DISCLAIMER: All DARK ANGEL characters belong to James Cameron and Charles Eglee (Cameron Eglee Productions) and DARK ANGEL itself belongs to FOX.

ARCHIVE: No

Artwork courtesy of Valjean & JensenAckles.org

Alec was almost back to his apartment when his cell phone rang. Fishing the phone out of his jeans pocket, he flipped it open and put it to his ear.

"Hello."

Alec?

"Asha? (He was truly surprised -- and suspicious.) How'd you get my number?"

Logan gave it to me awhile ago. Listen, Alec, can you meet me at Crash for a drink?

"Tonight?"

Yeah, if you don't mind. It's ... kind of important.

Alec glanced at the time, then up at the light drizzle of rain starting to come down. "I'll be there in thirty minutes," he said, his breath a vapor in the rapidly dropping temperature of the air. "But you're buyin'."

Pausing only long enough to grab a jacket at his place, he headed for the motorpool and his bike.

*****

"Do you really think it's wise fixing up Asha with Alec?" Logan asked.

Max sighed deeply, and snuggled closer into the warmth of his arms. They were lying together on the couch, watching the fire, her head resting against his chest as he cradled her. This was how it should be, she thought ... what she'd always wanted ... an ordinary life of domestic bliss.

So why does there seem to be something missing?

"Max?" Logan said again. "You awake?"

"Yeah," she said. "About Asha and Alec ... I just thought they'd compliment each other. Alec needs someone in his life. Asha could make him happy."

"Max," Logan said, his tone rather paternal, "just because you're happy loving an ordinary man doesn't mean that would work for Alec, too."

"I don't want Alec to love an ordinary man," Max said with an impish grin. "If he swung that way I'd have to watch him around you."

"You know what I mean," Logan scolded, his arms tightening around her in warm affection. "I just mean that it's not up to you to look out for Alec's happiness. He's a grown man. He can find his own emotional way."

"I just thought those two should get a second chance," Max replied evenly, praying that Logan wouldn't sense how hard it was for her to talk about Alec right now -- that the facade of nonchalance she was putting on was convincing. "Besides, it's Asha's mother who might be imprisoned beneath Pioneer Square so she needs to be involved anyway."

"Well," Logan said, "who or what Alec chooses to love or go to bed with really isn't our problem anyway." He kissed the top of her head. "And speaking of bed ..."

"You go on," Max said gently. "I'm not tired yet."

"I'm not tired either."

She couldn't. She just couldn't. Not tonight. Not after what Alec had said to her.

"I ... I don't feel too well," she said lamely. "Headache. Maybe I need to take some tryptophan."

Logan took the hint, and bless him he wasn't even upset. "All right, Max," he said, the servos whirling as he got to his feet. "Take all the time you need. Just know that I'll always be waiting."

Max stared at the closed bedroom door for a very long time after he left, and wondered what she'd done to deserve such a wonderful man in her life.

*****

"You're always going to be her second choice, you know," Asha said as she tipped back her second Tequila Shooter. "Just like I'd always be second choice for Logan."

Alec sipped his Scotch -- a brand slightly inferior to what he'd had earlier that evening -- and smacked his lips. "Maybe that's all we ever deserve to be," he said, the masochistic side of his personality voicing an opinion. "Second choices."

"Speak for yourself!" Asha practically snorted. "I've got more pride than that, and I thought you did too."

"Why am I here, Asha?" Alec asked. "Why'd you call me? You lookin' to get laid?" (That was the liquor talking.) He was smiling, but his eyes were serious.

"Is that all you ever think about?" she said with disgust. "Sex? Believe it or not, Alec, you're not really God's gift to women. In fact, most of the time you're a pig."

Alec grinned and shook his head, at the same time scanning the room for familiar (or Familiar) faces. Old habits died hard. It was also why he'd deliberately chosen a table in the corner where he could watch both entrances. "You sound like Max," he said quietly.

"I'll take that as a compliment," Asha replied, tasting her own drink again. Then she looked him square in the eye. "Aren't you going to ask me to come home with you?"

"You mean to my toxic waste dump of an apartment?" he said, smirking.

"We could go to my place," she offered.

"And do what, Asha? Have hot monkey sex and pretend we're both not in love with other people? No thanks. Even I'm not quite enough of an animal to manage that -- at least not with you. I usually reserve that kind of mind-numbing fun for strangers."

She laughed, and gave her head a slight toss. "Suit yourself," she said. "You're the one who first suggested it. Don't honor my offer when I offer my honor."

"I'm honored you offered your ... er ... honor," Alec said, stumbling over the words slightly because he'd had an awful lot of Scotch tonight. Time to quit drinking ... He pushed back from the table. "I'm goin' home," he said. "And sadly -- for you and me both -- alone."

"Your choice," Asha said lightly. "But even if we're not going to have a torrid affair, I'd still appreciate your help finding my mother."

"I'm gonna help Logan and Eyes Only anyway," Alec said as he shrugged into his jacket and tossed some bills on the table to pay the tab after all. Pig or not, he wasn't really going to make the lady buy.

"Because Max wants you to?" Asha said, a knowing look in her eye.

Alec's grin wasn't quite so pleasant this time. "Because he needs my help," he said, "and God, I do sound like her, don't I. Must be catchin'. That whole 'save the world' complex." However, something was still bothering the X5. "Tell the truth, Asha," he added. "Why'd you really call me here tonight?"

"Maybe I saw you at Logan's and realized what a great guy you are," she said. "Maybe I wanted to see if I could win you away from Max. Or maybe ... maybe I really did just want to get laid."

Alec studied her face for a long moment, not quite buying it. This had been too easy ... convenient ... not seeing Asha in so long then her suddenly throwing herself at him -- even though she suspected he was in love with Max and she'd admitted to still loving Logan. However, quite honestly, he was getting a migraine and he just wanted to go home. He'd think about it tomorrow.

"Night, Asha," he said, his lips pressed together in perplexity as he headed for the street and his bike.