Our Journey Together

Chapter 3

Max POV

"What the..."

The shrill cry of the front doorbell resonated through my house, breaking the tranquil quietude of the morning.

Blood rushed to my head as I slowly got up. My once sleeping muscles were now itching with anticipation. I could feel my eyebrow twitching uncontrollably, while the pupil of my eyes shrunk to the size of pinholes.

'If Liam is on the other side of that door, I will end him without any regrets...'

Even though I was just chatting with him on Insta, that did not mean the Liam was lazing around at his home. That idiot made it his personal goal to make my life hell and would attempt to fulfill that ridiculous desire of his every waking moment of my and his life. It wouldn't surprise me if he was on the other side of that door, a goofy grin plastered on his face.

It was an unspoken rule between me and him. He, under no circumstances, was not allowed to come to my house after the stunt he pulled at the start of the third year. A slight shiver ran through my body as I remembered the uncomfortable feeling of slime coating my body. The disgusting taste of vomit still lingered within my mouth.

'Liam's pranks are the worst'

Expelling all thoughts and fear about being caught up with another one of Liam's bothersome pranks, I exited my room, stealthily making my way through the corridors of the first floor of my house, making sure that I don't wake Mom up.

'Wait... Mom! I better check up on her, she said that she was working a night shift at the hospital. I do hope she got some rest...'

Forgetting about whoever was at the door at that moment, I headed towards Mom's room. Whenever she works night shifts at the hospital, she comes back looking completely drained. Her normal rosy skin adopted a pale complexion, and her eyes appeared even more sunken than normal. She wasn't the same after...

'No! Stop thinking Max! First priority, check up on Mom. Second Priority, pummel Liam into oblivion if he is on the other side of that door'

After changing direction, I charged forward to my mom's room, hoping she was okay. Soon I stood in front of the slightly ajar white door. Hot, stale air blew through the small space.

Slowly pushing the door open, I peeked into the room.

'This was... unexpected'

Mom was lying flat on her back, her hands and legs sprawled over the entire bed. Soft rays of early morning sunlight highlighted her face. Sunken eyes with deep, black eye bags. Her normally straight hair was frizzled and clumped together. A thin sheen of sweat clung onto her forehead. The room was burning. No air con, no fan and not even a window was open. She was still wearing her work clothes.

'And... is she drooling?!'

An exasperated sigh escaped my lips. Pushing the door open completely, I trudged over to the window and opened it. As soon as I pried the window open, fresh, cold morning air rushed in. The stale air in the room soon vanished. Walking over to my mom, I grabbed some tissue paper from the bedside table and started wiping the drool from her face.

*RING RING*

'Oh no...'

I froze, completely still. Mom stirred a bit.

'Please don't wake up! Please don't wake up!'

She rolled over to the other side.

A released a breath I didn't even know I was holding. That was a close call. Waking my mom up early meant a death wish.