"Max, are you sure you want to use this laundromat?" Victoria Chase asked as she dropped her roommate off outside the 24/7 laundry place a block down from their university-operated apartment complex. "No offense, but this place looks like something from one of those horror movies you love so much."
"Well, unless you feel comfortable with me going to one of the dorm buildings on campus and doing my laundry there, which I don't, this is the easiest thing," Max Caulfield replied. "Besides, it's Arcadia Bay, for fuck's sake. The most dangerous thing here is that knock-off Taco Bell on 3rd Street."
"But it's fucking 11 at night, Max."
"And I was already wide awake, Vic. Look, you go to your party and find your chill. I'll just do my laundry and go over our submission for the university's photography exhibit. Seriously, Vic," Max leaned into the luxury car to give her friend a reassuring look, "I'll be fine. I've got my pepper spray in my bag, as usual."
"…Fine," Victoria huffed and pouted before looking back at Max one last time, "But call me if anything comes up. Or Katie. You know we've both got your back."
"Wowsers, how did I end up with such amazing friends?"
"It helps when they're dating each other," Victoria replied with a smirk as she reached over to ruffle Max's pink hair, "Be safe, okay?"
"Just go already, unless you want to help me with laundry," Max teased, pulling out a dirty shirt to which Victoria visibly flinched and rolled the window up.
Max laughed to herself as Victoria gave her the finger before heading down the street and taking a right, disappearing from view. Sighing, Max walked inside the laundromat and set her pack down on a nearby folding table before starting to unload her dirty clothes into the washer. Pouring in detergent and fabric softener, Max deposited the $1.50 in quarters needed to start her washing cycle. Hearing the sound of pouring water coming from inside the machine after she closed the lid, Max hoped up onto the washer and reached over to grab her bag, pulling out the portfolio humorously titled "Chasefield".
"What a dork," Max said to herself as she traced her fingers along Victoria's stylish lettering on the portfolio cover. Friends since high school, Max and Victoria had bonded over amateur photography and pop culture, spending many nights sleeping over at Victoria's house and watching marathons ofCowboy Bebop, Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex, Neon Genesis Evangelion, and Fooly Cooly. Victoria had even helped Max with her new look once they had left Seattle for the private college, Blackwell Academy.
Part prep school, part college, Blackwell Academy had become their new home when they transferred from the Seattle Academy of Arts and Sciences after their junior year. Presently halfway through their first term as college students, Max and Victoria had moved out of the dorms and into a school-run apartment building in Arcadia Bay itself and not on the outskirts where the school was located. I still can't believe Vic or Kate haven't teased me about my hair, though, Max thought to herself as she examined her reflection in the mirror. A die-hard Haruko Haruhara fan, Max had dyed her hair after their latest run-through of Fooly Cooly and gone so far as to buy an old Vespa. Unfortunately, while the scooter was great for one or two people to ride on it was terrible for trying to balance a laundry basket. Sleeveless red vest over a grey hoodie, Max kicked her dangling legs against the washer and cringed at how torn up her blue jeans had become. Note to self, Max. Goodwill tomorrow. Going through the binder, Max reached into her bag and pulled out the Red Bull she'd brought along and popped open the can. Taking a sip, Max cringed for a moment and looked at the can, wondering how Kate could be addicted to something that tasted so awful.
"Uh, hey," a low voice asked, the words slurred a bit, and Max nearly jumped off the washer from surprise, "Whoa whoa, relax. Didn't mean to startle you, kid."
"Kid?" Max asked, looking over at the source of her momentary panic, "Oh, uh, hi…"
Azure hair tucked into a black beanie, a pair of equally blue eyes stared at her with an amused smiling finishing the expression on the tall girl's face. Clad in an old biker jacket, tank-top, ripped jeans, and boots, the girl gave Max a crooked grin and hopped onto the washer next to her. Uh, who the hell are you again? Max had seen the girl around campus, hanging out with the skaters and the pot-heads. Seemingly quick to both anger and cheerfulness, the blue-haired girl always looked like she was up to mischief. Max had found out she was a dropout, but little more than that. What's her name? Something with a "C"… Shit, I can't remember…
"I'm Price, Chloe Price," Chloe said, the smell of whisky on her breath getting a smirk from Max as the bluenette pointed her finger at Max like it was a pistol and hiccupped, "B-Bang."
