“This is going to sting, Emma,” the nurse warned. Max heard Em suck in air as the nurse wiped the wound with an antiseptic wipe. “Sorry, hon. Let this dry before we put on a bandage. I’ll be back.” Max listened as the heel clicks grew dimmer.
“JD, can I talk to you for a second?” Emma asked in a near whisper.
Max sat up abruptly, knocking the ice bag to the floor. “Sure, Em. What is it? Are you in pain? Should I get the nurse?”
“No. I’m fine,” she insisted. “Look, I’m not supposed to tell anyone this yet.” Em glanced around as if to make sure no one else could hear her before leaning in closer to him. He fought the urge to reach out and touch her.
“My dad finished his report about the accident last night. It bothered him that no one could figure out why Mr. Sánchez veered off the road at the Widow Maker. He went back to the site after talking to you at the hospital and searched the area again. This time he found a dead deer in the woods, about 200 yards from the curve. He believes the deer was clipped by Mr. Sánchez’s car, and then wandered into the woods where it later died. He immediately went over to the impound lot to see if he could find any of the deer hide on their car. He was about to give up when tucked way underneath the wheel well he found a small patch. He had it analyzed and it was a match to the dead deer back at the accident site.”
Relief washed over Max. JD didn’t kill his family. Though it was only an accident, Max doubted few at Port Fare High would have care. JD would have been labeled a murderer. Max smiled. “So I’m not responsible?”
“No. My dad figures the deer shot out in front of you both. Mr. Sánchez swerved and most likely clipped it, then veered off the road and hit a tree, which flipped the car. He figures you over-corrected to keep from hitting either the deer or the Sánchez’s and ended up going through the windshield when you drove into the ditch. It was all an unfortunate accident, JD.” Emma closed the small gap between them with a squeeze to Max’s shoulder.
Max thought back to that day. He remembered sitting in the back of his parent’s car thinking about how great his life was. So much for that idea. He remembered his dad turning on talk radio and his mother complaining, saying, Dear. Max now realized he’d mistaken her comment as a complaint. Most likely she was pointing out the deer.
“Do you remember anything?” Em looked at him hopefully.
“Not really, but the deer thing does seem familiar.” He hated seeing the look of disappointment on her face.
“That’s a start, right?” she said. “The official report will be released tomorrow. My dad said the local press will do a write up on it too. Hopefully people will stop blaming you now.”
“I’d like that,” Max said, staring into her sky-blue eyes. Oh, how he missed them.
“How are you doing? I’ve heard some of the kids have been pretty nasty to you, blaming you for M—ah, the deaths and all.” She fidgeted with her ponytail, wrapping the long blond strands around her fingers. Max smiled. He loved it when she did that.
“It’s been rough,” he said dryly. “But maybe things will get better now.”
“Alright, Em. Let’s get a bandage on this,” the nurse said, hustling into the room. She pressed a bandage carefully in place, covering the wound. “Now, stop doing the pyramid.”
“It’s for the championship game if the team wins. Sort of a grand finale. Most of the squad graduates in June and we want to go out with a bang,” Emma explained as she rose from the cot.
“Yes, spending the rest of your life in a wheelchair is a great way to end senior year.” She shook her head and followed Em out of the room. “You’ll be lucky if you only break your neck. You could very well die, young lady.”
“See you later,” Em twisted back to Max, rolling her eyes.
He waved and watched the love of his life walk away. Sulking, he dragged himself to a sink in the nurse’s office and wiped off the blood from his face and hands.
“Are you ready to go back? Let me check the bleeding.” The nurse examined his nose, shaking her head. “You are probably going to have a couple of black eyes tomorrow, JD. I don’t feel good about letting you go just yet. Stay through second period, then if everything looks good, you can go.”
Through second? That meant no Emma. He protested, but stern Nurse Ratched was not a woman to be argued with. He lay back down and plopped the ice bag on his face until the bell signified second period had ended.
“Thanks for the ice.” Max handed her the bag as he left and jogged back to gym to change out of his uniform. Seeing Em only reinforced his sense of loss. He didn’t want to stay at school. He wanted to go home and crawl into his bed and sleep. Just like JD.
