Cause for Concern ✓

six

very special thank you to ladyofstars
for the gorgeous aesthetic <3

FRIDAY. 01. OCTOBER. (unedited)

BY the time Danny was pulling up outside, it was eleven pm and Max was halfway out of the bedroom window.

With the exception of typical suburban background noise— crickets, maybe a broken pool filter or a family pulling into their driveway after dinner and drinks at a friend's house— the night was quiet and the air was crisp. October was right around the corner and he was reminded of it when a cool breeze whistled past his flushed face— the half of his face that was exposed to the night air, anyway, because the other half was still receiving the warmth radiating from his bedroom.

The fingers of his right hand curled around the window lifted above his head and he was straddling the ledge, cold, hard and uncomfortable between his legs, digging so sharply into the worst possible places that he had to constantly shift his position. His left hand gripped the ledge that he was straddling and he tried to strategically swing his other leg over it— tried. As he ever-so-slowly and ever-so-carefully lifted it from the warmth of his bedroom and over the ledge, he momentarily lost his balance. His heart caught in his throat and his eyes blew wide, frigid fingers clenched the ledge so tightly that his knuckles glowed white and his stomach felt like it was filled with soaring birds.

The height wasn't tall enough to kill him or anything but it was enough to break some bones or crack his skull— that was enough to knock some caution into him. He'd only ever broken his arm once, his left one in seventh or eighth grade. He couldn't remember which one, the timeline in his head was all blurry and convoluted.

His dad's had always been better for climbing out of windows. From his bedroom, all he had to do was climb down out of the window and onto the roof of the wraparound porch— the porch was almost too easy to access from his bedroom window. Things were a little different at his mom's place— the little slate of roof he had to stand on and jump down from felt steep and uneven. Just sitting on it was probably a safety hazard, let alone climbing onto and trying to jump down from it.

After exhaling sharply and steadying himself on the ledge, he swallowed his heart back down into his throat. His fingers were stiff with the cold. From the ground, he heard a breezy laugh.

"Need some help there, Maxie?" Danny asked, loud enough that Max could hear him but soft enough that Max was the only one— he appreciated the discretion.

He laughed uneasily and felt his breath shaking a little. Living at his dad's might've sucked but at least the house had windows and porches made for him to climb down with his dignity still intact. "Give me a minute," he called down, his voice wavering as both hands tightened around the ledge.

Once more, he attempted to swing his right leg over the ledge— a success this time. He angled himself on the steep fraction of available roof and lifted his arms to shut the window halfway. If he shut it all the way, he wasn't sure he'd be able to get himself back inside later. As hilariously tragic as it would be, the tragedy of it outweighed the hilarity.

His right hand was outstretched towards the roof as he slid steeply down, his left arm out as his side for as much balance as possible with his knees bent ever so slightly.

Danny was waiting patiently with his hands in the pockets of his jacket, his head thrown back to look up at Max who was edging towards the bottom of the roof. When he dared to crane his head down towards the ground, he saw Danny grinning and pointing his phone up towards him.