Textbook Romance

"Oh hey," I exclaimed as we walked down the barren street, "We have to go in here," I said, "I need more shampoo and conditioner since you long-haired boys keep using it all up."

Max shrugged his shoulders with a cutesy smile on his lips. "What can we say, we like the way it smells."

I rolled my eyes at him and tugged him into the little shop, thankful that most places stayed open late in Phili. The place smelt of cinnamon candles and honey. I grinned when the smell assaulted my senses. This was a very girly shop, the place was made of pinks, purples, and oranges. On every shelf there was another lotion, makeup product, or perfume.

"This is so cute," I gushed, reaching out to touch a little porcelain figure.

Max rolled his eyes. "You like stuff like this?"

I nodded my head. "I'm a girl, Maxwell, I love things like this." I squeezed his hands and tugged him down the aisle towards the bath section. The smells changed with every aisle, both Max and I would breathe in deeply and try to decipher the smell.

"Oh, Max, smell this," I gushed, reaching out to pluck a bottle of body wash from the white shelf. I twisted the cap off and held it up for him to smell.

"What is it?" he questioned, reached out to turn it so he could read the label.

"It's Japanese Cherry Blossom!" I said excitedly, "I used to buy this all the time."

I reached up to set it back on the rack. "They have the shampoo here," I said, pointing down in front of us.

Max rolled his eyes like he didn't use it every time he took a shower. I grabbed a bottle of shampoo and conditioner and cradled the pink bottles against my body, since my right hand was still clasped in Max's left.

"Get that other Japanese shit," he said, nodding towards the decorated bottle.

I grinned and looked up to his face. His dark stage makeup was still smeared around his eyes, his face was pale white from the paint. He looked like a complete mess. "Why?" I asked, trying to hide my smirk from him.

He shrugged his shoulders. "It smells good," he said simply, trying to hide the fact that he was the one who wanted it.

"Oh, okay," I said cheekily.

He rolled his eyes again.

"I'll get it for you, Max," I said with a laugh, "You can even tell the guys that it's mine so they don't think you're a wuss."

"Actually," Max said, reaching out to pluck it from my hand, "I'll buy it for you so that when you climb into my bed at night, you'll smell amazing."

"Okay," I agreed, smiling up at him.

He leaned down and pressed his lips to my jaw before asking, "Are you done here?"

I shrugged my shoulders. "Sure, I'm hungry."

He led me over to the check out where a woman stood, probably in her late teens or early twenties. She looked a little nervous when disheveled Max made his way towards her. She bit her lip and dropped her hands to her sides as we approached. She seemed to relax slightly when I grinned at her.

"Hello," I greeted, setting the hair products on the counter as Max set down the body wash, "How are you?" I asked.

She nodded. "I'm good," she replied, glancing up at Max who wasn't paying attention as his dark hair fell into his face while he reached into his back pocket to grab his wallet.

"He's harmless," I said with a smile. My referral to him caught his attention. He looked up quickly as he pulled a few dollars out.

The cashier nodded her head, still nervous as she took in the drastic makeup that coated his face.

"I'm serious," I said, nudging him with my elbow, "He's just dressed up because he played a show tonight."

"Show?" she asked as she rang up the products.

I nodded. "He's a musician," I told her, glad she was relaxing, "A pretty eccentric one."

Max rolled his eyes at me and waited for his change.

"That's really cool," the girl said, offering me a smile as she rang up the conditioner and dropped it into the white and pink bag.

"Yep," I said, popping the 'p', "He may look scary, but all this stuff is honestly for him."

Max scoffed and bumped my shoulder with his. "Liar," he said, shaking his head at me, his wild hair falling into his eyes.

"Aw, babe," I cooed, "I told you I'd tell the guys that it's for me, I never said anything about making fun of you with strangers." I reached up and tucked his midnight colored hair behind his ear.

Max leaned his chin into the palm of my hand.

"Now you'll smell good," I joked, reaching out for the cute little bag that was sitting on the counter.

Max scoffed, our moment ruined. He grabbed the little bag from my fingers and held it for me, even though it wasn't heavy.

I waved goodbye to the clerk and let Max tug me out of the amazing smelling boutique. I pouted when we were back out on the dark streets, moving towards an all night diner that we could see from here.

Max wrapped his arm over my shoulders, kind of like he was protecting me from the surrounding blackness of the night. I wrapped my arm around his torso and leaned in him as we walked.

When we entered the little restaurant, it smelt like grease and ketchup, but it was a welcomed aroma. I grinned when the lady at the counter greeted us, not bothering to worry about the 'unique' makeup on Max's face.

Max and I sat at the counter and he set the bag down next to him.

"Welcome to Rudy's, I'm Regina, I'll be your server when you're ready," the waitress asked, fiddling with her little name tag that was hooked onto her black uniform shirt.

