Angel

By Diana ([email protected] )
Rating: R 
Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters. No infringement intended. 
Summary: This is a really busy story… Lots of stuff happens. Yup... it's another 
Destiny tag... Let's just say that someone gets pregnant (I wonder who ;-), 
someone gets hurt, a friend turns out to be an enemy, and an enemy turns out to 
be a friend. (Hope that isn't too confusing) 
Category: Michael/Maria 
Author's Notes: I guess this one has something for everyone. I hope everyone 
likes it. As always, thoughts are in brackets [] Thanks to everyone who's sent 
me feedback on my other stories. Feedback would be really, really appreciated 
for this one :-D 

May… 

He came to her in the rain. He stood outside her window and watched her brush 
her hair. She didn't notice him until she walked over to shut the curtains. She 
rolled her eyes and cracked the window when she saw him standing there. 

"What do you want?" Maria DeLuca spat. 
He didn't say anything. Instead, he looked at her. He knew he shouldn't be there 
but he couldn't help himself. He just needed to see her face again. 

"What? You can't speak? Why are you here, Michael?" He still hadn't said 
anything and she sucked her teeth in irritation. "You know, you've done this 
already. You show up at my window in the middle of the night in the rain with 
that stupid puppy-dog look on your face and you expect me to let you in. You 
think I'm stupid? You think I'll fall for that one again? I don't think so, 
buddy." She started to slam the window when he put his hand on the glass. 

"Maria," Michael whispered. 

She watched him reach down and open the window a little more. He was staring at 
her when she looked back up. His eyes were darker than she'd ever seen them. 

[Oh no.] She thought. [Be strong girl. Don't let him get to you. Teflon. I am 
Teflon.] 
"Maria," He whispered again. "I just want to talk." He lifted the window a 
little higher. 

[No. No. No.] She thought as she shook her head. [Remember… I'm angry with him. 
He left me. No. No. No.] She looked away. 

"Please?" He whispered. 

She looked up into his eyes for a moment. [Great.] She thought. [So much for 
being smart about this.] 

She sighed and opened the window to let him inside. 

*** 

"Okay. You wanted to talk? Start talking. You have five minutes," Maria said 
when Michael got inside. 

He almost laughed at her. [Trying to be tough and you're wearing cloud pajamas 
and fuzzy blue slippers.] He thought. 

She folded her arms under the picture of the smiley-faced cloud on her chest. 

"Well?" 

He smiled. A little. 

"What's funny?" She asked. "You know, this silence thing is really annoying. And 
you're dripping all over my carpet. So if you have absolutely nothing to say 
then I suggest--" 

"Maria," He interrupted. He almost laughed at her again. [Damn, she's cute when 
she's angry.] "Can you just shut up? Just shut up and let me speak." 

She frowned at him. "Go on." She sat on her bed, crossed her legs and folded her 
arms. 

"I'm… uh… I'm here because… uh… you know… I mean… I really wanted…" He ran his 
hands through his hair. 

"You really wanted what, Michael?" 

He watched her mouth move as she spoke. She was wearing that lip-gloss again. 

The whole room smelled like waxy strawberries. Her mouth curved into a glossy 
smirk. 

"What do you really want?" 

Wacky Wild Strawberry lip-gloss tasted like red Popsicles. It was too sweet and 
too greasy. It was Michael's favorite flavor. Maria wore Bubbly Blazin' 
Blueberry sometimes. That wasn't nearly as sweet or greasy, but it wasn't as 
good either. Maria's strawberry lips matched the Tabasco on his own. 

He looked down at her fuzzy slippers. 

"You." He said softly. 

She barely heard him. She walked over and leaned towards him. "What did you 
say?" 

He looked her squarely in the eyes. "I mean, I wanted to see you." 

Her jaw dropped slightly. "Really?" 

"Yeah." 

"You wanted to see me?" 

"Yeah." 

"What, are you in trouble or something? Did something happen, Michael?" 

"No." 

"Not to you or Max or Isa-- the others?" 

"Maria," He rubbed his temples. "Nothing is wrong. I wanted to see you, so I 
came to see you. Why is that so hard to believe?" 

Maria looked down at her slippers. "I… um… I just didn't think you cared." 

"I care. You know that." He walked closer and rested his hand on her cheek. 

His hands were cold. Maria closed her eyes at his touch. It was almost like 
nothing had happened. Almost like nothing had changed. She almost let herself 
believe that it was just Michael coming to apologize after one of their fights. 

She almost smiled. 

She opened her eyes and everything came back to her. 

"No," she sighed. She brushed his hand away. "No. You can't keep doing this, 
Michael. I can't… You can't keep doing this to me." She backed away. 

"Doing what?" 

"You can't keep letting me get close to you and then pushing me away. Or running 
away. You said you loved me and then you ran away from me. You told me that 
you're supposed to be with someone else and then you came back here to me. Do 
you know how confusing this is? You can't… You can't act like nothing's 
happened, Michael." 

She looked away as a tear trickled down her cheek. 

"Maria." He walked forward and tried to touch her face again. She backed away 
and shook her head. 

"Maria," He repeated. "This has been hell on the both of us. I don't know what's 
going to happen to me or to us… but… I love you. I just wanted you to know that. 
And I… I never would have been strong enough to do what I have to do if I had 
never known you." His voice was barely a whisper. He walked forward to touch her 
face. She did not move. 

"Maria, I love you," He lifted her chin. "I can't offer you forever. But I'm 
offering myself to you now." 

She closed her eyes. She bit her lip. She shook her head. 

"Please?" He whispered. 

She looked up into his eyes again. [I'm so stupid.] She thought. 

She sighed and he leaned in to kiss her. 

*** 

She tasted like waxy strawberries. 

He tasted like Tabasco sauce. 

His cold, damp hand cooled her flushed cheek. 

She leaned into him. She rested her body against his. She wrapped her arms 
around his neck and held on as tightly as she could. 

He wouldn't let go of her. He wouldn't take his mouth from hers. He took his 
hand from her cheek and wrapped that arm around her waist. 

She touched his chest, his face, his lips. 

