MARLEY // Max Mayfield

Healthy Bullshit

A sharp breath resounded around the bathroom and Marley flinched away from Max's shaking hand as the girl dabbed away at the remaining blood at the sides of Marley's re-butterfly stitched gash. It had, luckily, been a little shallower than Marley had expected when she saw it in the mirror of the basements bathroom they had gotten to the many hours prior. Even then, in that moment, it didn't look at all as deep as she remembered it. 

Now she was sat at the lip of basements bath, silently waiting for Max to place the gauze pad she had flat in her hand against the stitches, "Red..." she finally pressed it forward, her bottom lip quivering as she turned away. They hadn't spoken at all since they got back. Marley had passed out on the couch within the first few minutes of touching the cushions and in that time, Max had tended to her wound silently while everyone watched with bated breaths.

At the time, Marely had not looked good, her face had been pale, she'd been running a temperature the entire time she slept and kept mumbling in her sleep, red dripping from her nose repeatedly every hour or two. Until, well, it stopped and she woke up, her face suddenly full of colour but her gash still bleeding a bit, "Talk to me..."

There was silence as Max zipped up the medical kit and slipped it underneath and into the sink cupboard. "I'm really sorry..." she finally croaked and Marley heaved a sigh, reaching out and grabbing Max's shoulder, softly spinning her around, "if...if I had just listened you wouldn't have gotten hurt and I...I just--"

"Shhh, come here," Marley smiled, pulling the girl into her arms and hugging her gently. "Don't cry Max...don't cry...you look ugly when you cry," Max laughed a little and Marley stroked down the back of her head, "It's ok bub, it wasn't your fault, I get it, if it was Steve in there I would have done the same."

"Does it hurt?" She sniffled and Marley smiled pulling away to bend down and catch the girls eye, "Does it?"

"A little bit," She admitted and then leaned forward, placing a kiss of reassurance on Max's lips, "But I'm a Harrington, we're built to take a few hits."

"More like conditioned," Max sniffed and Marley laughed, nodding in agreement. "You don't have to act all tough around me," She said after another moment and Marley faltered, a tight frown pulling at her lips that quickly snapped back to a smile before Max could see it. 

"I know."

"You two! Get out here! Eleven's got something!" Mike shouted and the girls turned to the door, Max sighing and gently tugging Marley out of the bathroom and into the wider space that was the basement. 

Eleven was sat in front of the boys, blindfold on and static right by her left ear, she had been trying to find Hopper for the past few hours and during that time Marley had reopened her stitches more than healthy. They just hadn't been staying closed, ripping apart on their own volition, so much so that they had resorted to using butterfly strips instead of thread. 

"I found him," Eleven spoke and Marley and Max exchanged a look, sitting down on either side of her.

"Where is he?" Max asked.

"Woods," they all looked at each other quizzically.

"Woods?" Lucas repeated.

"He's with...Will's mom," Will looked to Mike and Marley in confusion, leaning forward and staring at Eleven.

"My--my, mom?"

"What are they doing?" Max asked. Eleven's head twitched to the side as her brows furrowed beneath her blindfold.

"Ill...annoy, they're going to Ill-annoy," A knock came from the basement door.

"Mike! Breakfast!"

"Not now mom!" He shouted back, his voice cracking slightly, "Illinois? Illinois, like the state? The state of Illinois?"