"Hello, I'm Ginny, this is Max," I said automatically, "We'll let you know when we're ready."

"Okay," Regina said, tucking her little book into her pocket, "Would you like any drinks to start with?"

"I'll take some coffee," I told, then I looked up to Max.

Max looked at me oddly with a small grin on his face. Then he looked to the waitress. "I'll take a Coke."

"I'll be right back with those."

Max turned to me with an unbelievable look on his face.

"What?" I asked defensively, resting my elbows on the linoleum counter.

He smiled. "First, you introduce us to the waitress, then you order coffee..." he trailed off.

"What's so odd about that?" I questioned, tucking his hair back again.

"Nev," he said, "You don't like coffee. You've made that clear every morning when Craig makes it."

"Pfft," I scoffed, shaking my head, "I like coffee! I don't know what you're talking about!"

The waitress came walking back towards us with two cups. One steaming and the other full of ice. She set them down in front of us and asked me with I wanted any sugar for my coffee.

"Yes, please," I replied, offering a smile.

Max took a sip of his Coke and sat back in his chair, waiting for me to take a drink of the black liquid and prove to him that I liked it. Regina brought a few pink packets over and told us to call for her when we knew what we wanted to eat.

I ripped open four the packets and dumped the white powder into my coffee. I stirred it all around and then picked up the cup, glaring at Max as a smirk came to his lips.

I took a sip, expecting it to taste like sugar. I tried to hide my cringe when the bitter taste assaulted my taste buds. The sweet and the bitter didn't mix like I expected, instead they were two entirely separate flavors in one drink.

I set the drink back down on the table quickly and reached for Max's soda. I took a large drink quickly as he busted out with laughter at my reaction.

"I fucking told you so, Nev, I told you so. What were you trying to prove?" he asked loudly, laughter bubbling out of his pierced lips as I swallowed his Coke and tried to wash the taste of coffee out of my mouth.

"That's so gross," I whined as I set his cup back down in front of him, "Why did I think I liked that?"

Max chuckled. "You're one step away from wiping your tongue on your sleeve to take the taste out of your mouth," he jabbed, shaking his head.

"I can still taste it," I groaned, reaching for his glass again. But he reached out and held onto the cup so that I couldn't pull it to me. "Come on," I groaned, "I hate coffee. You were right. Sugar doesn't help at all."

Max grinned and leaned in closer. "Even though I love hearing you tell me that I'm right, I have a better way of getting the taste out of your mouth," he said sensually, leaning in so that our lips were merely an inch apart, his breath hitting my face.

"Mm," I nodded, "Really?"

Max smiled and nodded his head a fraction on an inch. "Yeah," he said, "And there's an advantage for me too."

"What would that be?" I questioned, my lips practically touching his when I spoke.

Instead of answering me, he leaned forward and molded our lips together. The kiss was slow and easy. It was the first kiss we shared since our confrontation with Neil, and it was like he was being gentle in case I changed my mind or something.

I knew by this kiss that he hadn't been put off by me being upset about what had happened earlier. I trailed my fingers over his bullet belt, up his thin stomach, and cupped his tattooed neck with my hand, my thumb tracing the defined line of his jaw.

The black lines on his mouth luckily didn't come off on my skin as we kissed slowly. I could taste the kohl that he used to draw them with as my tongue ran over his bottom lip.

I pulled away with a laugh.

"What's so funny?" he asked, opening his eyes.

"Now my mouth tastes like your makeup," I said, reaching for his soda again.

He chuckled and shook his head, disbelieving.

I took a swig of his pop and set it back down, grinning at him slyly when the drink was almost empty.

He shook it off. "I'll get another one. What do you want to eat?" he questioned, picking up the small diner's menu from the counter in front of us and holding it up so that I could read it.

"Do they still serve pancakes?" I asked nonchalantly, searching the menu for any kind.

Max bumped his shoulder with mine. "You seem so young sometimes," he murmured.

I moved my gaze up to him. "What do you mean?" I questioned, hating the words that just left his mouth.

He saw the expression on my face and shook his head automatically, knowing that age had been a major problem between Neil and I. "No, no, Nev," he said quickly. He set the menu back down and reached for my hand with his tattooed one. "I didn't mean it like that," he defended, "I just meant that sometimes you're so innocent seeming, Nev."

I played with the silver ring on his finger again and thought about what he meant by calling me young. I wasn't so sure that I wanted to be known as 'innocent'. Sure, I was just 19, but I'd seen somethings that not many people had. I knew I was mature enough to 'handle' being with and around the bands, even though I was, besides one of the merch. guys, the youngest on the tour.

"I still want pancakes," I said simply, looking up to Max's cloudy green eyes.

He smiled and nodded. "That sounds pretty good, actually."

I dropped our hands onto the counter and stopped fiddling with his fingers as the waitress, Regina, walked over with a bubbly smile on her face. "What can I get you two?"

