27. Fight, love and loss

Playlist for this chapter;

Us - James Bay,

Queen Of My Heart - Westlife.

-

Learn to fetch your comment, when it's ignored.

-

-

THE SMELL OF BREAKFAST hits my nostrils and I toss in the bed, reaching over for Max with my hand. When my fingers grabs a handful of the sheets instead of him, I open my eyes and see him sitting with a tray of London breakfast on the bed.

"Breakfast in bed, Love." He says, pushes my hair away from my face, and kisses me on the forehead. "Gosh, you're warm, you should lay back down and rest some more."

"I'm fine." I give him a tiny smile and yawn with my hand fisted against my mouth.

Waking up at the hospital hours later after fainting, Max told me that the Doctor informed him I have Arryhthmia - improper beating of heart, wether too regular or too slow. Which was a result of the pains in my chest when I over think. Shortness of breath when I'm angry or my emotions are doing a battle. Dizziness, light-headedness and fainting - during or after experiencing drastic situations.

He nods and puts the tray on my laps, as I sit right up. He's looking drool worthy shirtless, and clad in just his sweat pants, that are a little bit low from his waist, revealing his well sculptured V-line.

"Just take a picture, Kate. It would last longer." He remarks with a creepy grin, when he catches my obvious staring. And I just roll my eyes in their sockets at his stupid cockiness.

Arryhthmia.

It never crossed my mind to let him know, because I chose not to tell anyone, not even my friends. It was just me and Dad. And I had planned to keep it that way. I kept it away from people, in order not to get laughed at, or mocked. But since the Doctor spilled the beans, I had no alternative but to tell him how it all started. Even if it means it'd change the way he sees me.

Pushing my blonde locks away from my face, I see him watching me cautiously, in a way I can't comprehend. His gorgeous green eyes softens with so much warmth, that it swells my heart with several emotions.

"Max, I have something to say."

"Okay?" He responds, the expression on his face still the same.

I swallow the enormous lump stuck in my throat.

"It's about my..uhm, condition." Darn, it's difficult to just spill like that. "I've been having it since seventh grade. It happened when I was reading a novella titled Lily.

I kept on reading because the teacher and students always did enjoyed my reading.

So I started feeling dizzy, light-headed, and I fainted. When I woke up, I saw myself at Infirmary and was transferred to the hospital when my Dad was summoned."

Max nods at this, takes my hand, and strokes lightly. Suprisingly, he is acting like I'm saying a normal everyday usual something to him.

"So, the doctor who majors in treating cases like mine, became my personal doctor. I've been running medical diagnosis, and lab tests every month because it's often required. So, I've lived with it, and will still do till my last breath."

I close my eyes and take a deep breath, my heart beating with anticipation.

I'm expecting him to come up with something like 'Woah, I don't know how to feel about this, Kate.' Or 'You practically faint all the time, I don't know how I can put with with that, and you might die of heart attack before your twentieth birthday'

But he renders me dumbstruck by calling "Kate?" in the softest thickest hot British accent.

"Yeah?" I bite on my buttom lip because I'm curious.

"Can I kiss you?"

And it knock my darn breath away.

I intend to protest, to tell him I'm having morning breath because I was too tired to brush my teeth before going to bed last night. But he doesn't wait for me to even form a word as he captures my lips with his.

I kiss him back softly, and he groans and plunges his fingers into my hair, jamming them through my hair as he attacks my mouth roughly.

I disengage my lips from his and look at him. Really look at him, glad he doesn't seem bothered by my condition.

We moved into a small studio apartment, after leaving the hospital.

Thankfully Max's Credit card was still in his wallet inside his pants, after the plane crash on the sea. It was I who lost mine.

"Thinking about what, Kate?"

"My condition, and how you act as if it's nothing." Balancing the tray of food on the bed next to me, I pull the sheet covers off me, get off the bed and stretch. I haven't had my morning run over a week now. And my body is kinda getting stiff with lack of exercise.

