Lost And Found (Dadvid. AU)

part two.

                 Nightmares and letting his guard down.

     An hour later, the house had been completely cleaned by David, the only room untouched belonging to Max. David straightened up from picking up the last bit of trash from the floor, then looked around with a smile on his face. He was happy he had finish, and as glancing at the clock told him, he finished a little early.

    The clock ticked onto 11:30am as David looked at it, reminding him that was lunchtime normally. As he walked back to the kitchen, pausing only to throw away the trash he had picked up on the way, David started humming a tune, already planning on what to make for lunch.

    But once he looked, David realized he didn’t really have much… He had used the last of the eggs to make pancakes, and he didn’t buy and food besides the eggs before he left for camp a few months ago. “Well…” David shut the pantry with a sigh, and turned back to the kitchen counter. “Looks like I’m going to the store then.” He finished, putting his positive face back on. He would be able to see what sort of things Max liked if he took the boy with him this time, and the thought of making Max happy made David very happy.

     He walked down the hall to Max’s room, then knocked twice on the door, his firm knocks echoing hollowly on the wooden door. “Max, I’m going to the store and I’m not leaving you here by yourself.” He called out. Max’s muffled reply seeped through the door after a minute, sounding irritated.

 “Why do I have to go?” “Because you’re only 10, Max. It’s not safe for a 10 year old boy to stay home without a parent, especially since not many people live around here. You could get hurt and no one would find you.” The worry in David’s voice was plain, yet was still rebuffed by Max’s angry protest. “I am so old enough!” Max replied, sliding off the bed and pulling the door open.

    David looked down at him with an exasperated look. “No, you’re not. So, let’s go. The store is a little ways away, and we need to get going now. Come on Max, you’re making this harder than it needs to be!” he added, putting his hands on his hips in a gesture of dominance. “No, you are!” Max shot back, his folded arms and defiant gesture showing David he wasn’t budging. “No. I’m not leaving you here alone, Max. That’s irresponsible and that’s not how I plan on this working.” David was trying to be patient, but Max was being more stubborn than usual, and the strain of staying calm was difficult. The two argued back and forth, wasting several minutes to unneeded fighting.

    Finally Max was tired of arguing, and agreed to go just to get David off his case. “Fine, I’ll go!” Max shouted, fed up with the fighting. Even though it was only a few minutes of slightly heated argument, it still made Max sick to his stomach. It reminded him to much of his parents, and they were people that didn’t deserve to be remembered.

    David smiled, glad Max had stopped being so difficult. “Alright, you head out to the car and I’ll grab my wallet and we can go.” He headed back to his room, unaware of the bad feeling he had caused Max. The slam of a door was heard as Max exited his room and slammed the door, and then again as he slammed the front door shut as he left the house.

    After grabbing his wallet, David followed Max, and locked the front door behind him, then got in the car and started it. “Ready to go, Max?” he asked cheerfully. Max didn’t respond, staring out the window in silence. The sound of the car starting was heard in the silence, and then the soft tunes of country songs as David turned on the radio.

~~~~

    When they arrived at the store David cut the engine and got out, then walked around to the other side of the car and opened the passenger side door for Max. “Come on bud, it’s time to get out.” Max did so with much grumbling, and followed David inside the store.