He touched her hair, her skin, her lips. 

Everything smelled like waxy strawberries. 

But something told him that it was wrong. He pulled away from her. 

"Maria… we can't." He tried to back away and free himself from her arms. 

She pulled closer to him. "But I want to. Don't run away from me again." 

"I don't want to hurt you." He whispered. 

"You won't." 

"I don't want you to do anything that you're not ready--" 

"I am ready." 

"Maria." He looked away. He had to leave while he still could. He had to run. 

She cupped his face in her hands. 

"Please?" She whispered. 

He looked at her. He didn't hesitate. He bowed his head and kissed her again. 

*** 

He woke up in her arms the next morning. It was just after dawn. The morning 
light flooded the room and made it too bright for him to sleep. He opened his 
eyes and looked around the room. It took him a moment to remember where he was, 
but he couldn't help smiling when he saw the girl lying next to him. 

He remembered the way her lips felt on his last night. He could still taste her. 
He could still feel her. Hot and sweet and spicy. He remembered crying when she 
called out his name. She called to him as if she was lost and he was the only 
one who could save her. The way she said his name made him feel whole. It made 
him feel human. 

For the first time in his life he wasn't scared to feel that way. 

He kissed her forehead and she shifted a little. Last night was beautiful. He 
didn't know any other way to put it. But it was morning now. 

He had to leave. 

One night. That's all he could give her right now. He swore to make it up to 
her. 

She smiled in her sleep when he got out of the bed. He kissed her cheek and slid 
out of her arms as easily as he could. There was no need to wake her. He put on 
his still-damp clothes and went to the window. 

He looked back at her. She looked like an angel in her sleep. She was his first 
kiss, his first love, his first lover. It hurt like hell to have to leave her 
now. 

He climbed out the window. 

*** 

She woke up an hour after he left. She already knew he'd be gone. She touched 
the empty pillow beside hers. She turned to the open window and watched as the 
curtains fluttered in a breeze. 

"I love you, too, Michael," she said. She turned away from the window and cried 
herself back to sleep. 

***

August… 

"Are you okay, Maria?" 

Liz's voice startled her. Maria was busy staring out one of the windows in the 
Crashdown. 

"Hm?" The blonde girl said. 

"Where were you just now?" Liz asked. "You looked like you were a million miles 
away." 

Maria tucked a lock of hair behind her ear. "Oh… I'm fine. I was just thinking…" 

Her voice trailed off. 

"Yeah? Thinking about all that fun you had California this summer? The sun, the 
sand, the surfer guys?" Liz smiled at her best friend mischievously. 

"No. You know it wasn't even like that, Liz," Maria sighed. Her face fell for a 
moment, and then she perked back up. For Liz's sake. 

"Yeah, I know," Liz said. Her face fell for a moment, and then she perked back 
up. For Maria's sake. 

"Actually I was thinking about how much it sucks to be stuck back here in 
Roswell. You know, this little town has absolutely nothing to offer for a 
world-class traveler such as myself." Maria said melodramatically. 

"Oh really? Well then I guess Roswell is perfectly fine for little homebodies 
like me." 

"Yup." 

Liz popped Maria with her dishcloth and both girls giggled. "I'm glad that 
you're home, Maria. Things just weren't the same without you." 

"Yeah. I know. I missed you too, Lizzie." 

"I just feel so bad that we didn't get to spend too much time together before 
you left. We've got a lot of catching up to do." Liz grinned. 

"Yeah… I guess we do…"Maria turned back to the window. 

"Hey… why don't I come over tonight? You bring a movie. I'll bring the Ben & 
Jerry's. How's that?" 

Maria smiled at her best friend. "Sure. Sounds great. I just… ah… I have 
something I have to do first. I just have to go to the pharmacy and pick 
something up." 

"You're not sick or anything, are you?" 

"Well… I… um… I might be coming down with something. I just need to make sure." 

"Oh… I hope you're okay, Maria." 

"So do I." 

*** 

[I have to tell Liz.] Maria thought as she drove to the pharmacy. [Even if I'm 
not… even if it's nothing. It is nothing. It's nothing. I'm just overreacting. 
I'm just stressed out right now. Maybe I really am sick or something. But I have 
to tell Liz either way. Alex too. They're my best friends and I'll need them… 
even if it's nothing. It's nothing. Liz should know about what happened with 
Michael anyway. I should have told her in the first place. But it only would 
have made her think about Max and then she would have gotten sad all over again. 
I couldn't do that to her. But she has to know about Michael now. Oh… Michael… 
what am I going to tell him? Nothing. I won't have to say anything because I'm 
not-- because it's nothing. It's nothing.] 

*** 

Maria picked up the box and reread the instructions. They were pretty easy to 
follow. And the results would be pretty easy to make out too. One line for no. 
Two lines for yes. Ninety-nine point nine percent accuracy. She took it home. 
She took the test. 7:00. She waited. She paced. 7:01. She wrung her hands. 7:02. 
She wondered what she'd do if it came out positive. 7:03. She wondered what she 
would do if it came out negative. 7:04. She wondered what she would tell 
Michael. 7:05. She picked up the white plastic stick. She looked at the little 
indicator. She saw two little pink lines. One line for no. Two lines for yes. 

Maria was pregnant. 

*** 

Liz found Maria curled up on her bed. 

"Maria?" 

Maria said nothing. She hugged her knees to her chest and rocked back and forth 
on the mattress. 

"Maria, honey, what's wrong? What happened? You can tell me." 

Maria said nothing. She ground tears out of her eyes with her fist. 

"Is it your Mom? Is it… is it Michael?" 

Maria looked up. "Yeah, Liz. It's Michael and it's me." 

"What? Maria? I don't understand…" Liz said. 

Maria stopped crying. "Liz… I'm… I'm pregnant." 

Liz's mouth fell open. "Oh Maria… Michael?" 

"Right before I went to California, he came over and…" Maria sighed heavily. "I 
am so stupid, Liz. It was just the same old 'I love you but I must leave you' 
Michael bullshit and I fell for it. I don't know why I keep letting him get to 
me. I just… I just…" Maria dissolved into tears. Liz sat down beside her best 
friend and put an arm around her. 

