Agent Fox Mulder (i_want_2) wrote in t_31_bang, @ 2010-02-08 01:23:00 |
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Entry tags: | entry, rated: teen, roswell |
Fic: Moments Past 1/? Roswell.
Unfinished - Unbetaed
Title: Moments Past
Author: Lopaka Tanu
Disclaimer: I do not own Roswell.
Characters: Kyle, Max, Liz, Michael, Maria, Isabel, Alex, Jim.
Words: 5808
Prompt: Something strange is happening between Max and Kyle.
Fandom: Roswell (TV Series)
Pairing: Kyle/Max, mentioned Liz/Kyle, one-sided Max/Liz
Rating: Teen
Warnings: Language, Angst, Violence.
Summary: A painful revelation leaves Kyle with questions and Max seeking answers.
Author's Note: Spoilers for Season 1.
______________________________________
How It Started.
The noise in the diner was almost enough to kill Kyle's train of thought. After school crowds were always the worst for talking. "I won't bother you with all the boring details, suffice to say, I am now banned from the art room."
This earned him a snort from Liz but nothing else. She kept her focus on the sugar jars she was refilling.
He sighed. Picking up a cooling FrenchFry, Kyle twirled it in the ketchup. With it, he etched a box shaped X on the center. "If Ms. Jones had her way, I am certain that I would be banned from the art world completely."
Snickering, Liz rolled her eyes to the ceiling. "I tried to warn you." The stupid alien antenna on her head bobbed as she twisted her head to move the hair from her face. "So, what are you going to do for the time period?"
"I don't know, and before you ask, no, my dad doesn't know yet." Glancing up from the ketchup, he grinned at her. "Which is probably a stupid thing to say considering where we are." He turned a little to his right so he could face Maria.
"What?" Her own uniform sparkling in the afternoon sunlight, Maria sniffed from a tiny bottle. "It's not like the fact you're a total failure at everything not sports related is a secret."
"Gee, thanks, I needed that." His deadpan delivery had Liz snickering. Smile firmly entrenched on his face, Kyle turned back to his girlfriend. "Let's forget about the problems for a while and focus on the positive."
Maria capped her bottle. "I couldn't agree more." After stuffing it in her apron, she reached across the counter to grab Liz by the arm. "Excuse us, we are 'both' on duty." She gave the other teen a patronizing smile. It slipped as she dragged Liz through the gap and back on to the diner floor.
"Maria!" After glaring at her friend, Liz sent an apologetic look to her boyfriend.
This left him alone on the stool again. So much for sympathy. Sighing again, he checked the clock on the wall. He had four hours until his dad would be home, at the earliest, that was.
"He's looking at you again."
Kyle was pretty sure the words were supposed to be whispered, but he heard them from ten feet away. If there was one thing Maria was good at, that was attracting attention. There was no need to look around. He knew who the 'he' was. 'He' had been watching Liz for years now.
It was an old problem, one that would probably never resolve itself. Kyle knew of several of his dad's friends who still watched the same girls they did when in High School. Really, it was quite pathetic. If he went down that path himself, he would definitely shoot himself and save the nut house the paperwork.
He was checking the time again when he heard voices raised. Kyle started to turn around and see if he could help when he heard it. Before he knew it, he was thrown off his seat. Crashing down, he hit his forehead on the next stool. The next thought to register was that the tiles were cold.
"Liz!" Maria again.
The world was a blur of bright lights and noise. Pain radiated from several parts of his body, but the largest amount was surprisingly in his back. Funny, he didn't remember hitting it on the way down.
Kyle tried to take a breath, but his side hitched. That was when he realized the pain was more to the left of his back. Whatever had hit him nailed him from the left.
The longer he lay there the more the pain increased. By the time he could blink the spots from his vision he was in agony. His breaths came in shallow pants from his good side.
"Liz, open your eyes. You've got to look at me."
He knew that voice. Kyle usually disliked that voice, but right now he hated it. That fire he felt gave him the strength to fight the pain. He concentrated on pushing it away. Gritting his teeth he used every ounce of will power he contained to crush it.
