Daisies || Max Mayfield

17: Mews

"Do you have a spare shirt in your bag?" Max asked, filling a bowl of water in the sink next to me.

Steve had me propped on the counter in the bathroom, and he was standing in the corner, the bottle of rubbing alcohol in his hand while tapping his foot.

"No."

"All your bags are in the car," Steve said.

"I was gonna say that," I added.

There was a loud thud on the other side of the room, then Dustin said something about Yurtle the Turtle.

"He has a turtle," Steve explained.

I nodded.

Lucas poked his head in. "Uh, is there anything you need?"

"Food," Max replied fast, picking up one of my hands and running it under the water.

"Jesus-" I muttered, closing my eyes. "That stings."

"Sorry." She took the other hand, doing the same thing.

"Mews no-" 

A pretty orange cat walked in, meowing. 

"Oh hi!" Steve laughed, bending down to pet it.

"Steve it's time for her dinner," Dustin complained. "Now she's distracted."

"Calm down." He shooed Mews out of the bathroom, and Dustin picked her up, carrying her off.

"Uhh." Max stopped to stare at my face. "How are we gonna do this?"

"What?"

She frowned, pointing to the mirror. I looked. There was a large bloody cut above my eye, with dried blood crusted over my eyelid.

"Huh." I nodded.

"Let's get a washcloth-" She muttered, turning in a circle trying to locate them.

"Here." Steve handed her one from a cabinet behind him.

"Thanks." She turned my head to face the ceiling. "Uh, can you hold your hair out of the water?"

I nodded, grabbing it and pulling it over my shoulder.

"Here." She placed the warm cloth over my forehead, and I cringed. She slowly wiped it away, running it under the sink. "There you go."

"Now this?" Steve held up the bottle.

She nodded. 

"Ew." I said.

"I know, I know, it's gonna hurt." She took my right hand first. "Do you want me to go on three?"

"No just do it."

At first, it was just like water running over my hand, and then it burned so fucking bad. I bit my lip, eyes wide, cradling my hand in front of me. "Jesus fuck-"

Steve rolled his eyes. "Uh, do you know when Mike's gonna be back?"

Max shook her head, picking up my other hand. "Ready?"

I nodded.

"Fuck." I cringed, waving my hands in the air after she did it. The cold air helped a bit.

"Hey, uh, Steve?" Dustin squeaked from the other room.

"What?" He left the bathroom.

"How are you acting fine?" Max muttered.

I shrugged.

"Last time I got this beat up I cried for three days straight."

"Oh."

"Is Lucas ever gonna get food?" She muttered, looking at the door.

I shrugged.

"Hey Lucas!" She shouted.

"What?!"

"Food!"

"Oh! Right!" He ran into the room a few seconds later. "Here." He held out a bag of chips.

Max looked at it, frowned, then at the bowl of water in her hands. "Maybe we should've thought this through."

He nodded, setting it on the counter behind her. "So, how's it going?"

"Fine." She replied. "I just need to bandage them and take the slivers out of my hand."

"What slivers?" Lucas and I said at the same time.

"From my board." She explained. "The deck's been ready to break for a while. It still hasn't but it's about to." She held up her right hand, which had a dark red spot on it, and a chunk of wood sticking out

"Oh my god!" Lucas exclaimed. "It's huge!"

She nodded. "I'll leave it for now, until I'm done with this."

He frowned. "Is that okay?"

She shrugged.

I looked down at what she was doing, only to see my knuckles both bandaged, and I didn't even realize it. "Oh. Cool."

"Yeah."

"Thanks." I went to climb off the counter, but she held my shoulder. "I still gotta do your forehead."

"Ugh."

"Just a little dab with a washcloth and it'll be fine." She explained, pouring a bit fo the alcohol on the cloth.

"Okay." I nodded, leaning back. She did it fast, so it was much less painful.

She finished it up with a few colorful bandaids, then went to work on her hand.

"Do you have another deck?" Lucas asked.

She nodded. "I got one a few months ago, cause I knew mine was gonna break."

"Oh."

I looked away as she yanked the splinter out, tossing it down the sink.

"Ew." She put a bandaid over the stab wound, then went to pack everything up.

Lucas frowned, leaving the room.

We ate chips for like half an hour, then Steve made us leave before Claudia got home.

Max went to her house, and Lucas was brought to his, then Steve drove to park in a small lot on the side of the road.

"So." He said.

"I know I know, I'm sor-"

"Did you win?"

I smiled. "Yeah."

"Nice."