Max looked outside. It was a beautiful day; the sun was shining, the birds were singing. It was a perfect early September day.

It was his first day at a real school since he moved in with his uncle and aunt. He spent the entire night rolling from side to side in his bed, but for some reason, he didn’t feel tired at all. Maybe he actually slept? Max wasn’t sure, but he didn’t feel like going to sleep, so he must have slept at some point, but even if he hadn’t, today was still his big day! A new chance in life! A new chance at being a kid! Or teen, to be more precise... God, he was already a teen, huh? He really did just let the first fourteen years of his life slip away... Bah! He was still young; he could still make up for them!

Max took off his PJs and put on his best jeans, a T-shirt, and a new pair of sneakers he bought a week ago. He needed to make a good first impression. This was his opportunity to have a social life. 

The teen looked at himself in the wardrobe’s mirror, his smile faded as his eyes traveled between the scar on his face and his hair. He went to the hairdresser yesterday to get himself a trendy fade and patterns on his hair, so he could fit in with the cool kids, but with that slash across his face, he ended up looking like a delinquent instead of a cool chill dude... No one would even want to get close to him... It was going to be just like at his old school... 

No! He could make that work! He could do this! He was going to school, and be a normal kid with friends and stuff! 

A meow dragged him out of his pep talk, and he looked down.

“Oh, good morning, Pest.” he said, petting his cat “How’s my beautiful girl doing on this fine day?”

Pest clung to Max’s leg, digging her nails into his jeans; it was like she could actually understand the 180 her world was about to give.

“Come on, don’t be like that… I’ll be back before you know it.” Max tried to push her nails out of his clothes as gently as he could, but the black cat freaked out and started shaking and hissing before letting go and running out of the cat door “Ah… I guess that works.”

He had gone to a psychologist during the last few years to help him deal with his mom’s death, among other stuff, and one method she suggested to aid him was getting something like a hobby to distract him or a pet to keep him company. So, Max got both, just to be safe, and now he had a piano taking up almost a sixth of his room, and a cat taking up the whole house, a using him a bed every other day.

He wasn’t the best pianist in the world, but it was still fun to play with the keys and make songs on the go.

His aunt was always telling him that if he practiced enough, he could become a famous pianist and get lots of money playing for politicians and other influential figures.

But the idea of being put on a stage, performing Mozart and stuff for a bunch of rich people didn’t really sit well with him. Max would rather perform for himself or for an eventual friend.

His line of thought was interrupted by a sharp headache and what sounded like someone asking for help. It was coming from outside. Max quickly ran to the balcony but didn’t see anyone. Not in the garden, not on the street, nor on the other houses' balconies. Still, he could clearly hear someone in distress... Maybe he was just tired? Or maybe he was going crazy? Nope. No. He was not crazy. He never had been crazy. And he would never be! He was definitely tired. Yup, that was it. He was just tired.

He heard a splash and looked at the pool of the house next to his. It was his neighbor's kid. Maybe he heard something?

“Hey, Bruno! Did you hear something?” He asked his neighbor.

Bruno took off his swimming glasses and swam closer to the edge of the pool.

“What?”

“I asked if you heard someone screaming for help!” he said louder.

“No, why?” asked the buff, older kid, looking around with a hand near his ear. “Hmmm... No. I don't hear anything. Is everything alright?”

“Ah… Forget it; I think I might be hallucinating from lack of sleep.” Maybe he didn’t sleep after all.

“Too excited to sleep, huh?” he asked with a friendly smile.

“I think so, but I don’t really feel tired so... Hey, shouldn’t you be getting ready for school too?” he asked casually, leaning on the railing.

“Nah, the first day is just formalities and diagnostic tests. Not worth my time.”

“Ok, see you later, then.” He waved.

“Later, little man!” he said before going back to swimming.