"Don't you forget about me"
Chloe yelled over the noise of the waves crashing against Arcadia's shore.
The looming tornado threatened to overwhelm the Bay at any moment but Max granted herself another second of the punk's gaze before turning away.
The butterfly polaroid she had taken just a few short days ago seemed ancient in her shaking hands as she took another step towards the cliff edge, contemplating what she was about to do, or undue.
All the time she had spent retracing her steps in Arcadia Bay to save herself, Rachel, Kate and Chloe Price, only to have been creating the monster storm that was going to destroy the entire town and everyone in it. How could she have been so blind?
She hated every second of this reality she had made for herself.
All Max wanted to do was rip the picture up and weather the storm with Chloe by her side, but she knew that wasn't fair. Her parents were in seattle, safe and sound, probably worrying themselves to death watching news coverage of Arcadia Bay and wondering where she was. Chloe's parents had been put through enough by Max this week, between Alternate reality William having to watch Chloe be paralysed and Joyce about to die in that Diner, not even knowing what had happened to her daughter and husband.
Even Chloe wanted her to go back and undue all of her mistakes, even though it meant her death, for the first and last time.
She closed her eyes and fruitlessly tried to compose herself before gripping the picture tightly and beginning to focus on that mysterious blue butterfly, until the hideous wind and rain went quiet and reality faded to white all around her.
The snapping of her camera shutter snapped her back into the world and she found herself back in the women's bathroom in Blackwell Academy.
As the enigmatic polaroid printed, the blue butterfly took off from the water pail, perching itself on one of the sinks.
This was it, time to put everything right, at the cost of Chloe's life.
"Okay Max, it's okay, she wants this, it's okay." She hissed through strained lips, trying to contain the hysteria building in her stomach.
The sound of the bathroom door opening hushed her cries and she swallowed her fear, pressing her back up against the cubicle wall keeping her hidden and focusing on the thumping of her heart as a distraction from what was about to happen.
She couldn't help but silently mouth Nathan's own words as he frantically paced around the room, consoling himself.
She doubted she'd ever forget the things Nathan would say in this bathroom.
"Don't be scared… You own this school… If I wanted, I could blow it up… You're the boss…"
Tears rolled down her cheeks when Chloe's voice sounded, along with the banging of stall doors. She felt her hands ball into fists as she restrained herself from rewinding.
"I hope you checked the perimeter, as my step-ass would say. Now, let's talk bidness-"
The situation escalated as Chloe pressed Nathan, until he snapped and pushed her into the wall, his gun shaking wildly as he threatened her.
"GET THAT GUN AWAY FROM ME YOU PSYCHO!" Chloe yelled and Max could hold herself no more.
She rounded the corner and grabbed Nathan from behind, two arms around his neck to stop him from pushing her off.
Chloe Screamed as Nathan flailed in Max's arms and fired his gun by accident, punching a hole in the drywall an inch from her head.
"Get off me you bitch!" Nathan growled, shaking Max off and swinging a wild punch, barely missing with his knuckles but grazing her jaw with his forearm.
She let out a yelp of pain and fell to the ground, whacking her head on the cold tiles.
Her vision swam as Chloe shoved Nathan backwards, the boy losing his footing and stumbling over Max's writhing body, causing him to slip and fall, his skull connecting with the hard porcelain of the sink with a loud thud as he fell.
"Ow..my head.." Max mumbled, completely disorientated, head throbbing.
"….Max?..Max Caulfield? Oh my god it's really you.. what the hell? Your nose is bleeding.. are you okay?" Chloe exclaimed in shock, dropping to Max's side to inspect her head.
"Chloe, you're okay.. you're alive.."
"I'm better than alive, I'm on fucking fire! You Hella kicked that douche's ass right now! I can't believe you were there the whole time that Prescott scum-" She stopped talking, and stood up.
Max heard another thud as Chloe kicked the still Nathan in the side.
"Chloe what are you-" She was cut off by a sudden inhalation of breathe from Chloe.
"Fuck fuck fuck he's..he's not moving.. he's dead Max..we fucking killed him!"
Max shook her head, trying to shake herself back to normal.. her head felt like it was going to burst. Had she really just killed Nathan Prescott?
This wasn't supposed to happen. What was she doing? Messing with time all over again?
Damn it Max,with Nathan dead, Chloe's just going to end up in prison and so am I and nobody will find out about Jefferson and the dark room… and Rachel. Another alternate reality you've made and messed up. What if I. . I really do have to rewind and let Chloe…Let her…
A gurgle from Nathan followed by a low groan shook her from her thoughts. The punk rolled him over to inspect the cloudy black and purple bruise blossoming on his temple and around his left eye.
"Oh thank fuck he's alive..shit Max I thought we were going to end up in jail over this messed up loser!" Chloe breathed a sigh of relief, stooping to pick up Nathan's gun and tuck it into the waistband of her jeans under her leather jacket.
"He's alive?!" Max almost sobbed her relief.
"Yeah, I don't know about you but I've had enough of school today, I think now's the time for a serious catch up, I mean it's only been what, Five fucking years, Max?"
