Title : Let It Snow
Author : Kalyku
Rating : Mature
Disclaimer : I don’t own the rights to Roswell. This plot is based off a challenge by Lillie.
Couples : M/L, other CC
Summary : Liz Parker and Max Evans, mortal enemies since childhood, are still enemies as adults. They never miss an opportunity to humiliate the other or pull a mean prank. But a freak storm leaves the two heated enemies alone in a building together for a few days, and things begin to change...somewhat...
Part 1: And the Hate Goes On
“I need the Clark file completed and on my desk at seven o’clock tomorrow morning, Evans, or you’ll be out of a job,” announced Liz Parker, slapping a folder down on Max Evans’ desk and turning on her heels. Before she could make it back to the door, Max replied.
“You wouldn’t fire me.”
Liz spun back to face Max, her face falling into an angry scowl. “Excuse me?”
“I said you wouldn’t fire me, Parker. You know as well as I do that we have the history of our entire upbringing between us and you wouldn’t dare fire me.” He smirked. “Besides, you know your mother would kill you if you tried.”
Liz let out a frustrated sigh. “And you know as well as I do that our ‘upbringing’ has never stopped us from hating each other before, not even for a day. And please leave my mother out of it. Just because our mothers are best friends and want us to be best friends doesn’t mean anything to me. Whether my mother hates you or thinks you’re the best thing since sliced bread, I know how I feel: I hate you with a passion.” Liz cleared her throat and stood up straighter, straightening her blouse. “Now, like I said...have the Clark file completed and on my desk at seven o’clock tomorrow morning or you will be out of a job. I’m your boss now and whether you like it or not, if I give you a deadline, you’ll follow that deadline. Do you understand?”
“Perfectly,” said Max, not letting anything Liz said affect him, at least outwardly. He wouldn’t let her get to him. And even if she did, she didn’t need to know that she was getting to him. “In fact, I’ll have the file completed, with footnotes, and on your desk by six o’clock tomorrow morning, at the latest.”
Liz snorted as she walked out of Max’s office. “Yeah, I’d like to see that happen...”
-----
Late that afternoon as Liz packed up her briefcase, her cell phone rang. Glancing at it, she realized Maria was calling her. Scooping up the phone in one hand and her briefcase in the other, she chirped, “Hey girl, what’s up?”
“Not a lot,” said Maria. “You sound cheery. Did something happen at work?”
“Yeah, remember that huge file I had to read over and process? I managed to pass it off to Max Evans. He’ll be up all night with that monster.” There was an unmistakable tone of triumph in Liz’s voice, which didn’t go unnoticed by Maria.
“Liz, that’s cruel. Can’t you give the guy a break? You’ve been working him like a dog ever since you got your promotion. I mean, I know you two have your differences-”
“No, Maria,” interrupted Liz. “We don’t have differences. We have hate. I hate him, he hates me. He was mean to me when we were kids, and I just...I can’t stand him.” Juggling her coffee into her hands as well, Liz proceeded to shut off the lights in her office and slam the door. Walking down the dim hallway, she asked, “So, why did you call?”
“Oh, I was just wondering if you wanted to go out tonight,” said Maria. “There’s a new club opening up downtown and it sounds like a pretty wild place. I thought we’d check it out, and maybe check out some guys while we’re at it. I mean, neither of us can deny that it’s been a long time since either of us got a guy to-”
“Maria, I don’t need to hear about what you aren’t doing with guys. But I get your point. I’ll be ready at nine. Pick me up?”
“Of course chica. Dress sexy ”
Liz laughed and rolled her eyes, shoving her cell phone into her purse and bursting out the main doors of Valenti and Parker, the lawfirm she was finally a partner in. She was taken aback for a moment by the intense gust of tempestuous wind that buffeted her and pushed her sideways back towards the building. Shivering and pulling her coat more tightly around her, she hurried to her car. As she got in, she glanced up and smirked. The light in Max Evans’ office was still on. “Have fun working all night,” she said softly to herself.
-----
Max’s pen flew across the paper with unbelievable speed, never once making a mistake. His eyes skimmed over the page, and then with lightning quick reflexes he flipped it over to reveal the next page. Then the next. Then the next.
Screw Liz for trying to get him stuck in the office all night. He’d be damned if he’d miss the opening of Unmasked. It was all anyone who was anyone had been talking about for weeks, and he was going to get there, somehow or other. Where there was a will there was a way. And he had a will.
What Liz didn’t seem to realize when she stuck Max with the large Clark file was that he was one of the speediest workers in the entire firm. His ability to read quickly, and retain information, was almost superhuman. He had meant it when he said he’d have the file on her desk, with footnotes, by six o’clock. Heck, he’d have it on her desk by eight o’clock that night, almost half a day early. And just to rub it in her face, he planned on walking into work quite late tomorrow morning. (Hopefully a bit hung over from a wild night at the new club.)