"Please," He says with a wave of the hand. "I'm not an idiot, Kate. I'd still want you even if you're dying. Now C'mere." He takes my hand, pulls me to sit on his laps.

"You're crazy, you know that?" I smirk and playfully smack him on his chest.

"I've heard that one before, and you love that I am." He kisses the soft spot beneath my ear, and trails his fingers lightly on my temple, making me shiver-jolt.

Snickering, he pats on my thigh.

"Now eat up, love. We have shopping to do."

* * *

A piece of bread falls off Max's mouth and hits the floor, as he remains speechless, gaping at me.

"Fuck me, Kate. You're on fire." He exclaims when it seems he suddenly comes to live.

We are at the boutique inside the mall, and Max was being the judge of the clothes I was trying. Laughing, debating with me and telling me which dressed suited me best, and which one made me look unsightly and hideous.

"You like it?" I pois at his front like a model, getting amuse as his eyes dilate even more, gaping at the stunning gray vintage round neck gown, that barely displays a hint of my cleavage and stop few inches below my knees.

"Its blinding, take it off and try the next one. Just staring at you in it gives me stone cold blue balls." He breaths out and I laugh at his choice of words. "Hurry up Katie, so I can calm down for us to head home, hm?"

We are heading out of the mall to hop in our rented car, with shopping bags when a badass female on a big bad boy bike stops in front of us, causing a cloud of smoke to fill in the atmosphere. She gets down from the bike, and when the smoke disperse, her steps flatters and she stares at Max and I, gasps, let out a high pitch squeal and lunges for a hug from Max. She even wraps her legs on his waist. Making him recoil steps backwards

Who is she?

"Oh my God, Leo!" She screams. Her voice sounds tiny, like a soprano singer.

"Lottie!" Max has excitement in his voice too.

"It's been two months Leo, I missed you!" She outcries, excited, placing her fingers on both side of his face.

They hug for sometime, with Max laughing and the girl still squealing and kissing him on both cheeks.

Jealousy takes it upon herself to overwhelm me, on seeing how this unknown girl jumps on Max like he's her long lost lover. I take a step forward and clear my throat. It's obvious they're too familiar with each other that they forget I'm standing right here.

The girl, finally gets down and flicks her hair away from her face.

Max still beaming, holds her hand and makes his way to me.

"Kate, this is my childhood friend, Charlotte. Chartlotte meet my girlfriend Katherine." He does the introductions, moves over to my behind, and places his hand on the small of my back. While Charlotte holds out her hand for a hand shake with a genuine smile.

The first thing I notice is that her fingers are perfectly manicured, unlike mine which are now half eaten and coated with faded black nail polish.

She's a bit taller than me. Slim, not like me. She has pale alabaster skin, medium size busts and a shock of strawberry blonde curly hair. And dressed so much better. It's hard not to appreciate the clothes she's clad on. Black leather jacket, lilac crop top, black tight fitted shots that barely covered her ass and a pair of black converse.

Never one to feel inferior, because I always stand out, I smirk and accept her hand. Despite I'm putting on Max's grey sweat shirt, my high waisted jeans shots, and plain flip-flops.

She can't even spend all the money I have in her next life. So to hell with her killer body and charming smile.

"She's pretty, I can't believe you never mentioned her over the phone." Charlotte elbows Max at his side, her smile never leaving her face.

They do talk over the phone?

The sharp claws of jealousy that have been doing a wrestle within me, finally wins and tighten my insides as I hold captive my inhale.

"Yeah right. But you know she's my girlfriend now." Max wraps his hand around my neck from my behind, and kisses my hair. "We just came in yesterday, and we're going to stay here for sometime."

"Ace," She slaps her fingers together with fake glee. "So when are you guys coming over to my place. Thomas owns a pub and an off lincense down town. He dropped out of college on his second year and decided to go into business."

"Whoa, I thought the mate was going to be a Reverend Father."

