Hey guys, welcome back. So continues the confusion…


Chapter Two: Just Like Old Times?

Max's POV - Next Day - Max's Room - Late Morning

When I woke up the next morning I felt terrible. The morning light almost seemed to burn my eyes, making me turn over and groan. I almost smacked my face into something… or someone. Chloe had crashed in my room as she often ended up doing, still out for the count. The girl in question had been just a little high and drunk, not too much. She could still walk, which was something. I was sure she had been as loud and obnoxious as usual on the way back. We rolled back here early in the morning, I could remember that much.

A flicker of panic crossed my mind as I grabbed my phone to check the time, afterwards remembering it was Saturday so it didn't matter.

"Maaaaxxxxx… quit moving around so much," a grumbled protest came from where Chloe was lying.

I put my phone back on the bedside table, slowly easing myself back. "Sorry, wanted to check the time."

She sighed. "No class, nerd."

"Yeah, I figured that much out on my own, thanks."

One of her bleary blue eyes opened just a fraction. "Got any painkillers? I have a headache."

"I think so…" I rolled over, checking the top of my bedside table, sighing in relief when there was a pack already there. I really didn't feel like moving much. Taking them, I handed her the pills.

She popped a couple, swallowing dry before flopping back down onto the pillow now facing me. "So, how'd you find it?"

"Great… I think?" I was certain I'd had a good time, but couldn't quite recall why. "I can't remember much, and I'm feeling a little woozy."

"Dude, you didn't even drink and you have a hangover?" the bluenette asked, a flicker of amusement in her tone. "Only you, Max."

"More like a contact high," I suggested, body feeling slightly numb. "Wonder how much weed fumes made up the air in that place."

"Like seventy percent," Chloe replied, only half-joking. "Don't worry, it'll fade eventually. Just gotta hang in there."

"I hope it goes soon…" A sudden wave of nausea passed over me, leaving seconds later. "I feel a little sick too."

"If you're gonna barf, don't do it on me please," Chloe pleaded, understandably not wanting that outcome.

"I'll try not to…" I mumbled, cheeks feeling flushed. "Is it warm in here?"

"Jeez, you are full of complaints today. Gimme a sec." With great difficulty, Chloe managed to drag herself out of bed, clumsily climbing over me in the process, and stumbled over to the window. She opened the blinds, making me recoil even further into the blanket as she opened my window. When she turned around, she frowned. "What the fuck are you doing, Max? I thought you were warm."

"Too bright…" I mumbled, doing my best to block out the light. My eyes were super sensitive this morning. Maybe something about being in a dark room with no natural lighting all evening might have contributed to that.

Chloe gave me an unamused look. "Don't be such a pussy. It's just a few rays of sunlight, won't hurt you. Even shut-ins like you need some exposure every now and then."

"Chloeeeee, please," I begged, sounding kinda pathetic.

"Fine, fine, as you wish, your Majesty." She did a little mocking bow, shutting the blinds again before trudging back to the bed, nearly collapsing on top of me. "Don't say I never do things for you. Stoners are the worst…"

"You should know," I replied, managing a light smirk.

Just as Chloe was about to retort - no doubt with a quick and witty comeback - her eyes focused in on my neck. "Hey, what's that?"

"What's what?" I asked, curious to see what she had found.

"Your neck's a little red here… not much but… if you squint…" Chloe did just that, getting a closer look.

"Maybe I… huh, insect bite?" I suggested, not knowing what else it could be.

"It's a little raised… maybe." Chloe's fingers ran over the small mark, trying to put her not-so-extensive knowledge of insect bites to use. "If it was bigger, I might suggest a hickey but… doesn't look like it. For a second I thought you'd gotten some action and didn't tell me." She almost sounded… relieved about that not being a possibility. "Does it itch?"

"Nope, thank god. You know what it's like for me in the summer." I suffered a lot in the hot months, every single insect capable of biting eager to take a nibble.

Pulling her hand back, Chloe had a puzzled expression like she was trying to solve a particularly hard brain teaser. "They do seem to love you then. Must have tasty blood or something."

Putting the potential bite out of my mind, I sank back further into the mattress. "Guess we'll never find out, not like we can ask them."

"Well, I could try and let you know," Chloe suggested with a smirk.

"No thanks," I stated outright. You could never be too sure if Chloe Price was joking or not, something I had learned the hard way.

"But it's for science…" she insisted, putting on a disheartened pout.

"Science can shove it," I muttered, closing my eyes again.

Giving up, Chloe shrugged. "Fine, offer's still there if you ever want to take me up on it."

I let out a soft chuckle at her resignation. "I'll keep that in mind."

After some time, the bluenette pulled herself out of bed again, taking greater care this time not to squish me on the way now she had woken up. "I'm gonna go grab a shower. You coming?"

A shower would be good right now but… I didn't have the strength. My stomach rumbled loudly. "Nah, I'm just going to lay here for a bit."

