Note: This story was dynamically reformatted for online reading convenience.
 
 Author's Note: Unlike most of my stories, this series is not intended to be
a 'stroke story', but more of a realistic tale of romance between a boy and
girl.


Summary: Kimmy breaks the news to Max.

   (bg, nosex, rom)



   Kimmy woke up the next morning on a moist, tear-stained pillow.  Yawning
silently, she stretched her arms and legs out, and laid on her back for a
few minutes.  Her mind was full of negative thoughts; not being able to see
Max every day...  moving to a new city with no friends...  She hoped that
what her mother told her was just a nightmare; just an image in her head
that would never happen in reality.  With her head down, she dragged
herself out of bed and walked to the kitchen.

   The girl pushed a chair in front of the refrigerator and stood on it. 
Next, she picked up an orange box of Peanut Butter Crunch that was on top
of the fridge and put the chair back where it was.  Then, she opened the
refrigerator and pulled out a half-full jug of milk.  She put them on the
table and took a small, red, cylinder bowl and a silver spoon from the dish
rack.  She poured the cereal, and then the milk, into the bowl and sat
down.

   When she finished eating, she put the bowl and the spoon into the sink
and ran the water.  There was a knocking at the door and she walked through
the living room to answer it.  Max was standing in the hallway wearing a
white T-shirt with blue jeans and white light-up sneakers.

   "Hi, Kimmy," Max cheerfully greeted.

   Kimmy didn't answer; tears formed in her eyes and her closed lips
quivered as she stared at the hallway's blue floor.

   Realizing that there was something wrong with his girlfriend, Max's
smile faded into a frown.  "Kimmy, what's wrong?" he asked in a concerned
tone.

   Kimmy let out a soft cry and walked away, leaving Max with a confused
look on his face.  He walked into the apartment and shut the door behind
him.  The girl walked faster and he followed her into her room, repeating
her name.  She kneeled on the side of her bed with her arms folded on the
bed and put her forehead on top of her hands.  Max kneeled down next to her
and put his hand on her shoulder.

   "What's the matter?" he asked.

   She picked her head up, wiped tears from her eyes, and said, "My
mommy... told me...  that we're *sniff* moving...  away."

   Max's heart sank when he heard her.  "Moving?" His voice was noticeably
starting to break.  Kimmy nodded.  "Moving where?"

   "Connecticut.  We're leaving in two weeks."

   Max parted his lips.  "Will I ever see you again?"

   "Mommy said I can only visit you on holidays, when she has days off."

   "It's not fair.  That's practically forever."

   "I know," she cried.  Quickly, she wrapped her arms around him.  He held
her tightly and they cried together, softly.

   "Wait," said Max, lifting his head and opening his teary eyes.  "Why
don't you move in with me?"

   "Move *sniff* in with you?"

   "Yeah.  We could go to my house and ask mommy if you could move in."

   "You think she'll let me move in?" She wiped a tear off her right cheek
with the back of her right hand.

   "Yeah.  We could share the same room and same house and stuff like that.
That way, your mommy could get her job and you don't have to leave."

   "Okay," Kimmy nodded, wiping her tears with the back of her left hand.

   "Come on." Max took her left hand and led the way.

   ___________________________________________

   When Patricia answered the door, Max asked her to come into his room. 
The kids sat on the bed and she stood before them.

   "Mommy, can Kimmy come live with us?"

   Kimmy forced a hopeful smile as they awaited a response.

   "Live with us?" Patricia asked in confusion.

   "She said her and her mommy were gonna move."

   Patricia crouched down until she was at eye-level with Kimmy.  "Wow. 
I'm so sorry to hear that." She rubbed the girl's right arm up and down.

   "Me, too," replied Kimmy.

   "So can she live with us?" Max reiterated.

   Patricia looked at her son.  "I'm afraid not." That statement brought a
dark cloud over the kids' minds.

   "But why?"

   "Because Kimmy isn't my daughter.  Plus, I don't think Karen would want
that."

   "But if I stayed here, she could still have her new job and I won't have
to leave," Kimmy cried.

   "Kimmy, your mommy loves you.  She doesn't want to leave without you. 
Especially not that far away.  If it were me, I wouldn't want to let Max go
away.  Wouldn't you miss seeing your mommy every day?"

   "Yes.  *sniff*"

   "And she'd miss seeing you every day."

   "But I'll miss Max, too."

   "Me, too," Max inputed, also beginning to cry.

   Karen patted both of their heads.  "I know you will.  I'll miss you,
too, Kimmy.  You and Max had a lot of fun together ever since you first
met. But there's nothing that I can do about this.  I think you should
spend as much time together as you can before you have to leave.  Doesn't
that sound like a good idea?"

   "Yes," Max said, softly.

   "I'm sorry." Patricia left the room, shutting the door behind her.

   Noticing the sour expression on Kimmy's face, Max turned toward his
friend and gave her a big hug.  Immediately, Kimmy wrapped her arms around
him and sobbed audibly, getting tear stains on the right shoulder of his
shirt.  In the past year that they've known each other, he had never seen
her this way; she would get huffy at times, though she never took her anger
out on him, and that was all.  It was usually her who comforted him when he
cried.  Now here she was, crying her eyes out right in front of him.  Soon,
he realized that he was doing the same.