Isn't my good side worth rescuing?

[Maxwell Stone]

It was a mild day, neither cold nor burning hot. Maxwell saw the opportunity for a peaceful walk on his day off and quickly snatched it up. A fabled smile appeared on his lips, surely his only smile in months. He hadn't felt this light on his feet for so long, the feeling felt to foreign to be real though he welcomed it regardless. He no longer faced the burden of his family, they never wanted to see him again, and neither did he want to see them. No longer did he have to face exclusion and blame for something entirely out of his control. This was the reason behind Maxwell's smile, never mind how small. At first life had been difficult, but somehow he'd managed to get a job as a busboy and eventually saved enough to rent a small apartment. He didn't expect to get kicked out on the curb by his own family but despite it all he was building a life for himself. Playing Quidditch professionally was still very much in his sights; it had merely been put on hold while the life he was slowly building grew. What surprised Maxwell most about his new life was his urge to make amends for his wrong doing years ago. Guilt wasn't something he usually dwelled on but as of late the feeling frequently crept into the back of his mind. For the most part he was happy, but this guilt surely made him doubt himself.

At first he wasn't walking anywhere, simply walking for the sake of walking. However a sharp glance across the street gave him a reason. His eyes had fallen on the familiar silhouette of Mizelea Brooks, a girl he went to school with. His common sense to ignore her and continue his aimless walk had instantly been suffocated by his urge to apologize. Back in his school days he'd shot a many a off handed insult in her direction, not because he disliked her in any shape or form, instead because he was attracted to her. It wasn't like Maxwell to go out of his way to apologize to anyone, but that was the old Maxwell. He sped up to a jog, attempting to catch up to the girl. Navigating his way around people along the street had proven difficult but he hadn't managed to lose her, not yet. He followed her into a train station and paused. He called out her name once, twice, and with no response returned to a jog. He never intended to be a stowaway on a train, but following Mizelea made him one. Maxwell couldn't care less though, because now he didn't have to chase after her. "Is this seat taken?" He queried, gesturing to the seat across from the girl. This was one of those fancy trains, he felt so out of place, any one could tell he didn't belong here. How he'd managed to get on such a train in the first place he had no idea, but his sheer determination to catch up to Mizelea certainly helped. "How's life been treating you?" He smiled after finally catching her eye.​

 

[Mizelea Brooks]

Through the trees
I wIll find you;
I wIll heal the ruins left inside you
cuz I'm stIll here breathing now...
I'm still here breathing now...
I'm still here breathIng now...
untIl I'm set free.
Go quiet through the trees

The song kept on playing for the rest of her trip, as her earphones attached to her ears. It was the only thing playing, she didn't mind at all, hearing the same song over and over. She fell in love with the lyrics for over a week now and there's no stopping her from listening to it everyday. Mizelea Brook sat there on the train, there was no exact place where she was going and that made it more exciting. The brunette looked outside, she noticed that it was the next stop. There was no way she'll leave this train, not until it's final stop of course. Along with her book, "Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte" one of her favorites, the book rested on her lap as she read a few pages, the words still lingering inside her mouth. How she loved the classics, it was much better than reading some gossip magazines. She decided to stop reading those last month when she couldn't help herself drool over the guys on the cover, muggle ones. It's not like she didn't wanted to date muggle guys but they wouldn't understand her, the only exception of all muggles is her dad. The most understandable muggle she have ever met and perhaps ever will. For a while she reached for her earphone and removed it, trying to hear the what the conductor was saying. She didn't mother to absorb his words, after all she didn't bother to listen. A few people entered the train, some just passed by her ignoring the vacant seat in front. It's seems like no one seems to care she was there, it's not like she's wearing an invincible robe or something, right?

Mizelea placed her earphone back to her ears and played the song once more, singing along to the lyrics inside her head. Through the trees by Low Shoulder is definitely her favorite song right now. For a minute her head followed the tempo of the music then she stopped just when she heard something, not something but rather someone. It was a guy, obviously. At first she didn't bother to look up, perhaps it was just looking for a vacant seat or whatever. Slowly, she hit paused and heard him mutter something. Mizelea was off guarded, she looked at the stranger and recognized him to be Maxwell, Maxwell Stone. She could feel her heart race, she was panicking. Quickly, she pressed play and closed her eyes, debating whether she should talk to him or not. A lot of bad memories stuck with him, like how he would tease her during their Quidditch training, he didn't show respect knowing she was their captain. Talk about arrogant, she thought to herself.

