Chapter Text
Phoebe welcomed her friend, you, in with a bright smile and a short hug. “So, I was thinking, movie marathon with tons of snacks, some karaoke, and then we end the night with a sleepover!” The wavy brown haired girl told you, closing the door behind you as you walked in and sat on the couch.
You tapped on your knees with a smile to her, “Sounds great!” you responded, looking around the colorful home before turning your attention back to Phoebe. “I didn’t bring any of my stuff though, I didn’t know we’d be having a sleepover.” You told Phoebe honestly, shrugging your shoulders slightly but Phoebe simply laughed it off. “We can pick your stuff up later, no worries.” She comforted, putting a hand on your shoulder before going to the kitchen to prepare some of the snacks the two of you would have. Suddenly she let out a rather loud groan, “Darn, I think I left my checklist in my bedroom, I’ll be right back okay?” Phoebe told you, already heading up the steps of her staircase. You yelled out an ‘Okay!’ as you watched her figure retreat upstairs, quickly turning back around and opening your phone to scroll through it in silence.
Footsteps were heard, echoing on the wooden floors behind you. You assumed it was Phoebe who had come back from her bedroom, so you turned around but were met face to face with Max Thunderman, Phoebe's twin brother. “Oh, hey Max.” You greeted, turning back around to sit properly on the couch, continuing with the activity you were doing.
Max slightly narrowed his eyes, “Hey…” He mumbled, going to the kitchen whilst looking at you suspiciously. “What are you doing here?” He asked, noticing the counter filled with tons of snacks. He tilted his head and filled his arms with about half of those snacks, planning to hideout in his lair. You were still looking down at your phone, not necessarily interested in whatever Max was doing. “Sleepover with Phoebe.” You said simply, not even looking up until you heard the rustling from the kitchen. “What are you doing?” You asked, raising your brow and turning off your phone. Max had snacks filling his hands, up to his chin. “Getting food.” He stated obviously, trying to walk from the kitchen to his tunnel that slid into his lair. You saw how Max was almost about to topple over from the amount of food in his hands so you finally stood up, “Are you going into hibernation or something?” You asked him, slowly walking to him as you noticed a few of your favorite snacks in the pile-up. “Yes.” The boy grumbled, trying to walk to his lair.
You shook your head and rolled your eyes, standing in front of him and grabbing the top portion of the snacks he had taken so he could at least see while he was walking. “Lead the way.” You told him, gesturing with your head. He walked only a few feet to a love seat type thing, he opened his tunnel by kicking a button on the wooden loveseat with a yellow cushion and matching pillows. The cushion opened up vertically, exposing a slide of sorts, your mouth was opened wide in shock. Max tossed his grouping of snacks down the slide, holding his hands out for the group you held. When you weren’t handing them to him, he looked up and noticed your shocked expression which caused him to smirk in pride. “You know, if you ever want a tour, I would gladly show you around down there.” He hummed, taking the group of snacks you held, throwing them down the same way he did the others. He then positioned himself to go down the slide, but he didn’t go down yet, he looked at you. “Do you wanna take up that offer now?” He asked, holding his hand out.
You contemplated it for a bit but your thoughts were interrupted by Phoebe coming back down the stairs, “Got the list!” She said happily, making it about halfway down the staircase before noticing you and Max. “Max! Leave them alone, go and be obnoxious somewhere else!” Phoebe sneered with narrowed eyes, walking to the bottom of the staircase to where you stood next to the tunnel. Max rolled his eyes with a smug grin, “Later.” He told you, winking slightly before sliding down to his lair, the entrance way closing.
Phoebe sighed, “Hopefully he won’t come back up here.” She mumbled, leading you back to the couch and turning on the tv. You sat on the couch quietly, smiling gently and shaking your head at the antics of the two siblings. Phoebe walked over to the kitchen where she left the snacks and her expression dropped, “The snacks.” She said bluntly, looking up at you, you turned your head in the direction of the entrance Max just went down into. “Of course.” Phoebe groaned, bringing the rest of the snacks to the living room table. “No worries, we still have plenty.” She reassured, though you didn’t need the reassurance, it was still appreciated.
