Out of no where Sean grabbed the guy's arm before the knife touched Max "Hey max it's a nice night for a walk huh." He looked down at the guy who was on the ground squirming. "Don't you know that, it's a medical risk to touch this girl."

Max looked at him "He came after me…Well I least I didn't have to blow my cover and kick there asses." Max thought.

"Let go of me!" The guy said pushing Sean out of the way "What the hell are you talking about? The only medical risk is that kick in the hospital." he said and lunged his knife at Max again but Sean grabbed his arm and pulled it back hearing it snap Sean let it go as the guy started to bawl.

"See, I told you." Sean told the man who was now on the floor holding his broken arm. "Now if none of you guys want to have a broken bone or worst you'll turn and run now." Sean said as he went over to see if Max was alright while the other guys ran.

"You're crazy man. Fucking, crazy." Said the guy getting off the floor and he to begin to ran.

Sean shrugged his shoulders as he ignored the guy. "Why did you run off like that?"

Max looked at the ground.

"What the hell was wrong with my place? I know the maid hasn't been around but sheeh" he thought moving her head to look at him and he saw tears in her eyes. "Don't cry on my account."

"You came after me. Why?" she asked holding back her tears and making them disappear.

He paused for a second "Let's go home."

Sean started waking but Max stayed back for a moment "He came after me. Do I truly belong here?" she thought and finally followed him.

Sean looked down at Max as they walked. Max was still looking at the ground "Does he care about me? I feel different around him. I don't understand it." Max was caught in thoughts and memories as they walked.

Sean stopped walking and Max not noticing continued to walk. "Hey Max!" he called. Max stopped and looked next to her not seeing Sean she looked behind her

"Why'd you stop?" she asked walking up to him.

"You look down so I figured we get something that might make you feel better." he told her smiling.

Max just looked at him "He's acting like a Daddy I show a few weeks ago. They were doing this weird kind of training and they were laughing." Max thought as she followed close behind Sean as he turned and began walking.

A few blocks later he glanced up at the flashing ice cream sign and smile. He walked towards the door and held it open for Max as she walked in and he followed her. The place wasn't as gloomy as most places they had passed, it was bight and inviting and everyone smiled when they walked in. Sean walked over and looked at the ice cream in the case while Max just looked at everything else.

"I don't know about you but I think I am gonna have the Chocolate cone .what do you want?" he called over to her as she walked up to him.

Max looked into the case "What is ice cream?" Max asked looking at women behind the counter and back as Sean.

Sean looked at her "You have never had ice cream? Then make that 2 chocolate cones." he told the women.

The women went into the case and scooped the ice cream into 2 cones as Max watched her. When she was done the women closed the case and handed the ice cream cones to Sean "That would be $15.00." she told him. After Sean paid the women they walked out and Sean passed Max a cone.

Max looked at the cone wondering what it was for "Now take a lick." Sean told looking licking his own. But Max took a mouth full and swallowed fast a second later Max grabbed her head with her free hand making Sean began to laugh "I said to talk a lick not a mouth full and now you have an ice cream headache." he laughed again.

After a few minutes Max lowered her hand and looked at him "I don't think I like ice cream." she said handing the cone back to him.

Sean kneeled down "No you didn't do it right." he said giving the cone back to her "You have to lick it." he told her. Max looked at him as she took a lick and smiled at Sean and continued to eat her ice cream "See I told you you'd like it." he said standing up and watched her enjoy her ice cream cone.

"You didn't have to leave you know Max. I came after you because you're my friend and friends take care of each other."

"Friend? Hmm I like the sound of that." he thought to himself. "You don't have to leave tomorrow you can stay as long as you want. You can keep the money I gave you and if you come to work at my shop you'll earn more so you can save it."

Max looked at him "I don't want him getting hurt. I have to go." she thought. "I'm sorry I have to keep this from you but I want to keep you safe. I want to tell you Sean, but I can't." she thought.

After they finished their ice cream cones they sat on a bench and looked at the stars "I haven't slept in days." Max thought. "I don't need sleep usually but there are those nights when…" she thought were cut off because she fell asleep and slowly moved onto Sean lap.

"They look beautiful don't they?" Sean asked. After a minute of getting no answer he looked down at her "She fell asleep." he thought with a smile "Poor kid looks likes she hasn't sleep in a while." he thought as he watched her. "I'll give her a little while to fall into a deeper sleep then carry her home."

Another few minutes passed and Sean carefully picked Max up and carried her "What are you running from?" he asked himself as he entered his house and walked into the bedroom and lied Max on the bed.

He took off her shoes and socks and pulled the blanket over her "Good night kiddo." he said kissing her head and she rolled over pulling the blanket closer to her. Sean sat in the near by chair and watched her sleep until he too fell into a deep sleep.

