Max and Josh - 28. Back and Forth

Disclaimer: This story includes sexual and romantic situations between consenting individuals. Allusions to illicit or illegal activity, sexual or otherwise, may be used for enhancement of the story line and not as promotion there of. Remember AIDS, HIV and other STDs are a very real threat; please always practice safe sex.

I can prove copyright on this story so please do not copy or remove this story for personal use without my permission.

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Max and Josh Ch28 – Back and Forth

He was going to kill him. He wanted to find him and beat him on the head with a backpack full of text books. Hopefully he’d be able to get him alone. Alone meant no witnesses to testify against him for murder charges…or to be unwilling voyeurs should he decide to do something less lethal.

Maybe he could do both; go black widow on the damaged, muscled ass-hat. While the kiss and kill sounded like it would satisfy his desire to both jump Tom’s bones AND break them, he’d rather that Tom be in good condition for the bone jumping.

Two week, it had been two weeks since Tom had unexpectedly kissed him…and then threw him out of the house. In hindsight, the caveman-esque way Tom had all but carried him to the door-step was kinda hot. The confusion and partial outrage he was feeling at the time had kept him from seeing it then.

Tom had ignored every attempt Mark had made to contact him since that night. Including the thirty minutes he spent banging on the door after it was slammed; and subsequently locked; in his face. Mark would have stayed the entire night, but it was more than obvious that Tom was deep in the closet and Mark didn’t want to cause any problems between him and his parents.

Mark didn’t want to cause any problems for Tom, he just wanted answers to the dozens of questions shooting around his head.

And maybe a few more kisses. Longer ones this time…maybe in bed. Those could wait until Mark got the answers he was looking for though…Maybe.

He just needed to find the right time to approach him though. Going to Tom’s house was out of the question, he didn’t want to have or even attempt to have this conversation anywhere near Tom’s parents. He had toyed with the idea of getting Tom to come to the house but none of the ideas he came up with would work. He considered asking Max for help but he knew he’d have to explain the situation and he knew Max would blow gasket

Ruling those options out left him with one other, and that was to figure out a way to corner Tom at school so the could talk. It was unfortunate that it was also the most difficult option as well.

The only class he had with Tom that he knew of was Gym and there was no way he’d be able to talk to him there. He’d be more likely to get into an argument with him; and not about what he was wanting to talk about.

He spent every class with his thoughts divided between course work and ways of getting Tom to talk to him. By the time gym rolled around though he hadn’t come up with anything. With a disgruntled sigh and the beginnings of a head ache he left class and headed for the Gym.

There was nothing scheduled for the day so they’d be able to use the exercise room. Mark wasn’t much for weightlifting but he’d had his eye on the treadmills for awhile. Mark always enjoyed a good run.

The gym looked empty when he arrived so Mark made a beeline for the locker room; hoping that it too would be empty. Mark knew that he didn’t have anything to be ashamed of but still wasn’t comfortable with stripping naked in a room full of other guys.

He was disappointed to find that most of the guys in the class were already there, including Tom. He was changing alone at the end of one of the row’s of lockers. It wasn’t the idea situation that Mark was hoping for but he seized the chance and headed straight down toward him.

Tom’s broad, bare back was to him and Mark took the opportunity to sort of box Tom in. Tom would have to step over the bench to get around him; it wasn’t much but Mark would take it.

Making sure that no one was looking toward them Mark discreetly kicked at Tom’s heel. Tom rounded on him at the slight contact and as their gazes met Tom’s expression immediately became panicked.

‘Probably thinking I’m about to out him.’ Mark thought, turning to the locker next to him.

“I want to talk to you…In private…Tonight.” Mark said quietly as he fiddled with the latch on the locker.

“I got nothing to say to you shrimp.” Tom replied even more quietly, pulling his shirt on as he spoke.

“Bullshit. We either talk this out or I’m camping out in your front yard.” Mark worked hard to keep his voice quiet.

“Whatever,” Tom growled almost silently, eyes fixed on the lockers in front of him.

“I got no life and no friends and plenty of time. Try me,” Mark replied and started to strip out of his clothes to change.

Mark was down to his black briefs, and debating on whether or not to change into a jockstrap when Tom finally gave another response.

“Fine, god damnit. Meet me at my car after school. I’m parked back where I was before.” Tom whispered as he stepped over the bench behind them heading out of the locker room.

Mark watched him go with a slight smile over his triumph. While he was sure that Tom was going to put up one hell of a fight when they talked later it was still worth it. He was sure that he could get through to Tom once he got him alone.

He was pretty sure that the worse that could happen was Tom leaving him wherever they went to talk. He hoped that was the worst that Tom would do at least.

***

Tom watched the pick-up basketball game for a few moments before heading over to the weight room. He half hoped that he could get in on the game but he didn’t feel like groveling to a bunch of people that didn’t like him.

After the locker room, though it seemed like the better choice. He needed to burn off steam. A few students had come into the room before him but most of them were either using the machines or the cardio equipment; leaving most of the free weights open.

Selecting a bench at the farthest end of the room Tom loaded up the bar and lay back. Tom knew he wasn’t supposed to bench press or squat without a spot but he didn’t have one and he doubted very much if anyone would care if he got hurt.

‘Mark would probably care. He kissed you back after all, plus he wouldn’t be demanding to see you if he didn’t like you in some fashion.’ Tom groaned and ruthlessly shoved the part of his mind that was starting to sound a LOT like his therapist back into his subconscious.

Mark, and all the issues he posed, was exactly what Tom was trying to work himself into forgetting. He hadn’t meant to kiss him. No matter how much he thought about it. Mark just kept pushing and prodding, until Tom’s control had snapped. Before he realized what he had done he had his lips against Marks.

When Mark started kissing him back though is when reality came crashing back to him. Again, before he even realized what he as doing, he was damn near carrying the smaller boy to the front door before pushing him outside. With the door shut and locked Tom all but collapsed. Sitting back against the door Tom felt every vibration for the next near hour that Mark spent pounding on the door.

Tom would be forever thankful that Mark had finally given up and left. By the time that the knocking and quiet swearing had ended Tom was nearly ready to open the door to confront him out of sheer desperation.

He was still afraid to think about what would have happened if had he opened that door. At that moment he hadn’t been sure if he wanted to kiss him again….or do something more drastic to make Mark go the hell away.

With another growl Tom racked the bar and sat up. Shaking his head in frustration he got up to add more weight to the bar. If he was still able to think about that night then he wasn’t being challenged enough.

Tom loaded another ten pounds to each end of the bar. Hoping that the extra weight would be enough and sat back down. Before he could lay back though, he caught movement out of the corner of his eye; a bright shock of red. His stomach dropped as he turned to get a better look.

Mark had just entered the room and was heading for the treadmills. Seeing Mark was the very last thing Tom needed, especially after the little show he had put on in the locker room. Tom was beginning to think that he might have some sort of submissive kink when it came to Mark. He enjoyed it way too much when Mark started in on him. He couldn’t help thinking about how hot it was when the little spit fire got going.

That wasn’t even the worst part of it though. Mark had to take the locker right next to him and start stripping. Tom had bitten his tongue and the inside of his lip repeatedly, using the pain to keep himself from staring at all that smooth, freckled skin as it was revealed.

