ii. MAD MAX

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MAD MAX(mad max part 2)

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MAD MAX
(mad max part 2)



The five boys had all gathered around for lunch and were currently watching the new girl, Max, ride her skateboard. Mike shook his head in disbelief, "There's no way that's Mad Max." he stated matter-of-factly. Ben blinked and realized watching Max was creepy, so he moved away and sat on the ground, taking out a snack to eat for lunch. "Yeah. Girls don't play video games." Will said, confused. Ben rolled his eyes, "Not true, Dylan plays video games." He informed the shorter boy, biting into his apple.

Mike's eyebrows pinched together as he looked at Ben, "Dylan? That's a boys name." he pointed out. Ben shrugged, "So?" Mike bit the inside of his cheek to refrain from making a comment. Instead he asked, "Who's Dylan? She your girlfriend?" The second question caused Ben to choke on a piece of apple, once he stopped choking, he started laughing.

Mike grew confused and annoyed at Ben's humor and lack of an answer. "What?" Ben shook his head, his laughter dying down. "Dude, Dylan is eighteen. She works at the record store in town. She was also my babysitter." Mike said nothing for a moment, still confused as to why Ben talked to an eighteen-year-old. "Why do you talk to her?" He then asked. It was Ben's turn to be confused. "Why do you care? It's not like we're friends." Mike rolled his eyes, seeming to look angrier by the second. "If you dislike me so much, why don't you just leave?" He asked, angry but genuinely. Ben shrugged, "I don't want to be alone." Mike's eyes softened a bit at the statement, but his expression remained stoic. "Besides, I'd rather sit here and listen to you bitch about something than go eat in the library." The beanie-wearing boy finished, giving Mike a sarcastic smile and a wink.

Mike rolled his eyes and looked away from Ben, his face growing hot with what he guessed was anger. "Whatever." He looked to Will, "Even if girls did play video games, you can't get 750,000 points on Dig Dug. It's impossible!"

The boys continued their conversation about Max, Ben having zoned out while eating his apple. He stood up, "If you wanna know if she's Mad Max, why don't you guys just go ask her?" The boys all looked at Ben like he had three heads. Ben sighed heavily, "Watch and learn." He adjusted his beanie and jogged over to the red-head who was about to go up the stairs leading into the school. "Hey, Max!"

Max turned and glared at Ben, watching him climb up the stairs to her. "What, you guys done stalking me?" Max asked, crossing her arms over her chest. Ben opened his mouth and closed it, shaking his head. "To be fair, I wasn't really stalking you. I may have watched you skate for a bit, but then I got hungry." Ben admitted with a shrug. Max blinked, "Oh. Impressed?" She asked, curiosity and humor leaking from her tone. Ben smiled slightly with a nod, "Yeah, I think it's really cool that you skate. I used to skate, but I stopped."

Ben remembered the time his parents got him his first skateboard. He loved it so much, he went to the skatepark after school everyday. But after his mother died, he didn't enjoy it as much anymore. Max's lips quirked up the tiniest bit, "Really?" She asked, which made Ben nod. She made a face, like she was choosing her next words carefully. "Would you wanna hang out and skate sometime?" Max asked, quiet and a little nervous. "As friends, obviously." She quickly added. Ben smiled wide, nodding fast. "Yeah that sounds awesome! Here," he took out a piece of paper and wrote down his phone number, then handed the paper to her. "If you ever wanna hang out, just call me." Max took the paper and stuffed it in her front jean pocket. "Thanks. I'm gonna head inside, but can you give this to your friends?" She pulled out a crumpled piece of paper and handed it to Ben. He looked at the paper strangely and nodded, "They aren't really my friends, but sure. Seeya later?"

Max nodded with a small smile, "Sure. Later." She then disappeared into the building. Ben turned and made his way down the stairs, the four boys running over to him instantly.

"What did she say?!"

"Was she nice?!"

"Is she Mad Max?!"

"Were you two flirting?"

