Mike popped a stick of gum in his mouth as he made his way towards the cafeteria, hoping to find Eddie and casually ask him to sell him drugs, which was apparently something he did and everyone knew about.
He'd definitely been surprised at Max's question, but then again out of all his friends, if he could even call her that, she was definitely the one most likely to participate in typical acts of teenage rebellion.
Truth be told, he was probably only fifty percent worried about her using drugs on her own and fifty percent actually curious to try them himself. Turning his depressed brain into a fried egg for an afternoon didn't sound too bad. Plus it was just a plant, it couldn't be that bad, right? It was natural. Then again so was arsenic.
He was reaching for the handle of the cafeteria doors when they flew open in his face and he ran smack dab into Dustin.
"Hey buddy!" his friend exclaimed as he adjusted his hat. "Where the hell have you been all week? Skipping lunch?" He frowned and leaned in close for a second. "Have you been smoking? You smell like my grandma after she's been to the bingo hall."
"Hey, Dustin…" Mike took a step back, panicking as he tried to rack his brain for plausible excuses. "I uh, walked through a group of smokers on the way in this morning, I guess it stuck to my clothes," he explained clumsily. "And um, sorry about being MIA, I've been… in the library. Catching up on all the work I've been falling behind on. And trying to get ahead a little."
Dustin nodded slowly, not looking like he completely bought Mike's story. "Well, good for you man, it's good to see you getting back into the swing of things."
"Yeah, yeah," Mike nodded, trying to peer over Dustin's head. "Hey, is Eddie still in there? I uh, wanted to apologize for missing so many Hellfire meetings."
A toothy smile spread over Dustin's face. "That's awesome! We've really been missing you in the group. Last week, Jeff rolled a twenty and then this-"
"Kind of in a time crunch here, dude," Mike interrupted, feeling a small pang of guilt for cutting off his friend.
"Oh yeah, sorry," Dustin said. "He actually said something about talking to Ms. O'Donnell about an extra credit assignment, maybe you can catch him over there."
Mike nodded and started to turn back down the hall. "Okay, thanks, man."
"See you at Hellfire tonight?" Dustin called after him.
Mike turned and walked backwards for a few steps. "Yeah, maybe, we'll see!"
"Hey, Eddie!" Mike spotted Eddie's unmistakable head of hair exiting a classroom at the other end of the hall and called out to him, jogging to catch up.
He turned towards Mike, eyebrows raised in surprise. "Well, well. Michael Wheeler, it's been a minute. You totally ditched us. Not cool, man."
Mike winced. "Yeah, sorry about that, I've kinda been… going through some shit."
Eddie nodded, his face softening with understanding. "Well you should come by again sometime, Hellfire's not the same without you." Mike nodded absently, glancing around at the teachers that were milling about the hallway.
"So, what can I do you for?" Eddie asked.
"Um, maybe we should go over here," Mike gestured towards the stairwell that led to the basement, leading them over.
"What is up, dude?" Eddie asked once they were standing on the stairs. "You're acting like, super squirrely."
Mike leaned in close, lowering his voice to an almost whisper. "I was uh, hoping you could… sell me something?" Eddie raised his eyebrows.
"And what would that something be?" he whispered back.
"Pot."
A grin broke over Eddie's face. "Ah, so you wanna meet my good friend Mary Jane. You've come to the right place. Although to be honest with you man, I didn't think you were the type. No offence." He looked Mike up and down.
"Well, my… friend asked me for it."
Eddie smiled wider and gave Mike a gentle punch on the shoulder, causing him to stumble backwards and bump against the railing. "That redhead you've been hanging out with? She's cute, man."
Mike froze in surprise before shaking his head rapidly. "Oh no, it's not like that. She's um, actually Lucas's ex and I mean, I just broke up with- wait. How did even you know I've been hanging out with her?"
Eddie gave him a knowing look as if it should have been obvious. "Please, I saw you two making eyes at each other by the maintenance stairs when I was making a sale under the bleachers earlier this week. Cigarettes are a nasty little habit by the way," he added with a scolding wag of his ring-adorned finger.
