Just holding on for tonight

Maxwell Mills Maximillian Miller 42 Owner of Anna's Diner Father

[maxwellxmills]

ophcliamills‌:

               OPHELIA had spent the better part of two weeks buried under sketches and fabric in her room; trying to figure out the best way to have this collection ready - working singlehandedly from her bedroom with only five months to go was definitely going to be a stretch, but if there was anything Phee had in abundance, it was determination. She shook her head a little at Max’s question, scrunching her nose in response, “I had breakfast earlier but I think I ate somethin’ funny.”

“Oh? What did you eat?” he asked, not really sure he remembered what was in the fridge. He tried to keep on top of everything, but he wasn’t always sure he was succeeding. His mind felt fuzzy so often, and trying to focus on everything wasn’t always good. “Do you need anything?” he asked, focus falling onto her and wanting to make sure that she was ok. 

[maxwellxmills]

It had been happening more and more recently, the calls from the prison. Oh he knew who they were, he just rejected them every time. He didn’t want to talk to the woman who had ruined his life, didn’t even want to think about her. The others, well they had been selfish, but never done any real damage. Anna? She had taken it too far. A decade of his life he had lost because of her, there was nothing he could do to change it. Sighing, he denied the call again, turning as he heard Ophelia walk into the room, “hi sweetheart. Have you eaten?” @ophcliamills​

[maxwellxmills]

briarbnt‌:

location: anna’s diner

with: @edtstarter​

The diner was pretty slow, save for a couple of people. They were regulars, some of which loved to talk about their lives. Usually Briar didn’t mind it, but this one old lady had her there for a good twenty minutes talking about her late husband. The first couple of times that the woman talked about it, Briar listened and felt for the old lady. But months later, it was the same story and the same woman crying as she spoke about her late husband. Briar didn’t want to be rude and leave her there all by herself, but she also didn’t know what to say. She had run out of things to say. The door of the diner dinged as someone walked in. She quickly excused herself, feeling guilty for feeling relieved, but she couldn’t stay sitting there any longer. “Hi – please tell me you know what you want. Hell, I’ll even get you some coffee right now.” as long as she looked busy. 

It wasn’t that unusual for Max to go into the diner these days. He knew that after the last few years when he had never come in that it was still an adjustment period, but he had to try and work on it. It had kept going, that much was true, but he wanted to ensure it would have a legacy and survive long after he was gone. All he had to do was make it bigger and better, and that was much easier said than done. “Coffee is good” well that was enthusiasm, though quickly explained when he saw who was sitting there. “Oh not again” he muttered, recognising the woman too well. He felt for her, but it seemed endless. “Though just take as long as possible to make it” well if he knew one thing, it was that the woman also loved gossip. Perhaps it sounded a little heartless, but distraction seemed to work well, and all he was going to do was suggest she visit an old friend.

[maxwellxmills]

jayclcrk‌:

               JACKSON still wasn’t sure how to process this, wasn’t entirely sure how to react. God, if he’d known his own brother had been in town, the last five years would have been so much easier to cope with - it would have been so much easier to have that fallback, to not have to have waited to call Elliot in California or be afraid to burden Callie with anything that was on his mind. And then, his mind turned to his kids. Surely they’d had enough stress with Caleb reappearing from the dead, that it would be that little more difficult to accept another long-lost relative. Then again, Jay supposed, this would probably be an easier adjustment to break over a longer period. He shook his head as Max spoke, “It’s fine, I–” This was something he’d worked through years ago, but had come to the acceptance that he’d never see his brother again - this interaction had shaken that completely to its core. “You don’t have to apologise.” Jay added, offering a somewhat reassuring smile. He nodded slightly as Max continued to speak, almost sure he knew what he was getting at, “We’ve been here for a while. You don’t have to panic though, uh – Dad died a couple of years back.” 

“Think there’s a lot I need to apologise for” even if he wouldn’t accept it, that was reality. He had never meant to abandon his family like that, or least his siblings. But his parents... they had been too much to handle, especially knowing what he knew now. Even now, he wasn’t sure he was ready to face them again, he wasn’t sure he ever would be. He couldn’t regret what he had done, sure life had been... shit, but if he had done anything any differently then he wouldn’t have his kids, and that was all that mattered. He just wished that things had been just a little easier. Then maybe he could have managed to find his siblings sooner and actually be there, especially given what he knew about Jackson’s life the last few years. “I never wanted that” he replied softly. Sure he didn’t like the man, but he never wanted him to be dead. He was still his father. But then all he could remember was the man shutting the door in his face, when he was there with a baby and no idea what to do. Hurt him, he could accept that, hurt his kids... he couldn’t accept that. “Things were never good, but didn’t mean I wanted him dead. Don’t have the energy to wish that on anyone”.

