Sam & Max One-Shots

The Statue

It was unusually calm. The soft whisper of waves washing against the concrete, the rhythmic swaying of the breeze, the gentle buzzing of the neon lampposts overhead. All the noises blended into a soothing, continuous song. 

Unintentionally, Sam found himself joining the choir. He hummed a bluegrass melody as he watched the waves roll up and down along the base of the Statue of Liberty. Despite finding the song nostalgic, he couldn't quite remember the words. To compensate he tapped Max's foot to the beat. Max was sleeping soundly beside him on the metal bench. Sprawled out, he took up most of the space. 

After a few minutes the wind picked up, the night air feeling much colder than before. A shiver ran down Max's spine, abruptly waking him up. He jolted suddenly, kicking Sam in the leg and yelling in surprise. Flailing, Max threw himself off the bench and hit the ground with a thud.

"Jesus, Max! Cool it." Sam replied as he watched Max struggle to pick himself up off the gravel. The rabbit looked around aimlessly, judging his surroundings in an attempt to figure out where he was.

"You fell asleep on the way back to the office," Sam started after picking up on Max's confusion. "Once I got there I found out they had maintenance going on..."

Max looked blankly at Sam as he continued talking. He heard words coming out of his partners mouth, but couldn't manage to process a single syllable.

Once he finished talking Max nodded in agreement. He let out long yawn and rubbed his hands against his eyes in an attempt to vanquish any leftover grogginess from his nap. 

"Oh! Look!" Max pointed towards the statue. Her green figure was encased by large orange machinery. "They're finally fixing Mrs. Liberty. About time, right Sam?" 

Max stopped a few seconds, awaiting a reply. 

"Sam?" Sam's gaze was planted on the construction equipment across the water. His brows tightly furrowed.

Max shook Sam's arm aggressively, snapping him out of his trance. 

"Whoops." He started, "Did you say something, Max?"

Max went to open his mouth, wanting to say something snarky, but his attention was caught by the statue. 

"Wait, did you do that Sam?" He beamed. It was impressive destruction after all. Maybe the reason why Sam was so fixated, Max reasoned, was because he was proud of his work and they're repairing it. 

Sam scratched the back of his neck, the neon lights ringing in his ears. "Well, uh, kinda'..."

Max turned to face Sam, straddling the bench beneath them. He excitedly hit the bench with his palms. "Ooo!!! Tell me how you did it! Please tellmetellmetellme!!!" 

Sam sighed and leaned backwards, resting his arms on the back of the chair. He turned his eyes down towards the sidewalk. "I'd rather not talk about it." His voice was firm, but his tone was uneasy.

"What? Why?" Max questioned immediately. He reached over and rested his hands on Sam's leg, putting himself directly in his line of sight. Right before he continued pestering, he caught a glimpse of Sam's expression. 

He knew that look. 

He knew it painfully well. The memory sent a tingle up his spine and a tight lump grew in this throat.

Sam's sunken frown, his tired and gloomy eyes, his distant stare full of resignation. 

Max paused, the sight of his partner enraptured him in a familiar melancholic feeling. 

"Oh." 

A newfound silence hung in the air. 

Quietly, Max reached down, fixed Sam's tie, then returned to his spot on the bench. This time however he faced forward in an attempt to avoid eye contact with Sam. Desperately, Max wanted to ask about what happened. Something in the back of his mind kept him from speaking.