Thursday
Kate was sitting alone in her bed. She'd been crying the whole evening after Chloe had dropped her at the dormitory. There was an almost empty box of tissues next to her and the waste basket was nearly gushing over from the used ones.
Kate had heard Victoria returning to her room, half-running steps echoing in the corridor. She had managed to pull herself together enough so that she'd went to the taller blonde's door to ask if she was all right. While Kate could have heard Victoria crying, she had not got an answer. After moment of trying, she'd given up and gone back to her own room and sat on the bed.
While Taylor had been one of those who had bullied her, Kate couldn't help but feel compassion towards Victoria's paralyzed friend. Chloe, of course, had simply brushed it off as poetic justice, when they had driven back from the hospital. Kate had not taken the punk's belittling remark very well, so the rest of the journey had been uneasy to say the least.
By any sense, Kate shouldn't have been spending time, much less thinking about the blue-haired girl but she sensed that behind all that brash and bluntness there was a vulnerable girl who just needed someone who would listen to her and to whom she could count on. On the other hand, Kate couldn't get the image of Chloe standing by the pool in her birth suit out of her head. The vision of the punk's toned body seemed to offer a welcomed distraction from all the anxiety.
The more Kate kept thinking about Chloe the more she could feel a warming sensation to build up inside her. Almost surreptitiously, her hand slipped its way through the waist line of her panties. Even if Kate at some cognizant level acknowledged that she was going to do something that she had chastised herself from, the instinctive side of her suppressed the thought away. When the creeping fingers found their target, Kate didn't pull her hand away from the sensation but instead began a fondling motion to enhance the feeling. By the time her other hand reached her breast, she was completely succumbed to the sensation to even realize what she was doing.
Chloe lied in her bed, wearing a tank top and panties. An ashtray rested on her chest as she smoked a cigarette. The first light of dawn began to filter through the Stars 'n Stripes covering the window. She had not slept much as she had been too agitated to fall asleep.
Not many people in Arcadia Bay had the guts to tell Chloe off. Her mother, of course was one of them, and David to some extent but even from them she would seldom heed whatever advice there might be. Kate was a different case, though. For some reason, it mattered to the punk what the petite blonde thought of her. Of course, Chloe had not shown it to her, when she had pouted the whole drive back to Blackwell after Kate's rebuke. On the other hand, Kate had not backed off in her opinion in order to reconcile. Therefore, an awkward silence had prevailed in the beaten truck.
Chloe took another drag from her cigarette before stumping it into the ashtray. The smoke trailed out from her mouth, accompanied with a sigh. Kate was different from practically anyone that she had been with. The small blonde was kind and empathic but still strong in her opinions. It made Chloe realize how big a blow the viral video must've been for Kate to even consider ending her life. On the other hand, she couldn't but wonder how quickly Kate was willing to put that all behind her in order to offer her support to those, who had driven her in such a desperate position. She's a lot stronger than she gives herself credit for.
Chloe stood up and walked across the hall to the bathroom. She got out of her clothes and stepped into the shower. She turned the tap on and leaned against the wall as the warm water ran down her back. The bluenette opened the shampoo bottle, poured some of the liquid on her palm and lathered her hair. She then poured some more and repeated the operation on the green bush on her pubic mound.
Chloe stepped under the streaming water and rinsed her hair. She arched her back and let the water flow down her abdomen while she placed her right hand on her mound and with circular motion rinsed away the froth. Once done, Chloe kept her hand on top of the mound and began to caress the tender area. She leaned against the wall and slipped the fingers of her free hand into her mouth and slowly stroked them between her lips. A quiet moan escaped between her lips, when she gave her imagination free reigns and fantasized it was Kate's hands caressing her.
Kate was also in the shower. She sat on the shower stall floor, her arms curled tightly around her feet and her head resting against her knees, hoping that the streaming water would wash away all the guilt and remorse she was feeling.
Yesterday's turn of events and the clash with Chloe had left Kate in an emotionally turbulent state. On the other hand, her accidental self-exploration at Chloe's place last morning had kept itching her on a subconscious level throughout the day. Therefore, last night, in her quest for solace, she had simply given in to the desire to scratch that itch and in the process thrown whatever principles of chastity she may have upheld out of the window.
Touching herself wasn't the worst part, though. Kate had also begun to question her own sexuality. She remembered that she had not ever been particularly interested in boys in her teen years but she had simply set that off with the fact that as a devout Christian she should be chaste until marriage. To the possibility that she might actually be into girls she had not even shared a thought, until now.
Kate found herself in conflict with her devotional upbringing, which altogether condemned same sex relationships. She had also a pretty good understanding where the Bible stood in this matter. The thing was, though, that while none of the references to homosexuality in the Bible were approving towards it, they needed to be viewed in context. The context being the period, when the passages were written, reflecting upon the cultural and historical reality of the authors. Times were completely different compared to now. That didn't offer any consolation, though, as this would be even a greater shock to her family than the video was. While her father and sisters would accept Kate as she was, her mother and aunt would most certainly not approve her change of sexual orientation.
Kate didn't know how to deal with this situation. The only person she could've possibly even considered to talk about it, was dead. She extended her arms and crossed her hands as the water still kept scouring her naked body. Please, God, what am I supposed to do?
Chloe parked her truck in front of the stairway leading to the Blackwell Academy main building. She cranked the driver side window down, lit a cigarette and picked up her phone.
