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“Fucking kill me,” groaned Max, dragging his feet along the path.
“Come on, Max!” David’s voice was way too chipper to belong to someone taking a fucking hike at nine a.m. in the morning. “Don’t you think it’s a beautiful day for a morning walk? The sun is shining, the wind is blowing—” he inhaled a deep breath through his nose with a chuckle. “In fact, I don’t think there’s been a day as nice as this one all summer!”
Max stared at him flatly. The sun was a red hot laser shooting straight through the sky and burning a hole through his head. The only wind came from whenever Nurf would break it. “Seriously, David? Were you dropped on your fucking head as a child?” He gestured to their surroundings. “This is hell.”
“Shut up, Max, you little shit.” Gwen rolled her eyes. “If I have to be out here, then so do you.”
"We're all going to fucking die of heatstroke."
Gwen sighed tiredly. “Then I guess we'll see each other in hell, Max.”
Max flipped her off and shoved his hands in his hoodie pocket, shooting a glare at the pathway. He sighed, pausing in his stride to let Neil catch up. "This is fucking bullshit," he grumbled.
Neil shrugged. "Nikki seems to be enjoying herself." He pointed with his thumb at Nikki, who was running on all fours and barking like a dog.
“As long as Nikki gets to run around acting feral, she’s happy.”
Neil shrugged again. “So go mess with David or make fun of Gwen. Do something besides complaining for once.”
Max shot him a glare. “What’s your fucking problem?”
Neil sighed. “Don’t you ever get tired of being miserable, Max?” he asked.
“Not really,” said Max. “Do you ever get tired of breathing?” He smirked at Neil’s flat, unimpressed expression. “Being a miserable little asshole is who I am, Neil.”
Neil paused, squinting. A slow grin spread on his face. “Wanna bet?”
“What?”
He pointed a skinny finger at Max. “I bet you can’t go the rest of the hike without being a whiny little bitch.”
Max scoffed. “Why the fuck would I do that?”
“I’ll give you candy if you win.”
“Liar. You don’t have candy. The only sugar we have in this fucking hell hole are the TicTacs I stole from Gwen's drawer and a couple boxes of Capri Moons.”
Neil slid his hand in his pocket and pulled out a handful of wrapped hard candies.
Max’s eyes went wide. “Where the hell did you get those?”
“A couple of the Flower Scouts run a black market. Tabii hooked me up.” Neil smirked. “If you can make it back to camp without complaining once, I’ll give you my whole stash.”
“Deal.” Max didn’t think before he agreed. When someone offers candy to a kid who hasn’t had sugar in two months, you can’t expect a lot of complex decision making to happen. “You’re on, Neil.”
At the front of the line, David beamed. “What do you say, campers?” he asked. “Who wants to sing the official Camp Campbell song with me?” He pulled his guitar around to his front and inhaled deeply. “Ohhhhhhh!”
Max groaned. “Shut the fuck up, David, or —”
Neil raised an eyebrow at him, patting his pocket pointedly.
Max grabbed two fistfuls of his hair and closed his eyes, cursing under his breath and rephrasing sarcastically. “I mean, wow, David, that sounds like fun. Please continue your song.” He smiled but gave David a look with his eyes that said: if you sing one fucking note, I am going to fucking murder you.
David didn’t pick up on Max’s message, or, if he did, he ignored it. He gasped, looking more excited than Nikki did at all times. “Max! I can’t believe it!” He ruffled Max’s hair. “That’s the Camp Campbell spirit!” He gripped his guitar and strummed a chord. “Ohhhhhhh! There’s a place I know that’s tucked away, a place where—”
Jesus fucking Christ. Max could have kicked him in the teeth. He resisted the urge to cover his ears, glaring daggers at Neil.
Neil grinned smugly, unwrapping a candy and popping it in his mouth when the counselors weren’t looking.
Max sighed. Do it for the sugar, Max, he told himself. You can handle this. You went a whole day being nice that one time. You can do this shit.
David went on singing. “... archery, hiking, search and rescue, biking—”
Holy shit. It would be a miracle if Max could make it five minutes at this rate.
“Water break!” announced David, passing water bottles around to the campers. They all sat down in a clearing in the woods.
Max plopped down on top of a fallen log away from the others. He couldn’t stand being around Neil, that smug bastard. Max didn’t have the patience to deal with Nikki’s energy, not today. And the others, well… he was usually one step away from committing murder when he was around them on a good day. Even though he was pretty sure murder didn’t count as complaining, he didn’t want to take any chances.
