Title: Dream Within
Author: Restive Nature (aka Bavite)
Rated: NC-17
Disclaimer: All characters within this fiction are the property of Cameron/ Eglee. I just like to play with them.
Timeline: Six weeks after FN.
Pairing M/A
Summary: An unexpected accident causes Max to think about the future in a new way.
Chapter Twenty-three
A Little Something To Tell Ya
Christmas Morning
Alec stood in the doorway of the bathroom, simply watching her. Max rinsed her mouth out for a final time, a smile lighting up her face in response to the enigmatic one on his face. "What?" she finally asked as she shoved her toothbrush back into the Mason jar. Alec straightened up a little and held a hand out to her.
"It’s nothing," he murmured, pulling her close so that he could wrap his arms around her. "I was just thinking."
"Thinking what?" she asked softly, hesitantly. The morning had been full of mercurial moments and feelings and it was barely eight o’clock. Alec lifted on hand to brush her hair away from her face.
"It’s just that every morning," he began slowly, "as soon as I see your face, I think to myself how amazing it is that you’re even more beautiful than you were the day before."
Max felt a sigh coming on at the sweet sentiment. She sucked her lower lip in, chewing on it slightly as she mulled over his words. They were wonderful and obviously heartfelt. The only problem was, after this morning’s upheaval; she wasn’t feeling very beautiful. She wrinkled her nose up a little; about to reply to him when he spoke again, his hands tightening slightly on her waist.
"But this morning, you aren’t just beautiful," he amended. "You’re transcendent." Max couldn’t help the giggle that fell from her lips. Alec smiled at her reaction. It probably wasn’t what he’d been imagining. Max glanced back at the toilet and shrugged, then turned her face back to her husband.
"I don’t really feel it," she argued lightly. Alec followed her glance, seeming to understand what she meant.
"It’s not you face, your body or all the genetics in the world," he chuckled, stroking her hip. "I just don’t know what it is," he trailed off softly as Max regarded him thoughtfully. Alec had never had many opportunities to have his dreams come true. Certainly he’d never yearned to be an assassin or a cage fighter. She didn’t think that it was the secret wish of his heart to be the leader of a nation of freaks that had been despised by almost all. Here now was something that maybe he’d dreamed of and hoped for. And it was her body housing the fulfillment. It was an awesome thought and she felt a little teary.
"I love you," she whispered tremulously. Alec rested his cheek on her tangled hair; his hand moving from her hip to her back as it continued its steady motion of comfort.
"And I love you, so much more right now than I ever thought possible," he murmured back. Max smiled into his chest. If he loved her more, then she could only wonder how he would express it. Because the last month had been more than she dreamed, even with all the problems that cropped up between them.
"Alec," she sighed, hating to pull away from his embrace. But there was something she wanted much more. He lifted his head and leaned back a little to look at her, the unspoken response in his eyes. "Make love to me?" she asked in a soft voice. The crooked little smug grin that she loved on him made an appearance. And she couldn’t help responding with her own.
"You sure?" he grimaced slightly, hastening to explain himself at the quirk of her eyebrow. "I mean, I just don’t want to do anything… you know, smush the baby or anything." Max smothered a giggle. Why on earth was that always the first thought on men’s minds? He hadn’t yet, so why was he asking now?
"You know, aside from the obvious reasons," she spoke conspiratorially, "of physical prowess and killer looks, there’s a reason why I have the body I do."
"Oh really?" the twinkle in his eyes deepened as he played along with her. "And what would that be."
"Yeah, see there’s this really neat pattern to my body," Max went on, her own fingers tracing a distracted pattern over his chest. "There’s this layer of skin and then a thin layer of fat tissue. And then even another layer of muscle and on and on." Alec chuckled, obviously seeing what she was getting at. "All the way down to where the baby is. So believe me, you start squishing us, I’ll be the first to let you know." He laughed outright at that.
"You sure?" he echoed teasingly, staying her hand’s meandering path by lifting it to his mouth. "Cause there have been times that you liked me… squishing you."
"Believe me Alec," Max grunted. "I’ll tell you if something’s wrong."
