Okay, this is probably the purest thing I've ever written. I love this so much.
Day 25: Electricity
Chapter Summary: Max has to scared of something.
David always made sure that Max went to bed by 9:00. 'Anything else you need to do before bed?' He would ask. 'You should always be in bed by 9:00.' It always annoyed Max. He listened to David, but he didn't need to be reminded every night that he was still young and needed sleep. So now he was sitting on his bed, reading in his room. The time was 8:30 and Max was preparing for David to walk into him room and tell him to get ready for sleep.
A second later there he was, he pushed the door open and smiled. "Lights out, Max." The boy sighed in annoyance and reached to his lamp to switch the light of. But before he could even touch it, the light went out. "Wow, Max. That was fast." Max pulled his knees up to his chest and rolled his eyes (not that David could see that). "I didn't turn the light off, idiot. The power must have got out." David gasped. "Did I forget to pay the electricity bill? Oh I'm sorry! I'd better go work things out."" He stopped on his way back out of Max's room. "And go to sleep please! The light will be back in the morning." Max was now alone in his dark room. Normally after David left him to sleep, he'd grab a nightlight from under his bed and plug it in for the night. But now that there was no electricity…
No, he didn't need it. He was too old.
So Max put his book away and pulled the blankets over his head. He didn't need a stupid nightlight to sleep. Besides, if he could go one night without it, he would never need it again. The thought made Max smile. Without the small light, he wouldn't be afraid of anything. Except old people having sex, but he didn't need to worry about that anymore (hopefully).
Not that he'd admit to anyone, but since he was small, he was very afraid of the dark. Max never knew why, but it made him feel unsafe. And that nightlight was all that kept him safe from the darkness that came.
'One night without it will be easy.' He thought to himself. 'I might not need it ever again after this.'
0
Two hours went by. Not only was Max not asleep, but the lights were not on yet. Not a single one. Max could hear David from his room, trying to get the power back into the house. Falling asleep was impossible. Sounds were bothering Max, and the blackness surrounding him was damn near terrifying. Every time he closed his eyes and tried to relax, he'd get nervous and look around his room. Sure, there was some light creeping in from the window for his bedroom, but it was a very small amount, and almost made his fear worse.
Max heard David stomp from annoyance in his room. Then a gasp. Then quiet steps coming to his room. David must have thought he woke Max up. 'I was never asleep in the first place.' Max thought, bitterly. Max heard the door open slowly. "Max?" David called into the dark room. He stayed silent. He didn't want David to know he was still awake.
"Max?" Again.
"Max?"
"What?" He sat up and glared at what little he could see. Max could barely find David without any light. "Did I wake you?" Max threw his blanket off him and stood off his bed. "No. I haven't been able to sleep." David walked up to Max and sat on his bed. "Is it because you don't have your little light?"
'What?'
David wasn't supposed to know Max had a fucking night light.
"I don't have a little light." Max snapped, which David responded to with a laugh. "I check on you every night. I alway see that you plug in a light so you can sleep." Max sat on his bed next to David. "It's embarrassing." David laughed. "No it's not. You want to know something." Max nodded. "I had a nightlight too. Do you want to know when I stopped using it?" Max nodded again. "I stopped when you started living with me." Now that was the funniest damn thing Max had ever heard. He started laughing. "You used a fucking night light until you were 24?"
"I sure did. Having someone else in the house has been nice. But you're only 12. It's fine that you still have one." David reached under Max's bed and pulled out the small light. "I even know where you keep it when you're not using it." Max snatched it out of his hands. "It's embarrassing. So don't fucking tell anyone." David stood back up. "I won't, but you shouldn't feel bad about it. I know the dark can be scary. It's fine." Now, no one had ever told Max that being scared of something was fine (without a taunting tone) so the words hit him a bit hard. He wanted to say something. Some kind of 'thank you'. Oh he could-
Flip
The light suddenly all came back on. "Oh look at that. I guess it just needed some time." David smiled at Max. "You should get some sleep now. You might have an important day tomorrow." Max grabbed his blankets and pulled the back around him. "I'm not using the light this time. I don't want to still be a complete pussy when I'm 20."
"Fair enough." David started walking out of the room. "Good night, Max."
"Yeah, good night." Max laid back down. And David closed the door, leaving the boy in the dark.
...
Maybe the light wouldn't be so bad. Max stood up and quickly plugged the night light into the outlet by his bed. The room was then filled with a soft light.
'Shit, that's so much better.'
Wow. Adorable. I love it.
Shit I'm too old for a night light, but does that stop me? No.
Thanks for reading, you're great.