A/N: God, I'm so sorry for this. I can't even begin to list the many things that have gotten in my way. However, it was mainly me procrastinating. Enjoy the overdue update!
The overuse of '…'s are to show the slow moving of the first scene - the uneasiness and apprehension.
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Berrisford Residence, Washington, 2015.
It had been a whole week and, God, had it felt like much longer. Only a week. Or maybe a week was a lot. Maybe she'd been doing good to survive this long.
Either way, it wasn't going to drag on any longer. Max couldn't do that to Rachel, her sister, who had spoken each and all of her secrets to Max. It hurt enough that Max couldn't be honest about who she really was. No, this secret would not be kept from Rachel. Max couldn't do that to her, especially since it partially involved her.
She needed someone to talk about it with anyway. Her sister may only be thirteen but to Max, she had proven to possess maturity beyond her age. So she would tell her. Today.
"Rach," Max began as she approached Rachel. The younger sat at her small desk doing homework before she'd quickly directed her attention to the knock at her door. "I need to talk to you."
Rachel dropped her pen and scooted her chair away from the desk, indicating for Max to sit near her. Max accepted the invitation and walked over to sit on Rachel's single bed that was quilted with a big cream blanket.
Rachel had a nice bedroom that was suiting to who she was, what she grew up with and her age. To Max, this was one of many elements of Rachel's lifestyle that she envied. Sure, Max had a pretty bedroom that was decorated with picture frames and her favourite colours – but it was all fake.
To have something so simple, yet such a part of who you are, come real and natural, was something for Max to be jealous of. It wasn't as if Max didn't appreciate all she had, she just wished it were really hers.
"What did you wanna talk about?" Rachel asked, noticing Max's serious tone and body language. It was making Rachel anxious but she knew, for her sister's sake, she had to stay calm and strong. This didn't mean that the miserable, heart-breaking expression across Max's face didn't upset Rachel. In fact, she herself was close to tears at the look.
"What am I going to say…is…" Max paused, thinking carefully of the choice and structure of her words. It was her responsibility to be a protective and caring big sister but to also be a role model for Rachel. What she was going to say wouldn't not only open much vulnerability in Max, but also a lot in their sisterly relationship. "It's…well, big. And I just want to prepare you and assure you, in advance, that this is…" she stopped again and Rachel finished the thought.
"Big?"
"Yeah…big," Max accepted with a nod, also accompanied by a hard swallow of stress.
She took a deep breath and decided to stop picking her words and to, instead, speak from her heart. "Look, you and me, our friendship has blossomed over the years. You've always reminded me of someone that meant a lot to me, before I met you. When I did meet you, it was different – hard to accept on my account. But you…you welcomed me, accepted me as your big sister from the moment we met. There is so much I admire in you – strength and beauty- and that's why it's been so hard to take on the big sister role. I just would never want to taint your innocence or send you in the wrong direction.
"So, what I'm gonna say is big. Not just the event in question but also the fact that I'm sharing this with you is a step. Forwards or backwards? I couldn't say. But I'm here being honest."
"Okay…" Rachel gave a slight nod, while also hiding her apprehension. "Go ahead…"
"So, the party… a week ago… Friday," Max began.
"Yes." Rachel laughed. "That was a week ago!"
Max shook her head and let out a laugh too. "Me and Craig…" Max risked raising her head to see Rachel's reaction. She managed to catch her pretty smile fade to a wide-eyed expression of horror before she ducked her head again. She fiddled with the fabric at the hem of her shirt nervously.
Rachel lowered her head, closer, encouraging Max to continue before she could jump to conclusions.
"Something happened to me that afternoon. Some of it I can't tell you about now…And some of it, I can't even explain to myself. Maybe one day we'll have answers. But something happened and…" she gulped and lifted her head again.
Rachel's mouth was open slightly but her eyes looked into Max's like nothing was wrong. Max could tell she was a little shocked but not showing it. She was hiding other emotions too.
"I'm sorry. I haven't exactly set a good example." Max tried to get rid of the gnawing feeling.
Rachel still looked speechless. She'd closed her mouth and now looked determined and almost angry. She hid it well though, revealing little emotion in her eyes before she looked away. It didn't take a trained soldier to know Rachel was upset. She, too, swallowed hard and pursed her lips before speaking. "So you two…" There was question in her voice. She was looking for confirmation.
Max finally said it. "We slept together." It came out in a heap but felt good to let it out.
Rachel looked away again, finally breaking her gaze from Max. She took a deep breath and stood up before turning on her heel and walking out to leave Max alone in Rachel's bedroom.
Max stared down at the ground and bit her lip in frustration. She knew this would happen but really hoped it wouldn't.
Facts were, it hurt and even if it took a heavy weight off Max's shoulders, it still left a mess in her hands. She considered running after Rachel but realised it would probably only worsen things. So she sat on the small bed in a reverie of nothingness for a long while. Eventually when she heard the sound of the front door slamming, Max got up.
