Chapter 4

A week from the incident things seemed too whined down in school and on the monster scene. I didn't tell everyone about John's, Beth's, and my "discussion" I refused to go, I would fight all the bad guys that came and I would just deal if they killed me here. I wouldn't leave because if I did my friends would want to know where and I couldn't lie to Jack and Criss, with her innocent looks. If they knew they would want to go too. I couldn't do that. And if I told them they couldn't they would follow me. Sometimes I really hated my friends. But I lived through the baddies and stuff. Now they didn't really seem to bother coming around and Kyle was leaving me alone too. That made me really happy. But then I missed the attention. I realized that I kind of needed it to feel happy enough. Him sliding his arms around me made me feel like someone actually did care.

I saw Kyle and decided to flirt a little and maybe win back my fan club. "Hey, Kyle." It sounded casual enough so that he wasn't suspicious

"Hey Dru, is that seat taken?" he gestured to the one next to me. It was Math so I didn't have anyone but Dave who always sat on the left of me and the right side was always open.

"I guess not. Dave sits in this one." I eyeballed the seat to my left.

"Okay thanks, so are we good now?"

"If you mean can we be friends still then sure."

By lunch Kyle was grabbing my waist again. Ironically enough I hated it still. I would roll my eyes still when he did it and I would give him smart ass responses to everything. It was our old relationship, and I had more respect for it.

Max walked me home that day. We walked side by side and talked.

"So why the hell is Kyle all into you again?"

"I don't know. I tried to talk to him in math but then the old stuff started again. I wanted to be just friends, you know like you and me, with the no grabbing policy. I don't know if he took it the wrong way, because when I told him he could sit next to me he grinned and…" Then Max cut me off.

"You told him that he could sit next to you! Why the hell would you do that? Oh, now he thinks you're kind of thinking of him. Trust me nothing good can come of you doing that. He still thinks that he's in love with you. Now he thinks that you have some feeling for him that you probably don't. Unless, you do?"

I could feel the shock in my veins from the last part. "You think I, like, him. Oh yeah please! Him, you honestly think I have interest in him?!?"

"You never know Dru."

"Well now you do know I don't like him, and, I will never like him. Shit I forgot. We have parkour today. And we're going the wrong way."

"Crap. Hey do you think that they'd care if we skipped?"

"No. but I would. Why would you want to skip any way?"

"Because I was hoping to talk to you, that's why I offered to walk home."

"So you wanted to take me home to ask me about my life, Kyle, what?"

"No I didn't want to talk about, Kyle." When he said his name he spit it out like poison.

"So what did you want to talk about, and why are you avoiding it by talking about Kyle?" it had to be something HUGE. Max never ever beat around the bush to tell you something he was normally quite open and frank with you.

I turned to look at his face to make sure I heard. "Well…" He suddenly shook his head. "Nothing forget it, let's go to parkour."

"Woah, woah, woah. Tell me what's up you never hide your thoughts."

"It's really nothing you can forget it. I mean it would probably make you angry any way."

"I think that I should be the judge of what makes me angry or not."

"Well if it doesn't make you angry it will freak you out a lot. I really don't think that you want to hear this."

"You know what makes me angry, people who start to tell you something important and then turn around and say its nothing. I mean I can tell it's obviously really bothering you, can you please just tell me and get it over with!" the last time Max acted this way was when he was about to ask out Delilah. With that thought my face dropped on to the ground.

"Well Dru, I wanted to ask you…"

I cut him off before he could finish. I really couldn't hear the end of the sentence if it ended in out. "Wait!" I shouted in a rush. "I think I heard some one scream. Sorry Max, can this wait?"

"Yeah, Yeah, sure." Disappointment and calm came over him in a confusing way.

I pulled a stake out of my bag and slipped it up my sleeve. "I'm really sorry again Max, but go to parkour and tell them I'll be there later."

"No, no I can't just leave you alone out here with a monster out there."

"Yes you can Max, I'm the slayer remember."