Chloe 10/10/2013, 8:42 a.m.: Hey, you up?
Chloe 10/10/2013, 8:42 a.m.: Look, I'm sorry about yesterday. It was hella rude of me to say such things.
Kate 10/10/2013, 8:43 a.m.: You're right, it was.
Chloe 10/10/2013, 8:43 a.m.: Like I said, I'm sorry. R we cool?
Kate 10/10/2013, 8:44 a.m.: We're cool.
Chloe 10/10/2013, 8:45 a.m.: I'm parked at the front of the school, if you still want to come with me to the funeral parlor.
Kate 10/10/2013, 8:45 a.m.: B there in 5.
Chloe tucked the phone in her pocket and tapped the excess ashes off from the cigarette out of the window before taking another drag. She blew the smoke out of the window and looked down at the town center. She would've wanted to be just about anywhere else than here right now.
Max Caulfield, Rachel Amber and Kate Marsh. The common denominator for the three girls was that Chloe had either fallen for or was falling for them all. She felt it was life's way of bitch-slapping her straight in the face that the one girl she could only dream of getting would accompany her, when she would pay her last respects to the girls she had lost. Chloe recognized the signs all too well. She was falling for Kate, there was no doubt about it. She would've wanted to express her feelings to the smaller girl but the fear of rejection held her back. The whole idea was just bound to be doomed. Kate was probably as straight as they come.
Maybe it's time you accept that some things aren't just meant to be, Chloe thought as she flicked the burned cigarette out of the window. Just then Kate appeared at the top of the stairs and strut them down to the battered truck. The punk leaned over to unlock the passenger door. Fixing the central lock was somewhere down the long list of to-dos. The smaller girl pulled the door open and sat on the passenger seat.
"Um, hi," Chloe said, timidity in her voice.
"Hi," Kate answered with equal awkwardness. She kept her glance away from the bluenette.
"Look, I-," Chloe started.
"It's all right, Chloe," Kate interrupted her. "You have a right to your opinion."
"No, it's not all right!" the punk blurted, perhaps a bit more emphatically than she had intended. "I have a bad habit of expressing my opinion bluntly. It's kind of a defense mechanism." She turned the engine on and joined the traffic. "Life's given me so much shit that I just can't be bothered to be amicable."
"I think you've been amicable towards me, at least for the most part," the blonde said quietly, still looking away.
The remark made Chloe to turn to look the small girl on the passenger's seat. She still couldn't get an eye contact, though. Because you're hella worth it, Chloe wanted to say to her but she just wasn't able to form the words.
The rest of the journey to the funeral parlor went in silence. Chloe parked her truck next to a white Saab 9-4X that had Washington plates. Looks like Max's parents are making a decent living. Chloe turned the engine off and both girls stepped out.
They walked inside the parlor, into a room that was divided into a small lobby space and a couple of small offices. The Caulfields were sitting on a sofa. They stood up as they saw the two girls walking in.
"Good morning, Chloe," Vanessa Caulfield said and gave the bluenette a hug.
"Good morning," Chloe responded as she embraced the older woman. "Ryan," she shook hands with Max's father. "This is Kate Marsh," the punk introduced the smaller girl.
"Pleased to meet you, Mrs. and Mr. Caulfield," Kate said courteously.
"Please, call us Vanessa and Ryan," Vanessa said as she shook hands with the blonde.
"I'm so sorry for your loss," Kate expressed her condolences. "I only got to know Max for a short time but I was proud to call her a friend."
"Thank, you Kate, that is so kind of you," Ryan said as the member of the parlor staff opened a door to the back. "Are you guys ready?"
No, I am not! Chloe heard her brain shout frantically. "I guess," she simply said.
They all stepped into a small room that was dimly lit. The only light in the room was in the middle of the room, right above a white coffin. The top half of the lid was open, and the light illuminated the body that was lying inside. Chloe extended her hand desperately, hoping that someone would hold it. To her surprise, Kate took Chloe's hand into her own and walked with her to the coffin. The Caulfields stayed further back.
Max lied in there with a peaceful expression like she had been just sleeping. She looked as beautiful as she always had looked in Chloe's mind. She was dressed in a simple black dress. A golden doe necklace was resting just above the bodice. The chestnut hair was neatly combed down. Chloe bit her lip and squeezed Kate's hand as a trickle of tears ran down her cheek. The blonde did the sign of the cross with her free hand and recited the Lord's Prayer with a silent voice.
"Would you give a minute?" Chloe whispered to Kate, when she had ended her prayer.
"Sure." The smaller girl let go of the punk's hand and backed away next to Max's parents.
"Uh, hey, Max. It's me, Chloe," the bluenette said with a barely audible voice. "Things were a bit hectic on Monday, huh? I didn't get a chance to talk to you." She let out a deep sigh. "I'm so sorry, Max. It should've been me in that bathroom and not you. You had nothing to do with this epic failure that I call my life."
"I'm sorry that I never reached out for you, while you were in Seattle. Maybe if I had, we wouldn't be here right now. I realize now that I shut you out and that's why you didn't reach out for me either. I guess neither of us wasn't brave enough to take that step."