He sipped his water, wearing a non-stop glare. He couldn’t understand why anyone would ever voluntarily go for a hike. His feet were so sore, it felt like the ground was stabbing his soles every time he took a step. His face was so sweaty, he was pretty sure the billions of microbes that called his skin home were having one hell of a pool party.
Something buzzed past his ear, and a bee whizzed in front of his face. Or maybe it was a wasp. Or a hornet. Max couldn’t tell the difference. The only thing he cared to know about them was that bees, wasps, and hornets were all evil little dicks.
Max’s usual strategy for dealing with the things was to freeze and hope they would fly away. Sure, it was a lame strategy, but it worked. He had never in his life been stung by a bee, wasp, hornet or whatever the fuck else.
Then again, he’d never had Nikki around when a bee crossed his path before.
“A bee!” Nikki sprinted over to Max, waving her arms frantically. “Don’t worry, Max!” she said. “I won’t let it sting you!” She jumped on top of the log, swatting at the bee.
“Jesus, Nikki, are you fucking insane?” Max jumped off of the log. She was going to make the little bastard even more mad than it already was.
“I know what I’m doing, Max!” She hit the bee with her hand, sending it flying straight towards Max.
“Shit!” He yelled, ducking out of the way. His foot caught on a tree root sticking out of the ground and he fell over, landing right next to the log.
Nikki pounced on the ground, stamping her foot in the grass. "Die, bee, die!" She opened her water bottle and poured it over whatever remained of the bee's corpse. "I got it, Max!" She called cheerfully over her shoulder.
Still lying on the ground, Max waved numbly. "Great. Thanks Nikki." He groaned, peeling open his eyes to find an angrily humming beehive two inches away from his face. “Fuck.”
A sharp stab of pain shot through the back of his neck. Another flared up on his cheek, and a third on the back of his right hand.
Luckily, Max had quick reflexes. He bolted to his feet and scrambled away from the log before any more bee bastards could catch him, muttering a string of curses.
Nikki came sprinting after him. “Are you okay, Max?” she asked. “You should be more careful about falling on top of beehives.”
Max gritted his teeth, a furious wave roaring in his ears. “It’s your fucking fault I…” He trailed off, catching Neil’s glance out of the corner of his eye. No complaining. His right eye twitched. “I mean, that’s all right, Nikki. Thank you for trying to help.”
“No problem, Max!” She skipped off to join the others.
Max rolled his eyes, glancing warily at the growing red welt on his hand. He could feel the stings on his face and neck getting hot. They radiated a sharp, burning pain. He glared at the beehive several feet away. “Go to hell, you dumb fucking bees,” he muttered.
“Allllllllrighty campers!” David’s voice called from the clearing. “Time to pack up for the next half of our exciting hike!”
Max shoved his hands in his pocket and shuffled towards the rest of the campers.
As they walked through the woods, an irritating tickle started plaguing the back of Max’s throat. He cleared his throat a few times, coughed, even drank water. Nothing helped.
The heat was starting to affect him. He had a splitting headache from the blinding sunlight, and his stomach kept doing somersaults. He uncapped his water bottle and took another swig. Jesus, David, he thought. Are you trying to kill us?
As if the bee stings weren’t enough, the stupid mosquitos had gotten to him too. His arms and legs itched like he’d been sitting in an anthill for hours. No amount of scratching would make it stop.
These fucking bug bastards, he grumbled internally. They’re out to get me.
After a few more minutes, the itching spread all over him, and he started doubting that he had been attacked by mosquitos. He stopped walking, pulling up the sleeve of his hoodie. Holy shit.
Hives. He had broken out in hives, some of them the size of golf balls. No wonder he was itching. Frowning, Max scratched his arm, sliding down his sleeves. He gulped, making a face. The saliva refused to go down, like his throat had shrunk like a sweater in the wash. Something weird was going on.
He glanced at the front of the group where David was cheerfully pointing out birds to Nikki and Harrison. David was always saying that if they didn’t feel well, they should tell him or Gwen. And, well, sure, Max wasn’t feeling terrible, but he definitely wasn’t feeling great. In just the span of a few minutes, his gut had tightened with nausea, he’d broken out in hives and his throat had somehow clogged itself. He should tell David.
Neil sidled up beside him. “How’s not whining?” he asked, looking as smug as ever.