"Tosh, the wazzock got knackered." She rolls her big eyes in their sockets.

A grin spreads across his face as he shoves his fists into his pants. "Still so gobby I see."

"E.T McDaniels doesn't make lots of cash from his new fighters. He says you're irreplaceable since you left the brawl."

Hold on a sec, Max was involved in street fighting for money? No wonder he wanted to kill Percy the other day. And then, Donnovan, the tattoo guy was talking about Max involving in fighting the other day, and Max got so pissed and told him to shut up.

"How's Pops?" Max avoids my eyes as he tries to change the subject.

"Same old, same old. When his Dementia isn't kicking in, he's sneaking out to Tom's pub, burying himself in tequila, getting legless, honking and passing out in ditches along the roadside." A flash of pain hits her face, and disappears.

"I'm so sorry, Lottie." Max hugs her side, looking quite sorry for her.

And I clench and unclench my fists. Just because her drunkard of a dad has Dementia doesn't mean Max has to go all squishy with her, infront of me.

She pulls away from the hug and straightens her leather jacket. Max walks to my side, and links his fingers with mine.

"How are your Mum and siblings? It's still feels like yesterday when we all went on camping at Edinburgh and I was trying to save an injured bird that I found on the tree, and I fell and got caught in the branches of the tree." Her British accent matches his perfectly.

A sudden sheepish grin appears on Max's face again, making me to scowl. And he leaves my side again, going over to stand at her side. Taking her brown beanie off her head, he hits it playfully into her face, and she laughs and elbows his stomach, for what it seems like the second time today. They look good together. I can't help but feel I'm outside the private conversation and activity of amusement between the duo. And it looks like a lot happened between them, like they were more than friends, from the way she's looking up at him with so much admiration. And the way she links her fingers on his arm.

"And the only way I could get away from the tree, was cutting my hair. And so they did cut my hair, help me out and I shaved it bald. And because I was hiding away from the world out of shame, he shaved his hair bald too and told me I was the prettiest girl ever."

She squeezes his cheeks, then proceeds to take off his cap, ruffles his short hair and smile sweetly at me, hoping for me to mirror her expression. But I just glare at her.

Slut! Her intention is on making me jealous.

I decide I don't like this girl, Lottie, whatever ever the heck her name is.

"So what if he told you, you were the prettiest girl? Why are you telling me now, should I hand you a gong and a trumpet to announce it to the world?" I ask struggling to keep the tremble out of my voice and raise my eyebrows up, and fold my tiny arms across my large busts.

Her lips part in suprise and she jerks her index finger towards me and turns to Max.

"Kate," Max calls, and the expression on his face changes as he looks over at me weirdly.

"It's so obvious she's trying to make me jealous Max, can't you see it?"

"Let's just head home." Max places his hand on my back and murmurs a 'See you around' to the bitch. While she just stand there, with her mouth hanging open.

"Watch out for flies." I tell her with a glare, then allow Max to pull me away to the parking lot.

* * *

"You don't go about talking to strangers that way, things aren't done like that, Kate." I look over at Max from where I'm stucking the fridge with groceries, and his face is twisted in anger. Something he's trying to control, but from the look of things, he's going to explode.

She was his girlfriend right? Why else is he trying to explode right now from what I told her? When it was all her damn fault.

"She was trying to make me jealous. I'm a stranger to her, yet she was reminding me how sappy you two where some years back. Who even does that?"

Max shuts his mouth and frown at the thought of what I just said for a spilt moment.

"It's obvious you still feel something for each other. Because I need no seer to tell me something happened between you two."

"What?" He pauses from stuffing the meat in the freezer and looks at me. "You're just overacting."

His expression is blank as he stares at me for a minute.

"You still love her, don't you?" Wrapping my tiny arms around me, I shiver when chills transport themselves to my insides. Just the thought of Max and Charlotte together was maddening.

Him, in bed with her, doing all the things he does to me, makes me clench and unclench my fists.

