Title: Max's Day at the Park
Synopsis: Max Tate went out for a walk and there he meets a girl. Yes, a girl.
Pairing: Max/Miriam (because I love this pairing. Like really. They're adorable.)
/
Max was tired.
With a sigh, he fell flat on his bed and stared at the ceiling. Kai Hiwatari – their team captain – has been training them too hard for the national championships. Max totally understands that they have to train to get better but man, he could use a break. Even Tyson – the most energetic of them all – has collapsed from too much muscle strain. Man, sometimes Kai is too much.
"Max!" Rei called as he burst inside Max's room. There was a panicked look in the young neko's face. His golden orbs were wide in fear and he looked pretty darn beat up. "Max! Hurry! We have to hide! Kai's at it again! I can't have another hour of this training in hell."
Max flushed. "Come on!" He exclaims as he opened the bedroom window and hops out. Rei hops out after him. "Argh. Kai's been such a pain lately. What's eating him? He's never pushed us this hard before."
Rei looked thoughtful. "Yeah… Well, come on! I don't want to die from exhaustion yet." He jumped down to the ground. "Let's go out separate ways and meet up at the dock! That way he'll have a hard time looking for us!"
Max jumped to the ground. "W-What about Tyson?"
Rei frowned as he waved. "He's a goner!"
Max snickered. He felt bad for Tyson but Max was sure Tyson could take Kai on any day. Those two were rivals. Always wanting to be better than the other. They motivated each other to do better. Max waved at Rei and headed down the opposite direction. He just wished Kai hasn't spotted them or else, they'd be training until tomorrow morning.
Max slowed down and glanced back with a fearful expression on his face. He just heard Tyson scream. Oh god! He's going to be the next one if he doesn't hurry up. He hastened his pace then decided to pass by the park for a shortcut. Rei was probably near the docks now. If there was anyone who had a great stamina, it was Rei and Kai. Rei has been training in Martial Arts since he was a kid back at his village in China while Kai had been trained the hard way by Boris at the Abbey. Tyson was well… Although he could stay in battle for long periods of time, let's face it. He ate like a pig.
Max wasn't in great physical condition. Most of the time, all he was doing with his time was play computer games with Kenny.
"Hey you!" A female voice called out to him as he stopped and leaned on a tree for a while. His legs were giving in to the lactic acid. He glanced up and stared at a female who stood on top of the monkey bars in the middle of the playground. She had long midnight blue hair and striking green eyes. Her golden brown with red accent flew with the breeze. "You've crossed the wrong territory. This part of the park belongs to the Saint Shields."
Saint Shields? What was that?
Max stood up straight and watched as the girl jumped off the monkey bars and slowly walked towards him. She stopped when she was at least three meters away. There was a smirk on her lips. "What are you doing here? Who sent you?"
Max grinned. "Uhm, nobody actually? I was just passing by. I was heading to the docks."
"Liar." She hissed then reached for Max's yellow shirt. "Come here! I'll teach you a thing or two!"
Max immediately blocked her hand and moved back three steps. She looked surprised that this young boy was able to block her attack. "Look, I didn't come here to cause trouble. I was just passing through." Max repeated looking into her eyes so he'd clearly get the message to her. This girl was crazy. "Just let me pass in peace."
The girl growled. "I'll let you pass to the next life in peace!" She jumped in the air with her arms in attack position. With a grunt, Max blocked her first punch with his arms. "So you know how to fight back huh? Well, let's see you try and block this one!" She spun around and the next thing Max saw was her thigh heading straight to his face. Although he managed to block it again with his arm, he lost his balance and fell to the ground a few meters away. This girl… This girl was crazy.
"Is that all you can do? Block? Come on, pretty boy." She taunted with a smug smile. Her hands rested on her hips as she looked down at Max. "Give me your best shot then maybe I'll let you pass."
Max grunted. Hell no! He didn't escape Kai's hell training just to get involved in a gang war. Pushing himself from the ground, he studied the girl's face. He was surprised to notice a light bruise near her lip. "What's your name?" Max asked with a smile. Someone must've hurt this girl earlier.
"I don't give out my name to losers." She snapped. "Come on, are we going to talk or fight?"
Max grinned. "Sorry, I don't fight with girls either."
The girl growled. "A-Are you insulting me? I just kicked your ass!" She raised a fist towards him. "Here, let me remind you!"
Max caught her fist in his palm. Man, this girl was strong. "No, I don't fight girls because I believe they should be taken care of and not hurt. I'm not insulting you. I'm being a man." He stated, "N-Now calm down so I can get you ice cream." He pinned her in a tree then he grinned. "What flavor do you like?"