Max rolled his eyes. “Fine,” he spat. He coughed. His voice was hoarse.
“You know,” said Neil. “You’re a lot more fun to be with when you’re not being a dick.”
Fuck off, Neil. Max glared at the ground. He cleared his throat again. It was getting hard to breathe. His heart rate climbed. “Look,” he said, using all of his mental energy not to curse. “I’m not really feeling great, so if you could just leave me alone—”
“Are you okay?” asked Neil, looking vaguely concerned.
Max shrugged. “I don’t know,” he said. “I got stung by bees and—”
Neil laughed. “Aw,” he said sarcastically. “Stung by a bee? Poor baby Max.” He waved his hand dismissively. “Just put some ice on it later. It’s no big deal.”
Max coughed again. His head was spinning. It was like he was breathing through a straw. “Yeah,” he mumbled. “No big deal.”
Neil grinned, patting Max’s shoulder. “That’s the spirit,” he said. “No complaining. Why can’t you be like this all the time?”
Max squeezed his eyes shut. “Fuck off, Neil,” he spat.
Neil raised an eyebrow, pointing to his pocket.
Max glared at him. “I don’t give a shit about your damn candy!” He waved his hands in the air. “Look, I’m fucking sorry that I’m not perfect, okay? I’m sorry that I’m such a problem for you, but guess what, Neil? You don’t have to fucking be here. If you don’t like me, then get the hell out of my face!” He coughed. Shit, raising his voice was not a good idea.
Neil’s expression soured. “Fine!” he said. “I’ll get out of your face. Have fun being alone. I hope you get mauled by a bear, you piece of shit!” He stormed away to join the rest of the campers.
Max swallowed, choking on his saliva and coughing. God, what the hell was happening? He wanted to unzip his skin and crawl out of it. He let out a deep breath. He forced his feet to move and tried to catch up with the others.
Dots flashed in his vision. He couldn’t catch his breath. He heaved inhale after inhale, but he couldn’t get enough air. Why couldn’t he breathe? Why did his stomach keep lurching? And why did his whole face feel twice as big as it normally was?
He shakily opened his water bottle and took a sip, only to choke on the liquid. He leaned over, spitting it out in the grass, coughing. His stomach rolled, and he threw up behind a bush. His knees buckled, and he stumbled to the ground, wheezing and gasping for air.
Shit. He was dying. He wasn’t being overdramatic like Nikki when she got her period, he couldn’t fucking breathe. Neil wasn’t around to spout statistics, but Max was pretty sure that not breathing drastically increased your death rate.
He was going to die here, lying in the bushes at fucking Camp Campbell and nobody was going to care. His parents wouldn’t give a shit, and neither would any of the campers. Neil had made it obvious that he didn’t give a shit about Max, and he was supposedly Max’s best friend. If he didn’t care, why should anybody else? Gwen definitely wouldn’t care. Hell, she’d probably be thrilled to be rid of him. Who did that leave? Campbell? Quartermaster? Max would be surprised if they even knew his name.
David. David would care, wouldn’t he? He’d notice, at least. He’d notice that Max wasn’t around to give sarcastic commentary and curses, right? David. I need David.
Max could barely move, but he tried to swallow. “... David…” He didn’t have enough air to talk above a whisper. “Fuck, David, please.”
But nobody came.
Max lay there, sucking in teaspoonfuls of air, the edges of his vision darkening. He gulped, or, well, tried to. “David…” He called one last time before everything went dark.
Neil was having a great time on the hike. Sure, it was still a hike, and he was still dying in the heat, but Max had shut up.
It wasn’t that he didn’t like Max. Max’s attitude, as jaded and as bitter as it was, was usually a welcome refresher from the horrors of “science” camp at Camp Campbell. Max was the only person who really agreed with Neil about how awful Camp Campbell could be.
But Neil had his limits. Max had been getting on his nerves for a while. Neil had accepted Camp Campbell and had decided to make the best of it. Max hadn’t. The only thing Max had decided was that he hated camp and he was going to make that everyone’s problem.
Neil was just glad for a break.
Speaking of Max— Neil frowned, glancing around the group of campers. That’s strange. He couldn’t see Max anywhere. He did a mental headcount. Nikki, Ered, Nurf, Dolph, Preston, Harrison, Nerris, Space Kid, me… He blinked. Max was nowhere to be seen.
