Why the hell – Max? Max, where are you buddy? I need to know how you’re feeling.
*he took off his seat belt and pushed his door open before hopping out*
*Carlos locked the car and led the way to the store front.* So, toothbrushes and toothpaste. Am I forgetting something?
*he groaned, pulling his hood up*
*he gently shook his head, looking at the ground*
It’s okay Max – you’re allowed to have one.
t-thanks but i-i don’t need one..
*nods* Okay then. If you’re sure. *he puts the tissues back in his pocket*
*he loosely hugged himself, unsure what to say*
*Carlos put a hand on his shoulder.* Why don’t you head to your tent and take the day off?
*he flinched slightly when Carlos brought his hand up* o-okay..
Alright. Would you like me to walk you there? *he notice the flinch, but he’d acted too quickly to abort the touch that was meant to be reassuring. He thought that Max would probably appreciate it if it weren’t pointed out.*
*he hesitates before nodding slightly, glancing towards his tent*
Alright. Let’s go, buddy. *he stands up and offers Max a hand to hold, if he wanted it*
*he started walking, not noticing the offered hand*
*Carlos followed after Max silently, watching the child closely as they walked.*
*he quietly sniffled a few times before they reached his tent, looking up the door*
*Carlos moves to open it for him.* Here you go, buddy. Need anything? A snack or some water?
Why the hell – Max? Max, where are you buddy? I need to know how you’re feeling.
*he groaned softly, leaning his head against the window*
*Carlos smiled slightly* Sorry, Max.
yeah well.. i don’t really have a use for a truck yet anyway
Someday, though. It’ll be a great responsibility.
maybe, maybe not, who knows really?
*chuckles*
Hey, is your seatbelt on? I just remembered…
*he pulled the belt back before letting it hit his chest* yup!
Nice. Atta boy. We’ll be at the store soon. Do you want to listen to some music?
*he shrugs slightly* i guess
What kind of music do you like?
i don’t really listen to alot of music..
Ah, okay. Well, do you want to give some a try? I think kids like that dubstep stuff these days… I might have some.
*he shrugged slightly* yeah i guess
*nods and hits the listening button on his car* Hey Google – Play Dubstep on Pandora.
*he glanced at the dashboard before glancing up at Carlos*
*Carlos looked at Max through the rear-view mirror, watching his reaction*
*he smiled softly, slowly nodding his head ot the beat*
*seems like a winner, Carlos thinks* You like it?
yeah, it’s pretty cool
Good. I’m glad you do.
*he nods softly, looking out the window*
*they arrive at the store and Carlos parks, shutting off the car before taking off his seatbelt*
Why the hell – Max? Max, where are you buddy? I need to know how you’re feeling.
*he groaned softly, leaning his head against the window*
*Carlos smiled slightly* Sorry, Max.
yeah well.. i don’t really have a use for a truck yet anyway
Someday, though. It’ll be a great responsibility.
maybe, maybe not, who knows really?
*chuckles*
Hey, is your seatbelt on? I just remembered…
*he pulled the belt back before letting it hit his chest* yup!
Nice. Atta boy. We’ll be at the store soon. Do you want to listen to some music?
*he shrugs slightly* i guess
What kind of music do you like?
i don’t really listen to alot of music..
Ah, okay. Well, do you want to give some a try? I think kids like that dubstep stuff these days… I might have some.
*he shrugged slightly* yeah i guess
*nods and hits the listening button on his car* Hey Google – Play Dubstep on Pandora.
*he glanced at the dashboard before glancing up at Carlos*
*Carlos looked at Max through the rear-view mirror, watching his reaction*
*he smiled softly, slowly nodding his head ot the beat*
*seems like a winner, Carlos thinks* You like it?
yeah, it’s pretty cool
Good. I’m glad you do.
*he groaned, pulling his hood up*
*he gently shook his head, looking at the ground*
It’s okay Max – you’re allowed to have one.
t-thanks but i-i don’t need one..
*nods* Okay then. If you’re sure. *he puts the tissues back in his pocket*
*he loosely hugged himself, unsure what to say*
*Carlos put a hand on his shoulder.* Why don’t you head to your tent and take the day off?
*he flinched slightly when Carlos brought his hand up* o-okay..
Alright. Would you like me to walk you there? *he notice the flinch, but he’d acted too quickly to abort the touch that was meant to be reassuring. He thought that Max would probably appreciate it if it weren’t pointed out.*
*he hesitates before nodding slightly, glancing towards his tent*
Alright. Let’s go, buddy. *he stands up and offers Max a hand to hold, if he wanted it*
*he started walking, not noticing the offered hand*
*Carlos followed after Max silently, watching the child closely as they walked.*
Why the hell – Max? Max, where are you buddy? I need to know how you’re feeling.
*he groaned softly, leaning his head against the window*
*Carlos smiled slightly* Sorry, Max.
yeah well.. i don’t really have a use for a truck yet anyway
Someday, though. It’ll be a great responsibility.
maybe, maybe not, who knows really?
*chuckles*
Hey, is your seatbelt on? I just remembered…
*he pulled the belt back before letting it hit his chest* yup!
Nice. Atta boy. We’ll be at the store soon. Do you want to listen to some music?
*he shrugs slightly* i guess
What kind of music do you like?
i don’t really listen to alot of music..
Ah, okay. Well, do you want to give some a try? I think kids like that dubstep stuff these days… I might have some.
*he shrugged slightly* yeah i guess
*nods and hits the listening button on his car* Hey Google – Play Dubstep on Pandora.
*he glanced at the dashboard before glancing up at Carlos*
*Carlos looked at Max through the rear-view mirror, watching his reaction*
*he smiled softly, slowly nodding his head ot the beat*
*seems like a winner, Carlos thinks* You like it?
