Of course I don’t own The Nanny, but it’s just so much fun playing with these wonderful characters! I hope you’ll enjoy it!
Comments are very welcomed.

A Modern Way to Fall in Love

Chapter Three: Worlds Apart

by

Rebby
(nannyrebby@yahoo.de)

Maxwell walked slowly through the airport hall. About 9 hours ago he had said goodbye to Fran. He could still see her, totally devastated and the tears running freely down her cheeks, smearing her make-up and turning her beautiful face into a mess. It broke his heart to see her that way, but he couldn't stay, he just couldn't. He had to prepare his move, and quick. Of course he didn't want to leave her alone. He couldn't imagine being without her again, after this absolutely fabulous week they spent together. He'd even thought about taking her with him... but their relationship just would have suffered under the preparations for New York. So being apart was the easiest and only way to go.

He wandered through the hall and out of the airport, spotting Niles who stood outside waiting for him. Max' face lit up, he hadn't forgotten.

"Maxwell!" Niles said as he was waiting for him and spread out his arms to welcome Max.

"Niles, I'm surprised, you actually haven't forgotten?" He joked, embracing Niles and joining his laughter.

"So tell me man, how was New York City?" He clapped Max on the shoulder and grinned at him from one ear to the other, keen on finally hearing how it went with the girl.

"Oh Niles, you won't believe it. She's amazing, absolutely lovable." Niles saw Max' eyes sparkling, it must have went well.

"So tell me more... I want to know every tiny little detail!" Niles pushed, taking Max' suitcase and loading it into the trunk of their car. Actually it was Maxwell's car, but Niles could use it just like Max.

On their way back to their apartment, Maxwell told Niles everything he wanted to know, well, almost everything. Some things were private after all and Niles didn't have to know about that.

+ + + + + +

Fran was sitting on her bed together with Val, her face buried in between Val's shoulder and her neck. After the week which she had spent at Val's, she had called Val to come over and asked her to stay for the night. She had shown her the ring which Max gave her and the note he had left. She tried to be brave but started to cry hard again, telling Val just how much she already missed him. Val noticed that Fran really loved him, more than she'd ever imagined Fran would love that guy. He must have been a real gentleman towards her, the perfect guy, her prince charming. She couldn't bear seeing Fran that way, all messed up and sad and the tears didn't seem to stop soon. But she knew all Fran needed was somebody who was there for her. She didn't even have to talk, just her prescence was comforting Fran.

Val tightened her embrace and rocked softly with Fran in her arms. Tears rolled freely down her face, her sobbing was silent but hard. Suddenly Fran stopped and lifted her head, looking into Val's eyes. "Oh Val... I miss him so much!" She rubbed her eyes to wipe the tears away. Val grabbed her hands and squeezed them, trying to show her that she cared.

"Sweetie I know... and it's absolutely okay to miss him!" She smiled at her, praying secretly that Fran would calm down now. She knew she had to cry, it was the only thing she could do besides buying a ticket and flying after him which she actually couldn't do because she didn't have the money to afford a flight.

"I'm such a baby, Val. You must think I'm totally stupid..." Fran grabbed a hankie and blowed her nose.

"No, I don't think you're stupid. I think that you're in love for the first time and that you're lovesick because your prince isn't here anymore..." Val told Fran honestly and grinned. Fran realized that Val was right and smiled back at her.

"I really am, huh?" She asked, wiping her face. "It's just..." Fran stared into nowhere. ".. you know, it hurts so much." She pointed with both her hands at her heart, "I never would have thought that I'd fall for him so hard." She held back the tears which formed up in her eyes. "In the beginning I was just happy to finally meet him in person, you know. He was so sweet and nice and caring when we chatted. I thought we'd have fun over the week, that we would fool around." She smiled when she thought about all the things they'd experienced through the week. "But that, I would have never imagined. I would have never dared to dream about it. From the start we acted so natural together, like we've known each other our whole lives. That's strange, isn't it?" Fran asked Val, being calm again and ready to talk seriously with Val.

"Maybe you found your soulmate, Fran..." Val answered, watching Fran's reaction.

"Soulmate? Hmhmm... maybe. We do not even have to talk, just looking into each other's eyes is enough and we know what the other one's thinking or how he's feeling. I always thought that soulmates existed, I just never thought that I'd find mine someday." She leaned back at the top of her bed, resting against the metal frame and embracing her pillow tightly.

"When will he move to New York?" Val made herself comfortable on the bed just like Fran had done before. She was facing her now, sitting opposite of her on the other side of the bed.

Fran rested her head on the pillow, glancing over at Val. "In late November..." She trailed off, wishing secretly that she would wake up tomorrow just to find out it was November already. "Val... I don't think I'll be able to be without him for such a long time... I mean, that's what?" She counted in her head, "... more than three months! More than a quarter of the year..." One lonely tear was running down her left cheek. She didn't want to cry again, her eyes were already deep red from doing just that.

"Oh come on, Fran. I know that it must be hard to miss somebody as much as you miss Max and I can't really give you any advice 'cause I've never been in such a situation." She took a deep breath, "... but you can't be miserable all the time, you know. He's not here with you right now... but he'll be here in November... and maybe you two will marry and have children and then he'll be here for the rest of your life. But until then it's only three months... three months, Fran. That's nothing compared to the rest of your life... and I think you can make it. You are a tough young woman and you have to make it..." She saw Fran's thoughtful face but continued, "Anyway... he wouldn't want you to be miserable all the time, either."

Fran watched her best friend giving her an advice. She had become so intelligent... back in their early high school years Val was just a little silly. But she had grown over the years and lately she really impressed Fran with her wise advices. "Thanks Val..." Fran simply said, grinning at her friend.

"I'm just doing my job, Baby." She answered, grinning back at Fran.

They continued talking until the early morning. Fran was feeling better now that she could finally tell someone how she was feeling. Val was the best best friend a girl could wish to have. She just sat opposite of Fran on the bed and listened, every once in a while saying what she was thinking. Around 3am they both fell into a restful sleep...

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They hadn't arranged any particular time to chat again. Fran didn't know what to do and Maxwell didn't know what to do either. He was lying in bed, thinking about her all the time. It was Monday already and he had taken the day off to "recover" from his jet lag. He could imagine that Fran must have had a hard time the day before. Although he missed her like hell and wanted to cry and scream and take the next machine to fly back to her, he was a man. And men didn't cry... He folded his hands behind his head and stared at the ceiling. A smile appeared on his face when he remembered their sweet kisses and their tender love-making. They made a perfect match... in every way one could imagine.

He heard a noise coming from the kitchen around 1:24pm and decided it was time to finally get up. Maxwell opened the door of his bedroom and exited into the hallway. Yawning, he walked into the kitchen and sat down on one of the chairs there, steadying his head with the help of his hands. Niles was enjoying himself in the kitchen once again and turned around, smiling.

"Look who finally woke up... how did you sleep, Sleeping Beauty? I'm sorry I wasn't there to kiss you awake..." Niles teased Maxwell, he was happy to have his best buddy back. Although he had enjoyed having the apartment for his own to invite girls over and stuff, it was much funnier not to live alone all the time.

"Hahaha, very funny..." Max made a face at Niles, grinning stupidly. "So what's for lunch, Mommy?" He laughed, feeling good to do so again after all the exertions of the day before.

"Not bad... you're getting better and better." Niles smiled, turning his back to Maxwell to continue cooking. "I'm doing spaghetti. You could do something useful and set the table while I do so."

Max didn't hesitate and took the plates out of the cupboard to set the table as he always did. Afterwards he excused himself for a few minutes and went to the bathroom, brushing his teeth and washing up his face.

They sat at the kitchen table in silence until Niles broke it. "So? Have you already heard anything from your girl?" It couldn't be that Maxwell had already told him everything. He just died to know really everything, not just here a bit and there a bit: ALL of it!

"No..." Max remarked sadly, "but on the other hand, we didn't say who tries to get in touch with the other one first..." He raked with his fork in his spaghetti, not feeling very hungry. Niles rolled his eyes, it couldn't go on like that.

"Maxwell... why the hell are you so sad? Didn't you tell me you spent the most fabulous week in New York with.. Fran?" He asked, hesitating to continue to eat.

"Yes, Niles. And I'm still feeling like I've told you yesterday. It was the best week I've ever spent with a girl... and hell, why am I sad, huh? Do you see her sitting here anywhere, huh? It bloody hurts knowing I won't hold her in my arms for more than three months..." He spit out, putting his fork down and crossing his arms.

"Oh come on... what are three months? It's nothing..." Niles answered, shacking his head because he couldn't really believe what he heard. Max had never been so down before just because of a girl. Normally a relationship of him didn't last long...

"I bloody love that girl, Niles. Do you know what it feels like to really love a person? Do you know how much it hurts being apart from her? I know it's ridiculous, thinking about three months being apart from her. But three months are one hell of a long time and who ensures me that she won't meet somebody else, huh? I won't be there to prevent that..." He practically shouted which caused Niles to stop eating as well, listening carefully.

"Ahhh... that's the reason. You think she'll meet someone else, don't you? But you told her that you love her, right?" Max nodded, so Niles continued. "And she told you that she loves you, too, didn't she?" Max nodded again, what did he want to tell him here, anyway? "So what's your bloody problem?" Niles shook his head, staring at Max with a question mark written in his face.

"What my bloody problem is? Didn't you listen... what if she meets someone else, huh? Someone better than me, someone who lives right there." He waved his hands in the air, trying to make Niles understand.