[maxwellxmills]

edens-marley‌:

For somebody who she had witnessed firsthand blow all of her money on booze and cigarettes, Helen Callahan had a lot of shit. Marley couldn’t believe the amount of things that littered the little two bedroom she hadn’t stepped foot into in ten years. Her memories of the house were bare-boned and sad, and even if there were room for the good memories, as few and far in between as they had been, there would be no room for them among all the clutter. That wasn’t her reason for the yard sale, however. No, that was simply the first step in getting the house in selling condition. Clear it out, put it on the market, and the minute it sold, and the keys were handed over, Marley was out with it. It was the last thing keeping her in this place.

She’d just come out of the house with another box at her hip, laying out the items on the slowly baring table and noticing, from the corner of her eye, an item being picked up from it. “Whatever it is, I’ll take twenty bucks for it.” None of this junk was worth much, anyways. Marley, however, looked up out of curiosity. Her heart stopped, briefly, at the sight of the necklace. The one her mother had worn around her neck every day, that she never took off, even to sleep. “Oh, that actually–” isn’t for sale. But Marley held her tongue. “…will only be ten. You drive a hard bargain.” 

@edtstarter​

There was a lot of things that he hadn’t expected to see when he was walking home, a yard sale being top of the list. Though he always found them strange things to see if he was honest about it. He tended to only ever really buy things he needed, still never quite getting used to the fact that he had money. Though whenever the kids asked, he always paid up without question. Oh he was definitely soft, he knew that, but he didn’t see it as a bad thing, it was just a part of him, and he wouldn’t feel guilty over it. The only person it had ever hurt was him. 

He had picked up the necklace, thinking it would be a nice gift when he heard the voice. He’d been about to offer more, when he thought he saw something flash over her face. “Wasn’t trying to, twenty was a reasonable offer” he replied before holding the necklace out to her, “but somehow I get the feeling this wasn’t meant to be on sale at all”.

[maxwellxmills]

dianncvanderbilt‌:

          “One step at a time, my mother would say,” in so many ways Dianna was like her father and in other ways like her mother. She never believed in rushing to get where she wanted to, Dianna thrived on the challenges life brought her way, not that they shaped her up to be a better person, but definitely fed her ambitions. “Edens is home and I believe we should always take care of our home first, then we can take on the rest of the world,” she smiled softly at him, appreciating his passion more than not. Most people she had met in her life were dull. “Don’t worry, it’s not negative, I appreciate you have such a view on the world, most people are selfish enough to never think about what happens outside of their own circle,” Dianna shrugged. “Dianna, by the way, Dianna Vanderbilt.”

“Never believed in that. One step at a time implies that you reach a certain point and then you don’t have to do anything any more” maybe that was part of his problem, he’d rather fix things thoroughly that take it in small matters. “If everyone out there thought that way, then they’d be focusing on their home and the problem would be solved” the reality was, they didn’t. He had spent years begging for help, begging for someone to help him get his daughter off the street, and everyone had turned away. “Ah, that might explain it, this isn’t really my circle. Came from nothing, got lucky eventually. Think I likely still am thinking of my circle” and he never could forget what had happened, he just hoped Sofia did. “Maxwell Mills, though everyone just calls me Max”. 

[maxwellxmills]

heymikki‌:

“We can worry about each other, then. There’s really nothing you can say that’s going to change my mind,” Mikayla replied, offering up a soft smile in his direction so he knew she wasn’t attempting to be obstinate so much as she was trying to show that he could fall on her if he ever needed it. She was an adult, after all, with most of her life in order, so she could afford to take a few days to help him if he ever needed it. “What gives you that impression? Not that it’s not true, but… I’m wondering what gives it away.” She had been told in the past that she was closed off or difficult to read. Maybe being in Edens really had been good for her, helping her to soften up that hardened exterior she’d built up for protection over the years.

“Ah so definitely inherited your mother’s stubbornness then” sure he could be when he needed to be, but that mostly only really revolved around talking about his past, or work matters. Everything else, he didn’t think really mattered too much. “Pretty much everything you’ve just said, then there’s everything Sofia has told me, and everything you said about you and your mother. Just a guess really, but the evidence was there” and given that her treatment of him and Sofia came from what he had seen before they realised the connection, he imagined that was for everyone. It was a good way to be, he did believe that, but he had lost it somewhere. He supposed it had a lot to do with people not giving him much reason to trust them. 

