Part 11 - A Kiss is still a Kiss

Tess and Kyle entered the living room. Faster than a speeding bullet, Kyle dove on the couch and grabbed the remote.

"Aha," he cried. He started searching for any movie or TV show involving women with tiny intellects wearing wet bathing suits.

Shaking her head with a sigh, Tess went in to the kitchen to get something to eat. She filled a bowl with vanilla ice cream covered with Tabasco sauce. After a pause, she made another bowl, only this time with hot fudge covering. Then she returned to the living room.

"Move over, Buddha Boy." Kyle moved over obediently, but watched her suspiciously as he cradled the remote to his chest.

"I'm not giving up the remote," he told her.

"What is this?" she asked in total confusion as she looked at the television.

"This happens to be a great classic of cinema - 'Biker Babes from Venus'."

"Ah, no."

"I thought you would appreciate it. It's all about the timeless questions of interspecies peace and communication."

"I am not watching any movie where the alien women are running around wearing purple sequined bikinis while riding flying motorcycles. It's demeaning. As a woman and as an alien, I am insulted that anyone would think extraterrestrials would come to invade Earth wearing such impractical outfits."

Kyle reached for the bowl of ice cream with hot fudge, but she refused to give it to him. "Buddha says that the path to enlightenment is smoother when you learn to share of your material goods."

"You know, Kyle, I have a sneaking suspicion that you make up these quotes just to get what you want." Tess blinked at the screen. "Are they actually wearing stiletto heels? How on earth can they operate a motorcycle in heels like that?"

Taking advantage of her distraction, he grabbed the ice cream. "Victory!" he cried as he took a big bite. Tess just looked at him in annoyance.

"We are not watching this."

" We don't have to watch anything. I, however, am engrossed in the plot and have no intention of turning it off."

"Give me the remote."

"Not happening, Tess."

She smiled at him sweetly. "Did Michael ever tell you what happened to his television set, Kyle?"

Kyle looked at her suspiciously through narrowed eyes, considering. "Nope. There's no way you'd blow up our television."

"Give me one good reason why not."

"Think about how Dad would react if he came home to find his television blown up."

That made her pause. Tess frowned, deep in thought. Then she put down the bowl of ice cream and leaned towards him. "Kyle," she whispered invitingly, "can't you think of anything you'd like to do better than watching some bimbos on television?" Her hand started moving up his thigh. "I mean, we're all alone in the house. The sheriff won't be back from his date for hours."

Kyle stared at her, resembling nothing so much as a deer caught in headlights. "Uh, Tess, what are you doing?" he managed to squeak out as her lips grew closer and closer....

And she broke off as she grabbed the remote. "Aha," she said mockingly. "Hybrid females 1, human males 0."

"Not a nice thing to do to a guy, Tess," he muttered as he leaned back against the cushions and concentrated on his ice cream. She just smiled and started flipping through channels, stopping when she reached a channel specializing in classic movies. It was showing "Casablanca".

"Have you ever seen this?" she asked him. Kyle looked at the TV dismissively.

"'Casablanca'? Nah, it's a chick flick."

"I've heard of it, but I've never seen it. Unlike Bimbettes from Venus"

"Biker Babes."

"This is supposed to actually be a classic." Tess nodded with decision. "We're watching it."

Ignoring Kyle's groan, she leaned back to make herself comfortable. Kyle thought briefly about leaving, but decided against it. Watching a corny girl's movie with Tess would be more fun than wandering about alone. Besides, there was his ice cream to consider. Maybe he could sneak a bite of hers, too. And he was mildly curious as to how Tess would react to the movie.

By the time Rick found out that the woman he loved was married to another man, Kyle was hooked. He felt for the poor guy, losing his girl to some man who came out of nowhere ( Boy, can I sympathize, buddy). And he actually cheered when the French citizens defied their Nazi conquerers by singing their national anthem (and then looked around nervously to make sure that nobody heard him). Tess was staring so fixedly at the TV that she missed that particular opportunity to mock him.