Even as annoyed, anxious and downright scared as he had been at the moment Tom couldn’t help but wonder if Mark tasted as sweet as he looked. And fuck it all if he wasn’t desperate to find out. He wanted to lay Mark and kiss and lick every single inch of his body and being so close, and yet so far at the same time to the object of his desire, was more than he could handle.

That had been the real reason Tom had agreed to talk to Mark; he needed to get away. Mark had been down to his underwear and Tom didn’t know if they’d be next. A lot of guys either changed into jocks or freeballed and Tom knew he couldn’t take being close enough to see, close enough to touch even, if Mark had stepped out of those briefs. Mark had always been careful to keep himself covered up in the locker room and showers so he had never actually seen his cock; hell, he’d barely ever gotten a glimpse of Mark’s pale backside.

‘I wonder if his dick is as pale of the rest of him?’ Tom wondered silently before shutting that line of thought down fast. He couldn’t afford those kind of thoughts, not in a pair of flimsy gym shorts.

Realizing he had also been staring across at Mark as he jogged on the tread mill he bit his lip again and threw himself down on the bench, steadfastly ignoring the burn in his muscles and the ache in his chest at the same time.

Tom pushed himself hard for the rest of the gym period. He was briefly chewed out by the coach for not using a spotter during one of his walkthroughs but it had only been half hearted and wasn’t repeated when he was caught doing squats on his own as well.

He’d managed to keep his eyes completely, and his mind mostly, off of Mark until they both returned to the locker room near the end of the period to shower and change. It was then that he remembered that Mark’s locker was less than two feet from his own. He held a brief hope that maybe, just maybe, Mark would already be in the showers; or even better, be gone, but it was dashed fast when he saw the young mans slight form as he rounded the corner.

Gritting his teeth in frustration he did not look at the pale and freckled expanse of skin that had just been revealed as he marched past Mark to his locker.

“I saw you in the exercise room. You’re pretty bad ass. Saw the coach give you hell too…I ain’t much but I’d spot for you…if you needed it.” Mark spoke quietly, just as Tom opened his locker.

For a second Tom wasn’t going to respond but with a quiet sigh he gave in.

“The weights I lift would crush you Mark. You’re too shrimpy.” Tom was kind of surprised at how sincere he sounded. He had been aiming at making it a joke.

“ I might not be able to lift it off you but I could probably tip it one direction or another to get it off you.” Mark replied and while he sounded like he was joking Tom was pretty sure he was serious.

“I’ll think about it.” Tom couldn’t help but smile as he pulled out a rough and crinkled up towel.

“You do that. I…I’ll see you later.” Mark said quietly and Tom heard his locker door close.

Tom closed his own locker just in time to watch Mark walk off to the shower room. He stripped out of his clothes fast and wrapped his towel around his waist and followed. Tom had never been more thankful for the semi private showers as he was when he realized that he and Mark had class together. They were more of a recent fixture and didn’t really do much for privacy as they were open in the back but so long as you faced forward the only thing you’d be showing off is your backside.

Mark was in a stall closest to the entrance and Tom averted his eyes as he headed for one further down. As much as he’d love to get a look, in the middle of the shower room was no place to do it.

 ***

Max was more than a little annoyed when he got the text from Mark that he was going for a walk around town and would be home later. When Max texted back, asking how late he’d be, and Mark’s only answer was that he didn’t know Max was tempted to hunt him down and get a better answer. He only stopped when Josh pointed out that he was being over protective again.

“You said you were going to stop hovering so much. Mark’s a big boy.” Josh wrapped an arm around his shoulders and guided him out to the parking lot, away from the direction of Mark’s locker.

“I am doing better. But look at what happened last time he went out on his own. Robinson damn near got a hold of him.” Max argued half heartedly. He knew that Josh was right but he didn’t want to admit it…yet.

“Yea and he took care of himself that time. Pretty violently. As cocky as Robinson is, I doubt he’d risk the thing going as balls up as it did last time.” Josh smiled warmly at Max.

Max stopped and looked up at his lover with a raised eye brow.

“You really want to stick to those puns…I’ll give you another shot if you want.” Max deadpanned.

“Screw you, those were funny.” Josh grumbled before pulling Max forward again.

“I don’t know about the funny part but I’d be more than happy to help you out on the screw bit.” Max growled before pushing Josh up against a near by car.

“I believe it’s my turn to be on the…ah…receiving end of things though.” Josh smiled and Max groaned before pulling Josh down into a kiss.

“When you two come up for air I wanna talk to you.” Frank’s voice startled them but they didn’t separate for a few moments. Just to make their friend squirm.

“So what is it you needed?” Max asked when the two of them finally broke apart.

Frank scoffed and rolled his eyes before handing the two of them a stack of papers.

“Flyers for the recycling center?” Josh asked as he looked them over.

“With the location and hours of operation. I was wondering if you guys wouldn’t mind passing them out around your neighborhood. Maybe sticking them on some power poles or something. I want to try and get the word out.” Frank replied with a determined look.

“This is awesome man.” Max smiled.

“I’d be happy to pass them out…but I thought you said the guy there said they couldn’t handle too much.” Josh replied with some confusion.

“He did…but he also said that more often than not they were below capacity. I figured that this would be a good way to raise awareness. Kylie and I have also been talking about trying to do some fundraising to help buy more containers if they start doing really well.” Frank smiled when he mentioned his girlfriend.

“That’s awesome. Keep me updated and I’ll be happy to help. I’ll also see if mom can pass some of these around at the hospital.” Max replied happily and Josh nodded along.

“Cool. I’ll see you guys later. Kylie’s wanting to have me over to meet her dad.” Frank suddenly looked very uncomfortable.

“Wow…meeting the father. Big deal. Are you nervous?” Max asked quizzically.

The glare that Frank gave him would have been lethal to anyone less formidable to Max.

“Well, we can’t all know our significant others parents for years before we get together can we?” Frank asked sarcastically.

“He’s got a good point there; it was pretty easy for us on that front, “Josh chimed in thoughtfully, “In all seriousness though, man, good luck. Is there anything we can do to help out?” Josh offered, ignoring Max’s quiet laughter.

“God no, dude…between my dad and his buddy Paul I’ve got more than enough help and advice.” Frank shivered as he spoke. Josh could sympathize; he’d had more than a few of those kinds of cringe inducing with his dad over the years, too.

“That Paul guy is around a lot lately, huh?” Max asked, nodding in the direction of his and Josh’s cars.

“Yea, it’s cool, though. Dad’s been on his own for so damn long it’s good to see him have a friend again, you know?” Frank replied as he fell in step with his friends.

“I know what you mean. Mom was like that before we came here. She still doesn’t got out much now, but she’s got some people she talks to regularly.” Max said thoughtfully.

“Maybe we should try setting your mom up with Frank’s dad. They could really hit it off; imagine you two being step brothers.” Josh said suddenly, smiling.

Max and Frank both shared a look before shaking their heads and answering in unison.

“No.”

“Aww why not?” Josh pouted theatrically.

“From what I know of Max’s mom I’m pretty sure they would have exactly ZIP in common.” Frank replied; doing his best not to cringe at the mental picture of his dad with Max’s mom. It just wasn’t a pretty image.