"Don't cry, Maria. It's all right. But… why didn't you tell me about this 
sooner?" 

"I didn't know for sure until just now. But I didn't say anything about Michael 
because I didn't want to worry you, Liz. I didn't want you to start thinking 
about Max and get upset all over again." 

Liz looked sad for a moment. "I was around for a whole summer by myself and I 
didn't fall apart. I didn't see them that much anyway. They're kinda cliquey 
now. Besides, you don't have to worry about me or anyone else right now, Maria. 
You just have to worry about your baby." 

"I know. I just don't know what to do." 

"Well…" Liz said thoughtfully "What about having an--" 

"No. No one is going to hurt my baby. And I can't give it up for adoption 
because…" 

"I know." 

"Oh, Liz… I just don't know what to do…" tears streamed down Maria's cheeks. 

"Shh… it's okay." 

"No. It isn't," Maria sniffed. "You know, I don't think I would have minded so 
much if this had happened ten years from now. Or even five. But I'm just 
seventeen and I'm going to have a baby, Liz. A half-Czechoslovakian baby at 
that. What am I going to do? And what am I going to tell Michael? You know that 
he's probably planning to have half a dozen babies with Isabel by now." 

"Now Maria, you know that's not fair. I mean, you haven't seen Michael in weeks. 

And you know he loves you--" 

"Love isn't destiny, Liz," Maria interrupted. 

"You have a child with him now, Maria. Your child was put on this earth for a 
reason. That is destiny." 

Maria sighed. "So what do I do?" 

Liz sighed. "I don't know. But you have to tell him, Maria. You just have to." 

*** 

"Maria?" 

Michael's eyes widened when he saw her standing on his doorstep. He hadn't seen 
her since the night he came to her. He didn't expect to see her very often 
anymore. 

"Hello, Michael. I need to speak with you." Maria pushed her way into the room 
and saw Max, Isabel, and Tess on Michael's couch. "Alone." 

"We're busy, Maria. Talk to him some other time," Tess snapped. 

"This will not wait, Tess. Leave or I'll pick you up by your bleached-blonde, 
home permed hair and throw you out." 

Isabel grabbed Tess's arm before she had another chance to speak. "We can talk 
later." Isabel said, through muffled giggles. She pulled Tess out of the room. 

"He's all yours." 

Michael tried to speak up and Max touched him on the shoulder. "It's nice to see 
you, Maria," Max said. He looked her over and his eyes widened suddenly. 

[He knows.] Maria thought. [He can sense the baby.] 

"Maria?" Max questioned. 

"It's very nice to see you too, Max. But… ah… don't say anything else. Please, 
just let me tell Michael what I need to tell him." 

Max nodded and looked at Michael and Maria one more time before he left the 
room. Maria closed the door behind him. 

"What are you doing here?" Michael finally asked. 

"Like I said. We need to talk." 

"About what? Max, Tess, Isabel and I were discussing something very import--" 

"Save it, Michael. You four are always discussing something that could 
potentially have an effect that could possibly change the rest of your lives. I 
need to talk now." 

"Fine. What do you want?" 

"We need to talk about us." 

"There is no 'us,' Maria, and you know there can't be." 

"Oh, but there is. And I have to tell you something." 

Michael ran his hands through his hair. "What is it? Is it about-- It was only 
one night, Maria. You know that. It was a mistake in the first place." 

"You got that right." 

"So what? What could you possibly say to me now?" 

Maria looked up at him and laughed a little. "You honestly don't know, do you? 
That's really funny, 'cause Max knew right off. Huh. So much for improving your 
powers." 

"What are you talking about!?" 

"I'm pregnant." She whispered. He barely heard her. 

"What did you say?" 

"I said I'm pregnant, you bastard." Maria yelled. 

Michael swallowed hard. He didn't know what to say. "Are you sure?" 

"Ninety-nine point five percent positive." 

"Is it… is it mine?" 

Maria resisted the temptation to slap him. "How dare you? You know it's yours." 

She backed away from him. "This was a bad idea. And you know what? I'm leaving! 
No. *We're* leaving!" 

Michael blocked the door. "Wait, wait. I'm sorry. It… it slipped out. I'm just 
kinda nervous. That's all." 

Maria folded her arms across her chest. 

"When did you find out?" 

"Last night. I took a home pregnancy test." 

"So you haven't been to the doctor?" 

"I don't know if I should go, you know? I mean this baby is half human and half… 
you. I mean what if it comes out green or something?" 

He smiled a little and she laughed at him. 

"It's good to see you smile," He said. 

"Yeah. I haven't been doing that too often lately." 

Both sighed. "So you're about…" 

"Three months along. I counted back on my calendar." Maria said. 
Michael stared at her for a moment. He was elated and terrified all at once. 

Here was his angel. And she was carrying his child. He couldn't ask for anything 
more. But they were only seventeen. How would they support a baby? Nevermind the 
fact that she was human and he… wasn't. What would he tell Max, Tess, and 
Isabel? What about Isabel? He was so confused. Michael rubbed his temples. 

"Michael?" Maria said. 

"Come here," Michael said as he fell to his knees. 

"What are you doing?" 
Michael put his hands on Maria's belly and looked up at her. "I want to feel our 
baby," He said. "Put your hands over mine." 

Maria lowered her hands to his. The apartment was filled with light as she 
started to glow. The glow spread throughout her body and into Michael. The light 
brightened and both Michael and Maria grinned when they felt the baby moving 
beneath their hands. 

"I'm not even showing. I didn't know babies that tiny could kick like that." She 
said. 

"She's our baby," Michael said through a smile. "She can do anything she wants." 

The glow faded when Michael took his hands away from her and stood up. 

"You're okay with this?" Maria asked. 

"Yeah. I think we'll be okay." 

Maria smiled. "Wait. You said 'she'." 

"Yeah. I hope she looks like her mother." 

*** 

"You're what?!" Tess coughed. She nearly spat her Cherry Coke out on the other 
six teens at the table. 

"Pregnant," Michael said coolly. "Maria's going to have my baby." 

