The Usual... A Max Schneider Fan Fiction

Chapter Five: Figuring it Out

I smiled and looked around. After breakfast, Max had put me in his car, and he'd driven through Chicago, back to the park he'd taken me to the first night we'd hung out, up onto the rocks we'd laid on while we talked and stared up at the night sky. It was a little busier now, but no one noticed us all the way up on our pile.

"Well..." I paused, placing my fingers on a chord. "I don't know a lot," I prefaced. "But I do know a couple of really great songs."

Max grinned. "Play one," he insisted. "Sing it for me... If I know it, I'll sing too."

I smiled and nodded, taking the pick he offered me and beginning to tune the acoustic guitar. "Do you know who the Civil Wars are?" I asked.

Max shook his head, frowning. "Not really," he admitted. "I know they did that one song for the Hunger Games, but other than that I don't really know much about them."

I smiled, finishing tuning. "Well," I began. "I like them a lot," I said. "I was upset for like, two weeks when I found out they split up. Anyways, they have these two really fantastic songs that I fell in absolute love with, and so I made Lucas teach me how to play them on guitar."

Max nodded. "What songs are they?"

I laughed lightly to myself. "One's called 'Falling', and they other's called 'Poison and Wine,'" I paused. "Which one do you wanna hear?"

Max leaned back on his hands, thinking lightly. "'Falling,'" he decided, grinning again. "Now play!" he laughed. I giggled slightly to myself, before slowly beginning to pluck at the strings.

"Haven't you seen me sleepwalking?" I sang. "Cause I've been holding your hand..."

I closed my eyes, listening to the music. "And haven't you noticed me drifting?" I sang next. "Oh, let me tell you I am..."

I smiled. "Tell me it's nothing..." came next. "Try to convince me that I'm not drowning... Oh let me tell you I am."

I began strumming, picking up the tempo slightly. "Please..." I sang. "Please tell me you know.. I've got to let you go."

It slowed down again, making me smile again. "I can't help falling, out of love with you..."

I drug the last note out, smiling lightly as I resolved there, cutting the song short. I giggled slightly, watching Max stare at me as I shifted his guitar away from my body, shrugging slightly. "It's a really good song," I mentioned. "I'll make you a playlist sometime," I promised.

Max just grinned, slowly pulling his ukulele from his case. "So," he smiled. "As it is your birthday," he chuckled. "I've got a multi-part present for you."

I smiled slightly. "You didn't have to get me anything, Max."

He chuckled a little, absently strumming his uke. "But I really wanted to," he assured me, slowly biting his lip, and I realized suddenly in that very moment how extremely amazing he looked leaning back on his elbows in front of me, his soft brown curls tousled slightly as the cool wind blew against his cheeks, his sparkling brown eyes staring at me sweetly as he plucked delicately at his ukulele, his lips slowly spreading into this cute little smirk as he-

"Symphony?" Max called. I forced a small smile as I let my mind run back to reality, shaking myself internally.

"Sorry," I murmured. "I kinda spaced."

Max grinned. "Don't worry about it, baby," he assured. "Did you hear what I said?"

I shook my head shyly. "No," I admitted. "Can you repeat it?"

He chuckled and nodded. "I asked you if you had a song preference," he whispered. "It being your birthday and all, I thought maybe you'd like to choose the song."