Chapter 4

Amy trailed thoughtlessly behind the slag walking in front of her. He had is shoulders stiff on either side of his pale neck, and his head was tilted somewhat upwards, highlighting his arrogant appearance.

"Max!" Amy shouted angrily at him, hoping he would at least stop to listen.

He didn't cease his walking, but he did speak. "What is it?"

"Why do we have to tell Sara what happened. I mean, isn't it best if we just… forget the situation?" Amy said desperately, looking pleadingly at the back of his black hair, as if he could see her.

In an instance Max stopped. Amy had to dig her heels into the ground to stop herself from crashing into him. He turned to face her, a look of harshness perched on his pale features.

"You almost got raped by those fucking losers. You want to keep this from your best friend?" he asked, almost spitting out every word.

Amy's shoulders dropped suddenly, she took a step back from his hard stare. "You don't understand, Green."

"Oh? Then enlighten me."

Amy sighed and dropped her gaze to the carpeted hallway floor. "Whenever a terrible situation arises, Sara always gets bothered. She'll be in an almost dejected mood for days! And she won't stop asking questions…oh the questions. I'll feel like I'm in court."

Max crossed his arms in front of his chest. "You're telling me that you're keeping this from your best friend…to prevent her from feeling like a depressive maniac." He said it as a statement.

"Yes. It may sound ridiculous, but you don't know how she acts when something like this happens," Amy said, looking up from the floor to look at him. "Besides, it's passed. Let's just forget about this…forget it ever happened."

Max raised a dark eyebrow. "Shit like this has happened before?"

Amy's arms automatically attached to her hips, her hands were curled into fists. "That is none of your business!"

Max was caught off-guard by Amy's snappy tone. "Christ, chill. It was just a question."

Amy's chest was rising up and down threateningly fast. "I apologize. It's just…let's get to the apartment room."

Max's arms dropped sluggishly to his sides. "Alright, whatever."

"And," Amy started, her finger pointed in his direction, "no mention of this incident. Understood?"

Max rolled his light irises. "Yes, mother."

"I'm going to pretend I didn't hear that."

Max turned around swiftly and started walking to Amy's apartment room. Amy walked behind him in silence, wanting to forget the incident which took place about thirty minutes before.

As Amy trailed noiselessly behind the tense figure walking in front of her, she recalled the past incident in her head, still remembering the numerous amounts of rough hands and coarse laughter. The thought caused her to shiver impulsively.

After a few minutes of broad tension had passed between Max and her, they arrived in front of her apartment room. Max gave her a swift, almost reassuring, glance. She gave him a nod to his silent beckon, and gestured for him to knock on the door.

"You knock," he said, backing away immediately as if the door was going to morph into some horrific creature and consume him.

"Dear lord," she said rolling her eyes in annoyance. "It's not going to bite you."

"I'm aware of that," he said in a defensive tone, gritting his teeth. "I just think it's more customary if you knock on your own door."

Amy let out a puff of breath she had been holding in when looking at him. Hesitantly, she raised her arm and knocked forcefully on the wooden door.

"See?" Max said, a crooked smile suspended on his face. "Not hard at all."

She was about to return his sarcastic statement with a retort of her own, but she was interrupted when the door opened. Sara stood in the door entry, a look of relief plastered on her delicate features.

"Oh Amy!"

Without warning, Amy found herself being engulfed in a limb-crushing hug. She felt her lungs spasm as their air entry was squished. Sara's lean but strong arms were grasping onto her, as if she were a life line.

"S-Sara!" Amy gasped, trying to pry her friend's tightening grip off of her. "L-Losing oxygen l-levels!"

Immediately, Sara leapt away from her as if she were electrocuted by an invisible force. She offered her an embarrassed smile and then proceeded to playing absent-mindedly with her nail beds.

"Amy, I was worried. You were gone for an hour and you weren't answering your cell."

"That's because my cell wasn't with me, dork. And I must've left it on vibrate, hence why you couldn't hear it."

"Oh," Sara chuckled lightly. "Where did you go anyway?"

Amy shrugged, as if displaying non-exiting news. "Grant Park."

Max coughed forcefully beside her. Amy had to restrain herself from jumping in shock; she had forgotten he was here.

"Oh, hey Max," Sara said, giving him a small wave. "What brings you here?"

Amy automatically jumped in. "I just bumped into hi—"

"I prevented this kid from getting harassed by perverts," Max said almost robotically.

"Max!' Amy hissed, giving his waist a hard nudge. "What the hell?!"

