"Liz, what are you doing? You shouldn't be going to school today after what happened, you need your rest." Her father was concerned.
"I'm fine dad really, I don't want to be cooped up in here for the next few days, seriously, I want to go to school." Liz informed her father, not even taking time to face him as she spoke.
"Liz, I want you to rest, the doctor said it would be best if you…"
"Well then," Liz interrupted, "we both want different things. I'm not your little girl any more dad, I know when to rest and I know what's good for me. Like it or not, I'm going to school, if you want to complain about it later, then that's fine." Liz shot out the door before her father ever got a chance to respond.
Liz arrives at school, trying to keep a low profile, but everybody, even people she doesn't know, is looking at her like she is some kind of celebrity. She's sure her schoolmates are asking her questions, but she chooses not to hear them and indifferently ignores them all. She waits in a spot near Max's locker, but she notices Maria and Alex spotting her, not so far away. Thank God. She finds Max, and whisks him away to an empty classroom before he can even get to his locker.
"Liz…are you…you're OK" He seemed so happy that Liz was unharmed enough to attend school, not even asking her why she was behaving so strangely.
"Yes Max, I'm fine, but we need to talk."
"Liz if this is about a lab project, I know you're very dedicated to science, but this is…this is a little too much don't you think?"
"Max, this is not about a lab project." She snapped.
"Oh it isn't…then…what is this about?" Max was concerned for her, maybe she was suffering a little from yesterdays unfortunate events.
"This is about you healing me."
Liz watched as Max's face dropped. Those words coming out of her mouth made him feel exposed. How could she know what he was contemplating, during the incident that resulted in her injury yesterday? Max had to be careful with his choice of words and what he admitted to here, after all he thought, this has to be some sort of freak coincidence.
"Liz…I don't know what you're talking about. Are you sure you're OK?" He evaded exposure.
"Max, I am better than OK, and you do know what I'm talking about. Yesterday I was shot and at that very moment, even before that, you chose to heal me, if it weren't for that girl whisking me away to the hospital you would have done."
Max looked at her shell-shocked. He resembled a frightened child. He was always adorable to Liz, but seeing him like this was something beyond that.
"Max, I can't explain it right now, I don't even know how I know this, but you know me well enough to know what I know. I can see it in your eyes Max, it's as true as any other part of you. Max please don't shut me out here, I know it's not just you at risk here, but you can trust me, I'm not against you, I just want to know that I'm not crazy."
"You're…not crazy Liz." Max said hoping that Liz would just feel reassured of herself, but he knew he was really admitting to her what she had conspired.
"Max, I'm sorry that I know this, but everything is so crazy right now…I don't even know who we are any more, I don't even know if I'm supposed to be alive here right now with you." Liz crouched down on the floor and sat with her elbows resting on her knees, and her head in her hands, and began to cry.
"Liz…I know who you are and I know you're not crazy…and I know that you are alive, here with me right now, and that I wouldn't have it any other way. Please don't cry Liz." Max knelt down in front of her and put the palm of his hand at the back of her head to comfort her.
"I just don't know if anything is true any more Max, I've seen things, things I wasn't supposed to see…and I don't know how, and everything if just falling apart. And yes I do want to hear the truth from you…but that's really not why I'm here at all."