Home

Chapter 10

"I have an idea," Max says. I smile back. There is no telling what idea is turning in his head at this point. He grabs Chloe's can of hair spray off her dresser. "We need a lighter."

"Let's see if there's one on the coffee table," I laugh. We take off into the living room but are quickly disappointed. There is no lighter. We separate. Looking throughout the house for a lighter. I go into Momma and Matt's bedroom while Max looks in the dinning room.

In my search, I notice rolled up cigarettes. At least I think they are cigarette. Although I have never seen this brand without the filter before.

"Hay, Max what's this? Come here." I yell so he can hear me from the other room.

"I found a lighter!" Max exclaims bursting into the room. His enthusiasm fades when he looks at the ash tray.

"Is that what made that terrible smell?" I ask getting a whiff of the odor coming off it. Max steps back with his hands up.

"I ain't smelling it! I'm gonna go burn something with the hair spray." Max walks out of the room with me closely behind him. We stop when we reach the other room. He lights the lighter and starts spraying hair spray through the flame. The fumes immediately catch fire. It looks like a flame thrower. We both laugh. Neither of us were sure it would work but it did.

"Oh my God! Let's take it outside!" Max says. The flame still going even though the lighter is not lite anymore. It stays lite for several minutes before he lets it go out. "You wanna see if I can light a drop on fire?" His smile widening.

"Yeah! Let's do it!" I exclaim. He proceeds to spray his hand with hair spray until little droplets fall onto the floor. Just as he is about to light it, I stop him. A thought occurred to me. This could set the carpet on fire.

"Wait a minute! You should do it over the sink. The drops could set the carpet on fire. Then we would be in trouble." I say. 

Max agrees with me. He goes into the bathroom. He recoats his hand in hairspray. I flip the light switch off. He lights the lighter and brings it up to his hand. Within a split second, his hand is nothing but flames. He starts waving his hand back and forth before he decides to plunge it under the faucet of running water.

"Woe! There is no hair on my hand," Max says laughing. My eyes widen.

"What?" I laugh back. Max moves closer to me and extends his hand.

"Come here. Feel it. There's no hair." I run my fingers across the back of his hand. The flame burned off all of his hair. We laugh even harder. Later we realized that it was a miracle that he did not get seriously burned, but there was no one there to tell us no and we we're just kids after all.