“Agreed,” Max spoke up, “Besides, I’m pretty sure Frank and I would probably kill each other if we lived under the same roof.”

“And why is that?” Josh smirked, he really was enjoying this too much.

“For starters Max is a bit of a neat freak and I’m kinda a slob.” Frank replied, laughing.

“I’d take offense to that if it weren’t true.” Max smiled and tossed his bag into the bed of his truck when they came close enough.

“You need a ride home?” Josh asked, turning to Frank.

“Na, I’m gonna hoof it. I need to try and burn off some of this nervous energy I got going on.” Frank answered.

“Let us know how it goes.” Max said as he patted Frank on the shoulder.

“Will do, talk to you guys later on.” Frank nodded and took off toward the football field.

“You coming over tonight?” Max asked as he pulled Josh close to him by his belt loops.

“Probably. I think Wednesday’s are gonna be my folks date nights now.” Josh replied before leaning down to steal a kiss.

Max hummed into the kiss before pulling back.

“Good, I’ll see you in a couple of hours.” Max smiled before pressing a quick peck to Josh’s lips and pushing him toward his car.

 ***

Mark was waiting patiently by Tom’s car for its owner to show up when he saw a familiar face coming in his general direction. Before he could be seen Mark bolted around to the driver side of the car and hunched down, hoping he wouldn’t be seen.

“Why the hell are you hiding. I knew you’d be here…” Tom’s shadow fell over him and Mark grabbed his hand and yanked him down.

“What the hell?” Tom growled and Mark shushed him.

“I saw Frank coming this way. He sees me here and he’ll tell Max. Probably after he comes over here and tries to start something. Last I checked he was privy to the same information me and Max are.” Mark whispered.

“That doesn’t explain why the hell you yanked me down here. This is my car; I’m supposed to be here.” Tom replied, annoyed.

Mark was at a loss for an answer. He hadn’t really thought about that. It just seemed like a good idea at the time.

“Just see if he’s gone.” Mark jerked his head in the toward where he’d seen Frank.

Tom rolled his eyes and sighed but stood up and looked around anyway.

“I don’t see him, can we go now?” Tom looked down at him and Mark glared back.

“You don’t have to be such a dick. I was doing us both a favor. We both know what would happen if Max found out we were talking.” Mark snapped as he stood up.

“You might, I don’t really give a crap what you cousin thinks.” Tom replied and Mark almost believed him.

“You might not care what he’d say or do but we both know you care about what he thinks.” Mark replied, yanking open the passenger door.

“You don’t know the first fucking thing about me, shrimp.” Tom growled over the top of the car.

Mark paused before getting inside and glared heatedly back at Tom.

“I know a lot more about you than you give me credit for. I read between the lines pretty well. Given what happened last time we were together though, I’m willing to admit I missed a few things. What the hell was up with that kiss anyway?” Mark replied sarcastically.

“Shut the hell up,” Tom growled deadly quiet as he looked frantically around the parking lot, “ We’re not talking about that here; get in.” Tom yanked open his door and slammed it so fiercely once he was in that the whole car rocked from it.

Though he was confident that Tom wouldn’t injure him Mark still resolved to try and keep things calm from now on; upsetting and baiting Tom wasn’t going to get him anywhere.

“You coming or not?” Tom asked from inside the car, some of the heat now gone from his voice.

“I’m coming, hold your freaking horses.” Mark grumbled as he slid into the chilly car.

Tom waited until he had his belt on before shooting out of his spot and heading for the street. Mark didn’t say anything as they drove, he wanted to give Tom some quiet to try and cool down before they reached their destination.

“We going back to the river?” Mark asked quietly when he realized they were taking a familiar route.

“Only place I know that’ll be private. No one in their right mind would be down there in this cold ass shit. Even at the shelter.” Tom replied without looking at him.

“We’re going there.” Mark pointed out with a slight smile.

“What part of ‘right mind’ didn’t you get? I don’t really think either of us fit into that category.” Tom replied and Mark was happy to see Tom smirk slightly.

Not that he pointed it out though.

“Good point I guess. Though I’d like to point out that I’m probably more well rounded that you. No offense.” Mark meant it as a joke but at the last second worried that he might actually offend Tom.

Tom, though, actually laughed…well more of a chuckle but Mark still counted it as a win.

“I don’t think so, but I’ll let you think that.” Tom replied quietly.

Mark smiled but silently agreed and let the conversation drop.

It only took another few moments before they were pulling into the small parking lot next to the two story shelter that over looked the river. Looking down at the icy water and around at the mass of barren trees Mark admitted that this would probably be a beautiful spot in good weather.

Tom once again lead them up to the top level and took a seat at the picnic table.

“I’m sorry I was such a prick back in the parking lot. I’ve been on edge since…well for awhile…and my temper got the better of me.” He said without looking up at Mark.

Mark nodded, then realized that Tom wasn’t looking at him so he spoke up.

“It’s not a problem. I’ve been out of it a lot lately too…and I might have been trying to piss you off a bit back there too…” Mark replied sheepishly; blushing when Tom pinned him with a curious look.

“Why the hell would try to piss me off, you do know that I could flatten you, right?” Tom asked curiously.

“For one, I don’t think you’d physically hurt me. For two…pay back I guess. I mean after what happened on Valentines day, can you blame me?” Mark asked and noticed that Tom paled a bit.

“I’m sorry.” Tom whispered.

“I don’t mean kissing me,” Mark rushed to reassure, “I meant the half hour I banged on your door and the subsequent ignored texts and calls. But I gotta know…why did you kiss me?”

Just like last time they talked here Tom shot up from his seat and stalked over to the railing. Glaring out at the bleak and snowy woods.

“I thought you were supposed to be the smart, more well rounded one. I figured you’d know. I’m gay…and I’ve got a bit of a thing for you.” Tom whispered before telling Mark everything

Tom told him all about the calls he made to the PCH and how he had unknowingly spoken to Max and on their last conversation had confessed he was going to kill himself. Tom explained how Max had found him and eventually got him set up with his therapist.

Mark was rooted to the spot as Tom spoke but even after he was done he couldn’t help but feel that Tom was leaving something out. Something about the way he paused when he explained Max coming to him that night struck Mark as…off. Filing it away for later though he moved closer to Tom to address the key thoughts on his mind.

“Why didn’t you tell me from the get go?” He asked, his voice hoarse.

“I couldn’t…I just…couldn’t. I haven’t told anyone except my shrink. Max kinda found out on his own.” Tom replied, still not looking at Mark.

“Okay…I get that…you kissed me though, and said that you have a thing for me…what do you mean…Are you wanting like a relationship or something? I wouldn’t be opposed. I mean I’ve got a bit of a thing for you too.” Mark blushed furiously as the words tumbled out. He hadn’t meant to confess that little detail so soon but it was too late now.

Mark had found Tom attractive since the first time he saw him at the gym; fresh from the showers with just a towel around his waist. It wasn’t until they started talking regularly that he developed a bit of a crush on the guy. Mark wasn’t sure exactly how serious he could take it, having not had anything to base it off, but he was pretty sure that it was deeper than friendship.

