Chapter Text
It’s an unusually slow and uncomfortably hot day in the Freelance Police’s office. With little else to do, Sam sits in front of the phone, waiting for a potential call from the commissioner, while Max lies on the couch, switching through the same three channels on the television.
Sam understandably worries that the lack of action will soon result in his little buddy going stir-crazy and causing mass destruction across several states, but he’s unaware of the mental destruction currently happening in the small creature’s comically large head.
Max, while mindlessly switching through channels on the television, is stuck in his own head with nothing but the occasional, mildly inappropriate thought about his best friend and partner.
Max is aware that his feelings towards Sam are far from just platonic, but he refuses to refer to them as having a ‘crush’ on the guy. Max doesn’t have crushes, high schoolers and people who don’t have their life in order have crushes. And Max definitely isn’t in high school anymore.
Shaking his head in an attempt to rid himself of unsavory fantasies, Max ponders about their current relationship. While he and Sam are undoubtedly best friends, Max is uncharacteristically unsure about what would happen if he were to reveal his feelings to Sam.
No way would Sam ever leave him, right? Even if he doesn’t feel the same way, even if he’s put off by Max’s feelings towards him, he wouldn’t leave Max because of it, would he?
Despite the answer being a resounding ‘no’, Max, in his hopeless pining, isn't so sure.
In an attempt to clear his head, Max shakes his head, only to find Sam looking at him expectantly.
“What?” Max says, surprising himself with how casual he managed to sound considering his thoughts about the other not even a minute ago.
“Gee, Max, you doing alright, little buddy? The boredom gettin’ to ya that bad?” Sam asks, his faintly worried expression causing Max to inwardly freak out about how much he might have missed.
“I was just wondering if ya wanted t’ go get some ice cream. Doesn’t seem like there’s gonna be any cases today.”
Max sighs in relief, which he tries to mask as boredom. Based on Sam’s expression, he doesn’t seem to suspect anything.
“Ugh, absolutely. I was just about ready to go rob someone myself just so there’d be at least one case to solve.” Max says, turning off the tv.
“But you already do that, don’t you?” Sam asks as they exit their office on their quest for ice cream.
In an unfortunate turn of events, every shop within walking distance is either out of ice cream, or didn’t sell it in the first place. With no reason to return to the office, the two got in their trusted DeSoto and took off in hopes of finding an ice cream parlour in the next town over.
The cool wind would feel amazing on such a hot day if it weren’t for Max’s overheating mind warming him up. Sam had decided to ditch the jacket because of the heat, and has rolled his sleeves up, revealing his relatively average forearms that Max can’t seem to avert his eyes from.
Neither can he avert his mind from all the filthy thoughts suddenly surging through it. How he wants Sam to hold him, to handle him in a rough yet distinctively careful fashion, to kiss him, to throw him on the bed, or the couch, or any available surface, to pin him down and fill him up with his undoubtedly massive co-
Max suddenly jumps and viciously shakes his head, accidentally slapping Sam on the cheek with his ear.
“What the- What’s the big idea, little buddy?” Sam asks while holding his cheek. The slap seemed to be a lot stronger than expected, even Max’s ear starts pulsing with a dull pain.
Max panics for a split second as he waits for his brain to come back online.
“It’s just so hot in here! Can’t you get the AC on or somethin’?” he manages to grunt out.
“Max, the roof’s down. You’re gettin’ pure, unfiltered wind straight on your unusually shaped face, the width of which should guarantee maximum wind reception”, Sam chuckles. Max, still recovering from earlier, just turns to look at the passing scenery. His uncharacteristic silence makes Sam worry about his friend, but he tries to chalk it up to the discomfort of the hot weather and the restless boredom of an uneventful day.
What the fuck was that? Sure, Max has had some not-so-christian thoughts about his friend before, but never to this degree. The worst he can think of is that one time he accidentally saw Sam taking his shirt off and had the sudden urge to find out what it would taste like to lick a stripe across his pecs.
Max tries to will away the blush that’s crept on his face. He’s been pining after Sam for how many years now? This is the first time he’s been so distracted with thoughts about his friend. He’d like to chalk it up to the heat, but they’ve had hot days before. Maybe it’s because of how uneventful their day has been. Whatever the cause, Max seriously has to get his thoughts under control lest he do or say something he’ll end up regretting.
After a somewhat awkward but short drive the duo find themselves in a small town. Stepping out of the car, Sam looks around and spots a convenience store a few blocks away. He looks over to Max, but is surprised by how silent his little buddy is, not to mention the slight furrow of his brow.
“Hey, you doing alright, little buddy? You’ve seemed a little… I don’t know, off, today? At least, more so than usual”, Sam mutters, rubbing his neck.
Max seems startled by the question, which immediately worries Sam even more.
“Hm? Whatever could you mean?” Max tries to sound casual, but judging from the deepening furrow of Sam’s brow, he did a pretty atrocious job.
“I’ll drop it if ya really want me to, but ya know ya can tell me anythin’, right?”
“Yeah, yeah. I’m just super bored, that’s all.” Max manages to sound a bit more casual after composing himself a little.
Deciding to drop the subject lest he upset his partner, Sam turns back to the direction of the convenience store.