The girl flushed. "I – What- What's wrong with you?! Are you crazy?"
Max just smiled. Sometimes you can combat a person's brashness with gentleness. Sometimes, you can't fight fire with fire. That was what Kai taught them yesterday before he pummeled their asses. "Come on, I'll pay." He added.
The girl looked at him like he had grown two heads but she dropped her fist. "You're not even worth fighting with. Look, just hurry up and pass by before Ozuma catches you."
"Come on, I know you want ice cream."
She hissed. "I'm not a little kid!"
/
"This is so pathetic." Miriam muttered as she took the ice cream cone from Max. She glanced at the weird boy as they sat on an empty bench outside the local ice cream parlor. He wasn't like the other boys she'd encounter. He was kind and gentle. She blushed as Max turned to smile at her. "W-What are you smiling about? I only came with you because Ozuma might catch you!"
"Nothing. So maybe I can know your name now?" He said with a grin. He got himself a mocha flavored gelato while the girl had the strawberry flavored with real strawberry bits. "I did get you ice cream, you know. I already told you my name."
She growled. "Alright! It's Miriam!"
"Cute. It suits you." He said.
They are their ice cream in peace. Miriam kept sneaking glances at Max, who sometimes caught her, but he just offered her a gentle smile. She blushed. What was wrong with her? Why does her blood keep rushing up to her cheeks every time this boy smiles at her? She's not like this. She quickly finished off her ice cream. "I'm leaving now." She said glaring at Max.
Max frowned. "Already? I'll get you another one if you stay for a little while. I could use a break from training."
That caught Miriam's interest. "Training? Training for what?"
Max playfully stuck his tongue out at Miriam. "You have to stay so I could tell you all about it."
Miriam looked shock. What's wrong with this guy? Why is he willing to spend money on someone he just met? They're not even friends! They're not even schoolmates! And she just attacked him but he's smiling there like it doesn't bother him at all! Like they're long time friends.
"What the hell is wrong with you?" She snapped, reaching for his collar. "There's something wrong with you. I don't like it."
Max looked surprised. "What do you mean? There's nothing wrong with me, Miriam."
Miriam flinched as soon as her name rolled off Max's lips. Yes, that's right. There wasn't anything wrong with Max… But she was sure there was something wrong with her. She released her grip. "I don't know why I bother talking to you."
Max smiled. "Maybe because you could use a break as well… come on, I'll get you that second ice cream."
"B-But – why are you spending money for someone you don't even know?"
Max glanced back at her and reached for her wrist. His touch was warm and comforting. Miriam blushed but quickly looked away. "Money comes and money goes but friendship doesn't."
Friendship.
She snorted. "Do you think that I want someone like you as my friend?"
"I hope so because I'm going to be glad to be your friend." Max replied with a grin then he seemed to have spotted someone behind her. "Oh shit!" He cussed before he quickly pulled Miriam inside the ice cream parlor. "Shh! It's… my trainor."
"Trainer?!" Miriam hissed as she glanced out the glass window. Max quickly hid under the closest table. Max grinned at her. She looked out the window and saw a rather well-built guy… Maybe at the same age as she was. He had blue paint on his face and his eyes were a weird purple color. He glanced at her as he passed by but quickly looked away. "Wow, he looks tough." She commented with a sweat drop. "You're hiding from him?"
Max crawled out of the table. "Yeah, he's a great friend but as a trainer, he tends to push and push. I'm exhausted."
Miriam giggled. "Well, that's too bad." She frowned. "Maybe you should go now… You do need to train more… I did beat your ass today."
Max grinned. "Well… I let you win."
"Liar."
Max brought her another cone of ice cream. This time it was bubble gum flavored. They were talking about something funny as Max walked her back to the park. "I'll see you later then, Miriam." Max said with a smile. "It's nice to meet you. Next time I pass by here, please don't kick my ass."
"You admitted it."
"It's true. Pretty and tough."
Miriam blushed. "I – Thanks for the ice cream, Max. See you around, squirt." She back away and quickly ran to the opposite direction. Max smiled to himself. Well, today was an eventful day. He sighed and started walking towards the direction of the docks. He completely forgot about Rei.
"TATE!" A very familiar voice called out from behind him. Max froze then slowly turned around. It was Kai. Rei was with him, looking pretty tired.
"H-Hey Kai!" Max stuttered.
Kai narrowed his gaze.
Max gulped. He was dead.
Short but - *sigh* I love Maxiam. :3 Maybe a second shot next time. :p