"So why don't we start with what brings you two here?"

Max grumbled, her chin resting in her hand with both of her elbows resting on top of her knees. I'm here because Logan thinks your stupid couples counselling program is an undercover mafia ring covering up several murders, and he can't touch me so he sent me here with…him.

Alec was sprawled out on the opposite end of the couch with one arm resting over the back of the chair, and one ankle resting on the other knee. He looked incredibly uncomfortable and his leg was bouncing up and down while he drummed his fingers on the arm of the couch.

"Things have been…strained for a while," Max said. They were here as Alec and Max Brady, a young suburban couple who had come to settle their marital disputes. Although the disputes would a) not be solved before they got to the special couples counselling retreat that several couples hadn't been seen from since and b) not ever be solved because Max and Alec weren't married.

She twisted around the wedding ring on her finger. They'd bought them at a pawn shop – picked the first two that matched and weren't engraved. Alec was still bouncing up and down – he didn't have to play the part of nervous husband, he was nervous as hell being anywhere near a psychiatrist.

"Describe strained. What's changed in your marriage?"

Dr. Claire Gibbons was thin, with tiny wire framed glasses perched on her nose and a pad of notes clutched in her hand, pen poised to write. Her sandy light hair was tied up into a neat bun, with not a strand out of place. Her attention never wavered from Max and Alec, and she seemed ready to pounce on any information they gave her. It unsettled both of them.

"Uh…" Alec stuttered, not entirely sure what to say. So they probably should've done more prep work – Max had been annoyed enough and hadn't wanted to discuss the "marriage" at all before getting to the office.

So Max just said the first thing the came to her head. "Alec slept with another woman," she answered, trying to sound calm, but her voice wavered a little.

Alec groaned silently. Of course, he had to be the bad guy – Max couldn't have it any other way. Instead of saying anything and blowing their cover he just grit his teeth as the shrink scribbled down notes on her bright yellow legal pad.

"Okay! That's a good start. When was this?" Max swallowed. This shrink seemed far too excited about infidelity.

"Four months ago," Alec muttered, remembering the feisty redhead he'd met at Crash a while back.

"And when was the last time you two had sex?" Dr. Gibbons asked.

"Oh, uh…." Max stuttered and Alec looked a little shocked. They exchanged a few stunned glances between them, but neither transgenic offered up an answer.

"Okay, not a problem. A lot of couples who stop having sex end up with one or both partners turning outside the marriage for sexual satisfaction. Max, have you cheated on Alec?"

"What?" Max nearly choked. "Of course not! I would never-"

"Of course not Max, because you never make mistakes." Alec snorted and she whirled on him, her hair whipping behind her head.

"What is that supposed to mean?" she snapped at him.

"What about Logan, Max? What about all the time that you spend with him?"

Dr. Gibbons perked up, interested. "Who's Logan?"

"He's-" Max started, but the doctor held up a hand to cut her off.

"I'd like Alec to answer please, Max." Max crossed her arms and leaned back into the couch with a 'hmph'. Alec shot a cheeky smile at her and she could just hear the 'so there!' in his head.

"Logan's her ex-boyfriend. They talk every day and he's always asking her to help with his work and she runs off at the drop of a hat." Alec answered, smirking on the inside. Payback? Why yes, you are a bitch.

"Really? Alec, are you concerned that Max and Logan could be having sex?"

"No." He answered automatically.

"Why not?" The doctor asked, adding more notes to the pad.

"He won't touch Max because-" of a military engineered bio-warfare virus that will kill him if they touch- "because he's a germaphobe, so he won't touch her without latex gloves on."

"And Max, what is your answer to the question – who is Logan?"

Max sighed. "He's just a friend. We're not like that and we never were. So I help him out a lot, it's not like he never helps me."

"He was supposed to find Max's family, but he hasn't found any of them," Alec grunted.

The doctor nodded. "Alright. So obviously, we have a lot of conflicting issues here. According to my file, a third party is paying for your counselling?" Max and Alec both nodded once. "Does that mean that your marriage troubles are affecting your work life, your social lives?"

"Not really our work, I think," Alec answered, slowly, considering.

"I have listed that you two work as bike messengers for Jam Pony. Is that correct?" Again, both transgenics nodded.

"Alright. What we're going to do is this – I'd like to see you both individually and then together again – so set up the three appointments with my secretary and I'll be able to get a really good feel for what we need to work on. Okay?"

They nodded and walked out, not touching each other. They spoke with the secretary for a few minutes and both left with a small white card detailing the date and time of their next appointments with Dr. Gibbons.

-x-

"So, you came back."

Alec smiled at the doctor, this time sitting alone in her office, without Max present. "Here I am," he answered.

"Why did you come back, Alec?" Dr. Gibbons pushed her glasses further up her nose, her attention firmly set on her patient in front of her.

"Maybe I just think you're cute," he answered, winking at her. She smiled and waited patiently for a real response, until he gave in. "Look, I said I'd do it. I don't half-ass anything and I'm not starting with my marriage," he grumbled, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Good."

