Story: Confessions
Author: lareina_Selena
A/N: Ok, peeps, here's chapter 2! I got so many very sweet and supportive reviews that I decided to get the next bit out as soon as possible. I want to thank everyone who reviewed – see what happens when you review? It's entirely possible that if you say nice things about this chapter, the next one will also come out fast!
Story note: Ok, as you all know, at the end of the last chapter, Max was drugged by her well-intentioned roommates. What does she dream? Let's find out!
Disclaimer – Y'all know the drill, I don't own 'em, y'all know who does, no one sue.
Oh, and thanks again to my proofreaders, Rena and Beth, for their help and support.
Confessions, Chapter 2
~~Flashback~~
Max lashed out with a kick, catching Ben in the leg; from the sound, she knew she had broken it. Then they both froze, hearing the sound of helicopters overhead.
"Don't leave me here; don't let them take me," Ben begged, his eyes filled with fear.
Max's mind raced, trying to think of a way to save them both; she failed. "Ben, I can't carry you, we'll both get caught," she told him.
"I know," Ben insisted, fighting a wave of pain. He looked her in the eyes, and Max felt her heart break as she read the message they held.
"Ben, I can't –" she began, tears forming in her eyes, but he cut her off, his eyes full of his own tears.
"Please?" he begged. "You know what they'll do to me. They'll put me down there with them – the 'Nomlies. Please?"
Max let her mind wander, remembering the past, and the 'Nomlies, and she made a decision. "Tell me about the Good Place," she said quietly.
Ben smiled, remembering the story he'd told when they were children. "Where no one ever gets punished . . ."
"And no one gets yelled at," Max continued, reciting the story she knew by heart but hadn't thought of in years. She prayed to whoever was listening that it was true.
"And nobody disappears," Ben chimed in, his eyes distant. "And when you wake up in the morning, you can stay in bed as long as you-" He was cut off by the sharp and final sound of cracking bone.
Max looked down at her brother, finally at peace after enduring such pain. Then, the enormity of what she had done hit her full force, and she burst into tears.
Suddenly, she felt Ben stir in her arms; his eyes opened, and he grinned at her. "See, Maxie?" he whispered. "I told you, this is what we were made for." His face hardened. "You're a murderer – you killed me!"
"No, Ben, I-" Max began, but suddenly his hands were around her throat, choking her, and he was screaming, "Murderer! You killed me! Murderer!"
"No!" Max screamed -
-And found herself sitting up in bed, still screaming.
"Max, wake up!" She became aware of Original Cindy, holding her by the shoulders and shaking her. "You're having a bad dream, Boo; snap out of it!"
Max tried to focus on where she was, on Cindy and the present, but the lingering images of her dream blanketed her mind in fear and invoked her flight instinct; her mind cast about frantically, and finally seized on a destination.
"I have to go." Max pulled away from Original Cindy and ran for the door, brushing past someone else on the way out. She grabbed her messenger bike rather than her Ninja in her rush to get out of the apartment, her mind moving on autopilot.
"Max, wait!" Original Cindy ran out of the bedroom after her and almost collided with Kendra, who had gone to the market.
"What happened?" Kendra gasped.
"She had a bad dream," Cindy explained. "I don't think she's all the way out of it yet; she didn't seem to know where she was. Did she say anything to you?"
Kendra shook her head. "She was mumbling something, but I'm not sure what it means. We'd better go after her!"
The two girls ran out of the apartment; when they hit the street, they caught a glimpse of Max, heading south out of the city, but she quickly disappeared from view.
"Damn!" Original Cindy swore. "We'll never catch her on foot, Maybe-" she was cut off by a voice behind her.
"Original Cindy! Kendra! What's going on?" The two girls turned around to see Logan and Bling approaching.
"Logan!" Kendra's eyes widened as she took in his appearance. "What-"
"It's a long story; I'll tell you later," Logan interrupted. "Now, what's going on?"
"It's Max," Original Cindy told him. "She ain't right." Between the two of them, she and Kendra managed to fill the two men in on what had been going on with Max over the past week.
"You said she was muttering something when she ran out," Bling put in. "Could you hear what it was?"
Kendra frowned. "It sounded something like 'Ben' and 'the good place'; I'm not really sure what it means."
"I think I know," Logan said grimly. "Max told me where Ben died; in the woods just south of the city. I think that's where she's going. Come on; we have to find her." With that, the four of them set off in search of their friend.
Ok, I know it's a little shorter than the last one, but it seemed like a good place to stop. Where has Logan been? Why was Kendra so surprised to see him? Review, and you will find out! evil chuckle!