Tom scoffed, pulling Mark out of his reverie, and finally turned to look at him.

“If you think you’ve got a crush on me or something then you’re less well rounded than you thought.” He replied before going back to sit at the table.

“Is it so hard to believe? I mean you claim to have something for me and I buy that.” Mark replied, feeling put out.

“Of course you do, you’re normal; why wouldn’t someone have a crush on you. You’re hotter than hell and have the brain and personality to match,” Mark blushed at Tom’s matter-of-fact tone, “Me?…there’s something fucked up in here and in here,” Tom indicated his head and his chest, “I’m beyond fucked up and damaged…I’m broken. So yeah, it’s hard to believe.” Tom ended bitterly.

Mark moved to stand at Tom’s side and hesitantly put a hand on the back of Tom’s neck.

“You might be broken…but I don’t think it’s beyond repair. You acknowledge it and are trying to work on it…that counts for something.” Tom relaxed against his hold for a second as he spoke but pulled away and shot up seconds later.

“It’s doesn’t matter…even if I wasn’t this fucked up. I’m too new to this…I’m not ready to get into anything with anyone. Just the thought fucking terrifies me.” Tom’s voice was so quiet that Mark had to strain to hear him.

“So...where do we go from here?” Mark asked, almost as quiet.

“Fuck if I know.” Tom’s reply was so defeated that Mark bristled. Beyond everything else Tom was his friend, sort of, and he couldn’t let him go through this on his own.

Mark moved to stand in front of Tom and placed both hands on his shoulders and waited for the bigger teen to meet his eyes.

“We go forward. We don’t let all this shit get in the way. Mutual attraction and crushes aside. Just carry on like we have been. Except now we can be a bit more honest with each other.” Mark wasn’t very confident in his own plan but he knew that he could fake it convincingly enough.

“You honestly think that’ll work?” Tom asked quietly but Mark was sure he could hear a sliver of hope in his voice.

“Yes, it will. We’ll make it work. I’m pretty sure we’re the only friends one another has.” Mark smiled and Tom even looked a bit better.

“You’ve got Max and his gang.” Tom pointed out but Mark shook his head.

“Not really. I mean Max yea…we’re friends and I like the rest…It’s not the same though. You know what mean?” Mark asked, unable to articulate himself exactly what he meant. Max’s friends were Max’s friends and while they all got along…it wasn’t the same.

“Yea…I get it.” Tom answered with a nod.

“Good….So I gotta ask one more thing before we put this all on the back burner…you really think I’m hot?” Mark asked with a wide smile, causing Tim to groan and roll his eyes.

“I am not going there.” Tom replied, annoyed but not angry, and pulled away from Mark.

“Duuude, come on. You can’t just say that and then not elaborate.” Mark whined playfully.

***

Mark didn’t let up for the entire trip back toward his house and Tom was close to throttling him. It wasn’t that he was really opposed to telling Mark…it’s just that he was scared of how it might affect the distance they were supposed to be keeping from that particular issue.

“I’ll make you a deal,” Tom finally said once they were parked a few blocks away from Mark’s house. Despite having said he didn’t care what Max thought about the two of them talking, which was mostly true, he still wasn’t in the mood to commit suicide by pulling up in front of his house with the guys cousin in tow, “If I tell you one thing, one thing, that I find attractive about you will you drop this and not bring back up?” Tom asked and Mark nodded eagerly.

Taking a deep breath and staring straight ahead, because there was no way in hell he could say this if he was actually looking at Mark, Tom forced out the words.

“You’re…you’re small…like smaller than me. I like that. Deep down I’ve kinda always had a thing for smaller guys.” Tom felt the blood rush to his face and up around his ears with so much force he’d have sworn his head had suddenly caught fire.

Tom chanced a glance out the corner of his eye when Mark remained silent and found that he was looking at him with a small smile.

“What? You asked.” Tom huffed in aggravation.

“Nothing…nothing at all. It’s just…I’ve never been complimented on being small. I used to get picked on a lot for it. I take after my dad’s family; they’re all on the scrawny side.” Marked replied quietly and Tom felt a fission of annoyance.

“You’re not scrawny, you’re small, lean. There’s a difference.” Tom knew he was probably being too vehement but the idea of Mark being bullied really pissed him off.

“Thanks…It means a lot to me and like I promised I won’t bring it up again. I should get going though. I know that Max wasn’t very happy about me being out on my own.” Mark smiled again, wider this time, and made to get out of the car.

Tom only nodded in reply but as Mark was ready to shut the door he spoke up.

“I’ll text you later…okay?” He asked, still a little worried about where they stood.

“You’d better. I’m pretty sure Josh is supposed to come over tonight and I need something to distract me from those two humping on the couch.” Mark smiled but his tone suggested that he was being very serious.

Before he could ask though Mark had closed the door and took off down the sidewalk.

Bemused by how the day had turned out Tom drove home on autopilot. Mark was the first person, beside Mr. Watcher, that he had come out to. Given how it had happened and the way things were slightly skewed in his favor he shouldn’t have felt so proud of that, but he really did. He had miles to go, hundreds if not thousands of them, but he was doing better.

For the first time in a long, long time, he felt a little hopeful.

***

Max heard the front door close upstairs just as he was re-racking the barbell.

“Max, I’m home.” Mark voice sounded from above the basement ceiling and Max felt the knot he had been ignoring in his stomach finally ease.

“I’m down here.” Max hollered just as he heard the door to the basement stairs open.

“How’d you know I be down here?” He asked as he sat up.

“You always work out on Wednesday’s, plus Josh is coming over tonight and you always try to pump up before he comes over. By the way if you open the door like that I’d say you’re guaranteed to get lucky.” Mark smirked and nodded at him and Max felt the urge to cover his naked torso. He usually worked out in a tank top and shorts but he’d gotten hot and discarded the shirt.

“Shut up.” Max grumbled dumbly, unable to come up with a better retort.

“Yeah, and not that I’m not happy for you and everything but can y’all try to keep it down a bit? I don’t need to hear you two getting kinky.” Mark smiled wide, leaning against the wall.

“We don’t…I don’t…we don’t do anything kinky.” Max stuttered, pushing off the weight bench to look for his discarded shirt.

“Yeah whatever. I’ve seen the multiple jock straps and bottles of massage oils in your closet.” This remark had Max’ whipping around to pin his diminutive cousin with a glare.

“Relax, I wasn’t snooping or anything. I thought some of my shorts might have got mixed in with your stuff and I just happened across them.” Mark explained, still with that damn smile.

Max, unable to formulate a reply, just huffed and headed past his cousin and up the stairs.

He heard Mark follow behind him but paused when Mark gasped.

“Is…is that it?” Max cringed at the tone of Mark’s voice….he had heard that tone so many times…and after telling Josh and his friends he had hoped to never hear it again.

Mark had seen the scar across his shoulders.

“Yea…that’s it.” Max answered quietly.

Mark was quiet but Max felt the sudden heat over his left shoulder and whipped around to catch Mark’s wrist.

“Don’t.” He ground out, holding Mark’s wrist tightly.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t think.” Mark replied fearfully and Max felt like a bastard.

Letting go of his cousin’s wrist he turned fully and sat down on the stairs.

