Author: Gretchen
E-mail: haunted_dildo@yahoo.com
Rating: G
Disclaimer: Title is from a song by Air off the Virgin Sucides soundtrack, I don't own Roswell, because if I did, it would be a UC funfest
Description: I wanted polar fluff, I wrote polar fluff. I don't like how some of it came out, but oh well I need fluff damnit. This takes some liberty on the show, because well I think, but don't remember, if Max was the one who came up with the rules or not. But this is fluff and it works! Um, but anyway, takes place in fifth grade, they're still aliens, but nothing from the show happens.
Michael sat down at the rickety kitchen table in his trailer. He normally hated to be here, but this was the only place where he could accomplish his task without the fifth grade art teacher showing off his card to the entire class. She thought that he was a natural – he thought that she was crazy. That was what brought him here to the kitchen of Hank Guerin’s trailer, seated at the table, which was normally covered with beer bottles, with glitter, crayons, markers, and construction paper – things that were necessary to accomplish his task, to make the perfect birthday card for the girl who was just now turning eleven year old, Elizabeth Parker.
Normally, Michael would have done no such thing, he had a secret to hide, that was what Max and Isabel said. He knew the rules, he agreed to most of them, but Liz was an exception. She was nice to him, she was the only one who baked cookies on his birthday, and he liked her. She wasn’t mean to Michael the way that Max was, she treated him like a normal person who had feelings – plus she was pretty. Michael sighed as he thought about Liz’s long brown hair that shined from every angle and her wide brown eyes that revealed her every emotion. He scratched his eyebrow and continued his task; he only had twenty more minutes before he had to catch the bus, twenty minutes to create the perfect birthday card.
He didn’t know what it was about Liz Parker, but she just spoke to him. It was like she understood that he was different, just like he knew that she was different from the rest of the humans – she was always kind and worried about him. He knew that she could be trusted, that she would never think of him as a monster, but he had to pretend to be wary of her, to hide his true feelings, because the one time that Michael had said something about Liz, Max had told him that “she would never love trash like him.” But Michael would not be hindered, he knew the shy glances that they shared – his social worker called it playground love, something that he vehemently denied. No, he did not love Liz Parker, he was absolutely head over heals infatuated AND in love with her. He grinned softly, he’d begun paying more attention in school since Liz had started talking to him – he wanted to impress her.
Waving his hand over the glued on glitter to make it dry faster, his powers were another thing that Michael had been practicing, unbeknownst to either Isabel or Max, he wanted to impress Liz. He justified this through the idea that with his special powers he could show Liz that he was unique and better than all the other boys who crushed on the quite girl as well. Why was he so willing to let Liz in? Was it that weird tingling sensation that he got whenever she looked at him? Was it the way that he felt… connected to her? He didn’t know, but he trusted his instincts and his instincts told him to make this card and hope that she liked it – a lot. Then maybe he would get to know her better, make her more comfortable with the idea of him and then reveal his otherworldly genetics.
Michael ran a hand through his sandy brown hair while looking at the clock – four minutes. Only four minutes to finish his birthday card for Liz, only four minutes to think of the perfect inscription. He reached for the purple marker, her favorite color, and began to write.
Happy Birthday Liz! I wanted to make you something special because you always go out of your way to do nice things for me. I hope that you have a good birthday and that you like the card that I made you. You are very pretty and I like you. I hope that you like me too.
-Michael
Michael sighed and looked over at the clock. He had a minute to get outside and catch the bus. He read over the inscription and bit his lip, it wasn’t what he wanted to say at all, but it would have to do. He sighed and decided that he would risk his fragile heart, despite his better judgment. Picking up a green marker, which was his favorite color, he wrote ps. Would you be my girlfriend? Michael didn’t know what possessed him to write this, but Liz’s best friend Maria had a boyfriend named Kyle and he’d seen Liz cry once over not being pretty enough to have a boyfriend, and well Liz was beautiful. Somewhat satisfied with the card, he tucked it safely in his backpack and ran out the trailer door to catch the bus.
Time passed slowly as the bus drove to Roswell Elementary. He swore that he saw a snail pass the bus a while back, which was probably due to the growing apprehension he felt. Michael scratched his eyebrow and tapped his foot against the bottom of the bus. tap. What if Liz didn’t like it? tap. What if Liz wanted Max instead? tap. Those doe eyes of hers may not have been sneaking peaks at him whenever the teacher wasn’t looking; he could just be seeing something that he wished was there. tap. What if she thought that he was a monster? tap. Michael thought of Liz’s sincerity and he shook his head. No, Liz wasn’t mean like all the other people, she understood him and never did judge him. A soft smile spread across his face as he thought about her most recent gift – a zip lock bag containing four anganettes, an Italian cookie that her grandmother was famous for. Liz had saved them especially for Michael, something that Max had abhorred and something that Michael rubbed in Max’s face for at least a week. It was no secret that Max liked Liz, Michael just happened to like Liz more.
