Trust -|- An Elmax Story

X

Eleven

The car ride back home was silent in the back of the car. Robin was talking away up at the front of the car, though.

When we arrived home, the three of us walked inside and stayed in the living room, waiting for Will. Suddenly, though, I had the urge to speak.

"Steve?" I say.

"Yeah?" He responds.

"Is it okay to like girls?" I ask. He looks over at Robin. It was like they were talking through their minds. Then Steve nods.

"I'll take over from here," Robin states, walking over to me. She grabs my hand and drags me to my room. She closes the door behind us.

"My door is supposed to be open three inches," I tell her.

"Well, not today," she responds. I sit down on my bed, waiting for her to say something. She drags my chair over and sits down in front of me.

"Is it okay to like girls?" I ask again.

"Absolutely! Don't let anyone tell you otherwise, but also don't let anyone know you like girls," Robin explains.

"But what if it's not me that likes a girl?" I ask her.

"Who is it then?"

"Max."

"The little redhead?"

"Yes."

"Who does she like?" Robin asks.

"M-me," I hesitate.

"I thought you had a boyfriend."

"I do, but it turns out he likes me and someone else."

"Then dump him and get with Max," Robin states like a proud mom.

"I'm not into Max. I'm into Mike," I respond.

"Then what are you going to do with Max?" Robin asks, slightly disappointed.

"I don't know. I've just been ignoring her."

"You shouldn't do that. It won't fix your problems."

"Then what do I do?"

"Continue being friends with Max."

"But I think I have feelings for her," I blurt out, not meaning to. Robin stops for a second to think.

"I thought you just said you weren't into her," Robin says, confused.

"Well, I am."

"Then break up with Mike and get with her."

"But I love Mike too."

"Then at least remain friends with Max, okay?"

"Alright," I sigh.

"Good. She's a nice girl," Robin says, getting up from the chair. I watch her put the chair back at my desk and walk towards the door.

"Hey, Robin?" I say as she places her hand on the doorknob.

"Yeah?" She asks, looking back at me.

"How do you break up with someone?"

"You tell them you don't like them anymore, but you guys can remain friends," Robin explains, smiling.

"Thank you," I say, and then she walks out, keeping the door open three inches.

I get up and walk to the door. I open it and walk out to the living room.

"I'm inviting Max over," I announce.

"Did you guys finally make up?" Will asks, walking out of the kitchen.

"We never fought," I tell him while walking to the phone on the wall. I dial Max's number and wait for her to answer.

"Hello?" She says, finally picking up the phone. I take a second to think about what I'm doing.

"Hello?" She repeats herself.

"Hey, Max," I sigh. There was no reply for about ten seconds.

"El? Hey? What's up?" She asks, sounding very confused.

"Do you want to come over tonight?" I ask her.

"Um ok. I'll be over soon," she says. I can hear the smile in her voice.

"Sounds great! See you soon!" I say, hanging up.

I turn around and look around.

"Robin and I are going to head out when Max gets here," Steve lets Will and me know.

"Alright," Will and I say at the same time. We always seem to do that.

After a few minutes, we hear someone knocking on the door. Steve opened it, and there she was. The Max Mayfield. She walks in.

"Hey, Max," Will greets her.

"Hey," she responds. She looks over at me and smiles. I look over at Robin, not sure what to do. Robin gives me a thumbs-up and walks toward the door.

"We're going now if that's okay with you guys," Steve says, breaking the silence.

"I'm fine with that," Max says.

"Yeah, it's fine," Will says, walking to his room.

Max and I walk to my room. I close the door behind us.

"I thought you liked it three inches open," Max says.

"Robin said not today," I tell her.

"Oh," Max mumbles.

"I'm sorry," I manage to spit out.

"For what?" The redhead asks.

"Ignoring you," I respond.

"It's okay. But why did you?" She asks me.

"I don't know," I lie.

"Are you sure?"

"No."

"Then what happened?" She walks over to me and sits on the ground with me.

"I had a random mood swing," I lie again.

"Alright," she says, leaning against the wall. I crawl over next to her and lie my head on her shoulder. She wraps her arm around me. When I'm half asleep, I hear her whisper that she loves me, and then I fall asleep.