Then, suddenly, the pain was gone.
Gasping in relief, he panted heavily. As he lay there gasping, he heard muted voices. Kyle realized they had been speaking the entire time. Well, correction, Max had been speaking to his girlfriend.
Liz. She was hurt!
His eyes shot open. Despite the pain, Kyle forced himself to turn on his side. The pain in his head caused him to waver, but he managed to get up on one elbow and look.
Max, the bastard, was taking advantage of the situation. He was ripping open the front of Liz's uniform. When he got it open, despite her attempts at stopping him, the teen froze. He gasped. "You're not hurt."
"I've been trying to tell you that." She sounded more amused than angry. "I was just startled. I guess I must've slipped on something and fell."
Some how that pissed Kyle off more. At the very least, she should have been affronted. That was how those women in those trashy books Maria read would have reacted. It occurred to him that Liz would probably be surprised he knew what the word meant.
Kyle felt like smacking himself in the head. He had to remain focused. Feeling dizzy, he pushed himself up in to a sitting position. "Get your stinkin' hands off my girlfriend, you damn, dirty ape!" Snorting, he tried to keep the grin off his face. That isn't what he had wanted to say.
May be he had a concussion? Whatever, his growled words were enough to break the other teens in to action.
Jumping back as if Liz were snake, Max released her uniform. He scooted back until his back hit a chair. Turning beet red, he forced himself to look away. "Sorry. I'm sorry, Liz."
"It's okay." She actually sounded sympathetic to the perve.
It was enough to make Kyle sick. He wanted to kick the other teen's ass. "No, it's not okay!" Putting a hand under him to help get up failed when it slipped on something slick. "Evans, you pervert, I'm going to rip those big, monkey ears off your head!" He slipped a second time, bouncing off one of the stools.
That was the final charge Max needed. Pushing up from the floor, he shot for the door. He looked back only once, but it wasn't to check on Liz.
Still on the floor, Kyle flipped the dork off. "Later!" And he meant it. Another wave of dizziness hit him and this time it brought a friend. Putting a hand to his mouth, he burped. The taste of bile gagged him.
The world began to tilt. Leaning forward, Kyle dropped his forehead to his knees. This was a big mistake as pain spasmed from the lasceration. "Ah!" Carefully, he sat back against the counter.
"Yeah, I'm fine, Maria." Liz was fine. She even got up on her own. Pushing her friend aside so she could, Liz wiped her uniform off.
Resting his head back against the tile, he closed his eyes. This only eased the nausea. The room was still spinning around him.
Definitely a concussion.
Groaning, he dropped his hands to his sides. His right one landed in a sticky puddle and he winced. "Oh, man." He moved to wipe it off on his pants when his fingers hit something.
The object went rolling across the tiles. It stopped against his leg.
Curious, he picked it up, then froze. He knew instantly what it was just from the shape.
"Kyle!" Liz's cry echoed in the quiet of the restaurant. "Oh my god, are you all right?" The sound of her shoes hitting the floor heralded her arrival at his side.
Kyle winced as her words echoed in his ears. It figured she would notice he was hurt only when he was finally getting things under control. "Yeah, just, keep it down." He didn't know why, but he stuffed the bullet in his pocket. He used the motion of wiping his hand off on his pants to hide the action. "Got any idea what I put my hand in? I would look, but if I open my eyes I'm afraid I might throw up."
"Oh my god, Liz!" Maria's shrill voice shot up an entire octive. "He's bleeding like a stuck pig. Considering...never mind, I'll crack jokes later." She sounded more than a little freaked out. "I'll go call an ambulance."
"Yeah, you do that. Thanks." He would have flipped her off if he could think of which direction her voice had come from. As it was, he winced. "Geeze, does she naturally have a voice like an ice pick or does she practice it in the shower?" Realizing what he said, he held up a hand. "Never mind, forget I ever said anything about her and a shower."
Chuckling, Liz leaned in close. Her breath ghosted over Kyle's cheek. "That cut looks pretty bad. I think you're going to need stitches."
