I don't know if it's my tears or Max's blood but my face feels itchy and for lack of a better word, consumed. Five painful years apart and this is how we are bought back together.
I cradle her lifeless body and look into her beautiful blue eyes which are now several shades darker than I remember. All my anger and all the resentment I have held towards her over the years suddenly evaporates. I never wanted to be angry with you Max.
Placing my hands over her eyes, I close them for her. "I-I forgive you." I whisper as I let out a loud sob. "And I'll always love you." I softly kiss her temple.
My goodbye to Max is shattered when someone comes barging through the bathroom door, bringing me back to the horrific reality which I helped create.
"Oh dear God." My Step Father, David Madsen looks as pale as I feel. The security guard outfit he is wearing is supposed to portray authority and strength but this is the first time I've seen him so powerless. He quickly gathers his composure and dashes over to me. "Chloe, I need you to let her go. Lay her down on the floor."
I can't. I can't let her go. Now I truly have lost everything. "S-she's gone" I state blankly.
Instead of chastising me like usual, David places his index finger on her neck in an obvious attempt to check for a heartbeat. Don't bother. She's dead, my best friend is dead. His expression changes suddenly. From hopeless to fiercely determined. "Chloe, she's alive! I can feel her pulse!" David shouts. "Lay her down right now."
Alive? Is there a chance? My heart skips a beat.
Immediately complying, I shift her from my embrace and onto the floor. David is talking to someone over his radio. "Carter, we are gonna need an ambulance here ASAP. I've got a student with a single gun shot wound to the abdomen in the girl's bathroom. Contact the police and get them up to date right now!" David is clearly a man who thrives in situations like this. Carter, one of the other security guards acknowledges David's rapid fire commands and the attention is back to me.
"David" I say, my voice laced in desperation. "I'll tell you everything. I'll move out if that's what you want. I'll do whatever you want. Just save Max, save my friend please! I can't lose her. Not again."
My Step Father looks at me as if I have grown three heads. He's never seen me so weak and vulnerable before. His eyes shift down to Max. "This is the same Max that Joyce used to talk about…" He stops talking halfway through the sentence and shakes his head slightly as if to wake himself up. Taking my beanie from the blood stained tiles, he hands it to me and gives me a look I have never seen before. "Keep pressure on the wound Chloe."
Something passes between us in that moment. I don't know what it is but it feels like something I need to embrace. "And talk to her. If she really is your friend then she needs to hear your voice."
Okay Chloe, just put pressure on the wound. You can do that.
"Max? I need you to wake up. Come back to me. I can't let you die without you knowing that I forgive you. PLEASE! I FUCKING FORGIVE YOU MAX!" I want to shake her but that won't help anyone.
I start applying pressure again. I don't wanna crack one of her ribs since she is so slender so I don't press down to hard.
David wipes away a lone tear, gets to his feet and goes back to issuing commands over his radio. "All security, I need the way clear for the ambulance when they arrive. Get all students back to their dorms and don't let anyone in the main building. Get teachers to assist if you have to and once the police arrive, get them to the girl's room. We need a crime scene established." Police? Crime scene? Fuck. What's gonna happen to me? Damn it Chloe, Nathan is the bad guy here. Focus on Max.
"David, it was Nathan, Nathan Prescott. He didn't mean to shoot her but he's the one who did it. He ran off right after it happened. You gotta believe me, I would never hurt Max."
Before David can respond, Carter is back on the radio. Is Carter his first name or his last? "Madsen, I've had about a dozen students tell me that the Prescott boy was sprinting towards the parking lot holding a gun. I'm gonna te- hang on." There is a brief pause and we can both hear sirens over the radio. "Two police cars just arrived. I'll get them up to speed. The ambulance shouldn't be far behind."
About a minute later two cops come into the bathroom and both freeze in place at the horror show in front of them, just like David did. I recognise one of them as Anderson Berry. I don't know the other one. Berry has always had it out for me. The dude always busted me, Rachel, Justin and Trevor when we used to skate in the old days.
"Paramedics are two minutes away. David, I need you outside to help with crowd control. Make sure nothing blocks their path. The damn kids aren't listening." Berry seems intent on taking over the situation and I don't think David likes it. "And Chloe?" His eyes are on me now. I can feel him judging me. Asshole. At least the other cop is actually tending to Max. "Don't go far. You hear me?" Berry clearly wants to blame me for this. I nod in answer to his question and it's obvious he wants me to leave with David. I don't want to leave without knowing if she'll pull through, but she needs proper medical attention and I can't give her that. Neither can David. We both need to swallow our pride here.
Right before I get up I spy a messenger bag, the kind you sling over your shoulder. It must be Max's. Who knows what the cops will do with it, so I take it since their attention is on Max. I'm a bit slow getting to my feet since my knees are sore from being on the bathroom floor. Luckily neither of the cops noticed and David doesn't seem to care since he seems intent with dealing whatever is happening outside.
"Just save her. Please." I say as I close the bathroom door behind me. Neither of the cops respond to my plea or even look up.
My hands are shaking and Max's blood to still on them. Some of it is dripping onto the floor. I can't control my breathing. I hug Max's bag to my chest as if it were her. Oh God. Please let her be okay. Please let her be okay.
I can see a large crowd of about fifty outside the main doors. Most of them seem to be students but I can also spot a few teachers, security guards and cops trying to clear a path. Everyone at Blackwell is dying to know what the fuck is happening. The shouting from outside seems to be escalating.
Someone places a hand on my shoulder. It's David. "Chloe listen to me." Our eyes meet and for what seems like the first time, I don't resent him. "I've gotta get outside and check in with Carter. You need to get yourself cleaned up. You have blood all over you." I look down to see how much of Max's blood is on me. I instantly look back up and my breathing is out of control. Don't look down. Don't look down, Price.