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Berrisford Residence, Washington, 2016.
Max stood outside Rachel's bedroom, rapping on the door. It had been well over a year since Max's first 'heat' experience, as she now called it. Ever since Max slept with Rachel's teen crush, Craig, things had been a little different. Rachel was brave and strong, forgiving Max not long after being told of the news.
However, it had become quite common for Max to find herself staring at the closed bedroom door, as she was now. Rachel had grown up a lot in the last year and was certainly more closed off, even with her big sister.
The trouble was that in Rachel's eyes, Max had committed a crime. She didn't - and couldn't – know of the real reason Max landed herself in the 'heated' situation. So, to Rachel, it seemed as if Max had sinned as a role model and tainted any admiration Rachel felt towards the older. It killed Max.
To watch the young girl grow up before her own eyes, while shutting her out. Though things had been tense, recently they had been working their way back to a new relationship.
Rachel, though older and wiser, was still an elegant, innocent and intelligent fourteen-year-old. She was still Max's little sister and not resembling her in any way. There was no attitude or rebellious side, like Max possessed.
It stung Max when Rachel openly admitted that she once wanted to 'grow up and be just like Sam' and now those days were long gone because her big sister had disappointed her and killed this image. Along with her virginity, Max lost her little sister's respect from that night.
Robert Berrisford had picked up on the change a little while after the party he'd held in October of the previous year. He may have been working hard and giving up much of his time to his position as CEO of Mercidyne, but it was all for his two girls. He was still their father and easily knew when something was wrong. He'd questioned the both of them numerous times and, in return, received uninformative answers.
So a few months back, sick of watching his daughters drift apart, he enrolled them in a piano class – together. The piano that sat untouched in their formal room was a constant and painful reminder of the late Mrs. Berrisford, who used to play beautiful melodies for her husband and daughter.
Robert was sure that his daughters would enjoy and excel at the classes as Rachel carried many similar traits from her gifted mother and Max was known for being an enthusiastic and fast learner.
At first he was disappointed to see the girls' reluctance, but as time passed both Rachel and Max improved in their skills and began to enjoy the classes and the extra time spent together. Nothing made their father happier.
Over time, Max and Rachel rekindled their sisterly friendship and bonded closer than ever.
Still, Max knew that even though the closed doors staring back at her were appearing less and less, they would always be there as a constant reminder of the lowered respect from Rachel, and, not to mention, the unwelcomed reminder of Manticore and their lovely genetic mishaps that would always be in the shadows.
Rachel opened the door to see Max waiting expectantly.
"Come on, ya slowpoke!" Max laughed. "Lesson time!"
Rachel nodded and followed her sister downstairs to begin the lesson with their teacher, Mr. Grady.
Grady was a middle-aged man with short brown hair, quite older than the girls and quite younger than Robert. He was a trusted, long-time friend of Robert's and a highly regarded piano teacher. He constantly commented on how impressed he was by the girls playing talents and Robert would always smile proudly.
"So what shall we learn today?" the man asked Max and Rachel. "Sam, any suggestions? Fast, slow. Nothing easy, of course! Maybe today we'll have a competition between the both of you…" Grady babbled on about his wonderful idea both boring and exciting the two teenagers at once.
Robert exited the room with a small smile across his face. He had no clue what he'd do without his daughters.
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"Sam, we need to discuss your future. I mean, yes, I allowed for you to not attend school when I first adopted you because you were fairly different and scared. However, this doesn't mean, that at sixteen, I will allow you to stay at home all day watching nonsense TV and swimming in the pool," Robert stated in his calm yet fatherly tone.
Max smiled guiltily but inside was crumbling at the thought of attending a school.
"Really, you're an intelligent girl, even without any schooling, which, to this day, I don't understand. But, even so, with a brain like that you could do so much!" he said excitedly.
"I know, Dad, but seriously, after the Pulse hit, the money went missing, the jobs went out and there are few positions that have come up and even less have maintained over the years. Plus, even now at sixteen, I don't know what I wanna do. I don't think I'd feel right waiting tables or sitting behind an office desk or taking calls for some-"
"Sam," Robert cut in. "Look at what I do. I have managed to keep my well-paid, high-class job over the years. I take care of my family and enjoy my job. You have the looks, the brains, the style, to land yourself a job that you like, so why not? We can get you in for your senior years of high school, a nice college and you'll get that job easy!"
"As exciting and terrific as it sounds you're getting way ahead of yourself, Dad," Max said, "I appreciate the thoughts but I am happy here."
With the flash of a smile, Max quietly left her seat at the table and then, the room.
