Amber Fane walked her dog every evening after school. It had been getting colder lately, but she still walked, bringing a jacket or thick leg warmers with her. She never wore gloves, but she would blow on her fingers sometimes, or switch which hand was holding the leash and which was in her pocket repeatedly.
Maxy didn't like taking walks, especially not in the cold, but sometimes, while she passed his house, he would meander up to the mailbox and slowly pretend to check it. Amber would walk past quickly and wave, and he would wave back.
He had spoken to her once, on the bus, the first day Amber had gone to the school. It was on the way back home, and almost all the seats were taken. Amber had sat down next to Maxy with smile.
"Is it alright if I sit here?" Amber had asked.
Maxy had nodded, and Amber had grinned and nodded in thanks. They chatted a bit during the ride, about small things, like homework and popular movies, and then Amber had gotten off the bus, and they hadn't spoken since then.
Today, though, he was determined to talk to her again.
Maxy walked up the driveway to the mailbox when he saw her, half walking, half jogging, her small dog trotting along next to her. He opened the mailbox and waved as she approached.
"Hey," he said.
"Hi," Amber responded, walking past him.
That was it.
Maxy convinced himself that a greeting was a good start as he walked, rather dejectedly, down his driveway. He slipped back through the front door and closed it tightly, making sure no cold air could seep in between the frame and the door.
Bri was sitting on the couch, reading a book titled "Moonlit Dances" (which Maxy presumed to be some sort of trashy romance novel.) Bri was, legally, Maxy's mother. He had been adopted by her when he was eleven years old, and had taken on her surname, O'Reily. She let him call her Bri instead of mother, but Bri's husband, Daniel, went strictly by either 'father' or 'sir.'
People sometimes commented on how different their family looked; Bri was short and had fair skin and blue eyes, Daniel wasn't much taller and had brilliant, piercing green eyes, and Maxy was black, and taller than both Bri and Daniel at fifteen years old.
"Hi, Maxy," Bri said, closing her book and looking up. "Chasing girls?"
Maxy looked down at the treated wood floor. "No."
"She's a pretty girl," Bri said, her eyes sparkling.
"I wouldn't chase her, though."
Bri smiled. "You should talk to her."
"Yeah." Maxy kicked his shoes off and shuffled out of the room.
Daniel was in the kitchen, stirring something around in a pan. He nodded as Maxy walked past. Maxy smiled and returned the nod politely.
He went into his room and wiggled around the mouse on his computer, bringing it out of its sleep. Zodiak was up, and Margarita was active.
Maxy: hey
Margarita: Hi! ^.^
Maxy: how are you doing
Margarita: Fantastic! You?
Maxy: alright
Margarita: Great! :) What's up?
Maxy: not much
Maxy: how about you
Margarita: Drinking hot chocolate. :3
Maxy: how is it
Margarita: Minty!
Maxy: really
Margarita: Yeah! It's a special peppermint flavored hot chocolate.
Maxy: cool
Maxy: I like cinnamon better myself but thats just a personal preference
Margarita: :P Cinnamon's good too. I just like hot chocolate.
Maxy: yeah chocolates good
Margarita: Totally. Can I call you Max?
Maxy: sure why
Margarita: I like nicknames!
Maxy: my full names Maximillian
Margarita: Really?
Maxy: yeah but that was too long so I go by Maxy
Margarita: I like the name Maximillian!
Maxy: its okay but Maxy is easier for people to pronounce
Margarita: Maximillian doesn't seem like it would be that hard to figure out.
Maxy: I know but a lot of people couldnt
Margarita: Huh. That's weird. :/
Maxy: Maxys more casual anyway
Margarita: That's true. Maximillian doesn't fit you as well.
Maxy: yeah I guess not
Margarita: Has Jaidon been kind of psychoanalysing you?
Maxy: no
Maxy: do I need psychoanalysing
Margarita: No, that's not what I meant. He's just been doing it to me a lot. He's thinking of being a therapist when he gets older.
Maxy: I didnt know that
Maxy: thats cool
Margarita: I feel like Alice would be better practice than me, though.
Maxy: Pippa and Reese too
Margarita: Really?
Maxy: you dont think so
Margarita: Well, maybe Pippa, but Reese?
Maxy: I dont know
Maxy: it just seems like something weird is going on with him
Margarita: Really? Is he okay?
Maxy: yeah he just seems standoffish I guess
Margarita: It's Reese.
Maxy: more than usual
Margarita: Huh. I'll have to keep an eye on him.
Maxy: I wouldnt worry about it
Margarita: I'm going to message him really quick anyway. Bye.
Maxy: bye
Maxy chewed on his lip and stared at the screen.
He had felt like Reese was hiding something from him for a while. He seemed uncomfortable with certain subjects (mostly dating, which was something Maxy enjoyed discussing) and dropped what seemed like strange hints about something Maxy didn't understand. At first, Maxy had chalked it up to Reese's usual awkward, slightly off putting vibe, but it seemed a bit more than that.
Maxy sighed and turned off his computer. He didn't like to spend too much time on pessimistic thinking.
YOU ARE READING
Crossing Stars
Teen Fiction[Quick warning: some of the sexual and death related content in this could bother some people. It's probably fine for most teenagers and older, but if that sort of thing bothers you a lot, you might not want to read it.] Life is hard, especially for...