"I wish I could've reconnect with you. We'd probably had a hella awesome time together, y'know, like the old times. I miss you so much, Max. You and I had something special. Nothing else comes even close, not even you, Rachel as I know you're listening." Chloe smiled shortly. "You have to wait until tomorrow as I'm having a special moment with Max here. You two are probably having a good laugh together watching me getting all mushy and shit."
"Anyway, Max, I want you to know that you'll always have a special place in my heart and I will always love you." Chloe took her beanie off, leaned forward and placed a kiss on the dead brunette's forehead. "Au revoir, Maxaroni."
Kate watched how the punk leaned over the coffin and placed the kiss before withdrawing and joining the others. She stepped forward after getting a discreet nod from Ryan and walked back to the coffin.
"H-hi Max, it's Kate," she addressed her dead friend. "I still can't my head around the idea that you've gone." She closed her eyes. "You know, if it had not been for Chloe, I would've joined you in death. I felt so desperate about my situation that I was ready to end it all."
"In retrospective I feel so stupid, especially after I found out that I was drugged and abused." Kate paused for a moment. "It was Mr. Jefferson. He and Nathan Prescott drugged and kidnapped girls and took sick and perverted pictures of them, and me. I don't know if it is a blessing that you didn't find out the truth about Mr. Jefferson, because I know how much you looked up to him. No matter, he is dead and he can't hurt you from where he is going."
"If anything good has come out of all this, it's that Victoria is really nice towards me now. She even apologized for posting that awful video. I don't know why she has to keep up that bitchy front but I think you and Victoria could've been really good friends given time."
"I really miss our tea sessions together. There's something I would've liked to confide in you about. I-, I think I'm falling for Chloe, and I feel so conflicted. According to my belief I shouldn't be having these feelings and I'm confident that my family wouldn't approve. Still, I can't help what I'm feeling and it's eating me alive. You'd probably told me to follow my heart and God knows I'd like to. I just don't know if I'm brave enough to do it. I mean I don't even know how Chloe feels about me. She's actually been bit awkward towards me lately." The blonde sighed in frustration. "I don't know, maybe this is just some stupid crush and it'll go away in time."
Kate touched Max's hand. She was surprised how cold it felt. "Goodbye, Max. I won't forget you." Kate did the sign of the cross again and joined the others.
"Thank you for letting us come to bid our farewells," Chloe said.
"Thank you for coming," Vanessa said to the girls. "We really appreciate it and I know Max would've appreciated it too."
"Alas, we have to get going," Ryan said. "The hearse is waiting outside. We need to get to Lincoln City by eleven."
"We should make it back before the memorial service at the school starts," Vanessa added. "We'll bring your urn there and participate the memorial, then we have to head back to Seattle."
"Have a safe trip!" Kate wished before the girls exited the room.
They stepped outside and walked to the truck. Chloe lit up a cigarette and leaned against the truck door, taking drags and blowing up smoke in the brisk autumn air. Kate looked at the smoking bluenette furtively.
"Chloe, I-," the smaller girl started but the words got stuck in her mouth.
"Yes, Kate?" The punk turned to look at the blonde.
I think I'm falling in love with you, Kate wanted to say. "There's going to be a get together after the memorial at the Swimming hall. Just students. Would you like to come?" she asked instead.
"I dunno," Chloe said, smoke trailing from her mouth. "Might be fun, though. Sure, I'll come."
"Great! I'll take you there after the memorial," Kate said with a little enthusiasm in her voice.
"Cool!" Chloe flicked the cigarette away. "Step in, I'll give you a ride back to Blackwell."
The events on Monday and Tuesday had a significant impact on this day. Originally, the Vortex Club End of the World Party was supposed to take place tonight and the winner of the Everyday Heroes Contest was to be announced there. After the shooting and the hostage situation, the event was quietly cancelled and a memorial service for the victims at the school auditorium was to be held instead on late afternoon. The swimming hall that was reserved for the Vortex Club would not be entirely without festivities though, as the students had got permission to organize a more informal memorial event after the official one.
Chloe was standing in front of the Blackwell main entrance. She was wearing the best pair of black jeans she owned. Her top consisted of a dark purple button-down shirt and a black jacket. Her usual boots were replaced by a shiny pair of Doc Martens. She considered wearing her beanie but opted to left it home. Instead she had dyed away the strawberry blonde root growth of her hair, so that it was uniformly azure in color. The three-bullet necklace adorned her chest and a pair of suspenders hung around her thighs. A burning cigarette was hanging loosely between her lips.
The whole situation felt bizarre to the punk. The way her life had been going in the last few years she'd thought that it would be Max who'd attend her funeral and not the other way around. Life is full of twists, she thought as she took the last drag from her cigarette and flicked it away.
Chloe was waiting for her mother and stepfather to arrive. The memorial service was for students, staff and family members, so she had to tag along with David. Never thought I'd actually be happy to be associated with step-dork in any way. She looked in the general direction of the dorms, trying to make Kate out of the stream of students wandering inside the building. A moment later, she could see the small blonde walking down the pathway, alone. She was wearing a black dress and a white shirt under a black cardigan. Chloe thought that she looked elegant in her plain outfit. Kate waved at her, when she saw her standing by the entrance.
"Hey, I thought you'd be already inside," the blonde said.
"I'm supposed to meet my mom and David here," the punk responded. "Wanna keep me company until they arrive?"
"Sure-, hey look! Max's parents are there." Kate pointed at the parking lot.