"Damn, my pretty face." He tried to get another laugh out of her with a smile, but it was too much effort. His entire head hurt now and it was starting to throb.
The touch of her hand on his shoulder made him tense up. She gently squeezed it to comfort him.
"Hold on, Kyle, it's going to be okay." She sound a little unsure of herself. Her swallow was clearly audible against his ear. "I'm sure...your dad's on his way. Everything will be okay when he gets here."
"Yeah." Sliding a hand up his body, he reached up to grab hers off his shoulder. "I'm sure it will be."
"There's so much blood." This time she was almost breathless. Her free hand grabbed at his shirt. "Are you sure you're okay?"
He reacted quickly, jerking his body away from her probing touch. "I'm fine!" It was true, if he ignored the painful gash in his forehead. "Just peachy, aside from this mild concussion."
She swallowed again, nodding. "Okay. I think." Liz gave his hand a stronger squeeze than the one he had given hers.
That was when it happened. Loud and ear splitting, a siren ripped through the diner's open door.
Wincing, Kyle jerked away from the noise. In his attempt to hide his ears he smacked his head against the tiles again. "Ah! Son of a bitch!" Growling, he released Liz's hand and covered his ears. "I'm going to kill that fucking idiot, whoever it is. Especially if it's my dad!"
______________________
Gimme A Break!
"What the hell were you thinking, Maxwell?" Plopped down on said teen's bed, Michael fondled the silver picture frame from the night stand. His fingers clenched around it in anger. "You put us all in danger back there!"
Max exhaled through his nose. "I put no one at risk. I didn't even use my powers. So just drop it!" Walking over to the other teen, he snatched the frame from his hands. After making sure it was still intact, he put it back on the stand. "I had to make sure she was all right."
"Yeah, right." Michael had to look up to meet Max's gaze. Even then, though, he some how appeared taller. "You know what I meant."
His jaw clenching, Max glanced away. In fact, he was well aware. He had been beating himself up since it happened. "It was just a moment of panic." The words sounded pathetic even in his ears.
"Sure. Panic." Lips pursing, Michael looked over to the other side of the bed. He returned Isabel's cold stare. "So, it wasn't me that broke our first rule. You two've been so worried about me all these years." He snorted. "Do we have to watch out for you now, Max?"
"All right, enough, Michael." Her fists clenched, but Isabel's voice held no strength behind it. The perfectly manicured nails reflected in the lamp light.
"No, it's not enough." This time he raised his voice above a harsh whisper. Standing up, he whirled on the siblings. "For years I've heard nothing but warnings and threats from the two of you. You've acted like you were so high and mighty, above breaking the rules."
"I didn't break the rules!" Max couldn't meet the other teen's gaze. It was skirting the truth and he knew it. "I just had to see if Liz was all right."
"Yeah, well good going. Now, instead of freaks or aliens, they think we're a bunch of perverts." Done, Michael headed for the window. He threw out a hand to cut off their response.
"Michael." Isabel tried, but he climbed through without acknowledging her. She watched until the last of his spiky hair disappeared below the sil. Then she turned on her brother. "How could you be so stupid?" This time there was actual venom in her voice.
There was no excuse. Max could only think of the one thing that had been on his mind at the time. "It was Liz."
"I am so sick of hearing that name!" Her voice rose higher as she stomped her way around the bed. "She is just a girl, Max, a Human! She barely knows you exist because you never had the balls to even introduce yourself." Her steps quickly brought her to stand in front of him. "This obsession has got to stop. Today you put us all in danger and that is unacceptable!"
"Don't you think I know that?" Crossing his arms, Max turned away. He ignored her put-upon sigh. "If you don't mind, I want to be alone."
"Max..." Her voice was hesitant. She reached up to place a hand upon his shoulder, but dropped it when he pulled away. "Just...try to be more careful."
He didn't bother to respond. Even after his door closed behind her, he kept the hardened posture.
