❖ half the world away

MAX KINGSTON twenty-fight

[max-kingston]

@siggycassell​

Max couldn't remember the last time he had been at Sunny Side Up this late. In a normal day, he'd be in the bar or in the club but that night Max called it quits after two drinks. Aside from an old couple eating side by side and a small group of teenagers the place was dead. Instead of taking a seat in the booth he usually picked for breakfast, he sat down on the bar. A small smile playing on his lips as his gaze fell on the waitress. "Hey," he greeted her. He couldn't remember the last time he had seen her, probably last December when he came from New York to visit his parents. "Could I get a cup of coffee, please?"

[max-kingston]

@marleycallahan

Max had been looking forward to the tentative plans with Marley since that morning at the diner. After picking her up outside Sunny Side Up, he brought her to his place, well, the one he shared with his sister. Thankfully, Eleanor wasn't there and had the night shift. Returning to the living room, Max held up two bottles of wine, the best he could find in his sister's bar. "Red or white?" he asked, before looking back at Marley. It was nice to be around Marley and not feel the pressure that this could be something more than just a 'hang out'. Even if he didn't know her that well, he could tell that they had many things in common, especially when it came to relationships. He placed the two bottles on the table before getting two glasses and sitting next to her. "I should say I'm very honored you cleared out your busy schedule for me," he said, teasing her, his smile spreading on his face.

[max-kingston]

marleycallahan‌:

They both knew she wasn’t worried about the tip. He wasn’t stingy to begin with, and she’d only used it as his end of the deal due to a lack of anything better to offer. But he was right. Her confidence had been her downfall, as it had been before, but luckily, the stakes weren’t too high. She could most definitely get over it, and would most likely do so before Saturday. Her eyes narrowed at the boy, head shaking back and forth in disbelief, but the twitch of her lips was giving her away. “’member when I said it’s lucky that you’re cute?” She asked after a moment, before leaning in and reaching to pat his cheek. “Be cuter.” The plate was left on the table for him, hand retrieving from it, and turning around to go check on her other customers. “Pick off the strawberries.” She informed him as she walked away, despite looking over her shoulders and offering him a grin as she did.

He could do this for hours. It almost felt like a game and there was nothing Max enjoyed more than having a top-tier competitor like Marley. At her comment he didn't bother to say anything, just flashed her a smile before taking a bite out of the bacon. For the rest of his breakfast, he occasionally glanced her way before focusing on the sudoku game he had left incomplete. Once he finished that and the breakfast, Max didn't even bother to ask for the bill, he knew how much he had to pay, so he pulled out his wallet and left on the table the exact payment for the eggs and the toast, also adding the tip from the bet. Before leaving, he approached the counter, leaning in with a playful smile. "I'll see you Saturday around six, okay? Also, that french toast was amazing, you know, except for the strawberries."

[max-kingston]

kiara-gonzales‌:

“My father showed up at my house early this morning to drag me to Easter mass at a church in Atlanta. Then he saw my cast and asked me what happened, then proceeded to scold me as to why I didn’t call him.” she rolled her eyes. “This is exactly why I moved away from home.”

"At least your father doesn't live in the same town. I sustained a neck injury and my mother called me all the time and forced me to stay in her place for a few days. It was a nightmare."

[max-kingston]

marleycallahan‌:

Marley shrugged her shoulders, clearly pleased with herself. It was more often that she was doing the surprising than the other way around, and as a result, had stopped being surprised herself. It took a lot to get her, these days, though it always made the result that much sweeter when it did occur…just about as sweet as strawberries, apparently. Her eyebrows furrowed in confusion, not understanding the triumphant smirk on Max’s lips until he was speaking the problem into the air between them and her jaw went slack. She hadn’t even considered it, running back over the questions in her head and realizing a dislike of anything hadn’t been one. Who didn’t like strawberries? Widened eyes transfixed on his face, Marley eventually snapped out of her daze, shaking her head back and forth wildly while trying to hold back a grin. It wasn’t that serious and she would still most likely find herself spending Saturday with him–they both knew–but she was having fun playing. “No, no, mister. I already won with what I put in front of you before. That french toast was just a bonus, me bein’ nice.” She tried to defend, gesturing to the plate and beginning to reach for it. “And if you really hate strawberries that much, then I guess I’ll just go and find someone who appreciates my kindness–” 

The look in her face was priceless and no matter how hard he tried to resist the smirk, he couldn't conceal his satisfaction. "And I'll do my part of the deal, that tip is already yours." He was a man of his word and she had won the first round, but she had been too confident and risked it with the french toast. "That's what confidence does, beautiful," he started, his tone becoming more serious but the smug smile still present on his lips. "You won easily and then got ambitious, so abusing of your luck you bet everything on that french toast and in a predictable turn of events you lost." There was no doubt in his mind he'd see Marley on Saturday, even if he hadn't said the strawberry thing, it would have happened. "Go ahead! It would be terrible to let those strawberries go to waste. I think the guy over there would appreciate your kindness." He gestured to the lonely guy on the other side of the diner. "In fact, put it on my tab. Today I feel kind too." He flashed her one last smile before he continued eating the original dish she had brought.