"Max. Max Caulfield," Max replied, smiling at Chloe's disarmingly cute, drunken smile.
"I knew that," Chloe replied, reaching over to the duffel bag she'd brought in with her. Watching Chloe stuff her hands into her pockets, Max noticed how the other girl's cheerful personality started to sour until Chloe bit her lip and looked at Max apologetically. "Uh, you wouldn't happen to have enough quarters to help a girl out, would ya…?"
"Sorry," Max shook her head, "I only brought enough for one run through a washer and a dryer."
"Fuck," Chloe said, scowling in Max's direction. When she saw the look of hurt on Max's face, she quickly raised her hands, "No, I'm not… Dude, I'm not giving you shit. I'm… It's just been a shit day and all I wanted to do was fucking get my laundry done so I'd have some clean threads for tomorrow. Can't be smelling like booty at my workplace, right?"
"Arrr," Max joked, giggling a bit when Chloe wagged her eyebrows.
"A fellow pirate, huh? Good on me, then," Chloe said, and Max watched the mischievous, impish grin that she'd seen before make an appearance. Watching Chloe reach into her bag again, Max rolled her eyes and gave Chloe a cocked eyebrow when the bluenette pulled out a bottle of whisky.
"That has got to be the cheapest looking booze I've ever seen," Max teased, pointing at the bottle, "They spelled it 'whysky'. What the hell. You sure you're not drinking poison, Price Chloe Price?"
"Oh ha, nerd," Chloe teased, leaning over a bit too far to assault Max with breath that smelled of bad cigarettes and equally bad liquor, "I-I can get turnt on whatever I want. S'free country, jerk."
"Whatever," Max replied, sensing the girl was intentionally trying to pick a fight.
Sliding off the washer, Max gathered her things and checked the timer to see she had 20 minutes until she could load her clothes into a dryer. Biting her lip, Max gave Chloe a quick nod and walked down to the other side of the laundromat. Taking a seat on one of the drying tables along the back of the laundromat, Max started to retrieve her and Victoria's portfolio when she caught sight of Chloe pouting with her head downcast. She thinks she hurt my feelings, Max thought with an exasperated huff, Maybe she doesn't realize she can be obnoxious as fuck. Reaching for something else in her bag, Max pulled out her Polaroid camera and lined up a shot of Chloe sitting on her washer, bottle of booze nestled between her legs. The flash going off, Max shook the developing instant film and watched with a fatigued expression on her face as the bluenette looked at her with a wide-eyed smile and slid off the washer to head toward Max.
"Well, well," Max said to the bluenette as she stood a few feet away, "Look what the camera dragged in. Hello, Price Chloe Price."
"…I'm sorry if I was being a shit," Chloe said with reluctance in her voice. Not used to apologizing, huh? Gee, go figure. "I've… I've seen you at the school and you seem really chill. Sometimes my mouth and brain get legally separated, s'all. My bad, yeah?"
"…I accept your kinda-sorta apology," Max said, warming up to the troublemaker. Patting on the empty space beside her, Max gave Chloe a warm smile and patted the space again.
"You sure? I don't want to piss you off again."
"You didn't piss me off," Max admitted, wrinkling her nose, "Your breath was like an ashtray with nail polish remover poured in."
When Chloe stuck her tongue out in reply, Max felt a flutter in her stomach at how cute the bluenette suddenly looked. Sure, Chloe looked like she was trouble but there was something in those blue eyes and rebellious smile that Max found appealing. Snickering, Max patted on the space beside her a little harder and Chloe awkwardly curtsied before hopping onto the table. Both their legs dangling, Max watched Chloe's right foot tap against her own left foot absently and glanced up to see Chloe watching her from the corner of her eye.
"Yes…?" Max asked with a smirk.