"We're not even like that," Mike insisted, raising his hands to emphasize his point. Eddie raised his eyebrows.
"No shit? I don't know bud, I feel like I saw a spark…" he teased. "Anyway, I can definitely hook you up. Meet me at my van right after school. And bring cash."
Mike breathed a sigh of relief. "Thanks, Eddie, you're the best."
Eddie smirked and gave him a wink before he sauntered away towards his next class. "I know."
After the final bell rang Mike stopped by Nancy's locker to let her know he'd be a few minutes late getting to the car, and then he made his way to the far corner of the parking lot where Eddie's brown and white van was always parked.
He stood in front of it awkwardly, searching the crowd of students streaming out the doors.
"Psst," a whisper came from behind him. "Back here, dude." He turned around to see Eddie beckoning him over to the back of the van. "Get in," he said, swinging open the double doors and gesturing inside.
Mike ducked his head and crawled into the cramped space, leaning up against a beat-up amplifier and tucking his knees up under his chin. Eddie followed and closed the doors behind him.
"You know, a guy luring kids into his van and giving them drugs is exactly what my parents warned me about growing up," Mike said. Eddie shot him an unimpressed look.
"Very funny. Anyway, I'm not giving you drugs. I'm selling you drugs. No peer pressure here." He flipped open a hidden compartment in the bench of the back seat and pulled out a metal box. "So, I'll give you a first-timer's discount," he said, pulling out a plastic bag filled with what looked like oregano. "Half an ounce for twenty?"
Mike nodded as if he had any idea whether that was a reasonable price or not. "Sounds good." He reached into his pocket for his wallet and pulled out some crumpled bills, passing them to Eddie who tossed him the bag in exchange. Mike examined the contents, opening the bag and taking a whiff. It definitely didn't smell like oregano.
Eddie watched him with an amused look on his face. "Do you know what to do with it?" he asked, eyebrow raised skeptically.
Mike felt his cheeks heat up at the scrutiny. "Um, no?"
Eddie sighed. "Well I'm fresh out of papers or I'd roll it up for you, so you're gonna have to go old school. Do you have any apples at home?"
Five minutes and one apple pipe tutorial later, Mike was fast walking across the busy parking lot hoping he could catch Max before she left. He couldn't believe he had drugs in his backpack right now. He was sure everyone could tell. His heart was racing. Oh god, there's Vice Principal Walker. Act natural.
"Have a good weekend sir!" he called out as the man passed him. Walker paused for a second, looking surprised before giving Mike a curt nod of approval and continuing on his way. He let out the breath he'd been holding. Real smooth, Mike.
Then he spotted Max as she was exiting the school, feet dragging and eyes on the ground.
"Max!" He waved his arms frantically to get her attention. She noticed him, glancing behind herself to make sure he was waving to her before lowering her headphones and making her way over to him.
"I got the stuff. The pot," he added in a whisper.
"Yeah, I knew what you meant," she chuckled. "I didn't think you'd actually do it, Wheeler. I'm kind of impressed."
Mike crossed his arms and raised an eyebrow, trying to look casual, like it was no big deal. "You thought I'd chicken out, Mayfield?"
Max shrugged. "So when are we doing this?"
"Tomorrow?" he suggested. "It's supposed to be a nice day."
She nodded her head in agreement before reaching back to tighten her ponytail. "We need to go somewhere we won't get caught."
He thought for a second. "What about the woods behind my house? No one ever goes there."
She bit the side of her lip for a second before nodding. "That could work."
"Cool," Mike grinned. "Meet me at the corner of my street after lunch?" Max nodded again, the corner of her lips tipping upwards in an almost smile.
"See you then." She started to turn away and paused. "Oh, how much do I owe you?"
"Uh, don't worry about it, I've got it covered," Mike replied, remembering that Max rarely had spending money.
"No, I don't wanna owe you. Just tell me," she insisted.
"Ten?"
Max nodded after a second. "Okay, I'll get it to you, I promise."
"No rush, really," he said.
This time she gave him a real smile before turning back down the pathway. "See you tomorrow, Wheeler."