The sleepover was successful, a night filled with music, movies, eating, and overall fun. You saw Max a few more times in the night, but it was nothing more than shared glances.
The next morning Phoebe and you said your goodbyes. Phoebe pouted, “I wish the night lasted longer.” She sighed, upset you had to go. You laughed, “I’ll sleep over another day.” You reassured, giving her a tight hug to which she returned. Max had entered the kitchen for a moment, walking back to his lair, he looked up to you and saluted a small goodbye, winking once again before going down the slide to his bedroom. You rolled your eyes at his exit and pulled away from the hug with Phoebe with a smile. “I will see you at school, stop sending me off like I’m going to war.” You laughed, scrunching your nose, hand gently holding your friends. Phoebe chuckled and shook her head, “I’ll see you at school tomorrow, be safe on your way home.” She told you and you nodded. “Bye.” You said your final goodbye, leaving the Thunderman household, making your way home.
Over the next few weeks, you had been at the Thunderman household for a good chunk of days during those few weeks. During one of those visits Phoebe had to leave in the middle of it, she told you to just hang out there until she came back from whatever errand she had to run.
You sat quietly, occasionally making small talk with some of the Thunderman family. You fixed Noras bow for her, picked a game for Billy to play, you said ‘Hellos’ to the parents. The only person you hadn’t seen pretty much all day was Max, which was surprising since he usually came up by this time.
You stood up and walked over to his lair entrance, biting your nail as you contemplated opening it. Unbeknownst to you, someone coming up the basement stairs noticed you near the lair entrance and smiled slightly, making their steps quieter. You were so in thought that you were unaware when that person came up behind you. They roughly placed their hands on your shoulders, “Boo!” The person said as you jumped practically ten feet in the air. You turned, clutching your chest, and trying to catch your breath. There was the perpetrator, Max Thundermand. “Max.” You sighed out, still taking deep breaths, calming your beating heart. He hummed, hands behind his back innocently as he tried to stop himself from laughing. “You’re at my entrance.” He told you, raising a brow, head tilting to where you stood. You laughed gently and shook your head, hand lowering from your chest, “I haven’t seen you all day, for all I know you could’ve died down there.” You teased, crossing your arms.
Max nodded, “True, true.” He spoke, looking at you to the entrance, then back to you. “You want to take up that offer of a tour?” He asked, noticing how Phoebe was nowhere in sight. You couldn’t control how you broke out into a smile, nodding quickly. He laughed, pushing the button and opening the hatch, “After you.” He spoke, hand extended to you so you can position yourself. You took his hand, stepping up the two steps before putting both your legs into the tube. You were a little nervous, sure you’ve seen him do this a thousand times but there was still a small pit of anxiousness in the pit of your stomach. Max noticed your hesitance and released your hand, whistling slightly as he stepped down behind you and gave you a push, sending you flying down the slide. He could hear your original screams of fear until they turned in delight, your giggles echoing up the slide to him. He smiled to himself, getting into position as he grabbed the top of the hatch, “Move out the way, I’m coming down!” He yelled, sliding down, closing the hatch in the process. Blue lights flashed by as he made twists and turns, sliding right down and falling onto his bed, lifting his head and seeing you holding your stomach, laughing on the side of the bed. “Was it fun?” He asked you, scooting to the edge of his bed. You nodded, calming your breaths from laughing and looking around.
