When Liz heard the loud noises and yelling coming from the back she turned her head sharply towards the booth to look at Max. Liz noticed quickly that Michael was no longer sitting with Max. Max and Liz stared silently at the other holding a conversation with their eyes. The whole conversation consisted of three words: *Michael and Maria*.
They both moved quickly to the swinging door and opened it cautiously. With Michael and Maria, Liz learned to be careful. She had seen enough before at the Crashdown. Liz decided to let Max open the door himself, no reason for Liz to witness another infamous Michael/Maria make-out session or as Maria put it "sucking face".
Max opened the door and ran in once he saw Jose on the floor. Jose was becoming more conscious now and cursing to himself in Spanish.
"Jose are you okay?" Liz asked concerned for he cook and for the fact that Michael and Maria were nowhere to be found. "Where are Michael and Maria?"
"Hell I don't know! That boy is crazy, you know the one with the hair and the temper. He attacked me! I wasn't doing anything! I swear!" Jose babbled, shifting his eyes nervously.
"What do you mean? Michael attacked you? Why? What happened?" Max's concerns had in that moment grown tenfold.
"Hey, it wasn't my fault I'm telling you! Really, I swear!"
"Jose it's okay we just want to know where Maria and Michael are now" Liz said trying to remain calm. She did not want to have to drive cross country to find her flaky best friend again. Just as Liz was thinking this she heard Maria's car starting up in the alley of the Crashdown.
"Max that's Maria's car!" Liz shouted and Liz and Max hurried out the back. Just as they ran out the back door, two hoods were driving down the alley. The one driving was a blonde 14 year-old and his older brother was sitting in the passenger seat next to him. He wanted to teach his little brother how to drive and they thought that Maria's car was convenient.
"Where are they going? Max? Did you guys find anything else" Both Liz and Max obviously thought that Maria and Michael were leaving in Maria's car.
"No. I think that maybe they just needed to...well I think that everything will be fine. Liz I'm sure that it will be okay" Max said but he felt just as nervous on the inside as Liz looked on the outside.
They turned to go back inside the Crashdown as Alex and Isabelle came out.
"What happened?" Isabelle asked.
"We're not sure" Liz answered.
"Don't worry guys I'm sure that Michael and Maria are fine" Max said reassuringly, even though they could all tell that he didn't really mean it.
"Yeah, fine" Liz said before turning to lead everyone back into the Crashdown.
Alex and Isabelle looked at each other, both still a little flustered from their frank conversation at the counter.
"So, Isabelle...um, do you want to go back in and get something to eat? My treat?" Alex asked her, still afraid of rejection from the goddess standing before him.
"Sure" Isabelle answers with a little bit of a laugh in her voice, giving Alex a thousand watt smile "Let's go"
As they walked back in to meet up with Max and Liz, Alex noticed the door to the old bomb shelter was shut. "Hey Liz! Did you get the door fixed to the bomb shelter yet?" Alex called out.
"No, why?" Liz yelled back from behind the counter where she was filling sodas and trying not to think about Michael out there somewhere with Maria.
"Cause it's shut again!"
"Oh great! It's a Saturday and the Crashdown is packed and well Maria is obviously no help now. I guess I'll just call the locksmith in the morning" And with that everyone turned their attention away from the door and went back out into the Crashdown.
Max pulled Isabelle over to one side to whisper in his sister's ear.
"Isabelle maybe you should...look into where Michael and Maria are if we can't find them by tonight" Maz asked, hoping his sister wouldn't choose now to argue.
"Max you don't think Michael would..."
"Do anything stupid?"
"Yeah. I'll look into it but I would like this to go on the record as *your* dream walking idea and not mine"
Max smiled faintly. "Fine. I'll take responsibility. Just try to at least be, well, less scary than last time. Okay?"
Isabelle only smiled and flounced back to the booth to sit with Alex.
"Max? I'm sure they're fine. Right?" Liz asked wanting his comfort one more time before going back to work. "Yeah, of course" Max said just as unconvincingly as before.
Down in the bomb shelter.
Michael sat on the floor, leaning against the hard and cold stone wall. He had his eyes tilted up towards the ceiling, willing himself not to look at Maria. Inside his head he was trying not to think of her shirtless even more than he was trying not to notice her in his shirt. The thought of her in his clothes made his head swim.
Maria had turned her back to Michael and buttoned up his shirt. She glanced down to look at the shirt he had given her to wear. Maria realized that this was the same black shirt he had worn when he told her that he doesn't get intense at the rave. Maria stopped buttoning for an instant and stood there fingering the collar. Maria remembered that all she wanted to do that night was get Michael out of the shirt. Maria started laughing out loud before she even realized.
"What?" Michael asked sharply, wondering if a lack of oxygen was making Maria even battier than usual.