The boys all asked the questions at the same time, Ben put his hands up in defense, "Hold on, my brain can only process so much at once. We just talked about skating for a bit, I gave her my number–"

"Really?!" Will cut him off, an excited, knowing grin slapped itself on his face. Ben smirked down at him, "Not in that kind of way, Willy boy. Just a friend giving another friend a number." He looked up to see Mike looking annoyed as usual, and Dustin and Lucas still asking questions. "Yes, she was nice. Well, not at first, but she is now. I don't know if she's Mad Max, I didn't ask." Ben finished answering for them.

Mike groaned and threw his hands up, "You went over there to ask her in the first place! You were so distracted by flirting with her that you couldn't ask a simple question?" Ben's eyebrows pinched together in confusion, not understanding why Mike was getting so fired up over nothing. "Dude, chill out. I wasn't flirting. No need to be so jealous."

Mike glared at Ben, his mouth opening and closing like a fish out of water. "I am not jealous. Why would I be jealous?" He crossed his arms in defense. Ben took off his beanie and ran a hand through his hair, "Because, I know how to flirt with girls and you don't. But I wasn't even flirting with her, so no need to get your underwear in a twist." Ben placed the beanie back on his head and handed Dustin the crumpled up paper, "This is for you guys. I'm gonna go, I don't feel like being shit on for doing something you all were too scared to do."

Ben stuffed his hands in his pockets and shoved his shoulder against Mike's as he passed him, going into the school. Mike looked down at his shoes, feeling guilty. Will then nudged him, getting his attention. "You should stop being so hard on him. He just wants to be your friend." Mike sighed and shook his head, "No, he doesn't." he mumbled, kind of sad. Will opened his mouth to reply, but Mike cut him off. "What does the note say?" He asked, changing the subject.

After school, Ben walked into his house, dropping his bag on the floor by the door. "Dad? I'm home." He announced, waiting for his father to give a response. Bob walked around the corner, making himself noticeable by Ben. "Hey kiddo! How was school?" Bob leaned against the wall as he looked down at his son who was shrugging off his jacket and hanging it on the coat rack. "It was all right, I made a new friend today. Her name's Max." He replied. Bob gave him a knowing look. "A girl, huh?"

Ben tensed up, rolling his eyes but not making eye contact with his father. "Uh, yeah. It's not what you think it is, though. She's just a friend." Bob laughed through his nose, "That's what they all say." He walked over and ruffled Ben's hair after he had taken his beanie off. Ben just kept his mouth shut, saying nothing. "It's movie night at Joyce's tonight. So do your homework before we go over there, okay?" Bob reminded Ben, who clenched his jaw and nodded. "Yeah, sure." He gave his dad a tight-lipped smile and went to his room, closing the door and sighing in exasperation.

Ben liked Joyce, of course he did. Who wouldn't? She was sweet and funny, and also badass. But Ben didn't like the idea of his dad replacing his mom with her. Ben's mother died three years ago. And while, yes, it's okay for Bob to move on from the death of his wife, Ben thought it was too soon. He didn't want to move on. He didn't want to forget her, which he feared would happen if he moved on.

Later that night, Ben was sat on the Byers' living room couch, playing with a Rubix Cube his dad made him. After fifteen minutes of not figuring out the Rubix Cube, Ben got up to go use the bathroom. He stopped in his tracks outside Will's door, hearing Will and Jonathan talking.

"But what? Do you wanna be normal? Do you wanna be just like everyone else?" Ben heard Jonathan's muffled voice, then heard Will respond with, "Maybe. I wanna be normal, like Ben. He can easily talk to girls and everyone likes him. Well, almost everyone..." Ben's heart sank. Normal? He shook his head and speed walked to the bathroom, done hearing the conversation.

Secretly, Ben wished he was normal. But deep down, he knew, he probably never would be.












JAY SPEAKS!
max and ben = the
best duo ever you simply
cannot compete.

✓   cold blooded,   mike wheeler ¹Where stories live. Discover now