You looked around his desks and bookshelves, noticing a few experiments , gadgets, and other things. Max watched as you looked around, a small smile on his features. He leaned forward, hands clasped together, “So, what do you do around school now?” He asked, trying to make conversation. You looked back at him with an unimpressed expression, holding some sort of orb. You hummed as you played with it a bit, he didn’t mind. “You don't have to act like I'm a new person just because I hang out with Phoebe.” You told him, turning back around to put the silver orb back where you found it. Max looked down, soon looking around his room again, “I know, but, she’s a goody two shoes, she probably rubbed off on you, I haven’t seen you one on one in months.” Max told what he believed to be his ‘former’ friend. You frowned a bit, turning and sitting next to him. “I know, I'm sorry.” You apologized, bumping shoulders with him which caused him to smile a bit. “I’ve actually been busy, me and Phoebe finally got a hangout for that sleepover because my schedule cleared up.” You explained to him, standing back up, looking at his bookshelf area to see if he had anything actually readable. He looked at you as you looked around more. He cleared his throat, bringing your attention to him. “Since your schedule’s free now, I can show you around a ton of other places too.” Max said, putting a hand through his hair, smirking. You rolled your eyes at him but smiled anyway, “Oh, can you now?” You asked blandly, putting his books back. He nodded, putting his hand behind him to prop himself up as he leaned back. “I sure can, I know all the best spots.” He bragged to you. You walked over to him, crossing your arms, “It sounds like you're trying to ask me on a date.” You spoke, tilting your head and he flushed since you caught him. He didn’t change his expression or position, “And if I was?” He asked you, he was met with slight silence. He was a little worried due to that but you finally spoke up, “Maybe you should ask instead of dodging it.” You told him, arms still crossed.
Max was looking up at you since you were standing in front of the bed and he was sitting on his. He smirked, now being the one to roll his eyes at you. “Okay, okay.” He said, holding his hand out in surrender, “Would you like to go on a date with me sometime?” He asked, smiling at you, his cheeks a soft pink, his eyes soft. You smiled back at him, “I would love that.” You respond, ruffling his hair. His eyes widened, genuinely not expecting that response. He looked at you with another smile, this one a little dopier, “Really?” He whispered to you, standing up and meeting your eyes for a bit more proper eye contact. “Really.” You whispered back to him, biting your lip.
Max decided the best place for a date was an abandoned museum in Hiddenville. The objects were covered in dust, no security systems, some of the glass was even broken. That wasn’t why he took you there though, he pulled you up a ladder to the roof, carefully sitting the two of you somewhere stable. You had a beautiful view of Hiddenville, the warmth of the sun on your face and the cool breeze made it all perfect.
After your visit to the abandoned museum you guys made your way back to the Thunderman household, hand in hand. Once you guys returned, Phoebe still hadn’t returned, it had been hours, the sun was practically setting. You and Max sat on the livingroom couch together, Max’s arm around you as you talked about the abandoned building, the sunset, anything you guys saw, everything.
You smiled, looking up at him, him looking down at you since you were leaning on him slightly. “That was fun.” You told him, smiling gently, “I guess you do know the best spots.” You said, admitting that he stuck to his word. Max laughed slightly, “Wasn’t it cool? I knew you’d have fun.” Max told you, rubbing your arms gently with the tips of his fingers. You shivered slightly at the feeling, looking at the table in front of you, but you didn’t pull from his grasp. You inhaled slightly, catching the smells of grass, metal, and a slight whiff of chemicals. None of which was surprising you since you saw his bedroom earlier. “It was really fun, it was amazing.” You told him, “You’re amazing.” You said suddenly, not noticing how you made his gaze soften even more to you. He took his free hand and played with your hand, “You’re nice to be around, you always are.” He said to you, his voice quieter than it usually was. You looked back up to meet his gaze, “You think so?” You asked, fingers interlocking with his. Max nodded his head, licking his lips slightly, “I can be comfortable around you, that might sound weird.” He spoke, his voice gentle, which you were not used to. You shook your head, enjoying this quiet little moment between the two of you, “No, no.” You reassured, thumb rubbing the back of his hand. “I feel comfortable around you two.” Your comment made the tips of ears turn red and you laughed slightly, taking your free hand and messing with them. Max shook you off his ear and looked at you blankly but you laughed at his expression, leaning more into him. Max shifted a bit, “Would you like to do things like…this, more often?” He asked you, referring to the current position they were in and the day as a whole. You gave him a toothy grin, “More dates?” You asked innocently and he squeezed your hand gently, chuckling a bit. “Yes, more dates. Would you like to go on more dates more often?” He asked you, and you thought about it. You had done this earlier so he just raised brow, turning your chin to make you meet his eyes once again.