The wheels squealed to a stop, while the bus lurched forward slightly. Michael loved that feeling of flying forward and then falling backwards, it symbolized the arrival of school, something that he hated, because of all of the rules, but loved because it was free from Hank and well, Liz was there. He could see her from outside the window, smiling at one of Alex’s quips while swaying slightly and twirling a thin strand of hair through her nimble fingers. She was beautiful. Michael sighed and practically raced off the bus, passing a confused Max and Isabel Evans in his wake. He was on a mission, and if he did not accomplish what he set out to do right then, he would not have the gall later on in the day and his fantasy would fade away into nothingness. It was fifth grade now, he had to let Liz know.
Her eyes bore expectantly into his, never blinking as he rushed forward to meet her. Liz just nodded and followed Michael off to a tree in a far off corner of the playground. He didn’t know why she was so willing to follow him, unless she trusted him, and if she trusted him then she had to like him and if she liked him then well, this card was worth losing an hour of sleep to clean off the table, think up a design and complete his task. “Liz?” Michael asked insecurely while she turned to face him, both children hidden underneath the verdant foliage of the tree.
“Michael?” Liz asked as she continued to search his eyes, desperately needing to know if he felt the way that she did. Did he finally realize how she felt about him? Did he realize how connected she had felt to him ever since the moment that she first saw him in third grade? Did he know how she carved “L.P. + M.G. = TL4E” into the trunk of the same tree only a week ago? Did he know that HE was what she wanted for her birthday? Unable to stand the silence any longer she bit her lip and looked away from his intoxicating brown eyes.
Michael, suddenly remembering how to work his mouth, reached for the card, buried deep within the most secure area of his backpack and took in a big breath. “I made this for you Liz, uh… happy birthday.” He smiled, somewhat startled as she met his eyes again, her chocolate pools suddenly lit up as she took the card from him.
Liz sighed softly as she looked at the cover of the card – it was a picture her in front of a birthday cake, with eleven candles on it. “Michael it’s so pretty.” Liz blushed slightly as she watched him beam with pride. Encouraged, she opened it and read the inscription aloud. “Happy Birthday Liz! I wanted to make you something special because you always go out of your way to do nice things for me. I hope that you have a good birthday and that you like the card that I made you. You are very pretty and I like you. I hope that you like me too. Michael.” He liked her TOO! She grinned and then silently reread her favorite part, “ps. Would you be my girlfriend?” She nodded softly, feeling his intense gaze burning into hers. Never one for many words, she wrapped her arms around Michael and awkwardly pressed her lips against his. She’d gotten her birthday wish after all, her first kiss! And it had been with the boy that she liked the most in the world – Michael Guerin.
Michael blushed suddenly as he felt her pull away. He was not expecting that, but he wasn’t complaining. In fact, he couldn’t get the taste of Liz’s lips off of his mind. “So that means you’re my girlfriend?”
“Uh huh, now be a good boyfriend and kiss me.” Liz smiled softly and felt Michael press his lips against hers, bringing her senses into a tailspin. After kissing her relatives for years and listening to Maria whine about how Kyle was bad at it, she’d never expected that a kiss could be so wonderful. But maybe it was different if you were with the one person in the world that you wanted to be with, she mused before giving into the kiss.
Michael didn’t want to break apart from Liz, but oxygen was becoming necessary, plus they both had school to worry about. He took her hand in his and grinned as she smiled up at him. “Liz, we have to get to class, but you’re still my girlfriend and you know what? You’ll be my ONLY girlfriend because one day I’m going to marry you.”
Liz’s grin got even bigger. Not only did Michael want to be her boyfriend, but he wanted to marry her one day. “Ok I’ll be your only girlfriend, but only if you can be my ONLY boyfriend, because one day I’m going to marry you too and we’ll have lots of pretty babies.”
"Ok" Michael agreed and walked with her to class, showing off to everyone, including the very jealous Max, that Liz was his girlfriend and that they would get married one day and have lots of babies.
... And that’s exactly what they did.
The End
Roswell Fanfics