Rolling his eyes, he shook his head. Good. The jackass has got himself lost. That’ll do everyone a favour. He thought, and immediately felt bad for thinking it.
Max was right. Neil did think of him as a problem. It was like Max wasn’t even a person to him, just an inconvenience. Neil swallowed.
“I hope you get mauled by a bear, you piece of shit!” He wished he could take those words back.
Max deserved to have better friends.
Neil took a breath and marched up to Gwen. If Max wasn’t in view, it was probably safe to assume he was either in trouble or causing it. “Gwen,” said Neil.
“What?” Gwen sighed.
“Max is gone.”
“What?” Gwen scanned the group and swore under her breath. “That little shit— David!” She called to the front of the line. “Max is missing!”
David whirled around and immediately counted the kids, his mouth screwing into a thin line when he finished counting them. He and Gwen exchanged a worried look. “Campers,” he said. “When was the last time anybody saw Max?”
Nikki’s hand shot up in the air. “I saw him when we had our water break!” she piped. “He got stung by a bee!”
Gwen shot a pleading look to the sky. “Please, God, tell me he’s not all the way back there.”
Neil shook his head. “I saw him afterwards,” he said meekly. “A few minutes ago. He said he wasn’t feeling well.” He said a lot of other things too, he thought miserably. And I said things too.
David frowned. “That doesn’t sound good,” he said. He sucked in his cheeks. “Right. Gwen and I will go look for him. The rest of you campers, stay here.” He and Gwen rushed away down the path.
Neil swallowed, shoving his hands in his pockets. His hand was surrounded by wrapped candies. He let out a breath. Max, he thought. I’m sorry. And I hope you’re okay.
“Max!” David called, scanning the forest floor. “Max!” He sighed, running his fingers through his hair. He was trying not to think about it, but his mind was frantically going over worst case scenarios of what could have happened to Max. He could have fallen down a cliff. Or gotten attacked by a bear. Or fallen down a cliff and gotten attacked by a bear.
David took a deep breath. “Calm down,” he muttered aloud to himself. “Max probably just ran off. He does that.”
A flash of blue —the exact shade of Max’s hoodie— caught his eye poking through the leaves of a shrub, Western Spirea, to be specific. “Max?” David broke into a sprint, sliding beside the ten year old. “Max!”
Max lay limp, with his face in the grass.
David swallowed hard, gently turning Max over.
The kid’s face was puffy and swollen, with hives covering every inch of exposed skin. His lips were blue.
What had Nikki said? He got stung by a bee?
David swallowed a 'damn' and muttered a much more tasteful ‘dang.’ This was anaphylaxis if he ever saw it. A severe allergic reaction to the bee’s venom. He bit his lip. He didn’t remember seeing anything about Max having an allergy in his file.
He rolled his eyes. He wouldn’t have, would he? Optimistically, this was Max’s first time getting stung by a bee, but David knew that, even if it wasn’t, it wouldn’t have been included in his paperwork. His parents hadn’t even bothered to write his last name on the paper. Those parents writing down an allergy? Forget about it.
David covered his mouth with his hand, momentarily paralyzed. Thankfully, it didn’t take long for his first aid training to kick in. He lightly shoved Max’s shoulder a few times. “Max? Max? Can you hear me?”
No response. Unconscious.
Squeezing his eyes shut, David tilted his ear next to Max’s face, listening for breaths, and watching his chest. He felt a few faint puffs of air against the side of his face and let out a relieved sigh. At least he’s breathing.
Not for long, at this rate. David swallowed. He needed to get help. Call 9-1-1. He fumbled in his pocket, feeling for his cell phone. When he couldn’t find it on him, the panic started setting in. “Oh no,” he mumbled, frantically patting himself down. “I could have sworn I… where… I don’t have it… oh no, I don’t have it…” He was moments away from hyperventilating when he blinked at Max and realization dawned on him. … Maybe? He patted the kid’s hoodie pocket and, feeling a lump, reached in and pulled out his cell phone. David closed his eyes. “Max,” he breathed, shaking his head as he unlocked his phone, shot a quick text to Gwen explaining the situation and then dialled 9-1-1.
He barely heard the dispatcher answering the phone and asking rapid fire questions. He hardly noticed himself answering them. Gwen materialized by his side at some point, but he couldn’t say when. The only thing David could focus on was Max: his swollen face, blue lips and barely-there breaths.
The paramedics arrived, injected an Epi-Pen through Max’s jeans, and loaded him onto a stretcher.