Glancing at the clock on the wall over his desk he noted that it was going on seven o’clock. He had less than a fourth of the file to get through. No problem. He had plenty of time. No need to rush. He settled back into his chair and stared up at the ceiling. With all this extra time, he could think of the next prank to pull on Liz. It had been a while since he’d done anything truly spectacular, and now that she’d been made a partner in the firm instead of him, he thought she had earned the right to get screwed over somehow.
-----
Liz slipped into her little black dress and gazed at her reflection in the full length mirror on the back of her closet door. Frowning, she swept her hair back from her face and examined her reflection. She sighed at what she saw. A homely, mousy young woman. A young woman on the fast track to a successful law career (after all, how many other women her age were already partners in a prestigious lawfirm?), but a young woman with no man in her life, and no good looks to pull one in. Her body was flat and boy-like and her features were boring and nondescript. And here she was, dressing up to go out to a club like a teenager, while she was just a few weeks shy of her thirtieth birthday. She was so pathetic.
However pathetic she realized she might be, Maria would be there soon, and she’d promised Maria she’d go. So Liz hurried into the bathroom and quickly applied a light layer of makeup and gave her hair a bit of a curl. Nothing much, but enough to give her hope that maybe some guy would at least give her a cursory glance.
Stepping into her insanely uncomfortable stilettos, Liz heard Maria outside, honking the horn of her Jetta impatiently. “I’m coming, I’m coming,” she muttered under her breath.
-----
Max sighed in relief and threw the Clark file down on Liz’s desk in triumph. He had finished and it was only 7:58pm. The night was young, and he planned on making the best of it.
Hurrying out of the building, he noticed the biting cold wind and the overcast sky. “Hope it doesn’t snow,” he mumbled, getting in his car. He hated snow with a passion. His mind quickly turned to other matters, however. He planned on grabbing a quick shower when he got home and then heading for the club to get wasted and, hopefully, laid.
Let It Snow (AU, M/L, Mature, Part 2, pg. 1, 12/25/2005)
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kalyku
- Newbie
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Let It Snow (AU, M/L, Mature, Part 2, pg. 1, 12/25/2005)
Last edited by kalyku on Sun Dec 25, 2005 11:36 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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majiklmoon
- Dorkus Maximus and Super Wuss
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and 
to Majik's world of fan fic. 
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kalyku
- Newbie
- Posts: 8
- Joined: Fri Dec 23, 2005 2:14 pm
Part 2
Part 2: Unmasked
Liz and Maria stepped into the club, and immediately Maria began bopping to the beat, moving slowly but surely into the crowd of writhing bodies, leaving Liz off to the side, alone. Liz didn’t mind too much; she was used to it. This is what Maria always did. Maria was the partier, the one who went out on the floor and shook her stuff for everyone to see, while Liz was the calm one, the wallflower.
Finding a seat at an empty table, Liz situated herself in a corner, where Maria would be sure to see her when she was all danced out, and a corner from which Liz also had a phenomenal view of the club. She could see the bar, the dance floor, the balconies, and the hallway leading to the VIP rooms.
For the first ten minutes or so Liz sat where she was and simply observed. She had to smile to herself at Maria’s antics. She was not-so-subtly following a man around the dance floor. Liz had to give Maria points for picking a hottie though...the guy was tall and lean, with spiky hair, and a bad boy look to him.
Eventually Liz got bored with watching Maria, however. Deciding to grab the bull by the horns and actively try to find a cute guy, she stood up and approached the dance floor. Halfway between the table where she’d been sitting and the dance floor, however, she suddenly found herself being swept along towards the bar with a large group of people who had just entered the club. She fought to break free from the crowd, but the mass of bodies was too thick, and she finally gave in and moved in their same general direction.
Upon reaching the bar, she decided to find a seat and try her luck there. She might pick up a guy, and was less likely to make a fool of herself than if she were to dance. Ordering a strawberry margarita, she took a seat on a barstool and settled in to observe the people around her. The bar was a large oval and the four bartenders were completely encircled by the bar. Sitting next to Liz was a young woman with curly blonde hair and an annoying laugh. She was talking with a buff, good-looking man. They seemed to be having a discussion on Buddhism. Across from Liz, on the other side of the bar, was a tall and dark-haired man. He was fairly skinny, and had a friendly look to him. Liz blushed when she realized he’d caught her looking in his direction, and her blush increased when she realized he was walking around the bar towards her.
Flustered, Liz turned slightly away from him and took a sip of her margarita. It wasn’t that she didn’t want to talk to the man; she did. She just didn’t want him to get the wrong idea. She didn’t find him attractive in a ‘Sure, I’ll go home with you tonight’ sort of way, she just thought he was innocently cute. But how had he interpreted her glances?