Sara's head snapped in her direction. "What?!"

Amy didn't reply for a moment; her mouth remained a gaping hole. Instead, Max decided to once again, join into the conversation uninvitingly.

"I was on my way to the market down the block, and I heard this blood-curling scream on one of the side streets. Of course, being the Good Samaritan I am," at this point Amy shook her head in incredulity at him, "I followed the yell and ended up seeing this kid," he gestured at her with a swift hand movement, "being surrounded by horny fucks."

Amy looked at Sara worryingly, awaiting her response. The diameters of her eyes were equivalent to saucers, and her mouth hung open in astonishment. In an instant, she looked at Amy with a venomous stare; her once subtle blue eyes now seemed like threatening tsunamis.

"Sara—"

"When were you planning on telling me this, Amy? This is serious shit!"

Amy sighed, knowing nothing she would say would change how Sara felt. "Sara, I didn't want to worry you. I know how you get when stuff like this happens. You become a fully different person! Almost similar to my mother," Amy said, shivering mentally at the last part.

Sara's eyes squinted drastically. "Worry me? Fuck, Amy you're my friend, my family! Of course I'm going to be worried!"

Amy let out another chuff of breath. "Sara, I know! I'm quite educated to know how friends care about each other. It's just...you get so...poignant. And it kills me to see you like that. You act like someone you loved was brutally murdered!"

"You could've been!" her voice slashed across like ice.

Amy looked down, now feeling ashamed and insulted. "Sara, please. I apologize for not telling you. But it honestly wasn't a big knot, things got resolved quickly, and I want more than anything to forget this. I just want to forget this, okay?"

Sara searched Amy's pleading eyes with observantly. "I'm calling the cops on those creeps."

"Sara, no!"

Sara and Max stared at her as if she was growing an extra head. "Why the hell not?"

"See, this is why I refuse to tell you some things!" Amy took a deep breath, calming herself. "Sar, if you call the cops, those slinks will assume it was me who sold them out. We'd all be in profound danger. They wouldn't hesitate to hunt us down and deprive us of our lives. I couldn't risk that."

"She has a slight point," Max mumbled, staring intently at his painted fingernails.

Sara sighed, defeated. "That's true. Fine, no calling of the authorities. But only because I don't want to risk anything happening. I can't afford a casket at this moment, especially with this damn recession going on."

Amy gave her eyes a roll, but a smile was shown on her face. "Good to know how committed you'd be to my death."

Sara responded with a grin. Max stood off to the side, almost studying the two girls. As if noticing his glance, Amy turned to look at him with a questioning expression.

"I just realized something. You came into the apartment with me. Why?" Amy asked with intense curiosity.

"Two reasons. One, I wanted to make sure you told Sara what happened. And two," he said, striding his way into Amy's apartment complex. "I was extremely thirsty and craving some soda."

Before Amy could snap, Max made his way into her cluttered kitchen. Amy looked at Sara and shook her head disbelievingly. "Can you believe him? Just making his way into a house as if invited."

Sara smiled. "He did save your virginity, and possibly your life. You could at least give him a Coke in return."

I nodded shortly in agreement. "Ah, you're right."

Without another word, Amy made her way out of the hallway and into her complex. Sara followed behind her, almost skipping. Amy looked at Max with sudden interest as he bent over to look at the contents inside her fridge. She noticed the way his back curved almost smoothly as he was hunched over. His arm, thin yet sturdy was clutching the door of the fridge –

Amy shook her head immediately, shuffling her random thoughts. Where did this sudden awareness come from? Surely, it was just the after-thought of her being rescued by Max. It was simply gratitude, nothing else.

"Amy?"

Amy was so tangled in her own mind, she almost missed her name being spoken. She snapped her head up to face the person calling her name; Max.

"Yes, Max?"

"I asked if I could quickly borrow your phone," said Max, giving Amy a strange look.

Amy nodded and made an approved motion with her hand. "Sure, go ahead."

While Max dialled and spoke to whoever he meant to call, Amy sat beside Sara who was seated at the kitchen table. As Amy was staring at her wall tiles in boredom, she felt a hand cover hers comfortingly. Amy looked up in surprise to see Sara.

"You sure you're okay, hon?" Sara asked, her snowy eyes melting with comfort.

Amy felt an over-whelming surge of emotion after seeing this kind gesture. She felt the lids of her eyes flood over with a salty substance. Tears. She looked down at Sara's pale hand on top of hers, and nodded in response to Sara's question.

