Chapter 8

"What are you doing here?" They asked in unison as they both took a few steps back while their bodies let them.

"I was sick of doing nothing so I came to use Josh's computer to see if I could find something." Alec answered first. He wouldn't look at her; instead he stared at the door behind her and envisioned himself running through it to escape the painful desires burning in his chest, only worsening by the minute.

"I just came to check on Joshua." Max held her hands in fists along her sides, her nails piercing her skin. She was trying to keep control and fight her feeling instead of either giving in or running; it was no way to live life.

"He's in the back room sleeping. You should go, right now just go."

Hearing the urgency in his voice, Max looked at him, straight into his hazel green eyes. They seemed to take control of her body, she didn't want to move but she was moving; closer to him. "Alec." Escaped her mouth in the same urgency he begged her to go.

All logic was gone, there was no little voice saying it was wrong to run before a mistake was made. The only voice around screamed in need for each other. To get to each other there were quick fast moves but once they were in each other's embrace, Max pinned between the nearest wall and Alec, every thing became slow.

Each touch was slow, to be remembered with each feel, each emotion. Her hands were lost under his t-shirt along his warm broad back; her dark orbs stared into his fiery green ones literally burning with passion.

Their lips hovered over each others, a tease that sent a mix of heat and pain through their needing bodies.

Alec's hand traveled up from her waist to her neck tilting her head back before his lips came crashing down on hers. The short moment of bliss their bodies felt was interrupted.

"Alec and Max get busy?" Joshua asked very confused.

Hearing his voice acted like cold water, they jumped away from each other. Alec walked straight out the door never looking back, if he did nothing would be able to stop him from having Max, not even White standing over them threatening to shoot.

For the first time she could remember Max felt her knees grow weak. So weak she had to sit before she fell. "It was a mistake." She tried to explain to Joshua as she sat on the near by chair.

"Because of Manticore feelings?"

Max nodded. "Yeah that's it." she said remembering she had told him what was going on, at least as much as they all knew. "Thanks for showing up when you did." She knew her true self was grateful but her body screamed in protest wishing he would've waited a few more minutes, an hour. Get over it! Her mind screamed, she looked at Joshua. "So what's going on?" she asked searching for a distraction.

~*~

"What did you do?" Syl asked. As soon as he walked though the door she sensed something was off, something had happened. The more she thought about it the only thing that could make him look so depressed lately was Max.

"Nothing." Alec sternly said. If you thought about it, it was really nothing, a kiss and some touching but in the long run really nothing. Nothing compared to what he wanted to do, what he would've done if Joshua never interrupted.

"Right." Syl said dragging out the word fully saying she didn't believe him. "Well I have some good news that should help you from doing 'nothing' again."

Alec began to have hope once more he wasn't doomed to suffer with the burning ache of need in his chest. "What is it?"

"A few other X-5's have been digging into this since it isn't ideal for everyone and our series were the only ones they infected since we were old enough. We finally got a hit, one of the doctors that worked on the study has been spotted in California. I offered to check it out since we're the closest." Syl explained.

"Have you told Max?"

"No I just got the call."

"Ok good then we go and pay the doc a visit."

"She'll be pissed if she finds out we didn't tell her."

"She'll get over, it's not like she can tag along right? We'll leave tomorrow morning."

~*~

Max drove around the city for hours hoping to gain some clarity, to forget what happened. The guilt was the worst part; if Logan ever found out he'd never understand. It was him, Logan, she wanted to be close to and spend time with. Alec only flooded her mind because of the sick ingenious that was Manticore. She tried to think of her time with Alec before the symptoms arose, tried to figure out what about him Manticore thought was perfect for her. It had to simply be DNA. The more she thought about it the more confused she became.

She was on her way home when her beeper went off. It was Logan 911, hope filled her chest. They were only working on finding a Manticore doctor and just maybe he finally found one.

-

Isabelle A.