Remembering that I have a change of cloths in my car I give David a nod. "Okay do what you gotta do. I got some cloths in my car." My smokes are in my car too. I really need one right now.
"And for the love of God, don't leave campus. The Police will come after you if you do. You need to tell them everything. Do you understand?" David's stern voice makes me realise that he's right. I can't run. Even if it gets me in deep shit, I gotta tell the cops everything. I gotta convince the cops that Nathan is the bad guy here.
Even if you do Price, that doesn't suddenly mean your hands are clean of this. "Okay, okay. I won't leave."
David looks like he wants to say more, but he heads outside instead leaving me alone and covered in my best friend's blood. I need to get to my car and get these cloths off me and while I'm at it, have a smoke.
Obviously walking out the main doors into a crowd covered in blood is a bad idea so I instead opt for one of the back exits that always came in handy for skipping class. I can take the long way around the main building to avoid anyone and get changed while I'm ducked behind my car.
Fortunately the halls are deserted and once I'm outside I take a welcomed breath of the fresh air. I make my way around the back of the main building. No one is around here either. I am about to turn the corner leading to the parking lot when a pale blonde girl almost bumps right into me. She's wearing a knee high grey skirt, a black cardigan and her hair is up in a bun. She takes one look at me and almost leaps out of her skin in fear. Can't say I blame her.
She puts her hands up in submission. "P-please don't hurt me. I- I won't tell anyone you were here." Her voice is barely audible. The poor girl is terrified of me. Hang on, I know this girl. Her name's Kate. Rachel briefly introduced us when we bumped into her at the diner earlier this year. If I recall, Kate and Rachel had a few of the same classes together. "Aren't y-you Rachel's f-friend?" she asks, sounding slightly more at ease.
I take a step back to make her feel a bit safer. I really need to get out of these fucking clothes. "Yeah that's me. Chloe. We met earlier this year. Kate, I'm not going to hurt you." Her hands are shaking. "Look someone was shot and I tried to help her. The police are with her now. You should go back to your dorm room. Wells, Madsen and the cops want all students out of the way."
My pleading with Kate seems to be working but she's suddenly notices something and whatever it is has her terrified again. "Where did you get that bag?!" She's eying Max's messenger bag which I'm still holding to my chest. Oh fuck no. Are Kate and Max friends?
"I'm holding onto it for my friend Max. She's the one wh- who…" My ability to speak fails me and I look down in shame. Kate's face becomes even more pale than usual. She knows what I'm trying to say. Kate quickly turns away from me and runs, to the main entrance I assume. I take a quick look behind me and see little drops of blood that I left behind. It's my fault.
This isn't just about you Price. What about Kate and all the other people Max knows here?
What about Mom? Max was like a second daughter to her. Sometimes I felt like Mom loved Max more than she loved me. If she did, I wouldn't hold it against her. Max was-is amazing and I'm a fucking screwup.
My spine gets chills at the worst realisation of all. Max's parents, Ryan and Vanessa. Have I destroyed their world? Their lives? Fuck. No doubt they will be here soon.
The first thing I notice when I get to the parking lot is that Frank's RV is gone and there is another police car along with an ambulance blocking the exit. Good, no matter how tempting driving away is at least now I can't.
I manage to get to my car unnoticed since the cops are focusing on the entry to the parking lot and the staircase leading to the main grounds. I can still hear all the commotion coming from the main entrance. I hope things calm down soon.
Reaching behind the driver's seat, I manage to retrieve an old pair of blue jeans along with the old black t-shirt I stole a few years back at the Fire Walk concert. That was a crazy night. Everything changed that night. Everything changed when Rachel vanished. And now it seems everything is changing again. The Fire Walk logo has faded a bit, but no fucks are given.
I start to change, staying ducked behind my car as not to attract attention. Stripping down to my underwear in the junkyard is one thing, but this is something else. Once I am changed I cleanse myself using the can of men's deodorant I keep on hand and use an old water bottle to wash Max's blood off my face and hands. My car is basically an efficiency apartment.
After five minutes and three cigarettes, I spot two paramedics carefully guiding a gurney down the stairs. Berry and the other cop accompany them. Max, please don't be dead.
"Tell me she's alive." I say to Berry as I approach to ambulance. I can't control my state of total panic. The paramedics are dealing with loading Max into the ambulance so I can only really talk to Berry, as much as I despise him.
Berry puts one of his hands out to stop me from going near the ambulance and I halt in front of him. "She's alive but critical. They are taking her straight into emergency surgery. That's all I can say for now."
"I gotta be there for her. I have to know what's going on." I turn back towards my truck but Berry puts a hand on my shoulder. Fuck. I'm not going anywhere am I?
"Chloe, she will be in surgery for a long while. It will be hours before we know anything new about her condition. We need to get a statement from you at the station." Berry looks behind me at what I assume is my car. "It's best you not come back here, so you can drive to the station by yourself and we will be right behind you. Think you can do that without causing any trouble?"
This dude is really pissing me off. But I gotta get the cops to focus on Nathan as opposed to me. Nathan fled a crime scene whilst holding a gun and I'm here, willing to face the music. That's gotta work in my favour, right?
Author's Note:
I don't work for emergency services of any kind so I'm not sure if the reactions and protocol of the police and paramedics are entirely accurate. Then again, this is Arcadia Bay. A magical place where Blackwell students drink and take drugs on school property and no one seems to care or even notice.
I have some more planning to do with this story so I can't say for sure how often the updates will be. If that bothers you then welcome to the wonderful, frustrating and inconclusive world of fan fiction.