"Nothing. Well, maybe something," Chloe brought her legs up and sat cross-legged, positioning herself so that she was facing Max. "I've got my truck parked out back, and I was wondering that… If you let me use some of your quarters for a washer I'll totally sneak you into my mom's house and we can ninja her dryer. Pretty please?"
"Chloe, I just met you," Max was surprised and a little nervous by how direct her new acquaintance could be, "No offense, but I am not the most trusting person. We've watched each other on campus, and this is our first-"
"Wait. You… You've watched me?" Chloe's eyes lit up and Max bit her lip as the anxious feeling in her stomach intensified. Fuck!
Slumping her shoulders, Max reached for her bag and pulled out the portfolio. Opening the photo album up, Max turned to a section of hers titled "Blue Morpho". Four pages of Chloe in various positions and places throughout Blackwell's campus filled the entirety of the section. Max couldn't bring herself to look up at Chloe until she heard a gasp and jerked her head up to see a huge grin on the other girl's face.
"Don't get cocky," Max warned, pointing a finger at the bluenette, "It's just… You flit around from place to place, and even if you're mad or friendly there's this almost mystical way you have about yourself. It's, well, it's alluring. From the standpoint of photography, of course."
"Uh-huh," Chloe replied and Max nearly got up and moved again when she saw the grin Chloe had only brighten further.
"Ugh. Whatever," Max rolled her eyes and closed the portfolio up before sliding it back into her pack. "What-the-fuck-ever, Price. You've got a great look and there's just something about you that makes me want to take pictures, okay? You don't need to… Oh, will you stop giving me that cheesy-ass grin?!"
"I can't help it!" Chloe said, wounded at Max's sudden hostility, "…No one's ever said anything like that about me. It was nice, Max, s'all. Wasn't picking on you."
"…No, I'm sorry. I get really worked up sometimes and I shouldn't have snapped at you. My bad, this time around."
"So, does this mean you'll give me some quarters, since I am a hella muse?"
"You've got to be kidding me," Max stared at Chloe and realized that the other girl was not going to give up. What was even worse to Max was that her stomach's fluttering seemed to get worse whenever she and Chloe's eyes met. I do not crush on people. I do not crush. At all. But… There's justsomething about her. When she pouts I want to… Shit. "You want my dryer money, huh? Okay, I'll give you a chance at getting it, then."
"A chance?" Max could see Chloe was intrigued, wiggling in her seat as she gave Max a childlike grin of excitement. All she needs to do now is say "Oh boy, oh boy!" Heh, what a dork.
"The dryer is a dollar, correct?"
"Yeah."
"You have that bottle of goddess-awful 'whysky', right?"
"…You want to play Quartersfor the quarters?" Max laughed at Chloe's look of disbelief as she finished the question. Raising her chin up a bit, Max gave Chloe a knowing smile before nodding, "Dude, I will fucking destroy you."
Chloe pulled out the bottle and sat it between them. Not being good at actual Quarters, Max convinced Chloe to play her version and explained the rules for their little game. Having four quarters, in order for Chloe to win she would simply have to guess correctly between heads and tails. If she won, Chloe got a quarter and Max took a shot, with vice-versa applying if Chloe lost. They would play until either one or both of them were too drunk to go on.
"Aww, but I've already drank some," Chloe whined, giggling a bit when Max replied to the protest by yanking the beanie down so that it covered the bluenette's eyes. "Wahh, dude! Dude, I can't see! I've been struck blind!"
Max shook her head and brought a coin out of her pocket, flipping it between her fingers as Chloe yanked her beanie back to its earlier position on her head. Palming the coin, Max looked up at Chloe and the bottle between them.
"Go," Max said, starting off the game.
"Heads!"
The coin read tails. Chloe took a drink and slammed the bottle down.
"Imma get them quarters, Maxaroni!" Chloe cried out, shaking her fist at Max in a mock challenge.
"Sure you will, Chloe. Go."
"Um… Tails…? Yeah, tails!"
The coin read tails. Chloe got a quarter.
"Hella yes! Drink, nerd!"
Max nearly choked on the burning, horrid taste of what she felt had to be the cheapest liquor alive. This stuff tastes like what I imagine liquor would feel like if it could be sad. Sticking out her tongue in disgust, Max capped the bottle and made a point of slamming it down as hard as Chloe had.
