Jane

hart

Nathan lay on his bed, whale noises playing softly in the background. The people next door could probably hear him crying, but he didn't care.

'Fuck him, I don't need that douche-ass in my life. I have Victoria..'

He still couldn't help but wonder if his dad even thought of him. It was very unlikely. With the expansion of the estates, he was always busy and had a lot on his mind. Not like it mattered anyway.

Nathan turned on his side, warm tears falling to his pillow. He reached an arm out and pulled a pillow to him, holding it close to him.

'How could he forget? I'm his only son..'
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.
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"Yeah, I hear his dad forgot about his birthday today. I almost feel sorry for him." Warren frowned. "No, I do feel bad for him. No kid deserves to feel like that on their birthday. That fucking sucks man."

Max stood, thoughts churning in her head about what she should do. She knew Nathan. He wasn't as mean as everyone thought, she could tell. Victoria knew it. Everyone else should, too.

"Hey, Warren? Do you mind bringing me to the corner store across the street from the Two Whales?"

"Uh, sure, what do you need there?"

She shook her head. "I'm just going to look for something."

The two headed to his car, and got in.

The ride there was silent.

Max climbed out, and ducked her head in to thank him. He nodded, and when she shut the door, he drove away.

Max walked up to the doors, and as they opened, she was greeted by a gust of cold air. She shivered, and the cashier yelled a greeting at her, to which she smiled in reply.

She walked down the aisles, just looking, until she quite literally ran into this small rotating rack of keychains. It clattered as it fell, and keychains went everywhere. She scrambled to pick it up, but a worker appeared at her side, and shooed her off.

As she stood up, she grabbed a small keychain, a gift box, and some wrapping paper and a bow, and went to the front to pay for it.

She waited outside for a few minutes for the bus, and pulled headphones out of her bag.

'I hope I can still catch him while he's still in his dorm...'

She got off as it pulled up to Blackwell, and practically sprinted across campus. She needed to get his jacket from her room.

Just as Max was about to walk into the front entrance of the boys' dorm, Victoria walked into her, a look of disgust on her face.

"And just what the hell are you doing here? Answering a booty call?" She smirked.

Max held up the little box. "Is he still in there?" she asked quietly.

Victoria's expression softened. "Just, be nice, okay? He's had a rough day."

Victoria walked past Max, patting her on the back. "Thanks. For this. He needs it."

She walked away.

Max walked up the stairs to the 3rd floor, and to Nathan's room.

She held her fist up to knock, but hesitated.

"Nathan? Are you up? It's Max."

Nothing. She didn't hear any sounds beyond the door, but whale noises.

She knocked quietly.

"Nathan? Are you in the-"

The door opened to his dark room, lit by a solitary lamp in the corner. She walked in, and the door shut behind her. Nathan switch on the light, squinting at her.

"What do you want, Max?"

He sounded tired.

"I, uh, have your jacket. And I got you something."

She tossed his jacket to the couch, and gave him the gift. She held it out to him, but he didn't grab it.

He pulled the sleeves of his cardigan over his hands, and raised his arm to cover his eyes. His shoulders shook, and Max knew he was crying.

Max reached forward, and put a hand on his shoulder.

"Hey, it's okay, it's okay. I'm really sorry your dad forgot. He's a dick, anyway."

Nathan laughed, and wiped his face. Max handed him the box.

He messed with the little bow and ribbon, avoiding opening it. Max nudged his shoulder.

"Come on, open it! I wanna see your reaction." She smiled at him.

Awkwardly, he pulled the ribbon off, and carefully unwrapped it, not tearing the paper. He opened the box, and pulled out a small whale keychain.

His eyes brimmed with tears, and he fell to the floor. Max put her arms around him, and he leaned into her.

He pressed his face into her shoulder.

"Thank you, Max. This really means a lot to me."

Max rested her head on his.

"You're welcome. Happy birthday, Nathan."

(AN)
29 Aug
This chapter is dedicated to Nathan Prescott, and I'm posting it a day before.
Happy birthday.
Inspiration for this is from levicoptart.tumblr.com their art and blog is amazing! Check it out sometime!
~Sleglady (Liza)