"As long as you’re sure," he decided, the amusement changing slightly, deepening his voice. Max felt a small thrill run through her that they were so in synch now. Their moods just seemed to bounce off one another, complimenting, exaggerating, and bolstering each other. Alec’s actions cut off Max’s silent musings when he swung her up into his arms. Max responded automatically, wrapping her arms around his chest, her fingers clutching at the supple muscles underneath. There was a brief moment of panic, as her stomach roiled uncontrollably. But it settled quickly, after Max forcibly reminded herself that there was nothing left to be ill over. She pushed the thought from her mind with a note to herself to mention it to Alec later. She didn’t want anything to spoil the moment.
Alec carried her gently back into the bedroom, even as his lips sought hers. She tilted her head back, feeling a slight languorous, drowsy ease steal over her. She felt light-headed as she felt her back make contact with the bed. Alec never broke contact with her, aligning his body beside hers. Max continued to stroke his chest as he rumbled his approval, deep in his throat. Their tongues entwined, their hands joined, they spent long moments drinking each other in.
Alec shook his fingers loose from hers as he pulled his head back. Max just waited, content to let him be in control. With an endearing smile, he reached for the tie of her robe, easing the knot loose. He spread the fabric wide, his eyes roaming her body hungrily. Max watched him watching her, bemused as his eyes lingered over her stomach. A trembling finger traced the slight curve that adorned all women. Alec glanced up at her.
"I can still hardly believe it," he whispered. She nodded. Apparently she was not alone in her feelings of awe. She held her arms out to him and he came very willingly.
*****
Christmas, mid-morning
"Oh my God!" Max exclaimed, sitting up suddenly. Alec followed the motion, but slower.
"What is it?" he asked, his voice tinged with worry and anticipation at the same time. "You’re not gonna throw up again, are you?" he asked desperately, his face twisting up with the thought. Max absently shook her head.
"Case," she explained in short tones. She turned to face her husband.
"What about him?" Alec went from mild disgust to mild puzzlement.
"His gift," she replied, realizing that her answers weren’t very explanatory. But he seemed to get the drift. He tilted his head back and reached behind himself to rearrange his pillow.
"We got him a couple of things," he informed her. "And you mailed them two months ago so that they’d get there in plenty of time. Charlie has them wrapped and they brought them with them when they moved. He’s probably playing with them right now."
"Oh," Max deflated a little. They’d never spoken of Case’s gifts, just the things they’d already chosen for their friends. They’d had a few shopping excursions for others and Max had gone shopping with Cindy for her husband. And judging by the little pile of presents under the tree of theirs that she didn’t recognize, Alec had found a little time too. But if they’d included everyone else in their lives, it stood to reason that she wouldn’t forget her nephew. Hell, even Logan had been included. After a little deliberation, they’d decided to send him a new system upgrade for his computer, along with Dix and companies recently developed spyware. Max almost giggled aloud at the simple thought of his geekish enthusiasm when he opened that present.
"And we got Charlie some tools he’ll need for work," Alec continued. Max nodded.
"Okay," she sighed, as she swung her legs over the bed, reaching once more for her robe. "Since that’s taken care of, I’m gonna go shower." Alec sat up again quickly, a slight pout on his face.
"But… presents!" he said so hopefully that Max almost wanted to cuddle him like a child. She smirked; wondering how early maternal instincts kicked in.
"But I thought you said you already got your best present today," she reminded him in silky sweet tones, while tying her sash. He rolled his eyes at her. Which luckily for him, she was beginning to find more endearing than annoying.
"Yeah," he whined again, "but… presents. They are like icing on the cake," he muttered, gesturing abstractedly at her stomach.
"And they can’t wait five minutes while I shower?" she teased. It looked as if he was going to continue pleading, but suddenly changed tactics. He shrugged and moved to get off the bed as well.
"That’s fine," he sighed. "I just thought you’d want to open the gifts I got you. I was excited about it. But it doesn’t really matter."
Max was fully aware of his attempt to prove that he could indeed manipulate her. This time by working on her curiosity and guilt. But it only worked when she didn’t see it coming. She moved to stand in front of him, leaning against his shoulder. His arms came up automatically.
"I’m sorry," she whispered. "It’s just that it’s already been an eventful morning. I just wanted to take a few minutes, get back into routine. You know everything just changed again and I needed some time to do something that’s completely normal and completely me. Something where I don’t have to think about all the changes. Shower seemed like the perfect thing ‘cause I always have a shower in the morning." She hid her smile as he went perfectly still.