And he looks at me with a wounded expression on his face this time.

"How can you even come up with such a thing?" He asks in disbelief with his forehead crisping into their insides, and his eyes narrowing with irritation. "I've know her my whole life. And what happened between us in the past. She's like a sister to me, now. It's futile getting all miffed about Lottie."

Lottie. He even has a nickname for her, and she called him Leo. L and L. Is it some. kind of their thing?

I let out a breath I don't know I'm holding.

"Oh," I scoff bitterly, while on the inside, I'm streaming with pure jealousy and anger.

"Can you even hear yourself, Max? You aren't making any sense here." I quit stuffing the groceries into the fridge and lean my back against the kitchen counter, glaring at him.

"Will you just stop, Kate? Cause your insecurities are doing a great deal at manifesting themselves right now."

"My insecurities?" That sting so bad. And I slam the carton of milk that I intend shoving into the refrigerator, against the door of the fridge. It falls off my hand, and starts spilling when it hits the floor.

Cursing, I pick up a towel, squart and start wiping the mess off the floor, biting back heavy sobs that threatens to tear their way out of my throat.

My question shuts the flap Max calls his mouth, and he peels the hand gloves off his hands, disposes them into the trash bin, and jerks his fingers through his hair aggressively.

He pants, puffs, and stares at me with displeasure.

"You know what asshole? You can go plunge your dick in her cunt. I don't give a fuck." After putting the bread into the damn cupboard, I slam the door shut with a loud thud.

Shit. Why the fuck do I want to cry?

He looks away from me and curses so deeply.

I let out a big puff of breath and say. "A sister who jumped and hugged you like a monkey on a tree, going all mushy and touchy on you, like she wanted you to fuck her right there, infront of me."

"Dammit, she's been like that with me since we were kids. Bugger all." His jaw tenses.

"And it resulted to you two fucking each other."

"For the love of Christ Kate, she has a boyfriend, we haven't gotten involved with each other for a year. So will you do yourself a favor at stop being a kid and fucking grow up!"

I gulp slowly and glare at him.

He just called me a kid. And those darn words of his sent icy shivers pushing through my veins.

I start hyperventilating aggressively.

"Fuck! Why I'm I even here? Left home and school behind and ran away with an ungrateful cockwomble who sees me as a kid." My voice is unstable, giving out how shaken I'm feeling, as my vision blurs with tears and Max's eyes dilate at this. When he fucking realizes what he'd just said to me.

"Kate..." He calls softly walking towards me, while I take a step backwards.

"Don't," I warn, my voice raspy with anger and heartache. " If you come any close I'll tear off your limbs."

"I'm sorry, wasn't thinking straight when I said that." He tries to hold me, while I slap his fingers away, feeling hurt that he just insulted me because of some bitch he use to fuck.

"Get out." After saying this, I feel like puking as a bile rises on my throat.

"Please," He begs.

"I can't even keep up with you when you're constantly defending her. You even insulted me because of her. I wonder why I'm still here, when I don't need all this bull. When I don't need you... Get the fuck out, Maxwell Leonardo Mackenzie. I don't give two shits about you. And I don't want to see your pudding face or witness your shitty personality right now." I pound on his chest, as I scream all these words.

And the boy in front of me recoil steps backwards, staring at me incredulously as the light in his eyes and faces dies, and his hands slowly falls to his sides.

Tears blurs my vision as he just stands there, not moving or blinking, like a fucking statue at the Musuem.

Enrage that he doesn't want to leave, I grab the tomato package out of the grocery bag, take out one, bite into hit, and throw it against his chest.

Unsatisfied, I repeat the action again. Again and again.

He just stands there, letting me continually throw the tomatoes at him. Letting me do as I please with him. Not even angered that I'm trying to hurt him.

Maybe he needs something to provoke him to the edge.

I let out a frustrated scream, almost pulling my hair out and reach over for the egg carton, take one out and throw it with force at his chest.

