Christmas went fine. Chase's mom came back the day before Christmas Eve, she was gone for over a week.
Oddly, the house was calmer without her. But she was missed.
Chase was still a mess. Most nights, he'd cry himself to sleep after binging half the kitchen. Food and cutting was the only thing that helped.
And Max. He helped a lot. He always had good music that he randomly sent to Chase.
Chase was glad the holidays were nearly over. No more big feast of foods, no more big platters of cookies, no more leftover apple pie for Saturday breakfast, and no more starving just to eat half of Christmas dinner.
New Years finally came up. Ashanti and Dave went off to a party with their friends, Milo was taken to his grandparents. Chase was trusted to spend the holiday alone, as long as he notified his parents every few hours.
It was extremely cold, Chase wondered if his tears would freeze if he cried outside.
He wasn't sure what to do for New Years Eve. Winter was with her girlfriend who Chase still forgot the name of. There were a few parties, but they didn't seem appealing.
And then Chase got a text that made his eyes light up.
Max🕺🏼- Hi, do u want to come over for New Years??? Mandy is with Dev. My dad and gf is... somewhere lol. If ur not busy! I can pick u up whenever!
Chase was smiling so widely, his cheeks instantly ached. He didn't know why he was smiling so much but seeing Max message just... Just hit something.
Me- oh really?! If that's fine with you, sure! Everyone left me too lol
Max🕺🏼- well ofc I'm fine with it, I suggested it lol. Just say a time and I'll pick you up :))
Chase quickly got ready. He dressed in layers and was quite warm whenever he stepped outside. He informed his parents he was going to Max's, figuring they'd check it later.
It was a nice night. The sky was full of bright, twinkling stars, a few clouds hung around.
Chase stared at them a little too long. He forgot Max was waiting in the car.
~
"Have you ever fallen off this roof?"
Max scoffs in amusement, nodding. "Once I fell with the ladder. Near the t-top Not my brightest moment." Chase blinks, stiffeling a laugh. "B-but it was worth it... Bruised my back but got out of sc-school for a few days..."
Chase laughs, "Good thing you weren't severely hurt." Max smiles, the moonlight hitting his face. His eyes glimmered, they were gorgeous. "Do you go up here a lot?"
Max brushed away the dead leaves and sticks, giving them a "clean" area to lay on.
"Yeah...even if it's just outside the h-house... Sometimes it's just..." Max dusted his hands off, scanning the clean space. "Really n-nice."
Max puts his hood up, laying down. He reached up, grabbing the blankets he's brought, it wasn't easy.
Chase lays down as well, keeping some space between them. The roof was large but Chase wasn't going to lay on the other side when they were talking.
"It seems nice." Chase agreed, looking up at the stars, getting dizzy already. But in a good way. "We should sleep up here."
Max shook his head, his eyes still on the sky. "We'd freeze." He unfolded the blankets, covering Chase with one. "Maybe we can use... A teepee? N-no, no, a t-tent!"
