The night was as silent as it could be. The darkness looked as it could just engulf everything else. I guess this is it, sighed Max. "Is this really what I'm going to do for the rest of my years?" As Max gazed into the dark sky, he tried to recollect all of the pieces that made up his life.
Max was a 15-year old boy who struggles to understand what was the purpose of him being alive. He was not at all the suicidal type, just a heavy thinker. His parents, Mary and Joe were no help to him. They ignored him by any possible means. His father, Joe thought it would be right to raise his kid by pushing him around. It was supposedly good for one's character. His mother, Mary was a shy but nice woman. She always sought to help Max whenever he was down. However, as nice as she was, she never disobeyed her husband.
Max was never a popular figure in his high school. He attended Lain High school and was basically an outcast. His high school was looked down upon as one of the worst ones. There were several fights and most of the students carried weapons. Max however, was particularly known as for his calm attitude. He was also known by the "minorities", or lower ranked people. Although Max was emotionally weak at times, he was always a tough kid on the outside. He was recognized as one of the "Caenon" At Lain High school, the Caenon were the top 5 toughest kids. It was surprising to many how a kid like Max could even be ranked that high. The other 4 in the Caenon were all either juvenile delinquents or gang related.
A sudden breeze swept past Max. He was lying down on a bench near the ocean bay. He could now clearly hear the waves brush against the rocks of the shore. He felt a chill go down his spine and suddenly raised to his feet. It was a chilly November evening and Max decided to head back to his house. Besides, his 2-week school break was already over. As he strolled silently walking to his house, he couldn't help but realize how attractive the trees were. However, he felt he was being watched. His instincts told him to get away quickly. He quickened his pace and started striding quickly.
"Well look who we have here". Four shady figures emerged from the shadows. One hooded person emerged and said "Well, I'll be damned if it isn't little Max Kanz". Max quickly spun around at sound of a thick Russian accent. He knew they were four of the goons from the Russian gang "Franz". He quickly looked if there was any possible way he could avoid contact with the Russians. They quickly circled Max and started laughing. "Where you going buddy?" said the Russian that was in front of Max's face. He had a horrible odor on his breath, some kind of vodka thought Max.
Max abruptly tried to shove through the thugs. However, they kept him encircled. The thugs started speaking Russian and they laughed manically. Max knew he had the get out and away quickly. If he didn't, he'd probably be jumped or even worse, stabbed. Max quickly shot his fist out toward the scrawniest looking thug. The thug was thrown off balance by the impact and fell to the floor. Not knowing what had happened, the Russians quickly tried to make light of the situation. The big stout one of the group tried to grab Max and put him in a submission. However, before he got his hands up, he felt a cold piercing to his back. When Max turned to face the Russian after taking down the other three, his face contorted. He saw a figure behind the thug withdraw a knife from the body. Max spun and quickly took off as fast as possible.
Max's heart was thumping insanely. He was shocked. Who was the person who stabbed the Russian? What trouble is he going to face because of tonight? Could he possibly be blamed for the stabbing of the kid? BLAAAR! A loud horn of a truck struck Max and awoke him from his thoughts. "What're you doing kid, get the fuck off the road" yelled the driver. The truck sped down the street and away into the night.
Max climbed the steps of his porch. He then reached into his back pocket for his keys. "Shit!" Max muttered to himself. "I must of dropped them when I ran from the fight". Max didn't want to ring the bell and awaken his parents. They didn't even know he periodically took strolls in the night. He was not in the mood to get cursed out and scolded by his father. Max looked around and forget that he even had a bench on his porch. It was made of a brown mahogany. He remembered when he and his mother bought it together at the furniture shop. He was only 7 at the time when him and his mother were still close. Each and every year that passed, their bond slowly drifted further and further apart.
Mary suddenly opened her eyes. It was still 3:30 in the morning. Why was she up this early? She turned and looked at her husband, Joe fast asleep. She thought to herself, "Hm, Joe still sleeps like a pig". She aroused from the bed put on her slippers and night gown, and head downstairs. She walked over to the kitchen to get a glass of milk. As she opened the fridge, she faced the window and saw Max sitting outside.
Inside, she felt sorry for Max. She felt sorry for how she never really helped Max and she knew that the least he deserved was the love from his parents. However, Joe always denied it because of "that" incident. It's been 4 years and he still holds it a grudge against Max.
"IT WAS YOUR FAULT MAX, I TOLD YOU TO LOOK AFTER HER" Yelled Joe. Come over here, I'll kill you I say, I'll kill you. Mary suddenly rushed to hold back Joe. No! Joe, he's only a child, he didn't know what he was doing. Joe suddenly struck Mary in the face with the back of his hand. Mary fell to the ground and was bleeding. She rose again, tears in her eyes, and pleaded Joe to stop. "Joe, you have to stop this, it wasn't his fault". Max was backed into a corner of the room, staring into the eyes of his father. They were full of odium and anguish. Strangely, he was not crying. He was just standing there, petrified. "I swear boy, this isn't the last of it. It's all your fault, you were always a mistake." Joe screamed. Joe rushed out of the house in a belligerent rage.
Mary suddenly was brought back to realization. Recalling those moments were brutal to her. She gathered the strength and pulled the door open. She left the warmth of her house and stepped outside. "You know, if you're going to be outside at this time, the least you could do is bring keys" Mary said. Max looked up and twisted his head. There, in her dark green nightgown, was his mother. He was in no mood to talk to anybody tonight. Few moments of silence passed. "At least have the courtesy to answer your own mother" Mary said with an irritated voice. "Ma, I'm not in the mood, please, just leave me alone" Max replied silently. Mary frowned and said "Well, make sure to lock the doors on your way in". Max nodded his head and watched his mother walk into the house. He didn't mean to treat her insolently, but this was not a good time for him. Mary closed the door behind her and climbed the steps to her bedroom, each step creaking voraciously.