Chloe turned to see the couple coming towards the entrance. She waved at them.
"Vanessa, Ryan! You made it!" Chloe said to the couple.
"Yes, we made it, barely," Ryan remarked. "The cremation process took longer than we expected."
"So, Max is…"
"Her remains are divided into two urns," Ryan confirmed. "We'll give you the other one after the memorial."
"We're going inside," Vanessa said. "You coming with us?"
"I'm gonna wait for Mom and David," Chloe said, and cast a quick glance around her to see if they had already arrived.
"I can go with you and show you the way," Kate proposed. "We'll hold some seats for you."
"Ok, see you inside, then." The punk watched how the small blonde escorted Max's parents in. She was about dig out another cigarette, when she saw Joyce and David coming from the parking lot. It had been a while since she had seen her mother or David to dress up formally. In his suit, David was almost hansom, if you didn't count the pornstache. Chloe had once half-jokingly suggested that if he insisted on having a moustache, he should at least grow it into a horseshoe. Unsurprisingly, David had not been excited about the idea.
"Hi dear, you're looking smart," Joyce greeted her daughter.
"Thanks, Mom! You and Dave don't look too bad either."
"I should've ended my shift even shorter than I did," Joyce lamented. "We cut it awfully close as I had to take a shower and change."
"Well, we're here now," David commented. "Chloe,-" he cleared his throat. "Joyce told me how close you and Max were. I know that we've had our differences but I want you to know that if you ever need to talk about it or something else that's on your heart, I will listen."
Chloe was taken aback by the unexpected proposal. "Um, sure, thanks!"
"Should we go inside?" Joyce asked.
"Yeah, let's go," Chloe said. "Ryan and Vanessa are already inside. They're holding places for us."
David led them in and they made their way to the auditorium and to the front row, where the Caulfields and Kate were sitting. There were three empty seats between them and Rose and James Amber, Rachel's parents. After a quick introduction of David to the Caulfields and condolences to the Ambers they took their seats.
Chloe finally had a chance to take a better look at the stage before them. Right next to the podium there were large headshots of Max and Rachel in stands right behind a small table that had two lit candles on it. 'MAXINE SIOBHÁN CAULFIELD, 1995 – 2013' and 'RACHEL DAWN AMBER, 1994 – 2013' read under their respective pictures. Rachel looked radiant and confident in the picture but then again she always did. Max on the other hand looked just happy and Chloe recognized the picture to be an enlargement of one of Max's selfies that she had had on her room wall.
The auditorium started to be full. The front row at the other side of the aisle was filled by the Blackwell staff. Chloe looked behind her and could make out some familiar faces in the rows behind her. Justin Williams nodded to her briefly, when their eyes met. Victoria tried her best to ignore her stare. Courtney kept her eyes focused on the stage. Trevor was sitting with Dana Ward and Juliet Watson. As she let her gaze wander, Chloe took a moment to reminisce her prematurely ended venture as a Blackwell student. Contrary to the GPA in her student record might suggest, she was actually a very bright and intelligent girl and under normal circumstances her GPA would've been very close to 4. After her father's death, though, everything in her life had ceased to be normal.
The auditorium doors were closed. Principal Ray Wells stood up and walked to the podium. He tapped the microphone to make sure that it was on and eyed his notes one more time before clearing his throat.
"We are gathered here today to pay our respects to two of our students, Maxine Caulfield and Rachel Amber," Wells began his speech. "Both left us prematurely as a result of a transgression, leaving their loved ones and you, their fellow students in mourning. While the people behind these acts of cruelty are apprehended and will face justice, it offers only a little consolation in this moment of grief."
"Both Maxine and Rachel were talented students. Rachel was outgoing and social while Maxine, or Max as she preferred, was more of an observer and a curious mind. They never got a chance to meet each other but if they had met I can imagine that they would've gotten along very well. Their demise is a great loss to Blackwell but even greater loss it is to their loved ones." Wells turned to look at the front row, where they were sitting.
Chloe took a quick glance at David and saw that he was clenching his fists and his biceps were tensioning in rhythm. No one else seemed to notice it. Chloe had naturally heard the rumors that Wells might be tightly in the Prescotts' leash but her stepfather's behavior seemed to indicate that the Principal had been willing to watch Nathan's exploits through his fingers too long. The thought made Chloe frown angrily at the man in the podium.
"Max and Rachel were not the only victims of the events that have unraveled in the last few days," Wells continued his speech. "Taylor Christensen got caught in the crossfire during the apprehension of one of the perpetrators. While Taylor will live to see another day after all that's happened in the last few days, her life will be forever changed. I hope you join me as I wish all the best to Taylor and her family."
"Tonight, the winner of the Everyday Heroes contest was supposed to be announced at the End of the World party but in the light of recent events that party was cancelled. The winner will still be announced shortly but I will not be the one who has the privilege." Wells paused for a moment.
"This speech will be the last duty that I perform as the Principal of Blackwell Academy." A murmur swept through the audience. "As a Principal, my primary duty is the well-being and safety of the students and staff. I have failed miserably at fulfilling that duty. I have handed in my resignation to the school board, effective immediately. Michelle Grant will be taking over the Principal's duties until a successor is selected." Wells paused again and hung his head down, before addressing the people in the front row. "Mr. and Mrs. Caulfield, Mr. and Mrs. Amber, I am sorry that could not keep your children safe."
