Status: Updated once or twice a week.

After the World's End

Chapter Sixteen

Chapter Sixteen

Max's face was gaunt and there were still times where it was painful for Max to even breath. At those times, Max wanted nothing more than to die and begged Arden times to just help him die. "Arden, let me go. You're hurting me!" he'd scream with crazed eyes. "I want it to stop! I want everything to stop! Please, help me!" and the worst, "Why are you doing this to me?"

'He isn't even Max anymore.,' Arden thought as the boy finally exhausted himself and fell into unconsciousness. At least sleep was some respite from the pain for Max, but Arden heard Max's voice even in his dreams. He heard Max' s dark accusing voice begging to die and yelling at Arden when he wouldn't listen. Arden was afraid to even hold Max anymore because the boy would begin crying out again. Max didn’t care about anything anymore and the violent way he would twist and throw himself around hurt him even more than Arden's holding him could ever do.

Arden bent over in his chair so that his head was resting on the edge of Max's bed. He wanted to be able to feel when Max woke up again because he had taken to trying to rip out his IV. He'd only managed it once so far, but had no desire to see a repeat. Arden was in the strange state between being awake and asleep when he faintly heard the elderly doctor hobble into the house. With difficulty, Arden stood up, telling himself that a short time longer without sleep wouldn't really hurt him, and walked over to the old woman.

"Max, isn't getting better," he told her.

"It takes time. I've told you that already," she said. "Max is very sick and while it may be hard for you to see it as his friend, Max really is improving as well as expected."

"Improving?" Arden said angrily. "How is this improving?"

"He's stopped coughing up blood for the most part and he been able to gain some weight with the IV," she replied, ignoring Arden's frustration. "The biggest danger left isn't so much from the illness as from Max being willing to let himself get better. It is going to be painful to recover and he'll probably always be more likely to get sick than the average person, but he should be fine. You will see."

Although Arden didn't believe it at the time, he did soon see that Max was right.

Max stopped struggling against his caretakers and allowed them to help him. Sometimes it was so clear that he was in pain, but he wouldn't say a word. Most of the time, he just watched everyone as if he were trying to figure them out and would listen to Arden when he spoke.

Arden was in the middle of telling Max how Cohen had managed to get into another argument with someone, when Max finally said, "I bet Caroline was pleased." Max's voice sounded so alien from disuse that Arden had to fight the urge to look around him for another person.

"Probably not," Arden agreed once he was able to speak again. "Are you going to start talking again?"

Max blushed shyly. "Yes," he whispered, consciously trying to make his voice less startling as a barking cough shook him. "May I have some water?"

"Yes, of course." Arden jumped up and got Max a glass of water, mentally berating himself for not thinking of it earlier. He pressed the glass into Max's hands, but the moment he let go Max started to drop it. He caught the glass before it had even really slipped out of Max's hands and, ignoring Max's apology, brought the glass to his lips and let Max drink.

The muscles, or what there were left of Max's muscles after his illness, were going through awful spasms. "What's wrong with me?" Max whispered, near tears.

"You're just very weak still. The doctor said you will need to do exercises to strengthen your muscles, but first you just need to work on gaining weight," Arden told him.

"I want the IV out," Max ordered. "I promise I'll eat and I know I can gain weight faster that way."

"You're still too light, Max. I don't think you'd be able to hold that food down," Arden replied. "Wait until you weigh 100 pounds and then we'll see."

Max's confusion was evident and he knew that the number meant nothing. "Is that a lot?" he asked, unsure. "I want it out now. The IV makes me feel sick…I don’t like looking at it. I don't want it."

"It won't take long. Maybe in a couple of weeks, we'll be able to take it out. I know the IV bothers you, but it is helping. You just have to remember that," Arder said. "Now, tell me how you feel, other than the weakness?"

Max sighed, but decided to let the IV go for now. "I feel okay." At the disbelieving look on Arden's face, Max quickly said, "Well…maybe not completely okay. I can breathe again and I'm not so tired and…and I know I'm going to be okay now. I don't think that I'm dying anymore." The quick hesitant look Max gave Arden at the end made it almost a question. He wanted Arden to confirm what he said and Arden knew Max would 100% believe what he told him.