“Hi,” he said, sitting in the empty seat next to her.
“Hi,” she said, turning back slightly towards him, keeping her eyes down, and only glancing up at him once, quickly.
“I don’t bite,” he laughed. “My name’s Alex.”
“Liz,” she said simply.
“Nice to meet you, Liz. Need someone to chat with while you drink that margarita?”
“Oh. Uh, no, thanks,” she said, shaking her head. “I was actually just getting up...my friend’s on the dance floor and I was going to try to find her.”
“Oh, ok, cool,” said Alex. “Mind if I join you for a moment? My girlfriend said she was going to the ladies’ room and would be right back, but she’s been gone a while. We can look for your friend and my girlfriend together.”
Liz sighed inwardly with relief and smiled at Alex. He had a girlfriend; she didn’t have to worry about him making a pass at her and then having to try to find a nice way of letting him down. Well, she didn’t have to worry as long as he was the faithful boyfriend type.
“Sure,” she said.
Standing up, Alex led the way to the dance floor, cutting a path through the crowd for Liz to walk through.
“Sorry if I seemed creepy back at the bar!” he yelled back over his shoulder at her as he led her towards the heart of the dance floor.
“You weren’t creepy,” said Liz, scanning the crowd for Maria.
“You just seemed kind of uncomfortable,” explained Alex. “If I seem too forward, just say so. I like to be friendly, but I guess sometimes I’m too friendly at first to new people and it’s off-putting. It’s the downside of being an all around awesome guy.”
Liz laughed and made eye contact with Alex. “No, it’s ok. I just...freeze up around guys. Whether they are hitting on me or not. I always tell myself I won’t, but I always do.”
Alex smiled in understanding and then pointed into the crowd and said, “I see my girlfriend over there. She’s talking to that blonde with the really short skirt on.”
Liz turned to see who Alex was pointing too and coughed to cover up her gasp. The blonde with the really short skirt was Maria. The woman talking to Maria, the woman who was apparently Alex’s girlfriend, was none other than Isabel Evans. Max’s sister.
And wherever Isabel went, Max was sure to follow.
-----
Max threw on a t-shirt and jeans, cursing at himself for not doing any laundry in the past few days. Who went to a hot new club wearing a t-shirt and jeans?
Apparently he did.
Styling his hair with the smallest bit of styling gel, he checked out his reflection in the mirror. Oh yeah. He looked good.
Well, aside from the clothes.
Hearing his cell phone ringing, Max bounded down the stairs, taking them two at a time. He searched frantically for his phone for a few seconds, and finally located it.
“Hello?” he answered, breathlessly.
“Hey, it’s Isabel. You ready?”
“Yeah, I’ll be out in a second,” Max answered, grabbing his leather jacket.
“Cool,” Isabel replied, hanging up.
Max knew it wasn’t necessarily cool to show up at a club with your sister. Ok, who was he kidding; it was downright dorky, not to mention a little weird. But he and his sister were close; they considered each other best friends, and dorky or not, he liked to spend time with her. And after all, it’s not like he’d be spending the whole night at her side. They were simply going there together, and then they’d break apart for the night, and probably not see each other till the next day or later in the week.
Running outside, he spotted Isabel’s car parked further up the block. He walked briskly in that direction, and hopped into her car.
“It’s freezing outside,” he complained, cranking up the heat.
“Don’t mess with the controls,” she said, slapping at his hand.
He stuck out his tongue at her and settled into his seat.
“So, ready for a fun night?” he asked.
“Definitely. Alex is meeting me there, and I plan on having a blast with him tonight. I can’t believe it’s been almost a week since I’ve seen him. We’re both so busy with work lately...” Her voice faded away and a dreamy look came over her face.
Max rolled his eyes, but smiled. His sister was a sucker for Alex Whitman. And Alex was the same way for Isabel. Sometimes Max thought it was cute, but most of the time it just kind of made him want to puke. It wasn’t that he was totally against lovey-dovey relationships. They were alright for other people, sometimes. But definitely not for him. At least, he didn’t think they were for him. Isabel just said he felt that way because he hadn’t met the right girl yet. Max wasn’t sure if that was it or not, but didn’t argue with Isabel on the point. He could never win an argument with his sister. Never.
“Um, Earth to Max. We’re here.” Isabel’s voice intruded on Max’s thoughts. Shaking his head to clear his mind, he quickly exited the car. Glancing up at the club, he got excited by the bright lights and the crowd waiting to get in.
Following Isabel, they joined the throng of people. They were quickly ushered in by the biggest bouncer Max had ever seen. He took a moment to stand in the entranceway while his eyes adjusted to the drastic lack of lighting in the club, which was enhanced by a miasma of cigarette smoke.
