Breathe || Max X Reader - Camp Camp

XXXVI

Word Count: 1,972
David's POV

"And just what do you think you're doing here?", I fumed. My love for my campers is, and always will be, immeasurable, but at the end of the day one man can only handle so much. "Harrison! You are not meant to be here! You are very lucky you were able to navigate all the way back to the Counselors' Cabin on your own. This better be an emergency!"
As agitated as I was, I could see some sincerity in Harrison's expression. And then again, Harrison doesn't really cause much trouble on his own... "David, Y/N is gone and we have no idea where she went. Preston went to follow her, but he's been gone for way too long. It's been nearly a half an hour!", Harrison explained.
I pinched the bridge of my nose. Two lost campers. We're falling apart without Gwen. As a camp counselor, it was my job to ensure the safety of all campers, as well as to remind them that everything would be okay. "Alright Harrison, let's go find them then.", I approved. I removed my hand from the bridge of my nose and snagged a piece of paper from my desk. I grabbed a pen and quickly wrote.

Gwen,

Two campers are lost, Y/N + Preston. Going to get them. Just keep Max here. Idk. They're bungee jumping... that's the activity. Sorry Gwen, had to go.

I left the note on my desk and sat my pen aside. I nodded to myself and walked out of my office. Harrison followed close behind. Harrison didn't make a peep, but I could sense his nervousness. Even after we'd left the Counselors' Cabin, Harrison was still twiddling his thumbs.

Gwen's POV

"We're almost back to camp.", I mentioned to Max. "You know...we could stop for ice cream."
Max remained silent. I felt so sad for the poor boy. He was such a shit stain, but he had pretty good reasons to be one. "Max...you can talk. If you want...", I encouraged. Using my mirror, I was able to see that Max refused to look in my direction. He refused to acknowledge that I was even speaking. "Please just tell me what you're thinking about."
"This didn't fix the problem, Gwen.", Max croaked. He cleared his throat. "You're fucking stupid!", he screamed. I trembled in my seat. Max's anger had never intimidated me before, but this time it was something straight from Hell. "They'll adopt another kid! And they're gonna' fuckin' hit it! They're gonna' fuck up another kid!" Max dug his nails into himself, oozing with frustration. "This didn't fucking fix it."
I let out a sigh. "I'm sorry, Max.", I consoled. "We are going to report your parents to the authorities. They won't be able to adopt another kid."
Max shook his head. "It doesn't work like that, it's not that easy!", he screamed. His lip began to bleed, as he'd been biting it hard. "They'll find a way. They'll do whatever they have to. They'll make somebody new suffer."
In a way, I knew that Max was right. I knew how that shit worked, I wasn't born yesterday. However, I knew that it was over for Max. "Max, I'm sorry that we can't save everyone, but we saved you. Can you be happy about that?", I asked. "You're safe now."
Max rolled his eyes. "Yeah, safe until David tries to get rid of me.", Max argued. He wiped a stray tear from his eye. "It'll happen eventually."
At the end of the day, there was nothing I could do to fix somebody who was so broken. There would nothing I could do to make him believe that he was okay. "Alright, Max.", I told him.
And once again, the car ride to camp fell silent. I should still get him ice cream.

David's POV

Harrison pointed to his left. "Preston went that way.", informed Harrison. I nodded.
     "I want you to stay here, we can't afford any other campers getting lost. Keep an eye out.", I warned. Harrison nodded. I turned around and began heading in the direction Harrison suggested.