David gulped. Max always seemed larger than life, but he was tiny on the stretcher.
“David?”
He blinked, jumping in surprise. “What?”
Gwen nodded towards the paramedics. “Go with him,” she said.
“But, the campers—”
“I’ll handle them.” She flashed him a tight, worried smile. “The little shit’s going to need someone to look after him, and I think he’d want you.”
He swallowed, nodding. “Thanks, Gwen.”
David had to sprint to catch up to the paramedics. Haste was definitely a priority. They hoisted Max into the back of a white ambulance, and David climbed in behind them.
The sirens blared. It’s strange, thought David. He’d never heard the siren staying at a steady pitch before. Any time he’d heard them before, they’d always been coming or going, their wails stretched out or compressed from the Doppler Effect and getting louder and quieter as it passed by. Sitting inside, it stayed constant, steady, never-ending.
David couldn’t look while the paramedics intubated Max. It made him sick to watch the monitors and screens counting every heartbeat, inhale and exhale.
This shouldn’t be happening, he thought. Not to a kid. Not to Max.
Max’s hand dangled over the edge of the stretcher. David stretched out his hand and gently wrapped his fingers around Max’s. Max’s skin was cold.
When the ambulance pulled into the emergency entrance of the hospital, the paramedics wheeled the stretcher away, and Max’s hand was wrenched out of David’s grip.
“Ten year old male, severe anaphylaxis, epi given on site…” the paramedics rattled away at a monologue directed at the doctors who met them at the doors.
A nurse stopped David. “You’ll have to wait here, sir,” she said.
David watched them wheel Max down the hall, through a set of doors and out of sight. He could almost still feel Max’s little hand in his. He shuffled to the waiting room, sinking into a cracking leather chair, clasping his hands together.
“Fuck,” he whispered under his breath.
What else was there to say?
Gwen read David’s latest text message, breathing a sigh. She’d taken the campers back to camp, given them free time, and locked herself in the counselors’ cabin. She couldn’t deal with all their questions.
Max probably thought Gwen hated him, and, well, about seventy-five percent of the time, he’d be right. She didn’t call him a little shit for nothing. Max could be, well, shitty.
But twenty-five percent of the time, he was eerily similar to Gwen. She saw herself in that little shit and, as much as she hated to admit it, she cared about him.
She sighed, melting into a chair and rubbing her eyes. Judging from David’s texts, Max would be fine. She unlocked her phone and reread the series of updates.
There was a small knock at the door. Gwen exhaled, closing her eyes and got up to answer it. “What?” she asked as she opened it.
Neil stood in the doorway, his hands in his pockets and a downcast, almost guilty expression on his face. “Is Max going to be okay?” he asked.
“David says Max is doing better,” she said. She didn’t want to make any promises in case the unthinkable happened.
Neil sniffed, and Gwen realized he had tears in his eyes. “This is all my fault,” he whispered. “I just got so fed up with him, but I never wanted this to happen…” He wiped his eyes.
Gwen blinked. “Neil,” she said. “It’s not your fault.”
Neil shook his head, sobbing. “I… I said if he stopped complaining, I’d give him candy. He didn’t say anything because of me…”
Gwen sighed, bending down to Neil’s eye level. “Hey,” she said. “It’s not your fault. Shit just happens sometimes, okay?”
Neil wiped his nose on the back of his hand. “I… I just treated him like a problem,” he said. “I told him I hoped he got mauled by a bear.” He sniffed. “I called him a piece of shit.”
Gwen laughed. “I call him that all the time,” she admitted. She shrugged. “You had a fight. Big deal.”
“I was awful to him.”
“Yeah, but you’re sorry about it, right?”
Neil nodded.
“Then tell him that.”
“But—”
Gwen smiled. “Hey,” she said. “Why don’t you go join the others and get something for Max? You can give it to him when we go visit him.”
“We’re going to visit him?”
She shrugged. “I’m in charge,” she said. “I’ll call it a field trip.”
Neil wiped his eyes, nodding. “Okay,” he said, turning and running away.
Gwen took a breath, pulling out her phone. We’re coming, she texted David. She left the counselors’ cabin to tell the Quartermaster to get the bus ready for a drive.
Max blinked awake and immediately wished he hadn’t. Fuck. A set of tubes were shoved in his nose, tickling the inside of his nostrils with air every couple of seconds. The sheets of the bed he was lying in were scratchy and stiff. Something warm was wrapped around his hand. The annoying sound of his heart monitor bored into his brain, beeping in time with his pulse. “Shut the fuck up,” he groaned.