Grinning at my stomach's protests, she stretched her arms above her head, bones clicking. "Suit yourself. If you're good, I might go scrounge up some breakfast."

"Yes, please. And something to drink if that's not too much to ask. My throat's dry." That was an understatement if ever there was one.

"Got the munchies, huh?" Chloe chuckled to herself. "Guess you really were high last night. Welcome to my world. I'll see what I can do." With that, she left.

I laid on my back, staring at the ceiling while trying to remember the details of last night. I remembered getting there with Chloe, dancing for a while. Then she went to go get drinks and… then it got hazy. Did I dance again? With Chloe? Maybe… I just remembered feeling really good for the rest of the night and then coming back to crash.

Eventually, Chloe returned, hair damp and ladened with snacks. "And you said my weed habit wasn't good for anything. Always keep an emergency stash."

"I'm grateful now. I won't comment on it ever again unless it's to say how awesome it is, promise." I gladly accepted the chocolate bar she offered, tearing into it.

"Whoa, slow down, dude," Chloe grinned as she watched me devour the snack. "Okay, from now on you can't tease me about my eating habits."

Within seconds, I had consumed the whole thing, washing it down with a cup of water. I felt a little better, not much. One chocolate bar wasn't really a proper meal so it made sense. Clearly sensing I wasn't full up, Chloe handed me a pack of potato chips that I downed just as quickly as the chocolate.

"That shit hit you hard, huh?" Chloe asked, again watching me shovel food into my mouth.

I licked my fingers clean, still not feeling very satisfied. Maybe it just needed some time to hit my stomach. "I guess. I'd never be a good stoner."

"I've seen worse. Been worse, too," she added as an afterthought, finishing off her own bag.

Not wanting to clean Chloe out, I refrained from taking anything else from her emergency snack pile… as much as I might want to. I could probably eat it all, no sweat. At least eating and drinking had help with the sickness a little.

"Better?" she inquired, blue eyes filled with mild concern.

I nodded, genuinely feeling better. "Yeah, thanks, Chloe."

She smiled broadly. "Hey, that's what best friends are for. Holding your hair back while you throw your guts up and sharing weed snacks to sate cravings."

My face crumpled up with disgust at the mental image. "Nice…"

Bumping my shoulder, she continued to grin. "What can I say, being a best friend is a tough job."

"Yeah, especially being your best friend," I shot back playfully, knowing it would get me in trouble.

As predicted she wasn't best pleased, wiggling her fingers menacingly. "Oh, Caulfield, you're asking for it now."

"No, no, no. No tickling." Recoiling on instinct, I almost fell out of bed.

Before I could fall, Chloe grabbed onto me pulling me back up. "Watch it. I'm sure you'd rather not get a bruise on the boney white ass of yours. No padding there."

"Can we please stop talking about…" I hesitated, clearing my throat, "...that."

"Aw, cute, you're embarrassed." Without warning, Chloe pulled me into a hug, wrapping her legs around me. "I'm so glad we can do this now. It was tough while you were in Seattle."

We'd both found it hard being apart, having spent so much of our childhood stuck together like glue. "Yeah… it was, but we're back together now."

"The dream team," she stated happily as we laid there. Being back with Chloe again was seriously the best. Just like old times.


Two Days Later - Late Afternoon

The feeling from after the party hadn't passed as I had hoped, if anything it got worse. Whatever was going on, my body was not happy. My skin felt like it was burning, sweaty. Everything ached, right down to the individual cells. I had a pounding headache, felt so hungry and thirsty. No amount of food or water seemed to quench that. I'd tried everything: savory, sweet, bitter, hot, cold… nothing helped enough.

Despite my protests, Chloe had decided to stay and look after me, missing class for the past two days. She said it didn't matter, that she could catch up easy enough and had already informed her teacher. I felt so bad. She might not look like it, but Chloe liked learning. Yeah, she would probably deny it if asked outright. Still, she was smart and like burning things - making her science classes a favorite.

Honestly, she had gone above and beyond call, acting as my own personal butler. She made sure I had food and drink when I needed, which was often, and patted my face with a cool flannel when I was burning up. When my clothes got too sweaty and gross, she made sure I was changed into something fresh. Also, she'd brought some cold and flu stuff to help ease my symptoms. I would have to find a serious way to thank her when I felt better.

Chloe was helping cool me down again, wiping my skin with a wet flannel. "I'm starting to get worried, Max. It just seems to keep getting worse…"

"Only been a couple days…" I pointed out, not wanting to go to hospital for something stupid like a cold, a total waste.

She dipped it back in the water bowl, ringing out the excess. "You've been eating and drinking non-stop, have a temperature, sweating buckets, feeling and being sick…"

I weakly raised my hand, resting it against her cheek. "Chloe… chill."