"Please... you told me she's such a lovable girl and that you had real fun with her. Do you really think she's the kind of girl who tells a guy she loves him and then didn't mean it in the end? Do you really think she is such a person? After all the positive things you told me about her?" Niles saw Max' head working in overdrive, he quarreled with his inner thoughts which was clearly visible.

"No, of course she is not." Max said, Niles was probably right. "Oh Niles, I think you are right once again..." Niles grinned satisfied, of course he was right. "I think I'll call her later... I have to tell her just how much I love her in case she already forgot." Oh pleeassee, Niles thought and rolled his eyes again, now he was getting way to tacky in his eyes.

+ + + + + +

It was evening already in New York City and Fran was feeling a bit better thanks to Val, but still not really good. Val had stayed the whole day, trying to cheer her up and doing the stuff they always did. Fran wasn't really in the mood, but she really tried to do her best. She was still suffering under Max' departure the day before and was sure that everything would be normal again in a few days, but she really needed some time for her own first. Hopefully she'd talk to Max soon. She was feeling really bad because she hadn't tried to get in touch with him since he had left.

"Frannie? Dinner's ready..." She heard her mother yelling from the kitchen. Her sister Nadine and her friend Barry came over that day to join the family. Fran was jealous like hell. Nadine had her boyfriend right by her side. She could visit him every time she was in the mood to and she practically lived with him anyway.

"Comin'..." Fran shouted back, although not really in the mood, however always hungry. So she got up from bed and marched into the kitchen, sitting down on one of the chairs.

"Frannie, have ya been crying? Your eyes are so red..." Nadine asked and Fran shot her an angry look. Thank you, Fran thought, as she didn't already have enough trouble. Now she even had to explain to the whole family why she had been crying.

"It's just... I tried... new make-up... and... so... my eyes got red... because... I was removing it just when Ma yelled that dinner's ready." She let out a breath she didn't know she was holding. Phew, that was close! She thought and hoped that they were buying her story. She looked at Nadine and noticed she didn't really believe her, but the others were believing it, it seemed.

"And? Ya like it?" Her mother asked while putting the last bowl on the table and joining the others around the table.

"What?" Fran asked, pouring some orange-juice into her glass.

"The make-up, sis!" Nadine said, shooting her a strange look and winking at her.

"Oh, yeah... it's... good. I love it!" Fran stammered, "So Barry?" She hemmed, grabbing her fork, "When are you asking my sister to marry you already?" She asked, trying to lead the attention to another topic.

"Well..." Barry started.

"He'll ask me when he wants to, Frannie. It's non of your business, anyway." Nay helped Barry. Did her sister always have to embarrass Barry that way?

"Non of my business? Hello-o? In case ya haven't noticed... you're my big sister, of course it's my freakin' business!" - "Francine!" - "What?" - "Guard your tongue!" Her father told her. "Oh please, just because I said "freakin" and got a bit louder while talking?" She shook her head, what the hell was wrong with her family?

"Would you excuse me? I'll be in my room..." Fran excused herself, she wasn't really hungry anymore.

"But Francine, you haven't eaten at all..." Her mother said, looking concerned. It was so unlike her baby not to eat.

"I'm not really hungry, Ma." She replied and went into her room, closing the door behind her and walking to her desk, grabbing her notebook. She took it and sat onto her bed with a box of hankies lying next to her. She was determinded to write Max an email, to ask him how he was doing and everything. Just when she pushed the start up button she heard a knock on her bedroom door.

"Frannie, it's me. Can I come in?" Nadine asked politely, she respected her sisters privacy after all.

"Yeah, come on in!" She said just as loud for Nadine to notice.

Nadine opened the door and stepped in, closing it behind her and leaning against it. "Baby, what's wrong?" She asked, seeing Fran totally glued to the screen of her notebook. She walked over to Fran, sitting down next to her on the bed. Fran then looked up for the first time, her eyes filled with tears again.

"Oh Nay... I miss him so much!" She sobbed, barely understandable for her big sister.

"Who?" Nadine asked, having a puzzled look on her face.

"Max..." Fran whispered, looking up into Nadine's eyes.

"Who's Max?" She asked, not really knowing what her sister was trying to tell her.

"Max' the guy I met via internet... and the guy whom I've spent last week with." She admitted and already prepared for some lecture from her big sister she protected her head with both her hands and was ducking it.

"WHAT?" Nadine yelled.

"Shhhhhhhushhhh! Nay, not that loud!" Fran tried to calm her down. No reason for the rest of the family to join their conversation.

Now, more quiet, Nadine said, "What? You've spent a whole week with a guy you've met via the internet? Are you insane?" She couldn't really believe what she was hearing. Was her sister that stupid? "Do you know what could have happened? I didn't know you're so immature, Frannie. Don't you know how many perverts are out there? Trying to meet girls to do god knows what with them? Hey, haven't ya watched the news lately? It's really dangerous meeting people ya don't know..." She was shaking her head in disbelief.

Fran was sitting opposite of her sister, knowing very well where she was coming from. She knew about all the risks, she wasn't a little teenager anymore. But she had decided to trust in Max' personality. She thought that she had a good knowledge of human nature. So meeting him was the only acceptable choice. Not really a save variation but one possibility after all.

"Yeaaah... I know! What do you think I'm stupid, or what?" She responded, the disappointment clearly audible. She looked into nowhere first, took a deep breath afterwards and started to explain everything to her sister. "I know Nay... I know it was stupid and irresponsible. But it's not like I've met him in an internet chatroom and two days later I met him in real life.... we chatted so often, nearly every day for the past six weeks. And I do like him... I knew from the beginning that we've got something special there... that I met someone very important..." She continued, ".. and you know, because I do like him, I thought it's only normal to meet him..."

"Yeah, but Frannie... tell me, what would you've done if he was some old guy, trying to rape you? Nobody would've noticed... because I'm sure ya haven't told Ma that you met him..." She eyed her, knowing her very well.

"No, I didn't... and please, keep it to yourself, would you?" She begged her sister, not really keen on arguing with her mom about that.

"I have to think about it..." Nay answered, still not very happy about the things she was hearing. "So, what have you done all week?"

"Oh Nay... we did so many things. We went to the movies, we went shopping and swimming. We went inline-skating in Central Park... it was sooo cool. He even gave me a really elegant and expensive dress..." Her eyes were sparkling again as she was recalling everything from last week.

"What for?" Nay gave her a puzzled look.

"Well... ya know, he's a producer, Max I mean... he produced a really popular musical in London and they want to do it on Broadway. That's why he came to New York City... for meeting the people who are responsible for the new shows. And because he got the job he wanted to celebrate with me... so he bought me a dress and a pair of high heels... I tell ya, I've never felt so precious before. It was so romantic and Max was such a cutie all the time..." She smiled at Nadine, eyes wide open and her mouth formed a huge smile.

"Oh my goood..." Nay said, covering her mouth with her hands. "... you love him!" She whispered, not wanting to yell that fact through the whole apartment. Fran's face turned red and she looked down at her hands. "My goooooooood I was right, you do love him! Oh Sweetie..." Nay said, comforting Fran with her embrace. "Come here..." She said, seeing the tears forming in Fran's eyes already.

"Yeah... I do... that's why I've been crying for about two days." She sobbed again, but not as hard as the times before. "And it's ridiculous you know... I met the guy one week ago and it's like we've never been without each other. And he's perfect. Just perfect... he's sweet and loving and caring. He's the perfect gentleman towards me, he's funny, he makes me smile and laugh..."

"... and now he makes you cry! Oh Sweetie, welcome to that world..." Nadine smiled at Fran, trying to look into her eyes as she lifted her head.

Fran smiled back at her sister, feeling that Nay was understanding what she was talking about. Nadine was relieved to see her sister smiling and tried to cheer her up a bit more.

"But it was still stupid..." She mentioned, causing Fran to sigh.

"YEAH... I know... ya don't have to repeat it two thousand times." She giggled, blowing her nose one more time.

"Anyway... thank god you haven't slept with him..." Nay remarked, but when she saw Fran's face frowning she looked back at her in shock. "Nooo... noooo... Frannie, nooo... don't tell me you have?" She held her by her shoulder, looking directly into her eyes. Fran didn't say a word, she just looked down. "Hey... you did, didn't you?"

"Hmhmm..." Fran was answering, then she finally looked at Nay. "Yes..."

"FRANNIE! Ya know the guy... what? 5 weeks?" - "7 and a half!" - "It doesn't matter... you met him last Monday. A week ago... and you slept with him five days later already? Why? Why so early? Haven't I told you that sleeping with a guy so early makes you look cheap?" She shook her head in disbelief again.

"I know you told me a million times... and normally I'm not acting that way. I told him, you know, in the beginning that I wasn't ready... and he respected my point of view... he told me he'd never do anything to upset me.. and he kept his word. He was always a gentleman... but after celebrating with him that one evening... he played the piano and sang a song. And that was the moment when I realized that I love him... and that he loves me.... so it happened, it felt right. Don't you think that it's right when two people are in love?"

"Of course I do... but Sweetie, five days?" She looked concerned.

"Yeah yeah... some people know what they are feeling really fast, ya know. Anyway, I don't know why you're acting so strange... it's not like we didn't use protection." She answered cheekily.

"I sure hope so!" She shoot at Fran, but smiled afterwards. "Ok... enough lecture for today. I know you're 18 and that you're very mature for your age. And I trust you with what you're doing... it's your life after all. But please promise me you'll never do anything so stupid again, ok?!"

"I promise, Nay." Fran grinned, hugging her sister tightly.

"So... can I leave you alone again or do you need anything?" Nay asked Fran, already getting up from bed.

"Nope... thanks. I'm okay." Fran told her, "but Nay?"