Maria jumped. She had forgotten for a brief moment where she was and who she was with.
"Nothing" Maria said before buttoning up the shirt quickly and turning around to face Michael. *Now he's out of his shirt. I'm in my bra and shorts and we can hardly stand to be in the same room together. Figures it would take this screwed up situation to get us in the same room together.*
"Whatever" Michael mumbled before turning his attention back to the ceiling.
"My aren't you the life of the party" Maria smirked at Michael.
"If this is a party, I'll take a funeral" Michael snapped back.
"Well I'll be there if it's yours"
"Bite me"
"Okay but I draw blood" Maria snarled. Michael sighed and rolled his eyes. Maria sat down opposite of Michael.
Two hours passed before either one spoke or moved.
"I don't think that we are ever getting out of here" Maria practically yelled. The silence was torture to her.
"God, Maria. Relax. It'll be fine" Michael said internally torn between wishing she would shut up again and grateful she was still talking to him at all.
"Relax! You want me to relax! Why? So I can just die down here with you?" Maria stood up and began pacing the room.
Michael stood and walked over to Maria. He placed his hands on her shoulders.
Maria took a sharp breath inward. Michael leaned in towards Maria. She could feel his warm breath on her lips. She gazed up at Michael, unsure of what to do and afraid of what to say. Michael licked his lips and then said
"I'm sure this time you can calm down on your own".
Maria growled under breath and pushed Michael away. She blinked rapidly, not allowing herself to cry. Maria needed something else to focus her attention on. Her eyes fell on the boxes filling most of the small shelter.
She pulled one out and opened it up. Michael looked at Maria as she began searching the boxes. Michael knew that Maria was angry at him but he knew that trapped down here with her in the small space was only asking for trouble. She drove him insane and he had to maintain his wall. He couldn't let it down.
"What exactly are you looking for?"
"Well spaceboy I am looking to see if I can find anything fun or interesting to occupy the time because let's face it. We're here for the night"
Michael only smirked back at Maria. She turned her attention back to the boxes, not noticing Michael reach back into his pockets. He pulled out a bottle of tabasco sauce and a deck of cards. He was about to tell Maria about the deck of cards when he heard her shriek.
"What? What is it?" Michael ran over and pulled Maria away from the box. He thought she had shrieked in fear but in truth was she had shrieked in surprise more than anything else. A fun surprise that is.
Michael laughed when he looked into the box. "Is that what I think it is?" He asked, forgetting to use his "bored-Maria" voice. (You know the one where he makes it sound like everything she says is a combination of the most boring thing he has ever heard and the stupidest at the same time.)
"Yep" Maria smiled she had forgotten to be mad at him. *Maybe being down here could be interesting after all.* Maria's smile then curled up into what can only be described as one of pure evil and fun.
"So, wanna have some fun?" Maria asked with the evil grin reflecting back to her through Michael's eyes.
Michael's half-smile turned towards Maria. He held out the deck of cards and raised one eye-brow. "Why do you carry cards in your back pocket?"
"What else am I going to do during school?"
"Good point. So, what do you want to play?" Maria asked, excited and nervous.
"I dunno" Michael shrugged "Your choice".
"Okay" Maria said. They then dragged one of the boxes to the middle of the room and each sat on another box facing each other. Michael set the deck of cards on the box used as a table as Maria looked down at the possession in her hand and set it next to the cards on their make-shift table.
They both stared at the table before Michael asked "So, have you ever..."
"Nope. You?"
"First time for everything."
Both teenagers stared at the object on the table before Michael finally reached out and grabbed the bottle. Maria had found a case of vodka in the shelter. Michael broke the seal and opened the bottle.
"So know any good drinking games?" Michael asked.
"Let's make it simple" Maria said "How about High/Low? Loser takes a shot".
"Fine. You can go first", Michael answered half-expecting Maria to chicken out.
"Gee how big of you"
"Hmmm, I try" Michael gestured to her to draw a card. Michael drew his card next. "Okay, turn them around on three. One...two...three." They both turned their cards around.
"Well, Maria. First shot's yours. Jack beats nine" Michael came close to a true smile, with a hint of demention behind it.
Maria reached across the table to take the bottle out of Michael's hand. She quickly took a swig of the alcohol before she could talk herself out of it. Maria nearly gagged on the burning sensation in her throat. After her breathing returned to normal, she turned back to Michael. He was looking at her with a curious look on his face. *Maybe just a couple of bricks from the wall. Just because we're stuck together.*
"Well, let's go again" Michael said. Maria nodded as they both reached to take another card. Maria felt light-headed and a little giddy. Her face was flushed and Michael enjoyed seeing her like this. It reminded Michael of how she looked after an eraser room session.
Looking at his card Michael smirked. *Ace in the whole. This night could be fun after all.*