Title: Forgiveness
Author:Lori 5/01
Email:Gussywussy55@yahoo.com
Category: Max/Isabel PG13
Disclaimer: WB not me.
Feedback: Yes,please.
Summary: After BIY...Max must face Isabel and the
consequences of what he's done...

***********

Max rolled over, and threw his arm over his face. He
had not slept all night, and was exhausted.
What had he been thinking having sex with Tess? 
Max got up, showered, checking Isabel's room on the
way downstairs, and finding it empty.
Good. He couldn't face her...not yet.
He had tried to hide his feelings for Isabel by dating
Liz, but then things had gone very sour for them when
it was revealed that Tess was his past wife. Then he
had allowed himself to be pulled toward Tess in
another decoy relationship, but he had 'never'
intended for it to go this far.

Reaching the kitchen, Max slowed his steps as he spied
Isabel prepping to run. 
She looked so good. Since she had began running, she
had really firmed her already beautiful body until the
curves left a guy breathing hard.
"Going for a run? You must be up to 5 or 6 miles by
now," Max commented trying to make small talk. The
tension between them had been unbearable since he had
threatened her about leaving Roswell. 
Had he really done that to her? If he couldn't have
her, then no one would....but he would also torture
himself by keeping her nearby. 
What was wrong with him?
"I really need to talk to someone Is," he continued.
Isabel put down her drink, and brushed past him.
Great, he thought. She still won't look at me.
But instead of leaving, Isabel picked up a chair, and
turning it towards Max, sat on it, and waited.
"Yeah, well...things have moved on with Tess...closer
I mean...this is hard to...to talk to... my sister
about, but ..."he stammered insure.
"You slept with her?" It was more of a statement than
a question.
"Yeah," he answered darting a look from under his
lowered eyes.
(clapping) "Great! Max loses his virginity. Way to go!
I'm really glad you shared that with me Max, now I've
really got to run."
And saying that, Isabel jumped up, and headed out the
door before Max could see her tears begin to fall.

No! She cried to herself as she ran down the street. 
Faster and faster she ran trying to divest herself of
the feelings inside of her that were tearing her
apart.
She must have run 7 miles before she slumped against a
tree on a secluded portion of the road, and cried. 
She cried hard for the anger she felt towards Max, and
his orders and threats.
She cried for his sleeping with Tess.
And she cried because she loved him so much, and could
never ever tell him.
And as of last night any dreams she had harbored of
them sharing their first time together, no matter how
far fetched she knew that to be, were destroyed by his
actions with Tess.
Standing up, and drying her tears, Isabel resolved to
put it behind her. After all, it was one a one night
stand between Max and Tess.
Nothing that time wouldn't fix.

********

Max and Tess sat next to each other, neither touching,
or speaking.
After an eternity, Tess said, "You seem quiet
tonight."
Max started at her voice.
"No...no...I'm fine."
"I need you now Max. This is not the time to be
pulling away from me," she said taking his hand.
"I'm not," replied Max putting his arm around her
awkwardly."It's just the implications of last night."
"Max, I have to tell you something...about last
night," began Tess.
Max looked at her, thoughts of Isabel being forced
from his mind.
"Yeah? What is it?" he asked.
"I'm not sure how to say this...tell you this..." she
tried again unsure.
"Tell me what?" he asked.
Looking into his eyes she said,"That I'm pregnant."
Max stared, at her and then away, his heart having
dropped into his stomach.
Oh God...what have I done?

*********

Isabel headed out her door pausing slightly by Max's
room, before heading on downstairs. 
He had been crying last night.
Before when one of them had done that, the other would
go, and hold the one crying until they were through.
But not last night.
Last night she had just lay there, and listened to
him, her own heart to broken to go to him.

Max heard Isabel leave, and then left himself.
How was he going to tell her that Tess was pregnant,
and that the baby was due in one month?
All night he had cried about this, and he was no
closer to a solution.
Heading out, he grabbed his basketball, and went in
search of Michael.