Maria looked around the table for support. It had been a long time since the 
six--seven of them had all been together like this. Liz and Max were the only 
ones there who looked semi- happy for them. [Hopeless romantics.] Maria thought. 
Liz smiled at her from across the table while Max made his best 
'oh-Michael-you-really-messed-up-this-time-but-you're-my-brother-and-I-love-you- so-I'll-support-you-anyway' face. Tess was still choking on her soda. Isabel's face was almost 
expressionless. Alex looked thoroughly confused part of the time, absolutely 
terrified part of the time, and extraordinarily happy to be sitting there with 
Isabel the rest of the time. 

Michael squeezed Maria's hand under the table. She smiled. [Huh… now he holds my 
hand in public.] She thought. 

"How did it happen?" Alex asked. "Wait, wait, wait. I meant when… how far along 
are you, Maria?" 

"Three months." She answered. 

"What are you going to do?" Isabel looked very concerned. She caught Maria 
looking at her and smiled a little. 

"Well," Michael said, "We're keeping the baby." 

"Meaning…" Isabel said. 

"Meaning, we're going to raise the baby together. Michael's going to start 
working at the Crashdown again. We'll both work, we'll find a way to stay in 
school, and we'll do our best to be good parents." 

"You guys aren't gonna… get married or anything, are you?" Liz asked. 

Michael and Maria looked at each other. 

"No." Maria answered. "We don't think that would be the best thing for any of us 
now. I mean, we're seventeen. I'm not exactly ready for motherhood, you know. 
And neither of us are ready for marriage." 

Tess finally stopped coughing. "How could you be so stupid, Michael? Bringing a 
baby into this? It ruins everything." She turned to Maria. "You should just get 
rid of it. That would be the best thing to do." 

"Oh really?" Maria fired back. "Best for who? Best for you? Listen, bitch--" 

"Tess," Michael interrupted. He held Maria back. "I don't know what your problem 
is. But you ever say something like that again, I swear I'll snap your neck. Now 
this is *our* baby. You are *my* sister. That makes her *your* niece. You wanted 
a family? You got it. But that doesn't give you any right to speak to the mother 
of my child that way." 

Tess folded her arms and started pouting. 

"I think this has been a shock for everyone," Max said eventually. "Have you had 
the chance to tell your mother yet, Maria?" 

"No," Maria said, still glaring at Tess. "She's not back from California yet. 

She won't be home from my uncle's for at least three more weeks. She only sent 
me home early since school's starting soon. And this is the kind of thing we 
need to tell her in person. " 

"Wait… Niece?" Liz asked. A smile spread across her face. 

Michael looked over at Maria. "Yeah. I touched Maria's stomach and I could sense 
the baby. I could just tell it was a girl." He said. 

"I can just imagine," Liz said, smiling. "A little girl running around here." 

"With big green eyes." Alex said. 

"And scruffy hair." Isabel said 

Michael and Maria smiled. 

"Thanks, guys," Maria said to everyone but Tess. "I mean, I freaked out when I 
found out about this, but you're all being so understanding." 

"Well we're not saying that this was the smartest thing to do." Max said. 

"It was completely irresponsible." Isabel said. 

"And you both should have known better." Liz said. "But what's done is done. 
Your baby girl is here for a reason." 

"And we all have to deal with that." Isabel said. 

"Well… I know that this will be hard for the both of you," Max said. "But we'll 
all be here for you." 

"Yeah. Just call me anytime you need a baby-sitter," Liz said, beaming. 

"And Unkie Alex is here for anything else you need." Alex winked at Maria. 

"Unkie Alex?" Isabel asked. 

"Yeah. Goes along well with Auntie Bell, don't you think?" Alex winked at 
Isabel. 

"Auntie Bell?" Isabel laughed. "This child is not calling me Auntie anything. 
'Isabel' will be just fine." 

"You'll change your mind when little Alexandra is born." 

"Alexandra?" Maria chuckled. 

"Sure. Alexandra Elisabeth Michaela Marie Isabel Maxine DeLuca-Guerin. That 
covers all bases, doesn't it?" Alex laughed. 

Alex and Isabel continued to banter as Michael and Maria got ready to leave. Max 
and Liz followed them to the door. 

"So you think you can do this?" Max said as he clapped Michael on the back. 

"I don't know. I'm scared out of my mind, Maxwell." 

"Yeah. I can imagine what that's like," He said as he looked over at Liz. 

"You know, Max, this pregnancy thing shocked the hell out of me. I don't exactly 
know where Maria and I stand right now. But…" Michael looked over at Liz. "It 
shouldn't have taken this to get Maria to talk to me again. Or vice versa. Do 
you know what I'm saying?" 

Max sighed heavily. "Yeah. I know. This thing with us and Tess and Izzy really 
isn't working out. Not like it's supposed to. Maybe this baby is a sign." Max 
looked over at Liz again. "Maybe we really can have our relationships with 
normal people and still do what we need to do." 

"Maybe," Michael said. 

Liz hugged Maria and walked back into the Crashdown. Tess walked out the door 
and sauntered towards Max. 

"Listen, Max," Michael said. "I'm going to go ahead and get Maria home. She 
needs her rest and it could get pretty ugly around here if we don't go now." 

"All right," Max said. He pulled Michael into a hug. "I'll talk to you tomorrow, 
okay?" 

"Sure," Michael said as he walked over to Maria. 

Tess watched Michael and Maria drive out of the parking lot. 

"Max?" She brushed her fingers against his shoulder. He flinched beneath her 
touch. 

"Don't you think you've caused enough trouble tonight, Tess?" He asked without 
turning around. 

"Max, I don't want to cause trouble. I didn't mean what I said in there. I just… 
I was surprised. We all were." 

"That gave you no right to act like that." 

"I know. And I am sorry." 

"You should apologize to Michael and Maria. Not to me." 

"I know. I will. It's just that… What I said in there was callous, maybe, but it 
wasn't that far off from the truth. We just need to find something that works 
out for everyone involved. Max, you're Michael's best friend. You could try to 
talk some sense into him." 

