My Roommate Max... A Max Schneider Fan Fiction

Chapter Twenty-One: In Good Company

~ if you ever leave me baby... leave some morphine at my door ~

Chapter Twenty-One: In Good Company

"Love?"

"Yes baby?"

"...I can't skate."

"What? I couldn't hear you."

"I said I can't skate."

I laughed, paying both of our ways into the rink. "I can't skate either," I said. "But I can roller blade. It's much easier than skating."

"You won't laugh at me, will you?" he asked, squeezing my hand. I smiled reassuringly, pulling him over to the lockers.

"I won't. Promise," I said. He smiled at me, falling into step beside me. I opened my locker, reaching down and slipping off my shoes as Max did the same. I put both pairs in, grabbing my personal roller blades and taking them out. I turned to Max, pointing down to a rack of rental blades.

"Go get a pair in your size," I told him, reluctantly letting go of his hand. He frowned at me, before slowly doing as I said. I sat down on the bench, lacing up my rollerblades. The loud music that blared through the speakers constantly was somehow comforting, something I'd came to look forward to during my years in high school. I sighed, closing my eyes for a moment as the memories all rolled through my mind...

"Come on, Blakely!" Ali had said, pulling me by my arm towards the doors. The cold wind that had been biting at my cheeks made me cringe, reminding me of lying in the woods alone and bleeding. I sighed, pulling my hood around my face. The loud music could be heard all the way outside, the grimy feeling of the place evident by its shaky appearance. No wonder no one from school comes here, I had thought.

"What is this?" I had asked her, my tone flat. She had sighed, frowning at me.

"You've been in that house for the past three and a half months," she'd said. "No amount of depression medication is going to help if you don't do something other than sleep and dance."

I had winced at her blunt honestly. She had slowly reached up, pulling down my hood. Ali had always been brutally honest with me, a quality I was grateful for having in my best friend. I'd forced a smile, linking arms with her.

"You're right," I'd said. "Let's go."

That had been the first night I'd genuinely smiled since the incident. A real, honest smile that no one had seen in months. Ever since then, Ali and I had come here once a week. It became my escape from home, mostly. It had been nice to get out of the house with a friend every once in a while.

"Hey chicka," Ali said, skating over to me and breaking my train of thought. I smiled, pulling myself from my trance as she sat beside me.

"Hey," I greeted. She pushed her hair behind her ear, looking around.

"Wow," she said. "Max isn't attached to your hip," she commented teasingly, nudging me with her elbow. I laughed, leaning back on my hands.

"And I already miss him," I told her. She laughed, standing up and offering me her hand. I took it, using her body as leverage to stand on my skates.

"Jesus," I said under my breath. "It's been over a month since I've been in these things," I commented, bracing myself on the wall. She giggled, watching me regain my ability to stand. I shook my head at myself, figuring out how to properly rollerblade again.

"Does Max know how to rollerblade?" Ali asked. I shook my head no, taking my phone from the bench and sticking it in my back pocket.

"I have to teach him," I said. She stifled a laugh, looking just behind me. I turned to see the love of my life, standing there looking totally lost with a pair of roller blades in his hand. I let out a small laugh, taking them from him and patting the bench. He sat down, a small smile on his face.