"You're not just a clown, Prime_Eight. You're the ENTIRE FUCKING CIRCUS!"
The DedSec gang laughed at Sitara's taunt into the camera as they ended the stream, the signature "JOIN US." line at the end. Sitara pulled off the mask and lowered her hood as she joined the other, all of them giving her a high five.
"That was a hilarious insult!" commented Max, the others also sharing their appraisal for Sitara's video. Ever since Max's infiltration, Prime_Eight and Lenni have been silent. It was odd, but maybe they were reflecting about how stupid they were. Max certainly thought that Prime_Eight were fools for how easily they fell for Max's ploy. Then again, she hadn't made herself entirely known to the rival gangs, but they knew about her Vtuber persona. They just didn't know that it was her who was behind the persona.
Speaking of Vtubers...
"Hey, is it okay if I leave early today?" Max asked the gang. "There's a stream I need to do today. Well, I mean, I don't need to do it today, but--"
"We get what you mean." said Sitara, a smile on her face.
"Yeah, no worries, man. You're helping out the cause with your streaming." commented Marcus. Max nodded happily, a wide smile on her face as she gave them a thumbs up. She got up and went to grab her satchel, getting ready to head out when Josh approached her.
"Hey! H-how's everything, what's up?" she asked, tilting her head. He was silent for a moment, just sort of staring at her, his fingers moving slightly before he sighed.
"Do you want to hang out? I know you have a stream and everything, but since we're dating and all, I thought it would be a good idea to be around each other more. We don't have to if you don't want to, I-I just thought it was a good idea." Josh rambled on about how he was afraid to ask her at first, and then he imagined every single scenario he could about how the conversation would go. Max listened to the entirety of his talk until he realized that he was talking for too long, which was surprising since he was never one to talk for such a long time.
"Josh, I get what you mean." she said, placing a hand on his shoulder, which made him flinch. "Of course we can hang out! I'd absolutely love to." Josh gave her a nervous smile as he took her hand for a moment, giving it a kiss, which made her blush and look away shyly. Josh grabbed his backpack and the two of them left together, with the others looking at them curiously.
"I still can't believe he has a girlfriend now." commented Wrench, before letting out a loud yell, throwing his hands into the air and declaring that he was going to get a girlfriend too.
-----
"Josh, you don't have to hold my hand if you don't want to." mumbled Max as Josh continued to try and hold her hand, although he didn't like affection in public or touching really.
"I'm sorry, I just feel like I should." he said quietly, pulling his hand away and adjusting his beanie.
"Hey, whatever you're comfortable with, I'm comfortable with. We'll go at your pace."
"Are you sure? That feels very one-sided."
"Don't worry. And besides, relationships are all about patience." She gave him a wink and pinched his cheek, making him push her hand away before mumbling another apology. The two of them made it to her apartment. Josh was slightly amazed by how nice the place is. It was in a better part of town, and it was surprising that she could afford it despite her "jobs" being a streamer and a hacker. Then again, it wasn't that hard to funnel money into a bank account to afford such a nice place.
"Nice place." he commented absentmindedly as she led him inside.
"Make yourself at home! There's snacks and drinks in the fridge. Just don't drink any of the alcohol or G Fuel. I bought that one energy drink you like, whatever it's called. I'm gonna get the stream ready." She quickly walked over to him and gave him a swift kiss on the cheek before retreating to her room. Josh sat down on the couch hesitantly, looking around.
Most of the apartment was pretty bare. The only decorations were a few plants and bookshelves with books placed haphazardly on it, with some of the books hanging over the edge while others are piled on top of each other like towers. There were a few picture frames with a pretty blonde lady that looked like Max, and he assumed it was her Mom. Although, it made him wonder about her past. Sure, the group knew about Aiden, Pete and Joseph to an extent, but they didn't know anything beyond that. He wondered why is it that she didn't share more, or why he didn't even ask.
We're dating. Shouldn't we talk about our past? He thought, although it was interrupted by a notification on his phone about Max streaming. He could hear her speaking Japanese in her bedroom. Out of sheer curiosity, he decided to go into her bedroom and watch her, making sure the face cam didn't pick up him in the background. He sat down on her bed, and her eyes shifted towards him for a moment before going back to the screen. Her voice was high-pitched and really happy as she continued her playthrough of Silent Hill. Josh couldn't help but smile as he watched her. The first time he watched one of her streams, he immediately became a simp and her number one donator. Then Marcus caught him watching her stream and became interested as well, and the rest is history.
