out of the way as possible.
'Hey,' he said, sitting next to her on the blanket. 'What are you doing here?' His voice was cold, and he didn't smile.
Isabel felt terrible. 'I had to see you,' she said in a rush, 'I'm so sorry I hung up on you, Jesse. I just didn't know what else to do! My brother was there, and I could tell he was suspicious. I panicked.'
Jesse relaxed a little. 'I know, I figured it out,' he said.
'I knew you'd understand.' Isabel reached for his hand, but Jesse pulled away. 'What's wrong?' she asked.
He gazed out over the crowded lawn, refusing to meet her eye. 'It got me thinking.'
'What did?'
'You lying to your brother about me. Why don't you tell him the truth?'
Isabel didn't know what to say. 'We… we talked about this, Jesse,' she started.
'We talked about keeping it from your parents,' Jesse interrupted. 'Because I work for your father. But you and your brother are supposed to be close. Why can't you tell him how you feel about me?'
Because he's an alien king and he thinks I'm supposed to obey everything he says, she thought. 'It's complicated,' she said aloud.
'Too complicated,' Jesse agreed.
Alarm bells went off in Isabel's head. 'What do you mean?'
For the first time, Jesse turned to face her. 'You don't want to tell your brother because you think he won't approve,' he said.
Isabel opened her mouth, but no words came out. He was right.
'That's what got me thinking,' Jesse went on. 'Your brother wouldn't approve, your friends wouldn't approve, and your father would fire me. Because I'm too old for you, Isabel. I'm out of college… I'm out of law school!… and you're not even a freshman yet.'
'But I don't care about that,' she cried. 'Why should it matter how old you are? It's just a number!'
Jesse took her hand now. 'Honey, it's not just a number,'
he said gently. 'It's experience, it's years of learning how the world works. I just… know more than you do. I can't explain it. There's so much that you haven't done, that you haven't seen yet.'
Isabel stared at him, dumbfounded. She had done and seen more than he could imagine. He wouldn't even believe most of the things she'd seen. But she couldn't tell him that. She couldn't risk him finding out her secret.
'You're young, and you should be able to act young,' Jesse went on. 'You deserve to have a boyfriend you don't have to lie about.'
Isabel pulled her hand away. 'I can handle it,' she said shortly. Her whole life was a lie; why should her love life be any different?
Jesse shook his head. 'I know this sounds condescending,' he said, 'but I don't think you can handle it. I don't even think I can handle it.'
Isabel kept her eyes on the picnic basket she'd packed with such care. 'Are you breaking up with me?' she whispered.
There was a long pause. Finally Isabel couldn't stand it. She raised her eyes to Jesse's distraught face.
'Yes,' he said.
'Score!' Michael yelled. 'I am the greatest!' He began his ridiculous victory dance around the foosball table, making his stomach ripple as he shuffled his feet.
Maria shook her head. Michael would never do this dance in front of anyone else. In a way, it proved what a deep intimacy he shared with her. And in another way, it proved what a total loser he was.
'It doesn't count if you're controlling both teams,' Maria pointed out.
Michael stopped mid-ripple. 'If you would just play with me, I wouldn't have to be both teams.'
'Foosball is stupid.'
'You only think that because you suck at it,' Michael said. He halfheartedly continued his dance. Maria returned to reading the Rolling Stone that lay open on her lap.
'I could coach you,' Michael offered.
'No thanks.'
'I'll let you win the first game.'
'How sweet,' Maria said dryly, keeping her attention on the magazine.
Michael suddenly leaped across the room, planting himself right in front of Maria's face as she lounged on his filthy couch. He snatched the magazine away from her.
'Hey!' she yelped. 'I was reading that!'
He began his dance again, holding up his T-shirt to show off his bare stomach as he sucked it in and out. 'You know you want to play with me, baby,' he cried. 'You can't resist me!'
Maria stared at him, openmouthed. He looked like an idiot. She started to laugh.
Michael grinned back at her, then flopped down on the couch and took her in his arms. 'Told you you couldn't resist me,' he said, kissing her.
It was true. As much as he drove her nuts, Maria couldn't stay away from Michael for long. Even on those days when she couldn't think of a single thing that was attractive about him, all she had to do was look in his eyes and she was a goner. 'I thought we were gonna do
something today,' she said against his mouth.
'We are doing something,' he murmured, slowly moving his hand down her side.
'Something outside,' she said.
'This is better.'
Maria closed her eyes and kissed him some more. She could do this forever, just lie in Michael's arms and forget about everything else. 'No,' she said abruptly, pushing him off her. 'You said we could go out.'
Michael ran his hand through his long hair. 'It's a figure of speech,' he said, his voice frustrated.
Maria jumped up from the couch and began to pace around his small apartment. 'I'm sick of hanging around here all the time, Michael,' she complained. 'Other people go to movies, or go bowling, or… or whatever. I blew off my mother today when she needed my help. I thought we had plans.'
She glanced out the small window in his living room, and stopped in surprise.
'Fine,' Michael sighed. 'What do you want to do?'
But Maria barely heard him. She stepped closer to the window and peered outside. There was that kid from the Crashdown, that strange little girl. She was sitting on the hood of a car parked across the street from Michael's building. Just sitting there, writing in a notebook. Suddenly the girl glanced up… right at Maria.
Maria gasped and leaped to the side, out of sight of the window. 'There's someone out there,' she hissed.
Michael was instantly on alert. 'Where?' he asked, rushing to Maria's side.
'Across the street.'
He eased himself up to the side of the window and peered around the edge.
Maria chewed on her lip, worried. Who was this kid? And what was she doing here? Seeing her at the Crash- down was one thing, but why would she be in Michael's neighborhood? Why was she watching Michael's apartment? Was she some kind of alien-hunter? Or one of the Skins who had somehow survived Tess's firestorm?
'It's a little girl,' Michael said dubiously.
'Uh-huh.' Maria took some calming breaths. They had managed to handle every alien threat so far. They would get through this one too.
Michael stepped out in front of the window.
'What are you doing?' Maria shrieked. 'She'll see you!'
Michael pushed open the window. 'Hey, kid! Scram!' he yelled.
Maria couldn't believe it. She pushed him aside and stared through the window. The girl hastily threw her notebook into a backpack and jumped off the car. She ran off down the road.
'She's not a stray dog, Michael,' Maria snapped. 'For all you know, she's going to get reinforcements.'
He rolled his eyes. 'Think about it. Did she look dangerous?'