NEXT MORNING

There was a buzzing noise that woke Sean up from his sleep. He jolted forward and realized it was his alarm clock and smacked the snooze button before it wake up Max. He decided to get up and take a shower and make some breakfast for Max before she woke up.

Max who was dreaming of seeing her family again wake up to the smell of food cooking "How did I get back here?" she thought as she got out of the bed and walked into the kitchen to see Sean cooking.

"Morning. Sean how did I get back here?" she asked.

Sean smiled at her as he flipped the pancakes he was making to the other side.

"You fell asleep and I carried you." he told her as he reached up into his cupboard and pulled out two plates and set them down on his counter and he put a pancake on a plate and grabbed a fork from the drawer below the counter and stuck into the pancake and slid the plate over to Max.

"Eat up we got to go." he said with a smile.

"Go? Go where?" she asked eating her pancakes.

"My shop." Sean said shoveling in a clump of pancake in his mouth and then he walked over to the fridge and grabbed some milk and went back to his cupboard and pulled out a couple glasses and poured one for himself and than one for Max and gave it to her. "Milk does the body good."

"Don't I know it." she thought taking a sip "Cool." she said finishing her pancakes. "I'll leave while he is dealing with people and then he can be safe." she thought looking at him.

Sean looked at Max in the eyes "I need to find a way that she won't disappear in broad daylight."

"I am gonna put you to work so you won't think about skipping out on me like you did last night." he told her. Sean smelled his arm pits "Do you keep leaving because I smell bad or something?"

Max laughed a little "No." she said. "I just have a secret government people looking for me so they can lock me in a cage and make me a soldier or worst give me to the Nomlies. But if they can make me a soldier again they would order me to kill you and others. Oh yea that would go well if I told him." Max thought

"It's just I'm use to running." she said looking at her empty plate.

"You're safe here Max. Nobody will bother you. So you don't have to run." He told her in a clam voice.

"I guess I'm going to get dressed." she told him and left the room.

He put his dish under the faucet and turned it on and let the water over it. "If you don't draw attention to yourself nobody will notice."

"Good point." Max said as she left the room "But acting normal isn't what I'm worried about. I'm worried about someone spotting the barcode on the back of my neck." she thought as she left the room.

Sean took Max's plate from across the counter and washed it as well. He grabbed a clean button up shirt and put it over the t-shirt he was wearing. He grabbed his keys off the counter and walked to the door but he stopped in his tracks "Gotta get used to this having a kid around stuff I almost forgot her already"

"Max! You ok in there." he called.

"I'm fine I will be out in a minute." Max said coming out of the room.

Sean held the front door open for Max. "I am gonna teach you some things today you can take with you for the rest of your life."

"Teach?" Max said remember Manticore and how they use to drug and torture her to teach her things.

Sean shook his head as he saw worry look on her face. "It's not going to be too bad. It will be a fun experience for you and for me… for both of us."

Max looked at him "Ok then let's go." "I have to find a way to leave." she thought as she walked out the door.

Sean walked down the stairs and out the front door. He went over to his car and pulled some tickets off his windshield and mumbled something under his breath.

Max watched him and added up the total in her head but said nothing just waited for Sean to open her door.

Sean got behind the wheel and opened the door from the inside for Max. "Maybe for lunch we'll spring and get some a cheeseburgers and fries."

Max got into the car and smile "Yeah that would be great."

"About last night I wanted to talk to you about how I broke that guy's arm. I don't ever hurt anybody like that usually. I just didn't want him to hurt you. So if there can be a lesson learned in all this its kick ass don't get your ass kicked." he said.

Max giggled "Don't worry." Max told him.

Sean put his car in gear and they were on their way to the shop. "If anybody asks who you are just be honest...you're Max and you're my new employee. You don't have to lie to these guys I work with. They are good guys." he continued.

"Let's try that 'Hi my name is Max and I was created to be a Super soldier and a killer but I escaped and now I'm the new employee.' I think I'll that part out." Max thought "Ok Sean."

Sean pulled his car into a garage that was an extension of his shop on the other side of the doors. "Just be cool Max and they won't bother you. I don't want to have to break anymore arms." he joked.

Max walked out of the car and nodded "No problem." "Undercover mission, Cool! No Max no more Manticore. Manticore doesn't exist." shethought.

Sean opened the door and it chimed as he and Max walked through there were customers looking at parts and a couple of people with shirts matching the one Sean had on. "Alright let's get started."

Max was already looking around at each bike and then looking through the parts. "Wow!" Max thought "This is cool." Then Max laid her eyes on it and was drawn to it, the black ninja hidden behind boxes. Max moved towards it but Sean stopped her.

Written with: Max33452

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