Glancing around, he wasn’t shocked to see that Isabel was already approaching the bar, where Max could just barely see Alex, waiting for her.
Max stepped out onto the dance floor and was instantly pulled into a dance by a pretty young girl. They danced innocently for a while. Max always started out innocently. But if she proved interesting, and was interested in him, he’d quickly turn up the heat, so to speak.
The girl however, turned out to be uninterested after the first dance. Not letting it get him down, Max scanned the dance floor. On the far side he spotted Isabel talking to a girl he vaguely recognized. He seemed to remember seeing her hanging around with Liz in the past few years. Approaching her was Alex and...
Liz Parker.
“Shit,” he mumbled.
-----
“Shit,” Liz mumbled, looking past Isabel and spotting Max.
“Something wrong?” Alex asked.
“Uh, to be honest, yes. I know your girlfriend, we grew up together, but we haven’t really ever been close, and we’ve kind of lost contact. Anyway, her brother, Max...he and I don’t get along at all. And he’s here.”
“Really?” Alex sounded surprised. “I’ve always gotten along with Max; he seems like a cool guy to me.”
“Well, he’s a dick towards me,” mumbled Liz. As she and Alex reached Maria and Isabel, Liz realized Max had been approaching Isabel as well. He reached her at the same time Liz did.
“Evans,” she said in greeting.
“Parker.”
Isabel rolled her eyes at them. “Can’t you two just get along? You guys picked on each other as kids, but can’t you move past that?”
“No,” they said at the same time.
“Listen, Maria, do you want to get some drinks with me?” asked Liz.
Maria glanced back and forth between Liz and Max. Noting their stony glares, she nodded her head and grabbed Liz’s arm. “Sure, chica. Let’s pick up some guys too while we’re at it.”
As they walked away, Max snorted. “Like Liz could get a guy at this club. She’s too-”
“Max, lay off her, ok?” demanded Isabel, starting to sound upset.
“She seems like a nice person,” put in Alex, earning himself a glare from Max.
“I don’t know what’s wrong with you two,” said Max, shaking his head in confusion. “She’s horrible and dictatorial.”
“Max, seriously, give it a rest,” said Isabel. “I came here to enjoy myself, not listen to you bitch about Liz Parker. Now, if you’ll excuse us, Alex and I are going to dance and have fun.”
Isabel led Alex further into the crowd swarming around them and Max was left all alone. “Great,” he mumbled. Scanning the crowd for another hot girl to dance with, he noticed that Liz and Maria were two of the only people at the bar. Knowing Liz, they were probably talking about him.
Going around the club the long way and approaching the bar from behind, so the girls wouldn’t see him, Max snuck up behind them, planning on eavesdropping a bit before dancing again.
“I just hate him,” slurred Liz. She drank down a shot of alcohol and called for another. Max smirked, realizing Liz was already close to drunk. She was such a lightweight.
“Chica, you can’t hold a grudge forever. I mean, yes, in second grade he cut off one of your ponytails and you had to get that horrible bob to even it out. And yes, he beat you for valedictorian by the smallest margin in high school, but come on......that’s all in the past. I mean, maybe you two should put your differences aside and just...grow up,” said Maria.
“Are you saying I’m childish?!” Liz exclaimed, throwing back another shot.
Maria thought about this for a few seconds and then said, “Yes, I guess I am. I’m just sick of hearing about how horrible Max is and what Max did to you today, and ‘you’ll never guess what Max said to me’. And sweety, you don’t need anymore alcohol, okay?” She tried to grab the glass out of Liz’s hands, but Liz moved it away from her just in time.
“You know what, Maria? Screw you.” Liz stood up and then had to catch herself on the bar. Everything was spinning, but after a few seconds, she felt okay enough to walk. She stumbled away from the bar towards the dance floor.
Maria, easily upset, was angry at Liz and stayed at the bar, not bothering to follow after her drunken friend.
Max, not sure what to do, followed Liz from a distance. He had known Liz didn’t like him, as he was sure she knew he didn’t like her, but he’d had no idea she harbored grudges as far back as second grade. He was somewhat taken aback at the realization that Liz genuinely hated him. Yes, she’d even told him that to his face before, but he’d never truly believed she meant it. But hearing her saying it to Maria, it had really sunk in. She hated him.
And that made him think about how he felt about her. She annoyed the shit out of him most of the time, true. She was bossy and rude, yes. But hate? No, he didn’t truly hate her.
Max snapped out of his thoughts when he heard a loud screech. Looking up, he realized Liz was standing on a small stage, and was beginning to strip off her shirt.
