SOUR CANDY KISSES ➭ MAX M.

ix: FLASHBACKS

↳˳;; ❝ y/n ᵕ̈ ೫˚∗:

WE EACH FLINCH when the bell rings, max's hand brushing mine for a minute before she rushed out of the door.

"do you think lucas likes her?" beverly asks me sadly as we get ready to leave the A.V room.

i look to where her eyes were set, seeing lucas and dustin each staring, admiring really, at the path that max went.

"i'm sure he's just acting that way to compete with dustin," i assure her, putting my hand on her shoulder comfortingly. i saw will wasn't in the room anymore, and i felt pretty bad. we hadn't hung out in ages, and i don't want to leave him at his worst.

"yeah, you're probably right."

beverly smiles, grabbing her bag and walking towards lucas. i expected the boy's mood to become lighter, and he'd stop staring at the door. but he didn't, and his thoughts were very negative towards my cousin.

a guy like that wasn't going to get beverly, or max. if i could help it.

-

EVERYONE WAS MEETING in the A.V room again. well, everyone except me and max.

"hello? hello?" max bangs on the door, looking at me just to see a blank expression on my face.

her pounding and yelling blurred as my thoughts came forward. something i had forgotten finally came back to my mind. something i was, am, very excited about.

this summer i was finally meeting the losers club. all of them, except ben and mike. ben stopped being friends with them out of anger. he was very upset that bill got beverly and he didn't.

but richie always mails us letters bragging about how the club is better without him anyways, so clearly it didn't bother any of them.

and mike, well his grandfather wouldn't let him hang around the other boy's anymore, saying they were a bad influence. despite richie trying to convince the man that he was the only one.

but my happiness turned to sadness. i had a bad feeling that something horrible was going to happen this summer.

but how could it? there was a new mall being built soon, and i was going to meet bev's friends. even though i've talked to richie, bill, and stan on the phone before, it's not really the same.

and i don't want to drag the boy's into this mess. they were already traumatized from the clown, i don't how they would handle it if bev and i had to cut the visit short and run back to hawkins. the boy's weren't going to waste the time they had with us, so they'd probably tag along. getting dragged into this stupid upside down catastrophe.

my thoughts were cut short when max jumps onto to me, clinging to me like i was life support.

"max?" i question hoarsely. i tried my best not to overreact, but my face was burning hot and i knew that at least my ears were beet red.

"dart!" she screams, putting her head in my shoulder. this confused me, max was so tough. but when a slimey, frog-lizard like creature runs in her direction she'll hop in my arms?

i need one of those.

"you let him escape!" mike yelled at max, glaring at her figure before picking her up and putting her on the floor. he immediately grabbed my hand and started running towards te direction dart went.

"mike, i don't want to," i protest as the boy enters the gym. i saw max enter from the opposite side, running into the boy's locker room.

how coincidental that mike and i were going there too.