The forecast had been right, it was a gorgeous day. The sky was mostly clear save for a few fluffy clouds and a warm breeze was in the air. Mike was standing on his street corner, hands in the pockets of his windbreaker when he saw Max crossing the street and walking towards him.
He was surprised to see she had her hair down for once, her long red locks flowing down the back of the grey flannel she was wearing.
"Hey," she said, tilting her chin up as she came to a stop in front of him.
Mike returned the nod. "Hey. How's it going?"
"Pretty good."
"Shall we?" He gestured towards the path that led into the small patch of woods behind the houses.
They slowly picked their way through the underbrush, twigs snapping underfoot and branches snagging their clothes as they brushed by. Awkwardness set in as they realized how weird it was to be hanging out one on one outside of school.
"So," Mike started, breaking the silence. "Do you have any plans for spring break?"
"Not really," Max answered from behind him. "I have a job interview tomorrow, so if that goes well I'll probably be working for most of it."
He glanced back at her, stumbling over a root as he did so. "Oh, that's cool, where?"
She hesitated before answering. "I don't wanna jinx it. I'll tell you if I get it." Mike held a branch back from whipping her in the face, letting her pass by and walk in front of him for a bit. She smells like vanilla, he couldn't help but note as she brushed by him.
"You will," he said. She glanced back at him and frowned.
"You don't know that. But thanks for the vote of confidence," she added in a gentler tone. "You must be excited to see El. You're going to see her in California, right?" Fuck. He'd forgotten she was still with Lucas when they'd started planning the trip.
He actually hadn't thought about his broken heart for a few minutes there, but now the familiar pain and sadness were washing over him, dulling the bright sunshine and blue skies.
"Actually… the uh, trip got cancelled," he admitted after a few seconds.
She stopped in her tracks and whipped around to look up at him, causing him to nearly walk right into her. "What? Why?"
Mike stuffed his hands in his pockets and looked down at the moss-covered ground. Time to confess.
"Eleven, um, she broke up with me a few weeks ago." He watched Max's face transition from complete shock to comprehension to pity in the span of a few seconds. "Oh god, please don't look at me like I'm a kicked puppy," he begged. "I feel shitty enough as it is." She quickly schooled her face back into her usual neutral expression before turning forwards and walking again.
"I am sorry though," she said after a few seconds. "That really sucks, dude."
"Yeah," he mumbled, "it does." Thankfully, she dropped the subject and didn't ask any further questions, leaving them tramping along in comfortable silence until they reached a clearing in the dense woods.
"This looks as good a spot as any," Mike said. They perched themselves on a mossy fallen log that spanned most of the clearing. A few beer cans littered the ground, evidence of previous teenage visitors. The sunlight shone through the branches of the trees, casting mottled shadows on the forest floor, and he could smell the damp earth beneath his feet.
"Here, hold this," he said, unzipping his backpack and handing Max a large, red Macintosh apple.
"Um, thanks?" she said, holding the fruit up in front of her face. "But I think we're supposed to eat snacks after we get high?"
Mike shot her a knowing grin. "That's actually our smoking apparatus."
She gave him a decidedly unimpressed look. "Are you serious? You can't just roll a joint or something?"
He shrugged. "Eddie was all out of papers. This is easy, he told me how to do it," he reassured her, pulling out the swiss army knife he always carried in his pocket.
A few minutes later the pipe was ready and the pot was sprinkled in the "bowl" on top.
"Lighter please," Mike said, holding out his hand. "Unless you would like to do the honours?"
Max shook her head as she passed him the blue lighter. "All you, dude."
He held the lighter to the top and clicked it on, breathing in and waiting for the flower to catch. He kept pulling for a few seconds before taking his thumb off the hole in the side and pulling the smoke into his lungs. Then he lowered the apple as he tried to hold the smoke in for as long as he could before exhaling in a ragged cough.
"Holy shit," he wheezed between coughs. "That was a lot." Max laughed, her eyes crinkling at the corners and her white teeth fully on display. It was the first time he'd genuinely seen her laugh in months, and he couldn't help but grin back at her. "Okay, okay, your turn Mayfield," he said, handing her the apple and lighter before clearing his throat and taking a sip from his water bottle.