With that, Raymond Wells stepped down from the podium and stage. He walked to the Caulfields and offered his hand. Ryan and Vanessa stood up and shook hands swiftly. The atmosphere was clearly uneasy after Wells' announcement. He then proceeded to the Ambers and repeated the gesture. Chloe shot daggers at him with her eyes throughout the whole episode. Finally, Wells made his way to the auditorium exit in silence and closed the door behind him.
Apparently the announcement and the exit of the now former Principal had not been planned as the other staff members exchanged a few dumbfounded glances, before Michelle Grant stood up and hastily made her way to the podium.
"Thank you, Ray," Grant said, clearly peeved and trying to restore her composure. "Um, as the acting Principal, I'd also like to, on the whole staff's as well as my own behalf, express my deepest sympathies to all of you who were close to Max and Rachel," she managed to say. "They will be missed."
"We had a lengthy discussion about whether the Blackwell Academy entry to the Everyday Heroes exhibition should be cancelled. Having come to an agreement that it was what both Max and Rachel would've wanted, we decided to go ahead as planned. A jury consisting of school staff and the primary photographer of the Arcadia Bay Beacon chose the winning entry. The recent events may have caused the jury be slightly biased but the merits of the entry were enough by themselves for the title."
"And the winner is…" Michelle Grant turned on the projector and tapped the mousepad of a laptop a few times the picture on the screen flashed a few times to reveal the winning entry. "…Max Caulfield!" The picture of Max watching her photo montage was shown on the screen.
"Max's entry was posthumously submitted by Victoria Chase," the acting Principal explained as she turned to view the picture on the big screen.
Chloe turned to face the tall blonde that was sitting a few rows back. Victoria's face was deadpan.
"Did you know about this?" Chloe whispered to Kate.
"She did mention about it," Kate whispered back.
"Why would she throw a hands down win away?"
"I've come to learn these past few days that Victoria is more than her bitchy shell, even though she don't like to admit it."
Chloe turned her attention back to the podium, where Max's parents had gone to receive the award. Both Ryan and Vanessa shook hands with Mrs. Grant. Vanessa stepped behind the microphone and tapped the corners of her eyes with a handkerchief.
"I... I am a rollercoaster of emotions right now," she began her speech. "I mostly feel sorrow and grief over the loss of our daughter but now I also feel pride over the talent that she possessed. I wish that she could be here with us so that we could share this moment with her. Thank you!"
The audience stood up one by one and began to applaud. Chloe stood up with the others and applauded. Way to go, Maxaroni! You did it.
Vanessa raised her hand and the clapping quieted down. "Apparently, this prize included a trip to San Francisco to the exhibition with the purpose of the winner to be able to network and make contacts. While I and my husband will be going to San Francisco to admire Max's work, we would like to offer the prize trip to someone with a similar passion to the photography. I take that you have a runner-up in this competition?"
"We do," Mrs. Grant said. "Victoria Chase!"
The tall blonde stood up smiling and walked to the stage. Vanessa handed her the flight tickets and shook her hand. "Congratulations, dear and thank you for submitting Max's work on her behalf."
"It was the least I could do Mrs. Caulfield," Victoria said bashfully.
Chloe didn't know what to think of the blonde. It would've been so easy for Victoria just to leave Max's picture where she found it and she would be in the limelight. Of course she'll get to go to San Francisco but she'll be just another spectator among others. It would definitely not be so easy to network than it would be, if her own picture was exhibited. That'll be the day, if I ever figure that girl out.
The Caulfields returned to their seats. Victoria changed a few words with Mrs. Grant, before she also returned to her seat. Mrs. Grant reminded the audience about the informal event later and formally ended the occasion. The people rose and began to disperse.
"Chloe, will you come with us to our car, so that we can give you the urn?" Ryan asked the punk as they stood up.
"Lead the way," Chloe answered.
They walked out of the main building and to the parking lot, where the Caulfields' SUV was parked. Ryan popped the trunk open and took a small, brass-plated urn out of the compartment.
"Here's what is left of our daughter," Ryan said wistfully. "I take that you respect Max's wishes regarding her remains."
"I will," Chloe promised as she took the urn. It felt heavier than she thought it would.
"We'll be heading back to Seattle now," Vanessa said. "Joyce, Chloe, it was good to see you again and it was a pleasure to meet you, David."
"It was nice seeing you and Ryan too," Joyce answered. "I just wish it could've happened under happier circumstances."
"Yes... It's going to take time to get used to the idea that our baby is gone," Vanessa said quietly, grabbing Ryan's arm.
"Do come over and visit us sometime," Ryan said. "You too, Chloe."
"Well, you don't have to wait another five years to come down here either," Joyce responded.
"Take care now and thank you," Vanessa said and gave a hug to both Joyce and Chloe.
"Have a safe trip home," Joyce said as she turned to give Ryan a hug.
"We'll let you know first thing we get home," Ryan promised. He turned over to Chloe to give her a hug. "Take care, kid."
"You too," Chloe answered.
Ryan and Vanessa shook hands with David and Kate, before they stepped into the SUV and drove off. Chloe watched the car disappear into the distance as she waved them goodbye with the others. She held the urn tightly in her grip. It felt bizarre that she was holding the remains of her best friend against her body.
"All right, I'm going to go home to change and do the evening shift," Joyce announced.