"Yeah?" She said, turning around one last time before exiting the room.

"Don't tell mom or dad, ok? They don't need to know..." She asked her sister to keep it a secret. It was one of the many secrets they shared.

"Okay... I won't tell anybody." She smiled, grabbing the doorknob, twisting it and leaving.

+ + + + + +

Max was half asleep while he typed the last letters of his work on the notebook. It was 2am in the morning and although he had taken the day off he already started working again, he didn't want to waste any time. He desperately wanted to go to New York again... and this time: forever! He supported his tired head with his hand and his elbow rested on the table, with his one finger he moved the cursor. Suddenly a window appeared on his screen:

Max opened his tiny eyes a bit more to look at the mail which he opened by clicking at one of the buttons. It was an email from Fran. He had tried to call her earlier, but only got her answering machine. She must have turned her cellphone off and he started to get worried about that he might have broken her heart and that she never ever wanted to talk to him again. But he was wrong, she did want to keep in contact with him, and how she did!

Max' face lit up, reading the sentimental words of Fran's email. They had committed their love for each other Friday last week. He was sure he loved her, she was the one and only for him. He knew she fulfilled his life and that he couldn't live without her. Their relationship was something special. He felt like he had never been with anybody else. Their love was strong, wasn't it? And they would have to prove that... they would have to live with the fact of being apart for a few months. As much as he wanted to be with her, he couldn't change it. They had to bring that sacrifice. They had to manage a long-distance relationship. They did before and they had to after. Of course nobody could compare the situation before their meeting with the situation afterwards. But they had their notebooks, their chat sessions and there was also the phone. It couldn't be that difficult, could it?

Max saved the email and decided checking the chatroom where they always met for talking. And his smile got even brighter when he actually saw that she was online...

Max looked at his alarmclock. Bloody hell he thought, already 5:30am in the morning. He had missed talking to his Frannie so much that he totally forgot about the time. Although they had only been apart for two days they had loads of stories to tell each other. Around 6am Max finally decided to give it a rest and said his goodbye to Fran. He then shut down his computer and slept for a few hours before he had to go to the theater again, getting ready for moving the show to Broadway.

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It was Tuesday, 8:30am in the morning in London when Maxwell entered the theater. He had enjoyed his week off so much and now he had to go in there again, working. But he wanted to do everything to move as fast as possible. So when he opened the door to his office, he spotted C.C. already sitting behind her desk, sorting a staple of papers.

"Maxwell, good to have you back!" C.C. practically shouted as she lifted her head and saw him coming through the door. She stood up from where she was sitting, walked around the desk and spread her arms out to welcome him.

"C.C. ... how are you? How's everything going?" He grinned and hugged her back, placing his briefcase on her desk. C.C. thought that he looked good, really good. He smelled delicious and his smile was even brighter than she'd ever seen it before. What caused his happiness? Was he actually so happy to see her again?

"I'm good, thank you Maxwell. As you may have noticed, we didn't burn the theater down and the show's sold out for the next couple of months..." She announced happily, hoping he'd appreciate her work.

"That's superb, C.C. Tell me about it again when I'm transfering your check, okay?" He smiled, pretty satisfied with his hard working staff. Then he took his briefcase and walked into his office with C.C. right by his side, sitting down at his desk. "You know what I thought about C.C.?" He started, folding his hands and leaning back in his chair. C.C. was just standing in front of his desk, eyeing him anxiously. "What do you think about, well... producing the show on Broadway and here at the same time?"

C.C. didn't really know what to say, she was just the secretary and now he wanted to hear her opinion? "Well... Maxwell... I'm just your secretary but-" Max cut her short, adding something before she could go on.

"Yes yes, I know you are. But you've managed everything brilliantly here while I was in New York City. And I've learned that sometimes it's no mistake to ask a woman about her opinion... and because Fran isn't here I ask you. This idea just popped up in my mind last night..."

C.C. frowned. Fran? Who the hell was that? She was hearing that name for the first time. Could it be that he met someone while he was in New York City? Could it be? "I'm sorry, Maxwell. Who?" She asked out of her curiosity.

"Hmm? You mean who Fran is?" He waited for her nodding her head and after she had done so, he continued. "Fran's my girlfriend. She's living in New York and I met her while I was there..." He said, but added quickly. "Anyway... what do you think? You could stay here in London doing the show while I'm in New York for example..."

C.C. was shocked. Girlfriend? Where the hell did that girlfriend come from? Before he had left for New York City he didn't have one, did he? Or had she missed anything? She didn't like that.. she didn't like to envision Max with another girl nor did she like to envision what they might have done in New York. It couldn't be... it just couldn't. SHE was supposed to be Maxwell's girlfriend. She was here... and were was this Fran person?

"C.C.? Are you still with me?" She heard the familiar British voice. She startled, looking at him.

"Yes Maxwell, sorry. I was just lost in thoughts... I think it's a good idea. Producing the show here and overseas will bring more money." She answered, sitting down on one of the chairs in front of his desk. Max smiled, she'd make a good partner someday. And who knows... maybe he'd give her the job of handling the show here. He had to remember that later...

Max leaned forward again, telling her full of enthusiasm. "That's exactly what I think, C.C. The show's a real hit here.. and I honestly do not want to close it just because we're heading for Broadway. And I'll certainly need the money of this show here... who knows if the Americans will like my show?" He smiled weakly, but sounded very optimistic.

C.C. managed to smile, too. No way was she going to stay here while he was doing the show on Broadway with this Fran person right by his side. "Don't say that, Maxwell. I'm sure they will like your show and you heard Mr. Davis, I think you can rely on his word, he's trustful."

"Yes, you are right... so," He clapped his hands together, grinning like a little schoolboy. "It's settled then, I'm going to arrange things for here and overseas."

"That's wonderful, Maxwell. I think it's the best you can do." She smiled, "Would you excuse me? I've still got a few things to do..." She excused herself, leaving him alone in his office.

"Sure, C.C., go ahead!" He answered, grabbing the receiver of his phone to dial a very important number.

+ + + + + +

"Max will be producing his show in New York and in London!!! Isn't that fantastic?" Fran rushed to Val, jumping up and down with her.

"Cool, Fran. I'm really happy for him. But he'll come to New York, won't he?" Val asked, but seeing Fran's smile fade she knew she'd asked the wrong thing.

"Errm... I think so, yeah." Fran frowned, she hadn't thought about that. She was just so happy to hear he would do the show in London and in New York, but she didn't consider the possibility that he might stay in London then.

"How do you know, anyway?" Val sat down on her couch, Fran was joining her.

"Oh... he called me in the middle of the night. He's got my cellphone number, ya know, and because he was already in his office he called me, telling me the news." She answered, playing with the ring on her left hand.

"And he didn't say anything about maybe staying in London, right?"

"Right..."

"So I guess he won't stay there.. otherwise he would have told ya, don't you think?" Val was doing a great job lately. Fran could really count on her, Val's statements and advices were very useful.

"I guess you're right. He wouldn't do that to me..." Val nodded, offering Fran a cookie.

"So... have ya heard anything from the colleges you applied for?" Val knew pretty well that Fran was like sitting on needles because they didn't response.

"Yeah... a few refusals... ya know, just because I'm not good in maths and geography they don't want me. It's unfair..." Fran was sad, why was life so unfair? First the thing with Max, her guy living so far away from her and then the colleges didn't want her because of some bad grades.

"Oh come on, you're good. Look at my report card, would you? I'm a loser compared to you..." Val said. Fran had always been better in school than her and she really couldn't understand why the colleges didn't like her. Fran hugged Val tightly, she knew her friend wouldn't have the possibility to choose what she'd like to do. With her grades... no chance.

"But then, please tell me why they don't want me... ya know, what if no college says yes? Then I'll sit here with nothing..." She bit her thumbnail, her mind working in overdrive.

"It's the same with me, Fran. I'm happy to start the job in the café next week... to earn a few dollars while I'm figuring out what to do next." She stood up and walked over to the window, opening it.

"Yeah... I'll start working at Benny's next week. Oh well, I still haven't got all answers yet, maybe there's some college who wants me." She smiled, throwing a pillow at Val.

"I'm sure... HEY..." She yelled, throwing it back at her just when Val's mother came into the room.

"Hi Fran."

"Hi Mrs. Toriello."

"Valerie, would you two do me a favor and go the the supermarket? I need a few things..." Val's mom asked the two. Val was looking at Fran to see her reaction, but normally she didn't mind.

"Sure Mrs. Toriello... we'll do that." Fran answered and both girls were grinning at Val's mom, grabbing their things and following her out of the room to go shopping.

+ + + + + +

Maxwell unlocked the door and could already hear voices coming from the apartment. Niles wasn't alone, he must have had a girl with him. So he quietly sneaked into the apartment, put his keys on the table and hung up his summer jacket.

"Niles, stop it!" Max heard. YUGH. But hey, why couldn't his buddy have a bit fun? He walked over to the kitchen but stopped right in his tracks when he saw a brunette girl sitting on the kitchen table and Niles feeding her with chocolate.

"Sorry, I didn't want to disturb..." Max excused himself, embarrassed to have witnessed this scene.

"Maxwell..." Niles said, putting the chocolate away. "This is Sandy. Sandy, this is my friend Maxwell. He's not very good with girls..." Niles joked, he just couldn't keep it to himself, could he?

Maxwell grinned embarrassed, "Hi Sandy!"

"Hi Max... my Niles, your buddy is really yummy. I can't understand why the girls don't want to date you..." She said, finally standing up from the table and walking over to Max, shaking hands with him.