Without thinking, Max dashed up to the stage and grabbed Liz’s arm, gently but firmly pulling her off the stage and onto the dance floor, where a large group of horny guys were catcalling and hooting like a bunch of immature teenagers.
“Take it off, baby!” one jeered.
“Fuck off, man,” said Max. “She won’t be taking anything off tonight.”
The man frowned at Max and stalked off.
Leading Liz outside, Max sat her down on a bench.
She didn’t even seem to realize who he was, and she didn’t comment on the fact that he’d stopped her, just barely, from stripping in front of the whole club. She simply sat on the bench and stared at her feet. Max waited a few minutes for her to say something, but she remained silent. Sighing, he finally lifted up her chin and said, “Parker, you ok?”
He was shocked to see her crying. He never knew what to do when a girl cried, and the fact that it was Liz Parker crying, and he was all alone with her, only made it worse.
“Hey, don’t cry,” he said. “Want me to take you home?”
She nodded, but said nothing.
“Ok, let me get Isabel’s keys. I’ll be right back.”
Turning quickly, he ran back into the club, scanning the crowd once more. Finding Isabel and Alex, he explained the situation. They both didn’t say much, but the look of surprise on Isabel’s face as she handed Max her keys and assured him that Alex would see her home safely was enough to tell Max they were more than shocked at his sudden kindness towards Liz.
To be honest, he didn’t know why he was being so nice to her. Especially after hearing her telling Maria she hated him. But for some reason he couldn’t let her embarrass herself or get herself in trouble, and so there he was, about to drive her home.
Walking back outside, he wasn’t surprised to see her sitting on the same bench, in the same position as when he’d gone inside. “Liz? Ready to go?”
She nodded and tried to stand up, but ended up falling back onto the bench.
Sighing, he put his arm around her waist and helped her stand. “Isabel’s car is right over there. Can you make it there?”
“I don’t need your help,” mumbled Liz.
“Yes, you do. And you’re damn lucky I’m helping you. So just accept it and let’s go. This isn’t what I imagined I’d be doing tonight.”
Liz gave in and let him help her. They got to the car and Liz managed to get in and put on her seatbelt by herself.
Turning the key in the ignition, Max sighed again and ran his hands through his hair. Well, there went his night of drinking and sex...
Putting the car in drive, he drove in the direction of Liz’s apartment. He only knew where she lived because he’d seen her name in the employee directory at the firm once.
Finding the correct building, he pulled up and helped Liz out of the car.
“Max, I think I’m gonna...” And with that, she threw up all over the grass. Luckily she missed Max’s shoes. By mere inches.
Feeling a strange stirring of pity, Max led Liz up to the front entrance of her building. As he did, he felt the cold prickle of a few snowflakes landing on his face. “Great,” he mumbled. He hated snow.
Getting Liz into her apartment proved to be more difficult than he thought it would be, but finally he managed it. Settling her on the couch, he ran the faucet for a minute and then brought her a glass of water to rinse out her mouth. After she’d done that, he looked around uncomfortably.
“Well, I guess I’ll be going.”
“Yeah,” she said. “I guess you will. Better get back to work.”
“For your information, I’m already done with the Clark file,” he snapped, marveling at her ability to go into boss mode even when she was wasted.
She simply stared at him.
“Ok then, see you tomorrow,” he muttered, walking towards the door. “You could say thank you, you know,” he said, turning back towards her.
“For what?” she asked.
He shook his head in amazement. “You really take the cake, Parker.” He walked out of her apartment and got into Isabel’s car. Driving it to his sister’s house he left it in her driveway and walked the few blocks to his apartment.
Climbing into bed a little later he tried to keep his mind off of Liz Parker, but found that he couldn’t. As he drifted off to sleep, he noticed it was beginning to snow a little harder.
Liz and Maria stepped into the club, and immediately Maria began bopping to the beat, moving slowly but surely into the crowd of writhing bodies, leaving Liz off to the side, alone. Liz didn’t mind too much; she was used to it. This is what Maria always did. Maria was the partier, the one who went out on the floor and shook her stuff for everyone to see, while Liz was the calm one, the wallflower.
Finding a seat at an empty table, Liz situated herself in a corner, where Maria would be sure to see her when she was all danced out, and a corner from which Liz also had a phenomenal view of the club. She could see the bar, the dance floor, the balconies, and the hallway leading to the VIP rooms.
For the first ten minutes or so Liz sat where she was and simply observed. She had to smile to herself at Maria’s antics. She was not-so-subtly following a man around the dance floor. Liz had to give Maria points for picking a hottie though...the guy was tall and lean, with spiky hair, and a bad boy look to him.
Eventually Liz got bored with watching Maria, however. Deciding to grab the bull by the horns and actively try to find a cute guy, she stood up and approached the dance floor. Halfway between the table where she’d been sitting and the dance floor, however, she suddenly found herself being swept along towards the bar with a large group of people who had just entered the club. She fought to break free from the crowd, but the mass of bodies was too thick, and she finally gave in and moved in their same general direction.