*he groaned, pulling his hood up*
*he gently shook his head, looking at the ground*
It’s okay Max – you’re allowed to have one.
t-thanks but i-i don’t need one..
*nods* Okay then. If you’re sure. *he puts the tissues back in his pocket*
*he loosely hugged himself, unsure what to say*
*Carlos put a hand on his shoulder.* Why don’t you head to your tent and take the day off?
*he flinched slightly when Carlos brought his hand up* o-okay..
Alright. Would you like me to walk you there? *he notice the flinch, but he’d acted too quickly to abort the touch that was meant to be reassuring. He thought that Max would probably appreciate it if it weren’t pointed out.*
*he hesitates before nodding slightly, glancing towards his tent*
Alright. Let’s go, buddy. *he stands up and offers Max a hand to hold, if he wanted it*
Why the hell – Max? Max, where are you buddy? I need to know how you’re feeling.
*he groaned softly, leaning his head against the window*
*Carlos smiled slightly* Sorry, Max.
yeah well.. i don’t really have a use for a truck yet anyway
Someday, though. It’ll be a great responsibility.
maybe, maybe not, who knows really?
*chuckles*
Hey, is your seatbelt on? I just remembered…
*he pulled the belt back before letting it hit his chest* yup!
Nice. Atta boy. We’ll be at the store soon. Do you want to listen to some music?
*he shrugs slightly* i guess
What kind of music do you like?
i don’t really listen to alot of music..
Ah, okay. Well, do you want to give some a try? I think kids like that dubstep stuff these days… I might have some.
*he shrugged slightly* yeah i guess
*nods and hits the listening button on his car* Hey Google – Play Dubstep on Pandora.
*he glanced at the dashboard before glancing up at Carlos*
*Carlos looked at Max through the rear-view mirror, watching his reaction*
*he groaned, pulling his hood up*
*he gently shook his head, looking at the ground*
It’s okay Max – you’re allowed to have one.
t-thanks but i-i don’t need one..
*nods* Okay then. If you’re sure. *he puts the tissues back in his pocket*
*he loosely hugged himself, unsure what to say*
*Carlos put a hand on his shoulder.* Why don’t you head to your tent and take the day off?
*he flinched slightly when Carlos brought his hand up* o-okay..
Alright. Would you like me to walk you there? *he notice the flinch, but he’d acted too quickly to abort the touch that was meant to be reassuring. He thought that Max would probably appreciate it if it weren’t pointed out.*
Oh- um… Hi.
“Who the fuck are you?” Ryan is in the middle of trying on a bikini and doesn’t quite have the straps tied.
“Oh shi – Goddamn grey-faces!” Carlos quickly turned away so that he was no longer looking. “Sorry. Hi. I didn’t mean to drop in like this.”
Ryan snorts and finishes tying up the bikini. “I don’t blame you. You can look now.” The scars on his forearms were glaringly obvious and Ryan ran a hand over them. Well, so much for his date. Time to make the worlds worst first impression.
Carlos sighed lowly and turned around. Once he got a good look at the kid in front of him though, he frowned. “I think someone lied to me,” he said suddenly – seemingly out of nowhere.
“How so?” Ryan raised a brow and crossed his arms defensively. This whole situation was weird.
“THe grey-faces said that you were, like, Ahava’s older sibling. That you were responsible for him – you’re still a kid yourself. How old are you exactly?”
Ryan tensed. “Sixteen. I know I look eleven but I’m just short. Also, Ahava goes by they/them pronouns.” She narrowed her eyes.
Carlos was startled. “Oh.” But he nodded, acknowledging the mistake.“Excuse me. I apologize.”
Ryan nodded, accepting the apology warily. “So, why am I here exactly? Because all I’m getting is that you have very little knowledge of my relationship with Ahava…”
“I was told that you’re in charge of Ahava, and then was brought here. I have some concerns about them, but I”m not sure if you’re the right person to bring it up to…”
A bit belatedly he realized something. “Um, before we go on… I’m Carlos. I’m a parent to a couple of kids at a nearby camp.” He gingerly offers his hand to shake.
Ryan hesitated before shaking Carlos’ hand firmly. “Ryan. But you probably knew that. I go to camp scambell. Any of your kids go there?” Well shit. Another fucking parent.
“If you mean ‘Camp Campbell’, then yes,” Carlos said. He sighed and gave Ryan a very serious look. “Look, my kids are ten years old. And Ahava gave one of them alcohol.”
“You are very mistaken if you think I have any authority at all over Ahava.” Ryan glared, tense again. “So, tell me why you’ve decided to bring your grievances to me. Make a good case, and make it quick. I still wanna go on my date.”
Carlos raised an eyebrow at the kid. She(?) had a big vocabulary for someone her(?) age, and Carlos honestly found it pretty admirable. “Well, honestly, I was misinformed. So I’m sorry for causing you inconvenience. I’m just going to talk to my kid again about their part in this and that will be that.”
Ryan raised a challenging eyebrow back. “Control what you can. I get it. For your piece of mind, I watched Ahava dump out their booze. Also, I’d never outright say you’re a shitty parent but… no parent who actually cares about their children sends them to camp scambell.”
Carlos sighed. “Well, I”m not the kids’ only… parent,” he said. “Definitely not the sole custody holder of either of them. Um, I hope Ahava does better, for their own sake. Sorry for taking up your time.”
“It’s fine. You’re trying to protect your own. Hopefully we never need to talk again. Bye now.”
Carlos nodded. “Again, sorry for taking up your time.” Carlos then turned to leave. He promised himself (not for the first time) To never let the grey-faces do anything “for” him again.
The Perfect Scientist 