He flinches in pain when the egg hits his chest and breaks, causing yellow to splatter over his white sweatshirt that is now designed with the red tomato stains.

"Kate, stop!" He pleads in a shaky voice, but still doesn't move away and let the second egg I throw at his head to hit him.

With my anger getting the best of me, I empty all the pancake's flour on his head. Making him resemble a wannabe clown.

Panting and vibrating violently, my heart pace begins beating abnormally, as my blood pressure arise. My breathing evens out and an enormous instant migraine ascend upon my head. Even my throat feels itchy as a gigantic lump made itself at comfy there.

I start coughing that my knees tremble as they give out underneath me, and my hands are facing the plastic floor when I feel my knees on the floor. I cough till I cough up blood.

"Kate, slow the fuck down!" Max is already at my side. How he rushed up to me, I can't tell. But he pulls me up and carries me in his arms.

"I'm so sorry, I shouldn't have let you gone all mad like that. It's all my fault. You're right, I'm an asshole. I would've been mad too, if I were in your shoes. I made everything a balls up." Narrowing my eyes, I refuse to look up at him, as I wipe the blood away with the back of my sleeve.

"Don't make me have to slap you. Now get your fucking pussy hands off me, you prick!"

"I will, you need to calm down. Then I'll leave. I can't leave you like this."

A slice of silence passes between us, and my breathing slows down to normal, after he had pulled his hand into my shirt and stroke lightly on my stomach.

"You're a piece of shit."

"I know."

"You're an asshole."

"You're right."

"I hate you."

"I hate me, too."

I take a deep shaky breath, trying not to cry again. Because my heart is swelling up with love, on seeing how he had agreed with everything I said.

I burst into tears.

"Lottie means nothing to me, not anymore. We're just friends and I plan to keep things that way. I would never want anyone but you. Just you, Kate. And Lottie probably tried to make you feel out of place, but that would never change how I see you, the way you are and the way you'll always be to me." He says breathing long and deep, causing his chest to expands and deflates like a balloon that is poked with a niddle. The emotions in his eyes makes me ache for him. I don't look up to meet his eyes, but I call feel the way they are on me. And I stare at the blood stains on my skyblue shirt. "You never noticed, did you?"

I finally raise my eyes up to look at his face, which is still beautiful despite the mess of flour, almost dry egg spill and redness of tomatoes. "Noticed what?" I croak out, calmly. The polar opposite of what I was few minutes ago.

"That there are no words that can describe how completely helplessly I am Inlove with you, and every single thing inside and about you."

Holy fuck!

I can't think straight as my heart becomes a variation of shock and happiness.

He loves me.

Max just told me he's in love with me.

My throat tightens even more, as several emotions slams their way right into my chest. Because in my whole life, I've never been stared at the way he's starting at me right now.

Stroking the top of his hair, which is covered in pancake flour, I cup his hard jaw and lean in to kiss him slow and tender with my bloodied mouth. Pulling my head back to look at him, I say barely audible, smiling through my tears. "I'm in love with you too, Max."

And just as he's about to say something, his new cell starts ringing and vibrating in his pocket.

I get down from him and sit on the floor.

He pulls out the phone, the expression on his face, still the same as he slam the phone against his ear.

"Yeah, what?"

And he shuts his mouth into a thin grim line, waiting for the caller to speak.

"Christ, no!" He whisper-yells and slaps his hand against his face. And I instantly snap my head up at him in curiousity and pull away from the floor, where I'm sitting, as confusion stuns my brain.

Because I discern something is very wrong.

"Max, what's going on? What's wrong?"

He looks at me, with the green color slowly fading away from his eyes, replacing themselves with a dull green.

He pulls the phone away from his ear absent mindly and the phone falls and hits the ground.

I gasp.

"I just received a call from Evans about Nana Jones. He said we should catch the quickest flight as possible to Buffalo and come home."

"Why? Is she sick?"

"She's dead, Kate. Nana Jones died."