As the movie went on, the light from outside grew dimmer and dimmer but neither of the teens reached to turn a light on. They sat there in the growing darkness watching that classic tale of love and courage. Somewhere along the way, Tess leaned over and rested her head on Kyle's shoulder, never breaking her concentration on the screen.

They finally reached the end of the movie. Rick watched as Ilsa walked away, going to help her husband fight the Nazis rather than staying with the man she really loved. Kyle watched Tess carefully. Every other girl he knew had claimed to cry at the end of this movie. Tess wasn't crying, but she did look sad. And there was something else on her face, an emotion that Kyle couldn't quite name.

As the movie ended, Kyle leaned over and took the remote from her. Tess didn't argue. Hitting the mute button, Kyle looked over. In the flickering light from the television, Tess looked almost eerie and otherworldly. "What's the matter?" he asked in concern.

For a minute, he thought that she wasn't going to answer. Just as he was sure of this, she turned to look him directly in the eye. "Do you think Ilsa loved Rick?"

He shrugged. "They were the leads of the movie. I think that's required by law or something." When she didn't respond, Kyle took time to think about the question more seriously. "Yes, I'm sure she did. I mean, you can tell from the way they were talking and looking at each other that they were in love."

"Then why did she go with her husband?"

"Because he was her husband, I guess," Kyle shrugged again. "She thought he was dead when she fell in love with Rick, but she had made promises to him that she didn't want to break. Plus, she thought that she could help him with his fight. He wouldn't have been able to go against the Nazis as well without her. At least, that's what Rick thought."

"Do you think they were happy? Ilsa and Victor, I mean? Or do you think she was always waiting and wanting Rick back?"

"I would imagine that she and Rick would always wish they were together." Kyle really didn't get why this was so obviously important to her. "Listen, Tess, I'm not much for all this chick movie, romantic junk. My guess is that she and Rick hooked up again after the war, when they didn't have to worry about fighting the Nazis. So they had a happy ending. Does that make you feel any better?"

Tess shook her head, then laughed. "You want to know what's stupid, Kyle? I'm watching this movie, and I'm rooting for Rick and Ilsa. I'm sad that she has to leave him and be with her husband. I get why she had to, but I'm sad about it."

"I think that's kind of the result they were looking for when they wrote it, Tess. Tragic lost love and all that."

"You're not getting it, are you, Kyle?" At his blank look, her eyes got big. "I'm her husband." Seeing that he still wasn't getting it, she rolled her eyes. "I'm her husband, Max is Ilsa, and Liz is Rick."

"Oh," he said, finally starting to get her point.

"See? Even if Max does decide to follow our destiny and leave Liz to be with me, they'll always love each other. He'll always be hoping that somewhere out there, Liz is waiting for him. He would only be with me to fulfill his obligations." She looked away. "I would be duty and obligation. Liz Parker would always be love and desire." She looked back at him. "And the thing is, I was rooting for love and desire."

Kyle thought about for something to say. "You know, Tess, the situation isn't exactly the same."

"You're absolutely right. Ilsa and Victor were married. They had vowed to love each other and they had promises to respect. And they really did feel some love for each other. In that case, she probably made the right decision. But, Kyle, Max and I don't even have that much. We've never promised to love each other, at least not in this lifetime. Nasedo wanted us to honor oaths that we didn't make and don't remember." Her voice was getting shriller and shriller. She seemed to be on the verge of a full-fledged screaming fit. Kyle grabbed her and pulled her close to him in a tight hug. At first, she held herself stiffly, but slowly relaxed.

Deciding that she wasn't likely to start screaming, he gently asked, "Do you want to honor those oaths, Tess?" He was surprised to find himself holding his breath while waiting for her answer.

"I don't know anymore," he heard her muffled reply. Backing away a bit, she went on. "Growing up, I never questioned my destiny. But I'm starting to think that maybe I deserve better than holding Max through a sense of duty while he's always wishing that he was with Liz."

"Understandable," Kyle said, pleased with her answer. "And I'm not so sure that Max is worth fighting for anyway. I've never really gotten why you and Liz feel the need to fight over him all the time. He's not exactly the life of the party, is he?"

