1.

Math class was always a pain for Maria. It wasn't that she wasn't good she just found it to be slightly boring. At least having Liz in the class made it better since Liz was too smart for her own good it seemed sometimes. Maria took her seat next to Liz. They had a few minutes till the final bell which was plenty of time to talk.

"So has Max talked to you recently?" Maria asked.

"About what?"

Maria shut her mouth the second she saw Michael walk in. He took his seat in the back as usual on the far side from where she and Liz were sitting. Maria leaned in closer and whispered.

"I don't get it. On Friday spaceboy was being his usual charming self but then he leaves with Max and all weekend I get nothing, not a phone call, not an e-mail, not even a simple hello when I walk by."

"Well have you talked to him?"

"I've tried but he rushes by me like there's a fire or something. Are you sure Max didn't say anything to you?"

Liz didn't know what to tell Maria. She knew the details of where Max had been Friday night and what had happened.

"He did didn't he!" Maria said raising her voice some but then lowered it when other people in the class, including Michael, looked her way. "Liz you have to tell me."

"Maria there's nothing to tell."

"You're lying and I always know when you're lying. Spill."

Liz glanced back at Michael trying not to make it obvious. It failed her though since Michael shot her a hard glare.

Liz turned back to her friend as a small shiver ran up her spine. She sighed. "All Max told me was that it was a guy's night out, that's it."

"A guy's night," Maria said not believing her. "Liz, this is Max and Michael we're talking about here, it's never just a guy's night."

Liz placed her hands in the air. "I'm just telling you what Max told me."

"Someone's sulking," Liz said as she and Maria saw Alex sitting alone at lunch.

Alex tossed a fry on his plate. "Yeah well that happens when your girlfriend acts as if you don't exist all weekend."

Maria sighed and took a seat. "You too hu?"

"What do you mean 'you too'?"

Liz sat down as well. "Michael's been ignoring Maria."

"I don't get it," said Alex. "First they act like they want to be with us by making out and saying all this stuff about being together and going steady and the next thing you know we're dumped like trash."

"Hey," said Maria. "We are not dumped. There's got to be some logical reason why they're avoiding us."

"Really," said Alex not quite convinced, "logical?"

"Okay maybe not logical. Maybe alien?" Maria said directing that last part to Liz.

"Don't look at me I don't know anything."

Maria turned to Alex. "She does, she's just not telling."

"Traitor," said Alex.

"Hey, I'm not. Just because I'm not the town gossip," she said more toward Maria, "doesn't mean I'm a traitor."

"Where is Isabel anyways," Maria asked. "I haven't seen her all day."

"That would be because she's not here," said Alex.

"Then where is she?"

Alex tossed another fry. "Word around school is she took a sick day."

Maria looked at Alex like that was impossible. "Isabel, Isabel Evans?"

"Is there more than one," said Alex.

"But it's Isabel. She never takes sick days. The only reason she would take a sick day is if she had some kind of, you know special problem the way Michael did or if she was…" Maria stopped mid-sentence as she started putting the pieces together.

Alex looked up to see if Maria was still there since she was no longer talking. "Or if she was what?"

"That stupid ass," said Maria. "I'm gonna kill him."

"Kill who, what's going on?" Alex asked.

Liz stayed silent. She knew what her friend had figured out but she wasn't about to be the one to spoil the news to Alex. If he couldn't figure it out for himself then Maria would most likely be the one to tell him once she calmed down, if she ever calmed down.

Maria stood up leaving her untouched food behind. If she knew Michael he was all ready starting to make his way off campus for lunch even though that was against the rules.

Isabel sat at home channel surfing. It had been two days since she and the others had found out the truth about where they came from. Though she never took sick days from school she felt the need to do so. The last thing she wanted was to be around anyone. Max had worried about that earlier but he left it alone knowing that if he pressed it she would only get pissed off.

The front door opened and Isabel was startled to see her dad.

"Izzie," he said with surprise. "I thought you were supposed to be at school."

Isabel shifted on the couch and turned the TV to mute. "Um yeah I wasn't feeling well."

Phillip came around. He placed a hand on her forehead, "Really, you've never been sick before."

Isabel waved his hand off. "You don't have to worry. I'm sure it's just a bug or something, it'll pass," she said knowing that she was lying. It wouldn't pass for nine more months but she couldn't tell him yet. "So what are you doing home?"

Phillip reached for a file on the table in front of the couch. "I just left some documents I needed, came to pick them up." While holding them he sat at the edge of the table. "Honey are you sure you're okay? This past weekend you haven't quite seemed yourself."

Isabel tried to get rid of the knot in the pit of her stomach and that wasn't the baby. "I'm fine dad. I'm just going through some stuff right now."

"Well you know you can tell your mother and I anything right?" Isabel nodded. Phillip decided not to push it. "Okay well I have to get back to the office, I'll check on you later okay?" he said placing a kiss on her head.

"Okay."

"I love you honey."

"Love you too dad."

The moment Isabel heard her father close the door behind him she took a sigh of relief and placed her hands on her stomach. She had all ready made up her mind to keep the baby but telling her parents was a whole different challenge. The only upside was that she didn't have to tell them the whole truth since she was having a normal gestation period but still no parent wanted to find out that their teenage daughter was pregnant and not yet done with high school. That would just kill them in every hypothetical sense. Not to mention the fact that she had to lie about how the baby was conceived. Isabel all ready had a hard time believing in the connection though she couldn't deny it, something had always been there, that much she was certain of but to admit to the world that she had sex with Michael seemed to be going too far and that's exactly what she had to do. It's not like she could tell them the truth and say she got pregnant from a dream.

Isabel looked at her stomach. "Maybe this isn't such a good idea. What kind of life would you have if all the people around you are just gonna lie?"

Isabel sighed one more time before sinking lower into the couch, laying on it and covering herself with the blanket that was over it. What she needed was a good nap, all of this stress and worry wasn't good for the baby.

"Michael," Maria called out.

"Not now," he said trying to walk quicker.

"No now, I need to talk to you."

"Well it'll have to wait."

"Till when, you've been saying that all weekend and that's if you're talking to me."

"Well then that should give you the hint. I gotta go."

"Where, to see Isabel? I know she's pregnant"

Michael stopped and turned around. He then walked quickly to her, "Mind saying that a little louder I don't think the rest of the school heard you."

"How can she be pregnant, how could you?"

"It's not what you think all right."

"So what you didn't sleep with her?"

"I can' do this right now."

"Then when?"

"I don't know all right. My only focus right now is Isabel."

"And what about us?"

"All right you want it, you want me to really tell you what's going on?"

Maria crossed her arms, "That would be a first."

"I can't do this, us. I can't be there for Isabel and be a father to my kid and be a boyfriend to you. I'm not good enough."

"You're not even giving me a choice?"

"No. Whatever we had, whatever this was, it's done," Michael said as he started walking away.

Maria tried to keep her tears in check but she couldn't. She wiped them away with the back of her hand.