Page 42 of For All It's Worth
Less than twenty minutes later, Max returned to my side, plopping down in the seat next to me.
“Done. They’ll be delivered tomorrow. I paid extra for that. Hope that’s okay.”
Shocked, I stared at him for a minute. “Seriously? That’s great. I thought I’d have to wait a while.”
“They’d have done it today since they’re just using the display stock. I got you a discount for that. A driver is out sick today so they don’t have time.”
“Thanks, Max, you’ve really come through for me. Gone above and beyond, really.” I thought for a minute. “I think I might just get stuff and sleep at my new place tonight. It’s only one night on that old mattress. I can get most of my stuff today while Mom is still at the lake and go see her tomorrow for the rest of it.” I wanted to avoid a confrontation with Mom. She’d spent the last few days trying to convince me that moving out was a bad idea and trying to guilt me into staying.
Max looked thoughtful. “Are you and your Mom going to be okay after this?”
I shrugged, the movement jostling him slightly, so I dropped a hand to his thigh, quickly removing it when we both colored.
“Um,” I cleared my throat and tried to calm myself. “I’m working on it with Dr. Daddy.” I teased.
I wanted to bring us back to the mood that we had going on in the car. What would have happened if that meter maid hadn’t interrupted us? Just the memory of Max in my lap, wrapped around me, had my dick twitching in my jeans and butterflies trying to escape my stomach.
Over the years I’d had crushes, I even thought I was in love with a couple of my boyfriends. Yet nothing that I’d felt before managed to come close to what I felt for Max.
When I thought of a future, years down the line, it was one with Max by my side. He was there for every part of my life. We would have a home, one cluttered and full of joy, so far removed from my family’s one. We’d have animals of all descriptions. And there were kids. Lots of kids. We’d help out those that need someone for just a short time, just a landing spot before moving on to better things. We’d have ones that were with us for years and we’d watch them grow together, supporting them when they fell and cheering when they flew. The only thing that was crystal clear about that dream was that Max was there, my constant through it all. With him next to me I didn’t need anything else.
I came back to the moment when Max squirmed in his seat. As expected, Max blushed again and we shared a laugh but the mood between us was lighter.
After we finished up our drinks, Max took me shopping to get sheets and stuff before taking me to my mom’s house. I didn’t pay much attention to things in the department store, just picked up a few sets of sheets in darker colors and some matching towels. Now that I’d decided to stay in the new place for the night, I was itching to get moving so I could drop off my things and take Max out for a well-earned dinner.
Our footsteps echoed in the hallway as we entered and the place felt hollow, so I was sure that no one was home. It was rare that Matty went to the lake, but since she informed us of her choice of school after summer, Mom had kept her close. Calling it bonding time before Matty moved to study across the country from her family. Not that I blamed her.
In my room, I picked up discarded clothing and shoved it into the bags I’d stashed there when I’d moved into Mom’s from my apartment.
Max was subdued, looking around my room before making his way over to my desk. He picked up my camera and looked at me for permission before switching it on and flicking through the shots there.
“Charlie! These are amazing! I’d forgotten how good you were.”
His praise soothed something in me. It reminded me that I’d forgotten to show the pictures I’d taken in rehab to him. I’d gotten them printed after emailing them to the center for approval.
“Here,” I pick up the envelope on the desk. “These are the ones from my time at the facility.” I handed them over carefully, my movements belying my casual words. “They’ve checked them and there is nothing that really identifies these people, and the ones in the photos have seen them and okayed them for use.”
“What are you going to use them for?” He asked as he studied one photo of the back of a woman while leaning against my desk.
I’d spliced two images together. One from the start of her time there, which was the week after I started. The other from the week I left. It was still startling for me to see the images together. The contrast between them was what appealed to me about them, and it took me hours to sew the images together to really highlight the difference.
In the before pictures, the patients were often hollow looking, frail, with an unkempt look. They would stand slightly hunched like they were afraid to take up space.
After, they stood with pride, and it was possible to feel their hope in the way that they held themselves. In appearance, they often looked like they cared about what they saw in the mirror. In the women, their hair shone with health. Some of the men had asked for haircuts.
I ran my hand over the back of my neck nervously. The idea that had been rattling around my head was approved by all the involved parties, but it still made me worry.
“Uh, well…I want to write a book. Or, rather, have the images tell the story.” My voice fell away at the look on Max’s face.
He rushed me, wrapping himself around me in a tight hug, pulling back only to speak. “That’s perfect, Charlie! I could sell them in the bookstore when you’re ready.”
His enthusiasm was so infectious that I revealed my other news. “A publisher is willing to print it. I just need to write a few pages about what I want to say and give them the finished images.”
“Are you serious? That’s amazing! I’m so proud of you!” His eyes filled with tears so I pulled him closer and muttered into his hair. “It’s not that big of a deal, just a small indie press, and they’ve started formatting what I’ve given them already.”
He pulled back again to scold me, “It is a big deal. You are going to be a published photographer and author! I think it’s amazing that you’re making something positive out of what was a dark time for you.”
I wiped the tears from his eyes and the mood between us shifted again. An awareness of how close we were. The tension from the car seeped back in, crackling between us, but I felt in my gut that this wasn’t our moment. I wanted us to start out better so when we looked back we had a better beginning story. I stepped back, watching Max’s face fall a little.
