he, Alec, was simply a replacement for her first love did not sit well with him. In fact, the entire thought sickened him. Just because he looked like Ben, it did not mean that he was Ben.

A niggling thought in his mind nudged at him. He was accusing Max of using him as a replacement for his twin, but was he so sure that he was innocent of the same vice?

He threaded his fingers roughly through his hair, his brows pinched as he mulled over the idea. Was he doing this for the same reason as Max?

He did not know how things had been left between Max and Ben when she had been captured. But things had been left unresolved when Sam had died. Was he subconsciously trying to make up for his mistakes with Sam through Max? Was this some sort of atonement? Had he been unable to separate the two of them after all?

In which case, he was not being fair to Max. He grimaced. Not that she had been fair to him either.

But they had been happy for the last few weeks, his inner voice protested. He had never felt the same with Sam as he did with Max. Did that mean that he had managed to separate them after all? But how could he be sure that he had not been lying to himself? How could he be sure that Max had not been lying to herself?

Slumping forward, he buried his face in his hand in defeat. It was a long time before he raised his head again. But when he did, the pain still remained.

It was hopeless. Everything was too blurred, too unclear. There were too many grey areas.

A heavy sigh escaped his lips. He guessed both of them simply had too many skeletons in their closets for this entire thing between them to work out anyway. If he was smart, he should remove himself from the situation as soon as he could before he was in too deep.

Ignoring the screaming protests of his inner voice, his expression turned resolute as he made his decision.

Alec was seated at the other end of the table again, Max noticed with no small amount of dismay and confusion. She had been trying to catch his attention since yesterday, but he had always found some excuse or other to turn away from her.

Biting her lips, Max stared down blankly at her plate. The clanging of cutlery against ceramic plates while the rest of the transgenics devoured their lunch went unnoticed by her. She did not understand his sudden change in behaviour. Things had been fine. More than fine. And then suddenly he did a complete turnaround and reverted back to his previous detached manner.

What was going on?

Was it just a fling for him? Was she simply a challenge that he had set his eyes on? And now that he had gotten what he wanted, he no longer wanted to be near her? A bubble of irritation grew within and she clenched her fists tight. What did he think she was? Someone to be toyed with and then discarded?

Or did he realise that it was a mistake and was now regretting it? Her eyes darkened in anguish. Had he been expecting something else and was disappointed when his expectations were not fulfilled? Had he taken a good look at her and decided that he did not want damaged goods after all?

She bit her lips harder, blinking back the sudden stinging feeling behind her lids.

Involuntarily, her eyes went to other end of the table again. Compared to the feeling of turmoil within her, his profile betrayed nothing but absolute calmness. It was as if the whole thing had never happened. It was like he had erased the entire event and now they were back to how they had been when she first arrived.

Had it been that bad for him? Had their coupling two nights ago been the reason for his sudden change in behaviour?

She blinked rapidly and looked down at her plate. Her fists were still clenched around her fork, and only now she noticed that she had unwittingly bent the metal in her uncompromising grip. Loosening her fingers, she let the abused fork fall on the table with a soft clang.

She should have known that it was too good to be true. Luck had never been on her side, especially these few years. Nothing seemed to be going right, from the failed mission, to the subsequent reintroduction to other units. It was as if she was jinxed.

Her lips twisted at her bitter thought. At least she was still on good terms with the rest of Unit 6. It could be worse.

Yeah, but for how long? One day, they might decide to pull the same thing as Alec.

“Max?”

She looked up to find Biggs staring at her with an expression of concern.

“Are you okay?” he asked.

Pasting a watery smile on her lips, she replied, “Yeah.”

He frowned. “You look like something is bothering you.”

Max shrugged. “I’m just tired, that’s all.”

Biggs looked as if he wanted to grill her further, but then changed his mind. With a cheerful smile, he said, “Well, I’ve got something for you.”

Surprised, her eyes widened a little. “Something for me?”

Was this Biggs’ way of trying to cheer her up? She thought for a moment and then decided that he could not have possibly known that she was feeling upset about Alec until now. So he must have had something planned for a while.

Biggs nodded. “Yeah. But you need to sacrifice one of your off days.”

Her eyes softened. She could do worse than spend her day off with Biggs. Maybe that was all she needed to get her mind off Alec. A distraction. “What do you have in mind?”

Biggs grinned mischievously. “It’s a surprise.”

Max gave him a mock-irritated look, at which Biggs’ grin grew wider. “Hey, it’s no fun if I tell you now,” he pointed out.

She laughed, finally feeling lighter. Alec was still at the back of her mind, but what the hell? She was not going to continue to drive herself crazy thinking about him.

At least, that was what she hoped.

Alec’s eyes narrowed into slits as he watched the two laughing figures roaring out of the compound on a sleek Ninja. Seated close behind Max, Biggs had a hand on her left hip while his other hand was busy swatting her streaming hair out of his face. The bike swayed precariously as they turned the corner, eliciting a yell of alarm from Biggs before they disappeared out of sight.