"Niles! What the hell do you tell the girls? I'm happy with Fran, you know that." He remarked. He didn't need any help with finding love, he was 21 for god's sake.

"Oh, right..." Niles said, then leaning over to Sandy to say, "He met a girl via internet and spent last week with her..."

"NILES!" Max said louder, "It's non of your bloody business... and neither Sandy's."

"Okay okay..." Niles said, "She's living in New York and being apart from her really gets on his nerves..." Maxwell didn't want to listen to them anymore, so he excused himself and went into his room. Niles was right, he was provoked because Fran wasn't here. And seeing Niles having fun with his girl was awful, it hurt deeply. He decided to take a shower and to go online later, but first he'd talk to Niles again. It wasn't anyone's business where he met Fran and what he felt about her but his.

Sandy was gone about seven in the evening. Maxwell then used his chance to have a talk with Niles.

"Niles?" He shouted, not knowing where his friend was hiding again.

"Yes?" Niles answered, walking towards the direction where the voice was coming from.

"I've got to talk to you." He said, already seeing Niles Oh-Oh face.

"What have I done?" He asked innocently, sitting down on the couch in the living-room.

"Listen... it's non of your or Sandy's or whatever's business what I'm feeling for Fran, alright? She's not here with me and it's already hard enough to cope with that. You don't have to rub these things under my nose every time you're in the mood to..." He joined him in the living-room, sitting down on the armchair.

"Oh come on, Maxwell. Why are you so provoked, huh? I just told Sandy your lovestory..." He stated, not liking the way this conversation was heading at all. He knew pretty well that this was heading for an argument and he didn't want to argue with Max.

"I just don't want you to tell anybody, alright? I won't see her until later this year and it's hard enough to miss her, I don't need your support to miss her even more." He said a bit calmer, but seeing Niles' face he knew he'd explode every minute.

"My god, Maxwell. If you miss her so much, then why don't you visit her, huh? You've got loads of money... it won't affect your fortune. So stop being such a sissy and cope with it like a man."

"I'm not acting like a sissy, Niles. I'm pretty aware of the fact that I could visit her tomorrow, buying a ticket tonight just to be with her. But damn it, I've got work to do here to move to New York and it's not as easy as you're saying... "

"Then why the hell are you so vulnerable lately? What are you worried about? She's your girl, she loves you. She won't betray you, she's so much in love with you. You've got the internet, the phone and everything. You're meeting her in three months again, it's nothing compared to the fact that you'll have all the time in the world once you're living over there."

Niles did have a point there, Max had to admit. Was he really acting like a little boy? Like a sissy? He did miss her, it was just so hard. But eyeing the situation from Niles' point of view he was really not acting as a grown-up at all. Three months were nothing, they would pass faster as one could imagine. And he could do it, he would be able to not act so childish and miss her at the same time. "You're right, Niles. It's nothing compared to a lifetime... but please stop it, ok? There's no need to tell whole London about my lovelife..." He grinned, getting comfortable in the armchair.

"Ok, I'll try my best..." He winked at Max and together the two young guys watched a movie.

+ + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + +

The last couple of weeks had been pretty normal again. Fran was working at Benny's to earn a few dollars while Max was busy preparing everything for his move to the USA. In the beginning Fran didn't feel comfortable with the thought of Max surrounded by other girls in the theater, but she soon kept her mouth shut as he was worrying about the same thing with Fran surrounded by young good-looking men who only went to Benny's to meet her there. They managed their long-distance relationship pretty good with phone calls nearly every second day and either long or short chat conversations in the evenings. Fran would have never thought to get used to that... to not having her boyfriend right by her side. But the longer they were apart, the easier everything turned out to be, didn't it?

No more long evenings crying and sobbing on the phone. No more grouching how long they would have to wait until Max would come to New York City finally. Fran wasn't a child anymore and had to accept the fact of not being with Max. They were both adults after all...

It was Thursday, 29th of September, one day before Fran's birthday. She was working at Benny's that day and was having a lot of fun while doing so. Val always picked Fran up after her shift and they went grabbing a burger some place near. Val was also working, but not like Fran in a bar. She worked in a coffee shop, selling donuts.

"Hey Fran!" Val greeted her while coming through the door. Fran was just scribbling an order down while her best friend already showed up.

"Hey Baby," she started, embracing Val with one arm, "I just gotta take this order and then we're heading off, ok?"

"You don't need to hurry, Fran. We've got time..." She replied and sat down on one of the stools at the bar. Fran couldn't use the car of her parents so Val was the one driving. She got the car of her younger brother Marty who was spending his vacation in a summer camp. Marty was 16 and got the car to his birthday. It was just an old used car, but it didn't bother Marty. He was a guy and he just needed it to show it off in school, anyway.

"I'm heading off, Bobby." Fran shouted into the direction of the kitchen, putting her tray down on the counter and grinning happily at Val. "Finally!" She said, "Come on, let's go." They walked out the bar and headed into the direction where Val had parked the car. They got in and drove about two blocks to get to "their" diner where they always ate in the evenings after their shift.

Like yesterday, the day before and all the other days they sat near the window again, enjoying their food and chatting along.

"So," Val started, "how's Max?" Long time no news from him, Val wondered if they had had a fight or something. But then, if they had had one, Fran would have told her, wouldn't she?

"Oh, he's fine. Only a few more weeks and he'll finally move to New York. I'm so excited, Val." Fran's eyes were sparkling, although she hadn't talked to Max often for the last days. He was really busy and although she was a bit sad because he hadn't as much time for her as he had before, she knew she had to bring that sacrifice. He would be hers soon anyway...

"And I'm dying to get to know him already. All those stories you told me, all those things, I'm really excited. And Niles... oy, I'm excited to get to know Niles. Do you know what he looks like?" Val wanted to know and Fran shot her a funny glance.

"Yeah... I'm dying to get to know him, too. Just imagine Val," Fran started laughing nonstop and could barely finish her sentence, "Imagine you'd get together with Niles... we're best friends and they are best friends, that would be weird, wouldn't it?" Fran laughed, "And no, I don't know what he looks like. Max just said he's not so tall, blue eyes, blonde hair." She grinned, exactly Val's type of a guy.

"That would be funny, right. Do you remember? When we were in 5th grade we always said we wanted to marry twin brothers..." Val joined Fran's laughter, thinking how childish that was.

"Yeah... oh my, it's been a long time..." She answered, recalling their days back in 5th grade. "And now... here I'm sitting together with you... and tomorrow is my 19th birthday already..." She took the last bite of her burger and wiped her mouth with a napkin afterwards.

"And your mom is really okay with me coming over tomorrow afternoon?" Val wanted to be sure. Lately she spent much time at Fran's and she didn't want to get on Fran's mother's nerves.

"'Course she's ok with that, Val. You're my best friend, she has to be okay with that." Fran winked at Val, showing her that way that it was really okay. "So? Ya finished?" Val nodded. "Then let's go... my parents aren't at home tonight... and I gotta tidy up a bit for tomorrow." The two ladies paid their bills, walked to the car and drove back to their homes.

"Okay, bye Val, see ya tomorrow!" Fran told her goodbye to Val, slammed the door shut and walked slowly to the apartment building in which she disappeared into. It was 7:45pm. She walked up the stairs to the 5th floor, already used to the effort of climbing about 70 stairs a few times every day. She studied the contents of her purse for her keys and opened the door to the apartment, locking the door again after she had entered. She threw her things onto the couch and walked into the bathroom, washing her hands and refreshing a bit.

She then walked into the kitchen, pouring herself a glass of juice. She sat down on one of the chairs, sighing. She had worked 7 hours today... and she really started to like her job there. Maybe she could continue working there on the weekends when she'd be in college. And she didn't really bother if the guys just came over to Benny's to see her. She knew to whom she belonged and she'd never ever cheat on him. She knew how much he loved her and he knew exactly just how much she loved him back. She wouldn't have cried 24/7 if she didn't. Her thoughts drifted back to early August. The week when Max was spending his time in New York City with her. They had such a lot of fun... it was fantastic. Although she didn't really knew him long back then, she immediately felt a connection. And she knew he had felt the same. They had talked a lot about their week. Recalling their days together in their memories, telling each other evening after evening just how much they loved spending time with the other one and how much they loved each other. It was strange, wasn't it? Meeting someone via internet and falling so hard for him... 

Her ringing cellphone snapped her back to reality. "Oh my, probably Val again..." She said, knowing very well nobody else was home and would be able to witness her babbling with herself. Hadn't she told Val a few minutes ago that it was OK to come? She shook her head and grabbed the cellphone...

- "Frannie here!"

- "Fran?"

- "Max????????"

- "Yes, hi..."

- "H-Hi... wh-why are you calling? I mean... I'm happy you're calling. How are you?"

- "A bit tired but I'm good. What about you?"

- "Oh, I just got home from working at Benny's. Val and I were grabbing a burger at our diner again and now I've got to tidy up the apartment a bit. My family's coming tomorrow for my birthday, ya know."

- "Ah right... that's the reason why I'm calling..."

- "What? My birthday?"

- "Yes... Fran, I thought about... maybe... what would y-"

- "Oh wait a minute, Max. Somebody's at the door."

Fran told him, covered her cellphone with one of her palms and walked over to the door. She first looked through the spyhole but saw nobody out there. Then she unlocked the door and opened it, nearly dropping her cellphone when she spotted the person who stood right in front of her.

"Surprise!" The guy standing opposite of her said quietly, no reason to invite the whole building to join their reunion.

Fran couldn't believe her eyes. "Max?????" She asked, still not really believing what she was seeing. Her eyelashes were working in overdrive. Shutting and opening, shutting and opening. Then she tried shacking her head from one side to the other, closing her eyes and opening them again. No, he was still standing in front of her. "Is... are...?" She desperately searched for words.