“Don’t be…I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have flipped out. I just…I don’t like people touching it…It’s kind of sensitive…even Josh avoids it.” Max said quietly.

“It still sensitive…even after all this time?” Mark asked, sitting down on the stair in front of him.

“Not really, I don’t guess. The doctors say it’s all in my head. Psycho-sematic or something like that.” Max replied, feeling the offending area of skin tingle.

“I…I heard about it. When Aunt Deb called mom and she was telling dad about it. I begged dad to let me come see you but…well we know how that turned out.” Mark replied quietly.

Max was silent for a moment before speaking.

“I would’ve liked to see you…I think at the same time it would have done me more harm than good. I wasn’t feeling myself right then, I felt weak and low and broken….and you always looked up to me.” Max said after a moment. He didn’t like talking about those days but he found that it was easier as time went on.

“Max…you big goon,” Mark smiled, “I don’t think there would be anything that would make me stop looking up to you. Even when we were kids you were the big and strong one. Not just in muscles either. You were never afraid, but you were always there for me when I was.” Mark’s smiled waned a bit as he finished and Max knew he was thinking about what came next.

Max knew that his coming out had done a real number on his family and his cousin seemed to be the one who drew the shortest stick. Even before Mark himself came out they weren’t allowed to contact each other. For having been as close as they were as kids those years of separation had been hard on the both of them.

Without thinking about it Max pulled his cousin up to rest between his legs and wrapped his arms around the smaller teen. Given he was sweat soaked and probably stunk a little he expected Mark to protest but his cousin merely wrapped his arms around and squeezed back.

Max stayed there, holding on to his cousin, until he realized that the position couldn’t be comfortable for Mark’s knees. Untangling himself from his little cousin’s grasp Max smiled and ruffled his hair like he did when they were kids.

“Come on, lets get out of here. I’ll cook us something after I take a shower.” Max smiled as Mark glared at him and tried to fix his hair.

“It better be something good.” Mark replied, gaining his feet and holding a hand out to Max.

“Everything I make is good.” Max smiled confidently and took Mark’s hand.

They parted in the living room, Mark plopping down on the couch as Max headed up to his room. Digging through his closet for a change of clothes Max came across the jockstraps Josh had given him. Smiling, Max swapped the boxer briefs he had with the basic white one. They hadn’t been able to explore all of Josh’s fantasies yet and Max had a particular one in mind.

***

The beeping of his cell pulled Tom away from the sketch he was working on. Setting the pad aside he looked at the message.

‘Hey wat r u doing?’ Tom had to smile at Mark’s text speak.

‘Sketching before my dad gets home. You?’ Tom asked in return.

‘Waiting 4 Max to make dinner.’

‘Have I ever told you text speak annoys me. Shouldn’t you be against the degradation of the written language? You are the writer after all.’ Tom send back. This was one of their regular topics.

‘U can bite me. This is the only time I am grammatically incorrect.’ Tom laughed at Mark’s usual reply. If he actually bit Mark every time he said those words the guy would have a dozen or so bruises.

Tom had to work very hard to push that image out of his head.

‘So you bored already?. I just dropped you off less than an hour ago.’ Tom asked before stowing his sketch pad. He figured this was likely to take up the rest of time he had before his dad got home.

‘Little bit yea. I was also want to ask if u meant wat u said b4 about not caring if Max knew we were talking.’ Tom froze as he read the words. Part of him didn’t care what Max thought…but a bigger one was worried about what he might do.

Fighting, either physically or verbally, was the last thing Tom wanted to do. He wanted to put any and all forms of violence behind him. He couldn’t help but feel that Max wouldn’t take the news that the two of them were talking in a passive way.

He didn’t want to admit it but Tom was also afraid that Max would some how keep the two of them from talking.

‘Yes and no…I don’t care what he thinks or says about it…but I’m not in a rush to find out exactly what he would DO. Why?’ Tom sent back, worried.

The longer it took for Mark to reply the more anxious Tom got. He was worried that Mark had already told Max and some of what had happened. He breathed a sigh of relief when Mark finally replied.

‘Was just curious. We were talking a bit ago and had this big heart to heart. It was nice, got me to thinking about telling him.’ Tom felt something in his chest clench as he read the message. He didn’t have that kind of connection with anyone in his family. The closest thing to the kind of relationship Mark seemed to share with Max he had was with his Uncle Raymond when he was younger. He hadn’t seen him in years though, not since his dad and uncle had their falling out.

Beyond the feeling of envy or jealousy, or whatever the hell he was feeling, Tom didn’t want Mark to feel bad about keeping something from Max.

‘If you want to tell him you can. I don’t want you feeling shitty about keeping something from him. I mean what’s the worse he could do, right?’ Tom asked but as he pressed the sent key he realized exactly what the worst was that Max could do.

Max could tell Mark everything. About all the guys that he used to bully…or the truth about the night that Max came to his house…about the sketches.

Tom suddenly felt like ice had flooded his veins at the realization of how badly he had screwed up. He had pissed Max off so much in the last month alone that he’d probably be more than happy to tell Mark everything. Hell, by telling Mark that it was okay to tell Max about them talking he had pretty much asked for Max to tell him everything.

Shakily, Tom got up from his desk and moved to his bed. Gripping his phone tightly. Tom lay back and tried to stop the wave of nausea he felt roiling in his stomach.

His phone vibrated and he had to force his hand to loosen its death grip so he could read the message.

‘Thanks…I’m still thinking it over. If I do it won’t be tonight. I don’t want to risk anything happening with Josh coming over. I don’t think it’ll be that bad. He might rage and bitch a…well a lot but nothing more beyond that.’ Tom allowed a small smiled as he realized that Mark wasn’t as confident as his message implied so he let himself hope that just maybe Mark wouldn’t tell him they were talking.

‘Just…just let me know before you do…so I can prepare lol’ Once the message was sent Tom started to think that it might be better if he talked to Mark before he told Max about the two them talking. Before he could start a new message though Mark had replied to his first.

‘lol. Will do. Gotta bolt, food is ready. If I eat fast I won’t have to watch them eye hump. Later.’

‘Alright, later.’ Tom sent in return, tossing his phone onto the night stand when he didn’t receive a reply after a few minutes. Tom didn’t want to admit, even silently to himself, that he was afraid of telling Mark everything about his past. He lay back and tried to get comfortable on his pillows as his mind shied away from thoughts of that conversation.

‘Suck it up. It’s better he gets the full story from you instead of Max,’ Tom thought as he punched his pillow into a more comfortable position, ‘besides this is what Dave is always talking about. Facing your fears and accepting responsibility for you actions.’

That knowledge didn’t make it any easier for him to think about it.

***

Max, Mark and Josh had just sat down when Max’s mom came home. All three of them stared confusedly as she bustled into the house, looking harried.

“Mom, you’re home early, is something wrong?” Max worriedly asked.

Debbie came up short as she was about to pass the dinning area, only then realizing that she wasn’t alone.

“Oh, hi honey, Mark, Josh,” A smile stole over her face as she nodded to the three of them, “No nothings wrong, at least I don’t think so. Mr. Conner’s called earlier today and left me a voice mail. I only just checked it bit ago. They’ve finally set a court date for me to officially become Mark’s legal guardian and be made trustee of the estate.” Debbie pulled off her coat, tossing it and her purse aside, as she spoke.

