330 Apologies and promises

Saturday

November 24

3:32 PM

Liz is in Max's VIP room, sitting by Max's side and listening to Isaac, Madeline, and Nathan chatting.

Why is Isaac there? Yesterday afternoon, Isaac called Elizabeth with the hope to convince her to come to New York for Thanksgiving weekend which is one week away.

"Come on, baby girl… I barely see you since you moved to Seattle and this will give us four days to spend together… We can go skiing or anywhere you want. My jet is ready… It does not need to be four days. You can spend two with your old man. Or one, that will be fine also. Of course, Max is included…"

"Sorry, dad but… I can't. Max is in the hospital. He is in a coma and…"

And that is how Isaac came to Seattle for the weekend.

Max's body is healing well. The swelling under his skull subsided and they are waiting for him to wake up. It can happen any minute… or not.

When Isaac arrived that morning, he found Liz in Max's room.

"How are you doing, Liz?" Isaac asked while giving her a hug.

"Drained. I hope he wakes up soon. I have so many things to tell him."

"Everything happens when it should."

"Even car accidents?" Liz asked.

"Even car accidents." Isaac confirmed. "How about you tell me what happened? Considering his state and that you are unharmed, I assume that you were not in the car with him."

"No…" Liz said with difficulty.

Liz told multiple times the story of how she and Max had a fight, yet it was still painful to talk about it.

"You don't approve…" Liz said when she noticed that Isaac is looking at her with a complex expression.

"It sounds to me like you quit on Max, and you are not a quitter."

"I know. And I'm sorry. I was worried that he still has feelings for that woman and…"

"And you left because you didn't want to give him a chance to push you away." Isaac finished her sentence.

Liz pressed her lips into a line. "I didn't think about breaking up with Max. But I couldn't stay by his side either. I was never so conflicted."

Isaac took Liz's hand into his and patted it a few times. "I remember at my birthday party that a number of people spoke ill of Max, Patrick was provoking him, and it was a mess. And I remember Max standing on the stage and holding onto you. Instead of shrinking or coming up with excuses, he faced everyone and dared them to challenge his right to be by your side. From that moment, I was confident that Max is committed to your relationship. Shortly after that, I approached you and asked you if being with Max is the right thing and you told me that he is always there for you, that he protects you even at his own loss. Did that change?"

Liz felt that her eyes are burning, and she closed them. "No."

"Thank you, daddy…" Liz said through sobs.

Isaac held Liz in silence while she cried. When she calmed down, Isaac spoke again…

"Liz, I'm not a superstitious person, but I need to ask… Is Max cursed?"

Liz was not sure she understood the question properly. "What?"

"I never saw a young man who ends up in a hospital so often. You met in a hospital, and I remember that your Hawaii trip ended up with Max being hospitalized."

Liz realized that Isaac is right. Max tends to get into accidents, and Isaac does not know about all of them (like the one when he fell off a horse and got bit by a snake).

"Daddy… He is not cursed. He is reckless."

"If he is cursed, go and find an anti-cursing person. If he is reckless, you need to talk to him. He was lucky so far, but everyone's luck runs out eventually. Look at him now… And look at you. Instead of enjoying a Saturday morning, the two of you are in a hospital. I hope that he will wake up soon so that I can tell him to take care of himself if he wants to take care of you. I am not at ease leaving you with the man who spends so much time in a hospital bed."

Liz listened to Isaac and she smiled when she felt that Isaac cares about Max.

Back to the present…

"I was hoping to get Liz and Max to New York next weekend…" Isaac was talking to Madeline and Nathan. "I am used to be on my own, it is easy for me to get lost in work. But holidays hit me hard."

"Why don't you come to our house?" Madeline offered. "We will have roasted turkey and garlic mashed potatoes. The turkey stuffing is my grandmother's recipe and the apple pie is so good that you will lick your plate."

Isaac glanced at Liz, unsure if he should accept.

Nathan patted Isaac's shoulder. "We have plenty of food, and there is a seat for you at the table. After we fill our bellies, we can watch the football game. Seahawks are playing."

