"Hey, Harrington?"
"Yeah, Mayfield?" Nora feels breathless.
"You talk too much."
stranger things seasons 2-4
max mayfield x fem oc
#1 in maxmayfield & sadiesink 🤟
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A DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVE
✧･ﾟ: * Max doesn't know how she got lucky enough to have Nora Harrington in her life.
She still vividly remembers the day they first met, Mr. Clark's class in eighth grade.
She remembers looking around the classroom for the first time, awkward, embarrassed, socially anxious, but then this one girl in the front row gave her a smile, and she felt her whole world explode.
She'd learned her name was Nora, like the name of whosever high score she had beaten in that one arcade game, and immediately wanted to know everything about her.
Max has always known she wasn't completely into dudes - people in California were way more progressive than Hawkins, and a lot of her friends from her skateparks and whatnot introduced her to the world of gay people easily enough.
Despite this "experience," however, Max was totally panicking whenever she was within ten feet of Nora.
The girl seemed so. . . so sure of herself, and of her place in the world. She seemed like the nicest person in their friend group, even making sure Will was included when the other three started being annoying.
Max knew she would never be into her, this random girl from the other side of the country with the fucked up family and asshole-y stepbrother.
It's why she started dating Lucas.
If she couldn't be with the member of the party that she actually wanted to be with, then her best friend would be the next best option, right?
Wrong.
It was that day in the hospital that Max realized she was being unfair to Lucas and Nora and herself.
Sure, she liked Lucas, she thought he was funny and nice sometimes and he was a pretty good kisser, but every time they hung out as a group and Max had to see Nora, she would be filled with that feeling that she needed to be with the younger Harrington, more than anything.
That day in the grocery store, the day of their first kiss, Max's favorite memory, it felt like a dream.
The whole badass front that Max puts up for other people to see absolutely crumbled when it came to Nora, and as much as she'd like to advocate otherwise, she had no idea how she was going to make the first move.
But then the two girls had come out to each other, and they were alone in that aisle, and Nora told her how she felt about her, and she was right there, and a few more inches, and they just. . . kissed.
And Max was floating on Cloud 9, and ever since she's been totally obsessed with Nora.
When everything that happened with Billy, well, happened, Max was so lost. She knew she needed Nora more than anything, but it felt so unfair to become completely dependent on the girl.
She knows she shouldn't have pushed her away, but maybe she just thought it would hurt less? Maybe Nora would realize that Max is no good, and she can do so so so much better. On that note, maybe it would give Max the chance to leave Nora before Nora left her.
But that was so horrible of her, and Nora never gave up on them because that's just how perfect she is.
And Max knew it was wrong of her to get jealous of Nora and Annie, especially after she's the one who ended things with Nora, and Nora and Lucas could never be a thing, she only got mad because it reminded her how easily replaceable people are.
How easily replaceable she is.
But Nora never made her feel replaced. And as soon as Max realized this she tried to fix things.
And, yeah, they made up, and Max is pretty sure Dustin, Lucas, and Eddie also know now too (when before it was just Steve and Robin) considering the looks they kept shooting Nora and her as they fell asleep on each other's shoulders in the RV.
But now, now Nora is lying Max's arms, half unconscious, two bullet wounds on her body.
Max is sobbing so hard that she's having difficulty breathing, but still manages to choke the words she needs to say.
"Please, Nor," her breath is coming out in gasps now, but the only thing she's paying attention to is trying to put pressure over Nora's stomach, where the majority of the bleeding is coming from.
The redhead's hands feel sticky and warm, and she has no way of wiping the tears or hair out of her eyes, but she doesn't even notice such trivial peeves as Nora's eyes keep fluttering open and closed.
"I love you," she says not for the first time, but the two have said it far too little to each other for everything to be over now.
No. No, everything isn't over. It's not over. This isn't happening. No. Holy shit. Holy shit. No. Okay, she'll be fine. If Lucas and Erica can just hurry the hell up.
"C'mon, Nor. You can't do this right now. Don't do this to me."
And she knows it's selfish to say something like that. She knows she shouldn't make herself the only reason Nora needs to stay alive, but she can't help it.
Obviously, Max wants Nora. Ever since they met. She's wanted her. But right now. With with everything that's happened. Max needs Nora. She doesn't think she's ever needed anything more.
"Nor. I'm begging you. Please."
The nickname 'Nor' was very spontaneous for Max; their conversation was almost over, and Nora was about to walk away and forget Max forever, and she needed something that would make a connection between them.