"Yes, it's really me..." He giggled, waving his cellphone in front of her face. It seemed his surprise had really surprised her. He pushed the red button on his cellphone, stuffed it into his pocket and looked up again at her. She was still just looking at him, until she suddenly rushed into his arms, throwing both hers around his neck to hug him tightly.

"Maaaxxxx..." She sobbed, the tears streaming freely down her face.

"I take it you're surprised to see me?" He asked her, trying to loosen their embrace a bit to look into her eyes. He then whiped away her tears with his thumbs, making her pretty again. "Much better!" He said, grinning at her.

"Oh Max.... I..." She looked at him, smiling and her eyes filled with tears. "I...I've never... I...," She sighed, "I love you so much." Fran breathed, she didn't know what else to say. She was just so happy to see him, it was the last thing she would have expected. Never had anybody ever surprised her so much before. She looked up into his eyes, her mouth forming a smile. Max also couldn't held back a smile and leaned his head forward so their foreheads rested against each other. They were gazing into each other's eyes... one couldn't have witnessed any other couple more in love than those two. They saw the hunger; they saw the love reflected in there. It had been so long, too long. Every person who ever thought it would get easier with the time passing by was so wrong. It was ridiculous... she now finally noticed how much she had missed him.

Fran then started placing slight kisses on his lips. She stood on her toes, holding him by his shoulders. She sighed deeply when their kisses became stronger and more demanding, Max now also kissing her back in a very passionate way. Finally they could taste the other one again. It had been so long. It had felt like eternity. They both envied those people who could be with their loved ones whenever they wanted so much. Fran had thought she was okay with their long-distance relationship. But feeling his touch, tasting his lips and being loved by him again she realized she suddenly wasn't okay with that at all.

"Don't you ever leave me again..." Fran whispered, she yearned for his touch. Max held her close by her waist, his hands traveling further down her body. "I missed you..." She said through their kisses, both her hands buried in his thick hair which she loved so much, "Didn't you miss me?" He had to controll himself, but it was so damn difficult to do so. Max then nuzzled her neck, his warm breath on Fran's skin was sending a shiver through her body. She hadn't felt so wonderful for way too long. Fran threw her head back to give him better access. God, how much he loved that girl.

"Oh Fran..." He stopped, whispering in her ear. "Do you think I would be here if I didn't?" He moved his mouth to her earlobe, nibbling there which caused her to giggle. She buried her hands in his hair again, guiding his head back to her lips. They were still standing in the hallway of the apartment building, the door wide open and the two of them making out visible for everybody to witness. Fran pressed her lower body closer to his, desperate to feel him closer. She suddenly felt so loved again, like he was the only person making her happy, making her feel that there was somebody who deeply cared about her. Somebody who wasn't a member of her family, somebody else... her soultmate?!

They kissed passionately when Fran started walking backwards into the apartment, pulling him with her all the way. They shut the door behind them and leaned against it, never breaking their lip-lock. Fran kissed him even more demanding as her one hand was buried in Max' hair and the other hand was locking the door. After being apart for such a long time they were acting pretty normal: they couldn't get their hands off each other, kissing and touching all the time. Maxwell felt it wasn't right to make out in the living-room of Fran's parents, so when she was finished he suddenly lifted her up and she immediately wrapped her legs around him. He started walking, but didn't know where he was supposed to be going. So Fran broke their kisses and giggled, "That way..." pointing into the direction of her bedroom and covering his mouth with a passionate kiss again.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Niles, come on... why the hell do you want to go with me?" Maxwell rushed through the rooms of their apartment, searching for his passport.

"Max, with all due respect... but letting you go by your own, searching for an apartment or a house... it's like jumping out an airplane. I do have to be there, I need a comfortable kitchen, for cooking and stuff. You just would choose one with a tiny kitchen, I know you." Niles pointed with his finger at him. Unfortunately he had a point there. "So I really have to go with you!" Niles tried to convince Max that he needed him, that it was important for both of them to have a big kitchen in their new home, so Niles would feel comfortable there. Because sooner or later he would definitely become Maxwell's butler and he had to like the new place...

Maxwell rolled his eyes. "Just because of the kitchen?"

He got him, there. "Alright, not just because of the kitchen.... I'm dying to get to know Fran finally. You told me so much about her, I really want to know her, too." He admitted, his cheeks turning a bit red.

Max smiled. They would get along pretty well in his eyes. Fran was easy to talk to, she was funny and lovable. Niles was practically the same... just the male version. He was such a good buddy, the best Max could have get. "Oh, alright... go pack your suitcase!" Max gave in, "and HURRY! We've only got a few more minutes until we have to head off to the airport..." He remarked, finally finding his passport. "Thank god, here it is..." He said relieved.

Niles rushed into his room and was back not even ten seconds later. "I'm ready!" He announced, seeing a totally perplexed Maxwell standing in front of him, he answered, "I knew you'd say yes...," before Maxwell even had the chance to ask. That was so Niles.

"Alright then... let's go." Niles walked over to the door, opening it for Maxwell and closing it behind both of them.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Does Fran know you're coming?" Niles asked, pulling their suitcases with him.

"No, she doesn't." Max simply said, "It's a surprise..." He smiled, imagining how she would react. "You know, tomorrow's her birthday. And I thought it would be a good possibility to combine searching a house and visiting her."

Niles knew it from the beginning. No way was Maxwell Sheffield going to New York City without seeing his girl... and he was quite sure that the main reason why they flew to New York was Fran, not the house. Max must really miss her, Niles thought.

"TAXI!!!!!" Niles shouted when they exited the airport. They had reservations for the Plaza, two different rooms for three nights. Hopefully they would find a house that weekend because they wouldn't have time to come back again before finally moving.

A taxi stopped and the two guys got in. In the beginning they wanted to go to the hotel, but Max suddenly wanted to go to Fran's apartment building first. "Niles, you think she'll be surprised?" Max asked concerned, suddenly he wasn't sure anymore.

"Of course she'll be surprised. She'll be speechless..." He clapped him on the shoulder, encouraging him by doing so.

"Oh I hope you're right..." - "I'm always right, so don't worry!" Niles joked, although most of the time he was actually really right.

The taxi stopped at Fran's building, dropping Max off and leaving Niles alone, driving to their hotel. Maxwell looked up, it was huge and he'd never been in there before. He slowly walked over to the entrance, pushing the door open and looking at the bells on which floor they were living. As he headed up the stairs, he took his cellphone and dialed Fran's cellphone number. He'd really surprise her in a couple of minutes. First he'd call her on her cellphone, chatting with her a bit. Then he'd ring the doorbell and she'd have to open it, seeing him standing in front of their apartment. He so hoped Niles was right... he had been so proud of his idea, combining both things. But now he wasn't certain at all... what if she wasn't at home?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Fran twisted the doorknob of her bedroom door, opening it. They entered the room still clung to each other. Max then put her down and she walked around him to the door, closing it. He turned around slowly, looking at her with hungry eyes. He had recalled their love-making a billion times the last months and now she was standing right in front of him again, ready to do exactly that. She stepped out of her shoes, walking over to him slowly. He eyed her all the time, wondering what she'd do next and took off his shoes, too.

She was now standing real close to him, but didn't look up. She moved her hands to the buttons of his shirt and opened them, button after button. With each button she loosened, she placed one soft kiss on his chest. Maxwell felt like grabbing her, throwing her on the bed and making love to her finally. Abstinence was torture... and abstinence from such an adorable girl was hell! He held her by her shoulders, watching every move of her. When she had loosened all the buttons, she slid the shirt down his shoulders and arms until he was only wearing his trousers. She finally looked up then, smiling at him and leaning forward to start kissing him there. Oh god, how much she loved that chest. He grinned down at her, lifting her head so he could look into her eyes. Fran stood on her toes to be able to place a quick peck on his lips. But when she wanted to stop and continue kissing his chest, he took her face softly in his hands and kissed her again... and again... and again. Fran felt her knees giving in and so she leaned forward against his chest, wrapping her arms around his upper body.

"Fran, I missed you like hell... it's crazy. I thought I could do this, but now... having you in my arms again..." Max breathed, lowering his hands from her face, to her shoulders, to her waist and then he sneaked them under her t-shirt. She felt his warm touch and immediately got goose pimples... how had she managed to live without him for two months? It felt so wonderful, it felt so right. All the love-making she had experienced before wasn't love-making in her eyes anymore. She hadn't loved any of those guys and she knew it was simply just having sex back then. But being with Maxwell, being treated so heavenly and with all the respect he gave her... she never wanted to be without him ever again.

He kissed her more demanding and was pulling at her shirt. She then stopped, looking at him sexily and pulled the shirt over her head, just to throw it on the floor. She looked up again, her eyes reflecting all the love which she felt for him. "I love you, Max. I love you so much." He smiled and kissed her nose, stepping one step forward again to be closer to her. He gave her a very sweet kiss and Fran grabbed his hand, leading him over to her bed. She offered him to open her bra by turning her back to him and he didn't hesitate to open it. Fran's bra dropped onto the floor and she sat down, patting the space next to her. But he didn't want to sit down next to her, instead he kneeled in front of her. She took his face in both her hands and kissed him tenderly before she guided his mouth to the center of her breasts. He began placing soft kisses there, until he started licking and sucking her skin. Fran felt like she was on cloud number nine. She buried her fingers in his hair and guided his head, getting more and more turned on. "Oh Max,... Max... I...'ve....missed...you..." He pushed her down her bed, kneeling abover her. His mouth travelled further down her upper body until it stopped at her bellybutton. His hands and his mouth were doing magic on her skin, she didn't want him to stop. But suddenly she heard a strange noise coming from outside her bedroom door.