**********

Max and Michael shot hoop after hoop until Michael
wondered if Max would ever tell him what was on his
mind. Finally Max spoke.
"You know Tess and I have gotten closer."
"Yeah, I noticed...who hasn't," said Michael bouncing
the ball.
"Yeah...well, we sort of did something last night that
advanced our relationship," said Max.
"What? How did you advance it?" asked Michael shooting
the ball.
"We went about as far as you can go in a
relationship," said Max shooting, and missing his
basket.
Michael stared at him.
Michael stopped, and stared at Max thinking he had
misunderstood him. "You had ..."
"Hot alien sex. Yes," said Max.
"Wow...uh, how was it?" Michael asked awed, and
curious.
"Like human sex I guess, only the point of culmination
is like this electric surge of energy that lasts about
an hour," said Max bouncing the ball.
"Really..." said Michael impressed.
"But there is a ...complication," said Max sitting on
the bench.
"What? Alien herpes?" asked Michael joining him.
"No..no, nothing like that," said Max absently.
"Well, except for getting Tess pregnant, which you're
too smart to do, what is it?" asked Michael capping 
his drink.
Silence.
"You got Tess pregnant? Holy crap!" exclaimed Michael.
"And she says it's growing fast, that Nacedo said
alien pregnancies only take about a month. What the
hell am I going to do?" asked Max in misery.
"You tell her to get rid of it!" said Michael
adamantly.
"I can't do that Michael. It's her body. I can't order
her to get rid of it," said Max staring at his feet.
"Why the hell not? You're the King, just tell her how
bad this is for all of us!" demanded Michael.
"If I'm the King, then she's the Queen, Michael. I
can't tell her that," said Max.
"What does Isabel say about it?" asked Michael.
"I haven't told her," said Max quietly.
"You haven't told her? Why not? Is it because of that
foolish stunt you pulled with her about school? I
should never have offered to talk to her for you,"
said Michael angrily.
Pacing around, Michael came to stand before Max and
said,"Max, when you told me that you loved Isabel in a
more than brotherly fashion, well Isabel going off to
college seemed like the answer. But you wouldn't hold
with that, and demanded she stay. You can not have a
'sister' as the human world sees her, and a pregnant
girlfriend. That's just not right or fair to Isabel or
to Tess."
Max looked up at Michael, and frowned, tears forming
in his eyes.
"I know. I never planned to sleep with Tess, and now
this has happened. I love Isabel , Michael. I'm in
love with her, but I can never tell her. But I don't
want to lose her either. What do I do?"
"You send Isabel off to college, and you get Tess to
get rid of that baby," stated Michael.
"But it's part my child too," Max whispered.
Michael stopped. He hadn't thought about that.
Sitting by Max, he said,"Max, what if it is alien in
form? Not like us? How do we explain that?"
"And if it's not?"
Michael stared ahead, thinking he was glad he wasn't
Max.
"I don't know man...I don't know."