Liz looked at Isaac and smiled. She knows that he is lonely and spending a holiday with Andersons will definitely be lively. Liz's eyes moved to Max and she wondered if he will be awake by then. It will not be the same without him. Nothing will.

Isaac and Nathan went for a walk and they promised to return with beverages for everyone.

"You should move a bit as well." Madeline told Liz. "You are sitting in that chair for a long time."

"I'm fine…" Liz responded and put her hand over Max's. "I hope to be the first one he sees when he opens his eyes. I need to…"

Liz's words paused when she felt a movement under her hand.

"Max?" Liz called and observed Max's face.

After a few endless seconds, Liz exhaled the breath she was holding. "I thought that his fingers moved. I guess I imagined it."

Just as she finished her sentence, Max's fingers twitched again, but now Liz was sure that it happened.

"Max!" Liz exclaimed. "Can you hear me?"

Max slowly opened his eyes and half-smiled.

"Hey, love…" Max called in a half-whisper. "I had a bad dream… You didn't want to talk to me and no matter what I tried, nothing worked…"

Max observed Liz's tear-stained cheeks and he lifted his bandaged arm which has an IV inside. The sound of the heart rate monitor was the last clue he needed. He is in a hospital. A second later, all the pieces fell into place, completing the memory of the last evening he remembers: Irene showed up, and he and Liz fought, and he drank and ended up in a car accident. "It seems that was not a dream."

"I'm sorry, Max." Liz sobbed. "I am so sorry that I allowed my insecurities to overshadow all the good things. Can you forgive me, please? I promise that I will be stronger for both of us."

Max was not sure if he is still dreaming. Is it possible that Liz is next to him, apologizing and promising that she will stay by his side? Dream or not, he will say what is on his mind…

"If I knew that I need to end up in a hospital for you to realize that I love you more than life itself, I would do that right away instead of trying to talk to you."

Liz was a mess. She was sad about Max's current state, regretful that she didn't listen to him that evening, happy that he is awake, and a bit angry that he said those words so lightly. "Please, don't joke like that. You can't throw your life away, Max."

"My life means nothing without you, Elizabeth."

"Oh, Max…" Liz chocked on her sobs. Her head fell on the mattress of Max's hospital bed and she cried relentlessly.

Max wanted to hug her, but he could not move much due to all the things attached to his body, so he ended up patting Liz's head while waiting for her to cry it out.

Max looked up at Madeline. "Hi, mom."

"Hi, son…" Madeline responded with a sigh. "I will go out and look for your father…"

"Thanks…" Max responded, knowing that she is leaving so that he and Liz can have their privacy.

"Hey…" Max called. "Don't you need to check me or do some other doctor thing?"

Liz wiped her cheeks with her palms. "You are right… I just need a minute… Promise that you will not do anything so stupid again. No matter what happens to us, you need to take care of yourself."

"Promise that you will not doubt my feelings for you." Max demanded in return.

Liz thought for a second before responding: "I will not doubt your feelings for me unless you give me a reason to doubt them. However, that does not mean that I will not wonder if you have feelings for someone else."

Max looked at Liz in disbelief. "You should just promise what I asked you. How can you deny a person who is in a hospital bed? Don't you see that my condition is serious?"

"You will not be in this hospital forever. If I make that promise now, I might regret it later. Besides… if you can complain like this, your condition is not very serious."

Max chuckled. That is his Elizabeth with her no-nonsense personality. "You know that sometimes you kill the romance?"

"How can this be romantic? You almost died, Max. I'm lucky that you are awake and that you can hear my apology…" Liz started sobbing again.

"Can you come up, on the bed? I want to hug you but…"

Liz stood up and leaned over him. "If you want to hug me, then make sure you don't end up in a state like this again. Promise me."

"Kiss me…" Max demanded.

Liz's eyes flashed in outrage. How can he think about kissing and hugging while ignoring her warnings? "Did you hear what I…?"

Liz's words stopped when Max's hand landed at the back of her head and he pulled her closer for a kiss. And just like that, Liz's anger dissipated with a kiss that made her melt from the inside and she was happy that Max is back.

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