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“Just… one more step…”
Max struggled up the stairs to the Hellerton house as she attempted to haul a very drunk Safi to the top of the staircase. After spending many hours at the Snapping Turtle, Safi had gotten way too drunk to drive the both of them home. So, being the far less drunk one, Max decided to drive them both to the Hellerton House, despite Safi’s many slurred protests. Climbing up the flight of stairs while carrying an intoxicated person was not exactly easy, but Max managed.
“God, finally,” Max whispered under her breath.
She stumbled over to her front door, carefully removing Safi’s arm from around her, and placed her against the wall near the door. While Max searched for her house key, Safi slumped down the wall slowly, her clothing making a soft scraping sound as she descended. The sound made Max’s head shoot up, and she watched as Safi drunkenly slid down her wall, trying to hide her obvious giggles. Max went back to looking for her key, sparing a few short glances at Safi, who had fallen asleep in the cold somehow.
Max unlocked her door, finally, to her calico cat’s, Iris’s, excitement. She came running to Max’s legs, rubbing her head against them.
“Looks like you missed me, huh, Iris?” Max laughed as she kneeled down to her cat’s level and petted her, evoking a loud purr in response.
Max petted Iris for a few minutes before standing back up, knowing she can't put off carrying Safi inside the house any longer. Especially in this weather. Max leaned forward towards Safi, who was awake now, but still drowsy, and attempted to pull Safi back on her feet, which was… unsuccessful. Safi pulled her arm back swiftly, and shook her head, as if denying to get up.
“Come on, Safi,” Max rolled her eyes, and attempted to pull her up a second time, to no avail. Safi pulled her arm away again, faster this time, and shook her head no.
“Mm-mm,” Safi hummed.
Max noticed Safi was starting to nod off, which would make it easier to carry her inside. Hopefully. Max tried to pull her up again, but no matter how hard she tried, Safi wouldn't budge. Max let go of Safi’s hands, hunching over while trying to catch her breath. Safi, on the other hand, laid down on Max’s snow-covered hardwood porch, sleeping somewhat comfortably. Max straightened herself after managing to catch her breath, brushing off snowflakes on her coat, and came up with an idea to get Safi inside.
Max leaned over to where Safi was laying, and grabbed her arm — not to lift her upwards, but instead to pull her inside. Iris peered outside the doorway, only to run away when snow hit her in the face as Max tugged a now-awake Safi, who was complaining incoherently, inside. Max dragged Safi to the couch, leaving a trail of quickly melting snow, and let go of Safi’s arm to catch her breath once more. After a few minutes, Max managed to swiftly lift Safi onto the couch easily, much to her relief. Safi almost immediately laid down and fell back asleep, her limbs hanging from the couch. Max stifled her laugh as she watched Safi, admiring how cute she looked while sleeping.
God, she looks adorable, she thought to herself.
Her gaze then fell to the couch cushion — which was very uncomfortable to sit on, let alone sleep on — that Safi was laying on, then looked up at her bedroom behind the fireplace and the abundance of pillows that sat on top of her mattress and strode towards the steps. Before she passed the fireplace, Max noticed Iris came out of hiding to lick the melted snow off the hardwood floor and snapped at her, making Iris scurry away.
“You have a water bowl, Iris. You don't need… nature to hydrate yourself !” Max quietly yelled, so as to not wake up Safi.
Max shook her head in disbelief and continued walking towards the stairs. As soon as she reached the top, Max rushed to her bed, grabbed the smallest (and fluffiest) pillow, and walked back downstairs. When she got back to the couch, Safi was sitting right side up, awake but still wasted, so Max sat next to her, clutching the white heart-shaped pillow against her body.
