- Stephen Vincent Benet
Chapter 5
The Man Who's Been There
Nick was getting frustrated. A heap of papers were sprawled across his desk - all rejected beginnings to his essay. He hated the assignment, it was too personal. He etched out a line or two, stopped, read the sentences and sighed, balling up the page and adding it to the pile.
Besides the topic being one he didn't want to think about, Max was also distracting him. Nick couldn't help but wonder what Max was doing right now, what Max was thinking about, if Max was okay.
He went to look at his watch for about the millionth time before he realized yet again that he'd left it in the box when he left that afternoon. He wondered if Max had tried imagining anything after he left.
Nick hoped so.
He stared at the paper.
The event that changed my life the most wasn't so much an event as much as it was a lifetime escaped, he started. He re-read the words and crumpled the paper.
Nick pushed back the chair and laid down on his futon. He rolled so that he was on his back, his feet up in the air against the wall and he stared at his sneakers. He sighed. He just hoped, for Max's sake, that they didn't have too much in common.
Nick was sitting at Mimi's kitchen table the next day. The cardboard box, with Max inside, hovered just outside of the kitchen again. Max hadn't opened the door for Nick when he'd tried to knock, but he was peeking out, watching now.
"So how did Max end up here?" Nick asked as Mimi handed him a cup of apple juice.
Mimi sighed, "It was somewhat similar to when you came," she answered.
Nick looked up at her.
"I picked Max up from the hospital," she said quietly, her voice low.
Max remembered that night. His little hand softly touched the scar he'd kept from that night, and he sunk back from the door.
Nick glanced over his shoulder. "Were his parents -" he hesitated, "- caught?"
Mimi shook her head.
Nick sighed and leaned back and cupped his hands behind his head. "Coward," he muttered.
"How's that?" Mimi asked, not having caught what Nick said.
Nick scowled, "I said he was a coward."
"Who?"
"My father," Nick answered. He leaned forward on his elbows now, "Apparently his father, too."
Max watched Nick's face. Nick was staring down at the apple juice with an expression that Max couldn't quite recognize.
Mimi reached over and patted Nick's arm.
"I had to write this paper last night," Nick explained, "For one of my classes. It was on an event that altered my life forever." He sighed, "Obvioulsy I chose -" he paused, "- that - but... I don't know, it was a rough paper, and it killed me to put that stuff in writing." He shrugged.
Mimi nodded, "I'm sure it was hard."
"It's funny because it's long over, I mean I've had a great life since," Nick smiled at Mimi, "Thanks to you."
"You deserved it."
"It's been almost fifteen years since I even saw him last," Nick said, "But you know I still have nightmares?"
Max felt breathless. Nick had nightmares, too? He wondered if the same monster crawled into Nick's dreams like his own.
Mimi frowned. "Honey, unfortunately things like that don't know the boundaries of time. They don't have limitations."
"I know," Nick nodded. He picked up the cup of apple juice and swirled it a little bit before taking a sip. "I guess I kind of had this notion that if I learned how to help other people get through it that I'd get through it myself."
"You did get through it, Nick," she said, "You did. You did amazing. I'm so very proud of you."
Max watched Mimi wrap her arms around Nick's shoulders. He wanted to hug Nick, too. But he didn't dare to.
When Mimi stopped hugging Nick, he took the last gulp of juice and stood up. Max watched Nick wash his glass in the sink and place it in the strainer on the counter. He turned around and his eyes fell on the box.
"How bad was it?" he asked.
"Bad," Mimi answered.
"Worse than mine?"
"You never told me how bad yours was," Mimi said, "And neither has he."
Nick nodded. "I barely told myself," he said.