[maxwellxmills]

melodydelarosa‌:

“You see, that’s my problem! I get brainstorming and then things multiply. It’s probably just me trying to keep myself busy,” she replied with a laugh and a matching smile came to her lips at his words. “Thank you. I hope so, but we’ll see going forward. I know Edens isn’t necessarily a tourist destination, but maybe with the town cleanup, there may be a few more than back in the day.” Biting her lip, she shrugged. “I don’t know if I’d say enchanting, but… it’s where my parents still live and I think I needed to be close to them right now while I’m going through a transition period in my life. A lot of my old friends are still here, too, so that’s been nice.” She nodded as she listened to him, smiling at his story. “Well, it looks like you certainly turned the place around. Did you always plan on owning a restaurant or was it more of a ‘why not?’ situation? I definitely never saw myself owning a B&B, but the opportunity presented itself and it was an offer I couldn’t really turn down.”

“Sounds like the opposite of a problem. Isn’t it better to focus on how a business should be run, then go with the first thought that comes to mind?” he asked, wondering why she needed to keep herself busy, but not sure it was his place to ask. “It isn’t... but people come and visit family I’m sure. And with the influx of new people, I’m sure that others may come and visit to see the town before opting to move in” he wished he’d had the option. They first moved in and it was the motel which had been far worse. Least until the flat had been sorted. But back then, it had got them into a warm room, which was all he had cared about. “Well... sorry to hear that” he could guess whatever it was that had happened hadn’t been good, a feeling he knew too well. “I haven’t really planned on anything. Been a single dad since I was nineteen so it’s always been doing whatever jobs were around to ensure there was food on the table and my kid was safe. Saw the diner and figured it would be security. Must have been quite and offer if you couldn’t turn it down”. 

[maxwellxmills]

sofixmills‌:

The only parent she had ever really known was her father, and she could vaguely remember her mother - not that she wanted to anyways. She preferred not talking about the woman, and especially her step mother. That woman was god awful, and if Sofia had a chance of a do over in life - it would’ve been to find out what she had been doing her dad alot sooner. “Yeah, I know.” She mumbled with a slight eye roll, but somehow it made her feel slightly better knowing that she wasn’t the only person without a clue of what the hell she was doing with her life. “I don’t know. She came at me really hard, and I mean barley had time to process what she was saying before she started saying shit… Sorry, things - that weren’t true. I mean she hardly knows you and I don’t know.. I was angry at first, but I was trying to see it from her side like you said to do.” Sofia paused to catch her breath and her thoughts before she could continue. “I don’t know really.”   

“And you also know I will say it every time” he always would. Hell he said it to himself most mornings before he even got up. Life had gone a very different direction then he had ever imagined, and he wouldn’t change it. Alright, it was fair to say life had hardly been kind, but it had meant his kids had been born, and he would go through anything to ensure that was the case. “The boys are in bed, I don’t care if you swear” well she was an adult now, as hard as that was to get used to, he had to at least try. He nodded, hoping that she hadn’t seen it the way he had, that Penelope had got Mikayla out of that situation in a matter of days, whilst it had taken him a decade to pull them up off the streets. “You know you don’t have to be ok with this sweetheart. Yes, she was upset at the time, but that doesn’t mean you don’t get to be upset. But if it’s just because of what she was saying about me... I’m not upset” he saw no point, he had thicker skin then that. 

[maxwellxmills]

jessgrcyson‌:

          Jessica felt envious. Not that her father hadn’t been a good father to her while she was growing up. He protected her, gave her things, loved her and said it. It was more the fact that it was all tainted now. Her memories and image of the man would never be the same and she knew it. Nobody else did. “It’s nice to know there are some good men out there,” she said with a low hum. Carefully choosing the word men instead of dads. “Ah yes… my condolences. Her reputation is certainly one the hospital fights to get rid of, even after she got arrested, now that was a hoot and a half— probably one of the most excitin’ days this hospital has seen in the last months,” Jessica said before facepalming herself, it was more than a common occurrence to say things and regret them later, especially for the blonde, “sorry that was… insensitive,” and she was insensitive and crass but she tried not to be so when she was on hospital grounds. “Come on, dude, I promise not to spread it around,” she grinned even though she knew her pleads were for naught, “maybe you should sell them frozen then? So I can have them even when I don’t have the chance to go by Anna’s and pick some up?” Jess shook her head while laughing, simply teasing. “Why the name though? Anna’s was someone from the fam?”