"Francine?" Her mother yelled and immediately stepped into her room without knocking. "Oh my gooooooodddddd...." Sylvia screamed, not really believing what she was seeing.

Fran looked up in shock, pushing Max away so he fell on the floor. Fran grabbed something to cover her upper body while Max tried to get up again, totally perplexed. "MAAAHAAA!" Fran yelled back, "What are you doing here?" Just then her father joined them, "Syl? What's the ma- oh my god!" His voice got louder, who was that half naked guy in Fran's room and why was his daughter topless?

Fran's eyes were wide open, she stared from her mother to her father and from him back to her. Why were they home? Didn't they say they were going to the movies that night? Sylvia and Morty stared at Max who didn't know what to do. He rubbed his hands together nervously, looking at the ground and once in a while at Fran.

"Francine? Who's that guy?" Her father asked, looking angrily at Maxwell. What did that guy think he was doing here? Max stood unsure next to Fran's bed and wanted to say something but Morty immediately stopped him. "I'm talking to my daughter..." Maxwell was quiet then, my was that a great start, the family was already loving him... Fran reached for Max' hand and held it tight, she pulled him down to her so they sat next to each other on her bed.

"Ma, Daddy, this is Max..." She looked at him, smiling. He smiled back, however a bit unsure. Her parents were still staring at them, she would have a hard time explaining it all. "He's from London... and he's here to visit me."

"Visiting you? It looked like something else, Fran, when we came in here a couple of minutes ago." Her mother remarked, shaking her head in disbelief. "Who is he? And why was he all over you...?"

"He's my boyfriend..." She started.

"Boyfriend? Since when do you have a boyfriend?" Her mother interrupted her.

"I...we...," Now was the time to tell them the truth.

"We're together since well, August I'd say..." Max said, both of Fran's parents now looked from her daughter to him. He felt unsure under their gaze, wasn't he supposed to say anything at all?

"I'd suggest you go now!" Morty told Max and he wasn't smiling.

"Yes..." Max just said, nodding his head and getting up from bed, putting on his shirt and shoes again. "I'll call you..." Max whispered and gave her a quick peck on the lips. He squeezed her hand, holding it tight.

"Now get out of here already!" Fran's father shouted, really angry now. Max let go off Fran's hand and rushed out of the room, feeling sorry for Fran who had to explain everything to her parents alone. They heard the door shut and continued asking her all those questions. "Now tell us Francine, why was he all over you? Don't tell us you're having sex with that guy?!" You could really see her father was about to explode. She had always been his little girl who he had to protect. But seeing that guy all over her, he just couldn't get it.

"As he tried to explain... we're together since August and he'll move to New York in November. He came to New York to visit me because of my birthday tomorrow...." She didn't know what they wanted to hear, she just tried to explain and hoped they would understand.

"You said he's from London, Francine? You've never been to London... so where did you meet him?" Her mother asked, both her parents still standing in the middle of her room, eyeing her suspiciously.

"We met online..." She began, "... in an internet chatroom."

"Online?" Her father asked, "It's getting better and better... are you totally out of your mind?" He shook his head, looking at his wife and back at his daughter again. "What would you have done if he was an older guy, trying to seduce you and rape you?" He asked her, "Now? I tell you, we wouldn't have noticed because YOU DIDN'T TELL US!" He shouted, getting angrier.

Fran's eyes filled with tears, she didn't want to cry. "I know... I thought it's not important..."

"Not important? Fran, you are together with a guy you met online... we didn't even know you met someone there... and you never told us you have a boyfriend... don't you think it's important for us to know?" Sylvia was a bit calmer than Morty, but she couldn't believe it either.

"He'll move to New York and... I thought I'd tell you then... when he's here forever." She looked at her parents lost, oy they were so angry.

"You won't see that guy again, Francine." Her father suddenly said.

"What?" Fran asked, did she hear alright?

"You heard me... you won't see that boy again!" He repeated, looking at his wife for support. Sylvia nodded, supporting her husband's decision.

"You can't tell me not to see him again.. I'm 18, nearly 19!" She shouted at her parents, also getting angry now. They couldn't forbid her to see Max, they just couldn't.

"Oh yes we can. You won't be able to see him any longer anyway..." Morty said, seeing Fran's eyes widen even more.

"What? Why? What are you talking about?" She stared at her parents, what were they talking about?

"You'll spend one year abroad..." Her mother began to explain, "... at your aunt Becky's house." Fran's mind was working in overdrive. Aunt Becky? Wasn't she living in South Africa?

"Aunt Becky? But she's living in South Africa!" She answered, totally baffled.

"Yes, in Cape Town to be exact." Sylvia said, looking at her husband for support.

"But I don't understand... just because Max and I love each other you're sending me away?" Was she really talking to her parents? Or were they two aliens, caught in the bodies of them? She shook her head in disbelief, why were they acting so strange?

"No, Frannie look, it's because you haven't received any assurance of the colleges you applied for. And you know, the semester's starting Monday." She looked comforting at her, but Fran just stared coldly back. "So we asked your aunt and she was okay with that... with you spending a year there. You'll work and help your aunt and you'll have enough time to think about what you want to do, too... Besides, you always wanted to spend some time abroad." Her mother explained, getting calmer again.

"Yeah, but that was before I met Max!" She told her mother, but adding quickly. "So what if I don't want to go?" She asked, South Africa? It was so far away... she couldn't stand being apart from Max again. She was supposed to stay here, to start a life with him.

"You don't have a chance... you're heading off Monday at 8:20am. We actually wanted to give you the ticket for your birthday... we wanted it to be a surprise." Now Morty was talking again.

"A surprise? That's really a surprise.. but it's hell! You want me to go to South Africa for one whole year? You want to send me away so I'll be apart from Max... and Val and all my friends...I don't want to go!!! You didn't even ask me..." She practically shouted into their faces as she got up from bed, rushing out of her room into the bathroom where she locked the door behind her, leaned against it and slid down the back of the door to sit on the ground, crying like hell.

"Frannie?" Her mother yelled, knocking on the door.

"Go away, I don't want to see you!" She shouted, covering her face with both her hands as the tears were streaming freely down her face. Suddenly her whole world crashed down on her. What the hell was going on? She had to go to South Africa? For one year? Monday already? They didn't even ask her if she'd like to go... they just arranged everything without even considering that she might have other plans. And then they said it was supposed to be a surprise? It was really a surprise... she'd have never thought her parents would ruin her life like that. She belonged to New York, to Queens, to the USA... to Max, Val, her family and friends. She didn't need to fly to the other end of the world to think about what she wanted to do later in life... she actually had thought about that already. And she knew that it was sad and disappointing that no college wanted her. But that was the cold truth, wasn't it? So she had to accept it... and she already thought about working at Benny's for a start... and then she wanted to attend writing lessons, because she felt like writing was just what she was good at and she loved to do just that.

Now her whole world was upside down... nothing was like she had planned it. Their parents had caught her making out with Max... and they shouldn't have witnessed that... she felt so ashamed and embarrassed. She felt sorry for Max... her father had treated him like dirt. She wanted their first meeting to be special. They were supposed to like him, to love him, to accept him as Fran's boyfriend whom she loved and wanted to be with. But it was a total disaster... why hadn't she locked the door? Why did she forget? And why did they come home so early? Well, she couldn't change anything anyway, now could she? So she wiped away her tears, still sobbing. She get up from the ground and walked over to the vanity basin, wetting a washcloth and rubbing her face. God, that felt good. She hadn't cried for weeks and now again so hard. Everything was falling apart... and somehow she couldn't do anything against it. She couldn't possibly say NO to her parents, could she? Oh, how much she had to talk to Max, he had to know what was going on! That would be one memorable birthday the next day... 

+ + + + + +

Maxwell was opening the door to his room in silence. He had already regretted leaving Fran all alone with her parents. They were really angry and Max could tell they wouldn't give her an easy time. He walked in slowly and threw his key on the table next to the door. He had to call her, he just had to. The thoughts of her crying haunted him and he wouldn't get rid of them until he had spoken to her.

He pulled his cellphone out of his pocket and dialed her cellphone number. He had left Fran and her parents about an hour ago, certainly they had finished their conversation until now. While he listened to the familiar ringing on the line, he walked over to his other door: the door between Niles' and his room. He knocked softly and immediately entered afterwards, spotting Niles sitting in front of the TV.

"Hey Max, already back?" Niles looked up from the TV and had a cheeky grin on his face. But as soon as he saw Max' face his smile faded. Oh, he wasn't looking that happy, now was he? "Oh nooo man, what happened?" He asked concerned, turning off the TV as he got up, walking over to where his best buddy was standing.

Still only hearing the riiiiiiing Max said, "Wait a moment, man, I'm calling her right now...." Finally she answered the phone.

- "Yeah?"

- "Hi.. it's me!"

- "Hey... Max, I need to see you. I can't stay here tonight. It's drivin' me nuts!"

- "Fran... calm down! They're just so angry because they caught us...."

- "You wish! It's not just that... oh Sweetie, they forbid me to see you again..."

- "What?"

- "You heard me right..."

- "But Fran, you're 18! It's just normal that girls your age..."

- "Yeah, but you don't know my parents... they still think I'm their little girl."

- "I can't believe it..."

- "Neither can I... they are just full of surprises today, I tell ya. There's another thing I have to tell you, but not on the phone!"

- "What else? Fran... I don't think it's a good idea!"