"A new challenger approaches, huh?" Chloe smirked with an eyebrow raised, folding her arms across her chest as Max glared at her from beneath her pink hair. "Go for it, Haruko. Fucking go."
"You actually got my hair color?"
"Dude, I've seen you on your Vespa. All you need is… You have a guitar, don't you?"
"…," Max pouted and shifted her gaze toward the laundromat's entrance as Chloe howled in laughter.
"That is so fucking cool!" Chloe exclaimed, and Max shifted her gaze to look at Chloe suspiciously. "For real, Max. That's hardcore. Um, heads!"
The coin read tails. Chloe took a drink and nearly gagged on the alcohol.
"Aww, it is hella bad. Still better than wasting an evening at home, though. Let's cut the chit-chat, Mad Max. Fucking heads! Screw the system!"
The coin read tails. Chloe stared at the coin and then up at Max before glaring at the coin again. Slowly reaching for the bottle, Chloe moved to grab the coin when Max slammed her hand on it just before Chloe could.
"It's a fucking trick coin, innit?" Chloe asked, her voice low and irritated, "You fucking cheat!"
Max smirked, grabbed her bag, and ran off to the other side of the laundromat as Chloe just sat where she'd been during their game and stared at her from across the open room.
"Why would you do that?" the warbling in Chloe's voice caused Max to worry, afraid she'd genuinely hurt the girl's feelings. "I… I just wanted to wash my clothes, hang out with you since you're here…"
"Chloe," Max said with caution in her voice as she carefully headed back to the table they'd been sitting at, "Chloe, it was just a joke. I didn't mean any-"
When Chloe had grabbed her by the collar, Max though the girl was going to yell in her face but to Max's surprise what she got was an alcohol-fueled kiss instead. Messy, a little too slobbery for Max's usual taste, the bluenette smashed her lips against Max's. What surprised Max even more was her own hand reaching up and grabbing a handful of Chloe's hair as she slid back onto the table only to get pushed down onto it by Chloe.
"You fucking brat," Chloe whispered in her ear, a shiver running up and down Max's body, "You wanted me drunk?"
"…I wanted time with you," Max admitted, getting a surprised look from Chloe in return, "We see each other on campus, but we never talk or even wave at each other."
"Uh, wow. Max, I-"
It was Max's turn. Grabbing Chloe by the collar of her biker jacket, Max pulled the bluenette down until they were pressed together and proceeded to nibble at Chloe's neck. Faint wet, sucking sounds and gasps could be heard coming from the back of the laundromat, Max and Chloe's hands sliding along each other as they awkwardly explored new territory. Max felt a hand start to dip its fingers under the waistband of her jeans and she pulled it out. Not so fast, Price Chloe Price. Taking the hand in her own, Max slid it under her hoodie and placed it on her side. Their kisses were intense, drunk, and lustful as Max brought her legs up and hooked them around Chloe's waist to the sound of a pleasing moan coming from both girls.
"So…," Chloe said, smiling mischievously as she straightened her clothes out and watched Max zip the fly of her jeans back up, "That was… That was unexpected."
"You started it," Max's voice was calm but her face was still flush and red from where their kisses had led them. "I'm not complaining, though. This doesn't have to be the first and last time, does it?"
"Oh, no fucking way is this the last time," Chloe reached around from behind Max to pull the smaller girl into a hug, kissing Max on the neck where she'd already left a small trail of hickeys, "No fucking way. Um, call me sometime soon? Like, really soon?"
"I need your number first, Chloe," Max teased, reaching up from behind to stroke Chloe's cheek with her thumb, biting her lip when Chloe sucked on the digit, "You are terrible."
"You weren't complaining earlier."
"I'm not complaining now."
Max took Chloe's phone from the leather jacket and typed the bluenette's number into her own phone. Handing Chloe's phone back, Max put her phone away and looked over to see Chloe shuffling her feet as she looked down in embarrassment.
"Uh, Chloe? Chloe, what is it?"
"…About those quarters…"