“I’d never be so vain to call myself a good man. Besides, I’m sure I’ve done plenty of bad stuff before. Guess all anyone can do is just try and be a better person then they were the day before” and that was all he ever wanted to do. He wasn’t sure he succeeded, but he was never going to stop. Her change in words though, that was unusual, though he supposed he could put it down to an argument or something with her father. She had no reason to tell him anyway, and he didn’t really want to push either, didn’t seem fair. He laughed softly, “oh you don’t need to apologise for that. Sure it was exciting, especially given I’m told her reputation was untouchable. Besides, is at least slightly comforting to know she was embarrassed like that” though slightly was all it was. A decade of his life she had taken, he could never forgive that. “Definitely not, they’re my secret weapon. Mmm, that’s tempting but frozen isn’t the same... loses some of the charm. Trust me, tried it once, didn’t work so well” and he needed people to come into the diner, though he also needed to shake some of it up. “Anna... well that is my delightful ex-wife’s first name. Tempting as it is to change it, everyone knows it as Annas now, and I don’t want to start changing the reputation”. 

[maxwellxmills]

heymikki‌:

Max was right, that was one think she could admit. The majority of her life she had tried to ignore the what ifs, but being put into situations no child should have to be put into made it difficult not to, especially when she used the fictional worlds of her books to escape her reality. As much as she had come to accept what cards she had been dealt, knowing she could have had a different hand at all now brought all those questions back. “I’m going to worry,” Mikayla started, looking at him with a small shrug. “You’re family; we take care of each other, it’s what we’re supposed to do. Even people who are tough as nails can have days where they aren’t feeling strong. It’s okay to admit when that happens.”

Family... oddly the one thing he’d never really had. Not in the traditional sense. His father had always treated him differently, then when the truth had come out, he finally understood why. But after that... Well Sofia, and the boys were family, but they were his kids and he would never tell them how bad things were. Anna had been insane, and the other two had both run away. No, he had learnt he was never going to really have anyone other then his kids. Heartbreaking really, he had always been a hopeless romantic, but that was why he had been hurt so many times. “Pretty sure it’s meant to be my job to worry about you. Though I get the impression there’s a lot of people you worry about”.

[maxwellxmills]

dianncvanderbilt‌:

          “You don’t have to apologize, you’re not wrong,” Dianna always thought on how privileged she was throughout her whole life. She had come from a very wealthy family which earned her some not-so-kind traits in her personality she couldn’t quite shrug off, but she always wanted to be better than her father and not economically or professionally speaking. Timothy Vanderbilt was not exactly the warmest human on earth and while there was a lot she took from him, there was a lot she learned how not to be with him, as well. “I guess we can only hope people who don’t have enough warm clothes on their back found themselves a good place to rest— the community center has been working overtime this winter,” she should know, she was one of the people on the board. “Sounds like a fun idea for today, care for some company, perhaps? I was heading to The Grind for some needed food and hot chocolate.”

“Unfortunately not” he wished he was, more than anything he wished someone could come along and make him see how wrong he was about people suffering. But he had been there, and he’d lived through it. He could still remember the cold, and the endless nights worrying that Sofia wouldn’t make it through. He hoped she didn’t remember, but those were what his nightmares were made up of. “Hope doesn’t seem enough. I mean sure, Edens is pretty good, but the rest of the country... rest of the world? It’s a disgrace” ok so he was probably a bit too passionate about it, but it was his history, just not one he shared in Edens. “Always happy for company. I promise, I’ll stop with the negative talk, really not my nature”. 

[maxwellxmills]

melodydelarosa‌:

“True, and I’d want to have someone to be at the front desk when I’m not there and then someone for housekeeping… Whoever does repairs and maintenance work. So maybe three, though I already know who the last one would be, so that’s not much of an issue.” She smiled and shook her head. “Yes, I was. I was born and raised here. Moved away for college and the hustle and bustle of New York City kept me there for a while. What about you? I feel like I’d remember you if you grew up around here.”

“Hang on, now you’re hiring more” he joked with a smile. “Sounds like The Guesthouse is going to be in safe hands though. Hiring people is never too hard, just depends on where you look” and he’d always taken practically anyone in. After all, he knew how hard it could be to get back on your feet. There had been a time he had almost begged for work. “Sounds pretty enchanting if you came back. Me? Oh believe me, you wouldn’t have noticed me if we had. I was the weird quiet kid back in those days. But no, moved here with my daughter about twelve years ago. House prices here were a bit more affordable, and Annas was on the cheap as the last owner had run it into the ground”.

