You and Me -- Chapter 3

Disclaimer:  The TV show Dark Angel, all of the characters that appeared on it (Max, Zack, Tinga, etc.), and everything else that has to do with the show belong to their respective owners, not to me.  No money is being made off of this fic.  I only own the original characters.

Notes:  Spoilers/spoiler-ish stuff from “411 on the D.L.,” “Cold Comfort,” “Blah Blah Woof Woof,” and the pilot. Special thank you to jracklesfan77 for her help with this chapter!

Max finished putting the last of her makeup on and left the bathroom, looking for her purse. Stupid makeup. What the hell was I thinking, choosing a job that made me wear something less than casual? Oh yeah, I believe that it was the money. It was the highest paying job that I could find that Zack said wasn’t above the radar and all. She sighed. Damn, I wish that he didn’t have to leave last night. It was nice having him around. Not that he said too much, but still…it’s Zack.

She grabbed her purse and jacket and left her apartment and went downstairs. She pulled on her jacket as she left the building and stood at the bus stop on the corner and got on the bus when it pulled up to the curb several minutes later. Max paid the driver and found a seat and sat down in it and looked out the window as the bus pulled back into traffic.

It makes you think, doesn’t it? Taking public transportation to get to and from your job instead of riding a bicycle or driving your own car. Not that I ever had a car of my own… She couldn’t help laughing to herself at that thought. Still, it’s interesting to just watch all these people go to and from their own jobs. You wonder how they do it every single day and then you remember that you’re one of them. It’s weird, that’s for sure.

“Hi, Kara,” a cheerful voice said after the bus had pulled up to another stop.

Max smiled. “Hey, Jamie.” She motioned for her friend to sit down next to her. “Ready for another day at the office?”

“You don’t have an office,” Jamie teased.

“Yeah, rub that in my face,” Max said. They laughed. “One of these days, I’ll get back to school and finish my degree and then I’ll get my own office. Until then, I’m happy doing the working-and-living-on-my-own thing, you know?”

“I know what you mean,” Jamie said. “My older brother decided about a year into college that he wanted to take some time off and work for awhile, just like you did. He eventually got his degree.”

“Where did you say before that he was living?” Max asked.

“Montreal,” Jamie said. “He got some job down there. I don’t even remember what it is. We kind of had a big fight a few years ago and we’ve barely spoken since.”

“Oh?”

“Yeah. I really don’t even remember what the hell it was about, but the only times that I ever speak to my brother anymore are when we’re both visiting our parents during the holidays and even then it’s just the basic polite stuff,” Jamie said. “I honestly don’t know how I ever got along with him that well in the first place. He doesn’t say that much, he’s stubborn as hell, and he’s got this uber-male-tough-guy-can’t-show-emotions deal going on.”

“I see,” Max said. Huh, her brother sounds a lot like Zack, only less appealing. I bet he isn’t as good-looking, but name one person who is. She blinked. Wait a second, did I actually think that Zack is good-looking? Okay, he is an X5 and the word ‘round Manticore was that he was the best so it would make sense that…am I going into heat? No, that can’t be right. I had my last heat two weeks ago.

“Are you okay, Kara?” Jamie asked.

Max blinked and turned back to Jamie and smiled. “Yeah, Jamie, I’m fine. It’s just that I was thinking of someone from back in W—Winnipeg, that’s all.”

“You’re from Winnipeg? I didn’t know that,” Jamie said.

“Hey, you’ve only been working at the stupid company for that past month,” Max teased. They both laughed.

“True,” Jamie admitted. “What’s it like in Winnipeg? Does your family still live there or did you move from there when you were little or…sorry, Kara, I’ve got this bad habit of running my mouth sometimes. You’d think that I’d be over it, but no…”

Max just laughed again. “No, it’s cool, and you’re right. My family and I moved from Winnipeg to Vancouver when I was a kid.”

“Got any siblings?” Jamie asked. “Are they as pig-headed as my brother is?”

“No,” Max said. “I’ve got a brother. He’s my twin, actually.” For all I know, Krit and I could have been tossed into the same surrogate. Zack did say that we were brought to the unit at the same time. “He’s still in college. He goes to one of those big sports schools down in the States. I mean, it’s one of those places that you always hear about them winning the something-or-other bowl year after year.” Krit loved anything that had to do with athletics. If things were different, he would definitely have been at one of those schools.

“An athlete, huh?” Jamie said. “Sounds interesting.”

“Yeah, my brother’s an interesting guy,” Max said.

“Probably the most interesting thing my brother ever did was when we were kids and he led us—me and him, I mean—in playing games. I mean, he wasn’t boring, but…then again, we had a hectic childhood. Dad’s work had us moving around all the time. It’s not like I actually had much of a chance to really know him,” Jamie said.

“That’s tough,” Max said sympathetically. If you knew how much I know it sucks to be on the move and not to see or in your case, get to really know, your sibs. Thank goodness I actually saw Zack and even Brin for that brief time, however sad it was.

“What can you do about it, though?” Jamie said. She sighed. “I’m sorry, Kara. I didn’t mean to bring this conversation down like this.”

“It’s cool,” Max said. I don’t mind too much. I mean, I really can understand where Jamie’s coming from, not like I can tell her or anything. I wish I could tell her. It’d be nice to have a friend that I can actually tell everything and not have to worry about them ratting me out even accidentally. Geez, even with Logan. One false move from him or if somebody traces his hacks and if he’s got any info on my on his computers, then I could have been done for in a manner of speaking. I mean, look at how our friendship started.

She turned to look out the window of the bus. People sure have a habit of coming into or back into my life in unusual ways. Look at how Zack came back into my life. God, I was such a bitch to him when I thought that he was just some random guy who was hired right after Normal sent Herbal packing. If I had known that ‘Sam’ was really Zack from the start, if I had just fucking recognized him, then I wouldn’t have acted towards him the way that I did. I really wish that I didn’t act like that. I know that he’s forgiven me for that now.

Max played with one of the cuffs of her blouse. He’s really forgiven me for a lot over the years. Okay, the time when I was seven and he was about ten or eleven or so and I accidentally pushed him off of the tree branch and right into that huge mud puddle when we were outside on a training mission was one thing. That really was an accident! When he wanted me to leave Seattle the first time, I can see how pissed he probably was. He didn’t yell at me when he sort-of told me good-bye, but he still must have been annoyed at the very least. He had that look on his face. I hadn’t seen that look or something close to it since that one time about a year before we got the hell out of Manticore when Jondy, Syl, Jace, Lana, and I pulled a prank on Zack, Krit, Zane, and the other guys. I still don’t know why Tinga and Brin and the other girls didn’t join in and help us. But damn, Zack sure was mad then! Even then, his lips pouted in that really cute way…time out, Max!

She blinked and closed her eyes for a moment. This is really weird. Why the hell am I thinking of Zack as being incredibly gorgeous? He’s Zack, for crying out loud! You’ve grown up together. You thought of him as your big brother when you were a little girl. He’s the same guy who was there for you whenever you had a nightmare when you were small, who let you cry on his shoulder when the took Jack away because of that seizure right before we escaped, who was listening to you and was so nice when you were sad about leaving Seattle a few months ago, the one who when he finally does smile, just lights up an entire room. It’s just Zack! Calm down.

“Are you okay?” Jamie asked.

“I’m fine,” Max said. “Have you ever had one of those days when you just want to find the nearest mental hospital and check yourself in?”

“All the time,” Jamie said. “Today’s one of those days?”

“Big time,” Max said.