Taking a long breath and reaching deep down inside himself, he told JD, “Sorry, buddy, no quitting today.” Max changed and headed for his third period class, steeling himself for the barrage of insults that no doubt awaited him.
At lunch, Max searched everywhere for Izzy, but couldn’t find her. Not in any of the deserted classrooms, not outside at the picnic tables. Nowhere. To make matters worse, his head now pounded from his run-in with the basketball. He went to the nurse for some ibuprofen. As she unlocked the medicine cabinet, Max glanced down on her desk and saw Izzy’s name on a form. She’d gone home sick again.
“Here you go, JD, and here’s some water.” The nurse dropped two small tablets into his left hand and placed a small paper cup covered in pink and yellow daisies full of water in the other. “Let me check your eyes again.” She shined an annoying light in each. “Everything looks good,” she affirmed, and sent him on his way.
By the time he arrived in the cafeteria, almost everyone had gotten their food and was seated around the oblong tables eating. He cast his eyes to the table outside on the patio he and Em used to eat at every day. Max recognized the friends she sat with. Their friends. Friends he knew and had hung out with. Friends he’d joked and teased with. Friends who’d never spoken to JD. Max wondered if they even knew JD existed.
He took his tray with a chicken salad sandwich and bottled water on it and sought out a convenient place to hide so he could eat in peace. But that didn’t happen.
“Hey, murderer.” Max’s tray of food flew up in the air before raining back down on him. Leo, his best friend since elementary school, stood in front of him. His jet black hair combed back from his face allowed every last ounce of hatred and anger to be visible on his features.
“Why couldn’t it have been you that died? It would be no great loss, know what I mean?” Leo shoved him back a few inches. “Let me guess, Lumpy. You were high, right?” Max shook his head. “No? Eating then. I’ll bet you were stuffing your fat face with food and didn’t see the Sánchez’s car. Am I right, Lumpy?”
He didn’t answer. He had no idea what JD was doing during the accident. And since Emma had told him in confidence about what her father had learned, he couldn’t very well tell Leo that.
Leo planted his hands on the front of Max’s shirt, bunching the material in his fists. “I’m going to make you wish you’d never been born.” Leo pushed his face directly into Max’s. “Because I know I do.”
Max stood there, completely shocked. He knew he had great friends, and that his death would hurt them, but he didn’t understand their lack of compassion for JD. The guy flew through the windshield and had been in a coma. Did no one care at all about how he was doing? It angered Max, and it sickened him. How would he have treated JD if it had been Emma instead of him in the car that night?
Max, lost in his anguish, didn’t notice Leo had cocked back his arm to punch him. All Max could do now was shut his eyes. Leo’s fist caught him square in the gut. Max didn’t have time to tighten his stomach muscles to soften the blow a little. A swoosh of air flew from his lips and he double over and stumbled, knocking over a round black trash can filled with discarded lunches.
“Knock it off.” Emma. She bent down to help Max straighten up. “Are you okay, JD?” Still too winded from the punch to talk, Max only nodded.<
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“What the freak are you doing, Emma? This guy killed Max. Why are you defending him?” Leo spit out.
“And you know that how?” She slipped her arm around Max’s shoulders, guiding him to a nearby bench.
“I’ve heard the stories, Em. They’re all over the school.”
“Really? Because my dad just barely finished the report last night and filed it this morning, so there is no way anyone could know what really happened since JD can’t remember.” She rose to her full height and folded her arms. Max knew the look. He’d gotten that same look when he did something she didn’t like. Max smiled, just a little. Leo is going down.
“Doesn’t remember, my butt. He’s lying to cover the fact that he killed Max and his family.” Leo stepped toward Max. Emma moved directly in front of Max.
“Do you want to know the truth? Or would you rather keep feeding your delusions?” she asked bluntly.
Leo dropped on the table top directly across from Max, signaling for Emma to proceed.
She repeated the report to the small crowd that had now gathered. Everyone listened. Max could tell some doubted the story, but he also noticed some guilty expressions. When she finished, she said to Leo, “Now what do you have to say?”