[maxwellxmills]

heymikki‌:

Mikayla nodded, knowing she couldn’t possibly ask for Max to get in between the issue with her and her mother. That was something they would have to sort out themselves eventually, once all the emotions surrounding the subject had died down. “I get it, too. I just wish I’d had choice in the matter when I was old enough to know.” She listened, nodding slowly as she took in his story and realizing he had had a hard life, much harder than what she had been through. “I’m so sorry… I’m glad – I’m really glad Sofia noticed, and that you’re getting there. If there’s anything I can do, please let me know? Even if it’s just… babysitting for a few hours while you take some time for yourself. Maybe not right away, obviously, you hardly know me, but… eventually.”

“What ifs are dangerous, dangerous things. Can wonder about them, or can accept what we have and do our best to make it happy” he had always tried to anyway. Life just seemed to have a way of testing him... a lot. And sure, maybe he wasn’t doing quite as well as he wanted everyone to believe, but he had always had to do everything alone. He wouldn’t let his kids see him upset, that wasn’t fair. He was meant to be a parent, his problems he would face. “It is what it is. Doctors say I’m recovering as expected so nothing to worry about” least on that side, mentally he was still adjusting to it all. “Of course. But you don’t need to worry about me, tough as nails”.

[maxwellxmills]

jayclcrk‌:

               JACKSON’S smile faltered completely as Max spoke; this type of revelation being the last thing he needed at that moment. “This is a joke, right?” He started, somehow more bewildered by this than Caleb returning in the first place. He fell silent, shaking his head with a deep sigh as he tried to take it all in. “You’re trying to tell me that you’re my brother?” He asked, a frown knitting his brows together. He quietened again, resting his head in his hands for a few moments as the news started to sink in. There wasn’t any way it could be a lie - hell, who had he ever talked to his brother about other than Caleb? The bracelet, the name, the story - everything checked out in his mind, and yet, he still wasn’t sure how to process it. In that moment, he felt like an idiot - why had he never connected this before? If there was an award for worlds worst detective, he’d have been awarded it right now. “You’re serious?”

“Would be a sick thing to joke about” and he knew this was the worst timing possible, but he had been caught off guard. “Maximillian Miller... ran away when he was sixteen with his then girlfriend Penelope Beaumont. Never seen again right?” not that he hadn’t tried. When he had been left with Sofia, he had tried to go home, tried to beg his father for help so that his daughter wouldn’t be stuck on the street, and his father had closed the door in his face. “Your tenth birthday... I sent you a guitar. Saved up as much as I could for it before it went in the mail” and it had still been a cheap thing. Sofia had been born by then, and she came first. But he had never stopped sending birthday and Christmas presents, that was all he could do. He just hoped that story proved his identity. 

[maxwellxmills]

jessgrcyson‌:

          Yup, he seemed to have done pretty well by himself, alright. Jessica couldn’t even imagine what it was like to be a parent at such a young age. To be fair, she couldn’t imagine what it was like to be a parent at any age at all. The only time she managed to get pregnant, she terminated the pregnancy as soon as it was possible, and she couldn’t say it was a decision she regretted, someone with her emotional range wasn’t born to be a mother and it made her wonder if her mother was around, if she would have taught her to have some kind of maternal instincts. “Spoke again like a true dad,” she teased again with a small nudge against his ribs. Her father also spoke proudly of her like that, but his words were now tainted and so was his love. It all felt shattered after she had discovered what he had done with Jacob… it didn’t feel right anymore, didn’t feel right to be his daughter. “Ha— I wish, I love compliments, give them to me, shower me with them because I’m self-centered like that, I’m just not a good person,” she explained, knowing that she really wasn’t. “No way— dude, I love that place. The coffee is just…” her words were followed by a chef’s kiss. “Someday I’m gonna crack the secret to the chocolate chip pancakes, because I have spent way too much money on those.”

“Oh I am. They are the best part of my life, I’d do whatever it took to keep them safe” and he had failed everytime. That was the guilt he had to live with. He had always tried to put his kids before everything else, and with all of them he’d got it wrong. Tristain was the only one who might not remember that. Mikayla he hadn’t been there for, Sofia had been stuck living on the streets with him, and Ryder would remember his mother. It was too much. “You know... my wife was Doctor Mills, think everyone at this point knows she liked to drug people, including patients. After that... I recognise bad and mediocre people a mile off. Believe me, you’re a good person” even if she didn’t, he did. As for his lovely wife, well she’d been at work the day she got arrested. They hadn’t wanted her in the house whilst they got him medical treatment. All things he had learnt after the event. “Oh? Now that is a secret I know, my dad taught it to me when I was a kid. But if I passed it on then I’d make less money, and alas the businessman in me thinks that’s a bad idea”. 

[maxwellxmills]