Upon reaching the bar, she decided to find a seat and try her luck there. She might pick up a guy, and was less likely to make a fool of herself than if she were to dance. Ordering a strawberry margarita, she took a seat on a barstool and settled in to observe the people around her. The bar was a large oval and the four bartenders were completely encircled by the bar. Sitting next to Liz was a young woman with curly blonde hair and an annoying laugh. She was talking with a buff, good-looking man. They seemed to be having a discussion on Buddhism. Across from Liz, on the other side of the bar, was a tall and dark-haired man. He was fairly skinny, and had a friendly look to him. Liz blushed when she realized he’d caught her looking in his direction, and her blush increased when she realized he was walking around the bar towards her.
Flustered, Liz turned slightly away from him and took a sip of her margarita. It wasn’t that she didn’t want to talk to the man; she did. She just didn’t want him to get the wrong idea. She didn’t find him attractive in a ‘Sure, I’ll go home with you tonight’ sort of way, she just thought he was innocently cute. But how had he interpreted her glances?
“Hi,” he said, sitting in the empty seat next to her.
“Hi,” she said, turning back slightly towards him, keeping her eyes down, and only glancing up at him once, quickly.
“I don’t bite,” he laughed. “My name’s Alex.”
“Liz,” she said simply.
“Nice to meet you, Liz. Need someone to chat with while you drink that margarita?”
“Oh. Uh, no, thanks,” she said, shaking her head. “I was actually just getting up...my friend’s on the dance floor and I was going to try to find her.”
“Oh, ok, cool,” said Alex. “Mind if I join you for a moment? My girlfriend said she was going to the ladies’ room and would be right back, but she’s been gone a while. We can look for your friend and my girlfriend together.”
Liz sighed inwardly with relief and smiled at Alex. He had a girlfriend; she didn’t have to worry about him making a pass at her and then having to try to find a nice way of letting him down. Well, she didn’t have to worry as long as he was the faithful boyfriend type.
“Sure,” she said.
Standing up, Alex led the way to the dance floor, cutting a path through the crowd for Liz to walk through.
“Sorry if I seemed creepy back at the bar!” he yelled back over his shoulder at her as he led her towards the heart of the dance floor.
“You weren’t creepy,” said Liz, scanning the crowd for Maria.
“You just seemed kind of uncomfortable,” explained Alex. “If I seem too forward, just say so. I like to be friendly, but I guess sometimes I’m too friendly at first to new people and it’s off-putting. It’s the downside of being an all around awesome guy.”
Liz laughed and made eye contact with Alex. “No, it’s ok. I just...freeze up around guys. Whether they are hitting on me or not. I always tell myself I won’t, but I always do.”
Alex smiled in understanding and then pointed into the crowd and said, “I see my girlfriend over there. She’s talking to that blonde with the really short skirt on.”
Liz turned to see who Alex was pointing too and coughed to cover up her gasp. The blonde with the really short skirt was Maria. The woman talking to Maria, the woman who was apparently Alex’s girlfriend, was none other than Isabel Evans. Max’s sister.
And wherever Isabel went, Max was sure to follow.
-----
Max threw on a t-shirt and jeans, cursing at himself for not doing any laundry in the past few days. Who went to a hot new club wearing a t-shirt and jeans?
Apparently he did.
Styling his hair with the smallest bit of styling gel, he checked out his reflection in the mirror. Oh yeah. He looked good.
Well, aside from the clothes.
Hearing his cell phone ringing, Max bounded down the stairs, taking them two at a time. He searched frantically for his phone for a few seconds, and finally located it.
“Hello?” he answered, breathlessly.
“Hey, it’s Isabel. You ready?”
“Yeah, I’ll be out in a second,” Max answered, grabbing his leather jacket.
“Cool,” Isabel replied, hanging up.
Max knew it wasn’t necessarily cool to show up at a club with your sister. Ok, who was he kidding; it was downright dorky, not to mention a little weird. But he and his sister were close; they considered each other best friends, and dorky or not, he liked to spend time with her. And after all, it’s not like he’d be spending the whole night at her side. They were simply going there together, and then they’d break apart for the night, and probably not see each other till the next day or later in the week.
Running outside, he spotted Isabel’s car parked further up the block. He walked briskly in that direction, and hopped into her car.
“It’s freezing outside,” he complained, cranking up the heat.
“Don’t mess with the controls,” she said, slapping at his hand.
He stuck out his tongue at her and settled into his seat.
“So, ready for a fun night?” he asked.
