Max first meets up with Kevin after spotting a beautiful woman moving in next door--a rarity in his run-down neighborhood. Max is mesmerized by her "movie star" good looks; when he gets his first glimpse of Kevin, Max realizes that he knows The Fair Gwen and the "robot kid from day care." When Kevin spots Max, he raises his crutch, points it at his new neighbor, pulls its imaginary trigger, and declares "Then die, earthling, die!" Max decides to "motor out of there without saying a word." But his next meeting with Kevin is more friendly. When Max sees Kevin pulling his American Flyer wagon and trying to retrieve his kite from a tree, Max steps in. He will "just reach up and pick the paper thing out of the tree." An instant friendship is established, and Max invites Kevin to visit "the down under." Both boys are comfortably conversing in Max's...
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room when Kevin hears his mother's voice. When Max opens the door to investigate, The Fair Gwen appears to be "scared out of her mind." She retrieves Kevin, "puts him in the wagon, and... almostruns home."
What happened when Maxwell visited the new neighbor?
The wording of “what happened” from your question suggests that something quite eventful takes place place. In reality, what happens is that Max sees Kevin for the first time since they were young children. As Max wanders over to the house next door in order to see the new neighbors, he notices “this crippled-up yellow-haired midget kid strutting around the sidewalk.” Max recognizes him as Kevin, the child who called himself “Robot Man” in daycare. Kevin is still wearing both leg braces and using crutches to get around. It is obvious to Max that Kevin can hold his own as he is shouting orders to the moving men. Suddenly, Kevin notices Max watching him. Unlike in daycare, where Max was the bully, this time it is Kevin who yells at Max. Kevin menacingly lifts a crutch, points it at Max, and yells, “Identify yourself, earthling!” Max is fairly startled at this confrontation and, as a result, does not say anything. Kevin then replies by pretending to “shoot” Max with his “weapon” crutch and screams, “Then die, earthling, die!” Max is startled enough by this “little dude” to retreat to his basement “down under.”