"Me too," David accompanied. "I have to watch over the evening's event."
"Be seeing you, Kate," Joyce said to the smaller girl as she took her husband's arm.
"Sure thing, Joyce," Kate responded. "Bye, Mr. Madsen."
Chloe and Kate watched the couple to walk to David's Valiant and leave. Chloe turned her attention to the smaller girl, who still seemed to appear uncomfortable around her, when they were alone.
"I'm gonna go home too to change into something more comfortable and to take Max home," Chloe said, casting a glance at the urn. "Ugh, that sounded just hella weird."
The remark seemed to get Kate a bit more relaxed. "Do you know, what you're going to do with Max's ashes?" she asked.
"Not yet," the punk answered. "I suppose Max has left me some kind of instructions, since her folks were left with some. Have to see if there's something in Max's diary."
"Well, I'll see you by the gym later," the smaller girl waved her goodbye and headed towards the dormitories.
"Yeah, sure," Chloe said as she watched the blonde walk away. She furrowed her eyebrows. Something was obviously bothering Kate. She'd have to try to get her open up when she would see her again at the event.
Chloe walked to her truck and opened the driver's door. She put the urn on the passenger seat and looked at it.
"Well, Max, it's just you and me now," Chloe said melancholically as she picked a cigarette from the pack and lit up.
Kate was standing in the passageway between the dorms and the main courtyard. She was feeling both nervous and uncomfortable. The former because she would be meeting Chloe soon and the latter because she was almost completely out of her comfort zone with her outfit. Kate had decided to consult Dana in order to be properly dressed for the occasion. The cheerleader had been more than willing to give a helping hand.
As a result, Kate was now wearing the tightest and the most low-necked t-shirt tops ever, one of Dana's. Combined with a push-up bra, she actually had a bit of a cleavage, with the cross of her necklace now firmly resting in the recess. Kate had put on the only pair of jeans she had in her wardrobe. They were actually rather fashionable with the tight cut and low waistline. Max had actually encouraged her to buy them, when they had gone shopping. Her trademark bun had been replaced with a tight ponytail á la Dana. The cheerleader had also given a subtle touch up to her lashes and eyelids that complemented the blusher applied on her cheeks and gloss on her lips.
Kate had hardly recognized her own image from the mirror after Dana's handiwork. Despite the cheerleader's objections, Kate had insisted putting on a cardigan, which she had left open. She had to admit that she looked kinda hot even though she felt so out of her comfort zone. Nevertheless, she would need all the help she could get for what she was going to do. She'd need just one more thing…
The final piece of the puzzle arrived in the form of Victoria, who paced determinedly towards the passageway. The taller blonde couldn't hide her amazement, when she saw the smaller girl.
"That's… that's quite an outfit, Kate," Victoria commented. "Not bad," she added approvingly.
"Do you have it?" Kate asked, ignoring the taller blonde's comments.
"Yes, I have it," Victoria said and dug out a hip flask out of her bag. "Are you absolutely sure you want this, considering what happened last time?"
"You know why it happened," Kate said tautly.
"Yes, I do know." The taller girl looked away momentarily. "Still, just plain alcohol can be treacherous to someone who's not used to it. You might still end up doing things that you might regret in the morning."
"I know what I'm doing," the smaller girl said, her voice trembling ever so slightly.
"All right, then," Victoria handed the flask to Kate. "For what it's worth, if there's going to be a video of your antics online tomorrow, I promise it'll not be mine."
"I appreciate that," Kate said and removed the cap from the flask. "What's in here?"
"Well, you requested something strong but easily drinkable, so I filled it with dark rum."
Kate took a small sip. The alcohol burned her throat but the caramelly taste mellowed it down a bit. She brought the flask again on her lips and this time took a longer swag, and another.
"Um, perhaps I should explain the idea of a flask," Victoria tried to moderate the smaller girl. "You're not supposed to empty the whole flask at one go."
"Look, I'm going to do something that freaks the living daylights out of me, so I'm going to need all the encouragement I can muster," Kate said and emptied the flask.
"Ohh-kay..." the taller blonde said in bewilderment and put the empty flask back into her bag. "Maybe I should keep an eye on you, just in case."
"I'll manage," Kate said bluntly, before the flabbergasted look on Victoria's face made her realize how harsh she had been towards the blonde. "I'm sorry, Victoria. I'm a bit tense about tonight, that's all. Thank you for helping me out."
"You're welcome," Victoria smiled. "And I wouldn't worry about being tense much longer." She winked her eye.
The remark made Kate chuckle inadvertently. She was already beginning to feel the buzz caused by the alcohol.
"I'll be close by, if you need me," the taller blonde said. "But now I'm going to go to make an appearance." She left the smaller girl by herself.
Kate stood still for a moment, before she came to think that she should probably head for the rendezvous point. She took one step forward and almost fell on her nose when she lost her balance.
Gosh, this really is something else than the communion wine, Kate thought as she stumbled slowly forward. I'm not so sure if this was a good idea after all. The anxiety took hold of her again.
Chloe parked her truck into the handicap zone and stepped out. She looked at her phone and sighed. She was running late. Luckily, Kate had not sent any messages inquiring her whereabouts.