"You’re happy about this, right?" he asked carefully. Max snuggled a little closer into him.
"Deliriously so," she sighed happily. "I just feel strange again." She pulled back and giggled at him. "You know, it’s not every day you discover that a mini-me has taken up residence in your body."
Alec sighed too, although he didn’t look quite as apprehensive as before. So Max got her shower, complete with back-scrubber and a good-natured argument on whether the baby would be a mini-her or a mini-him.
*****
Christmas, noon
"Quiet! Max and Alec here!" Joshua shouted when Max and Alec finally made their way into headquarters shortly before lunch. They’d heard the noise of the revelers from over a block away. Almost as soon as they’d walked out of their apartment building. The noise tapered off, as people finished their conversations and turned towards the newcomers. Max’s eyes were slightly wild at Joshua’s next pronouncement. "Quiet! Max and Alec have announcement!"
Max and Alec exchanged bewildered glances. After some quick discussion earlier, they’d decided to take Original Cindy and Sketchy aside and share their news. It wasn’t as if the rest of TC needed to hear it, seeing how most of the older folks knew, or had guessed. But all the faces were waiting expectantly. Alec gave a quick jerk of his head, as if to say, ‘you tell them’. Max just as quickly shook her head. Alec chewed at his lower lip. They couldn’t very well demure at the moment. He heaved a sigh and turned to the crowd.
"As some of you may already know," he spoke in a ringing voice, so that his words carried throughout the room, "Max is pregnant." He couldn’t say anymore for the cheers that had broken out. They did hear Mole’s caustic "about time!" But anything else from the transhuman was drowned out by Original Cindy’s excited squeal.
The black woman threw herself at her best friend, having catapulted out of her seat. Max had seconds only to brace herself from the flurry. Cindy hugged her around the shoulders tightly and Max could see Sketchy following at a more sedate pace. He shook Alec’s hand and offered his own words, even as O.C. rocked her boo back and forth, her exuberance pouring forth.
"Oh Original Cindy is just so happy for the pair of ya," she crowed. She finally let Max loose and pulled back to regard her friend. Apparently she was satisfied with what she saw, because she gave a small nod and turned to Alec. "And you! Better not let Original hearin’ ya go on and on about what a stud ya are. It takes two to make a baby boo, ya hear?"
"I wouldn’t dream of it Cindy," Alec promised with a solemn face. Sketchy covered his own snigger with an extremely fake sounding cough. Cindy spun around to fix her stern eye on him and he held up his hands in supplication.
"Do I get a turn now?" he asked in mock whining tones. Cindy fought a smile and stepped aside. Max was swept up in her other friend’s embrace as he whispered in her ear, "Congratulations Max. It couldn’t have happened to better people."
"Thanks Sketch," she murmured back as he released her. Sketchy turned to the crowd.
"Anybody else got any good news to add?" he yelled. "May as well have all the reason we can to party!" There was silence for a moment and then he threw a hand up in the air. "So let’s rock!" Everyone laughed at his enthusiasm and someone turned on some Christmas music. Cindy pulled Max and Alec to the table they’d been sitting at and conversation and good cheer continued.
"Yo Mole!" Dalton yelled out from across the room. "Break out the eggnog!"
"Oh crap," Alec muttered as he eyed Max’s suddenly green countenance. "He just had to say that, didn’t he?"
*****
January 3rd
The phone rang, thankfully quiet as Max emerged from the bathroom. She padded on bare feet over to the counter, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. Six-thirty a.m. bathroom calls were not appreciated, no matter how much or little sleep she required now. She answered the phone in mid-ring, keeping an ear alert for Alec, who she’d left slumbering. There were a few mumbles and groans, but it didn’t sound like he was getting up.
"Hello?" she asked, her voice gravelly from the early hour.
"Hey Max," came Doc’s familiar voice. "I’m sorry about calling so early, but I thought you’d want to know." Max glanced at the clock, noting that she’d been puttering around for a while, since it was nearly seven now. She yawned and rubbed at her eyes.
"Know what?" she muttered, trying to perk herself up. She wasn’t doing very well.
"I called Dr. Carr’s office last night," Doc prompted. Max blinked a few times, recalling that Doc and Alec had wanted her to see Dr. Carr about her memory loss. Apparently, despite the few recalls she’d had, that was still a go.