With a disgusted snort, Alec turned away from the window and went back to the television in the Recreation Room. No one was there apart from him. It seemed that everyone had something to do today. As he glowered at the flickering screen, Alec wondered if he should have accepted Ren’s invitation to join his outing. But he knew that even if he had accepted, it would not bring him out of this funk that he had sunken in.

It had been sixteen days since he had left her room.

But he was not counting.

No. He was definitely not counting.

For the last sixteen days, they had not spoken to each other unless it was absolutely necessary. Anything they had said to each other had always been mission or training related. She had not challenged him on anything or raised her voice at him. He would ask a question and she would answer calmly and emotionlessly like a perfect little soldier.  He would give an order and she would simply carry it obediently.

Perfect.

He hated it.

But what he hated most, much as it galled him to admit it, was her growing closeness to Biggs. Not that they had not been close before, but now they were nothing short of inseparable. He had not been able to catch the either of them alone for the last two weeks.

What riled him the most was what he had found out a few days ago. He knew he should not care, but he could not help the horrible twisting feeling in his gut when he had found out about it.

Figuring that the only time he could catch Biggs was when he was safely tucked in his bunk, Alec had gone to his cell. However, he had been dumbfounded to find an empty bunk which looked as if it had not been slept in for days. Further to a line of subtle questioning, he had managed to find out that Biggs had been spending his nights in Max’s cell.

His face tightened at the memory.

Why should he care anyway? It was obvious that she held no real feelings for him. After all, she had called out his name, when they had been doing that. The mere thought of it was enough to make his blood boil. Not to mention that it did not take long for her to accept Biggs’s affections.

Alec glowered darkly. Perhaps Biggs would have better luck with her.

Inhaling deeply and letting out his breath slowly, he willed himself to stop thinking about Max. It was none of his business after all.

He would not think about her anymore.

He would not.

Max let out a sigh of relief when she finally completed the form. By now, she could almost do it blindfolded. Her brows furrowed as she thought about her Psy-Ops sessions, which had necessitated this pointless exercise of filling in an after-session form.

Following her confrontation with Lydecker, she had volunteered herself up for sessions with Psy-ops in the hope that they might be able to extract information that might still be buried in her subconscious. If there were any chance that Ben was alive, she would make sure that they got him back.

What frustrated her the most was the fact that she was kept in the dark about whatever information Psy-Ops had gleaned from the sessions. So she did not even know if the entire exercise was of any use.

Max looked up as a shadow fell over her. She let her smile widen as her eyes landed on Biggs’s grinning face.

The dark-haired transgenic had been a lifesaver ever since the entire painful episode with Alec. Biggs’s constant presence meant that she had not been able to mope. Instead, he forced her to continue her life as if nothing had gone wrong. Nothing had been said about her and Alec apart from that one time Biggs asked if everything was alright between them. To which she had replied that Alec was a jerk. Biggs had given her a weird look and he no longer broached the subject.

Even Lydecker had asked, she thought irritably. The old man had summoned her one day specifically to grill her about what was happening between her and Alec. Was there no privacy in this place?

Biggs’s voice jerked her out of her contemplation. “That’s one serious look you’ve got there,” he remarked.

Shaking away her thoughts, she shook her head. “Nah! Just thinking about…things.”

His brow popped up. “Whatever it is you’re thinking, I didn’t do it,” he declared quickly.

She grinned. Biggs always had a way to bring a smile to her lips.

His eyes softened. “I like it when you do that.”

“What?”

“Smile.”

She gaped at him. The sudden rise of heat in her face told her that she was blushing. “Um… Biggs?”

Looking as if he was completely unaware of her embarrassment, he simply raised a questioning brow. “Yeah?”

“Are you coming on to me?” she ventured uncertainly.

His eyes flickered. “What if I am?” he said, sounding uncharacteristically sober.

She sighed, confused at her own emotions. Biggs was cute, funny and caring; all the things that any female would ask for. Heck, she was not unaware of those enviously looks she had gotten from the female half the facility ever since Biggs became a permanent fixture to her side. She should be happy that she got his attention. She should be jumping up, flinging her arms around him instead of averting her eyes guiltily.

So why did it make her feel so edgy?

Was it because of Alec?

A painful twinge in her heart told her that she had hit the nail on the head. Damn it! Was she never going to get over the jerk?

“Max?”

Hating herself for not returning his feelings, she looked up at him, preparing herself to hurt him. “Uh…Biggs…” she faltered miserably.

He blinked at her. And then to her surprise, his lips widened into a mischievous grin. “I was just kidding around, you know?”

She stared at him wordlessly, trying to digest his words.

His eyes gleamed. “You didn’t really think that I wanted to get into your pants, did you?” he teased and then paused. A thoughtful look crossed his face. “Hmm… but now that I think about that great ass…”

“Biggs!” she interjected as she finally regained her composure. The guy was kidding around as usual, after all. For a moment, she was really worried that she would wreck their friendship,

“But why would I tie myself down to one possessive female when I could have the whole facility.”

Max groaned. “You’re sick, Biggs.”

He simply grinned. “But you love me anyway.”

Max snorted.

t.b.c.

A/N: Thanks for reading. Please review and tell me what you think! :)

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