- "Don't you want to see me?" Fran's voice was breaking.

- "Sweetheart, of course I do, but think about your angry parents! We’ll see each other tomorrow…"

- "I give a damn about them, Max! And how shall we see each other, huh? They forbid me to see you!"

Max sighed.

- "Well, you’re smart! Think about something!"

- "Hmhmm..." She didn’t say anything anymore.

- "Hey, believe me! I really want to see you, but I think it’s better that way!"

- "Yeah..." Her voice sounded sad.

- "Fran?"

- "Hmm?"

- "I hope you know that I love you, no matter what happened or will happen!"

Fran smiled, he was just so sweet.

- "I love you too, Sweetie! See ya! I’ll call ya, I promise!"

- "Bye!"

Max waited until Fran had hung up and looked over to where Niles was standing! Eyes wide open, having a shocked look on the face he could hardly believe what he had overheard. "My god, what happened?"

Max walked over to him, sitting down on the sofa. He sighed deeply before he started. "They walked in on us..." He began.

"Who?" Niles wanted to know, eager to hear the story.

"Well... who, you fool? Fran's parents, for god's sake!" He massaged his temples, recalling the scene again.

"Shit!" Niles blurted out, "And what happened?"

"Well, her father shouted at me and I guess they're both hating me now... good start, eh?" He stood up, walking over to the mini-bar.

"Do they know you love her? I mean really love her?" Niles nodded his head so Max knew he also wanted one.

"Niles, they didn't even know until today that I exist.... so no, I don't think they know that." He poured the two of them each a glass and walked back to the sofa again, handing Niles his drink.

"Is she coming over?" He asked before having a sip.

"Yes... tomorrow evening I guess!" Max gulped half his glass. "AAArrr... that was good!" He said afterwards, shacking his head.

"Well,...then her parents must have taken it pretty well."

Max showed Niles a pretty stupid grimace. "No Niles, I don't think so! She's sneaking out..." Niles formed an O-face and tried to think about the right words to comfort his buddy.

"She said there's something she has to tell me..." Max stared at the now empty glass in his hands. No, alcohol was not the answer!

"Do you have an idea what it could be?"

"No... but I don't think it's anything good." He stood up to pace the floor, getting nervous all of a sudden.

"What makes you think that?" Niles lifted his eyebrow, eyeing him strangely.

"She said she can't tell me on the phone.... so it must be something bad!" He walked over to the mini-bar again, putting his glass down.

"Oh come on, maybe it's a surprise or something...."

"No thank you, her parents walking in on us was enough for the next few years! I can't stand another surprise!" He told him and then he smiled again, remembering her face when she saw him standing right in front of her. "She did cry, by the way, when I was standing in front of her." Niles smiled, those two were just made for each other. And he died to meet her finally.

"See? I told you!" He took another sip, still not even cleared half of the glass.

"Hmmhm... she threw her arms around me and it was like we'd never been apart. Like we were back in the world we could actually be together, you know." He trailed off, but soon realized it and said, "Oh Niles, I just love her so much! I think I can't live without her in my life.... I'm haunted, it's crazy! Over this short period of time my love for her grew so tremendously... I wouldn't have thought that I'd fall for her so hard. That I'd ever meet a girl who loves me, the person who I am, not just my background and my money..." Niles listened carefully. He just enjoyed having fun with his girls, but if Max needed something serious he should go for it and hold on to it!

They were just sitting there in Niles' room, having a long talk until the two guys decided to call it a night…

+ + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + +

"Stooop itttt..." Fran giggled, nearly stumbling over her own feet. Oh god, how good it felt to be right there into his arms, to enjoy his closeness and to feel his touch and love. Max just couldn't get enough, he was already all over her again, kissing and nuzzling her neck. He gave the door a slight kick and wrapped his arms around his girl from behind. Fran threw her head back to give him better access, giggling and grinning while she did so.

"Happy…birthday…my…darling!" Max whispered into her ear, covering her with kisses after each word. Fran turned her head to the side, barely able to touch his lips, but somehow she did.

"Hhmm… thanks." She answered, covering his right cheek with her palm and turning around slowly in his embrace. He was so wonderful, it felt so damn good to be with him. But she couldn’t forget why she came here in the first place. There was something she had to tell him… "Maaxx... didn't you say Niles' room is next door?" She put her hands on his chest, gazing lovestruck into his eyes. Her inner feelings were having a battle just that moment, could she and above all, should she?

Max didn’t want to stop, his hands already running up and down her body again. Her hair was smelling so good again, her perfume was driving him nuts. "Hmm... and?" He suck her skin on her neck, almost leaving a hickey there again like he had done once before.

Fran pushed him away a bit. As much as she loved his treatment, she first wanted to say hello to Niles. She didn't know when she'd have the opportunity to do so again. Besides, she was dying to get to know him already because she had to tell Val what he was like after all. "I wanna say hi to Niles first, ya okay with that?" She turned around facing him. Although she didn’t feel good today, because she knew there was a loooot to talk about later and that he wouldn’t be too happy about it, she managed to act pretty normal towards him. Well, at least she tried her best.

Max, however, did recognize a change in her acting and mimic but didn't think it might be anything to be worried about. So he took her hand in his and led her over to he door, knocking softly.

"Door is open!" Niles shouted, already knowing who it was. He wasn’t deaf after all. Max opened it slowly and stepped in with her right by his side.

"Niles... somebody's here to finally meet you." He announced, showing him with his hands who he was talking about. "Niles, Fran. Fran... this is Niles!" Niles was totally taken aback. He'd never seen a more beautiful girl in his whole life. She wasn't really tall, but that didn't matter. She was just looking so beautiful, so everything else didn't matter. Her smile caught his eye and he immediately had to smile back. He held his hand out to her to softly squeeze it.

"Hiya, Niles. I'm so happy to finally meet you." She greeted him, her thousand dollar smile still not fading a bit.

"Hi Fran. It's all my pleasure!" He answered, grinning at her and then to Max, winking at him.

"Hey, I saw that!" She said, hitting him playfully on the arm. "But I don't mind... I guess it's a good sign, am I right?"

"Oh yes, I'd say that." Niles remarked. The two of them just smiled at each other and Max was standing next to them, nervous and impatient like a little kid. He didn’t even let them have a chance to do a bit small talk, he immediately said,

"I'm really sorry to interrupt you two... but Niles, I got to take this girl next door. It’s her birthday after all and well… do I have to say anything more?" He winked at his buddy, already grabbing her left hand.

"Oh, no…. I don’t mind at all." He remarked, and before Max could disappear into the other room with her again he held his hand out and said, "Happy Brithday, Fran!"

Fran grinned, she was already loving him. Now she knew why Max was appreciating his friendship to that guy so much. "Thank you, Niles. It was very nice to meet you." She answered and waved her goodbye to him, pulled into the other room by Max.

After he had closed the door she said, "Now that was unfriendly. I wanted to talk to him a bit..." Max placed his hands at her waist, pushing her into the direction of the bed.

"I'm sorry Darling, but you can talk to him as much as you want to once I’m here all the time..." He said while leaving slight kisses all over her face and neck. Fran's smile suddenly disappeared and she stopped him again, walking to the sofa to sit down. "Fran, what's the matter with you today? I thought you wanted to be with me so desperately...?" Max asked her, not really believing why she was backing off all the time.

"I have to talk to you first, Max. It's important." She said, the tears already forming in her eyes. It wouldn't be easy to tell him, she would break his heart. And she would surely break hers, too. She had almost forgotten about it, but her parents had told her she had to leave Monday for going to South Africa. That would mean being apart from him again... and she didn't know if they could handle it. Being apart again... for such a long time.

She patted the place next to her to show him to sit down. But before she could start telling him what was on her mind, he reached for a little box on the couch table.

"Before you say anything, Fran, I want to give you this." He said, handing her the box and eyeing her carefully. A smile appeared on his face as he proudly said, "It’s my birthday present for you!"

Single tears were running down her cheeks, why did he have to make it so damn hard for her? There she was about to break his heart and he gave her a gift. He was the sweetest guy in the world. She just stared at the box, Max already began to panic. "Hey? What’s the matter?" He reached for her face, lifting it up with his finger. Then she finally looked at him, a slight smile across her face. She shook her head and couldn’t say a word. So he placed both his hands on her cheeks, wiping away the tears with his thumbs and pulling her head towards his, kissing her forehead. "Everything’s going to be okay!" Fran swallowed hard, boy do you know?! "Don’t you want to open it?" He asked, grinning from one ear to the other. He was exited to see her reaction.

"Yeah…" She breathed, unwrapping the gift slowly.

"There.. that’s better. You’re talking…" He giggled, winking at her lovely.

She continued unwrapping the gift until there was only a small box left. She sighed deeply before she finally saw what was inside. Her eyes got wide, she couldn’t breathe. There, right in front of her eyes, was the most beautiful necklace locket she’d ever seen.

"Oh my god, you can’t be serious!" She said, still not really believing this was real.

"Do you like it?" He asked unsure, did she or didn’t she?

"Max, of course I do! But…" She covered his cheek with her palm again, leaving a slight kiss on his lips, "… you’re insane!" She just said, causing Max to smile again. She took it into her hand, it was just beautiful. It was a golden necklace locket, very simple, but shaped like a heart. She eyed it carefully.

"Open it," he said. So she opened it. The tears were streaming again when she saw a picture of them inside, the only one that existed. They had tried out a box in a mall where you have to put in money and you’ll get printed pictures. She covered her mouth with her hand, it was wonderful. She then held the necklace locket tight and threw her arms around his neck, hugging him. "I guess you like it." He remarked when he put his one hand on her back and the other one at the back of her head, stroking it softly.

