For a few moments Michael concentrated mostly on his breathing and making sure that he actually was breathing. He touched Maria's neck once more to make sure what he felt was real. She had a pulse, a slow, weak, but steady pulse. He lightly tapped her face. "Maria, Maria, can you hear me? Come on Maria, can you wake up? Open your eyes? Can you even slightly move?" Michael closed his eyes for a moment before running a hand through his hair. Suddenly he remembered the phone. He could call for help, yes, that's what he could do. He looked to the floor. "Damnit!" He muttered as he saw it crumpled up and broken on the floor. Probably because of the car crash. He moved his arms, then his legs just to make sure any part of him wasn't paralyzed or stuck on something. Michael tried to open the door, but it seemed to be caught on something and he didn't have the strength to try and lift it up and push it harder. He looked towards Maria again, she was just lying there so lifeless. "Maria, please, just wake up! I can't heal you, I'm in no state of mind to do that and you know how bad I am with them. Knowing me, I'd set your hair on fire. Then you'd really have it in for me." Michael pushed a stray piece of hair that was in her eyes around her ear. "God Damnit Maria, if there was ever a time for you to argue with me, come on, let it be now! All I need from you is one insult, some sign that your not dead inside. Take your best shot eh? You can mock my hair, my clothes, my living situation, my IQ, the way I need to be a loner, something, anything." He was fighting a losing battle. 'All I can do is wait now' He thought, which was true. He couldn't get out, he was too weak and too emotional to use his powers, and he had no phone. He leaned against the 'would be' back of his seat and sighed. "I don't know Isabel, but your right we should get a bell for him." Max said as they walked into their home after school. "Max, I thought he told you he was going to try and come to more classes? What happened to that? He can't just skip school like he used to anymore, he's on his own, he has no alibi, and needs an education. He can't blame Hank anymore." Isabel saw the look Max was giving her. A look that said 'Thanks for stating the obvious.' "Well I'm sorry Max, I just worry about him that's all." As soon as Isabel finished her sentence the phone rang. Isabel picked up the receiver. "Hello?" It was Liz, "Yeah Hi, Isabel, look have you seen Maria at all today, because she wasn't in any classes I had with her and she didn't come to lunch. After school I called her to see if she was sick and her and nobody answered, and I know her mom is working. I was just wondering." Liz kind of trailed off her last sentence. "Hey, Max It's Liz on the phone." Max was reading the mail, his head went straight up after he hearing Liz's name. Isabel laughed at that, "She wants to know if we've seen Maria, that's all." "No, tell her I haven't seen her." Max resumed through the mail he was looking at while Isabel got off the phone with Liz. "Hey, Max there is a message on the machine." Isabel said as she pushed the 'message' button on the machine. On the machine speaker they heard. "Hey Max, it's Michael." "You see, he's fine." Max said as he got himself a glass of juice. "I just wanted to tell you that me and Maria went for a drive today and we'll--" Michael's voice was cut off by a very loud noise. Then they heard "MICHAEL LOOK OUT". Then silence. Max and Isabel gave each other worried glances. "Oh my God." Isabel said to herself and to Max. Max was so stunned he couldn't really speak. He grabbed his keys, "Come on, we'll pick up Liz tell her what happened to Michael and Maria and then we'll search." Max put a reassuring hand on his sister. "It'll be ok Isabel, they're both strong people." With that they both hurried out to the jeep. TBC

Part 2