-x-

"Hi, Max."

"Hey," the transgenic answered, her eyes drifting around the room as she sat on the couch, her hands clenched together.

"Max, why did you come back to see me?" The doctor asked.

"To fix my marriage."

"Is it broken?"

"I think so."

"And you want to fix it?"

"That's what I said, Doc."

"Alec, tell me about the first time you met Max."

"We were both working at a VA hospital. We had been partnered up to work on a project, so I went to meet her. She confused me for someone else and wasn't very happy with our assignment. I made some off hand comment, and she got mad."

"What happened next?"

"She kicked me across the room."

"She kicked you? That doesn't sound like something that generally attracts a man to a woman," the doctor remarked.

"What can I say Doc', I like 'em feisty."

"So the jerk just barges in and starts flirting, figuring he's so good looking that I'll automatically drop my pants for him. So I set him straight.'

"How?"

"I kicked him."

"So we worked together on the project for a little while. Just after we had succeeded, the VA hospital was attacked by that terrorist group and we didn't have a job anymore. So I split, left town."

"You came back?"

"I came back."

"Why?"

"I guess I owed her a favour – she saved my life when the hospital blew up, so I felt like I had a debt to settle, you know? So I came back to clear the board."

"He comes back all of a sudden, shows up at Jam Pony looking for a job. Normal just liked the look of him or something', cause he hired him on the spot and told me to train him."

"How'd that go?"

"He annoyed me all day. Didn't listen to a word I said, didn't take any of my advice, and acted like he was king of the freaking world. Drove me nuts."

"What changed your mind?"

"A friend of ours, Joshua, his brother was in trouble. Alec helped, and he really didn't have to. And he was just…there, you know? He didn't take off. I guess I'm used to people running off on me, but Alec stuck around and he never really had to."

"When did you start to see Max as something more?"

"I'm a trouble magnet and she bails me out – even when she didn't like me very much, she'd save my ass. And I kind of like being alive, so I appreciate that. And you start to get to see that Max is really out to help people – she's just uptight. She's been through a lot and she's scared that people are going to up and leave her at any minute, which is probably why she's so cold to most people."

"Max, it sounds like you had the opportunity to be with Logan or be with Alec. Why Alec?"

"Logan can be really judgemental, and he's got really stiff morals that don't bend. Alec…is more like me. Alec gets what I've gone through and why I've done the things I did in my life and he doesn't judge. He just gets me. With Logan I have to explain a lot of things, but Alec just gets it."

"Tell me Alec, are you worried that Max is still in love with Logan?"

"Yeah, I guess. Sometimes? Most of the time I think so, yeah. I mean, they're not right for each other, and I've said that for a long time now, but they look at each other and get this googly eye thing and they were never really over, you know?"

"Why aren't they right for each other?"

"Logan doesn't understand Max. He keeps thinking she'll change and he constantly uses her as a means to achieve ends in his work and without his work, there's nothing between them. He's from a completely different background – she's from the streets and he's from penthouses. They never seemed to have fun together – it was just a long cycle of "it's over" and "we're not like that." They weren't going anywhere."

"I guess I said yes when Alec asked me out because I was mad and tired of the stupid circle me and Logan kept going through, of hurting each other because we couldn't be together but didn't want to really end it. So I figured trying to move on was a really good way to finally officially end it. So I went out with Alec."

"I think this has been an excellent session, so I think we've got a few important things to discuss now when we all come back together, alright?" The transgenic nodded and walked out of her office as she scribbled quickly on her notepad about things to bring up in their next session.

-x-

"Alright, so I met with both of you in single sessions and I think I'm getting a really clear picture of what's going on for you two. So today, we're going to do this a little different then the last session we did together."

Max's eyebrows shot up, and panic shot down her spine. "Different how?"

The doctor smiled and Alec swore he saw a glimpse of evil in her. "I'm going to ask you questions and I would like you to honestly answer as if your partner wasn't here."

Max shuffled, uncomfortable and Alec choked a little bit. Clearly he needed to reassess how devious Dr. Gibbons was.

"I know you're both very uncomfortable with the process of therapy and you're both very reluctant to open up and share your feelings – especially with each other. So the three of us are going to make a promise."

"Anything said in this room today stays in the room. You can't discuss anything said unless the person who said it brings it up first. Alright?"

Max bit her lip, suddenly completely unsure and feeling very nervous about what kind of questions the doctor wanted to ask them. She met Alec's eyes and he nodded slowly. She nodded back and looked at the doctor.

"Alright, I'll try."

"That's all I'm asking from you, Max. Now I want you two to remember that the answers, while not necessarily the truth of the matter, are the truth of what your partner is feeling and thinks personally based on their own experience. So I will ask that neither of you comment on your spouse's answers." Alec gulped and both he and Max nodded again.

Dr. Gibbons clicked her pen and posed it over her clipboard to write notes. "Yes or no answers only please. Now, Max, does Alec appreciate you?"

She sighed and looked at the floor. "No," she answered firmly. Alec opened his mouth to protest, but the doctor held up her hand.

