Mrs. Parker is sitting in the front row chatting with Amy Deluca. As he watches the two women, he thinks of his own parents. He wonders if they’re alright. He hopes they are, that they were able to survive the loss of their two precious children; the years of not knowing. Tears prick his eyes as he realizes that they don’t even know Isabel is dead, buried not far from where they still live.

His eyes find Alex’s face now and Max is caught off-guard by how little he’s changed. Still the same close-cropped brown hair and lean, wiry frame. The same twinkle in his eyes. The same easy-going smile. No wonder Isabel liked him.

Max tries to steel himself against the pain that the mere thought of her brings him. He trains his mind back, thinking of all the times Alex made Izzy smile. How even Michael seemed to let up when Alex was around.

Isabel and Alex’s friendship was the only human-alien relationship to survive the events of that spring. Over the years, Max had occasionally wondered why their friendship had remained ­ blossomed even ­ in the wake of everything that happened. But as he looks at Alex now, joking easily with everyone around him, Max thinks he might finally understand. Alex doesn’t just make the best of what he’s given, he treats it as if it’s exactly what he intended, as if no other, better alternative ever existed.

The music breaks into Max’s thoughts and his eyes flicker to the end of the aisle. As Maria steps out from the narthex, Max is stunned by her radiance. Soft blond curls frame her face as she glides down the aisle, blue eyes dancing mischievously. Somehow, even after all these years, Max still thinks of Maria as just a little bit mischievous. He thinks of Michael, of the way he would sometimes look at Maria when he thought no one was watching. Max shivers involuntarily, remembering the grimace of pain and regret on Michael’s features after he’d pushed Maria away for the last time.

But Michael had found Isabel and as Max follows the line of Maria’s gaze to Alex’s face, he realizes that she has found someone too. Something akin to happiness touches Max’s heart as he notes the beaming smile on Alex’s face and the way Maria lights up in return.

But the happiness is quickly ripped away from him as his eyes lock on Liz. Desire races through him when he sees her. In all of his dreams of their wedding day, he never imagined this perfection. Sunlight streams in the high windows, raining down on her, making her glow. She seems to be lighting up the room all on her own. His hunger for her is crushing, but it’s swept away by the knowledge that he will never have her.

His eyes find Sean again, piercing through him. Do you know what I’ve done for you? Can you possibly comprehend what I’ve given up? Because you love her. Because you made her love you.

That night as he held her, watching her sleep, the flash he’d had earlier of Liz and Sean had returned to his mind. Silent tears had slipped from his eyes at the thought of leaving her again, of having to live another day without her. But he’d known the truth of it: Liz loved Sean. And so Max had left, knowing that Sean would be able to make her happy in a way that Max never had, never could. He’d left because there was nothing he wanted more in life than for Liz to be safe and that was another thing Sean would provide for her that Max couldn’t.

But the knowledge of those things hasn’t kept him from regretting his decision every day - every hour, every minute - since he left her. The words she spoke as she held him flood his ears. "It’s going to be okay now." How is that even possible, he thinks to himself. How can anything be okay without Liz?

Finally, Sean lifts the vail and Max can see her eyes. The eyes that hold his soul, his very being. They are filled with joy. And tenderness. And love.

A sense of peace washes over him. Of contentment and happiness. It fills his heart until he thinks he might burst. It startles him. How can he be filled with this incredible lightness, this unbelievable blissfulness, when his Liz ­ his life and love ­ is giving herself to another?

It’s hers, Max. It’s her happiness. She’s trying to tell you she’s okay. That she’s safe and happy.

It’s the Isabel voice again. Instantly, he knows she’s right. Of course, Izzy was always right when it came to him, wasn’t she? Why hadn’t he listened to her more often? His thoughts turn immediately to that night in the cave. She’d pleaded with him not to go. To come away with them. But he didn’t listen. And she paid for it with her life. He grabs onto the railing for support, wondering if this will be the time that his heart literally breaks.

The wave of emotions begins to fade then as his grief overcomes him. He watches Sean hold her face so carefully, so lovingly. His lips press against hers gently and Max feels another piece of his soul rip away. He knows this pain well. It has been his constant companion over the years. He welcomes it. It is his penance. He opens himself up to it and embraces the exquisite pain of loss. But as it seeps into his soul, into the very fiber of his being, he notices something new.

What is this, a distant part of his mind wonders. What new wrinkle have we here? He holds it up and examines it, turning it over and over. Cataloging it and comparing it to all the emotions he’s known in his life.

It matches only one thing. Liz. The joy and warmth of her heart; the tenderness and love of her soul. He stretches it out, pulling it around himself like a blanket. It is the piece of her he needs. The part of her he can carry with him always. It is her final gift to him, and he cherishes it.