"You'll be fine, Max," Arden said. He wanted to cry, but he didn't really understand why. Max needed him. He already knew that, but something about the way Max was looking at him made his feel both afraid and more happy than he'd ever been. It was terrifying to be that responsible for someone, but also infinitely happy that Max trusted him.

"Thank you," Max replied with a faint smile. He yawned widely and leaned back into his pillows. In almost no time, Max's eyes were drooping and he was fighting off sleep.

"You need to rest," Arden told his friend.

"I'm not the only one," Max replied sleepily.

"I can sleep later. I'm supposed to be watching you right now," Arden replied.

Max patted the spot next to him on the bed. "There's plenty of room right here. You can get some rest too and you'll be able to tell if I move," he said.

Arden sighed. His stomach was tied up in knots, but he couldn't really come up with a complaint. He lied down next to Max and Max immediately curled up around him. "So much for personal space, huh Max?" At the same time, he wanted to smile at him.

Max just smiled, "You'll be fine." In no time, Max had drifted off to sleep.

Arden, however, wasn't so lucky. He couldn't get his mind off the his friend who was sleeping peacefully next to him.

Max looked older somehow. He knew he hadn't physically aged much. Max was still small in stature and very thin which did a lot to make him appear younger than he was. Something about Max had changed. The way he held himself and the look in his eyes seemed so much different. It was obvious that Max had been through more than the rest of them and after being around Max as long as he had, Arden couldn't imagine anyone looking at Max and thinking of him as a child, but the villagers who had come into the hospital often proved him wrong.They would see a child, hurt and quiet, sitting in the bed and would coo over him and talk down to Max. Arden hadn't had the chance to talk to Max about it because Max had refused to talk before that day, but he had a pretty good idea that it annoyed Max.

Arden was shook out of his thoughts when he heard voices, voices he recognized,coming towards the hospital. His friends were only a few seconds from being in the room with them. Irrationarly, Arden slid out of bed, waking Max in his attempt to get as far away from Max's bed as possible.

By the time his friends were opening the door, Arden was halfway across the room sitting in a chair. He tried to seem calm on the outside, but inside he was freaking out. He felt guilty when he looked at Max, who was watching him confusedly. His attention was taken off Arden though when Caroline burst in. She hurried over to Max, immediately smoothing his blankets and pressing her head to his forehead. "Hey, Max," she said in a falsly cheerful voice. "Are you feeling better?" she asked, obviously not expecting to be answered.

"I'm fine, thank you," Max replied with a grin.

Caroline jumped and squeaked in surprise, clapping her hand over her mouth. "You're talking again!" she said, laughing. "I'm glad to see you acting like yourself again."

Stasia surprised everyone by speaking up. She murmured, "I'll be glad when you're back to normal. It's been quiet without you."

Max blushed and smiled. "I'm not that loud," he said, shyly.

Stasia smirked back at him, but didn't say anything else. Stasia lay her head on Alexander's shoulder, looking calmer than Max had ever seen her before.

Alexander was still tense like he expected to get into a fight at any moment. It made both Arden and Max sad to see Alexander like that and Arden wondered whether Alexander would ever get used to not having to lead and take care of his friends. "It's good to see you, Max," Alexander said.

There was a pregnant pause in the room and everyone seemed to feel the absence of their companion. Caroline's usual carefree expression slipped for a moment and she said, "Cohen couldn't come. He's been really busy and-"

Max smiled reassuringly at her and said, "You're an awful liar. I know Cohen and I don't get along and I'm fine with it. You should start talking to him again."
"No," Caroline said adamantly. "He's being an ass."

Hearing Caroline speak badly of anyone brought a smile to Max's face. "Caroline," was all he said.

"Okay," she laughed. "Maybe calling him an ass is a little too much, but he still needs to change. We're all friends and I don't understand why Cohen and you can't get along. Maybe you will be friends one day," she said, blatantly ignoring Max's dubious look.