Max whirled around to face her. "Talk some sense into him? Do you hear 
yourself?" 

"I know it sounds bad Max--" 

"It sounds awful. Michael and Maria have already found something that works out 
for everyone. They are going to raise their daughter together. The rest of us 
are going to do our best to help them however we can." 

"I just…" Tess stammered. "I just think that no one else needs to be involved 
with us." 

"Liz, Maria, and Alex are already involved." 

"Max--" 

"And Maria's baby is one of us. You need to remember that, Tess." Max turned and 
went into the Crashdown. 

Tess stood outside. The night air blew against her skin and gave her goose bumps. 
She looked through the window and saw Alex and Isabel still at the table. Isabel 
was obviously flirting, and Alex was eating it up. Tess shook her head at them. 
She looked over at the counter and saw Liz and Max together. 

Tess hugged herself. She was alone again. She looked up at the stars and sighed. 

"It's all ruined. What am I going to do?" 

*** 

"Can you stay with me tonight?" 

Maria smiled at Michael's request. "You want me to stay here in this filthy 
apartment?" She teased. 

"Yeah," Michael bowed his head. "I just want to be near you and the baby 
tonight." 

"Sure, I'll stay." Maria said. Michael looked up and smiled. She frowned at a 
pizza box lying on the couch. "You really have to do something about this mess 
though." She sat down. 

"It is not that bad. I can clean it up." 

"I hope you plan on using a whole lot of bleach…" She jumped back from something 
that crawled out of the pizza box. "And a whole lot of bug spray." 

Michael moved the box out of the way and sat down next to her. "This is good 
practice, isn't it?" He said. 

"What do you mean?" 

"I mean me and you," Michael placed his hand on her belly. "and the baby, here 
in this apartment together." 

"Practice?" Maria was confused. 

"For when you move in here." 

"What makes you think I'm moving in with you?" 

"Well I want you to. I don't want either of you out of my sight. Don't you want 
to stay here?" 

Maria looked around the apartment. "I don't know. Maybe. But with my luck, my 
mom will send me to a convent when she finds out about this. She is going to 
freak out, Michael." 

"I know. But I'll be right here for you." He smiled at her and she leaned her 
head against his shoulder. 

"You think we could make this work?" Maria asked. 

"I think we can try." Michael answered. 

***

Tess waited in the caves for an hour. 

"Where is he?" She wondered aloud. "It's one in the morning, I'm out here 
freezing my ass off and he's nowhere in sight." She sat down on a rock and 
folded her arms across her chest. 

"I swear I'm giving him five more minutes and then--" 

"And then you'll what?" A figure appeared at the mouth of the cave. 

Tess jumped to her feet. "Nacedo? I didn't see you there." 

The shapeshifter leered at her. "How are you, my girl? And how are the 
hatchlings?" 

Tess shifted uncomfortably. "Oh… they're fine. We're… making progress I guess." 

"And their destinies?" 

"They don't suspect a thing. And they would never guess that it was all a lie." 

"Or a manipulation," Nacedo said, smiling. "You really have mastered mind 
control." 

"Thank you, sir." 

"This will all end soon, Tess. We will get rid of those three before they even 
know that we're the enemy. Their race will have lost three of their leaders and 
our race will benefit from it." Nacedo said. 

Tess looked away. She wanted to help Nacedo. But she didn't want to have to 
betray the only friends she'd ever had. 

[Enemies.] Tess reminded herself. [They're the enemies.] 

"And what's going on with the humans?" 

Tess looked down at her feet. "They… um… They're still involved with the 
humans." 

"You said that they believed in their destiny." 

"They did… but they're still involved with Liz, Alex… and Maria." 

"What happened?" 

"Well they're in love with them, sir. Or at least they think they are. And…they 
still don't trust me. Not completely." Tess said sheepishly. 

The shapeshifter wrenched her arm. "You make them trust you! This is too 
important to mess up. Do you understand me?" He tossed Tess aside. 

"It's not that easy!" Tess wailed. "Things are complicated now." 

"Complicated how?" Nacedo's eyes grew dark. 

[Oh no.] Tess thought. She said nothing as he approached her again. He grabbed 
her by the shoulders. Her memories of Michael and Maria at the Crashdown flooded 
out. 

"Huh," He scoffed. "A half-breed. How charming." He looked at Tess. "I can see 
why this would complicate things." 

"Michael will not abandon this baby for anything. I know he won't. Max and 
Isabel won't abandon Michael. Especially not for me. What can I do?" Tess asked 
softly. 

A grin spread across Nacedo's face. 

"I'll take care of it." He growled. He let her go and started out of the cave. 

"Wait," Tess said as she ran after him. "What does that mean?" 

"Never mind. You keep working on the hatchlings. I'll worry about the bastard." 

Tess hurried after Nacedo. "You aren't going to hurt it, are you? It's just a 
child." 

He searched his pockets for his keys. "Where is all this concern coming from? It 
isn't really your niece, you know. And I know that you don't really give a damn 
about any of them. Do you?" 

Tess looked at her feet. "I… don't--" 

"Don't lie to me, girl. I know how you really feel. You really do love him don't 
you?" 

Tess looked down at her feet. 

"Such a waste." Nacedo said to himself. "I know that you think that they're your 
friends now, but they're not. They are your enemies. And that destiny of theirs 
is something you created in their minds. Nothing more." 

He turned away from her and got in his car. 

"I just don't see why we have to hurt anyone." Tess whispered. 

"You knew that someone was going to get hurt when we began this, Tess. Don't act 
like you're innocent. Now if we can't completely rid ourselves of these three, 
then the least we can do is let them know that our race is not to be messed 
with." 
"But, Father--" 

Nacedo whirled around to face her. "I am *not* your father. But you are to follow my orders. 

It has been months and you haven't gotten anywhere. This baby 
could jeopardize our whole operation and you're worried about how to wear your 
hair so the love of your life will notice you. They're your enemies. I am your 
only friend. Your loyalties lie with me. I suggest that you get your priorities 
straight, Tess." 

She watched his taillights fade into the distance as he sped away. 