"I...I'm fine now," Amy whispered, her voice growing croaky. "It was just...so frightening, Sar. I felt like I had no chance escaping. I thought of every horrible thing those men could've done to me, and I panicked. I couldn't speak. Couldn't move either. It was like being injected with insulin. Only, I felt the pain."

Sara's look of pity deepened. "They hurt you?"

"Somewhat. A few of them were clutching my arms tightly. I'm surely going to wake up with a few bruises tomorrow. And this one...this one bastard. Fred, his name was. He grabbed my jaw so hard, I thought it would surely break. And then...he kissed me. Oh Sar, it was revolting."

Sara gave Amy a light hug, rubbing her back soothingly. "It's my entire fault. If I didn't upset you this morning, you would've stayed in the room. You would've never gone out."

Amy looked at Sara seriously. "Don't you dare blame yourself for this nuisance. Besides, I'm fine now."

Sara scoffed sceptically. "You with your 'I'm fines'."

"Guys, do you mind if the dudes come over? They're decaying in that damn tour bus," Max said, holding the phone to his chest.

Sara looked at Amy with a hopeful look. In return, Amy sighed and nodded. "Fine, they can come."

Immediately, Max put the phone to his hear again. "Yeah, you guys can come...no Radke, you can't bring over your damn weed. I don't care how many withdrawal systems you're having, you should've smoked some this morning if you had to. No, don't smoke it now. I don't want you coming here as high as a fucking kite. Alright, later."

And with that, Max hung up the phone with an aggravated look plastered on his face. Amy looked at him with wide eyes.

"He was going to bring...drugs over?" Amy gasped, finding the air supply in her chest shorten.

"Chill, I told him to leave the little stash he has back in the bus," said Max, shrugging as if it were no mature subject matter.

Amy got up from the kitchen table, and went over to the living room, slumping down on her cheap leather couch. She breathed relaxingly and closed her eyes as she felt its cushy pillows calming her sore body. Not a moment later, she felt another body droop down beside her.

"It's been a long day, eh?" Max said, his eyes averted to the television, his face as still and strict as ever.

"It has."

"Monte, give me back my fucking Lays!"

"Come get it you piece of lard!"

Ronnie stopped dead in his stance, which consisted of him standing on the couch pillows, reaching out to the chip bag which lay mischievously in Bryan's hands. The rest of the crazed men of Escape the Fate had arrived at Amy's apartment. Amy, with great revolt, realized how much of a mess they were making in her once lean living room.

"Are you calling me fat?" Ronnie asked in shock, his face crumpling in mock melancholy.

"I thought you said you ditched the weed," Max said with a smirk, throwing his untouched bag of chips at Ronnie.

Ronnie snatched the bag of the Salt and Vinegar Lays greedily, shoving the sodium-contained snacks into his mouth. Amy had never witnessed a person consume so much food before.

"Shut it Green. I'm clean for God's sakes."

"Yes, I can tell by how much shit you're eating."

"It's called the glories of growing up! You know, as teenagers escalate in age, they crave food."

"Radke, you're twenty-three."

Bryan, now finding he could no longer torment Ronnie with the stolen bag of Lays, sat down beside Amy on the other couch.

"I heard you had a pretty intense day," Bryan said, munching on Ronnie's uneaten chips.

Amy looked at him with startle. "Who told you about today?"

Bryan, with his mouth full of chips, nodded towards the direction of Max, who was talking to Ronnie.

"That sneak," Amy hissed, getting off of the couch.

Before Bryan could ask her where she was going, Amy stalked off towards Max. When she approached, Max immediately stopped talking to Ronnie and looked up at her with a cocked eyebrow. "May I help you?"

"Can you inform me, as to why you told Bryan about what happened today?"

Max shrugged, unaffected. "It's Bryan, dude. Who's he going tell?"

"That's not the point! I wanted today's events to be forgotten; never repeated."

At this, Max stood up so he was a few inches from her face, his light eyes boring into her dark ones. "You sure get bothered too easily."

Suddenly, all the frustration and exhaustion Amy had been experiencing that day crept up on her like an unwelcomed stranger. She let out a low growl from the base of her throat and charged at Max with lightening speed.

He let out a heave of breath as Amy knocked him to the floor, her hands digging into each of his shoulders.

"What the hell's wrong with you?!"

"You are! You are what's wrong with me!"

Max rolled his eyes once again as she straddled him dangerously. "My point is once again proven."

Amy loosened her grip on him. "Which is...?"

"That you over-analyse things."

Before Amy could speak in response to his accusation, the room went black; as dark as a flock of crows.