~ Seattle, downtown ~
Elizabeth left Franciscan Medical Center in a hurry.
That man is exasperating… undeniably good looking, but good looks can only go so far. His personality is so bad that she is confident how his accident must be some karma because he mistreats people.
Now that she thinks about her interactions with him, she approached him with an intention to help because she suspected that he was hurt in an accident. And what did she get? Bad attitude and he had no problems leaving her in the rain! And then he shamelessly flirted with her in the ambulance van. What was that about? Did he really think that his charming smile and few kind words will work after he mistreated her? And his lines were cheesy. Liz can imagine that maybe some girls might be swayed by him, but she is not SOME girl. After all that, she still decided to go and check on him, and what did she get? More attitude. That man is horrible, and she hopes to never bump into him again.
Back to present…
Liz is enjoying a scrumptious meal in a restaurant with an amazing view while checking on her tablet listings for the apartments she wants to see in person. She selected them during previous few days while waiting for her interview, but she didn't want to go and see them before she gets a confirmation that she got the job.
Five apartments, all of them seem acceptable and are fairly close to the Franciscan Medical Center. And she can visit all of them this afternoon. Perfect.
…
Liz's afternoon passed very quickly.
After in-person inspection, choice of five apartments got reduced to two. They are comparable in terms of amenities, space, and everything she needs, but each has one appeal over the other.
Her choice number one is closer to the Franciscan Medical Center, while choice number two has an amazing view.
She got an assurance from each of the building managers that they will hold them for 24 hours. By then she needs to confirm her interest and put a deposit, or they will make those apartments available for other interested parties.
A tough choice. Walking distance to work vs. great views of the piers and the Seattle Great Wheel that only a penthouse can provide.
She decided to sleep on it.
…
While Liz was contemplating about her apartment choices, Max's day was not getting better.
Because he had to be watched for 24 hours after the accident, Hunter brought him to their family home instead of Max's apartment.
Max locked himself into his old room and decided to sleep on it. If he is sleeping, they will not disturb him. His only regret is that tonight he can't go out clubbing with Quentin.
Max woke up grumbling. Who dares to poke him in the cheek and wake him up? Didn't he lock the door?
He opened his eyes lazily and he realized that he is looking at his older sister. "Rina? Why are you here?"
Sabrina grinned. "They called me for a family edition of an intervention*. Can't I come and visit my younger brother after he had a car accident?"
Max's face contorted in anger. "Hunter!"
Sabrina laughed. "Don't blame him. The police called to say that they finished collecting evidence from your car and that you can pick it up."
"Crap!", Max put his face in the pillow and cursed for some time. "I gave them my cell phone as a contact."
"Yes. But you didn't pick up, so they called the second number, which is our home."
Max checked his phone and confirmed a number of unanswered calls. Ah, he put his phone on silent so that he can sleep.
"Is Jackson here?", Max asked about Sabrina's fiancé.
"No. He is on a business trip." Sabrina stood up and pushed her long blonde hair behind her shoulders. "Get up! Everyone else is at the table, waiting for you."
Max exhaled. He wished to jump out the window, but he knows that he can't avoid what is coming.
…
"So, will you tell us what happened?", Nathaniel, Max's father, asked Max while controlling himself not to burst from rage.
"I was driving, and the car came at me from behind the curve. In order to avoid a head-on collision, I ended up off-road.", Max explained shortly. Well, he didn't lie.
Nathaniel shook his head in disapproval. "These things happen only to you."
"Don't be like that, Nate…", Max's mother, Madeline, patted Nathaniel's hand gently. "It can happen to anyone. It was an accident…"
Nathaniel's snort interrupted whatever Madeline wanted to say next. "Accident? Why is our son so prone to accidents? That was the third car this year! And it's only May!"
"Dad…", Hunter interjected while trying to help his brother. "For the Mercedes, it was not an accident… the car was burglarized. And the Lexus thing happened in a parking lot. Both times Max was not behind the wheel."
Nathaniel gritted his teeth. "Burglarized… would it be burglarized if your brother didn't go to that party in a shady neighborhood!? And Lexus would not be destroyed in a parking lot if your brother was not wasted so much that he forgot how to park a car on a hill!"
Max lowered his head. He knows that no matter what he says, the argument will escalate. It's better to stay quiet. Eventually, his father will get tired of shouting.
For the Mercedes, Max went to the party, and it was fun, but when he came out of the house, he found his new car without tires, windows were broken, and they tore out the steering wheel and the GPS. Only wires were sticking out. He has no idea how they did it. And for the Lexus, it was a crazy night, and he was wasted… and he left the car in neutral. The car went downhill while hitting and scratching numerous cars on the way until it stopped by hitting a utility pole.
"When will you learn?!", Nathaniel raged at Max. "How long do I need to talk to you like you are a teenager?!!"
"Calm down, Nate.", Madeline urged him.
Seeing that Nathaniel is taking deep breaths, Madeline turned to Max.
"Max, dear… you know that we mean well. You need to think about your future. Questions like 'what do you want to do when you grow up?' are overdue. Because you are a grown up man, but you are not behaving like that."
Madeline saw that Max is not responding and she continued: "We all know that you are smart. At school, most of the professors called you a genius. Is it so difficult to show more effort at work? Don't you want to succeed? And no one is saying that you should not attend parties, but can you be pickier about them? We all know that you have many girls eager to be by your side… can you decide on one and give her a chance? You will not know if a girl is compatible with you if you keep pushing them away before anything starts. Don't you have anyone special? Different than the others?"
"Different?", Hunter perked up. "I saw him with a girl, and Max said that she is different from others."
Max frowned while thinking, what is Hunter talking about?
"Who is she?", Sabrina eagerly asked Max.
Hunter responded instead of Max: "I saw her only for a bit, but I can tell you that she is good looking, classy, not noisy and polite." He also wanted to say that she has great legs, but he kept that bit for himself. His parents are listening.
"What is her name?", Madeline asked excitedly.
"I don't know.", Hunter responded honestly. "She left before I could ask."
Max's eyes flashed when he realized that Hunter is talking about the young woman who visited him in the hospital (aka Elizabeth).
"Ah, she is shy…", Sabrina dramatically sighed while teasingly looking at Max. "Considering that she is a girl close to Max, that is a rare quality."
Max glared at Hunter. "I told you that it's not like that!"
Madeline inhaled sharply. "Oh, you are protective of her! Max, dear… when can we meet her?"
Max took a deep breath while thinking, how can he get out of this situation? Should he just say that he does not know her name, and that she wanted to help him, but he was rude to her? It's probably a good idea to skip that part.
How did they conclude that she is classy and polite and shy? That woman is anything other than shy! She claimed to be his girlfriend just to get a free ride! Max glanced at everyone at the table and he noticed that they are all expecting him to say something. Even his father is not frowning, but he is… curious. Hopeful, approving maybe.
A thought came to Max: if that woman can claim to be his girlfriend to get what she wants, why would he be any better?
Max cleared his throat before he spoke in an unusually low voice: "It's too early for you to meet her. We only started dating recently."
The silence in the dining room was intense.
Max did his best not to smirk while looking at the stunned faces of his parents and siblings. Yup, this girlfriend will be useful. Why didn't he think of this earlier?
He lowered his head and finished the food in the plate, happy that no one spoke to him about anything unpleasant for the rest of the evening.
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