***

The alarm rang. The shrieking clock didn't really wake him up. He'd been awake 
for hours. Michael hit the snooze button and rolled back over. 

[Ten minutes.] He thought. [Just give me ten more minutes.] He propped himself 
up on his elbows and gazed at the girl before him. 

He touched Maria's belly lightly and waited to see if she'd wake up. When she 
didn't move, he touched her belly again and rested his hand there. 

"Hey," he whispered. "Sorry I'm being so quiet. I don't want to wake your mother 
up." Michael smiled slightly. Mother. Maria was going to be somebody's mother. 
Maria was going to be the mother of his child. The thought of it was still so new to him. 

"Anyway, I just wanted to say hello. And… just because you were a… surprise… 
doesn't mean we don't want you. We love you. And I love your mother. I'll take 
of both of you… I promise." He leaned over and brushed his lips against Maria's 
stomach. 

Maria shifted a little and opened her eyes. 

"Morning," Michael said, and propped himself up on his elbows again. 

"Morning, Michael," She yawned. "What are you doing?" 

"Nothing. Just talking to Maddie." 

Maria turned to face him. "Maddie?" 

"Our daughter." 

"Oh," Maria said. "Wait… Maddie?" 

"Yeah. Madeline. It's a nice name." 

Maria rubbed her eyes. "If you say so…" She yawned again. "What time is it?" 

"Um… almost nine." 

"Why are we up so early? I don't start my shift until noon. And yours is at 
eleven." 

Michael got out of the bed. "You don't need to sleep so late anyway. Come on. 
You need to get some breakfast." 

"Breakfast?" 

"Yeah. Do you want an omelet?" 

"You're making breakfast?" 

"Most important meal of the day. And you don't expect me to let you or my kid 
starve, do you?" 

*** 

Maria buttoned her uniform and got ready to go to the Crashdown. She stared down 
at her stomach. 

"Still flat," She said to herself. "I wonder how big I'm going to get." She 
rubbed her belly. "And I wonder how big you're going to get." She smiled a 
little. "Hello in there. It's me, your mommy." She said in a sing-song voice. 

"Oh great, I sound like a dork. Don't worry. Your mommy's not this dorky all the 
time. Well… most of the time. So… how are you doing in there? We watched this 
video in school once and it showed these babies in the womb who were sucking 
their thumbs and moving around and everything. I wonder if you can do that yet. 
Probably not, huh? You're still so small." 

Maria hugged herself. "Well… I gotta go to work. I just wanted to say hello. And 
let you know that I love you. Your father and I both love you." She smiled to 
herself. Father. Michael was going to be a father. The father of her child. The 
thought of it was still so new to her. 

"Anyway, I love you. You just remember that. Things might get… weird sometimes. 
But I don't want you to worry, okay? Just know that we love you." 

She kissed her fingertips and pressed them to her stomach. "Talk you later, 
baby." Maria buttoned up her uniform the rest of the way. 

"Oh, and just so you know, you won't have to worry about having a dorky name 
either. There is no way I'm letting your father call you Maddie." 

*** 

"I need table six's order now, Michael." Maria yelled. It was good that Michael 
was working to support the baby, but she had forgotten how slow he could be 
behind the grill. [He's worse than Jose.] She thought. She took her grief relief 
out of her pocket and swallowed a few drops. 

"What's wrong?" Michael asked from behind the grill. "Is it--" 

"It's the lunch rush, Michael. I'm okay. Really. But I think that table six will 
skewer me if they don't get their burgers and rings pronto." 

"Yeah. Their order's up anyway: five Will Smith burgers and three Saturn rings. 
But you shouldn't be carrying that. It's too heavy." 

"And how do you suggest I get this food over there? You can't get it. You have 
to work on table eight's order." 

"Let Liz carry it," Michael suggested. 

"Gee thanks, Michael," Liz chimed in. "Just what I want. Another table to 
cover." 

"Don't worry, Lizzie. I'm not an invalid. I can get it. And you," She said 
turning to Michael, "hurry up with those fries." Michael watched Maria walk away 
with the order. 

"Hey," Liz said. "I know you're concerned. That's only natural. But she's a big 
girl and she can take care of herself." 

"Yeah, thanks, Liz," He said flatly. "Look, don't you have a table to cover or 
something?" 

Liz sighed. "Well I would, except the new cook just burned one of my tables 
orders." 

Michael turned to the charred remains of table five's hamburgers. 

"Careful," Liz chuckled. "You're almost worse than Jose." 

*** 

Maria reached up and flushed the toilet. 

"Oh…" She groaned. She folded her arms across the cool porcelain lid. "Normal 
women are not supposed to be morning sick at three fifteen in the afternoon." 

She stood shakily. "Then again, I'm not normal, Michael sure as hell isn't 
normal, and this pregnancy shouldn't be anything close to normal." She washed 
her face and hands and rinsed her mouth. "Now I know I'm weird. I'm talking to 
myself." 

Someone knocked on the door lightly. Maria looked up from the sink and saw her 
best friend peeping through the door. 

"You okay, sweetie?" Liz asked. 

Maria let her inside the tiny bathroom. "Yeah, I'm fine. But I don't think I'll 
be eating anymore peanut butter and pickle sandwiches anytime soon." 

Liz crinkled her nose. "Peanut butter and pickles? I don't think I'd ever want 
to get pregnant if it meant eating stuff like that." 

"Are you kidding me? I've been eating them since I was a little kid. My mom used 
to pack them in my lunchbox. Remember? You never would trade sandwiches with 
me." 

Liz made another face, then laughed. "You are a strange, strange girl, Maria 
DeLuca." 

Maria put her arm around Liz's shoulder. "I know. But you love me for it." 

Both girls giggled. Liz straightened Maria's antennae headband. 

"We'd better get back to work. Michael almost had a fit when you ran out of 
there like that. He demanded that I come in here and check on you." 

Maria laughed. "Huh… I figured he would have broken down the bathroom door 
himself. He's being so overprotective." 

"Are you okay with this, Maria?" Liz asked after a moment. 