“I still don’t like the fact that Max had to die and he gets to live,” Leo scowled.
“That is a reprehensible statement, Leo. I’ll bet Max would be as ashamed of you as I am right now.” She turned to Max. “I’m sorry Leo has a heart of stone, JD. I, for one, am grateful someone survived, and Max would be too. I know it.”
Max gave her a weak smile as a second rush of guilt swept through him. He really didn’t deserve a girl like Emma.
“What is going on here?” The Vice Principal, Mrs. Volkel, walked up to the small gathering. She had on a peach business suit and Max silently thanked his mother for never wearing anything that hideous. “JD, are you alright? Someone said a fight had broken out in the cafeteria.” Her eyes went from Max, to the garbage spread across the floor, to Leo.
“Just a misunderstanding, Mrs. Volkel. I tripped over the garbage can. I’ll clean that up.” Max stood.
“No, JD. I heard about your bloody nose earlier.” Mrs. Volkel stepped to Max and picked out a few pieces of chicken salad still in his hair. “I think you should rest. We don’t want that to start up again, do we? I’m sure Leo would love to clean this mess. Right?”
“Yes,” Leo bit out.
“Good. And I hope there will be no more spilled garbage in the future, Mr. Leonardo.”
He nodded and cleaned up the mess, muttering under his breath.
Mrs. Volkel turned to Emma. “How is your knee?”
“Better, thanks,” Em smiled.
“I’d like to speak to you about this pyramid, if I may.” She and Emma walked out of the cafeteria as Leo continued cleaning. Max hoped she forbade the cheerleaders from preforming the stunt. As they cleared the door, Max stooped to help Leo pick up the last of the garbage.
Chapter 11
Excited about Emma defending him in the cafeteria, JD lived off the high for hours, as did Max. Only when walking to the bus after school did Max crash back to earth. He’d forgotten his math book in his locker. He debated whether to just forget about it, but being math, he knew he couldn’t afford to skip it. He ran all-out to his locker, grabbed the book and ran back to the bus, sucking oxygen into his depleted lungs.
The bus was gone. JD began shaking. No, JD, we’ll figure out a way around Nate. Stay calm. Max paced back to the lockers then back to the bus stop again. There has to be a way to get home safely. He turned to go back to the lockers, when it hit him.
The library. He could hang out there, do his homework and get home long after Nate and his posse had given up their search for JD. As Max slid his book bag up on his shoulder, relief, bordering on excitement, washed over JD. Max smiled and headed for the library.
“JD! You came!” A girl, maybe three years older than Max, rushed over to him as he set his backpack on a plush green chair in the reading area. “I’m so glad you changed your mind.” The girl, Bambi, Assistant Librarian, if Max were to believe her nametag, dressed from head to toe in black, starting with her leather vest and short, black leather skirt, to her ripped up black fishnet stockings and black army boots. She was hot, in a macabre sort of way. And JD liked her, a lot. “Did you, like, bring something to read?”
“I . . . um . . .” Max stumbled. Did she mean a book? This is a library. Isn’t the purpose of this place to check out books?
“That’s okay. Remember, I said you didn’t have to share any of your work until you, like, felt comfortable.” She looped her arm through his as he quickly grabbed his backpack. They wandered through the aisles of musty books to a well-lit room in the back.
Bambi tossed open the door with exuberance. JD pulled back, but Bambi would have none of it. She tugged him into the room. Three people, one man, and two women, sat in orange plastic chairs in a semi-circle. “Hello, everyone. I’d like you all to meet JD Miller. I’ve been begging him to, like, join our group and he finally has!” Max couldn’t help but note her sprightly attitude and hoped JD would feed off it.
“Let me introduce you to everyone. This is Morrey. He was, like, a bush pilot during the Vietnam War. He loves to tell war stories, so watch out,” she said in a mock whisper. Morrey laughed. “He enjoys carving, as you can see by the hand-carved cane he carries, and he, like, writes mostly speculative fiction. His latest venture involves a poor guy stuck in, like, a guacamole cube.”