A serious catch up is right.. Max thought to herself, but she nodded and picked up her camera from the floor, wiping the blood from her nose with the back of her hand and following Chloe's lead outside.
The taller girl wandered down the hall as if nothing had happened and after looking around, reached out and pulled the fire alarm, setting off a crescendo of school bells and alarms throughout the school.
"Let's go before step-swat figures out what's going on and comes looking for me. my truck is parked outside."
"I'm right behind you." Max replied, still lost in thought. How was she going to explain everything from the beginning? That she could travel through time, that Max had seen her die umpteenth times this week, that she already knew where Rachel's body was buried and that the photography teacher holding classes just down the hall was responsible?
Without any sort of plan or explanation in mind, Max let Chloe bring her back through the Arcadia Bay she would soon see destroyed if she couldn't correct things in this timeline once and for all.
"God Max, that psycho was going to kill me back there for sure! What were you doing in that bathroom?" They were back at Chloe's, sitting on her bed, Max couldn't help but think of all the time she'd spent there this week, undone in this timeline.
Okay Max, time to bite the bullet. You HAVE to get this right. Lives depend on it.
"I don't know how to say this, so I'm just going to come out and say it. And I don't want you to say anything until I'm finished, because, I don't know what's going to happen and it's a very, VERY long story. Okay?" She let the words fall out of her mouth, not taking her eyes of of her friend for a second.
Chloe rolled back onto her elbows and arched an eyebrow at Max, before raising a joint to her lips.
"Whoa Max, you saved my life less than an hour ago and I'm still freaking out about that, I guess I can listen to what you have to say…what's going on?"
"Chloe, I was in the bathroom because I knew you were going there, with Nathan. He was going to kill you. He did kill you. Before, I mean. ugh, I know how crazy it sounds but I saw you die, and I reversed time to save you. I don't know how or why but I have these powers, and there are really messed up things happening in Arcadia that only we can stop."
Chloe said nothing for a second, and then she burst out laughing, exhaling puffs of smoke.
"Wow Max you hella had me going there for a second..god you're still so weird, Seattle didn't change you a bit."
"Chloe I know how crazy it sounds, but I can prove it, you have to believe me!"
"Uh-huh, Okay then, I'm down for a laugh before we get serious, show me Max! Show me your powers!"
Okay, just do what you did in the Two Whales..
"Want me to tell you what's in your pockets?" She started, a wry smile tugging at the corners of her mouth.
"No Way, I want something real, not just a magic trick you picked up while you were away?!"
Damn it, Max thought. What am I gonna do to make her believe me? I'm screwed!…Unless?
She pulled her satchel up off of the floor, and pulled out William's Polaroid Camera. The same camera Chloe had given her in a different timeline.
"You gave this to me, in a different reality."
Chloe's bemused smile dropped off of her face.
"That's not funny Max, Did you just take that from my shelf?"
"No Chloe you gave it to me, look!" She handed Chloe the butterfly picture, and there in the reflection of the bucket, Max could be seen holding the same camera.
The punk went quiet, let out a deep breath and then looked up to meet Max's pleading gaze.
"Okay Max…I'm listening."
It took hours to explain everything. First Max had to show her examples of her powers, from showing Chloe what was in her pockets, to letting Chloe lock max out of her room and having Max rewind time and let herself back in. Once Chloe believed Max's powers were real, The two girls sat up talking, laughing, and at times, crying. She told her all about The storm, San Fransisco Jefferson, Kate, the dark room and finally, Nathan's involvement with Rachel, until Chloe had been caught up to the best of Max's ability. When she finished explaining what they'd found in the Junkyard, Chloe was silent for a few moments, and then..
"Okay Max, so I suppose the next thing we have to do is... is.." Chloe trailed off, shoulders trembling as her eyes welled up with tears.
"We have to find some way to let David know where to find Rachel. Then they'll know that it's all true and they can catch Jefferson before he finds out we know anything." Max told her softly, before moving across the bed to pull the blue haired punk into her arms as she broke down, crying.
"Why Rachel? It's not fair, why can't it have happened after you got here...why can't you save her?" Chloe sobbed, wrapping her arms around Max's waist and burying her head into her shoulder.
"I don't know, Chloe, I don't know." Max replied, tearing up with frustration.
"Well, how are we gonna tell step-loser all of this without him knowing it's us?"
"Would you believe you actually called him your step-father, on purpose?" Max allowed herself a small chuckle, inciting a tearful smirk from Chloe.
"Whatever you say Super-Max, but how do we tip him off?" Chle persisted, and then, Max had an idea.
"Maybe we don't have to tell David.. we just need to find a cop that isn't best friends with Sean Prescott."
"Pfft, Yeah right, we've a better chance of Victoria Chase starting a soup kitchen..."
"Don't be so sure...anyway, I think I know someone that can help us..come on, I want to get lunch anyway."
Chloe pulled away from Max's embrace and arched an eyebrow.
"Lunch? What are you talking about?"
Max only laughed, turning away to put her shoes on.
"We're going to the Two Whales, I'll explain on the way!"
TO BE CONTINUED