~~~~~~~~~~
Staring up at the ceiling turned up no new revelations. So, Max closed his eyes. It didn't help with his thoughts any more than blankly staring at nothing.
Michael was right. What the hell had happened today?
He could recall sitting there, in the diner, talking to Michael. Every so often he had glanced over to Liz. Max frowned. Okay, so those roles had been reversed. Michael hadn't been annoyed with him, Max figured that was because he was used to it by now.
Then, everything had changed. One moment he was looking down at his burger, and the next, those guys had been arguing. He couldn't even recall what they looked like. It wasn't because he had been ignoring them, things just happened too fast.
The world had sped up so fast. The fight, the gun shot, Maria crying out Liz's name, all of it was almost a blur in his mind. Only one thought had gotten through his confusion at that moment.
He had to get to Liz.
Balling up his fists, Max rolled on his side. He had to get to Liz. She was on the ground and nothing else had mattered. Max was pretty sure Michael had tried to grab his hand, but either he had missed or he wasn't strong enough to hold him back.
Clenching his fist, Max checked for soreness. The hand was a little tender. Michael had grabbed him.
He squeezed his eyes shut.
Liz was all right. She thought he was a perv, who would grab her in a time of disaster, but all right.
Groaning, he tried to bury his face in the pillow. Tomorrow at school was going to be hell.
At least there would be a tomorrow with Liz in it. He had to keep telling himself in order to keep from dying of embarassment. Strangely, the fact that he had almost blown their secret didn't bother him all that much.
_______________________
Settling Revelations.
Stumbling through the door in to his bedroom, Kyle swung it shut behind him. He bypassed the light switch on the way to his bed. The street lamp outside shown through his window giving him enough light to see by.
Dropping his bag on the bed, he almost fell down beside it. He was so exhausted after the last seven hours. If he ever saw another emergency room in his life it would be too soon. Why in the hell would anyone need to run so many tests just to diagnose a mild concussion?
He had known it in the restaurant, he had known it in the back of the ambulance. Hell, he had told countless nurses, doctors, even that one orderly, it was a concussion. Five hours in the emergency room and they had agreed, 'concussion'.
Well fucking duh!
Kyle ached all over. His head hurt from all prodding and the first bang. His back was sore from being in unnatural positions for several hours. The stinging in his arms from all those god damned needles made him feel like a junkie.
Oh yeah, he loved going to the hospital. Almost as much as he loved the thought of being run through a garbage disposal.
Groaning, he reached up to unzip his jacket. His arms hurt but he managed to get it undone. Sliding the thick material off shoulders was far easier. Thankfully he wasn't wearing a shirt underneath it. That had been the one good thing about going to the hospital.
Looking down at his bag, he saw the edge of the blood stained shirt sticking out of it. The warm-orange tee had been ruined, so he hadn't felt bad when they cut it off him. It was one of his old shirts, no big loss. The only reason he had been wearing it was because Liz liked the way he looked in it.
He grinned. Tight shirts always drew attention. That was most definitely a good enough reason to face the discomfort.
On a whim, he leaned over to tug it out of his bag. Holding it up, he examined the blood stains in the dim light. The shirt hung in tatters from the jagged cuts. While examining what was left of the left side he nearly dropped it.
His heart pounding against his ribs, Kyle carried it over to the window. He swallowed as he raised it up against the pane. Glaring orange light came through a tiny, circular hole. The shirt started to shake. It took him a second to realize it was his hands and not a draft.
The bullet he had put in his bag at the hospital suddenly had a new significance.
His eyes fluttered shut as he stumbled against the window. The world felt distant and muted. Turning, he dropped the shirt to his side. He shivered as goose bumps covered his bare torso. His eyes fell on what he was searching for.
Hanging on the back of his door was the old mirror his mother had left behind. He staggered over to stand in front of it. Releasing the shirt to the floor, he turned to expose his bare side in the mirror. The skin was unblemished but for a few stains from his blood. Kyle ran his fingers over the smooth flesh.
He had been shot. He remembered the pain. He was unhurt now, but he had been shot.