You pursed your lips, “How about this question…” You began, backing out of his grip to face him and talk to him more comfortably. “Would you like to date me and see how that goes?” You asked, the question causing Max to pause, sitting up a bit. His mouth opened a bit in shock, “Yes…” He whispered, but you acted as if you couldn’t hear him. You cupped your ear, leaning towards him, “What was that?” You asked, smiling wide as he pulled you in by your waist. “Yes, I would. I would love that.” He responded, his eyes shining once he met yours eyes. He brought his lips to yours, his soft lips meeting yours, he couldn’t control it when he smiled against your lips. “This is all I need.” He mumbled against your lips.
After a little bit the two of you pulled apart and you sat next to him, the two of you just talking. Soon enough, Phoebe walked through the front door, looking up and seeing you before quickly looking back down and putting her keys in her bag. “I’m so sorry, I didn’t expect that to take so long.” She said, walking as she looked down, “Do you wanna have a sleepover?” She asked, completely stopping in her tracks when she looked up and noticed Max next to you on the couch as you guys talked. The two of you looked back at her, but you had a message lit up on your phone. You frowned, scrunching your nose, “Sorry Phoebe, I gotta get home since it’s late.” You said, standing up and brushing yourself off. Phoebe pouted and hugged you goodbye over the couch, “Okay, be safe on your way home. Maybe next time we can have a sleepover.” She said, you nodding in response, smiling at her sweetly. She waved goodbye, walking upstairs.
You walked to the door, Max seeing you out. He leaned on the doorway, “See you next time?” He asked, his face bright red, but his eyes were dilated. You nodded, smiling at him for the millionth time that day, kissing his cheek gently. “I’ll see you next time.” You said, starting your walk home.
Max closed the door, holding his cheek softly, a lovesick smile on his face. Phoebe rushed down the stairs and glared at him, “Stay away from my friend.” She grumbled to Max, pointing to him menacingly with a glare before running back up the stairs. Max ignored her and went back down to his lair.
You and Max, after establishing a sweet relationship, had been hanging out more. You guys had been going on more dates, breakfast, lunch, dinner. It wasn’t every single day but, it felt like it, not that either of you minded. The two of you didn’t hide your relationship, you just chose not to mention it, it wasn’t either of you guys’s obligations to share the information of your newfound relationship.
Eventually the weeks passed, you hung out with Phoebe, you met with Max, it was a routine. Sure, you hung out with your other friends, but it was mainly the Thundermans
Phoebe had hung out with you occasionally, not as much as before though. She had noticed you saying you couldn’t hang out more and more so she messaged you. She asked you if you were free the upcoming Saturday and you responded with an energetic yes. You and her made plans to meet at Splatburger for lunch to talk and maybe arrange a sleepover the same day, just see where the day takes you guys.
At Splatburger Phoebe sat in a booth, looking around for you as she looked down to her phone, typing out a message. Within the same minute you saw across from her, “Hey there stranger!” You greeted, smiling ear to ear when the girl in front of you looked up. She gave you a toothy grin, “Hey!” She greeted, shimmying her shoulders. “It feels like it’s been forever.” She told you, looking at the tablet and ordering a drink. You hummed in response, nodding as you also ordered a drink, setting the tablet to the side. “You’ve been busy?” Phoebe asked, also setting her tablet to the side. You smiled at her, your eyes shining, “Yeah,I guess so. I’ve been hanging out with friends.” You told her, tilting your head ever so slightly. Phoebe's facial expression kind of dropped at the mention of that, but she didn’t say anything.
The waiter came by, giving the two of you your drinks. “Enjoy your meal.” He said, walking away to clean tables or go to the kitchen, whichever.
You took a sip of your drink, cheeks warming since the drink was so cold. Phoebe was messing with her straw, her expression looked as if she wasn’t having a good time. You knocked on the table slightly, “You okay? You’re zoning out on me.” You asked her, eyebrows furrowed, a small frown on your face. Phoebe snapped out of it and looked at you, contemplating as if she wanted to say something. “What’s wrong?” You questioned, a little worried since she was so quiet.