"What? The baby?" She thought for a moment. "Yeah I am. I mean, I'm seventeen, 
my whatever-he-is and I have no intentions of getting married, my mom is going 
to murder me when she finds out, I'm nauseous half the time, I make six bucks an 
hour plus tips, my whatever-he-is makes six bucks an hour, not to mention the 
fact that my baby is half Czechoslovakian. But I'm okay with all of that, you 
know? It's scary as hell, but I'm okay with it. There's this little baby inside 
me and, somehow, that makes everything okay. And I have you guys and Michael. So 
I'll be fine." 

Liz drew Maria into a hug. "I'm glad you're happy. You deserve to be." She let 
go of Maria and smiled. "Now we really should go. The customers will probably 
riot if they don't get their food fast." 

Maria followed Liz out of the bathroom and started into the Crashdown. She 
hesitated as she reached the refrigerator. 

"Uh… listen, Lizzie. I know that my break has lasted way longer than five 
minutes, but do you think I could get a little extra time? I got hungry all of a 
sudden." 

"After the peanut butter and pickles thing? What did you want to eat?" 

"I'll probably just get some cake or something." 

"Sure, Maria. Take all the time you need." Liz turned to walk away. 

"Oh, uh, Liz?" Maria called. 

"Yeah?" 

"Your dad keeps the extra condiments in the right bottom corner of the pantry, 
right?" 

"Yeah…" 

"Think he'd mind if I took one of the extra bottles of Tabasco sauce?" 

*** 

"Go home, Michael." 

Maria's silver antennae bounced as she spoke. She got her keys and exited the 
Crashdown. 

"What is that supposed to mean?" Michael asked. He punched his time cards and 
followed Maria out the door. 

Maria turned to face him. "It means that you've been my second shadow this week. 
I'd just like a little time to myself tonight, that's all." 

"What? You don't want me around you or something?" Michael folded his arms 
across his chest. 

"You know that's not what I meant. It's just that we've been together every 
minute since I told you about the baby. I love that you're already acting like a 
doting father, but I'd love to have a little time to myself too." 

"I don't want anything to happen to you either of you, Maria." 

Maria smiled and touched Michael's cheek. "I know. But it's not like I'm going 
to be playing with knives or anything. I'm just going to go home, take a bath, 
eat some ice cream, and go to bed. How's that sound?" 

Michael frowned. "Lose the ice cream. You don't need all that sugar. Just drink 
some milk or something." 

"You're pushing it, buddy." 

"Fine. But I'll be at home all night if you need me," Michael said. 

"I know. Go home. I'll talk to you tomorrow." 

Maria kissed his cheek. The smell of her strawberry lip-gloss filled the air. 

"I'll be fine. I promise." She said as she drove away. 

*** 

"Hello, Michael. Can I come in?" Tess stood in the hallway outside Michael's 
apartment later that night. 

"I don't have time for this," Michael said. He started to close the door. 
Tess put her hand against it. "Just give me half a chance, Michael." 

Michael eyed her cautiously, then opened the door enough to let her squeeze by. 

"Make it quick." 

Tess walked into the apartment and looked around. "Where's Maria?" 

Michael closed the door behind her. "Not here. She said she needed a little 
vacation. She's at her house." 

"Oh… I actually hoped she'd be here with you." Tess's mind wandered back to what 
Nacedo had said to her earlier that week. 

"Why?" 

She sighed heavily. "I came here to apologize. I had no business acting like 
that at the Crashdown. I just wasn't expecting it." 

"You think I was?" 

Tess picked at her nails. "Well no. It's just that… this summer it was just you 
and me." She could feel the color rising in her cheeks. "And Max and Isabel, of 
course. I mean, we all got so close because all we had was each other. Now that 
Maria's pregnant… I just don't want anything to come between the four of us." 

"This baby isn't going to come between us, Tess." 

"And Maria?" She asked. [Shouldn't have said that, Tess.] She told herself. 

"What about her?" Michael ran his hands through her hair. 

"The baby is one of us, but she's not." [Shouldn't have said that either.] 

"You're wrong," He said curtly. "She's been in this since the beginning. And 
she's carrying my child. That should account for something." 

"Michael--" She looked down at her feet. 

"No, Tess. You said you were here to apologize and here you are, talking shit 
about Maria again. What is with you?" 

"Michael…" Tess stammered. "Listen… I'm not… I mean…" 

"What, Tess?" 

She looked back up at him. His eyes were flashing. She exhaled loudly and looked 
away again. "You're right. I don't know what's gotten into me." 

Michael snorted. 

"I'm sorry." She reached out to touch his arm but he pulled away. 

"You still have to apologize to her, you know." 

"Maria? Yeah. I intend to," She said in a pained voice. "You really love her, 
huh?" 

"Yeah," He said without hesitation. 

"Yeah," Tess repeated quietly. She perked up suddenly. "Listen, I should go. 
Maybe I should stop by Maria's later?" 

"I don't think that would be such a good idea," Michael said, shaking his head. 

"But, uh, if you did, could you check on her for me? Just to see how she is." 
Tess smiled a little. "Yeah, sure." 

"Yeah, okay." He opened the door and she walked out. "Goodnight, Tess." 

"Goodnight, Michael. 

She watched as he closed the door behind her. 

*** 

[I should call her.] Michael thought as he flopped onto his couch. [No. I'm not 
going to call her. She wants to be alone so I'll leave her alone. It's only one 
night. She'll be fine. He took a swig of the soda in his hand. What the hell is 
wrong with me? Why am I worried? I shouldn't be worried. She's probably taking 
that bath right now. Yeah. Just sitting there. Naked. Alone. Water running all 
over her…] He ran his hands through his hair. [I gotta stop doing that. But I 
shouldn't worry about her. Nothing to worry about anyway. She's fine. The baby's 
fine.] He took a slice of pizza out of the box on his table. [Besides, it's time 
for Win Ben Stein's Money.] He turned on the TV and clicked around. [Huh. 
Baywatch.] He licked his lips and could almost taste strawberry gloss. [Maybe I 
should stick with Ben.] 

***

This would be easy. 

He expected the hatchling to be there. That would have caused problems. But no 
one else was there. It was just the two of them. He smiled at that thought. 