*********

Tess entered Isabel's room, and sat on the bed.
"So what do you want?" asked Isabel as she stood by
the window looking away from Tess.
"I need some support," replied Tess to Isabel's back.
"Support?" asked Isabel gritting her teeth.
"Max didn't tell you?" she asked.
"About the two of you?" asked Isabel. "Yes, he told
me. I guess congratulations are in order."
Tess smiled weakly. "Well it was a shock to us. It's
all so new, and then add the baby on top of it all
it..."
"The what?" asked Isabel turning around slowly.
"The...baby...I thought you just said Max told you?"
said Tess.
"Right...I just...never mind. Yeah, support, you have
it. Congratulations," said Isabel feigning a smile.
"You said that already," said Tess watching Isabel.
"Right..right. Uh, look Tess...I have to go...meeting
...some people," said Isabel heading out the door of
her room, and almost running head on into Max going
into his. 
Looking at one another, Isabel's eyes welled with
tears as she ran off, leaving Max to stare after her
until he heard Tess call his name from Isabel's
doorway.
"What happened?" asked Max.
"I thought she knew," said Tess softly.
Max felt his stomach drop.
"You told her about..." 
"About the baby," said Tess.
Max closed his eyes, and leaned against the wall.
"Max?" asked Tess.
Opening his eyes, Max forced a smile at Tess.
"It's okay Tess," he said as she came into his arms,
and his heart continued to break.
"We need to talk," he said holding her away from him.
"What about?" she asked.
"This baby...I'll support whatever you decide to do,
but I also know it is your choice ultimately on if we
have this baby," said Max.
" 'If' we have this baby? Max, I'm having this baby. I
thought you wanted it too," said Tess her hand going
to her abdomen.
"Yeah...yeah, well I'm just freaked about all of this,
so..."
"And I'm not? I'm the one who's pregnant Max. In one
month I'm having your baby whether you like it or
not!" Tess said feeling lost, and alone.
Suddenly she clutched her stomach, falling to the
ground.
Max rushed to her saying,"Tess, what's wrong?"
"I don't know...the baby..." she cried as a pain
gripped her.
Max placed his hand over her stomach, and a bond with
the baby was formed. He saw and felt his unborn son,
struggling inside Tess, fighting for his life.
Breaking free, Max looked at Tess and said,"He's dying
Tess. This planet is hurting him somehow. Our son is
dying." 
In that moment of bonding with his son, Max knew
without a doubt he would do whatever he could to
protect it.
Helping Tess to his bed, he realized that the choice
had been made for him. 
He would save his son, stay with Tess, and say goodbye
to Isabel forever.
********

A baby!
She couldn't bear this!
How cold she stay here and watch Max with Tess, and
their baby?
It should have been her baby.
Her's and Max's, but no that could never be.
She had to leave, and Max be damned.
She went to look for Michael.

********

Michael watched Isabel chew her nails to the nub.
Isabel prided herself on her manicures, and here she
had chewed the ends off.
"What's up Isabel?" he asked.
"Did you know they were having a baby?"
So that was it he thought. She had found out.
"So Max told you?" he asked sitting beside her.
"No, Tess did. She thought Max had, but he didn't have
the courage to tell me. He did what he ordered us not
to do. He followed his destiny...and ruined mine. But
I'm fixing that today Michael...with your help."
"My help?" asked Michael warily.
"Michael, I'm going to tell you something, and you
have to promise not to tell Max," said Isabel softly.
"Okay..."
"I'm in love with Max," she replied with tears in her
eyes.
Oh shit! thought Michael. Both of them, and now this
with Tess. How more f***** up could things get?
"I now you are shocked, but we're only adopted sibs,
so ...well it doesn't matter anymore what I ..." she
tried and couldn't finish.
Michael took her in his arms, and held her as she
cried.
Finally stopping, she said,"Michael'I'm leaving
Roswell. I can't stay and watch him,and Tess, and
their baby. I just can't. But I'm not going to
California. I don't know where I'm going, but he won't
be able to find me. I just wanted someone to know...no
worries you know."
"When?" asked Michael, knowing what she was proposing
was for the best even though it hurt him to see her
go.
"Tonight."
"But school..."
"Not important anymore," she said.
And they held each other saying goodbye.