Phoebe licked her lips and made brief eye contact with you. She inhaled a bit, getting some air before speaking. “I noticed you and Max have been..” She paused, biting her lip to find the right words. “You guys have been hanging out a lot.” She said, finger slightly tapping on the table. You didn’t understand why her question was toned so strangely but you brushed it off, continuing to sip on your drink. “Yeah, he’s fun to hang with.” You said after swallowing, pushing the drink to the side, a small smile on your face as you looked over a bit, thinking about the Thunderman you had hung out with the day before. Phoebe noticed how you looked and rolled her eyes, groaning. She leaned her head on the back of the booth, “Ugh,” She began, tilting her head forward to look at you properly, “Don't tell me you like him, I’ll barf.” She continued with wide eyes to emphasize her disgust. You looked at her with a raised brow, not saying anything. Phoebe almost choked on her drink, covering her mouth as she properly drank her drink. “Oh my god, is that why you’ve been ditching me?” She asked, fists lightly hitting the table as she tilted her head, mouth open a bit.
You were confused about this entire conversation, you crossed your arms at her accusation. “Ditching you?” You asked, shaking your head, trying to process what she was saying. Phoebe nodded as if it were obvious, “Yeah, you’ve been ditching me.” She said slowly, her mouth spinning into a frown. “Is it to hang out with him?” She asked, a little louder than her previous comment, hands clasped together in front of her onto the table. You dropped your crossed arms, placing them on each side of the seats. “First of all,” You spoke, voice harsher than you meant it to be, causing Phoebe to put her hands in her lap. “I haven’t been ditching you.” You continued on, closing your eyes to take a deep breath. “Second of all, I have friends other than you and Max.” You informed Phoebe, reminding her that you have plenty of other friends who wished to spend time with you.
Phoebe looked away, refusing to look you in your eyes. She blinked, nose twitching slightly, “I see you guys, when you hang out.” She spoke quietly, facing you once more, not looking in your eyes. “The museum, the park, even here!” She continued, listing it out. You tried to get her to look at you, facing yourself in her eyesight. “Okay? Is that really that much of a problem?” You asked honestly, your eyes soft. Phoebe looked in your eyes immediately, practically yelling out, “Yes!” Your eyes were slightly wide, you expected that response, you just didn’t expect her to say it so quickly. “Why?” You asked, breathily, shaking your head in disbelief. “He’s my brother!” She whisper yelled, face slightly irritated that you weren’t getting it. All you could think and say was, “So?”
Phoebe leaned back into the cushions of the booth they sat in. She took a deep breath in, sighing the same one out. She closed her eyes, “I’m sorry.” She mumbled, looking at you once again, with a more apologetic look. “I’m just worried he’s hanging with you more to get under my skin.” She expressed, taking another sip of her drink, almost as if she didn’t just say that. You paused, biting your lip, eyes searching Phoebe's body language for clarification before resorting to just asking. “What do you mean by that?” You asked, looking down at the ice in your drink. Phoebe lifted her brow, messing with her straw, not looking at you once again. Not like you were looking at her anyways. “I mean that he hasn’t hung out with you until me and you did.” She told you, a frown on her face as she spoke. “You guys being together more is concerning.” She continued on, eyebrows furrowing and mouth cornering to the side. “He would do anything to torment me, he doesn’t care who he hurts along the way.” She finished off, putting her hand up, leaning on it. Your eye twitched slightly, still looking at the ice swirling in your cup, “Why would you say that?” You whispered, looking up at her. She looked up at you as well, noticing your sad tone. You put your hands up on the table, putting them on top of one another. “Why can’t you just believe he wants to be around me?” You asked, your expression was unreadable to her. Phoebe sucked her teeth, rolling her eyes, “Please, Max has this whole thing where he tries to be ‘edgy’ or ‘evil’.” She spoke, nodding her head along with her words, “He doesn’t have a bone in him that's good.” She continued on taking another sip of her drink. She picked up the tablet to order food and a refill since she was finishing her drink. “I think he does.” You spoke quietly, still looking at her even though she wasn’t looking at you anymore. “I live with him, trust me, he doesn’t. Mom and dad say it’s a phase that will pass.” She kept speaking of him like you didn’t know who he was, like he was a stranger to you that Phoebe was ranting about. You shook your head, “I think that’s a bit much, I don't think he’s evil.” You spoke lowly, confused as to why Phoebe was acting like this. “He likes hanging out with me.” You told her, enunciating each word with narrowed eyes. Phoebe laughed slightly, “Sure…right.” She said, smiling a little, not noticing how her friend was looking at her.