Arden frowned at the thought of Max and Cohen becoming friends. It wasn't that he didn't want them to be friends, but he couldn't imagine the two not getting into fights on a regular basis. They were both too protective of their family and their personalities were too different. Arden had always been afraid that if Max and Cohen got into a fight, Cohen would hurt Max really bad, but now he thought that as Max got stronger he could more than protect himself. Arden really wasn't sure what to think about the two.

He noticed though that Max still hadn't gotten enough sleep. After all, he'd had only a few moments to sleep and he definitely needed his rest. Max's eyes kept closing and his head was bobbing like he was barely awake.

"Max, you need some rest," Arden said, startling Max into somewhat consciousness again.

Max shook his head, disagreeing weakly for a few minutes, but after the third time he'd interrupted himself by yawning he had to admit defeat. He settled into his pillows, muttering about how they wouldn't be able to abandon him once he was better.

Alexander smiled, patted Max on the shoulder, and told him that he would come to visit him again soon. Stasia nodded her agreement with what Alexander had said and the two left. Caroline hugged Max, sighing, and said, "I guess I had better catch up with them. I'll see you soon."

Arden started to leave, too. He wanted to give Max some time to rest without other people to bother him. Just as he got to the door, Max realized what Arden was doing and whispered, "Arden? Do you have to leave? This place still makes me a little nervous. Could you stay for a few minutes?"

"Um, sure," Arden agreed. He knew that Max didn't deal with knew people well-- and who could blame him after the way they had met him? Naturally, Makai, Sarah and Grandmother scared him, not to mention the villagers who came into the hospital on a daily basis. Even Kale, who had in fact been Makai's brother like Arden had thought, had come over a few times. He was probably the main person Arden was worried about coming in while he was gone. Kale seemed to resent their group being in the sanctuary and knew they probably would not have gotten in so easily if Max hadn't been with them. Because of that, he blamed Max.

It was just another reason for Arden to stay with Max and watch over him. He was glad to watch Max though. It wasn't that he didn't think that Max would be safe without him. After all, Grandmother was always there in plenty of time to send Kale out and Kale wouldn't really hurt Max. He, like the others in the village, only saw how small Max was and no one could think of hurting him, no matter how angry they were with him.

Max really hadn't even seemed to mind Kale, which made Arden feel a little bad about getting so riled up about him. If Max didn't think Kale was worth it, why should he? Max only seemed to mind the elderly doctor who took great pleasure in feeding Max foul tasting medicines several times a day. The expression on Max's face when he drank them told Arden that said medicines were ten times worse than he could ever imagine.

It wasn't long before Max had drifted off into a deep sleep and Arden knew that he was free to leave. Just as he was getting up, the old woman bustled in with a couple of bags in one arm and she was leaning on her cane heavily. "Child, help me with these," she snapped, gruffly. As Arden hurried over to help her, she continued, "Every time I walk in, you're here. You knokw you're welcome here any time, but still. You and that boy are joined at the hip. If I didn't know better, I would think you two were more than friends."

Arden promptly dropped the bags he had taken from the woman and stared at her in disbelief. "What? I don't…Max and I…I've never heard something so…" he stuttered, unable to even defend himself, much less Max, adequately.

"You had better hope none of those broke or I'll have to kill you," the doctor said calmly, but Arden kind of thought that she was serious. "You don't have any idea how much of a pain it was to get all of those. It took ten people to find all the supplies. Now pick those up and stop stuttering," she snapped.

Arden was still visibly thrown off balance, but he did what he was told to do. He could let what the doctor had said go so easily and told her, "Neither Max or I are girls."

"I'm actually aware of that," she told him, giving Arden the distinct impression that she wanted to roll her eyes at him. "I actually haven't gotten to be this town's doctor for the past ten years by being an idiot."

Arden kind of wanted to disagree with her after what she'd said about him and Max, but he wasn't quite that brave. He settled with just looking at her like she was crazy.

"It isn't impossible for two people to be homosexual, or attracted to someone of the same gender," she added for Max's benefit. "You probably wouldn't know about that though, as few people as there are left. It always was uncommon, even before the war, but there's nothing wrong with it."