"It’s the most precious gift I ever got. Thanks so much!" She said when she pulled back again and kissed him like he had never been kissed by her before.

"So you want me to help you put it on?" He asked, reaching for her hand.

"Yeah… yeah…" She said, turning her back to him and holding up her hair so he had better access to close it.

"There you are… perfect." He smiled and grabbed it when she was turning around again, just to pull her closer to him. He kissed her just a little bit in the beginning, but then he held her by her shoulders, pulling her body more into his direction, opening her mouth with his tongue to taste her. Fran felt she was about to faint, her head was spinning. On the one hand she didn’t want to ruin this wonderful moment, this wonderful evening. He was so sweet, he gave her this beautiful necklace locket, he really loved her and she loved him back as much as he did love her. But on the other hand she couldn’t claim that everything was alright… that there was nothing she had to tell him. She couldn’t do this to him, she had to tell him. Now or never! It was his bloody right to know it now. But oh… just a few more kisses, okay? She felt herself be lowered on the sofa, Max above her. He was about to cover her neck with kisses again, sucking and licking there. She buried her hands in his thick head of hair, the feeling was like a drug. Once you started it you could hardly stop. She then guided his head to her face again, kissing him for all he was worth. She wanted him so badly, the news could wait, couldn’t they? So she positioned herself more comfortable on the sofa beneath him, her legs wrapped around his body. She pulled at his shirt, keen on finally getting rid of the piece of clothes. She pulled it over his head and threw it on the floor. She died to touch his chest again, she just loved it. He had a really nice tan, his muscles were just perfect.

Her hands were rummaging over his back, it was all she could do while he was leaving a hickey at her neck. Max just had to "sign" her… she was his after all. He started getting rid of her shirt, pulling it over her head and throwing it on the floor were it joined his. Then he unbottened her jeans while nuzzling her breasts. It had been so long and here they were, all over each other on the couch. He smiled up on her, she seemed to be happy. She had her eyes shut most of the time, but just then she stared back into his. They shared a soft kiss until he lowered his kisses to some other body parts again.

They got rid of all the other clothes pretty fast and Max positioned himself right above her. She looked so beautiful with just wearing the necklace locket. He loved her so much! Then they shared a wonderful love-making right there, clung to each other like their lives depended on it.

After gaining their normal pulse again, Max got up from the couch and walked over to the bed, taking two blankets and joining Fran on the couch. "Here, that’s better, isn’t it?" He asked her, reaching for the single strain of her hair. She simply nodded, not fully there again. "That was wonderful, Fran. I love you." He admitted, kissing her cheek softly.

Fran was totally lost in thoughts. This had felt so right again, so wonderful. She didn’t want to tell him, but she had to. "Yeah… it was more than I’d ever dared to dream about!" Turning her head from the side to him, being able to look into his eyes, she said, "Max, I have to tell you something." She suddenly sat up, wrapping the blanket around her body. Then she took his hand in hers, looking down on it and into his confused eyes. Hers were filled with tears, it almost broke his heart and he just wanted to say something when she stopped him by placing her index finger over his mouth. "Listen... okay?" She began, the tears already running down her cheeks. "First you have to know that I love you, I really do. I love you with all my heart and all my soul. I never thought I'd love another person so much... you make me laugh, you make me cry." She smiled a bit, but continued. "You're everything I always wanted. You make my heart melt everytime you touch me. You make my stomach turn upside down everytime you kiss me..." She stopped, her sobbing became harder. Max reached over and wiped a few tears away, then she continued. "At this time I think it's impossible for me to not be with you... it's like you're the missing part of my heart which I need to be complete..." She held his hand tighter, rubbing it nervously. "And when I tell you this now... I need you to promise me that you'll love me and never stop loving me!" She looked into his eyes carefully. He didn't blink, he was just staring back and she could see the love behind those lovely green eyes.

"I'll always love you, Fran. And I will never stop loving you!" He confessed, and seeing her sighing deeply he leaned over to give her a passionate kiss. She took his face into her hands and pulled it to hers, kissing him for all he was worth. She had needed to hear this from him, it meant everything to her that moment. And he had said it... he really had!

Before they could lose each other in their sensual kisses, Fran pushed him back again, swallowing hard and breathing heavily. Their foreheads rested against each other's, she managed to finally tell him. "I'm going away, Max." There, she had said it. The tears suddenly stopped and she leaned back, staring into his eyes and searching for any kind of reaction.

He blinked his eyes, not once, not twice... but about five times until he found his voice again. "What?" His eyes rushing from left to right of her face.

"I'm going away... to South Africa!" It was like somebody had punched a knife into his heart and twisted it with great relish. Had he heard her right? She was going away? And where was that again? South Africa? It couldn't be... he must have heard her wrong.

He laughed out loud, "That's funny... I thought I heard you say you're going to South Africa!" But when he saw her sad face, he stopped immediately. "Noooo Fran, don't tell me you're serious!"

She nodded her head slightly, "I'm serious, Max. I'm going away..."

He shook his head, "But why? Why, Fran? Don't you want to be with me?" He almost shouted, suddenly feeling the anger building up inside his body.

Fran felt the tears forming up in her eyes again, "Of course I want to be with you! If you would let me explain everything first you'd know that it wasn't my decision..." She cried, covering her face with her hands. He calmed down again, comforting her with stroking her left arm and shoulder. When she had calmed down, too, she rubbed her eyes and started again. "You heard me right, I'm going away. To South Africa, Cape Town.... my parents just told me when you left yesterday, they said it was supposed to be a surprise! My aunt Becky's living there, I'll live with her for a year..." She saw Max' shocked face and he stood up, reaching for his boxers, putting it on and pacing the floor angrily afterwards.

"A year?" He couldn't believe it. What were her parents thinking? Only two more months and they would be able to be together every day... and now they were sending her away to SOUTH AFRICA? "One year, Fran?"

"Yeah I know, Max... It's hell for me, too!" Fran got up from the sofa, the blanket wrapped around her she walked over to him.

"Hell? It's more than hell, Fran... they can't do this to you! They can't... you can stay here if you don't want to go!" He told her, determinded to find a way out of this awkward situation.

"No, Max. I don't think so. They already paid the ticket a-"

"Oh what the hell... I'll pay them the ticket! They can't do this to you... to us! Fran..." He held her by her shoulders, looking deeply into her eyes. "Tell me you don't want to go... you don't, do you?"

She looked away shyly, she had thought about that all night long. She hardly got any sleep because she was thinking about it all the time. First it was just unimaginable to think about her life anywhere else than Queens, NY. Her life without Max, without her family and friends. She belonged here, didn't she? And she wanted to attend college here... but no college had accepted her, so what? Maybe her parents were right... maybe they had decided right. Going abroad for one year was certainly interesting, she would become more self-confident, she would learn to handle things by herself and she would meet loads of new people. She would live somewhere warm and sunny all 365 days, with people who had another culture and another belief. Maybe it wasn't that bad as she had thought in the beginning. And their love was strong enough to survive, wasn't it? They had managed being apart for 1/4 year, they could do this for another 3/4, too, couldn't they? She knew she was about breaking his heart... but he had to understand! It was a great opportunity for her to go to another country!

"Actually..." She started, already seeing his confused look, "... I think I do want to go... somehow..." She told him and he broke away from her, pacing the floor again.

"I can't believe it!" He shouted, being really angry now. "I can't believe it!" He turned around, looking at her angrily. "I thought you love me, you know. I was about to give everything up in London just for you and me. For us both to have a future together here... to begin a life together. And now you're telling me you want to go?" He swallowed hard, staring coldly into her eyes. "You know what? You just punched a knife into my heart and twisted it!" He loved this girl so much it was killing him. She was the first he had ever loved and she would remain the one and only for him. Love hurts, he suddenly realized. Love hurts very much. He couldn’t image being apart from her for a whole year. A year of not being together, a year of not seeing each other. He couldn’t believe this… she really broke his heart, his brain didn’t work rational anymore.

Fran tried to hold him, to keep him close to her, but he didn't want to. He sat down on the sofa, massaging his temples. "Max, of course I love you! I've never loved anyone like I love you. It'll be hell being apart from you... it's been the last few months... but don't you understand that this is a great opportunity for me? No college wanted me... I have to do something, so going abroad for a period of time will help me to decide what I really want to do with my life..." She sat next to him, her left hand rested on his right shoulder. He didn't face her, he just stared into another direction.

"This was just a game for you, wasn't it?" He suddenly said, blurting out.

"What?" Fran couldn't believe her ears. Could he actually be so mean?! "You can't be serious..." She backed off, standing next to the couch with an open mouth.

"How could I be so stupid, believing you are in love with me..." He shook his head, getting up and facing her. He really thought he was right. He thought Fran was different from all the other girls. That she really loved him, not just his money. That she wanted to share her life with him, marry him and have children with him. But it seemed he was wrong...

"I can't believe you are so mean! How dare you!" She slapped him in the face, tears streaming down hers. She then started putting on her clothes, "I love you! I bloody do!" She cried, "And I can't believe you think I just played a game with you... because hell, I didn't! These few months... they were the best of my life... and I really thought we could survive this year when I'm away. That we could figure out something." Through sobbing, she said, "But I guess I was wrong..." She wiped her tears away and when she was finished dressing again, she grabbed her purse and walked to the door. She twisted the doorknob and hesitated one moment longer, maybe he would call her name, apologize and they would search for a way out of this. But he didn't, he remained hard and stared at the ground... "Goodbye, Maxwell!" And with that said, she walked out the door and out of his life...

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