(continued from previous)

Disclamer: I don't own anything, *sigh* Don't sue me.

Liz stepped carefully into her and her attendants' room, being cautious not to step on her beautiful off-white, long, satin dress. It didn't have many bows or ruffles on it, but it was a gorgeous dress all the same. She fingered her bouquet of creamy colored roses nervously, waiting for Maria to come and tell her when the time was come for her to give up all the pros and cons of singledom. The funny thing was, Liz, until today, had never had any doubts about the upcoming wedding. Never once had she thought, "Is Max really the one?" She knew why, too. Because there was absolutely no other man she'd rather marry than Max.

She was just about to reminisce about one of the times she and Max had spent together, when Maria came in. "Come on, Liz. It's time to go get married, girl!"

Liz looked at Maria, and when she saw the tears in her eyes, she stood up and gave Maria an all-out bear hug. Maria regained control of herself, then she started out the door, turning only once. "Come on, Liz. Your future awaits you."

With that she left. Liz looked around the room, savoring her last moments of being single. Then she stood up, grabbed her bouquet, and strode confidently out of the room, leaving her younger self behind, and didn't turn back.

***

Max was standing beside the priest, feeling no longer nervous, just wonderfully calm and blissful. What was there not to feel blissful about? He was about to pledge his life to Liz Parker, the only woman he'd ever loved.

Then suddenly, Michael, in a very un-Michael-ly thing to do, reached over and patted him on the back, then pulled him into a hug at the front of the chapel.

They broke apart, and Max looked at Michael quizzically. Michael looked at him with a look on his face that could almost be taken for wistfulness, then said in a gruff voice, "You take care of yourself, okay?"

Max smiled at Michael, "You're acting like you're never going to be invited over." Then, as an after thought, "You know, you don't have to be a loner for the rest of your life. In fact, if you were to announce that you were looking for someone, one girl jumps to mind who seems like she would be breaking down your door if she had the opportunity."

Michael didn't pretend to not know who he was talking about. What was the point? Even after all the stuff he'd said about being a stone wall and not having any attachments, he knew Izzy and Max knew how he felt about Maria. He smiled at Max, and turned to look down the aisle when he heard a noise.

Max grinned slightly, knowing that not long after this wedding, there would be another. He too turned at looked down the church to see Alex bounding down the aisle, the pants of his suit a little dusty.

"Oh my God, Max, I am SO sorry." Alex took a few deep breaths to get under control. "It was like everything that could go wrong, did. I'm serious! First my car broke down then I had to hitch a ride in with a trucker, then the truck broke down.... Anyway, to make a long story short, I had problems."

"That's okay man. I mean, you're here, aren't you?" Max watched as Alex brushed the rest of the dirt of his pants.

Alex then looked over at him, and said, in a serious voice, "I'm happy for you and Liz, Max. I mean it." Then he added after a moment, "And, just to let you know, if you ever hurt her in any way, I'll have no choice but to kill you."

Max laughed and then said more seriously, "Alex, you will never have to worry about that. EVER."

Alex looked over at him and smiled. "I know, Max. Just a warning if you should ever be possessed by a demon or something. " He then turned to look down the aisle, as did Michael.

Max looked toward the back of the church. Then he saw Liz, and all thought stopped dead in it's tracks.

Continued next page...

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