“That’s good news. When is it?” Mark asked quietly.

“Nine am Monday morning. It’s short notice but apparently he only just found out himself. I went ahead and found coverage for the tonight, tomorrow night and Monday, and hurried home so I could start making travel arrangements. I’d rather not drive again; especially not alone,” Debbie replied.

“Well why don’t we all go? We could leave Saturday morning and come back Monday night. The two of us missing a day of school wouldn’t hurt. I’d like to do another run through the house; make sure there’s nothing else I’d like to bring here. We could make a weekend out of it. I mean, so long as either of you don’t have plans.” Mark offered, looking between Max and his aunt.

“I got nothing concrete,” Max smiled at Josh as he spoke, they had tentative plans to spend time together that weekend, “At least nothing that couldn’t be postponed.” Max was worried that Josh might feel jilted but the smile and wink Josh gave him relieved his worries.

“I don’t know Mark. I would hate for you two to miss something important. I wouldn’t even know where we’d stay since the water and power were shut off at the house,” Debbie answered, frowning.

“That’s not a problem. I’ve got plenty of cash in my account for a hotel. I’d be more than happy to put us up for the weekend.” Mark offered with a smile.

“Maybe I should head home and let you all hash this out.” Josh said, noticing the way Debbie cast a glance in his direction before fixing it on Mark again. He figured that she probably wanted to argue a bit but didn’t want to do it infront of him.

“No, you don’t have to do that, Josh. You should sit down and enjoy the dinner I’m sure my son prepared. We can always talk about this tomorrow evening. In fact, I think I’ll grab myself a plate and retire to my room for the night. You three just go about your night like you had planned.” Debbie’s tone made it clear that there was to be no argument so the three of them watched as she made herself a plate and grabbed a bottle of water before heading to her room.

“I got to give it to you Mark. I don’t know her all that well, but even I know it takes balls to offer up your money like that.” Josh remarked before digging into his salad.

“He’s not wrong. Mom’s got some issues where money is concerned.” Max supplied.

“I didn’t mean to make it sound like she couldn’t afford it or anything,” Mark replied worriedly, “I just figured it would be okay since it was my idea. I have plenty of money left over from what Mom put into my account.”

“Don’t worry about it tonight. We’ll talk to her tomorrow. For now I suggest we do what she said and enjoy the night.” The small smile he gave Josh made it pretty clear what he was thinking about.

“Good god…keep it in your pants while I’m eating, please.” Mark growled around the mouthful of homemade chicken alfredo pizza Max had made.

“Keep it up little cousin and I’ll give you an actually reason for that statement.” Max smirked and Josh blushed at the statement.

Mark thought about retorting but after a moment of consideration decided against it. Max was just weird enough to do it.

***

“I’m sorry that our plans for this weekend might fall through, babe,” Max murmured once the two of them we laying back on his bed.

Dinner had passed without any more inference to sex but once they were done Max drug Josh upstairs in hopes of some fun.

“Don’t be,” Josh smiled, running a hand up the front of Max’s shirt, “Likely as not it’d been cut short anyway. Grandpa keeps going back and forth between whether he wants me to come over and help clean out the attic or not. He’ll probably decide last minute that he does.”

“Well that’s…ah…nice.” Max lost his train of thought when Josh’s fingers found his nipple and started to knead it between.

“It’ll get better,” Josh whispered before moving to straddle Max’s lap.

“Not what I meant.” Max muttered, sitting up and sliding Josh’s shirt up and off.

“Yea, sure it wasn’t.” Josh smiled before Max brought their lips together.

***

“I’d still like to know how you managed to get mom to agree to you paying for this.” Max laughed as he collapsed onto the bed next to his duffel bag.

Mark smiled as he watched his cousin stretch out. His aunt hadn’t wanted to drive up and was also not a fan of flying to they had ended up catching an Amtrak from Indianapolis. The five hour trip had been fine for him and his aunt, but Max had complained of feeling cramped.

“It wasn’t hard. I gave her the puppy dog eyes and she melted.” Mark smiled but it changed quickly into frown when his aunt pushed open the door that connected her room to theirs.

“I didn’t melt. I figured since it was your idea you could pay for our stay.” She cocked an eyebrow at the two them, her lips pursed, daring them to correct her.

“So what is the plan for this weekend?” Max asked from the bed.

“Well we should go to the house and do another walk through before it gets dark.” Debbie replied.

“Agreed. I think it’s supposed to be pretty cold tonight. There should still be some boxes there too so we don’t need to get any.” Mark agreed.

“Can we grab some food on the way there; I’m hungry.” Max gave them a toothy smile.

“Yeah but someone else is paying. I sprung for the rooms.” Mark replied seriously.

As they drove back to the house Mark tried to sort out the mix of feelings he was having. It was weird being back in Chicago even though he had only been gone for a little while. In all the time he’d lived in the city he’d never really experienced it, so in a way it never really felt like home. As they got closer and closer to his old home he realized that as much as he missed his parent’s, no matter what the last few years had been like, he still loved them. He didn’t miss living there.

With that realization he had another. Looking up at Max in the passenger seat of their rental car he had to wonder what Max felt being back in Chicago. The last few years that Max had spent in the city had, at least to Mark’s knowledge, been horrible. The attack that left him with the scar along his back alone would have been traumatizing enough without all the angst that Max had hinted at with his dad.

He’d never wondered if being back in Chicago was painful for Max. Max was, in a way, the strong and silent type. He didn’t give away a lot of what he was feeling and thinking on a personal, internal level so it was hard for Mark to try and gauge him.

“Mark, you okay? We’re here.” Max’s question pulled him out his thoughts. Clearing his head with a quick shake he smiled and nodded to his cousin.

“Well, lets go. The sooner we get done the soon I can go nap.” His aunt chimed in before wrapping her scarf more tightly around her face.

“Actually aunt D would you mind running to Mrs. Watkins and seeing if she’s got anything important for? She promised to check the mail just incase.” Mark asked before she could get out. His recent thoughts had prompted him to want to talk to Max alone.

“You sure? We could run over after we’re done here.” She said, glancing at Mark in the rearview mirror. Mark had to wonder if he didn’t hear a little relief in her voice. It was a poorly kept secret that she like being or the idea of being, in the house her sister had lived in.

“Naa that’s okay. She used to play Bridge on Saturdays and if she still is, I wouldn’t want to interrupt her. We dunno how long we’ll be here and I’m sure she’s still going to church on Sundays,” Mark replied with a small smile.

“Well, in that case I guess I’ll be back shortly. If you happen to get done before I get back though, give me a call.” His aunt smiled at the both of them as she pulled her scarf down a little.

“Gotcha, no worries.” Mark replied as he and Max got out and headed up to the house.

“Smooth move, little cousin,” Max patted Mark’s shoulder as they moved into the dark house, “Where do you want to start?”

“Let’s head down to the basement first. I want to see if I can find any of the old photo albums or mom’s scrap books. They weren’t in dad’s office or with the rest of the books.” Mark gestured in the direction of the living room and his late fathers office as he spoke.