Arden just gaped after the woman, who had turned her back on him. "I-I"

"Didn't I just tell you to stop stuttering? I know I'm getting older, but I distinctly remember telling you to stop. Just drop it if it bothers you so much," she said dismissively.

Arden frowned, very much not wanting to drop it. He wanted to prove that he and Max weren't homosexual like the doctor had said, but he wasn't sure how. For that matter, he wasn’t even sure why he wanted to disprove it. Hadn't the doctor said that it wasn't a bad thing? He didn't know. Arden just wanted to shake away the thoughts that there might be a possibility that he and Max could- No. Even if he was…like that, then it wasn't likely that Max would be too. 'I just need to stop thinking like this,' he thought to himself. 'Besides,' he thought, 'She's probably just saying it for the sake of bothering me. That woman has to much free time on her hands.'

He set himself to picking up the things he had dropped and making sure they weren't broken. Luckily, it looked like the woman would be killing him today. Arden helped the elderly woman organize all of the new medicines she'd gotten. He'd been shut in the hospital for almost as much time as Max and by now knew where nearly everything went.

Just as Arden put away the last of the medicine, a fine, red powder, Grandmother said, "I've been meaning to tell you something."

"What?" Arden asked worriedly. He was afraid she would bring up the same thing again and the whole topic just made him so uncomfortable.

"There's over 800 people here and our population is only growing larger," she began. "All of them are going to get sick or hurt at some point. I'm gone all day treating people and there's still ten more waiting when I'm done at the end of the day. I've tried to teach Sarah and Makai enough to take over when I'm gone, but with the amount of people here, there's no way they can treat them all. I think you should be one of my apprentices as well. I've see the way you treat your friend and even though you do it because you care about him, I think you would try just as hard for every patient. Do you want the job?"

"Um, sure," Arden said in a dazed sort of tone. The last thing he'd expected was a job and he couldn't believe that he'd get such an important job in the community as well. He knew this was a huge honor. The old woman was one of the most famous people in the village. Everyone knew her and everyone respected her. "I'd really like that," Arden added, afraid that he had sounded hesitant at first.

Grandmother nodded. "I'll figure out a way to teach you then. I think it would be good practice for Makai to teach you some of the things he knows. I'll help you too, but it'll be easier this way for all of us."

"Okay," Arden said. That was fine with him. He didn't mind being around Makai.

"Now that that's settled, it's time for your first job," Grandmother announced, ignoring Arden's surprised and worried look. "Go back to taking care of your friend. He's getting better, but he's still the sickest person in town. No one should be as malnourished as Max was-" Arden looked down guiltily, thinking that he should have done more to make Max eat, but the ancient doctor caught his look and said, "It isn't your fault. It appears that he's been malnourished ever since he was a small child. Do you know how old he is?"

"When we first met he said he was about fourteen," Arden replied. "He didn't sound very sure. I don't think anyone kept track of the date for him."

"When I first saw him, he appeared to be much younger, but I think he's actually a bit older than even he thinks. From what I can tell, his guess is pretty close though. He appears to be about sixteen."

"He doesn't look so young anymore," Arden argued. "He looks much better now that he's healthier and you can tell that he's feeling better. I'm going to, um, watch over my patient now, I guess." He shuffled away a little awkwardly, pretending not to see the old woman's knowing smile. Arden checked on Max to make sure he was still sleeping soundly before getting his medicine, the rancid, chunky substance that Max dreaded taking every day, obsessively checked on Max again, and made the five of them (himself, Max, Makai, Sarah, and the old woman) dinner. He was determined to make Max eat the whole thing, as Max still had problems eating enough food to maintain his weight, much less enough to gain weight. When dinner was finished, I carried the food over to Max and shook him awake.

Max opened his eyes blurily and smiled faintly when he smelled the food. Now that it didn't make him nauseous Max absolutely loved to eat…until he got full. Then, Arden practically had to wrestle Max to the ground and force feed him to get him to eat a full meal.

The two sat on the bed together, eating their dinner and talking about nothing. Arden didn't mention what Grandmother had said to him. Though looking at Max, he couldn't get it out of his mind.
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Sorry, it took so long...as usual.