A New Beginning

while before she slept again.

Maybe we can all relax a little when we reach Colorado, Max thought. It was possible, but not likely, he realized.

It won't be long now, Maria thought as she watched the road ahead. She could see mountains out her window in the distance. For years she had been afraid that this would never happen, that she would never leave Roswell, never leave New Mexico.

Maria remembered her school report in sixth grade. New Mexico was one of the largest states in the country (fourth or fifth, she couldn't remember which). But it only had one and a half million people… and over half of those lived in the three major cities, of which Roswell was defi- nitely not one.

And they're about to lose the six of us, she thought. She shot a glance a Michael. They should have been friendlier to illegal aliens.

Michael was sitting in silence, like the rest of them. What drove her crazy was that he seemed almost relaxed, even after that incident with Liz.

Everyone else was on edge. Max seemed particularly tense, with every muscle on his wiry frame taut. And still, somehow he managed to give the impression of brooding even as he drove.

When Michael saw her looking at him, he actually grinned back at her. He was taller than Max, and more thickly built. Now his comfortable frame was sprawled on the seat. Something was definitely going on with him.

Maria knew the other… more normal… members of the group were waiting for the same thing she was. In the dis- tance, she saw the sign. In a few seconds, she could read it: YOU ARE LEAVING NEW MEXICO, LAND OF ENCHANTMENT.

She waited for the exact moment that the van crossed the dividing line.

Then it was over and she saw another sign, which said WELCOME TO COLORADO.

All these years, all that worry of being trapped in Roswell and getting out was as simple as climbing into a van and driving for a few hours.

Colorado wasn't New York. In fact, it looked pretty much like the rocky desert they just left. Still, being there felt good just the same. Maria could tell the others felt like she did. The tension in the car went down a couple of 'notches as soon as they crossed the border. Maybe I'll miss it someday, Maria thought, but not any time soon.

Maria thought about her mother and felt a pang of regret. They hadn't even had a proper good-bye. Well, there will be time far that one day, she thought.

Except for her mom, most of what she liked about home was in the van with her: her best friend, Liz, and then there was Space Boy. What were they to each other now? Was there even a name for it? She shot Michael another glance, allowing herself to think about what might happen to him. What would hap- pen to him if Liz's premonition came true? Whatever he was to her, she couldn't stand the thought of him dying.

'Maybe you don't have to fight,' Maria found herself saying out loud.

'What?' Michael said.

'If Liz's dream comes true. Maybe you don't have to fight these aliens. Maybe you can just surrender or some- thing,' Maria said, noticing that all eyes in the van except for Max's were suddenly on her.

Michael shook his head. 'No way, the other aliens would make fun of us,' he said.

Annoyed, Maria said, 'This is serious!”

'Yes,' Michael replied. 'And these people, or whatever they are, are very serious. Our only chance will be to beat them. If it comes to a fight, we go to the mattresses,' he said with an air of finality.

Maria was no longer annoyed. Now was angry. 'That is such macho crap. What does that even mean?' she shouted.

'It means that when it starts to go down on the street, we don't leave until it's finished,' Michael said.

'What does that have to do with mattresses? And I've heard it before. Is it from The Guy Book of Stupid Phrases or something?”

'It's from The Godfather' Max, Michael, and Kyle said in unison.

Maria shook her head. 'Do all guys see themselves liv- ing out The Godfather?' she said.

'Yes,' said the three guys in the car.

Maria shook her head again.

'Look,' Michael explained with forced patience. 'All guys see themselves as one of the Corleone brothers: Michael, the quiet but brilliant leader of the family, or Sonny, the hotheaded muscle.”

'Max, you don't buy this, do you?' Maria said, looking for a ray of sanity. 'You don't think of yourself as Michael?”

'Well, I am… was King, after all,' he said.

'I guess that would make you Sonny?' Maria said to Michael.

'If the shoe fits,' Michael said.

Rolling her eyes, Maria turned to Kyle. 'What about you, Mister Buddha? Tell me you don't think of yourself as… who?”

Kyle's face took on a serious expression. 'It's true that Buddhist philosophy gives me a sense of peace that makes the Mafia metaphor a bad fit. On the other hand, it allows me to take a larger view of important issues, making me… if possible… even more like Michael,' he concluded with a satisfied grin.

They are all crazy, Maria thought. Then she remembered something about those movies. 'Wait, there was another brother, Free… Frey…,' she said.

'Fredo,' Michael said immediately. 'Yeah, no guy sees himself as Fredo. He was the cowardly, loser brother. Plus, he betrayed Michael.”

'Well, I know plenty of Fredos. I've dated many of them,' Maria said sourly, shooting Michael a look.

'Well, no guy sees himself as Fredo, ever,' Michael said.

'In fact,' Max added, 'the more like Fredo a guy is, the less likely he is to see it.”

'You are twisted… sick and twisted,' Maria said to Michael. She looked at Max, then at Kyle. 'And not just you, the whole gender.”

'You asked,' Michael said, 'We're just providing information.”

Maria grunted and looked at Liz for support. Her best friend had been completely silent since she'd told them about her premonition. To Maria's surprise, Liz was watch- ing the exchange with a smile on her face.

'I'm glad you find this amusing,' Maria said.

The frustration on Maria's face only made Liz smile wider. That made Maria smile herself.

Maria tossed her head back into her seat. 'Impossible, all of you.”

Liz actually laughed, as Michael looked on with satis- faction.

Well, Space Boy might be driving me completely crazy, but at least he's good for a laugh, Maria thought.

Another thought quickly pushed that one out of the way. She barely remembered The Godfather, just a few scenes and images. One of them was terrible: Sonny met up with a bunch of guys with machine guns at a tollbooth.

There was a lot of blood, and that was the end for Sonny.

She took a look at Michael and wondered what she was in for with him.

Kyle heard his stomach growl. With all the excitement of leaving Roswell, and then Liz's dream, he had not thought much about food.

'I could go for a Snapple,' he heard Michael say.

'Where's the next town, Liz?' Max asked.

Liz took a minute to wrestle with a beat-up road atlas she had found somewhere in the van. The oversize book was coming apart, but Liz located the right map and said, 'I don't think this road is on the map, it's too small,' Liz said.

Kyle scanned the two-lane road. It was a little less des- olate than the rocky desert that seemed to make up most of New Mexico. Southern Colorado was still a rocky desert, but it was one with more scrub and even a few trees. And the hills in the distance were a promising green.