“Man…it’s gonna be colder than hell down there…lead the way.” Max grumbled and pulled his own scarf a little tighter around his neck.

“Isn’t pretty much everything colder than hell? I mean isn’t that the point of Hell to begin with?” Mark joked, but silently agreed with his cousin. The house had been without any sort of utility since he had moved out and it showed. The air within was even colder than it was outside and he had no doubt the basement would be worse.

“Don’t be a wise ass,” Max warned, voice muffled by the scarf.

“Can’t help it. Was born that way.” Mark chided in return as he led his cousin toward the basement.

It was a full basement with French doors that lead to the back yard and windows on two sides. Included a full bath, a comfortable bedroom, family room and laundry area.

Once upon a time Mark had harbored dreams of making the place into his own apartment; all he would have needed was a mini fridge. Then he’d come out, though, and his parents had gone ballistic.

Despite being spacious and comfortable, when the house had utilities, it had hardly been used for anything more than storage over the years.

“How do you plan on seeing anything down here?” Max asked once they made it to the bottom of the stairs.

“With these,” Mark reach up to a shelf above the door way and pulled down two flash lights, “Mom put them here incase we ever needed to take shelter down here,” He explained as he clicked one of them on.

“I’m surprised these still work,” Max replied as he turned on his own, “Where do you want to start looking?”

“Let’s start over there. That’s where we put all the stuff when dad had the living room remodeled a few years ago,” Mark said, pointing out a group of boxes at the far corner of the room.

Mark worked hard to shake the eerie feeling as they moved silently through the semi gloom of the basement. Everything outside the glow of their flashlights rested in thick shadows.

“They look like Grandma’s albums except that they’re leather. Dad didn’t like vinyl or plastic one’s . Always said they looked too cheap.” Mark told his cousin as they started going through the boxes.

Mark waited until they were enmeshed in their searching before he brought up the subject on his mind.

“Hey Max, can I ask you something…something personal?” Mark asked without pausing the search of his current box.

“I guess,” Max replied vaguely.

“I was wondering what you felt being back here…and I don’t mean the house. I mean Chicago overall. I know the last few years you lived here weren’t the greatest.” Mark tried to be careful with his wording, not wanting to seem to prying.

Max was quiet for a moment, just the sound of him shifting through the box he was looking through, and just when Mark figured he wouldn’t get an answer his cousin spoke up.

“It’s not a cake walk…to be honest. But it’s not as hard as I thought it would be. It’ll never be easy for me…but… I’ve made peace with everything that went down with my dad and brother while we lived here and I’ve tried to put my attack as far behind me as I can. I try not to think about it all really. Why do you ask?”

“I was just curious. I was thinking about how it felt for me to be back here after everything…I realized that this place, not just the house but the city too, never felt as much like home as your place does.” Mark replied quietly.

“Well, maybe these will sweeten your feelings on the place.” Max bumped his shoulder as he spoke. Mark turned around and looked into the two boxes in front of his cousin. Inside, neatly stacked, were the albums and scrap books they were looking for.

“I…I didn’t really think we’d find them.” Mark whispered, ignoring the prickle behind his eyes.

“I figured we would…didn’t think it would be this easy though. Is there anything else down here you want to look for…it’s too damn cold down here.” Max replied quietly.

Hastily wiping his eyes, Mark shook his head. Quickly, the two of them rearranged the boxes so that the four albums and two scrap books were together and headed back up stairs.

Putting the books in the foyer the two of them went through the rest of the house; looking for anything else Mark wanted to have shipped to Indiana or that seemed important. They managed to accumulate another box of odds and ends that Mark decided he wanted to have around by the time his aunt called and said she was on her way back.

“So, you sure this is everything you want?” Max asked, huddled in on himself to try and escape the cold of the house.

“For now yeah. Maybe this Spring or Summer I’ll come back and look around some more. It’s too cold now, though.” Mark said, moving to stand closer to his cousin. The cold was worse for him given his slim build.

“You have any idea what you’re going to do with this place?” Max asked quietly. It was common knowledge that the fate of the house was a sore topic.

“Not really. I can’t see myself ever living here…but the idea of having a fully bought and paid for house is tempting.” Mark answered truthfully. In all honesty he tried not to think about it too much…it just seemed like such an enormous decision.

“I hear ya…really though you got plenty of time to decide. Personally though, you couldn’t pay me to live here. Chicago, I mean. Too much bad crap has happened. When I found out you were living here…I freaked. I was irrationally afraid that you were going to run into Tim…” Max’s voice fell to a whisper as he spoke his ex’s name.

As small and likely to get his ass kicked as he was, Mark would have dearly loved to get his hands on the bastard and his friends for what he had done to Max. The scar on his back may have healed a long time ago but Mark suspected the internal scars the attack had caused were still quite fresh.

Knowing he could never really understand what Max went through or how he felt, Mark didn’t say anything. Instead he moved right next to the bigger young man and wrapped an arm around his waist and rested his head against him arm.

Max, no doubt realizing that Mark was trying to provide comfort, returned the embrace.

The two of them stayed like that until a loud horn sounded outside. Max pulled away from him and looked out through the curtains.

“Mom’s here; lets get this stuff loaded up.” Max’s voice was thick and right then Mark promised that he’d never make Max come back to Chicago if could help it. He cousin didn’t deserve to be made to relive the worst portion of his life to date.

After loading the boxes and making sure the house was locked up tight Mark gave it one last look before getting into the car with his cousin and aunt. As tempting as having a house that he didn’t have to pay for was, he knew that it was extremely unlikely that he’d ever want to live in it. Talking to Max had forced him to examine how he really felt about the place and he could admit to himself now that, even if he hated the circumstances that caused his move, he felt grateful that he no longer had to call that house or city home.

“Let’s get the hell out of here.” Mark said and his aunt, not even glancing at him for swearing, pulled out of the drive way and took off.

***

Max tapped his foot nervously as he wait for the machine to drop the Snickers he’d bought. He was well aware that it was stupid for him to be nervous: his mom wouldn’t be back for another half hour at the least and the damn thing wasn’t even his anyway. Years of sugar avoidance and lectures from his mother and his doctors though, had made him a little nervous when he was faced with candy or sugar.

“About damn time.” Max sighed in relief when the candy finally fell from the rack with a dull thud.

Stowing the bar out of sight in his pocket Max headed back to their room. Turning the corner though, he ran straight into someone coming from the opposite direction. The impact knocked Max off balance and if not for the arm that was suddenly wrapped around his waist he would have hit the floor.

“Sorry about that. I wasn’t paying much attention.” Apologizing, Max tried to move away but the arm at his waist tightened. When he finally focused on the guy holding onto him, Max’s mild nerves turned into a cold, gripping panic.

“Maxie, it’s been a long time.” The voice had deepened some over the years but Max would never be able to forget it.

The hand resting at the small of his back gripped his shirt tightly as he tried to move away again.

“Let go of me, Tim.” Max tried to growl the command out but the sudden shock and fear at seeing his ex-boyfriend and source of months of physical pain and mental anguish made it sound more like a plea.