"Pancakes," I said with a smile, "Buttermilk pancakes, please."

She looked to Max. "And for you?" she questioned, bouncing on the balls of her feet.

"The same," Max replied, nodding. "But we'd like two more Cokes."

"Oh, okay," she said happily, "well, you two are a pretty simple couple!"

I chuckled and shrugged my shoulders. I didn't bother to deny it since it would be pretty hard to explain why we acted so intimate even though we didn't have a label on anything.

"I'll bring your drinks, and be back with your food when it's done," she said, smiling at us before she turned around and headed off towards the kitchen to place our order.

"Why didn't you deny it?" Max questioned, turning to his right slightly to face me a little bit more.

"Deny what?" I asked, taking the last sip of his pop.

"You know what," he said, tilting his head in a 'come on, Nev' kind of way.

I bit my lip and looked away from his eyes. "I don't know, Max," I murmured when I felt him start to play with my fingers anxiously.

"I honestly don't know how to reply to that, Nev," Max replied, spreading my fingers out with his own, "I don't know what you want me to do."

I spun in my chair to face him. He let go of my hands as I pulled them down into my lap and picked at a string on my shirt. "Honestly," I murmured, looking up into his eyes, "I don't know what I want you to do, either."

Max sighed. I leaned forward and rested my head on my arms on the counter. I looked up at him from that position and watched the gears spinning in his head.

"Max," I said, "Max, look at me."

Max's eyes met mine.

"I'm really sorry," I breathed, "I really like being with you."

"But?" Max asked, waiting for the inevitable continuation.

I sighed and nodded. "But, I really think I loved Neil," I added, my voice quiet with uncertainty. "And I don't know how to get rid of my feelings for either of you. I know it's unfair to drag you along with me while I try to make up my mind, which I know is stupid because Neil's already left me, but when I'm with you I don't think about Neil... everything is perfect, but when I'm by myself, thoughts of Neil creep back in and it hurts so much..."

Max didn't reach out and take my hand or tell me that he understood, he just nodded once and stayed quiet as the waitress brought over our plates, sensing the obvious strain that was now put on Max and I.

"Let me know if you two need anything," she said, looking between us.

"Thanks," Max replied since I was still looking at him, waiting for his reply.

I reached out and touched his hand. "Max, if you'd put up with me for a little while longer, I know I'll learn to be fair to you."

"That's not your way of saying you'll chose me, though," he replied, "You just want me to wait for you to decide that you don't want anything to do with me."

I shook my head right away. "That's not true, Max," I replied, "I love being with you."

"You love being with me?" he repeated. There was a small smile on his lips as I traced my fingers over the "Pa Pa" paw tattoo on his hand.

I looked away from his intense gaze. I didn't know that those words had slipped out of my mouth until Max repeated them, liking the way they sounded.

"Yeah," I stated, "I do actually."

There was still a smile on Max's face as he slid off his stood and stood directly in front of me. He was completely serious now. "I can't wait for you forever, Nev," he told me, reaching up to touch the tips of hair as it stopped below my breast, "We don't have forever for you to figure out how you feel about me."

"I'm not confused," I told him, "I'm just conflicted."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Max questioned, a chuckle on his lips at my answer.

"Can we talk about this later?" I asked, looking at the plate of pancakes sitting in front of me. "I really want to eat these before they get cold."

Max nodded and picked up his fork. He shoved a large bite in his mouth and grinned at the taste. "These are really good," he mumbled with food still in his mouth.

"Swallow, then talk," I told him with a laugh before I shoved a huge bite into my mouth, too.

Max took another bite and opened his mouth. I groaned and put my hand over his mouth. "You're gross," I laughed.

Max swallowed and reached up to pull my hand from his face. There were perpetual smiles on our faces as we ate slowly, enjoying the taste and company of each other. Max finished his pancakes before me and then leaned over towards my plate, where I had a little less than half of the golden colored pancakes left.

"What do you want, Max?" I asked. I took another bite.

"You should share with me," he said, a sly look on his face.

"Really?" I questioned, "I should?"

He nodded and opened his painted mouth. I rolled my eyes and fed him a bite, watching as he grinned. The two of us finished my plate off quickly after Max poured even more syrup on them. He pulled out his wallet when we were done and paid the bill.

"Thanks, Max," I said with a smile as I stood up from my chair.

He stood up to and grinned down at me. He leaned down and pressed his lips to mine. "No problem," he replied, smiling.

I crinkled my nose in distaste. "You're sticky," I told him when he silently questioned the look on my face.

Max grinned and grabbed for my hand. "You like it," he stated.

I shook my head. "No," I said, "But it beats the taste of eyeliner on your lips."

Max laughed and started leading me through the dark back towards the venue. I was no where near ready for the conversation we were going to have, but I knew that we had to have it if I didn't want to ruin everything between us.