Sweaters & Cigarettes (30 page)

"Mom," he says, suddenly
realizing all over again how nervous
he
actually is about this.
"This is Max."

Max takes a slow, quiet breath, a
deep inhale which would probably go unnoticed to anyone but Theo, who knows all
of his quirks and mannerisms, by now. It still feels somehow unusual, to see
him even remotely nervous about
anything
.

"Good to meet you," he
says, extending his hand―his right one, the one not currently locked
together with Theo's―and Amy takes it.

"You, too," she says,
clearly trying not to stare too much at him. "I've heard a lot about
you."

Theo absently realizes that Amy was
probably half-unprepared for what Max actually looks like; whatever she's heard
has probably been from Eric, or maybe even Riley, and Theo doubts that his
father went into much, at least positive, detail. He tries to remember how he
himself saw Max, when he first saw him, how his whole appearance was daunting
and intimidating, to say the least. Theo often forgets that he's simply used to
it now, and that most people would have a harder time seeing past it.

"Really?" Max says, as
Amy releases his hand, and she nods.

"Theo won't stop talking about
you," she says, almost teasingly, and Theo resists the urge to groan.

"Is that so?" Max says,
raising his eyebrows as he turns to Theo, who meets his eye.

"Not entirely true," Theo
says. "She's exaggerating."

Max sighs, somewhat dramatically.

"Well, I'm hurt," he
says, and Theo gives him a glare, which is returned by a surprisingly soft
smile. And Amy actually smiles, as she sees it.

"Alright," she says,
breaking up the moment. "How about you two help Riley set the table?
Dinner should be ready any minute."

Theo nods, and as his mother turns
away, he feels Max relax slightly, beside him. He smiles and leans in, planting
a kiss against Max's temple, making his boyfriend glance at him.

"Come on," Theo murmurs,
and gently tugs Max with him, as they make their way over to help his little
brother.

Seeing as how Max and Riley have
met before, and hung out, the atmosphere stays rather light, and Theo is glad
that Riley is there to help ease the tension and nervousness. He and Max get
along really well, after all.

It's when they've just finished
setting the table and started bringing out the food, that the front door opens,
and Theo tenses up. He looks over his shoulder, in the general direction of the
hall, before turning to Max, who looks at him at the same time. They both know
who it is, and Theo automatically takes Max's hand as they make their way back
into the kitchen.

As soon as they enter it, Eric
steps in from the hall.

"Hi, honey," he says,
giving his wife a kiss, before spotting his son. His eyes look a bit tense, as
they then pass to Max, and a few seconds of slightly uncomfortable silence
follow, before Amy steps in.

"Eric," she says, placing
her hand on his shoulder. "This is Max."

She looks at him pointedly, and
Eric meets her eye, as though deliberating, before he visibly relaxes a bit.
Then he turns back to Theo and Max.

"Yeah," he says gruffly,
extending his hand, and Max shakes it.

"We've met," he says, the
slightest hint of a sardonic tone in his voice. Theo knows he does it
automatically, it's just who he is, but Max seems to catch himself at it, and
composes himself. He gives a small, slightly dry smile, instead. "Sort
of."

Eric doesn't answer, just looks at
Max, and for another couple of seconds, it's impossible to tell if he's mad or
not. But then, he seems to relax a bit, deciding not to make anything of it,
and he simply nods, before turning away.

"I'll be right back,"
Eric says to Amy. "Just gotta put some stuff away."

"Alright," she says.
"Dinner's ready, so hurry up."

Eric kisses her cheek and makes his
way out of the kitchen, while Amy gives her son a pointed look, before turning
back to the stove. Theo turns to Max, then, who gives him a slightly apologetic
look.

Sorry
, he mouths, but Theo just shakes his head in assurance,
and squeezes his hand. He doesn't need to say that it's fine, because Max knows
that it is. Theo doesn't blame him for being himself.

Dinner goes surprisingly well. Amy
is open and kind, in a way that gives Theo the distinct feeling that she would
rather have done this from the start, than trying to keep Theo away from Max
and teach him some kind of lesson. Eric, however, is still a bit on edge, but
visibly trying to be welcoming and understand-ing, and Theo is well aware of
more than one pointed look thrown at him from his wife, over the dinner table.
Riley, already knowing Max and considering him kind of a friend, by now, seems
to do his best to ease any tension, and talks to Max in a relaxed kind of way.
Theo really appreciates it; it seems he can always count on his little brother
to try and make any situation better, no matter what.

Theo is seated next to Max, Riley
sitting across from them, with Eric and Amy at opposite ends of the table, and
although Max is the guest of honor, he's not exactly the only subject of
conversation. This gives Max and Theo several opportunities to glance at each
other, as though making sure the other is still okay about all of this, and
every now and then, Theo even squeezes Max's hand under the table, for moral
support.

He really appreciates Max resisting
the urge Theo knows is there, to say the inappropriate things he always seems
to think of, and when Max accidentally drops his fork, he emits a hushed
fuck
,
before actually glancing around the table, as though making sure no one heard
him. Theo finds it adorable, in lack of a better word, and he catches the way
Riley smiles slyly, proving that he definitely heard Max's profanity, although
he doesn't mention it, while their parents chat away, oblivious.

It's weird, but Theo can't help but
smile, realizing that for once, for the first time since he's met Max, Max is
acting as though he actually wants someone to like him. Like this time, he
actually
cares
. He cares if Theo's parents like him or not, and it's a
completely new side of him, one that Theo hasn't really seen before. Because
Max never cares. He never gives a crap if anyone really likes him, or not, and
seeing him give a crap makes Theo feel special in a somehow entirely new way.