The punk ran the flight of stairs two steps at a time. She looked around to see, if Kate was already there. She almost ignored the blonde girl waving at her, until she realized that it was Kate. Chloe couldn't hide her amazement, when she walked to the smaller girl. Kate was looking the complete opposite of her usual appearance. The low-neck t-shirt revealed her collarbones and the push-up bra drew a tempting furrow just above the neckline. The tight jeans emphasized the lines of her petite legs and the cardigan gave the ensemble a touch of elegance. In a word, Kate was looking hot.
"Who are you and what have you done with Kate Marsh?" Chloe asked, grinning.
"Hey, Chloe," Kate greeted the punk with a slight slur in her voice.
"Have you been drinking?" the punk asked, furrowing her brows.
"Uh, is it that obvious?" Kate asked back, slight embarrassment in her voice.
"Well, if the slurring doesn't give you away, the swaying does," Chloe said. "What have you been drinking?"
"R-rrhhum," the blonde slurred.
"Where'd ya get rum from?"
"From Vicky," Kate snickered.
"Victoria?" Chloe frowned angrily. "Where is she? I'm gonna…"
"No, please wait!" the smaller girl grabbed her arm. "I asked her to."
"You asked her?" Chloe asked in amazement. "After the whole Vortex club incident I thought you'd stay clear from the stuff."
"After I found out that I was drugged, I decided I'd want a positive experience. Also after what happened to Max I've began to think that I need to live a little," Kate explained, hoping that her buzzedness would hide the fact that the truth couldn't be further from what she just said.
"Hey, I'm not judging." The punk raised her hands. "You look hella nice, by the way."
"You like?"
"Yeah, me like." The compliment was rewarded with a smile.
"Shall we go inside?" Kate asked.
"We shall," Chloe answered. "And rest assured, I shall protect your dignity with all my might." She waved her arm theatrically.
"My knight in shining armor," Kate giggled.
"They stepped inside. The pool area where they had swum one night ago had transformed into a party lounge with balloons and neon lights. Surprisingly, no one was swimming but quite a few people were dancing by the pool to the rhythm of 'It's A Lie' by Fiction Plane. A projector was running a slideshow of pictures taken of Max and Rachel.
"Max and Rachel would've liked this," Chloe said to Kate.
"I think so too," the smaller girl agreed.
"Well, since there's no point of being sober out of sympathy I'm going to see if I can find myself a beer," the punk stated. "Will you be ok in the meantime?"
"Shhhuuurre," Kate slurred back.
"I think there was a 'sure' in there somewhere," the bluenette grinned. "I'll be right back."
Chloe walked to the other side of the pool area, where there was a curtain separating a smaller section from the rest of the area. She had been to Vortex Club parties with Rachel, so she knew that it used to be a VIP section with restricted access but now there seemed to be no control at the entrance, so she made her way to the back.
The former VIP section looked pretty much the same as it used to be with tables, chairs and sofas scattered around the space. She saw Victoria sitting with Courtney and some other girls in one corner and eyeballing her. In the middle there was table full of beverages with Hayden Jones tending the serving.
"Hey, Price, wassup?" Hayden greeted the punk.
"Same shit, different day, y'know," Chloe answered. "You got anything stronger than lemonade here?"
"You're in luck, Zach and Logan just dropped a few cases of beer," Hayden said and reached under the desk. "Here ya go!" He passed a bottle of Coors to the bluenette.
"Thanks! Chloe said, screwing the cap off and taking a swig. "I'm gonna head back. Kate's there with me and I don't wanna leave her alone for too long."
"Ok, talk to you later," Hayden said. "And try to be discreet with the bottle in case someone from the staff wanders in."
Chloe walked back to the general section and looked around. Kate had moved to a slightly quieter spot. When the punk got there, she noticed that the smaller girl was looking all weird and wound up.
"Kate are you all right?" Chloe asked with concern.
Kate didn't answer. Instead she took the bluenette completely by surprise by wrapping her arms around her neck and pressing her lips against hers. Chloe's eyes popped wide open with amazement and the beer bottle slipped from her grip, smashing to the floor. The sound of breaking glass made the smaller girl open her eyes and see the expression on the taller girl's face. She let go of the punk and stepped back. Chloe just stood there, staring at the blonde, completely speechless.
"C-chloe, I-," Kate stammered, when she saw the expression on Chloe's face. "I-I'm sorry, this was a mistake!" she exclaimed and ran off.
It took a couple of seconds more, before Chloe recovered from her initial shock and was able to produce something comprehensible out of her mouth. "Kate, wait!" she yelled but the blonde was already out of the room. She ran after her but Kate was nowhere to be found.
"Aw, fuck!" Chloe cussed out loud.
She turned on her heels and walked back inside and into the back lounge, where she found Victoria still sitting. The punk walked to the blonde and dragged her furiously off the couch.
"What the-," Victoria scoffed angrily.
"Shut. Up," Chloe said sternly, blue eyes piercing straight into the green ones. "Kate just freaked out and ran off and I'm holding you responsible!"
The scowl on the blonde's face changed to concern. "Kate freaked out? What did you do to her?"
"I did nothing! I went back to her, when she all of a sudden grabbed and kissed me," the punk explained. "She freaked out and ran, before I had a chance to say anything."
"Oh," was all that Victoria could say.
"Since you got her drunk you're going to help me to find her, before she does something stupid," Chloe said, sounding more frantic than stern.
"What do you mean?" the blonde asked bemusedly.