[max-kingston]

The bar is hundreds of conversations told in loud voices, all of them competing with the music that dominates the atmosphere. Scanning the place, he can recognize some familiar faces, regulars like himself. He also spots a group of women that seemed to celebrate a bachelorette's party and he figures they're to blame for the old school pop music playing out loud. Max winds his way through the warm bodies to order a drink, an ever-present smile playing on his lips. "Hey," he greets Anichka before taking a seat. "I see there's a party tonight." @anichkaiv

[soundtracks2ourlives-blog]

Visit Original Link

Maroon 5 - Secret

[max-kingston]

n-stone‌:

Looking up at the sound of a revving engine, he laughed, rubbing the back of his neck before nodding at the car. “Yeah. It just keeps stalling and won’t seem to rev properly. I’ll have to call a tow, but don’t wanna wait on the side of the road for it to arrive.” Nate explained. “I’m heading to Crownsville. Are you headed that way?” He asked. At this point, he didn’t really care where he was going, he just didn’t want to have to wait on the side of the road anymore.

"This is your lucky day! That's exactly where I'm going so I can give you a ride," he said, smiling at him. "Have you called a tow yet?" Max asked, reaching for his phone that laid on the passenger seat. "I know some people that can come and get it soon, if you'd like the number."

[max-kingston]

chrissybarnes‌:

“I completely get that”. She said with a nod “Okay”. She told him “it’s healing well I’m assuming?”

"Yes, I believe it is." He had missed his last doctor's appointment, but the pain wasn't as bad as in the first days. "I'm Max, by the way."

[max-kingston]

beckettwolff‌:

“we can go to my place.” beckett says, shrugging. he doubted damien would mind. they could always crack a few windows, the weather was nice enough so it wouldn’t be too cold if they did. “it’s not too far. follow me.” 

"Even better," he replied as he stood up to follow him. Taking a better look at him, the man seemed familiar, and it took him a few seconds to know where he had seen him before. "You are a bartender, right?"

[max-kingston]

ofthefashionista‌:

“Good or I would have called you out” she told him and smiled. “I’ve lived here for about six months or so. But I do understand if you haven’t seen me, I do tend to stay at home in my apartment” 

“That makes sense. I’ve been out of town for a few years, so there are a lot of new faces,” he said, flashing her a smile. “How do you like it here so far?”

[anthonykingston]

❑ blood’s thicker than mud.

[max-kingston]

anthonykingston‌:

Anthony had dreaded this moment since his arrival at Crownsville, hence why he opted on staying at a hotel instead of crashing at either his parents or sibling’s place. Though it did seemed to be inevitable to stumble upon a family member while in this small town. Much smaller than in what he remembered, he would argue. And while he managed to dodge any invitation to come over, the football player just couldn’t turn down his mother’s invitation to their Easter family dinner. 

Making it inside the new house his parents inquired upon having the kids all move out from under their roof, the male’s baby blues took a moment to scan his surroundings. Family photos and many of the young Kingstons trophies were displayed all over the large living room, perhaps his mother’s doing. A little further inside was the dining room, and there he could see both of his siblings along with their father that immediately stood up to hug him in his arms, pity in his eyes once noticing his cast, much to Anthony’s annoyance. His ocean eyes then traveled down to his brother Max. “ Hey, what’s with the long face? Don’t throw me a pity party like those two “ he smiled faintly, giving the younger male’s shoulder a light squeeze before moving over to get seated on the empty chair, not even sparing a glance at Eleanor. “ So..what’s up with you guys? What did I miss “ the dirty blond male hummed,  the awkwardness in the room being almost unbearable.

( @eleanorkingston, @max-kingston )

The family meetings were annoying and, over the years, Max had missed many, but that ended the day he returned to Crownsville. For the past few months, his mother had "encouraged" him to spend more time at home and, although most of those visits had been boring, at least there was no drama involved. Tonight that didn't seem the case, he felt the tension the minute he walked in and he braced himself for a long evening.

As usual, Max wasted no time to talk with their father and catch up with him. He was in the middle of a story when he stood up, announcing that Anthony was finally home. He tried to conceal his reaction at the sight of him but his gaze immediately landed on the case while the silence spread in the room. Somehow he managed to elicit a hint of a smile as he looked up at him. "No, uh, I was just thinking about what I'll write on your cast," he said and no matter how much he had tried to sound confident about that, his actual tone showed what he actually felt. Here we go again. That was his thought when he noticed how Anthony hadn't even bothered to look at Eleanor. "Dad was telling us about their vacation in Bora Bora, right Ellie?" he said before glancing at his sister with a small forced smile.