You grabbed your items and stood from the booth, “If you’re just going to keep dogging on Max I think I’d rather pass.” You told her, a blank expression on your face. Phoebe put the tablet down,
“What are you talking about?” She asked, clearly confused, standing up as well. “I’m leaving Phoebe, when you want to be mature, come back to me.” You explained, leaving the booth and the restaurant, leaving Phoebe to stand by herself in Splatburger.
You left Splatburger, texting Max that you wanted to talk to him. He invited you to go over to his place, so you accepted, walking over to his house. You knocked on the door and Nora opened the door, “Hi!” she greeted, waving slightly and letting you in.
You said your hellos to her, walking inside, waving to Billy who waved back to you. “Hey!” He said to you, stepping up the stairs. You walked to the lair, opening the entrance and sliding down, the doorway closing behind you as you landed on Max’s bed like you have multiple times before.
Max was standing, putting a few items together. His ears perked up, hearing your entrance. He turned around and greeted you with a smile, walking to his bed and crawling on it slightly, engulfing you in a hug. Your hardened expression softened as you inhaled his scent, “You smell good.” You mumbled against his shoulder, slightly pouting as you pulled away from him. His eyes shined when he looked at you, “My shampoo does wonders.” He joked, fixing his position so he was just sitting next to you.You smiled gently at him, leaning on him, your mood slightly off, which he noticed. “What’s going on?” He asked you, his bright smile faltering, arm going around your shoulders to hold you close.
You sighed and pulled back, looking down to your hands then back up to his brown eyes. “I was at lunch with Phoebe and…” You paused, hands playing with Max’s blanket that you sat on. He urged you to go on, hands propping himself up as he leaned back slightly. His expression didn’t really tell you much, it was overall neutral. “She was saying some really bad things about you.” You continued, biting the inside of your cheek, looking down sadly. “Saying things like you’re going to hurt me, that you’re with me because you want to torment her.” You continued on, looking up and seeing how his brows furrowed and he was now sitting forward, looking concerned. You waved your hands a bit, “I don’t believe that though!” You reassured him, this comment making him sigh out in relief, holding his chest slightly. “She was just talking really, negatively about you.” You told him, frowning as you shrugged, unsure of how to feel about it all.
Max stood up from his bed and rolled his eyes, sighing. “Of course she was,” He said, completely used to it. “she doesn’t have a good time unless she’s showing her superiority to me.” He sneered, his face a mixture of disgust and anger towards his twin. You looked at him, your eyebrows knitted as you stared at him. “Don’t talk about her like that.” You told him with a frown, disliking that he was now talking about Phoebe. Max turned to you, eyebrows raised, his hand gesturing to you. “You just left lunch because she was talking badly about me!” He spoke in confusion, wondering why he can’t just state how Phoebe acted. “That doesn’t mean I want to hear the same sort of talk about her!” You said in the same tone, eyes wide.
The two of you sat in silence for a moment, neither of you looking at each other. After a little while, after thinking for a moment, you stood up, standing in front of Max. His eyes lit up as he looked into your eyes, searching them and your expression for how you felt right now. You smiled gently, that made him feel comfortable.