Robert ran a hand through his short dark hair and let out a long breath. There was more to his eldest daughter, so much that she kept a mystery. He knew she kept it from not only him but also her closest and only real friend, Rachel. Maybe one day she'd open up. Robert didn't want to push her.
He'd known there was something else about her from the moment he'd brought her into his home but she was too young and fragile back then. Now in her teen years, Robert didn't want to push Max in case it backfired and she rebelled. It was a tough weight on his shoulders either way.
Max trotted up the stairs to her bedroom, thinking about what her father said. She'd been lucky that he hadn't mentioned it before. She'd never been to school. Heck, she hardly left the house. So, of course, just as she begins to settle in and be happy with her life, things have to change. Cue the 'Max Curse' – the one that doesn't allow her to stay happy.
She didn't want to have to leave the Berrisford house. What more could she want? Max had a real family and a routine in her life, even if it wasn't much. She was underneath the radar, playing it normal and out of Manticore's sight. Why did things have to change?
Max knew Robert wouldn't let this go. He would if he knew her reasons but it's not like she could just say, "Hey, for the past few years that you've been sheltering and taking care of me, I've been lying to you! Great, so can I just stay here?"
Keep dreaming, Max, she reminded herself.
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East Washington, 2016.
494 muttered crude curses under his breath. "How could I be so careless?" he whispered to himself.
They had found him again. This wasn't the first, or the second, time that Manticore had come after him. It made him question his motives. Running away from the facility was ideal at first but when you're alone and in a world you weren't meant for, your life becomes something else.
It was novel at first but looking back, 494 could see what his life had become. He wasn't moving forward, he was hardly living. What had his life become? A constant fight.
All day, everyday, 494 spent his time staying hidden and trying to find new ways and places to hide – plus, stealing food so he wouldn't die, which didn't help him stay off the radar. He didn't do anything and he hardly interacted with other people. He just kept running and fighting for his life.
Now standing a mature young man, 494 could see that his life was now pointless, so why was he fighting to stay alive, just so he could wake up tomorrow and begin the fight all over again?
He poked his head out of the alley to check how close his enemies were. 494 had outrun them and found an obvious hiding place. The Manticore retrieval squad were coming in close and they would know where to look to find him, which made 494 question why he'd run into the alley.
It would be the first place they'd check, so did he want to be caught? Well, he didn't want to go back to Manticore but he wanted it to be over. What did he want to end? That he didn't know either; he just wanted to end it.
The squad was closing in on him now and he had to make his decision. Run, fight them, and continue a life on the run. Or stop, let them find him and end the fight. Why was he here? What was he going to do?
494 threw his head back onto the brick wall. Hard. The stinging pain almost soothed him.
The footsteps were getting harder and much louder. They were so close.
C'mon soldier, what you gonna do?
"896, take the alley," ordered one soldier and that's when Alec knew what 494 had to do.
A Manticore soldier, X5-896 - 494 concluded - turned into the alley and almost didn't see 494, which worked in 494's advantage. He punched the soldier in the head and using his ultra-speed, took the soldier's gun. 896 had no time to react, even with Manticore abilities, because 494 had the advantage from the beginning.
494 pointed the rifle at 896 and chuckled coldly. 896 kicked powerfully towards 494's stomach but he dodged it. The attempted blow angered 494 even more. He gave a little wave before pulling the trigger. The bullet hit 896 point blank, between the eyes.
His blue orbs went wide, and thick, red blood began to trickle down his face. Before the soldier's body could hit the ground, 494 had dropped the gun and blurred away. His determination stronger than ever, the blonde escaped too fast for the other Manticore soldiers to come close to locating him again. Another close encounter.
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It had been a whole day and, God, how it felt like much longer. Only a day. Or maybe a day was a lot. Maybe he'd been doing good to survive this long.
It depends how long it takes for an average person to crack after killing another. His brain just couldn't seem to process the information.
He. Had. Shot. A. Person.
Soldier or not, that was a life worth just as much as his own. The guy probably had friends back at Manticore. Who knew what life he led at the facility?
494 kept replaying it, except he saw the event through the eyes of the victim. From his own hazel eyes, glazed over in determination, and turned up smirk, to the bullet, soaring through the air. He could see and feel what 896 felt in the situation, and it didn't feel good.
For 7 years, 494 had been on the run but never once had he hurt a person. How could he live with himself after such a crime?
He felt even more guilt as he remembered why: why he killed the soldier; why he didn't finish his fight and get caught. It was all because of Alec. The name his friends, specifically Max, had given him. The thought of that day, the day 494 became a person, made him realise that his life was not over – that there were people out there, who understood him and were waiting for him. So he would fight.
However, his decision was not that simple. Had he not just been questioning the difference of worthiness in both 896 and his lives? Oh, the rhetorical questions.
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A/N 2: Can't say this is my best chapter because I rushed it. Updates will be coming quicker, I promise! Reviews are loved, thank you!