She smacked him lightly on the arm, a small smile forming on her lips. "Be nice."

"Why?" he asked in mock confusion.

Her smile faded as her expression changed. Suddenly, Kyle found it very hard to breathe. "And maybe I want to have love and desire in my life, too. Maybe I deserve that just as much as anyone else."

With that, and before he could reply, Tess leaned over and their lips met. This was their first real kiss, and it definitely made all the months of flirting and teasing worthwhile. When Tess broke away, Kyle's head was still swimming.

"Okay, I'm starting to understand all the interest in dating aliens now," he said weakly. "Wow."

"Definitely wow," Tess agreed. "Do you think...." She was interrupted by Kyle leaning into her this time, gently pushing her back down on the couch.

Tess took a brief minute to think of how strange it was that she was here, leaning back on a couch with a human kissing her, hands gently roaming around her waist. Then she just thought about how good it felt to be held like this. Placing her hand on his chest, she decided that it wouldn't hurt to do some roaming herself.

Just as Kyle's hand started on an exploration down her leg, the lights in the living room came on.

"Kids, I'm home," came a familiar voice. "Hope there wasn't any trouble while I was...... Kyle, what the hell are you doing?"

The sheriff! We didn't hear the door open! she thought desperately as she pushed Kyle away. There was a muffled curse as he landed on the floor. She stood up quickly, adjusting her shirt before looking at the stunned sheriff. "Nothing, sir. We just finished watching a movie."

Valenti just stood there, apparently in shock. Kyle stood up. "Hi, Dad," he said with an impressive (although failed) attempt at nonchalance. "Did you have a nice time with Mrs. DeLuca?"

This seemed to jolt him out of his shock. "Tess, go to your room. It's late." When it looked like she was about to argue, he went on more forcibly. "Go to bed, Tess. We'll talk about this in the morning."

While a part of her was ashamed at her own cowardice, Tess chose to be smart and live to fight another day. "Yes, sir." with one last pitying look at Kyle, she went to her room.

Kyle fidgeted as his father just looked at him, almost as if he had never seen him before. Finally, unable to handle the scrutiny anymore, Kyle said, "Well, I guess I'll just be going to my room, too."

Oh. The "my son is an idiot" look. Kyle was familiar with that particular look. He hadn't seen it on his father's face since he decided to try and rewire all the cables in the house in an effort to get unscrambled porn. How was I supposed to know that the entire block would lose power? "Kyle, you don't have a room. You sleep on the couch now."

"Right." So much for the possibility of escape or retreat.

"Sit down, Kyle." Seeing no good way out of this situation, he did as he was told. His father came over and sat down on the couch next to him.

And so they sat. Next to each other in silence. Both of them looking down at their hands. Just sitting there.

Finally, Kyle dared to glance over at his dad. He's just as nervous about this little talk as I am, he realized in surprise. It wasn't often that Jim Valenti was caught totally off-guard. The realization was both strangely comforting and terrifying.

The older man took a deep breath. "Okay, Kyle, here's what we're going to do. We're going to have this conversation once and only once, because quite honestly, I would rather have to face those evil aliens who keep popping up than ever walk in on what I just saw again. Understood?" Kyle nodded. "Good. Here's the thing, Kyle. I know that Tess is a very pretty girl. And I know that you two dated a few times back when she first came to town. But she's also a very vulnerable girl, and she's counting on us to take care of her."

Kyle started to laugh. "Tess? Vulnerable?" At his father's look, he held up his hands in surrender. "Okay, okay. I get what you're saying about that. She doesn't have many people in her life she can trust. But we're not all she has. There's Michael and Isabel, and as much as I hate to admit it, Max. They can protect her, too."

Valenti raised his eyebrows. "Oh? Where did she go when she needed a place to stay to be safe from the Skins? The Evans'? Michael's apartment?" Seeing that his point was sinking in, he went on. "The others care about her, Kyle, but they're kids themselves. Like you. I'm the adult in this situation, and I made a promise to protect all of you. Including Tess. And that means keeping her safe from aliens, alien-hunting FBI agents, and teenage boys who want to take advantage of her confusion and loneliness."