You took his hands in yours, “Max, Phoebe is my friend,” You began, the comment making his gaze flicker elsewhere for a moment, “and you are my boyfriend.” You continued on, wanting his eyes to stay on you. He looked back to you, squeezing your hands, “Okay, so… you choose me over her?” He asked, because that’s what he was getting from this. You shook your head which made him even more confused. “I’m saying that because both of you are trying to make me pick sides.” You told him, letting go of one of his hands and placing it on his shoulder. He shook his head, “No we aren’t-” He tried to start but you cut him off, “by speaking bad about each other, trying to make me think less of each one of you. That’s basically making me pick sides, pick who I think is better.” You told him bluntly, frowning. He tried to lightly shake his head but he realized you were right. “You hate when I hang out with her, she hates when I hang out with you. I hate when you guys act like this.” You continued, letting go of his shoulder and his hand, backing away. Max stayed quiet, trying to study you to see your next move. “Since you guys keep putting me in the middle I don't want anything to do with either of you.” You explained, going up his stairs, Max chasing after you. “Wait!” He called out as you walked into the living room past Nora and Billy who were throwing a football around.
You walked out the door without saying goodbye to the two kids, Max trying to get to you, leaving the front door open as he followed you. Nora and Billy stopped playing their game, Billy holding the football as they listened out.
In the end Max couldn’t reach you, you had gotten away. He cursed in his mind, putting his arms over his head, kicking one of the pots they had outside. Max walked back inside his home, rubbing his hand on his face. He turned and closed the door, forehead on the wood of it, his arm raising and his fist resting above his head.
Steps were heard near him, but he made no other movement. “Max?” His little sister's voice called out, this caused him to turn his body to her, arm still leaning on the door. He took a deep breath and put on a small smile. “Yeah Nora? What’s up?” He asked, biting the inside of his cheek, looking at the girl with a rather large bow in her hair. Nora looked at the door and then to Max, looking up at her older brother with a frown, that’s when Max knew she was going to say something about you. “They looked so…” Nora paused, trying to find a word, her brows furrowing, fingers messing with her palms. Max sighed, taking his arm off the door. He brought the back of his hand to quickly wipe the underside of his nose slightly, a simple action many do, but Max did it to muffle the sniffle he let out. “Sad? Upset?” Max gave ideas to the girl to what emotion might’ve been expressed on your features. Noras face was softer now, a frown still present, “Angry.” She told him quietly, the word caused Max to look back at the door. “Yeah, that also makes sense.” He sighed, putting his hands into his pockets. “Why does everybody look at you like that Max?” Nora asked, that question caused him to freeze. He bit his cheek even harder as he looked down, tears burning his eyes, “I usually deserve it.” He mumbled out, walking past his sister and pressing the button to his lair, quickly going down the slide, the hatch closing as his figure disappeared.
Nora watched as Max went down to his bedroom, the hatch closed so she was able to see her second oldest brother, Billy. He stood on the end of the staircase, a worried expression mirrored from Nora to his own face. “He looks..really upset.” Billy said, walking over to Nora, both standing and looking at the hatch. A piece of them hoped you would walk back through the door, or that Max would come back upstairs. Neither happened. Noras eyes shifted to Billy, “I think he was about to cry.” She told him, and the older boy looked at her with sad eyes, his lips downturned. Both of them showed pure concern for their older brother, not knowing what to do.
The rest of the day was passing and the sun had set in Hiddenville. Barb, the mother of the household, and Hank, the father, had been setting the table for dinner and calling each of their kids down to eat. Nora and Billy had sat at the table, and Phoebe was walking down the stairs to go eat. Brab stopped her before she sat down, “Phoebe, honey, get your brother and tell him dinner is ready.” She told her daughter, taking a seat and passing around some bread rolls to the youngest. Phoebe's eyes narrowed as her neutral expression contorted to one of annoyance, “Why do I have to do it? Besides, he never likes eating with us anyways.” She said simply, rolling her eyes as she continued walking to the table. Barb gave Phoebe a look, raising a brow and sticking her tongue into her cheek, “Phoebe Thunderman, go get your brother for dinner. Now.” Barb ordered, daring Phoebe to try to speak against it. The girl didn’t even attempt, she held her arms up in surrender before going down the stairs to the basement.