I remember how we used to talk
About the places we would go when we were off
And all that we were gonna find.
And I remember our seeds grow
And how you cried when you saw
The first leaves show.
The love was pouring from your eyes.

Though behind the jerk he is or was, she couldn't help but take another peek at him. He was still indeed hot as the last time she could ever remember. C'mon now! Help yourself here, give him another chance. Her conscience kept repeating, now she became conflicted with the song playing and the voice inside of her. Alright. Sheesh. "Maxwell Stone, it's been a long time since I've seen you." Mizelea replied as she closed her book and let it rest on her lap. There were a few changes about him that she couldn't point out, maybe it's because he was actually talking to her nicely. And that didn't happen a lot, so why ignore him? "Life has been pretty much...." she paused as she turned off the music and let her earphones hang on her neck. ..interesting actually. And what about your life, Mr. Stone?" she continued on. This isn't the usual Mizelea, she's always so cheerful and full energy but for some reason she tried to be calm and be casual in front of Maxwell; because that 'some reason' is him alone.
​

 

[Maxwell Stone]

Maxwell's heart dropped. In no way was he surprised she ignored him, their first encounter and every encounter since he had acted arrogant, self absorbed, cocky; because he was all those things. If the roles were reversed to an extent he would have ignored her too. Instinctively Max wanted to leave, save himself the trouble and humiliation if she continued to ignore him. But he couldn't, not until he had at least one chance to make amends. Even if Mizelea didn't give him a chance Max was determined to apologize in one way or another. Until then he refused to leave on his own accord. Mizelea had changed somehow, to no avail could he figure out why she seemed so different. It had been the better part of two years since graduation; a reasonable amount of time a person could change. Maxwell had changed, that much was obvious. The change in Mizelea seemed very surreal. However he did like this change in her very much, spite he couldn't figure out what the change was. Max was almost too lost in thought at the brunette to realize she spoke; luckily he was paying attention enough to notice. "It has been a long time." Maxwell took this as an invitation to sit down. First, he would make small talk and figure out her mood before coming out with an apology. In his experience they were more likely to accept it this way.

Out of all the people Maxwell had hurt, he wanted Mizelea to forgive him the most. He greatly admired her spirit and loyalty, he always had. In the back of his mind Max hoped they would eventually end up friends. He needed somebody like her around. Somebody his age he could model himself off, somebody down to earth, kind, spirited. Mizelea fit the bill perfectly. Though right now she seemed all but spirited, Maxwell stifled his curiosity to ask. "Interesting, in what way?" He wanted to keep the conversation on her for the most part. This seemed like his only chance to make amends, the only chance they'd be alone or even in the same place for a while. Thanks to Max's working schedule, he seldom had days off. Even if she agreed to see him again after today their meetings would be few and far between. Until Max got kicked off this train he'd make the most of his time with her. "I've been busy." Maxwell replied. Busy was the understatement of the century. He barely got any sleep, apparating between countries for different shifts, working many different jobs just to keep himself up off the ground. He knew he was over working himself, and that he could pay the bills with merely one job. Though as a resilient nineteen year old, Max wanted to work as hard as he could, while he could. Sooner or later he would take some time off to peruse his career in quidditch, and when he did he wanted enough money to do so.

Max sat forward, resting his elbows on his knees. He was impatient and wanted to cut to the chase. They'd made some small talk, although it was very little. Max couldn't keep up this facade any longer. "So uh yeah." He ran a hand through his hair. "I'm glad I found you today." Apologizing was always uncomfortable on his part, he usually just got it over with, but right now it seemed impossible. He found it difficult to spit the words out. Mizelea's stare didn't help the whole ordeal either. "I was a jerk back in school, and I'm sorry. I should have respected you more as a captain, since you were made captain for a reason. I was just really stupid and jealous you were the leader and I wasn't so I decided to be a total butt head. I've never taken orders easily." The only real way to apologize is honesty, Maxwell was being completely so. He averted his gaze from the brunette. The cards were on her table now, if she didn't forgive him he was entirely prepared to leave and pretend this never happened, no matter how much he didn't want to. ​