"And?"
"He was delayed getting back," Doc informed her. "But the nurse assured me he’d be in this morning. He’s going to call at eight. I thought you and Alec would want to be in on that conversation."
"Darn right," Max muttered, finally coming awake enough to deal with Doc’s news. "Why don’t Alec and I meet you at my office at about quarter till?"
"Uh no offence," Doc chuckled, "but my chairs are more comfortable than yours. And I gave them my number, not yours."
"Oh all right," Max grumbled, giving in quickly, because it didn’t really matter where they met. And though she wouldn’t admit it aloud, Doc’s chairs were comfy. "We’ll see you at quarter to eight."
"Okay, see you at eight," Doc chuckled, thoroughly familiar with Max’s lackadaisical timekeeping.
"Yeah, bye Dick," she muttered darkly.
"Uh, it’s Doc," he corrected mildly.
"I know," and she hung up. She set the phone down and drew in a lungful of air. "Alec!"
*****
January 3rd, 7:50 am
"It wasn’t funny," Alec scolded as he opened the door to Doc’s office after being invited to enter. Max continued to giggle intermittently.
"What’s not funny?" Doc asked, his mouth already curving up at Max’s infectious laughter. He watched her enter and collapse into one of the chairs, laughing hard enough that she was starting to wipe tears from her eyes.
Alec shut the door behind him and gestured at his wife. "Mommy to be here thought it was funny when she screamed at me this morning and scared the crap outta me."
"So funny!" Max gasped out. "Comforter… tripped." Doc immediately got the picture and smirked at the overwrought transgenic.
"Christ Maxie!" Alec exhaled sharply. "I thought something was seriously wrong."
Max tried to compose herself, smoothing her face into a repentant mask. "I’m sorry baby," she apologized; though it was far from completely sincere. "Forgive me?" she asked softly, staring up at him, fluttering her lashes just a little. Alec sighed heavily, before crossing over to her and dropping a kiss on her forehead.
"Only ‘cause you’re the mother of my child," he quipped.
"But you do have to admit it was hilarious as hell," she giggled again, then straightened in her chair. "And your child? Excuse me?"
Alec slumped down into the chair next to her as Doc looked on in fond amusement. "What?" Alec demanded lightly. "Somebody else been fathering children on you?"
"That’s not what I meant smart ass," she growled at him. "I meant what about me? You know possession is nine tenths of the law."
"Very true," Alec smiled brightly. "You can possess the morning sickness. You can possess the weight gain. And you can possess the sore back, the swollen ankles, the need to pee every five minutes-!" He was cut off by Max’s pained groan.
"Oh God," she moaned to Doc. "Is there any way you’re equipped to do a transplant Doc?" He was saved from answering by Alec’s continued wit.
"Oh sorry Maxie, but see, I just don’t possess the right equipment for that kind of thing."
"I didn’t mean that," Max smiled at him. "But I’m starting to think a brain transplant is in order."
"Oh Maxie, you wound me," Alec sighed theatrically as he grabbed at her hand and pulled it to his lips to press a soft kiss against her knuckles.
"Ha!" she snorted. "If you want to keep sleeping in my bed, you will never mention swollen ankles again. Got it?"
"Understood ma’am," he twinkled at her. The repartee might have continued to flow, but the phone finally rang. Doc moved around his desk to answer, seating himself as he did.
"Hello?" There was a slight pause and then a quirky smile lit his face. "No, that’s no problem Sam. They’re right here, so I’ll just switch to the speaker phone." He fiddled for a moment, setting the receiver back in its cradle. "You still there Sam?"
"Right here. Hey Max, Alec."
"Hey Dr. Carr," the couple chorused, throwing mildly amused glances at each other.
"So what’s this I hear about Max losing her memory?"
*****
Many long and embarrassing minutes later, Max had wrapped up her tale, with occasional comments from Alec and Doc thrown in. Dr. Carr seemed as surprised as the rest of them. But at least he had a workable theory, not dissimilar to Alec’s first reaction to Max’s headache that fateful morning.
"Well Max," Sam chuckled, "I was going to say ‘remember when I told you", but I doubt you would."