"The evening after Max was killed Kate came onto the dorm roof with the intention to jump down. If I hadn't been there, she would've probably done it."
"Oh my goodness!" Victoria exclaimed, before she furrowed her brows. "Why were you on the roof?"
"Because... because I was gonna put a bullet in my head!" Chloe blurted. "Happy?"
This time Victoria didn't say anything. She just covered the inadvertent gasp with her hand.
"Look, I want you to go and check the dorm, since you have access there," Chloe instructed the blonde. "I'll check the surroundings."
"Uh, okay," the blonde agreed.
"Okay, let's go!"
Kate sat in her bed sobbing and sniffing. All her clothes were in a bundle on the couch and she was wearing just an oversized t-shirt and panties. The buzz from the rum was beginning to wear off and be replaced by the side effects of intoxication. This time I'd actually want to forget everything that happened!she thought as she stared the floor.
In her mind she went through the events that had lead her into her dorm room feeling sorry for herself. When Chloe had left Kate to get herself a beer, her anxiety had taken over her again. Even in her intoxicated state she couldn't gather the courage to tell the bluenette how she felt about her, so she had decided to put all her stakes into one desperate act. When the punk had returned, Kate had jumped to her neck and kissed her. For the slightest of moment, she'd felt the warm moisture and softness of the bluenette's lips on hers. Then the beer bottle had smashed to the floor and the spell had broken.
When Kate had seen the expression on the bluenette's face, she'd come to face the finality of her action. She couldn't take it back even if she wanted to. Distraught about the punk girl's reaction, she had run straight to the dorms and into her room, ripped off her clothes and curled into her bed.
What was I thinking when I thought that Chloe could possibly be interested in me in that way, Kate thought, when she wiped her nose. How will I be able to face her tomorrow? She was startled, when someone suddenly knocked on the door.
"Kate, it's Victoria, are you there?" the taller blonde asked behind the door.
"Please go away," Kate sobbed.
"Are you all right, Kate?" Victoria persisted. "Listen, Chloe told me about the roof."
"She… told?" Kate asked back. The memory of her moment of desperation made her stomach twist.
"She told that you both were there with the same intent," Victoria said. "I… I realize that I'm at least partially responsible for putting you in such a desperate situation. I would have never forgiven myself, if something had happened to you." A pause, then a sniff. "I will never forgive myself that I made you even consider such an act."
"Victoria… I will not harm myself, I promise," Kate assured. "Please tell Chloe that. I just want to be alone for now."
"All right," the taller blonde said. "I'm in my room if you need something."
Chloe was sitting in her and Rachel's hideout at the American Rust junkyard, smoking a joint to calm down from the turn of events earlier in the evening. A storm lantern cast its gleaming light into the wrecked outhouse.
Victoria had texted her that she had found Kate and relayed the smaller blonde's wish to be alone. She had also promised to keep an eye on her for the rest of the night, so Chloe had decided to drive to the junkyard to clear her thoughts.
Kate's kiss had taken the punk completely by surprise. She felt both flattered and bemused about the whole thing. She herself had begun to develop feelings towards the smaller girl but she could not have even begun to think that Kate might feel the same. Chloe just hoped that she had not blown the whole thing with her inadvertent reaction.
Chloe took another drag from her joint as she picked up her phone and began texting.
Chloe 10/10/2013, 10:45 p.m.: Kate, u ok?
Chloe 10/10/2013, 10:46 p.m.: I'm not upset or anything, just surprised that's all. I'd like to talk to you about this evening.
The punk pressed send and waited if Kate would respond. After a couple of minutes and no response, she tucked the phone away and took Max's diary in her hand. She'd had it in the truck for the whole time so she had thought she'd take a look at it while she was here.
There was something tucked between the pages, so Chloe opened the diary at that point. It was a Polaroid of a blue morpho standing on the edge of a bucket. Awesome sauce, Max, the bluenette thought as she examined the photo. She put the photo aside and looked at the writing beneath. The buzz from the weed evaporated completely from her head, when she read the first lines.
Dear Chloe,
If you are reading this, it means I am dead.
To be continued...
Welcome to the fourth installment of Ships in the Night! Thank you so much for all the reviews and sorry for the huge gap between updates. This chapter breaks my chapter length record with 8646 words w/o author's notes. I'm still almost 1400 words from the coveted 10k words.
This has been a challenging chapter to write as I pretty much had only the initial scenes and the idea how I wanted the chapter to end. The incident between Kate and Chloe was quite challenging to make it plausible. My original intention was that it would be Chloe who would make the initiative to kiss Kate and the end result would be Kate running away. Then I thought that what if I made Kate make the initiative? I decided that even though Kate might not be brave enough to take the initiative as such, she might be desperate enough to achieve this by taking rather drastic measures. So, Kate dresses up and despite her bad previous experience gets drunk. I hope I managed to make this plausible with Kate's own hesitation and with Victoria's and Chloe's concern over her.
There's also a few scenes in the beginning that mandate the lifting of the rating up to M. With Kate, I felt that where I'm going with her character, the self exploration is an essential part of getting there. Kate's scene was originally going to be the cliffhanger of the previous chapter but I decided to move it to the beginning of this chapter.
The next chapter will be at least the end of the story arc and possibly the whole story. At least the story will go on a hiatus after the following chapter.
Thanks for reading and please keep the reviews coming!