As soon as Max sat down, Safi rested her head on her shoulder, nuzzling her face into Max’s teal cardigan. The sudden touch made Max’s body flinch slightly, her head turning to look at Safi instantly. She gave Safi a half smile and looked down at her lap, the pillow she was clutching now on top of it. Max fidgeted with the tassels on the pillow as the two sat in silence, the sounds of each other's breathing and the crackling fireplace next to them filling the air. They sat there for a while, neither one moving an inch. It was a peaceful silence and despite the little time they’ve known each other, they grew comfortable in each other's presence. Neither of them spoke for a while, until Safi finally opened her mouth to speak.
“Do you want to know something?” Safi whispered, her words slurring slightly.
“Of course,” Max chuckled softly at Safi’s drunken request.
Safi looked down at her hands, fidgeting with her rings, forgetting what she was going to say. She was distracted for a little while by her shiny jewelry, Max being completely oblivious until she felt cold hands grab hers. Her body jolted from the touch and looked down at her hand, being met with Safi and her fascination with Max’s gold rings.
“You were gonna say something, remember?” Max nudged Safi's shoulder gently, snapping her out of it.
“Oh- right, yeah,” Safi stuttered.
“I think- maybe- I like you.”
Max sat there frozen, not knowing what to say. Her throat tightened, feeling like it was closing up and that she couldn't say a word. She knew that she shouldn't take what Safi says seriously — she is drunk, after all — but some part of her just couldn't bear the fact that her own best friend has feelings for her. It wouldn't be the first time, but after what happened with Chloe in the past, how she eventually left Max, she didn't want the same thing happening to her and Safi.
Of course, Max herself had no idea how she felt about Safi. She never gave much thought to it, but now? She was practically overthinking it. Her fingernails dug into her pants as she thought of an excuse to get up and calm herself down.
“Uhm- let me get you some water,” Max blurted out, getting up almost immediately, leaving Safi to lay down on the couch.
Max attempted to place the pillow on the coffee table without looking, but it fell on the floor instead. She didn't care, though. She just wanted out of that situation. She rushed to the kitchen and leaned forward against the counter next to the sink, catching her breath as if she ran a marathon. She stood there for a while, her head down and eyes closed, forgetting what she meant to do. Her breath was trembling, but she eventually was able to calm it and let go of the counter.
She headed towards the cabinet filled with glasses, and reached up to grab the medium sized cup. She managed to bring it to the sink without it dropping from her sweat-filled hands, and filled it with water.
Max went to bring it back to Safi to prevent some hangover symptoms, but as soon as she got back, Safi was dead asleep. Max sighed as she placed the glass on the coffee table, so at least Safi could drink it in the morning. Max went to turn off the downstairs light, but tripped over the pillow she had left on the floor. She picked up the pillow and put it under Safi, just so she was comfortable. Max turned around to walk away, only getting a few steps in before turning back around and walking towards Safi.
Max hovered over Safi for a few minutes, then leaned forward, her face inches away from Safi’s. Max hesitated for a bit, and started to second guess herself and her possible feelings for Safi. She shook her head at the thought, knowing that this was the one thing she was sure about. She leaned further forward, tucking loose strands of hair behind her ear and planted her lips on Safi’s forehead. Max lifted her head up after a few seconds, a smile forming on her face as she fully processed what she did. She stared at Safi for a while, looking up and down her face, taking in everything about her.
Max got up and walked back towards the light switch, her cheeks still flushed with a light pink. She rushed towards the stairs to her bed, taking off her coat and throwing it on the floor. She was way too exhausted to put it on a hanger, much less put on actual pajamas. She laid on her bed, attempting to fall asleep with a lot on her mind. She ended up staring at the ceiling for an hour, replaying Safi’s drunken confession in her head on loop. Max knew Safi was definitely not going to remember any of what happened tonight, and part of her was glad. But the other part of her wasn't sure how she could just pretend things were normal.
Max thought over a hundred ideas how she could act like everything was fine and that they were still best friends, and not anything more, when her eyes started to feel heavy. She decided to think it over in the morning instead of staying up all night, and stressing herself out more. Coming up with a thousand different ideas while fighting her inevitable sleep would not have worked out.
But it’ll be fine… probably.