She was clearly annoyed with the fact she had to be the one to get Max for dinner, or the fact they had to get him at all. She opened the door and noticed it was dark, the only thing lighting up the room was the blue LED lights around the ceiling, some on the desks he had around, and in his slide. Phoebe looked around and saw Max’s figure hunched over the edge of his bed, the side furthest from the door and turned away from the doorway as well. He was looking down at something, for all Phoebe knew he could be working on something to prove how ‘evil’ he was, like usual. She knocked on the wall to make him aware of her presence, “Max, Dinner.” She said bluntly, but received no sort of response. Due to that she snapped her fingers at him, “Hello? Dinner, upstairs, come on.” She stated, rolling her eyes and dropping her hand once he didn’t respond, again. “Whatever.” She said, turning to go upstairs until she heard a sob escape Max. She turned back to face him, not moving further into the room. “Max?” She asked, softer than usual.
Max was on the edge of his bed scrolling through his phone, looking at the messages he had been sending to you all day that were left undelivered.
He couldn’t contain his sobs, he started crying the moment he got back into his lair, and he was finding it really hard to stop. “They were perfect for me, Phoebe.” He muttered out, “They were perfect, they are perfect.” Max whispered, eyes glossed over as he gently sniffled. “I like them so much, I…” He gasped out, hand to his nose to stop himself from breaking into uncontrollable sobs in front of Phoebe. “I love them.” He spoke, his voice cracking as he tossed his phone to the side, putting his face in his hands. “I loved them so much that I wasn’t thinking about anything or anyone else, just them.” He continued, his voice was raspy, scratchy. Phoebe's eyes widened, she was blinking, lost in his words. “Were you guys?” She asked, not finishing her thought, closing her mouth once she heard his sniffles start up again. He wiped his tears, clearing his throat, “You ruined the one good thing I had.” Max stated, blinking back more tears.
Phoebe stood quietly, the statement caused her to blink slightly in confusion. She didn’t know how to feel at the display in front of her, he’s never talked so openly about his feelings with her.
Max sighed out, messing with his fingers in his lap. “The one person who didn’t try to change me and actually liked me, actually listened to me and they’re gone.” He continued on, looking to the ceiling. “Max you…” Phoebe started but paused, trying to find the right words, “They were my friend Max.” She mumbled, kicking the ground. Max turned to her quickly, his eyes were red and puffy, he looked terrible, “They were my everything Phoebe!” He yelled with a glare, before hiccuping a sob. “They were everything to me!” He said, much quieter, his voice hoarse so it didn’t get any louder. Phoebe could see his eyes glossing with tears, like they would pour any second. She looked down to the floor, she didn’t know why she couldn’t look at him. “You talk about them as if they can’t be friends with you and be with me at the same time, that is exactly why they broke up with me!” He yelled, pointing to his phone that showed his lines of messages to you that were left undelivered due to you blocking him. He put his hands on his temples. “God, and I thought…” He started, choking up slightly, he sniffled harshly, clearing and calming himself for a moment. He placed his hands down, looking at her. “Thank you Phoebe.” He suddenly said, a frown on his lips. “For what?” Phoebe asked, her voice quiet as she slightly looked up at him, they made eye contact. He nodded slightly as he spoke, “For showing me which one of us was evil. Because you really proved that it’s not me.”
Phoebe was hugging herself, tears brimming her eyes. She covered her mouth, her face covered in shock. She tried to speak, “I’m-” She was cut off by Max turning back around, “Just go, I’m not hungry.” He mumbled to her. “Max-” “Get out Phoebe!”
She rushed back up the stairs, the family all looking at her, expecting Max to be following her. Phoebe bit her lip, blinking back tears, looking away from them, “Max isn’t hungry, I’m not either.” She said, running up the stairs to her room.
Barb and Hank looked at each other and sighed, shaking their heads at their two eldest children. Billy and Nora on the other hand, were even more worried than they had been earlier.