“Max?”
Max jumped. “Shit, David!”
The camp counselor wore a relieved smile on his face. He held up a stern finger. “Language,” he said.
Max rolled his eyes. “Suck a dick,” he mumbled, tiredly flipping him off.
David smiled. “Glad you’re feeling better, Max,” he said gently.
Max suddenly realized David's hand was wrapped around his, and he hurriedly yanked his hand away. "What the hell even happened?" He asked, rubbing any trace of David’s touch from his hand. He didn’t want David thinking he liked holding his hands, even if, okay maybe he didn’t mind it. He had a reputation to uphold here. “All I remember is feeling normal and then all of a sudden, I couldn’t breathe.”
David leaned forward in his seat, sucking in his cheeks. “Max, have you ever been stung by a bee before today?” he asked.
Max shook his head.
“Well,” said David. “You’re allergic to bee stings. You had an allergic reaction.”
Oh. That explained a lot. Max probably could have figured that one out himself. Can’t breathe after a bee sting? What else could it be?
He stared at the blue hospital blanket, twiddling his fingers. “How’d you find me, anyway?” he asked quietly.
“Neil told us you weren’t with the group,” explained David, scratching the back of his neck. “I found you lying on the ground.”
Max looked down, feeling guilty. “Jeez,” he said. “I guess you were pretty happy about finally getting to use your first aid training, huh?”
It was David’s turn to look at the floor. “Max.” His voice was so low, you could hardly hear it. “I was terrified.” He sighed. “You were turning blue, and you weren’t moving…”
Max stared at him. “Why the hell do you care?” he asked. “It’s not like my parents would sue or anything. They don’t give a shit.”
David swallowed, looking at Max with an expression that Max couldn’t read. “That’s exactly why I care,” he said with a faint smile. “Because someone fucking has to.”
Max blinked, slightly shocked at the swear. It was less surprising than it had been the first time he heard David say that, but it still didn’t sound right. It was like a dog meowing. Max didn’t know how to react. “Oh,” was all he managed. “Thanks, I guess.” He swallowed, taking a breath and wrapping his arms around David in a lightning quick hug. “If you tell anyone about that, I’ll murder you,” he said, but his voice lacked its usual bite.
David smiled. “Okay, Max,” he said.
A little while later, the door creaked open and two people stepped in: Gwen and… Jesus Christ, was that Neil?
Gwen smirked when she saw him, coming over to the bedside and ruffling Max’s hair. “Good to see you, you little shit.”
He glared at her, smoothing down his hair.
She jerked a thumb over her shoulder. “Neil’s got something for you.”
Neil stood uneasily in the doorway, with his hands behind his back.
Max folded his arms. “Well? Are you going to come in or do I have to get David to drag you in?”
Neil shuffled into the room, keeping his eyes on the floor. “I, uh…” He blushed. “I brought you this.” He brought his hands around to his front, holding out—
“Mr. Honeynuts!” Max smiled, snatching the bear out of his hands and hugging it. It was stupid, but the dumb bear was the only thing that made him feel really happy.
Neil shuffled his feet around awkwardly. “Look, Max,” he said sheepishly. “I… I don’t think you’re a problem. I’m sorry I tried to make you act the way I wanted you to. I… I shouldn’t have done that.”
“Whatever.” Max shrugged. “I was being a dick.”
“But if I hadn’t told you to stop complaining, you’d have told David or Gwen that you weren’t feeling well and—”
“Jesus.” Max rolled his eyes, smirking. “Are you still hung up about that? It was a fucking bee, Neil. So unless you invented some kind of sciencey telepathic bee controller, it’s not your fault.”
Neil sniffed, smiling. “I’m just glad you’re okay,” he said. “Here.” He reached into his pocket and pulled out a handful of candies, passing them to Max. “Even though, technically, you lost the bet by yelling at me, I think you deserve these.”
Max took the candies. “Yeah, yeah.” He waved his hand dismissively. “Don’t go turning this into a big emotional moment or some bullshit.”
Gwen and Neil left a little while later, leaving Max and David alone in the room.
Max swallowed. “Hey, uh, David?” he asked.
“Yes, Max?”
Max scratched the back of his head. “Thanks,” he said. “For coming.”
David quirked a grin. “Of course, Max.”