Grimacing, he swallowed down the bile that threatened to come up and shivered. His knees grew weak, so he stumbled over to his bed and laid down. The bag and jacket were pushed off on to the floor as he curled under the covers.
~~~~~~~~~~
"I mean it, Kyle, if anything happens, I want you to call me immediately." His sunglasses reflecting the early morning sun, Jim watched Kyle intently through the open passenger window. "Promise me."
Rolling his eyes, Kyle sighed. "All right, dad, I pinky swear!" He held up his hand just to exaggerate. "Can I go now?"
Jim sat back, his hands clenching the steering wheel. "I'm just worried about you, Kyle."
"I think that was evident when you barely let me dress myself this morning." He tried to make it come off as a joke, but the look on his father's face made Kyle sigh. This made him look to the sky for assistance. "Look, I understand, dad, I do. It's just, I'm not a kid any more. I can drive myself to school and make sure I get there just fine."
"Yeah, well excuse me for making sure my son's all right less than a day after being involved in a shoot out between criminals." Jim cocked his head so he could side glance at the teen. "If that's all right with you."
Kyle snorted. "You're forgiven." Backing away from the cruiser, he tapped the door. "Well, I'm here, I'm going in the school. You can go now." He continued walking backwards as he waved. "Bye-ye!"
"Smartass!" Still, Jim put the cruiser in to gear. After checking to make sure his way was clear, he pulled away from the curb and drove off. He kept glancing up in to the mirror every so often as he disappeared.
Watching until the cruiser rounded the corner at the end of the block, Kyle groaned to himself. That was going to get really annoying fast. Back up, he sighed, it was already freaking annoying. It was going to get nuts fast.
At least he had school where he could be alone with his thoughts. That idea went down the drain the moment he caught sight of Liz standing at the entrance to the building. She wasn't alone. Kyle grimaced at the sight of Maria and Alex flanking his girlfriend.
May be playing hookie wasn't such a bad idea. Hell, if he called his dad right now he could probably get a legal excuse of trauma enduced PTSD.
He came to a stop a few paces in front of his girlfriend. Kyle waved at her but ignored her friends. They didn't speak outside of being around Liz anyways, why give them any more hope? "Hey there, Liz. What's up?"
Glancing around them, she stepped closer to him. When she was certain there was no one else within hearing range, she cleared her throat. "Uh, Kyle, we need to talk."
Kyle wasn't sure whether to scoff at her or laugh in her face. Either way, talking with her, especially in front of the other two, was the last thing he wanted to do. So he did neither. "Yeah, well, what about."
She glanced over his shoulder. "About yesterday." Lowering her voice, she took another step closer. "Something strange happened."
All kinds of red flags went off in his head. This was the time to get out now. To that end he looked around for a distraction. Almost as if response there was something. He spotted a distraction so beautiful Kyle almost cried out in relief.
"Yeah, thanks for the reminder." Shifting the bag off his shoulder, Kyle thrust it in to her arms.
"Kyle?" Liz frowned as she caught it. She tried to follow him as he started to walk around her. "What?"
But Kyle was already in motion. His target was coming up the walk to the main entrance, but hadn't yet spotted him. All the better for him. Cracking his knuckles he increased his pace.
"Kyle, what are you doing?" Liz's voice cracked, bordering on shrill.
That did it.
Max looked up from his reluctant shuffle. The moment he caught sight of Kyle zeroing in on him, his eyes widened in shock. He had just enough time to drop his own book bag before the other teen was on him.
"Hey, Evans! Remember I said I'd see you later?" Launching himself at the other teen, Kyle latched on to the front of his jacket. He jerked Max towards him, almost pulling him off his feet. "What the hell did you think you were doing yesterday, pervert?"
Freezing, Max stared down at the other teen. His jacket was up around his cheeks, but he gave no visible sign of distress. "I was checking to see if Liz was all right." His voice was hoarse due to the collar of his shirt being jerked up under his chin.
"Sure. And that just happened to involve tearing open my girlfriend's uniform so you could get a peek at her bra?" For the hell of it, Kyle shook the taller teen enough to make his head rock. "Try pulling the other one now!"