“Definitely. Alex is meeting me there, and I plan on having a blast with him tonight. I can’t believe it’s been almost a week since I’ve seen him. We’re both so busy with work lately...” Her voice faded away and a dreamy look came over her face.
Max rolled his eyes, but smiled. His sister was a sucker for Alex Whitman. And Alex was the same way for Isabel. Sometimes Max thought it was cute, but most of the time it just kind of made him want to puke. It wasn’t that he was totally against lovey-dovey relationships. They were alright for other people, sometimes. But definitely not for him. At least, he didn’t think they were for him. Isabel just said he felt that way because he hadn’t met the right girl yet. Max wasn’t sure if that was it or not, but didn’t argue with Isabel on the point. He could never win an argument with his sister. Never.
“Um, Earth to Max. We’re here.” Isabel’s voice intruded on Max’s thoughts. Shaking his head to clear his mind, he quickly exited the car. Glancing up at the club, he got excited by the bright lights and the crowd waiting to get in.
Following Isabel, they joined the throng of people. They were quickly ushered in by the biggest bouncer Max had ever seen. He took a moment to stand in the entranceway while his eyes adjusted to the drastic lack of lighting in the club, which was enhanced by a miasma of cigarette smoke.
Glancing around, he wasn’t shocked to see that Isabel was already approaching the bar, where Max could just barely see Alex, waiting for her.
Max stepped out onto the dance floor and was instantly pulled into a dance by a pretty young girl. They danced innocently for a while. Max always started out innocently. But if she proved interesting, and was interested in him, he’d quickly turn up the heat, so to speak.
The girl however, turned out to be uninterested after the first dance. Not letting it get him down, Max scanned the dance floor. On the far side he spotted Isabel talking to a girl he vaguely recognized. He seemed to remember seeing her hanging around with Liz in the past few years. Approaching her was Alex and...
Liz Parker.
“Shit,” he mumbled.
-----
“Shit,” Liz mumbled, looking past Isabel and spotting Max.
“Something wrong?” Alex asked.
“Uh, to be honest, yes. I know your girlfriend, we grew up together, but we haven’t really ever been close, and we’ve kind of lost contact. Anyway, her brother, Max...he and I don’t get along at all. And he’s here.”
“Really?” Alex sounded surprised. “I’ve always gotten along with Max; he seems like a cool guy to me.”
“Well, he’s a dick towards me,” mumbled Liz. As she and Alex reached Maria and Isabel, Liz realized Max had been approaching Isabel as well. He reached her at the same time Liz did.
“Evans,” she said in greeting.
“Parker.”
Isabel rolled her eyes at them. “Can’t you two just get along? You guys picked on each other as kids, but can’t you move past that?”
“No,” they said at the same time.
“Listen, Maria, do you want to get some drinks with me?” asked Liz.
Maria glanced back and forth between Liz and Max. Noting their stony glares, she nodded her head and grabbed Liz’s arm. “Sure, chica. Let’s pick up some guys too while we’re at it.”
As they walked away, Max snorted. “Like Liz could get a guy at this club. She’s too-”
“Max, lay off her, ok?” demanded Isabel, starting to sound upset.
“She seems like a nice person,” put in Alex, earning himself a glare from Max.
“I don’t know what’s wrong with you two,” said Max, shaking his head in confusion. “She’s horrible and dictatorial.”
“Max, seriously, give it a rest,” said Isabel. “I came here to enjoy myself, not listen to you bitch about Liz Parker. Now, if you’ll excuse us, Alex and I are going to dance and have fun.”
Isabel led Alex further into the crowd swarming around them and Max was left all alone. “Great,” he mumbled. Scanning the crowd for another hot girl to dance with, he noticed that Liz and Maria were two of the only people at the bar. Knowing Liz, they were probably talking about him.
Going around the club the long way and approaching the bar from behind, so the girls wouldn’t see him, Max snuck up behind them, planning on eavesdropping a bit before dancing again.
“I just hate him,” slurred Liz. She drank down a shot of alcohol and called for another. Max smirked, realizing Liz was already close to drunk. She was such a lightweight.
“Chica, you can’t hold a grudge forever. I mean, yes, in second grade he cut off one of your ponytails and you had to get that horrible bob to even it out. And yes, he beat you for valedictorian by the smallest margin in high school, but come on......that’s all in the past. I mean, maybe you two should put your differences aside and just...grow up,” said Maria.
“Are you saying I’m childish?!” Liz exclaimed, throwing back another shot.
Maria thought about this for a few seconds and then said, “Yes, I guess I am. I’m just sick of hearing about how horrible Max is and what Max did to you today, and ‘you’ll never guess what Max said to me’. And sweety, you don’t need anymore alcohol, okay?” She tried to grab the glass out of Liz’s hands, but Liz moved it away from her just in time.
