Max slowed the Jeep to a crawl and pulled over beside the dusty, abandoned Jetta. The drive back from the geodesic dome in Marathon to where Maria's mother's car had broken down in Pecos, Texas, had been mostly a silent one, each of the five passengers lost in his or her own thoughts about the earlier events of the day.

Maria scrambled out of the rear of the Jeep and stretched by the side of the highway, her muscles stiff and sore from a combined lack of sleep and sitting in the same position for the past few hours. She rolled her neck in slow semi-circles for a minute, trying to ease some of the tension she felt, both physically and mentally. When she slowly opened her eyes, the first image she saw was Michael, staring at her, the corners of his mouth pulled down in his trademark scowl. Still, there seemed to be something ... more ... to his expression this time -- or was she just imagining it? Maria's eyes locked with his, defying him to look away first.

"How long til you fix it?" Liz asked, joining her best friend by the side of the car and breaking her out of her reverie.

Maria shrugged. "No idea. I can't even call for a tow truck because somebody threw my cell phone out the window and killed it."

Max looked over his shoulder questioningly at Michael in the back seat. Michael shook his head slightly, dismissing the interested stare. "Long story."

"Moreover," Maria continued, "When the car broke down the first time from overheating -- because somebody wouldn't listen to me and drove way too fast, scoring himself a ticket in the process, I might add -- that same somebody attempted to fix it and nearly blew us both up."

Isabel frowned in the rear-view mirror at Michael, who rolled his eyes. "Again, long story."

Isabel sighed in disgust. Between enduring a sleepless night where she was forced to be a third party to Max and Liz mooning over each other, to finding that strange pendant at Atherton's, to being chased and barely escaping, to having desert dust and sand invade her every pore in the Jeep, the whole trip had been incredibly draining. She just wanted to get home to a hot shower and fresh clothes, and sitting here bickering by the side of the road about whose fault the breakdown was wasn't going to get her there any faster.

"Look, this is pointless. We've wasted enough time, and it's getting dark." Irritated, Isabel made a move to open the passenger door. "I'll just fix it mys--"

"Nuh-huh!" Maria cut her off. "No. No way. I've had enough Close Encounters today to last me a lifetime. I'm calling a real, red-blooded, born-and-bred on planet Earth mechanic!"

Isabel shook her head. "Do you know how long that will take? Forget it." She got out of the Jeep and joined the two other girls at the car.

"But ..." Maria began, but her voice trailed off. The look on Isabel's face didn't leave any room for discussion. "Fine," she conceded meekly.

Isabel's hand hovered over the hood. She concentrated a few moments, then moved it in a small circle counter-clockwise, stopping after a few rotations. "There."

Maria tried the handle on the driver's door. Locked. She looked over at Michael, who was idly taking the whole scene in with his usual laconic expression. "The keys?"

Extracting an alien's head keychain with four dangling keys from a jacket pocket, he tossed them to her without a word. Maria caught the bunch easily with one hand and started the car, revving the engine a few times for good measure. Rolling down the window, she stuck her head out.

"It works," she said. "Thanks." Isabel nodded and climbed back in the Jeep. "So ..." Maria fumbled awkwardly, "... I guess I'll just ... follow you guys back, then."

"You shouldn't ride alone," Max cautioned. "For a variety of reasons."

Maria looked from him to Liz. Her best friend looked torn, she could see it in Liz's eyes -- guilt mixed with hope, as she silently pleaded with Maria not to ask for her company. Maria contemplated her other options. Max was right, she didn't really want to drive home by herself, not after the day they'd just had. But if Liz didn't come with her, then who would? Max couldn't, obviously. Maria glanced at Isabel. The last time she had gone for a ride with Isabel, Maria had been so rattled and jittery she'd gotten into a fender-bender with Valenti, of all people. No, she thought, Isabel wasn't a good choice for a passenger either. Suddenly, Maria came to the realization that if Liz, Max and Isabel were all ruled out, there was only one person left to accompany her, and that was an alternative she absolutely refused to consider.

"I'll go." Michael jumped out of the Jeep, a small cloud of dust gathering at his feet as his boots hit the ground.

"No, no, that's okay," Maria protested. "You don't --"

"I said I'll go." He strode over to where Liz was still standing. "I mean, I'm the one who wrecked the car in the first place, right?"

It wasn't said in an accusatory tone, just as a statement of facts, yet Maria still felt an instant wave of guilt. Liz looked at her curiously, but Maria avoided her eyes. Secretly, she was more pleased than she cared to admit that he had offered to ride back with her.

"Well, if you're sure ..." Liz began questioningly, looking at Maria for confirmation. Maria nodded slowly. With a small smile, Liz nodded back and climbed back into the Jeep. Max slowly pulled away with a quiet beep of the horn, pacing his speed so Maria and Michael could catch up.

After watching the Jeep drive off down the desolate highway, Maria shielded her eyes from the bright sunlight and squinted up at Michael, who was staring down at her, arms folded defiantly across his chest, outside her window. "Well?"

His brow furrowed slightly. "What."

"Aren't you getting in?" She stared at him incredulously.

"Not until you get out."

Maria frowned. "Excuse me?"

"I'm driving."

"You're driving," she repeated. "And why is that, again?"

"Because you drive like a lunatic," he replied calmly, opening her door and ignoring the outraged look on her face.