“Guacamole, like, color, pixie girl,” the balding Morrey replied, playfully tapping his cane on the floor. “I love to weave a mystery, my young friend. Keeps the mind crisp.” He winked at Max.
“This is Kami Mirone. She is, like, a romance writer from Romania.” Max noted the warm smile on the leggy blond as she waved.
“I love to write about hidden hearts that are worlds apart,” she said poetically with her thick Romanian accent. She batted her eyelashes and Max got the impression he was staring into the eyes of a real live cougar.
“And next is Cindy Benne. She writes young adult fiction. What’s the name of your latest book again, Cindy?”
“Immortal Geeks. I’m really excited. I just found out it’s number two on Amazon this week,” bubbled Cindy. Max noted the halo effect of her snow-white hair. He thought of Gabe, wondering why he didn’t have a halo and made a note to ask him next time he saw him. Everyone clapped at Cindy’s news.
“And I write fantasy. Anything and everything that has to do with elves and faeries,” said Bambi, glowing. “Alex, he’s my boyfriend, he’s usually here but he had to work tonight. He writes fantasy too, only he writes about werewolves.” She pointed to an empty chair and Max sat down.
“So, young man, what genre do you write?” asked Morrey.
Max didn’t have a clue what he should say. JD had poetry books, but Max hadn’t read them. He’d only read a few stories he’d written about dragons. But is that what JD would want to share? “Well . . . ah . . .” Max stumbled.
Bambi saved him. “He’s a little shy. He’s writing a sci-fi story, that much I know, and he’s very good. He came in here last summer working on it and I helped him do some research. When we were done, I asked if I could read the parts he’d finished and I was completely blown away. I’ve been begging him to come to our group ever since, but he didn’t think he was good enough.” She smiled. Max saw a tiny little diamond in her left canine tooth twinkle.
“Okay, who brought some writings to share with the group?” Bambi asked. Everyone but Max raised a hand. “Alright, let’s go in a circle. Kami, you first.”
As each person read a short passage, the group talked about what they shared, offering compliments or suggestions. Max noted the camaraderie. Though each wrote very different genres, the love of writing brought them all together. He also noted the calm that prevailed from JD. He felt safe, happy, and at peace here. The group talked and read for over two hours,
only it didn’t feel that long. Max sat back and let JD absorb the friendship in the room. It was exactly what he needed.
“Okay, like, it’s time to go. Same time and place next month?” Bambi asked. Everyone agreed as they packed up their papers and left the room one by one.
“JD, so you know, there’s, like, no pressure. You can share, if and when you are ready. Okay?” Bambi smiled. “And yes, JD. Your writing is good enough.” She answered the unasked question Max was sure haunted JD.
“Thanks. Maybe I will.” Max hiked his backpack onto his shoulder and left.
When I get home, I’m going to read over your writings. We’ll find the perfect one to share. Even though JD’s anxiety level jumped at the idea, Max knew solid friendships and constructive outlets would only help him. “Yup. We’ll find the best . . .”
The sound of squealing tires stopped Max cold. Nate. Max darted behind the library praying Nate didn’t see him as he drove passed.
“Hey, JD. Do you, like, need a ride or something?” Bambi strolled down a ramp leading out of the back of library, her keys jiggling in her hand.
Relieved, he said, “Yes, thanks.” Today was turning out to be a pretty good day. Finally. Up until now Max wondered if JD ever had any.
He followed her to a pink Honda Civic with little faery stickers plastered all over it. Max’s manhood shrivel several inches as he got in. Oh well. It’s better than being beaten up . . . Maybe.
“So, like, where do you live?” she asked as they pulled out of the parking lot.
“On Valley Drive, near the railroad tracks.” Max didn’t even know the train tracks ran through Port Fare until he went to live at JD’s. The first couple of nights he’d hardly gotten any sleep with all the noise they made, but eventually he’d grown used to the rhythmic clacking of the steel wheels as they surged down the tracks.
She rounded the corner from the library and stopped at the intersection. “Hmm, there’s bad news.” Max followed her stare and saw Nate’s car parked off to the side. He and his girlfriend stood next to it, screaming at each other, clearly in the middle of a major argument.