"Yeah but if something happens to you, Dave will kick my ass for leaving you alone."

"Fare enough, but I think I'll be fine, thanks." I ran and headed off to an uncertain direction. I hoped to hear him walk away after but I heard his voice instead.

"You know what I was going to ask don't you." Max called after me.

I shook my head no and stopped running trying to keep my lie, and wanting to prove him wrong. I couldn't tell him that I didn't want to date him. But he was my friend and I really didn't want anything to screw it up. Especially because I didn't want to date him, or break up with him.

"Yes you do, I can tell." Then his foot steps ran up behind me as a tried to walk faster.

"Listen Max, all I know is that I heard someone in trouble and I need to go help them. And that's all!"

"Then I'll finish my question now."

"No!" I pushed him and ran. I felt like I was in kindergarten again. I was running from the boys on the play ground all over again.

He ran after me again. "Dru, please just let me finish the question. Please I need to do this." He yelled it as he ran after me.

"No I don't want to hear it!" I ran faster and harder as I took an ally. I knew it well. There was some boxes and a fire escape I could use to get on top of a building I could do it way faster than Max even with my book bag. So I jumped and climbed to the top of the building. And when I got to the top I saw Max looking up at me. He looked a little disappointed, but decided to hold his ground.

"I'm not leaving Dru. Just come down." With that I walked further on the roof of the building and sat.

Five minuets later the door to the roof opened. I wanted to hide but I happened to be right in front of the door. Without glancing back I said the only thing that I could. "Damn it Max, go away!"

The foot steps didn't retreat and no one said anything. At that moment I was gladder than anything that I had a stake in my sleeve. I turned around expecting something to jump at me. Instead I got a cold smile. "I knew that would get you to look at me."

Max! I swallowed hard over the lump of fear he had planted in my throat. I opened my mouth to protest his being there, instead I got his hand and the lump still in my throat made it hard to say no. "Listen, just let me ask, you know the question and you know the answer. So, Dru, will you go out with me?"

"Max! Why, why would you do this to me! Do you know how hard it is for me to turn down one of my friends?!"

Max grinned. "Well that's what I'm counting on." His voice was suddenly seductive. I didn't want it to be. I wish he didn't know me so well.

"So what you just want me to be your girlfriend because, what you just want a girl friend and I'm the most likely to say yes?!?!"

Max folded his arms. "You know me better than that Dru." He was suddenly was more cross and not so boyish. I liked guys better when they were boyish, but a cross face suited Max better.

"Max, god!" I couldn't talk to him any more. I ran back to the edge of the building and ran to the other and leaped. I looked over my shoulder as my feet planted on the next building they had to be at least 4 feet away. Max was in shock that I could just jump building to building. He had mistaken the slayers power. I knew Max couldn't make the jump. So I ran. I didn't want to make another jump like that so I decided to climb down the ladder of the next building. And I was just in the right place to see Criss strolling by. I'd guessed that she had just came from parkour. I wanted to go. But I couldn't because of Max.

"Criss!" I yelled flailing my arms in the air.

"Dru? What the hell are you doing back there? And why did you miss parkour?" she asked extending her arm to me. (I was stuck behind some boxes)

"Well I'm actually." I paused not sure that I should share, but then I remember it was Criss. "I'm hiding from Max. Well more like building leaping from him."

"What makes the slayer hide?" she said it like I was stupid.

"Max, asked me out. I really don't want to tell him no because you know he's like one of my best friends. And if I tell him yes I'll be lying to him. This totally sucks! And if I did want to date him its like, I can't break up with him and just not be his friend. It'll just hurt too much."

"I see. Well I could tell him no for you. Would that help?" she stepped back as I jumped from the top of the boxes to ground level. I stood up from my awkward crouch.

"Well I don't know? I mean isn't that like kind of me avoiding my problem?"

"Well isn't you building hopping avoiding your problem?"

She made a good point. "Yeah, I guess. So what do you want me to go tell him?"

"Well yeah, unless you want me to do it?"