“Well, there’s a convenience store just a few blocks away, ya made up your mind on what kinda ice cream ya want?”
“Ooh, I hope they have the burnt seaweed flavor!”
To both of their surprise, the store did indeed sell ‘burnt seaweed’ flavored ice cream, along with flavors such as ‘fresh tiles’ and ‘politician haircut’.
Leaning on the stand-up table inside the store the two ate their ice creams in a not-so comfortable silence. Sam, of course, was still worried about what could possibly be bothering his best friend, despite said friend denying anything bothering him.
Max, on the other hand, was struggling to keep his eyes off the drop of ice cream slowly making its way down Sam’s lower lip, and mentally slapping himself anytime his mind wandered back to those shamefully steamy thoughts about his friend.
He should probably tell Sam, right? Despite his doubts he’s fairly certain that Sam won’t take it that badly. However, the more he thinks about it, the more he starts believing the irrational voice that tells him that ‘yes, Sam definitely will be disgusted and yes, he absolutely will leave you.’
Uncertain about what to do, Max sighs in a totally uncharacteristic manner, causing Sam to eye him with that worried expression of his. He starts to ask Max what's bothering him again, but decides against it. Max can choose to tell him whenever he's ready. Sam just hopes that he'll tell him someday instead of bottling it up forever.
With their ice creams finished, the two had made their way back to the DeSoto and were currently sitting on the hood of the car, looking at the sunset.
The air had cooled down to a more bearable temperature, and a faint breeze ruffled Max's fur. He glanced over to Sam, who had loosened his tie and unbuttoned his collar a bit.
Max tried his best to enjoy the moment. Spending time with his best friend is something he wouldn't trade for the whole world, yet he couldn't help yearning for something more. Being bombarded by his thoughts all day has taken its toll on the little rabbit, and he's half ready to just spill the beans to Sam so he wouldn't have to think about it anymore.
Max, in a sudden spurt of confidence, decides to just tell Sam.
"S-"
"So, what do ya say we get going?" Sam manages to say at the same time.
"Oh, sorry, were ya tryin' to say somethin'?" He adds after realizing he accidentally cut Max off.
"N-nah, was just about to say the same thing…" Max says, suddenly having lost all his previous confidence.
Sam internally beats himself up for interrupting his friend. What if he was finally about to tell Sam what's been bothering him all day? Unfortunately the lagomorph has taken to avoiding looking anywhere near Sam, so he doesn't press on the matter.
The drive back went as expected. An oppressive silence hung in the air the whole way back, and even as they stepped into their shared office, Sam could feel a kind of heaviness in the air.
Deciding to just bite the bullet, Sam walks over to the couch where Max has taken to playing with a loose string sticking out of the corner of the armrest.
“Hey, little buddy. I know you probably don’t wanna talk about it, but I can’t help but feel a lil’ worried”, Sam starts, startling Max out of his fiddling with the couch.
Sam continues, “You’ve been acting kinda strange the whole day, an’ I just want ya to know that ya can tell me anythin’, and I swear I won’t get mad or anythin’.”
The way Max’s brows furrow and ears droop ever so slightly has Sam panicking that he’s upset his little buddy by pushing on the matter. Just as he’s about to backtrack, Max manages to speak before him.
“Do you swear that you won’t get mad? Or, like, weirded out?” Max mutters uncharacteristically quietly. Sam is taken aback by the timidness in Max’s voice, but immediately nods in reassurement.
Max sighs in an attempt to compose himself.
“It’s just… It’s nothing, really, I just...” Max starts, but decides that it’s now or never.
“I just… really… like you, Sam”, he manages.
Sam waits for a moment to see if Max is going to continue, but is met with silence.
“I like you too, little buddy”, he tries, unsure about what his partner is getting at.
Max cringes inwardly.
“No, Sam. I mean, I… l-like you, like, not just in a just-friends kinda way”, Max continues, his voice getting quieter towards the end of the sentence and his ears drooping all the way until they’re flush against his head.
Oh.
He means… a crush, right? Sam tries to rack his brain for any previous times his buddy has acted strange, but can’t think of any similar situations. He tries to be mad at himself for not noticing sooner, but he can’t deny that he had no idea that his little buddy had those kind of feelings festering in his little brain.
Sam’s lack of response sends Max in a panic.
“I-It’s weird, huh? But I swear that it’s just a one time thing, I’ll probably have forgotten about it by tomorrow, s-so don’t worry about-” Max frantically tries to explain, but gets cut off by Sam.
“No, god no, Max, I don’t think you’re weird for… somethin’ like that. I just, uhh...” Sam swipes at some of the sweat on his neck.
“I had no idea ya felt… like that”, he ends awkwardly.
They sit together in a suffocating silence that only lasts maybe ten seconds, but to Max it feels like hours.
“O-okay, cool! W-well, I’m beat, good night!” Max says in a frenzy and sprints to his bed, diving under the blankets, pulling them all the way over his head.
Sam is left on the couch, unsure what to do. He worries that he messed up by not reassuring his partner more, but he’s not entirely sure what he should have said. Hoping to talk about the matter more tomorrow, Sam makes his way to his bed and lies there, thinking about how he could bring it up again the next day, slowly falling into a restless sleep.