[max-kingston]

lexi--davis‌:

“They’re all gross to me. I can’t believe some people even have rats as pets. Ugh.” she made a face. “No, that would never convince me to have a mouse as a pet…”

"They're pretty harmless unless you provoke them, like most pets." He had once tried to convince his mother to let him get a snake as a pet but she refused. "What about hamsters? Do you hate them too?

[max-kingston]

marleycallahan‌:

She wanted to do things differently. The way she was doing them before clearly hadn’t been working for her. Why else would she have fled town amidst a mental breakdown? Or flee to the very town she swore she would never step foot in again? She didn’t know on what planet Jerome was a better option than anywhere else, but she knew that just meant that whatever have occurred in Crownsville had been grave enough to send her back to the arms of the woman she’d always craved the comfort of the most: her mother. That was no small feat. While Marley’s desire for travel, for adventure, was certainly not something she found fault with…but fear being the driving force behind it? That was something Marley was becoming acutely aware of, and was trying to make a conscious effort to change. Commitment was one of those fears…but old habits died hard, and Marley wasn’t Marley if she wasn’t flirting. “Oh, baby. I’m lookin’ for a hell of a lot more.” She corrected, even if it wasn’t necessarily true. Her eyes kept locked on him for the moment, waiting for when he would concede, and when he did, her hands clapped together, an excited laugh bursting from her lips. “I guess I do.” It was a few seconds after that that one of Marley’s co-worker’s appeared behind her (Dolores, actually), a plate of food in hand, and passed it on to Marley. “Thank you, Dol.” With a pointed look shot at Max, as if judging him for his food choices, Dolores went to tend to her own customers, and Marley slid the plate in front of him. The reason she’d taken the toast off his normal order. On the plate was french toast, drizzled with nutella and strawberries (per Marley’s request). It was clear that this was Marley’s result of all the questions she’d asked. Was she still fighting dirty? Maybe. But she’d won, hadn’t she? So she didn’t supposed it’d matter too much. “Anythin’ else I can get you?” A smirk pulled at her lips.

When was he going to settle down and stop getting in trouble? It was a question he always got asked, usually from older family members or well-meaning acquaintances—head cocked to one side; tone concerned and slightly confused, as though it’s a disturbing question to ask. The word settle always put him into a cold sweat. As a self-analytical sort, Max always asked himself ‘why?’ Why people, places, and jobs always got tedious? Why does the thought of chucking it all in and starting over filled him with excitement not dread? Why he always had to mess things up to get away of them? He had commitment issues and probably an unresolved childhood issue, but the main reason was that he hated being attached to someone, something or somewhere. The fewer responsibilities, the better. It wasn’t an ideal lifestyle, but it was perfect for him. His lips naturally curled into a smirk, shaking his head slowly as the other celebrated her win as if it had been a surprise. It would have been idiotic of him to underestimate Marley, and shortly after his suspicions were confirmed when Dolores appeared with another plate. “Thank you,” he replied, smiling at the woman that didn’t leave before disapproving his eating choices. “Aren’t you full of surprises?” he asked, glancing up at her with a smile. Like the avid card player he was, Max knew that he should always have a card up his sleeve. “There’s just one little problem you didn’t take to consideration,” he started, shifting in his seat to turn and look at her. “I don’t like strawberries,” he added with a shrug as he tried his best to fight off the smirk forming on his lips. He had no problem with strawberries, but she didn’t know that and if she could play dirty, why couldn’t him? “So… I have a thing on Sunday, but is Saturday afternoon good for you?” He couldn’t help the way his lips had curled into that obnoxious smirk that was a signature to his smug nature. 

[max-kingston]

scarcallo‌:

                  the femme thankfully takes one stick,sticking it between her full lips as she waits for him to offer his lighter next. “well, what did you have in mind?” new adventures is always a yes to the red head. she always loved the idea of going in one with someone she barely knew. “i don’t. it’s just that meal then we’re all bound to walk ourselves home and crash into the bed. those girls are exhausted, anyway.”

He took out his shiny gold-colored lighter and cupped one hand round hers, leaning in to light her cigarette. “We could go out for a few drinks if you’re up to,” Max suggested, taking a drag, keeping the smoke in his lungs, before slowly releasing it. “I know this great place in Atlanta.” He smiled, looking at her. “Are you exhausted too?”

[max-kingston]

herblindingfaith‌:

“ It’s the same with fashion design it looks easy and fun on movies and TV but it takes a lot of work, you need to keep up with the times, try come up with something fresh.”

“I bet it is stressful. I once watched a fashion documentary on the plane, I believe it was about the Dior collection but by the day of the show I was sure that the head designer had suffered at least three mental breakdowns,” he said with a soft chuckle.

[max-kingston]

so i dropped oliver because i lost my muse for him, and switched max's blog to this one as it is my primary blog

anyway, i guess this could also be a starter call, so just give this post a like and i'll come up with one or send you a message :))