"Alec, please, you agreed not to comment, and I will ask you questions afterwards." He grumbled under his breath and rested his head in his hand.

"Max, does Alec enjoy your presence?"

Max shrugged. "I guess? Maybe?"

"Yes or no please, Max." Max considered for a minute.

"Uh, no."

Alec sighed, knowing this would clearly not be getting better any time soon.

"Does Alec find you physically attractive?"

"Yes." Max grinned, actually knowing an answer for once. Alec almost smirked, but was far too worried about what the doctor might ask next.

"Does Alec want to have sex with you?"

Finally, an easy question. Max should her head. "No."

Alec was ready to protest again when the doctor glared him into submission.

"Two more questions Max. Is Alec in love with you?"

Max inhaled deeply, her breath caught in the back of her throat. She had no idea why she felt a need to be honest with this woman, but she blamed it on the police undercover couple Logan told them about who failed at this because they lied too much. "No," she answered honestly.

"And finally, does Alec love you?"

She blinked and raised her eyebrows at the doctor. "Aren't they the same thing?"

"Not at all Max. Loving someone is a platonic gesture. You love your parents; you love your siblings, your pets. Being in love with someone is amorous, physical and very often sexual. Do you understand the difference now?"

Max thought about. She thought about how she loved Cindy and her siblings. And then she thought about how she felt about Logan, which she didn't want to classify as 'in love' because as much as she loved and cared about him, there was no sexual connection between them…especially not anymore.

She nodded slowly. She tried to classify Alec in either of those categories, but he didn't seem to fit. He wasn't a brother but she didn't feel about Alec the way she felt about Logan.

"Alright Max, does Alec love you?"

"No." Simple and easy, Alec didn't care about anyone except himself, and definitely not her – he just thought she was a pain in the ass. The thought saddened her, but she wasn't sure why.

"Thank you Max, I know that was very hard for you." The doctor smiled softly at Max, hoping to be comforting as she turned to Alec. "It's your turn Alec. Same thing, just answer with what you think, not with anything you feel obligated to say, okay?"

He swallowed hard and nodded.

"Alec, does Max appreciate you?"

He snorted. Clearly this would be easier for him then it would be for Max. "No," he answered, leaning back against the couch, watching the doctor and trying to ignore Max.

"Does Max enjoy your presence?"

His mouth folded into a firm line. He didn't like having to admit this. "No."

"Does Max find you physically attractive?"

He shook his head. "No."

"Does Max want to have sex with you?"

"No." Wow. This was easier than tying his shoes – he really didn't have to think about the answers – Max made her undying disgust of him clear on a daily basis. It left a cold lump in his stomach.

"Is Max in love with you?"

"No."

"Does Max love you?"

"No." He sighed. Man, this was depressing.

The doctor nodded, sketching notes down on her pad, flexing her foot and humming for a moment. It made Alec want to strangle her. Max settled for just glaring at Dr. Gibbons from her end of the couch.

"Alright. In my professional opinion, your marriage is salvable."

Max blinked slowly then turned to look at Alec who had a similar shocked look on his face. After what she had asked the two of them to admit that day, they had both believed the doctor would declare them hopeless.

"Your problem is you don't know how to tell and show each other what you're feeling, which leaves your partner with doubts and led Alec to seek sexual attention outside of your marriage. I'd like to recommend a counselling program that's hosted at a retreat. It's a two week program that will teach you two how to communicate with your words and actions. Professional counsellors will work with you every day to help put your marriage on track. Here's the number-" she pulled a business card off her desk and offered it to Alec, - "if you two are serious, I have complete faith that if you go to the retreat you'll be able to fix this. So I want you to think about it, and you decide you want to go, just call the number and they'll give you all the details. As far as I know, they can provide paperwork for your employer if you require it as well."

Alec caught Max's eye and nodded. They stood, and Dr. Gibbons stood as well. "For you two, the next step is simply show each other that you're wrong and that you love each other very much. It's easy to see." Dr. Gibbons smiled and held out a hand. "Good luck," she offered.

"Thank you," Alec said, shaking her hand. Max shook the doctor's hand after he did, and the two transgenics left in silence.

After a moment, Max shifted her weight from foot to foot. "So, uh, I guess we go to stage two."

Alec nodded. "Right, the retreat. How many people went missing again?"

Max was determined not to look anywhere near his face, so she settled for the wall over his shoulder. "Eight in three years. Three couples, one man and one therapist."

"The cops didn't find a lead?"

"Not when they looked directly, and they haven't gotten a couple in undercover before us, so we'll be the first."

"Alright. I'll call them when I get home then."

'Yeah. I should get back to work. Will you-"

"I'll cover for us with Normal, no worries."

"Thanks," she bit her lower lip and shifted her weight again, still not really looking at his face.

"I'll see you later then," he nodded and walked past her, careful not to touch her. She wrapped her arms around herself, feeling a sudden chill.

"Later," she whispered, not even sure if he heard her.

-x-