She was alone in her bedroom. Her didn't even hear him come in. She'd left the 
window open, the stupid little bitch. Must have been expecting the hatchling. He 
took his time and watched her for a while. He wanted to savor this. Tess had 
done well in informing him as to her whereabouts. But Tess never said it would 
be this easy. 

He lost track of time. The girl was pretty; he had to give her that. He could 
see why the hatchling would be interested. She put on lip-gloss and he wondered 
how her lips would feel beneath his. He wondered how she'd feel beneath him. She 
was probably tight as hell. He wondered if she would scream. Or if she'd bleed. 
But she was human. Not worth his time. And she was carrying the hatchling's 
child. He'd have to rectify that mistake. 

She was human. Get rid of the humans and the hatchlings will have no one to turn 
to but him. Get rid of the hatchlings and their race would suffer and his race 
would thrive. 

She had to die. It was simple as that. 

She didn't hear him. She walked over to her mirror and brushed her hair. Started 
humming some silly lullaby. 

Poor girl. 

She didn't even have a chance to scream. 

***

"Tess?" Michael asked. 

The girl pushed her way into Michael's apartment and looked around. 

"You look like hell. What are you doing here again?" He asked. 

"You have to find Maria. You have to find her now." 

"What?" Michael could feel the hairs on the back of his neck stand up. "Why? 

What happened to her?" 

"Please," Tess begged, "You have to find her now. He'll hurt her. He'll hurt the 
baby. Please go." 

He grabbed her arm. "Who? Who's going to hurt her?" 

"It's Nacedo." She said breathlessly. 

"Nacedo? Why would he hurt Maria? He's trying to protect us. I don't 
understand." 

"Listen, this probably won't make any sense right now, but Nacedo has been 
trying to hurt you and Max and Isabel all along. He and I… we're your enemies. 
We found out about you three and we've been hunting you for years. We've been 
using mind control to get you to trust us. That destiny thing was all a lie. He 
wanted to kill you three, Michael, but now that Maria's pregnant… he thought it 
might be better if he gave you a warning." 

"A warning?" Michael's eyes widened. 

"He'll kill her, Michael. Please go to her." 

He snatched her arm again. "How do I know that this isn't a lie? You've been 
lying to us all this time. If what you've said is true then why should I trust 
you now?" 

"I've never had a family. Nacedo sees me as an orderly or something. Not a 
daughter. You and Max and Isabel have actually accepted me. And my feelings for… 
my feelings are more complicated than I ever thought they'd be." 

Michael eyed her suspiciously. 

"You have to believe me, Michael," She said. "You just have to." She touched his 
face gently and Michael could see everything. He saw Tess running back to 
Roswell to find him. He saw Nacedo snatching Maria out of her bedroom and 
dragging her away. 

He couldn't hear anything. 

There was no sound. 

Maria did not scream. 

Tess dropped her hand. "After I left here the first time I told him where Maria 
would be tonight. I didn't think he'd really harm her. But I followed him and I 
saw him take her. He will kill them, Michael." 

Michael backed towards the door. He turned to face her again before he left. 

"I was only jealous. I never wanted this… You have to believe me. But even if 
you don't, you can hate me later. Just go now." 

He heard Maria's silence as he ran. 

*** 

"That's really strange," Liz said as she put down the telephone receiver. 
Alex, Isabel and Max turned their attentions to the brunette behind the counter. 

"What's up?" Alex asked. 

"I just called Maria to see if she wanted to go to the movies with us. No one 
answered and she said she'd be home all night." Liz replied. 

"Oh," Alex said. "Well that's not so bad. Maybe she's in the shower or 
something." He turned his attention back to Isabel. 

"You know, she probably went over to Michael's after all," Max said. "He's so 
protective of her. He probably just didn't want her out of her sight and she 
probably went along with it just to avoid a fight." 

Isabel chimed in. "Maria? Avoid a fight with Michael?" 

"That is pretty unlikely, Max," Liz said. "It doesn't matter though. You guys 
are probably right." She picked up a broom and started sweeping. 

"Yeah. And could you hurry up and close this place, Liz? We'll be late to the 
movie." Alex said. 

"You know, if you wanted this done faster, you could help," Liz said 
matter-of-factly. "And I'm so sure that you two aren't going to be paying any 
attention to the movie anyway." Liz winked at both of them. 

She went over and started sweeping by the entrance. Michael nearly knocked her 
down when he burst through the door. 

"Have you seen Maria?" He panted. 

"Maria? No. Why?" Isabel asked. 

"She's in trouble. She'll get hurt. You have to help me find her." 

Liz came out from behind the door and faced Michael "Wait. You've gotta slow 
down. What's happened?" She asked. 

She was the closest, so she was the one he reached out to. Michael grabbed her 
arm desperately. Liz's mind was instantly filled with images of Maria, Nacedo, 
and Tess. 

~"We're your enemies… he gave you a warning… He'll kill them, Michael."~ 

Tess's words rang in Liz's ears. 

Max watched as the color drained from Liz's face. 

Something was wrong. 

"Oh no." Liz whispered. Michael dropped her arm. 

"I'll explain the rest later," He said. "She needs me. I have to go to her." 

Liz was motionless. 

"All right. Liz and Alex can look around town. Isabel can stay here. And I'll 
come with you," Max told Michael. 

"No. You stay with Liz. Alex can stay with Isabel. I don't want him getting any 
other ideas. I'll go check my place and Maria's." Michael said. He turned to run 
to the door. 

Max pulled his arm. "Michael--" 

"I'm going alone, Maxwell." 

Max could feel Michael trembling beneath his hand. 

Max dropped his hand. Michael ran out of the café. Liz and Max got in the jeep 
and sped towards town. Alex and Isabel remained at the counter. 

"What just happened?" Alex asked. 

"I don't know. Something is not right, Alex." Isabel got up and walked around 
the counter. "What do you think Michael meant when he said that he didn't want 
someone getting any other ideas?" 

Alex shrugged his shoulder. "Sometimes really I wish I could read minds. Never 
thought I'd say this, but where is Tess when you need her?"

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