She took a long hit from the makeshift pipe, holding the smoke in her lungs before exhaling a huge cloud directly into his face, snickering as he swatted it away with his hands.
"Ugh, not cool dude," he whined. Max smirked and took another hit, this time blowing the smoke up into the air. They both watched it swirl and slowly dissipate in the diffuse light.
"Do you feel anything yet?" she asked after a minute.
"Maybe… let me have another hit." He managed not to cough this time. The world started to feel decidedly fuzzy around the edges. Mike suddenly became very aware of how loud the birds were, and the fact that he was wearing shoes. "Yeah, I think I'm definitely feeling it," he chuckled.
"Me too," she nodded slowly, throwing him a lazy grin.
"Holy shit, Max," he laughed as he looked over at her. "Your eyes are so fucking red." She looked at him in faux outrage.
"You're one to talk, you can barely keep yours open," she shot back. Mike chuckled and leaned back on his hands, looking up at the clouds as they floated by.
Sometime later, it could have been hours or minutes, Mike couldn't tell anymore, they were sprawled out on the ground, their jackets scrunched up under their heads like pillows. The sunlight was slanting through the trees and the breeze had picked up a little, ruffling the dead leaves and pine needles on the ground.
Mike noted that the trees were just starting to sprout tiny green buds that would soon unfurl into leaves. "Isn't it wild how trees just exist on their own? Like they make oxygen. That's fucking cool, man."
Max laughed. "You think trees are cool? What about birds? Did you know they have hollow bones?"
"You're lying."
She threw a pinecone at him, hitting him in the chest before it rolled away under a bush. "Nuh uh, I saw it on some PBS documentary my mom had on."
"Damn," he replied, absorbing that fascinating information and watching the rapidly changing shapes of the clouds for a few minutes before tilting his head to the side to look at her. "Hey, are you hungry as fuck?"
"Yes," she replied immediately.
Mike laughed. "Let's go back to my place. My parents are at a birthday party with Holly all afternoon."
It took them twice as long to get out due to their diminished coordination, but eventually they made it to the Wheelers' well-stocked kitchen, ravenous and dry-mouthed.
"Pizza rolls?" Mike asked, pulling the box out of the freezer and holding it up.
"Yes!" Max nodded enthusiastically before drinking one of Holly's juice boxes in almost one go. "But I'm gonna need something while we wait for those." Mike continued rifling through the frozen goods.
"Umm… oh! How about these?" He held up an ancient looking package of firecracker popsicles.
"Hell yes," Max exclaimed as she snatched it out of his hand.
Mike laughed, amused by her earnest reactions. "You can go chill in the basement while I throw these in the oven." She nodded and turned towards the hallway, running straight into Nancy who'd just come downstairs.
"Oh! Sorry, I didn't know Mike had company," Nancy said in surprise, placing her hands on Max's shoulders to steady her.
"It's cool!" Max said, letting out an uncharacteristic giggle and scurrying down the stairs to the basement.
Nancy watched her leave before eyeing Mike, who was reading the pizza roll instructions for what felt like the fifth time without comprehending them.
"Mike… what's going on?" She gave him an appraising look as she walked slowly into the kitchen.
"Oh, hey sis, what's up?" Mike asked as he leaned against the counter in what he felt was a very casual pose.
"Sis?" Nancy squinted at him as she moved in closer. She took a whiff of him and gasped. "You've been smoking pot!"
"What? No," he replied unconvincingly. Nancy frowned at him. "Okay, yes, you caught me, okay?" He threw his hands in the air dramatically. "Call the cops!"
"With Max?" she exclaimed, crossing her arms in front of her chest. "You told Mom and Dad you were playing games at Dustin's all day! And since when do you two hang out anyway?"
Mike shrugged. "Since none of your business."
Nancy rolled her eyes and threw her hands up in defeat before turning away from him. "Whatever, stoner. Eye drops are in the medicine cabinet. Use them before mom and dad get home. You look high as hell," she called out as she left the kitchen.