"Hold on a minute," he replied angrily. "I'm not trying to take advantage of Tess. I get that you're worried about her, but it wasn't like that."

"No? You two weren't participating in the Olympic Undressing Trials? And this isn't just some way to get back at Max Evans for stealing away Liz?"

Kyle was stunned. He and his dad had gotten so much closer this year. Did he really have such a low opinion of him? "This has nothing to do with Max Evans," he hissed at his father. He didn't want to take a chance of Tess hearing this. "I like Tess. She's funny, and smart, and doesn't try to change me. Well, not too much. And she cooks my favorite foods for dinner, and, well, yeah, she's gorgeous, but this is not just about my teenage hormones, which by the way don't seem all that different from your adult hormones, or were you and Maria's mother just sitting around eating pie and discussing the growth of tourism this season?" Despite his best intentions, his voice kept rising louder as he talked. Suddenly, Kyle stopped, bracing himself for the inevitable parental explosion. "Buddha, help me," he murmured as he closed his eyes, waiting.

Instead of his father's bellows, he heard something else. Something totally strange and unexpected.

His father's laughter.

He opened his eyes and looked around. Yes, his father was laughing. No, he wasn't just laughing - he was guffawing. He was bent over, clutching his stomach, laughing so hard he was almost crying. Kyle went from fear to anger again. "This is funny to you?" he asked in annoyance.

"Sorry," he said between laughs. "It's just the idea of Amy DeLuca and I having a discussion about the tourists. 'Why, Jim, have you noticed the number of tourists buying the Saturn Skin Tan Lotion?' 'No, Amy, can't say that I have. Didn't notice that entire day of lost income from visitors a few months back, either. Maybe the sun's just getting closer to the Earth or something'." Getting a hold on himself, he went on. "And while I admit to not knowing much about Buddha, I'm not sure you should ask his guidance while accusing your father of rampant hormones after he catches you making out with his foster daughter. Not the most spiritual of circumstances, is it?"

Kyle tried not to, but he couldn't help the smile spreading across his face. "It's not mentioned in any of the books, but that doesn't necessarily mean anything, does it?"

"Nope." Valenti stopped laughing, but kept smiling. "So, I'm guessing that little speech of yours means that you really care about Tess and you don't just want to jump her bones?"

"Yeah, I guess that's what it means. Dad, I have no idea what's going on with her. I don't think she does, either. I mean, she's so confused with the whole Max Destiny thing that it's hard for her to even know what she wants sometimes. But I do know that it's more that just physical. I promise that I would never intentionally hurt her."

His father nodded, approvingly. "Good. That's what I wanted to hear." He continued briskly. "So here's the ground rules. You can date, you can hang out together, you can kiss. You cannot undress each other of any particles of clothing, you cannot enter her room without keeping the door open, and you cannot run off to any motels together. Understood?"

"What about hotels? You know, the really nice ones?"

"Like you could afford them. This is non-negotiable, Kyle."

"So, basically, you just want to know that I'm treating Tess with respect."

"That's about it, yes."

Kyle thought for a minute. "Okay, I can do that."

"Good. That means I won't have to horsewhip you," Valenti said with a not-very-nice grin. Kyle laughed a bit nervously. He thought his father was just kidding. Still, who knew how far he'd take this father protecting his daughter routine?

"This isn't exactly what I had in mind when I suggested you date more, but what else is new?" Valenti stood up, briefly clasping his son on the shoulder. "And Kyle, just so you know, I'm proud of you. I trust that you'll take care of her if anything happens to me."

Kyle just nodded, too overcome with a sense of pride and gratitude to say anything. He watched his father walk down the hall, passing by Tess's room. As he walked past it, he pounded on the door. "You can go to sleep now, Tess. Show's over." He entered his own room. Kyle could hear scurrying noises coming from Tess's room.

Still chuckling, he lay down on the couch and settled down to sleep.

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