********

Max entered Michael's apartment and shook him awake.
"Where's Isabel?" he asked, his heart pounding.
"I don't know," said Michael rubbing his eyes.
"You do know! Where is she Michael?" demanded Max.
"Why, so you can go after her and drag her back? No
way man. She made this choice, and if you pull
yourself together you 'll see she's right. You can't
have her..ever, and Tess needs you. So let her go,"
said Michael as he put on his clothes.
Max sat down, his head hanging down.
He had lost her.
"Why didn't she say goodbye?" he asked feeling empty
inside.
"Would you have let her go?"
"No," agreed Max.
"There you go. She knew that. Now on to other stuff.
What's Tess going to do about the baby?" asked
Michael, the protector in him alert.
"She's going to have it," said Max absently.
"Shit!" said Michael pacing around, shoving his hands
in his hair.
Max looked up at Michael, tears in his eyes.
"My son is dying Michael. He can't live on this
planet."
Michael looked at Max and asked,"You know it's a boy?
How? How do you know it's dying?"
Tears rolled down Max's face as he said,"Tess was in
pain, and when I placed my hand over her stomach, the
baby and I bonded. I could see him Michael...feel him.
There is no way that I would ever let Tess get rid of
him. He's like us...only he can't survive here like
us."
Michael sat silently for a minute, his hand on Max's
shoulder providing whatever comfort he could in that
simple gesture.
"Okay Max...let's find a way to save your son," said
Michael.

*********

"We've been through this book so many times I'm
getting blurry eyed," said Michael a few weeks later.
"We can't read it! My son is going to die because I
can't read a damn book!" raged Max, throwing it across
the room.
"Max!" screamed Tess.
Max and Michael ran to Michael's bed where they had
moved Tess so as not to create to much suspicion.
"What is it?" cried Max as he sat by her side and 
held her hand.
Tess was covered in sweat, and clutching her stomach.
"It's coming! It's coming now! Oh God it's not
supposed to yet!" she cried, fear evident in her
voice.
"No! No, it can't come now! What can we do?" he asked
afraid.
"Max! Get hold of yourself! You're not helping Tess
by losing it! Let's get some stuff together, and call
Valenti," said Michael.

********

"Why the hell didn't you tell me about this sooner?"
yelled Valenti as he watched Tess from the doorway.
"We thought we could find a way to help them, but we
can't," said Max shaking.
"We have to get her to a hospital," said Valenti.
"NO! What if they take her blood..or do tests...we
have to help her here," said Michael.
"She could die Michael!" said Valenti looking at
Michael.
"We all could die if they find out she's an alien
having an alien baby," replied Michael quietly.
"Max?" questioned Valenti.
Max looked to Tess struggling to have his son, and
thought about how his son was going to die either way.
Looking back at Michael and Valenti, he said,"She
stays here. We can't risk it."
Walking to Tess, he knelt down and said,"Tess you
understand don't you, why we can't take you to a
hospital?"
Tess looked at Max through pain filled eyes and
nodded.
"I know. He's going to die anyway, our son."
Max held her hand, and kissed her head as they cried
together.

********

Max and Michael took Tess to the cave. It was the
place they had chosen to bury their son.
He had been stillborn, the stress of being born early,
and the planets atmosphere killing him.
He looked like them.
Tess and Max had taken turns holding the tiny form,
each crying as they did so.
Valenti had left, promising to be home later when Max
brought Tess home.
Michael couldn't imagine so much pain.
He remembered when he and Isabel had thought they were
having a son, and now he was glad it hadn't been true.
Their child would have suffered the same fate.

"We won't be together will we Max?" asked Tess as he
helped her back down the hill.
Max had thought they would wait before discussing
this, but since she had opened up the topic...
"No. It's not that I don't care for you Tess, but I
just don't love you that way," said Max.
"So we would have been in a one way relationship,
drawn together because of our son," said Tess quietly.
"Yeah," replied Max, knowing h ow badly that sounded.
"It's Isabel isn't it?" she asked.
Michael had been walking behind them, and he couldn't
believe Tess had just asked that about Isabel.
"What do you mean?" asked Max almost falling at her
question.
"You're in love with Isabel aren't you?" she said
sighing.
"Tess..."
"I saw the looks you two gave each other when you
thought the other wasn't looking or anyone else," she
said.
"Then why...?"
"Why did I press this with you? Because I love you.
But I don't want someone who is miserable with me. And
now that our son is ....gone...I'm leaving Roswell,"
she said.
"Leaving? You can't leave," said Max.
"I can, and I will Max. Find Isabel and have a life
with her. You both deserve it. I can't stay here. My
baby died here...and I lost you too. There is nothing
for me."
They didn't say anything else all the way to
Valenti's.
As Max was leaving, Tess took his hand and kissed it.
"Goodbye Max."
Placing his hand on her cheek, Max said,"Goodbye
Tess."