“It really is you,” Tim spoke quietly as he leaned a little closer to Max, “I didn’t recognize you when you checked in but then I saw your mom. She hasn’t changed nearly as much as you have. You’re all strong and strapping now. Not that you weren’t always a hot little number. But now…hot damn.” Nausea swirled in his gut when Tim purred out the words.

Not even thinking about it Max reached back and grabbed Tim wrist. A tight squeeze in the right place and quick twist broke Tim’s grip. Using the momentum Max, still gripping tight to Tim’s wrist, turned the two of them and shoved Tim hard to the other side of the hallway.

“Damn Maxie, was that really necessary?” Tim grinned at him, rolling his shoulders from the impact with the wall.

“I dunno what the fuck you’re doing here and I don’t care. Just stay the hell away from me.” This time Max was able to pull off the growl he had been aiming for. Max turned away but before he could go more than a few steps Tim’s hand was gripping his arm tightly.

“I work here Maxie, saving up for college and all that. Had to do something after you got me cut off. It’s alright though, If I wasn’t slumming here I wouldn’t have gotten to see you again. I just want to catch up; maybe get the story on that hot little ginger you’re with.” Tim grumbled out to start but at the inadvertent mention of Mark, his voice became more of a purr.

Blinded by anger and fear Max wasn’t even aware of having moved until he realized that he had Tim pinned to the wall, his hand gripped tight on Tim’s throat.

“You listen to me you fucking asshole. It’s not my fault your dad is a bastard and cut you off. You having the fucking balls to talk to me after carving my back open just proves what kind of sick fuck you are. I swear if I see you again or you come near me or my family it will be the last fucking thing you ever do.” Max drilled his point home by squeezing tightly around Tim’s throat.

Max let go and watched as Tim slumped to the floor. Not waiting to see if he got back up Max turned and once again headed to his room.

“Still got that temper, don’t you Maxie,” Tim’s voice was hoarse but snide, “Figured you’d have gotten a better grip on that, especially after you dislocated that quarter back’s arm back in junior high. You go around choking guys out and making death threats though…guess not. Pity the poor guy who ends up with you.” Tim’s words were like a cold knife had plunged into his chest. He didn’t give the cold bastard the satisfaction of turning back, his steps faltered for a moment but he resolutely kept moving until he was back in his room.

Blindly, Max moved over to his bed and sat down. A familiar tremble in his hands and weakness on his knees told him he needed to calm down. Leaning forward he rested his forehead in his hands and tried to take deep breaths.

“Max…are you okay?” Mark’s voice shocked him out of his calming down. Sitting up straight Max plastered on a smile and dug Mark’s candy bar out of his pocket.

“Yea…fine. I just get a little nervous around candy. Years of conditioning you know.” Max shakily tossed the candy to his shirtless cousin.

Mark, obviously fresh from the shower with wet hair and towel around his waist, caught it and after regarding it with confusion tossed it onto the bed.

“I call bullshit. We’ve only been back around each other a few months but I know when you’re lying. Talk to me, what happened, is it being back here; bad memories?” Mark’s gentle tone destroyed Max’s tenuous control. Feeling as though something had cracked in his chest, Max was over come with more emotions than he could handle. He started sobbing and shaking and was only dimly aware of Mark’s lean limbs wrapping around him.

***

He’d only seen Max cry once before, and this was very different from shedding a few tears at the memorial service for his estranged Aunt and Uncle. These were shuddering, body wracking sobs. With barely a thought to the fact that he was clothed only in a loose towel, he threw himself down next to his cousin and gathered him into his arms.

“Talk to me Max, what’s wrong?” Mark encouraged quietly.

Max though, shook his head violently in refusal. Even as his cousin’s breathing eased and his crying ceased he still refused to speak. Not knowing what to do Mark managed to maneuver his cousin until he was lying down. The ease with which Max allowed himself to be manipulated worried Mark.

Once Mark had gotten his cousin settled he moved across the room and got dressed. Once fully clothed Mark sat down on the opposite bed and stared at his cousin. Max lay in a near fetal position, his bulky body folded in impossibly close on itself, with his eyes shut tightly. Noting his cousins glasses were askew and not wanting them to get bent or broken Mark leaned forward to remove them. Just as he went to slowly slide them off Max’s eyes shot open and Mark found his wrist gripped tightly in Max’s fist.

“Easy Max. I just don’t want you to break your glasses.” Mark spoke soothingly, resting his hand over Max’s where it gripped his wrist.

Max though, didn’t loose his grip. Max’s eyes locked with his as Max tugged on his wrist before letting it go and rolling onto his other side.

Mark, immediately getting what Max was wanting, moved to lay down behind his bigger cousin. Making sure he was up a little higher than his cousin so his could rest his chin atop his head Mark wrapped his arms tightly around Max once more.

“I…I don’t want to push you, Max…aunt D’s gonna be back soon though and you know you’ll have to answer to her.” Mark whispered, feeling like shit. He didn’t know what was going on but he wanted to try and help before his aunt got back.

Max was quiet for another few moments before he spoke up.

“Tim’s here,” Max’s voice was shuddered, “He works here…I saw him near the vending machines. We talked…he talked…said it was my fault…he touched me…I grabbed him, slammed him against the wall…he said I was dangerous.” Max rambled out, sobbing and shaking with renewed force.

Mark wasn’t able to even begin trying to figure out what his cousin meant but he got the gist of it. The S.O.B that was responsible for so much of Max’s past pain…for the fucking scar on his back, was working in the very hotel they were staying at and had the fucking gall to talk and even touch his cousin.

He didn’t know what he meant by the bastard blaming Max for something or calling him dangerous but it didn’t matter. He knew enough.

“It’s alright Max. That fucker won’t bother you again. We’ll talk to Aunt D and get out of here soon as she gets back.” Mark thought that the offer would be comforting but Max turned to him wide eyed.

“No…no you can’t. You can’t tell her about this. If she knew she’d freak out. Just…just don’t.” Max all but pleaded.

“Max, we can’t keep this from her. Look at you. She’ll take one look and know something is up and what happens if we run into him again?” Mark reasoned.

Max pulled out of his arms and sat up; running his hands over his face.

“I’ll get it together. I’ll hop in the shower and she won’t even notice when I get out. We won’t see him again, either. He’ll only come around if it’s just me…I’ll stay close to you and mom. Just please, Mark…you can’t tell her.” Max’s voice was steady now but he pinned Mark with a pleading look and Mark fell apart.

“Fine…I won’t say anything…but…are you sure you’re okay?” Mark asked carefully.

“I’m…I’m fine. It was just a surprise,” Max answered, looking anything but fine.

“Alright then. Go get in the shower…and don’t even think we’re done talking about this. I want to know everything that happened.” Mark replied and Max nodded in agreement.

Mark watched as his cousin nodded and moved off the bed and toward the bathroom. Once the door was closed behind his cousin he fell back against the pillows and glared at the ceiling.

“I swear, if I see this bastard I will kill him.” Mark whispered just before their hotel room door opened to admit his aunt, pizza box and bag of soda’s in hand.

‘It’s going to be a long weekend.’ He thought as he got up to help her.

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I want to thank Rush for her work in editing, without her I would be no where. As always, I love to get your thoughts and opinions so feel free to email me at allenarcane88@yahoo.com, drop me a PM, write me a review or visit the discussion forum.
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