PAINKILLERS || max mayfield (ON HOLD)

iv - nightmares

"You're too gorgeous to be fourteen."

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HER EYES GREW wide as her mother's voice echoed from behind the door, ice-cold sweat dripping down her body. The scent of her mother's pungent rose perfume filled her room, instantly warning her that her mother was near.

How was she back in her room?

Did her mother find her at Max's and take her back?

She stared in horror as the door handle rattled frantically, the walls of her room pulsating to the rhythm of her heartbeat. She covered her ears as it got louder, violent sobs escaping from her lips.

"Leave me alone!" The whole door trembled, and she knew that the door would soon give in.

"Leave me alone!" She squeezed her eyes shut, trying to pull herself from the nightmare. Until she felt large, ice-cold hands clasping around her neck.

She attempted to scream but was restricted from doing anything other than sitting there as she slowly suffocated in her sleep.

But she didn't.

Soon she awoke, drenched in her sweat and breathing rapidly. Her neck ached, but she didn't know why.

It was a dream, wasn't it?

She looked around, scanning the room for anything that didn't belong until she sighed as she recognized her surroundings to be Max's messy bedroom. With a groan she arose from the bed, finding her clothes to be stained with sweat. At that discovery, she felt slightly embarrassed because they were Max's clothes that she had ruined. Andy groaned again and slumped to the bathroom where Max was brushing her hair. Her focus switched from her hair to Andy's clothes, and she let out a chuckle.

"I'm guessing you slept well?" She pulled her fiery red hair into a messy bun and glanced at Andy again but she was already staring at her.

"Hellooo? Andy, you there?" She waved her hand in front of her face until Andy snapped out of her daydream. Her face flushed a deep red, embarrassed at the fact that Max caught her staring again.

"Got a staring problem, Andy?" She laughed and left the bathroom. Andy rolled her eyes and began getting ready for the day, even though she knew she wasn't energized enough to go out. Her nightmare kept her up all night, and for some reason whenever she would wake up in the middle of the night and fall back asleep, it would be that same dream repeating over again.

Andy left the bathroom and threw on some flare jeans with a tight black top, then headed to the Mayfields' vomit green kitchen where Max's step dad was reading the Hawkins Post. Andy rummaged through the cabinets, searching for cereal, but noticed Max's stepdad observing her over the top of his reading glasses.

"Need somethin' princess?" He asked, getting up from his leather recliner and sliding his glasses off his face. Andy shook her head and prayed that he would go away, remembering what Max had told her about him.

"I mean there must be a reason why you're in my kitchen, right? I've never seen you in my life."

Andy swallowed the enlarging lump in her throat, stepping back as he grew closer to her. "I'm Max's friend." Her heart was beating through her eardrums as she prayed that Max would come to save her.

"Really? You're too gorgeous to be fourteen." He chuckled, now inches away from her. Andy didn't understand what he meant, but she knew he didn't have good intentions. She flinched as his hand reached for her chin, but he quickly withdrew it when Max entered the kitchen.

"What's going on?" Max demanded, her gaze fixed on Andy, who wore a terrified expression. Max's stepdad cleared his throat and lifted his coffee mug as if proposing a toast.

"Well, Maxine, I was introducing myself to this young lady until you interrupted our conversation. Why do you ask?"

"You're not messing with my friend, are you Neil?" Max crossed her arms. At her words, Neil roughly grabbed Max's arm and put his mouth close to her ears. Suddenly the sarcastic side of Max was gone and was replaced by one she'd never seen before.

"What did I say about respect, hm? Call me Neil again and I'll break your arm like last time." Max let out a pained moan as his grip tightened, the bluish purple veins on his thick hands popping out from the pressure.

"What do you refer to me as?"

"Mr. Hargrove." She managed to let out through groans, and he reluctantly let her arm go. Max looked in horror at the fresh red bruise on her arm, her eyes flooding with angry tears. But she couldn't let Andy see her like this.

There was growing tension as Max ran off, but was halted when Max's mother entered the room in search of her car keys. Andy's shoulders tensed at the sight of her, already preparing herself for any harsh words or abuse.

But instead, she gave Andy a sweet smile and held out her hand for her to shake.

"Hey there. You must be Max's friend–Adrienne Harrington?"

Her face burned at the sound of her full name being used but didn't want to seem rude so she nodded anyway. Ms. Mayfield smiled again and gestured for her to sit down at the table. Andy resisted her bored sigh and walked past Neil to sit at the table. But she swore she felt a slight tug on her clothes as she passed him.

Ms. Mayfield cleared her throat and patted the wild auburn perm resting on her head. Andy's leg bounced up and down as she anxiously waited in silence for Ms. Mayfield to speak, although curious as to what she would say.

"Your mother called yesterday. Knew you were here and sounded worried."

"What did she say?" Her heart pounded at the word 'mother', the feeling of ice-cold hands around her throat haunting her. She chewed on her bottom lip, not noticing until she began to taste warm metallic blood.

"She said that you ran away–"

"For a good reason." Andy crossed her arms on her chest. Ms. Mayfield closed her eyes and let out a long sigh. Soon her eyes flickered open and she reached into her jeans pocket for a pack of camels and a lighter.

"What reason?" She asked, with a cigarette now hanging from her mouth. Andy let out a forced laugh, receiving a look of curiosity from the woman sitting in front of her.

"Why do you need to know? It's not any of your business."

Before she could answer, Max ran into the kitchen. She grabbed Andy's wrist and pulled her to her room, locking the door behind them without a word.

And right as Andy was about to flood Max with questions, she heard Dustin's muffled voice on her walkie-talkie. Andy held the walkie-talkie to her ear, trying to decode what he was saying. But he was speaking too fast for her to understand so it all just sounded like nonsense.

"It's been going off for some reason," Max said. "I think it's for you."

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