Mike headed down the stairs several minutes later carrying a tray of steaming hot pizza rolls with an unopened bag of Cool Ranch Doritos clenched between his teeth. Folksy sounding music was playing through the old stereo under the tv.
"I hope you don't mind, I put some music on," Max said as she turned her head to look at him from her spot on the couch, lips stained bright red from the popsicles she'd been eating.
"Who is this?" he asked as he threw himself down next to her after placing the tray and bag of chips on the coffee table.
"Fleetwood Mac," she replied.
He nodded, recognizing the song that was playing. "Oh yeah, Nancy listens to them."
A dreamy look crossed Max's face. "I love them." Mike smiled at her, pleased she felt comfortable sharing something personal with him.
He picked up a pizza roll, wincing and quickly dropping it back down when it scalded his fingers, reaching for the bag of chips instead.
"Is this what you're always listening to on your Walkman?" he asked as he tore the bag open and tossed a chip in his mouth.
She held her hand out for the bag and he passed it over. "Sometimes. I have a bunch of tapes I rotate through." Mike nodded and tried his luck again with the pizza rolls, finding them to be a more acceptable temperature.
They listened to the music in silence as they devoured their snacks like they hadn't eaten in days, and the hours passed in what felt like mere minutes.
Mike felt… really good.
For once he wasn't fixating on the past and his failed relationship and instead felt like he was existing purely in the present. The voice on the stereo crooned about rain washing you clean and he suddenly found he couldn't wait for that first spring thunderstorm. He would run outside and let himself get soaked to the skin, washing away his pain and heartbreak.
"Do the guys know we hang out?" Max asked, breaking him out of his fantasy.
"They do not," he replied from where he was sitting on the carpeted floor, leaning back against the couch she was now sprawled out on.
"I don't think you should tell them yet," she said, gaze fixated on the ceiling. "Lucas would start asking questions and I… I can't deal with him right now." Mike nodded wordlessly. He was dying to ask her about why she was isolating herself from everyone but he knew this tentative relationship was too fragile, and he didn't want to scare her off.
After a while, they decided to play some video games and, true to form, she beat him easily every time.
"No fair," Mike whined as he watched his fighter die for what felt like the hundredth time. "I'm all stoned and shit." Max kicked him lightly in the thigh and chuckled.
"Oh please, we're barely high anymore. Anyway, it's not like that changes anything. I'd kick your ass every time, Wheeler," she teased.
"Okay Mad Max," he laughed, remembering her old arcade signature. She gave him a smirk before checking the watch on her right hand.
"Shit, it's getting late," she said, the smile quickly fading from her face. "I should get going if I'm gonna catch the last bus."
"Bus?" Mike asked, confused. "Aren't you just over on Cherry Lane?" Max froze for a second, pulling her bottom lip between her teeth; he could practically see her walls building back up. She took a deep breath before speaking, picking at a loose thread on her jeans.
"Actually, uh, my mom and I moved," she stuttered. "To the um, trailer park? Over on Kerley Drive." Mike was silent as he processed that information, surprised that it hadn't come up until now. "Neil left," she added. "Thankfully."
He angled his body towards her and looked up at her from where he was still seated on the floor. "Okay, uh, that's cool. I can drive you? I'm pretty much sober now."
Max thought about it for a few seconds before nodding in agreement. "Okay, yeah. Thanks."
"So, this was fun," Mike said as he came to a stop in front of the trailer Max had directed him to. The sun was setting and the sky was painted pink and purple. A dog barked somewhere in the background.
"It actually was," she laughed quietly.
He drummed his fingers on the steering wheel and looked over at her. "Would you, like, want to do it again sometime? We still have a ton of weed left."
"Definitely," Max nodded, giving him a small smile. "I mean if you want to." She turned and started to open the door before pausing. "Oh, here's five bucks, it's all I have right now but I'll get the rest to you as soon as I can." He took the bill from her and slid it into his back pocket as she got out of the car, pulling her flannel tighter around herself in the cool evening air.
"Hey, good luck at the interview tomorrow!" he called out before she closed the door. She leaned down and looked at him, and Mike could have sworn he saw a hint of the spark that always used to be in her eyes.
"Thanks, Wheeler."