Chapter 3

The next week Max took off from monster hunting. His back was still sore and he needed to figure out a way to trap them that was fool proof. On top of all that, his monthly visit to Dr. Rashid, his therapist, was more annoying than usual due to his supposed bad dream that caused him to cut his back on the bed. Max had been seeing the good doctor for over a year to deal with some of his "repressed anger" over his father's death and they were at the point in his sessions where "I don't want to talk about it" wasn't going to cut it. So Max came up with a dream about how he was being chased by a dark presence. Real enough to be convincing but vague enough not to require too many details. He went away from that session having to keep a dream journal. Max was fuming about having another psycho assignment but later while out buying his new journal, Max was able to get a set of rope lights to string under his bed.

And then there was Ginny. Max found that his overt dismissal of the girl only fueled her determination to reform Max and his barbaric ways. A few days after their standoff in the driveway Ginny's mother showed up at the door with Ginny introducing herself as Kate and asking about local activities for kids. Much to Max's horror, the two became fast friends. He watched as the two women sat in the living room talking about their pasts probing for common ground on which to base their new friendship. Ginny sat across from him savoring the torment she could see in face. Max tried to intervene but the mothers sent he and Ginny off to find their own common ground. 

Max went straight for his mom's small office where the second computer was kept. Ginny followed expecting to maybe get a tour of the house but found herself being ignored once again. Max sat immediately at the desk and logged onto the internet and began surfing. Ginny now understanding that she was being snubbed again, began to explore the office on her her own. It was an untidy office. There were papers shoved into various colored folders all over the desk and shelves. A small filing cabinet was left half open revealing it's disheveled contents. Packing materials were stacked in the corner be hind the desk, a corner of bubble wrap poked out from between some folded boxes inciting Ginny to play with it. Pop! Max ignored it, focusing on a recipe for making glow sticks out or household chemicals. Pop, pop, pop! Max's eyes darted over toward Ginny who was staring at him, daring him to insist that she stop. Pop! 

"That's my mom's packing stuff. Stop it."

"What does your mom do?"

Max realized she had tricked him into conversation and so decided to make it as short as possible.

"She sells stuff online."

"Stuff, like what?" 

"Old junk."

"Where does she get it?"

"Garage sales, thrift stores, she goes and buys stuff while I'm at school. Some stuff she sells on consignment."

"What do you mean?"

"People give her things to sell and she'll auction them online for percentage of the profit."

"She makes good money doing that?"

Max was a little surprised by the question."Enough." He replied suddenly realizing he didn't know how much his mom made auctioning her nick-nacks. Ginny sighed heavily and stood behind Max and announced, "I'm bored. Let's do something."

Max replied as he continued to read the computer screen, "I am doing something."

" No, I mean something together." She took a turn about the room."Like a game or something."

" I don't really play games."

"Well then..."

Max interrupted." Look I don't really play with other kids. I find it distracting."

"You don't have any friends?"

"None that I play with."

"So what do you do when you have friends come over?"

"My friends don't come over." Max looked up at Ginny and smiled slyly,"And that's why were friends."

Ginny shook her head in disgust." You are gonna be one of those kids that comes to school with a gun and shoots people aren't you."

That made Max angry. " Yes! Yes I am. I do fit the profile. Father killed in an accident," he started ticking off the reasons on his fingers," Mother could be called overbearing, antisocial, pyromaniac, and" he raised his voice to punch the last point home," I have a bad temper. Maybe you should leave me alone because I'm dangerous."

Ginny stood quietly for moment looking down at the floor.

Max barely heard her soft apology over the throbbing in his ears."I'm sorry." She said. " I didn't know your father was dead."

He looked at her and saw her sincerity. The pounding in his head slowed. The rage in his body subsided. It made him ashamed somehow that she could admit that maybe she didn't know everything. She wasn't as sure of herself as she made her self out to be. Suddenly her humility shone a light on his anger that made it seem extreme and unjust.

The words came out before Max knew what he was saying, " I'm sorry too for getting mad."

She shifted uncomfortably,"It's O.K."

There was an uncomfortable silence in the room. Max suddenly wanted to say something to Ginny that would make her feel better but nothing came to mind. He had no experience with this. Now that he had gotten what he wished for, Max suddenly realized what he had rejected. A chance at friendship. Ginny was scared of him now and that was something he didn't know how to fix. He wanted her to respect his privacy but he also thought how nice it would be to have someone to share his plans with. If only people would just be friends on his term then he could have some real friends not just the faceless online chaters that he probed for information about the world of monsters.

Ginny shifted and then went to the door."I'm gonna see what my mom is doing."

As she left she looked back at Max. He couldn't discern what the look meant but he didn't like the way it made him feel dark and hollow.

The result of that afternoon was a very cold shopping trip for school supplies the next week. In preparation for the new school year which started in two weeks, Kate and Evangeline took Max and Ginny out together to buy new outfits, notebooks, backpacks, and pencils. Max was determined to be nice to Ginny and convince her that he was not going to be the kid who shot people at school and Ginny was determined to be politely aloof. She dismissed his compliments, deflected his questions, and only gave general opinions when pressed. It drove Max mad. He couldn't understand. He was just trying to be nice. Isn't this what she wanted? He decided to make one last effort at peace before giving in to the belief that he was better off without friends by buying her an ice cream with his own money. As stood there behind her with two cones of creamy goodness slowly melting,  he began to question what he was doing why did he just spend $6 to seek the approval of someone he wanted nothing to with. Why should he feel guilty for seeking solitude? This girl could never understand him anyway so why should he try to justify the way he wanted to be to her. 

Ginny turned suddenly around startling Max into almost dropping his tasty gift. As he gathered himself. Anger and frustration boiled up in Max's emotional caldron. 

"Geeze! What'd you do that for! I almost dropped this! Geeze!"

Ginny calmly looked at the dripping cones wrapped in napkins that Max held out in front of him. Ginny smiled. Not only had he bought her a treat, it was wrapped so she wouldn't get her hands sticky. She paused a few moments to give Max the chance to offer the cone to her but it came apparent that he was still uncertain if he wanted to be a part the whole friendship thing. In Ginny's young experience with boys, the one thing they hated the most was to be ignored. To her being a boy was all about showing off. If one ignored them a little, they would do bigger things to show that they merited attention. Eventually though if ignored enough they would lose interest and go away. However a little compliment or a gesture of acknowledgment right at the point they began to believe there was no attention to be had here, that made them try even harder. She had watched women coax men into lavishing the world onto them. The trick was to not give in too soon or wait too long but to, at that perfect moment, give a sweet smile, a flattering compliment, or in this case to accept a gift.

"Is that for me?"

Max looked puzzled for moment. "Yes." The word came out a little more curtly than he had intended but Ginny didn't seem to notice. She thanked him and smiled as he handed one of the cones over to her in complete confusion about what just happened. All he knew was that it made him feel good when she smiled.