"Okay, asshole, you've made your point. Now let him go!"
Kyle knew it was that loser, Guerin. Of course he would stick up for his boyfriend. They probably jerked each other off too. "Back off, Sonic." He tightened his grip in Max's jacket. "This is between me and Evans." Jerking the other teen closer, he made sure they were face to face.
When he looked the other teen straight in the eyes he froze. Max was staring back at him. Warm brown eyes were so close he could make out the subtle shift in colors.
It started out as a notion, then a feeling. He couldn't place from where but there was something very familiar about them. Some how, Kyle knew those eyes. They were no threat to him. In a way, they were almost comforting.
All the tension in his muscles drained and he relaxed his grip. For several heartbeats all he could hear was Max breathing. The ghosting of warm air caressed his cheeks making him shiver.
"Kyle?" Max's voice was rough, deep and crackling with emotion. "Are you all right?"
The question startled Kyle enough that he let go. Rolling his shoulders, he stepped back. "Yeah. Everything's fine. Never better." He was aware that people were staring at them but he couldn't summon the energy to care. Strangely, it didn't matter, not any more.
He stepped back another foot to give Max room. Without looking, he reached out to take his bag back from Liz. Shouldering it, he gave the other teen a final look, then turned to head in to school. All the way in he felt those eyes upon his back.
____________________
Bump And Grind.
Sitting in his English class, Max tried desperately to pay attention to what Mr. Varner said. This lecture was important for the test they were being given on Friday. He was even actively trying to take notes. The problem was he couldn't keep his mind on the topic at hand.
The morning's encounter had shaken him worse than he thought it would. A fist fight he could have handled. Sure, it would have been painful for a few days to a week, but that, Kyle just staring at him, some how felt far too intimate.
It was way more personal than what he had done yesterday.
Max's ears started to burn. When he remembered he hadn't had time to apologize to Liz yet, it spread from his ears to the rest of his head. His cheeks felt like they were on fire a moment later.
This was going to drive him nuts all day. May be that was how Liz felt.
The ringing of the bell startled him so bad that Max dropped his pencil. Groaning, he ignored the snickers of the kids around him. He had to stretch over the edge of his desk to pick it up. That caused him to groan from the pain of the desk cutting in to the flesh under his ribs.
On review as he slid back in to the desk, it would have been smarter to have gotten up and got the damned thing. Too late now.
Putting the pencil in his binder, Max started to close it up. What he saw on the college-rule paper startled him so badly that he froze. Instead of taking notes, he had been doodling. The symbols on his paper were unlike anything he had seen before.
Yet. Staring down at them, he swallowed thickly.
He glanced up quickly to see if anyone had noticed. Thankfully everyone else was too busy heading for the door.
Slamming his binder shut, Max picked it up and held it against his chest. Some how he knew these were important.
~~~~~~~~~~
The quad was noisy. It was always full of sound, but today it felt especially loud. Wincing at Mary Tinsen's horse laugh, Max ducked his head. He figured if he aimed his ears at the table it might change the impact wave.
No dice.
If anything, the sound was worse. He sighed and tried to ignore it. His efforts were almost succeeding until someone large landed on the bench next to him. The vibration made his head hurt worse. "Michael, please."
"Please what?" Facing out over the quad, Michael leaned closer to his friend so their conversation could be heard.
"I've got a headache forming and I don't feel like giving it any more fuel." Lowering his head, Max dropped it towards the table. He rest his eyes against his forearm.
"Yeah, what's giving you a headache this time?" Michael's voice was distant. The activity across the quad was what truly held his attention.
Seeing this from the corner of his eye, Max didn't bother to reply. He didn't really care to analyze it himself. So, he focused on something else to get his mind off the topic. "What's going on over there?"
"Your sister." Snorting, the taller teen leaned back against the picnic table. "She's busy talking to Liz, probably trying to apologize for you again."
Burying his entire face in the crook of his arm, Max groaned loudly. He did not want to deal with this on top of everything else.