She took hold of my hand, giving it a light squeeze. "Yeah… I mean, I'm fine playing doctors and nurses still. I just… want you to feel better."

I offered her my trademark dorky grin. "I already do with you around."

"Ugh, stop before I throw up," she chuckled, gently patting my face again.

Closing my eyes, I appreciated the cool sensation, disappointed when it left my face. I opened my eyes again, watching Chloe diligently wringing out the flannel. When she leaned over this time I felt… odd. The constant thirst I had been feeling ever since the party intensified, almost unbearable. Not only that, but I could hear a faint thumping sound, growing louder and louder. What was it?

My eyes darted around the room, trying to locate the source. It was so loud… it had to be close by. It only took a moment to realize where it came from… Chloe, her neck more specifically. My best guess, her pulse. Weird, why could I hear it so loud? Almost like it was in my head.

When I worked out where it came from, the thirst and hunger grew, practically salivating. My lips parted as I stared at her pale skin. All I wanted to do was… what exactly? What the fuck was I thinking? The moment passed, leaving me confused and a little disgusted at myself. For just a fleeting second… I had wanted to bite her. That wasn't normal, right? You didn't just want to do that out of the blue, least of all to a friend. What the hell was wrong with me?

Chloe must have noticed something was wrong since she paused her cooling. "Max… you okay?"

"I…" I could not tell her. No way. "Yeah, yeah… just a little tired."

"Surprising considering how much you've been sleeping," she added with a smile. "I'll leave you to it then. Give me a text if you need anything else, okay?"

"Sure," I agreed, watching her leave.

The second she had gone, I grabbed my face and groaned. Was I really that delirious? Getting weird urges? Maybe I really did need to go to hospital… a mental hospital… I just needed to stay calm. Whatever 'that' had been, it didn't last long. Could be a weird one-time thing. Yeah, that had to be it…


Two Days Later - Early Afternoon

Thankfully, it seemed I was on the mend. I still felt hungry and thirsty as hell, but the temperature had gone down significantly. Good thing too, I wasn't sure if Blackwell could keep up with my water needs. My body ached less too, again a blessing. Chloe was still insisting on looking after me, so stubborn.

Right now she was stirring some soup she'd heated up, trying to get it to the right temperature so it wouldn't scold my mouth. She hoped it might help with my throat issues, so sore and dry. As she stirred, she hummed pausing to check every few seconds to check. I watched her work, still feeling a little weirded out by my brief moment of creepiness the other day. I hadn't felt it again, so… progress? Two days without creepy thoughts, good on you, Max. Just the rest of my life to go…

Satisfied with the soup, Chloe came over with the bowl balanced on a tray. I sat up, taking it from her. "Thanks, Chloe."

"No problem. Want me to feed you?" she asked teasingly, trying to get a rise out of me.

"Uh, I'll pass. We both know how that ended last time," I reminded her, not wanting a repeat session of the first time Chloe tried, when I seriously couldn't feed myself.

"Yeah, you nearly had a face full of porridge." She grinned, exposing her teeth as much as possible remembering the embarrassing high pitched yelp I had managed then.

That's what I needed, for Chloe to have more blackmail material. "I'm never going to live that one down…"

"Until you do something worse, no," she confirmed with a smug grin.

Sighing, I grabbed the spoon and began to eat. About halfway through I noticed something strange. Chloe was… staring at me. I mean, not like she had much better to do but… this was really intense.

"Uh, something on my face?" She didn't even seem to register the question, continuing to stare. "Okay, I'm kinda…" There it was again, that nagging desire to bite and the sound of her pulse. I froze, unsure what I should be doing now. Well, I knew what I wanted to do, but there was no way I could. I refused. When I could manage, I called out to her again. "H-hey, Chloe, come on now… I'm a little freaked out."

As suddenly as she had zoned out, she came too. "Hmm… you say something?"

"Uh… no, no…" I stuttered, super confused now. If she didn't remember it, guess there wasn't much point bringing it up.

She glanced at my bowl, noticing I had barely touched the soup. "Jeez, you eat like a snail sometimes. Hurry up or it'll get cold."

Complying, I ate another spoonful, all the while staring at her to see if she was really okay. "Are you… okay?"

Frowning at the question, she tilted her head in question. "Yeah, why wouldn't I be?"

"No reason…" I muttered, trying to think of an excuse to cover it up, "just wanted to check. You've been asking me so much recently I wanted to return the favor."

Her suspicion gave way to a genuine smile. "Well, ain't that sweet? You've always been a total sap."

I returned to my food, a little uncomfortable now. Thankfully, Chloe didn't seem to remember or go back into her eerie trance like state again and my… urge didn't come back. The sooner I was well again, the better. It seemed being this close to Chloe for too long was unexpectedly dangerous.


Poor Max doesn't understand what's happening to her… but she soon will. Next chapter, we'll be catching up with Rachel, who's about to get the shock of her life, or death, or undeath? One of those three.