Middle School Miniature

Chapter 21, Sheet Of Trust

I heard loud footsteps while I was draining the last of my Ramen.

I scrambled to set down my spoon and dash behind the empty instant food box doing a fancy cartwheel summersault that I probably would have been proud of if I wasn't fleeing for my life. I waited breathlessly, willing my pounding heart to stop beating so fast.

"It's ok, it's just me," Max announced as he walked into the room. I casually slipped back into view, sad that my ninja skills were for nothing.

"Who was there?" I asked, projecting my small voice to his larger ears.

"It was an old woman," he said cautiously, " she claimed to be your grandmother."

I was puzzled by this news because my grandmother died when I was young and my other grandparents lived across the country. There was no way they could have been here, they were both on the frailer side and couldn't afford the way over.

"That's not possible!" I exclaimed.

"Then who was that lady?" Max asked.

"I don't know." I started pacing. Max came over and sat down at the table, finishing off the rest of the food.

"What did she look like?" I asked, crossing my arms as I paced.

"She was elderly-ish, pretty short, with curly light hair, but she moved around ok." He sat back.

"That's definitely not my grandma, she would have had a walker or something. But It does sound like the perfect grandmotherly disguise. Maybe it was the police?" I looked up at Max who was staring at me with an adorable, no, not an adorable smirk.

"What!?" I yelled at him annoyed in general.

He smiled, "You look so funny..."

"Oh really?" I said, threateningly raising my eyebrows.

"Yep," he said not the least bit phased by my threatening attitude/eyebrow raise, his smile only widened and was even a bit less smirky.

"Ok, whatever," I muttered while rolling my eyes. Max snickered. "So what now, my giant?" I asked trying to get on his nerves.

"Your giant?" He asked raising his eyebrow. What is with these eyebrows? "I think you are way more my tiny than I am your giant."

"Really?" I asked playfully, "I don't think so."

He scoffed at that and got a humorous glint in his eye. "You're pushing your luck my tiny."

"I am not yours," I said confidently, flipping my hair to the side. Looking back at him, my confidence flickered like a candle. He slid closer to my position on the table and leaned in, making me take a small step back.

"I wouldn't be too sure of that." Max had a glint in his eyes and his hand came up swiftly from the left, knocking my legs out from under me and making me fall into his cupped, oversized hand. I screamed.

"Ahh, hey! Let m-me go! Oi!" His hand wrapped around my sides like thick blankets, pinning my flailing punching arms to my sides and leaving my legs to dangle. I was in the same position that I always seemed to end up in.

"What should we do now?" He mused, having a grand old joke at my expense.

"Please," -wheeze- "let me go," I begged, struggling a little with breathing as I began to panic.

"I don't think that would be very smart from this height," He said with the obvious movie cliche, " but if you insist.."

"No no NO!" I shrieked, tears threatening to well up in my eyes. "That's not what I meant! You know," -wheeze- "that's not what I meant!"

He chuckled a little but then the humor drained out of him when he looked at me because he let go of his hold and instead held me in his open cupped palms. I took in deep sweet breaths of air while lying on my side. Max carefully got up and started making his way to his living room.

"You ok?" He asked gingerly. I didn't respond. I was angry. I was angry that he had so much power over me and I was sad and scared. Stupid boy. Doesn't he understand what I'm going through?

Max slowly sat down on a couch, propping his feet up.

I gave no response.

"Hey?" He nudged me a little with a finger, but I refused to acknowledge him. He had once again broken the thin sheet of trust that I had placed with him.

He shifted me over to one of his hands and used the pointer finger of his other hand to gently poke me. I curled up in a ball, hugging my knees.

"Are you ok?" Max asked again with more concern in his voice. I gave the tiniest of shrugs as my eyes started to water.

The finger started to rub tiny circles on my back. I'm not going to lie, it felt really nice. We stayed like that for a few blissful minutes then he stopped. He set me carefully on his chest, sliding me off his hand, jostling me a bit as he reclined back.

"I just wanted to tell you I'm sorry." I heard spoken from above me.

Wow, he apologized. I guess he's not completely soulless.

I took a deep inhale and a deep exhale as I felt the rise and fall of the living thing under me. I listened to the faint drum of his heart as he sighed and reached for the remote, opening a streaming service on the biggest big-screen TV I had ever seen. Slowly I sat up and watched as he flipped through the TV.

"What do you want to watch?" Max quietly asked.

"Meh," I answered in a small voice, "I don't care, just not horror."

"Sorry, what?" Max asked softly. I wasn't surprised that he couldn't hear me.

"Anything but horror," I repeated louder.

"Ok," he scrolled through some movies. Pausing over a scary one, he glanced down at me as I laid back and covered my head with my arms in defeat. He kept scrolling.

When he finally came to a movie he deemed worthy, he clicked and it started playing loudly. I shakily got up and walked to the ear of my captor. "Would you turn the volume down please?" I asked stepping carefully on his shoulder.

"Sure." He said and complied by grabbing the bathtub-sized remote, which I hadn't spotted, and turned down the volume a few clicks.
"Better?"

"Yep." I sat down with my back to his neck. His hand set the remote over on the couch arm and came towards me. I warily watched as it covered my legs up to my stomach. I tensed up, waiting for the moment that the hand would wrap around me and drag me off, but nothing happened. It stayed there as the movie played, radiating heat. I set my arms on his hand as I watched, almost forgetting where I was as I engaged in the story of the film.

As the credits started rolling, I felt warm and comfortable. My eyelids started to droop. Sudden nocking interrupted the calm atmosphere.

"Don't worry it's probably my family," Max said, the vibrations of his voice box tickled my back.

"Ok," I responded and slowly started to get up.

"Are you ok if I hold you?"

I didn't see any other choice in this situation. "Sure I guess."

Happy New Year.
-Ema