*******

Michael's phone rang and he jumped to answer it.
"Yeah," he said into the phone.
"Great phone etiquette Michael," said Isabel at the
other end.
"Isabel! Man I'm glad you called. Where the hell are
you?"
"Michael..."
"Look, I'm asking because so much has happened here in
the past few weeks, and I've had no way to get hold of
you," said Michael quickly.
"What's happened?" she asked afraid. "Is it Max?"
"Yes and no. Tess and Max's baby was stillborn. It was
born early, and couldn't live in our atmosphere...we
tried to save it, but we just couldn't. We buried it
at cave."
Isabel felt her heart constrict at being told that
Max's baby had died. He must be devastated. Tears
poured down her cheeks as she felt the pain she knew
he had gone through...may still be going through.
"Isabel?" said Michael. "You still there?"
"What? Yeah...how's Max...and Tess?" she asked softly.
"Max is pretty torn up. It was a son..he had bonded
with him...he really is taking this hard. And
Tess...she's gone."
"Gone?! What...?"
"She said she couldn't handle being here where her son
had died, and knowing Max didn't love her...that he
loved you...." trailed off Michael.
"What?!" exclaimed Isabel.
"He loves you Isabel. He has hidden it for so long.
Damn near drove me crazy how he mooned over you all
the time, but couldn't have you because of the way
things are on Earth. Isabel, you've go to come back.
He needs you," said Michael.
"I don't know Michael...we still can't be together..."
"So leave Roswell! This crap has to stop. Why can't we
be with who we want?" he said getting angry.
"I'll see. Thanks Michael," Isabel said before hanging
up , and going to think about what she had heard.

*******

Max woke up to someone bending over his bed.
Reaching for the light he stopped as a hand touched
his.
"Leave it off," whispered a familiar voice.
"Isabel?" he asked afraid he was dreaming.
"Yes Max," she whispered.
"When? How?" he asked as he sat up, and reached out
for her hand.
"Let's go to the cave," she said.
Max nodded, and got dressed as Isabel went to her room
to change.

********

"Michael told me everything Max. I'm so sorry," she
said as she hugged him to her.
"He was great Isabel. My son was just like us...only
he couldn't live here," finished Max sadly.
"He said Tess left."
"Yeah...I know where to reach her if we need her, but
...." he left the sentence unfinished.
"Michael told me about your feelings for me too Max,"
she said, holding her breath ,and hoping she hadn't
made a mistake.
"He did?" asked Max uncertainly.
"He did it because he knows I feel the same way about
you," she said softly.
"What?" asked a stunned Max.
"I've loved you forever. And when you were with Liz,
I was so hurt,but I knew it was for the best. Then you
two broke up, I was happy...it was stupid really,
because we still couldn't be together, so I watched as
you ignored her, and secretly I was dancing. Then when
you started around with Tess....and then told me you
had slept with her....oh God...I've never been so hurt
in my life."
"Isabel...."
"No...no it's okay...I mean you didn't know about my
feelings for you...I'm just saying, it will take
awhile for that to not bother me, but I'm willing to
try...somewhere away from Roswell."
She let that sink in with him.
Did he understand what she was offering him?

Max looked at Isabel, and realized she was willing to
move away to be with him. That despite his sleeping
with Tess, she still wanted him.
Opening his arms to her, Max held Isabel as she
entered his arms.
"Isabel..." he said into her hair.
"Max..." she breathed back.
Then he kissed her as a man kisses the woman he loves,
with all of the passion, and commitment that comes
from loving with all of your heart.
Life was going to be okay for them....all was
forgiven.

End