"So, Max," Amy says, and
Max looks up. "You're in Theo's year, right?"

Max nods.

"Yeah," he says.

"What's your favorite
subject?"

"Algebra." There's no
hesitation in Max's reply, and Theo feels vaguely, vindictively, satisfied at
the surprise on both his parents' faces.

"Really?" Amy asks, and
Max nods.

"Yeah," he says, before
cocking his head. "Well, math, in general. Anything with numbers, really.
It just... makes sense."

Riley glances back and forth
between his parents for a moment.

"He helped me with my
homework, once," he says, and Amy looks at him. "Explained it a lot
better than my teacher."

Theo glances at Max, along with
Amy, and is half-surprised to find Max looking just the tiniest bit
uncomfortable at Riley's words. Theo remembers what he's said about compliments
on his intelligence and whatnot feeling a bit weird, but doesn't mention it.
And he's not sure anyone else has noticed, anyway.

"Well, that's good," Amy
says, sounding surprised, but like she means it, and she turns back to Riley.
"A pity that your teacher doesn't seem to live up to his title,
though."

She says it jokingly, giving Riley
a small nudge.

"Yeah," Riley says,
smiling. "Although, Max was a bit of a smartass about it."

He looks at Max, who raises his
eyebrows, not the least bit offended.

"Well," he says. "As
you know, my smartassery is just one of my many endearing qualities."

He seems to catch himself at maybe
sounding a bit too familiar, and he clears his throat a bit.

"But yeah, it's
fu―" He cuts himself off, briefly pressing his lips together, before
revising. "It's messed up."

Theo tries not to smile. Watching
Max trying to censor himself, in any manner at all, is oddly entertaining, and
he appreciates the effort.

"I mean," Max continues,
"I get the whole ignorant-teacher-thing. Happens to me a lot."

He raises a pierced eyebrow at
Riley, pointedly.

"And they don't appreciate my
attitude nearly as much as you do."

Riley smiles at that, and Theo gets
a warm feeling in his stomach, glad that this is going so well.

Until his father speaks, that is.

"No wonder," he says,
voice a bit lowered, almost as though he's torn between saying it out loud and
murmuring it to himself. The judgmental undertone of it isn't lost on anyone,
though. "That attitude will get you into trouble."

Theo tenses up, watches out of the
corner of his eye as his mother gives her husband a pointed, almost angry look,
and suddenly, the entire room settles into a tense, awkward silence, which
would be enough to make anyone squirm in discomfort.

But not Max. No, Max doesn't get
unsettled by awkward tension. He thrives on it.

"As a matter of fact, it
does," he says, turning to Eric, who looks up at him. There isn't the
slightest hint of intimidation in Max's expression. In fact, he both looks and
sounds completely conversational, despite what Eric just said. "See, most
people don't like it when you call them out on their shit, and so, my attitude
occasionally does get me into trouble. In fact, last time it happened, it kept
your son from getting punched in the face."

He doesn't sound accusing, or judgmental,
but Theo still notices how pretty much everyone's eyes momentarily flit to the
fading, barely visible bruise below Max's cheekbone, and that they all know
exactly why it's there. Max, however, still doesn't seem the least bit
bothered.

"So, I don't know about
you," he says, half-shrugging. "But I'd say it's worth it."

The silence that Max just broke was
nothing compared to the one that presents itself now, and Theo finds himself
practically holding his breath, as he awaits some kind of reaction. It only
lasts for about a second, though, before Max sighs, and turns to Amy.

"Do you have a bathroom?"
he asks politely, and she nods.

"Yeah," she says,
gesturing toward the hallway outside the dining room. "Down the
hall."

Max nods, and gets up from the table,
leaving the room and its tense, deafening silence.

Theo just sits there for a moment,
before turning to his father, who seems to feel his son's gaze, because he
looks at him then. But Theo doesn't even say anything, doesn't really know what
to say. Instead, he only manages a look that he knows at least resembles a
glare, before he gets up and leaves the room. He swears he can hear Amy
reprimanding her husband, as he goes.

The downstairs bathroom is down at
the far end of the hall, and when Theo reaches it, he knocks softly on the
door.

"Max?" he says, and the
door almost immediately opens. Max leans against the doorframe, hands in his
pockets. He looks tired, and oddly annoyed, and Theo is almost entirely sure he
knew Theo would follow him, so that they could have a brief, private
conversation.

"I'm sorry," he mumbles,
and Theo sighs.

"Don't be," he says.
"It's fine."

"It's not, though," Max
retorts softly. "Didn't exactly help my case, and your dad hates me, as it
is."

"Yeah, well," Theo says,
"he's a dick."

Max just looks at him for a moment,
before smiling.

"Aww," he says.
"Look at you. All rebellious, just for me."

"Shut up." Theo says it
softly, with a small smile, and he takes Max's hand. "He shouldn't have
said that. It was out of line."

Max sighs.

"Yeah, it was," he says.
"Which was why I couldn't keep my fucking mouth shut."

He smiles bitterly, before exhaling
slowly.

"I'm trying, okay?" he
says, and Theo nods.

"I know you are," he
says. "And I appreciate it."

He gives him a light kiss, the
brief touch of lips enough to lend a surprising amount of strength.

"And for what it's
worth," Theo says. "I'm pretty sure my mom likes you, at least."

Max smiles, almost smirking.

"Lucky me," he says,
before taking on a more serious tone. "She seems nice."

"Yeah."

They don't speak for a few moments,
both of them acutely aware of how awkward the whole night has suddenly gotten,
and Theo gives Max a small, tentative smile, until Max actually cracks up and
starts laughing.

"God, you're adorable,"
he says, glancing away and shaking his head. "I'm so sorry I fucked
up."