“You know what, Maria? Screw you.” Liz stood up and then had to catch herself on the bar. Everything was spinning, but after a few seconds, she felt okay enough to walk. She stumbled away from the bar towards the dance floor.
Maria, easily upset, was angry at Liz and stayed at the bar, not bothering to follow after her drunken friend.
Max, not sure what to do, followed Liz from a distance. He had known Liz didn’t like him, as he was sure she knew he didn’t like her, but he’d had no idea she harbored grudges as far back as second grade. He was somewhat taken aback at the realization that Liz genuinely hated him. Yes, she’d even told him that to his face before, but he’d never truly believed she meant it. But hearing her saying it to Maria, it had really sunk in. She hated him.
And that made him think about how he felt about her. She annoyed the shit out of him most of the time, true. She was bossy and rude, yes. But hate? No, he didn’t truly hate her.
Max snapped out of his thoughts when he heard a loud screech. Looking up, he realized Liz was standing on a small stage, and was beginning to strip off her shirt.
Without thinking, Max dashed up to the stage and grabbed Liz’s arm, gently but firmly pulling her off the stage and onto the dance floor, where a large group of horny guys were catcalling and hooting like a bunch of immature teenagers.
“Take it off, baby!” one jeered.
“Fuck off, man,” said Max. “She won’t be taking anything off tonight.”
The man frowned at Max and stalked off.
Leading Liz outside, Max sat her down on a bench.
She didn’t even seem to realize who he was, and she didn’t comment on the fact that he’d stopped her, just barely, from stripping in front of the whole club. She simply sat on the bench and stared at her feet. Max waited a few minutes for her to say something, but she remained silent. Sighing, he finally lifted up her chin and said, “Parker, you ok?”
He was shocked to see her crying. He never knew what to do when a girl cried, and the fact that it was Liz Parker crying, and he was all alone with her, only made it worse.
“Hey, don’t cry,” he said. “Want me to take you home?”
She nodded, but said nothing.
“Ok, let me get Isabel’s keys. I’ll be right back.”
Turning quickly, he ran back into the club, scanning the crowd once more. Finding Isabel and Alex, he explained the situation. They both didn’t say much, but the look of surprise on Isabel’s face as she handed Max her keys and assured him that Alex would see her home safely was enough to tell Max they were more than shocked at his sudden kindness towards Liz.
To be honest, he didn’t know why he was being so nice to her. Especially after hearing her telling Maria she hated him. But for some reason he couldn’t let her embarrass herself or get herself in trouble, and so there he was, about to drive her home.
Walking back outside, he wasn’t surprised to see her sitting on the same bench, in the same position as when he’d gone inside. “Liz? Ready to go?”
She nodded and tried to stand up, but ended up falling back onto the bench.
Sighing, he put his arm around her waist and helped her stand. “Isabel’s car is right over there. Can you make it there?”
“I don’t need your help,” mumbled Liz.
“Yes, you do. And you’re damn lucky I’m helping you. So just accept it and let’s go. This isn’t what I imagined I’d be doing tonight.”
Liz gave in and let him help her. They got to the car and Liz managed to get in and put on her seatbelt by herself.
Turning the key in the ignition, Max sighed again and ran his hands through his hair. Well, there went his night of drinking and sex...
Putting the car in drive, he drove in the direction of Liz’s apartment. He only knew where she lived because he’d seen her name in the employee directory at the firm once.
Finding the correct building, he pulled up and helped Liz out of the car.
“Max, I think I’m gonna...” And with that, she threw up all over the grass. Luckily she missed Max’s shoes. By mere inches.
Feeling a strange stirring of pity, Max led Liz up to the front entrance of her building. As he did, he felt the cold prickle of a few snowflakes landing on his face. “Great,” he mumbled. He hated snow.
Getting Liz into her apartment proved to be more difficult than he thought it would be, but finally he managed it. Settling her on the couch, he ran the faucet for a minute and then brought her a glass of water to rinse out her mouth. After she’d done that, he looked around uncomfortably.
“Well, I guess I’ll be going.”
“Yeah,” she said. “I guess you will. Better get back to work.”
“For your information, I’m already done with the Clark file,” he snapped, marveling at her ability to go into boss mode even when she was wasted.
She simply stared at him.
“Ok then, see you tomorrow,” he muttered, walking towards the door. “You could say thank you, you know,” he said, turning back towards her.
“For what?” she asked.
He shook his head in amazement. “You really take the cake, Parker.” He walked out of her apartment and got into Isabel’s car. Driving it to his sister’s house he left it in her driveway and walked the few blocks to his apartment.
Climbing into bed a little later he tried to keep his mind off of Liz Parker, but found that he couldn’t. As he drifted off to sleep, he noticed it was beginning to snow a little harder.
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jbangelo
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