Chapter Text
Max didn't know where he was driving. This wasn't the way to his house or Kyle's. But he recognized the street names. Maybe he could get to one of his friend's houses if he didn't pass out first. Didn't Steph live somewhere nearby?
The coughing was becoming more and more intense, with a new development of blood. This could not be good. If only he could remember the way to Steph's house. Max took a sharp turn down a street he hoped he recognized. The blood was dripping down his chin, and some of it was spattered across his steering wheel and dashboard. He kept driving, despite every part of his body protesting.
The shrill ringing of his phone cut through the silent car. It was Richie. More blood spewed onto the wheel. He looked back at the road, narrowly avoiding a mailbox. Wait, that was Steph's mailbox. He stopped the car in the middle of the street and ran towards the front door. It took all of his strength to knock on the door. He hoped Steph was home.
It was Solomon who opened the door. When he saw Max covered in blood and petals, his eyes widened. "Steph!" he called as he helped Max into the house. Solomon ushered Max onto the couch, placing a pillow under his neck. Max coughed helplessly, the pain excruciating now.
As soon as Steph saw him, she screamed. "What the hell happened to you, Max?"
Max was too weak to answer. If he could, he might have finally told someone the truth.
It was Solomon who spoke up. "It's Hanahaki, Steph. And it's almost too late."
"What do you mean, 'too late?' Is he dying?" Steph stared at him in horror.
"The flowers are growing in his lungs. The blood and full flowers means it's gone untreated for too long. The only thing that can heal it now is if the feelings he has are reciprocated."
"Feelings for who?"
Both looked at Max expectantly, but Max couldn't answer. The phone in his pocket rang again. Steph took it and read the name. When she met Max's eyes again, she knew.
"Dad," Steph said, her voice low, "I'm taking the car. Help him get in."
Richie had already called Kyle, Jason, and Peter. No one knew where Max was or had had any idea that he had Hanahaki. Richie was going to throw up. There was no way he was going to let Max die, especially not when there was no reason for him to die in the first place.
Richie was never one to be honest about his feelings. He knew for a long time that he was undesirable, so he never acted on his crushes. At some point, he stopped having them at all—that was, until the Waylon Place.
The truth was, he hadn't known why he saved Max that day. It was like some sort of instinct took over him. But seeing the look of horror on Max's face…it shocked him to his core. It made him realize that maybe he and Max weren't all that different. That maybe Max wasn't just some asshole bully who wanted to make everyone's life a living hell but a product of his environment who, underneath the surface, didn't think of himself as worth saving.
Richie was about to call Steph before she called him. He picked up immediately.
"Richie, it's Max," she said, clearly breathless. "I'm almost at your place. Be outside. I'm not sure he's gonna make it much longer."
Oh God, it was already that bad.
"I'm coming outside right now," he said, hoping his voice wasn't as shaky as it felt.
"Here," Steph said, "You're on speaker. Talk to him. He's barely conscious, but maybe your voice will help."
Well, shit. Richie didn't know what he could possibly say. But he started talking anyway.
"Max, do you remember Waylon Place? You asked me why I saved you. And at the time, I just said I didn't know. Well, I do know. I think I did all along. I saved you because I knew you were worth it. I knew you weren't the person you tried to be. Because, I've felt the same way. I put on an act because I thought no one would love me if I showed them who I really was, but moving to Hatchetfield to live with my uncle changed that. And you did too. These past few weeks hanging out with you have been the best few weeks of my life."
Richie saw Steph's car in the distance.
"I love you, Max."
The line clicked as Steph pulled into the driveway. She ran over to the passenger side door and lifted Max out of the seat, carrying him like a bride up to Richie's door. He was covered in blood, but his eyes were open and trained on Richie. Steph brought him inside and laid him on the couch. She ran to the kitchen and started rummaging through the cupboards, looking for first-aid supplies.
Richie knelt beside him, cupping Max's face in his hands. "Max."
Max wheezed. "Richie." His voice was impossibly weak.
"I can't believe you thought I didn't love you, Max," Richie said. He was crying, but he didn't care to wipe the tears. "And I really can't believe you were willing to die because of it."
Max smiled. It wasn't much, but it was there. Enough to calm Richie's panic. Enough to show he was going to be okay.
Steph returned with the first-aid kit and a glass of water and got to work wiping the blood from Max's face. He wasn't coughing, which Richie hoped was a good sign. Richie helped Max sit up, sitting next to him on the couch to support his body weight. Max's hands shook as he took the glass of water from Steph's hand and took a small sip.
He finally looked back at Richie, tears welling in his eyes. "I love you," he whispered. "I was so stupid."
Richie smiled. "We both were."
Steph cleared her throat. "Okay, lovebirds. I'm gonna head out because, as much as I love you guys, I really don't want to watch the rest of this."
Richie laughed softly, a blush creeping up his face.
"My dad said that Max will take a while to recover fully. Don't ask me why he knows so much about Hanahaki because I don't know and I really don't want to know." Steph pointed a finger at Richie. "Don't let him die or I'll personally kill you."
Richie nodded. Steph seemed satisfied and left the two of them alone in Richie's living room.
Max seemed to have regained some of his strength. Or, at least, enough to turn to face Richie fully. He smiled, placing a hand on Richie's jaw. "Hey, this is the second time you've saved my life."
"I hope it's the last near death experience I have to save you from," Richie said with a loving grin.
When the two finally met in a gentle kiss, neither one felt unworthy of the love they shared.