"Okay, okay. I'll go tell him. Will it be all that awkward between us after that?"

She pursed her lips to the side to make a face and crossed her arms. "I don't really know it could be I don't really have a good answer but I could walk you to his house. But that's about the best I can do. And I'm not going to stand on the porch with you ether."

"Okay, I guess, lets go." She grabbed my arm and held it like we were square dancing partners. I think she was assuring that I didn't change my mind. We walked all the way to Max's house that way. I thought that I couldn't get anymore scared of anything than I was when we were standing in front of Max's house. I was wrong. Criss wasn't with me every step closer to the house. Even when she was standing next to me and let go was scary at the door I knew that Max would be the scariest but no his dad came to the door.

"Can I help you." His voice was deep and scary.

"Yeah, is Max home?"

"Yeah, hang on." Him saying yes gave me a sudden boost of confidence.

Max turned the door knob one the other side of the door and pulled. "Dru? What are you here for." It was an interrogation.

"Well I think jumping to the next building gave you the wrong idea."

"Did you?"

"Yeah, I'm here to tell you no." his shoulders dipped down and he had depression smother his face. "Don't do that Max. You knew what the answer would be. Don't make me feel bad, you knew what my answer would be." I insisted he had to know.

"Yeah, but I liked the building jumping better."

I laughed "Max listen lets not let this be awkward. It's just a notch in our friendship. Okay?"

"Yeah I guess." The song hemorrhage flooded my mind. I wanted to laugh but I couldn't, for Max's benefit.

"Bye Max, I'll see you later to night." I put my hand up in the air and my fingers peeked through the top of the sleeve on my sweet shirt. I was already half way to Criss when the door slammed shut. I wanted to cry. But I wouldn't until I left the block. I wouldn't let him know that he had hurt me by not taking it well.

"I told you Criss. He might not come tonight because of that."

"I know." She said and she grabbed my arm and we were linked again. This time she wanted to make sure I made it home alright.

"Thank you. I couldn't have done it with out your help."

There was no response. But I knew she meant your welcome.

At home I went straight up stares and sat in my room staring at the wall, that was for some reason painting pictures. It painted my past with Max. All up to our present incontinence I could see even what he was doing. I guess he was banging his head on a wall ever since I left. He wanted to hurt something but couldn't. Max wasn't always the happiest but he had a good soul.

John shook me. I snapped up. "Dru, you have to go out patrolling everyone's down stares waiting for you." I had been sleeping. It was a sad dream my face was wet. I looked in the mirror before I went down stares, incase Max was there. The color from my face was gone. I felt sick, and my throat was raw. I grabbed a cough drop and my eye liner. I shook my head to get blood flowing through again and slapped on the eye liner. After all that my cough drop dissolved before I got down stares.

"Hey guys," Max wasn't one of them. "Does anyone have gum?"

Jack whipped his hand in the air. "Gottcha, hey do you know why Max wouldn't come out?"

I swallowed as I grabbed the gum. I knew if Jack didn't see it Dave and Criss would have. "No." I shook my head "John, Beth, we're out." I shouted to the next room. I didn't really care if they heard, but I yelled it any way. I went for the door, but Dave caught my eye and I froze.

It was like we could communicate if we could or did it went something like this: "What?"

"What? Is this what you ask me? I know damn well it's not what. Tell me"

"It's nothing."

"Dru, who am I?"

"My big bro."

"So what happened between you and Max."

"Nothing!"

"I'm asking Criss."

"Why, you don't believe your little sister."

"That's exactly why."

"Don't!"

And that would end it. Jacks hand was in my face. "Hello, do you need some help with that door? Come on. Open the door Dru, you can do this."

I rolled my eyes and pulled open the door. "Are you happy now?!"

"Very, thank you." He stepped through the threshold with his nose in the air.

"Screw you." I pushed him and stepped out. Criss and Dave followed. I wanted to watch them to see if Criss would tell, but Jack was there bothering me. So were the damn monsters.