Finally distracted from the spectacle across the quad, Michael looked over to his friend. What he saw made him frown. "What's eating you?"
"I don't know, Michael." Voice droll and low, Max turned his head slightly, enough to glare at the other teen with one eye. "Could it be that I haven't had time to actually see Liz long enough to say hi, let alone apologize? Or, how about the fact that my sister is doing it for me before I got the chance, making me seem like a coward? Better yet, it might be because I have AP Biology with Liz in seventh period?"
Michael took all of this in stride. "All very good reasons." He made a half-hearted attempt at a shrug. "On the bright side you have gym with bitchboy Valenti next hour." He smacked his fist against his palm for emphasis. "Time for a little payback."
Instead of the news working in Max's favor it only made him groan again. "You know, sometimes I could really learn to hate you, Michael."
This only made the blonde shrug again.
~~~~~~~~~~
Hesitating outside the lockerroom door, Max watched the hands of the clock. The dull throbbing in his forehead counted down with it. Five more seconds and then the absentee bell would ring. He had been hovering there for the past two minutes, watching the time. It was risky if he got caught.
Still, the risk of entering on time could have been worse.
With two seconds to spare, he cleared his throat. Now was the time.
Putting out a hand, he pushed in the door to the lockerroom. The smell of old sweat and teenage boys hit him like a wall. He nearly gagged as he closed his eyes and forced himself to continue on. The moment he crossed inside the bell rang. The noise made him wince as it did nothing for his headache.
"Evans!" A cheer of his last name rang out from several teen voices. Far fewer than there had been a moment before. None of them had been waiting to see him though.
Not that Max cared. He had done what he needed to. Only the stragglers were left in the lockerroom, which meant he was safe from Kyle and his goons. That was the truly important thing.
"Well, about time you showed your face." The Coach's voice was an angry growl as it echoed from his lair. Stepping in to the doorway of his office, he put a hand on his waist. He checked the watch on the other wrist. "Five minutes late, you know that means."
"Actually," Max was almost giddy, "I have a note." He couldn't keep the smile off his face. Thankfully, for his health, the dull throbbing did the trick. Holding it up, he started towards the broad shouldered man.
Coach Travers narrowed his eyes. "A note?" The man sounded as if the mere idea of it offended him. When it was offered to him, he snatched it from the teen's hand. He quickly scanned the paper over with a scowl. "Nurse Jones overstepping her bounds again, I see."
"Actually, she..." Max went silent as Travers' eyes narrowed even further. On the inside, though, he was far from cowed. He knew the note would excuse him from gym for today.
The man scanned the note over a third time with a sigh. Then he smiled; it wasn't a pleasant smile. "Congratulations, Evans. You just won clean-up detail." Crumpling up the note, he stared the taller teen down. "Start in here, the broom's in the shower closet."
That did it. The triumph Max had been feeling was extinguished with no hope of being reignited. Sighing, he nodded. He started towards the showers at the far side of the lockers. Funnily, the pain from his headache lessened with each step.
"You know, this wasn't really necessary." Chuckling, the older man started towards the gym door. "Kyle called his father during lunch. Apparently he got himself a bad headache too."
Suddenly, it was back with full force. Staggering, Max caught himself on the wall. He heard the coach's laughter as he walked out, but didn't care. Despite his pain he was feeling relief.
Kyle was gone for the day. That left only one major obstacle to face before he could go home.
____________________
Following Along.
Rubbing at his forehead, Kyle wished the pain pills would finally kick in. He was growing sick of having to lay in darkness. The friggen TV couldn't even be turned on as the light and noise of it was like a baseball bat to the brain. It had gotten so bad at lunch he had almost wished for that prescription the doc had offered him.
The one his dad had not so subtly told him no way in hell about.
Blissed out of his mind for about ten hours sounded like a good thing right about now. So what if the shit had a strong chance of addiction. He could live with the DTs for a few weeks if he could just get rid of the damned headache!
TBC
JAKE17: If you are reading this, yes, it was for you.