There was a small smile on his face as he saw his username Hawt Sauce appearing as the top donator, but his mind went back to Max's past. The female glanced at him for a moment, seeing his cute smile turn into a soft frown. She decided to make an excuse to her audience about needing to break for a moment before quickly muting herself approaching Josh, sitting on her bed with him.
"What's wrong?" she asked, taking off his hoodie and beanie and petting his head. Josh closed his eyes and sighed deeply.
"I wanna know about your past." he mumbled.
"My past? What about it?"
"Your parents for starters. You've never told me about them."
"You've never asked, cutie." She pulled his head down onto her lap and continued petting his head, looking down at him and nuzzling his nose. "Hmm, what to say about my parents... Well, my Dad died when I was born. My Mom said it was in a car accident, so she raised me by herself. I've never actually seen a picture of my Dad before, but I'm told I look like him more than my Mom. Mm... My Mom left me when I was around 14 and I became homeless. Now, don't get me wrong, she had her reasons, but at the time I didn't understand them. I didn't see her or even hear about her for seven years. Ever since, we've been keeping in contact but we don't talk much."
"Why don't you?"
"She's just busy."
"What does she do?"
"Well, I can't tell you that." She giggled, squishing his cheeks for a moment, which made him push her hands away.
"How did you meet Pete?"
"He was my neighbour and classmate."
"What about Joseph?"
"He was my childhood friend and also a classmate."
"Why do they want you so much?" His eyes shifted from the ceiling to Max, a serious expression written on his face that made her nervous.
"U-um... Hmm... They consider me something missing in their life. For Pete, it's someone who looks out for him and cares for him, he wants to feel the love of a human being without being seen as an object. For Joseph, it's the need for stability and affection. Neither of them came from very healthy households. Joseph's parents physically abused him if he acted out, so he coped by hiding his emotions and did everything to his parents standards. Pete's Mom was neglectful, and his Dad was sexually abusive. He coped by spending times away and making friends with me. I'm just a missing puzzle piece in their life."
"So they don't even love you at all."
"...I think to some degree they do, in their own twisted version..." There was a moment of silence between the two of them before Josh spoke once again.
"Tell me about the scars on your body, the ones right here." He pointed in between her legs, his fingers perfectly tracing the surgery scars, which nearly made her scream. She froze up at the question, a strained exhale escaping her, which made him sit up. "What? Why are you acting like that?" She suddenly grabbed his hand, squeezing it tightly.
"Josh, when I tell you this, please please please don't freak out or leave."
"Wh--"
"Promise me you won't." she told him desperately. He nodded nervously as she told him the truth reluctantly. His expression didn't change once as she told him about her being transgender. When she was finished with her story, he simply said "Okay, and?"
"What do you mean?"
"Why were you so scared to tell me?" He looked a little confused about her reaction.
"Because I haven't told anyone before! A-and I can never be too careful about the people I tell. I told my high school crush that I wanted to become a girl and he nearly beat me up for it! I can never be too careful with the people I tell."
"Who else knows?"
"You, Pete, Joseph, Aiden, Mom and Sitara."
"Why don't you tell the others?"
"Because I'm scared. L-look, I hope you're not mad about this."
"...Do you think I'm gonna leave?" he asked suddenly. He held his hands as Max bit her lip, nodding hesitantly and receiving a disappointed look. It made her heart drop as her words suddenly got caught in her throat. She hated that look, especially when it came from him. It made her feel like she failed him.
"P-Please don't l-look at me like that..." she said hoarsely, her lips trembling as tears stung the corners of her eyes. Josh's eyes widened for a moment before he hugged her tightly. Max hugged back and let out a soft sob, constantly apologizing for not telling him sooner. Josh petted her hair gently, smiling and telling her that everything was okay.
Eventually, the two of them fell asleep, her computer turning off the stream after thirty minutes of pausing. She'd have to explain that tomorrow to her followers. But for now, she just wanted to focus on Josh and only him. He held Max closely in his arms, the two of them snoring together in peace and quiet. Everything was perfect.
But it wasn't.
Someone was watching from the window.
(Title song: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NbQwopZXl34)
(HANABI by Ikimonogakari)