"Remember what?" Max demanded testily. Alec had leaned across to rest his arm on the back of her chair. His thumb was now rubbing against her shoulder blade. Max squirmed a little, distracted by the soothing movement. Alec himself barely seemed to notice that he was doing it. Giving up her inner struggle over maintaining her ire or submitting to his caress, she leaned back into it. Alec just responded by adding in the rest of his fingers to the mix.
"After your accident last year, I warned both you and Logan that we’d have to be careful to avoid further head injuries," Sam went on, unperturbed by her mild outburst. "Although I didn’t think you’d have a problem after six months."
"Why would another head injury be bad?" Alec spoke up, then glanced at Doc. "Aside from the obviousness badness that is a head injury."
"Well, let me give you an example. Twenty years ago, a colleague of mine saw a young man who’d had mild blunt trauma to his chest. He was hit by a basketball, if I recall correctly. Now last year, he began having chest pains. When my colleague took chest x-rays, it was discovered that the sac around his heart was bruised and he never fully recovered from it, thus giving him problems later in life."
"Yeah, but that doesn’t really qualify," Doc argued. "For one, Max is an X5, who’s been designed to heal rapidly and completely. Two, your example of an ordinary was a heart problem, not memory loss." He would have gone on but Sam broke in.
"Actually, it’s similar in a way. Max received a trauma to her brain. Even as much as Manticore was able to do, the mind and memory is a very tricky thing. It could be something as simple as jostling her head while she was sleeping knocked a few wires loose that were initially damaged in the auto accident."
"But again," Alec interrupted this time, "she’s an X5, she heals more rapidly than an ordinary."
"Not necessarily Alec," Dr. Carr countered gently. "You all know about Max’s virus. She was still affected by it when the accident occurred. That made any healing she was doing from anything extremely slow. And if she were to constantly jar her head, or even shake it a little too vehemently, it might just re-initialize the damage, until it finally became too much."
"Making her lose her memory completely," Doc concluded. There was an air of resignation hanging about the room.
"Well, what about doing that CT scan, like I asked?" Alec piped up.
"Actually, there are a couple reasons why I wouldn’t recommend that at this point," Sam answered easily. "First and foremost is because of Max’s pregnancy. While the scan would only be of her head, let’s not risk that until a last resort."
Max was nodding along with him. "Definitely," she agreed. "And the other reason?"
"Well, you said so yourself. You’ve been having little flashes. Remembering things, memories being triggered by association with items or events."
"And that’s definitely good, right?" Alec’s voice was quietly anxious. Max threw him a glance, recognizing his need for comfort as well. She leaned her head against his shoulder, her hand reaching to squeeze his knee gently. He smiled quickly down at her, before turning his attention back to the telephone.
"Well, it’s certainly encouraging," Sam chuckled. "Without doing a full exam myself, I can’t give you any certainties. But hopefully this trend will continue until Max has most or all of her memories back. But I feel I should warn you-!"
"Oh how did I know this was coming?" Max muttered under her breath, rolling her eyes.
"Just a precaution Max," Sam soothed her. "There is a chance you might never recover any more than you already have."
"Thanks," Max quipped sarcastically. "I’ll remember that." Doc choked back a muffled laugh while Alec shook his head.
They ended the phone call, with Sam giving them a warning list of any symptoms of further deterioration to watch for. And an invitation to come in for a check-up, pre-natal and otherwise when she was ready. Doc hung up the phone again; making sure the line was disconnected, then leaned back in his chair. Max was shifting restlessly in her chair as she’d done intermittently for the last fifteen minutes.
"So I guess that’s that, huh?" he asked of her. She glanced up at him.
"No that’s not it," she grimaced at him. Alec cocked his head to the side to regard her. "I don’t care what the hell Sam says. I’m getting my memory back!"
"That’s my girl," Alec said proudly, winking at Doc. The other transgenic seemed to do a double take.
"Yeah, you know what?" Doc was nodding slowly. The couple shrugged, unable for once to follow the rationale. "I think you’re right Max. I think you will fully recover." He turned to Alec. "Have you noticed that she’s just like our old Maxie. That’s a really good sign. Or bad, depending on who you are and how badly you’ve pissed her off."
Alec laughed and then pulled a grimace. "Guess I’d better break out the battle armor then, huh?"
"Just the cup dear," Max replied sweetly, patting his cheek. "Just the cup." Alec followed her downward glance and gulped.
Chapter Twenty-four
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