Someone messaged me about the title of my fic, so I figured I'd share. It's in reference to a song off of one of my favourite albums from my teenage years, In our bedroom after the war by Stars. I recommend y'all give it a go… it's really dreamy and there's some truly beautiful tracks to be discovered. (I can totally picture Victoria listening to it and crying _.)
Also my flights in two days so expect less activity from me for a little while. Cheers!
ihavenoidea: D'aww, thanks you. Ask and ye shall receive.
Lyswenn: I can always count on you to be asking the important questions heh. I'm just gonna lounge here like an evil genius twirling my imaginary mustache while you sit in suspense. Though, I will give away that the ending is not going to follow the same path as the games, so there's some relief for you there. But maybe it'll be worse. Who knows? :)
CHAPTER 12
Max groaned, slapping a hand out in front of her wildly before she finally managed to land a hit on her phone. The alarm cut out abruptly, and the room was quiet once again. She stretched, yawning loudly and without a care to who could hear her through the thin walls. Her neck and back cracked sharply, and it was no wonder, considering she had fallen asleep slumped over her desk.
A grumble behind her stole her attention, and she turned around to find Chloe comically sprawled in what she thought resembled a beached octopus on her bed, passed out atop a pile of books. It was cute despite being an unruly tangle, and she couldn't resist the opportunity to take a picture as she reached for her camera. The mirrorless compact system was a lot quieter than her Polaroid, but she found herself missing the sheet of film that failed to appear after the shot.
Chloe flopped over at the sound of the shutter, tugging Max's comforter up and over her head in a feeble attempt to hide herself away from the morning light. Max couldn't help but laugh; she always was more of a night owl.
After she had finished trying to describe her time powers to her post (and maybe present?) best friend, she had been surprised by the enthusiasm in which Chloe displayed towards the whole concept. It didn't seem to faze her in the slightest, but she did make Max perform a few "magic" tricks for proof. Max suspected that was just for the entertainment factor more than anything.
They had stayed up well in to the next day trying to uncover anything they could about the properties and possibility of time travel, but ultimately came up dry. The only thing they could uncover was a cryptic message board started by a man who had travelled from the year 2036, but could provide no proof of the matter, only stories of impending Armageddon. They were both extremely skeptical and decided it was best to only take it with a grain of salt, which left them back at square one.
"Rise and shine, punk princess." She yanked the duvet to the bottom of the bed, earning an exaggerated whine as Chloe buried her face in a pillow.
"Noooooooooo," She whimpered, "Give that back! And do not call me that."
"You know it's true. You're such a brat in the mornings."
Chloe flipped around to stick her tongue out, only proving her point further. It was funny how some things never changed.
I don't care if you are, at least you're alive.
An epiphany struck her as soon as the thought was expressed aloud in her mind..
"Say, Chloe…"
"Hmm?" Came a delayed murmur from against a pillow.
"I was thinking… Why don't we just report Nathan for having a gun at school?"
Her friend snorted unceremoniously, pancaking herself face up on the bed. "What, and you think that would go over well? Yeah, sorry officer, he was threatening me 'cause I'm a big ol' drug dealer. And besides, his family practically owns this town and all the cops with it. Not to mention we have no proof."
"Sorry... I just thought…" Max trailed off, feeling rather stupid for even suggesting the notion.
It occurred to her that she could rewind and take it back, but a drumming against solid oak interrupted, causing them both to snap their heads to the door.
Chloe cast her back a glance with a quirked brow, "Expecting company?"
"Uh, no? Crap, are you even allowed to be here?"
"Well, it's not like you brought a dude home or anything."
"Chloe," She groaned, "Seriously. What if it's someone from the school?"
Eyebrows waggled back at her, "And they specifically visit here to come and 'reprimand' you? Do tell."
"I can hear you in there, Maxine." Came a muffled but distinct voice from the other side.
Shit. I totally forgot I texted her.
"Uh… Um… One second!"
After shooting her a glare, she threw the duvet back over Chloe, who happily shut up after initially flailing, and settled for turtling herself beneath it's warmth.
Max straightened herself as she placed a hand on the knob, taking a deep breath to root herself. The mechanism clicked, and she peered through the crack to find Victoria staring at her with arms folded in impatience.
"Uh... Morning."
Victoria pursed her lips as her eyes narrowed a fraction, scanning the room behind Max, "Who were you talking to?"
She shifted to better block the entryway with her body, "Oh, uh… um… Myself."
Victoria gave her the weirdest look just then. No doubt she was skeptical of her claim, or had skipped straight to questioning her sanity overall.
Smooth. You should've said phone call, you dunce! She resisted hard the urge to slap her own face with an open palm.
"O…'kay then," She drew out her vowels for dramatic effect. Sometimes it felt like everything Victoria did publicly around the school was done for hidden reality TV show cameras.
"What's with the text? You said you wanted to talk ASAP? I replied when I got in last night but you never answered."
"I didn't mean now!" Her voice was too sharp. Another weird look was sent her way, "Th-that's because… Uh."
Wait, shit. She went to see Nathan yesterday. Is she a part of all of this?
"When I said ASAP, I really meant, uh, y'know…After… School... As…"
A stifled laugh suddenly trickled forth from the room, and Max's stomach dropped as Victoria cut a knowing glance behind her.
Damn it, Chloe.
Next thing she knew, Victoria was shoving past her. She threw the blanket aside with one whip-like motion to find the blue haired fiend clutching at her sides, no longer bothering to restrain her laughter.
"What the fuck?"
Gray eyes winked back up at the blonde, "Morning, gorgeous."
"Eugh!" She made a fake gagging sound, throwing the blanket back at her head, only causing the disgruntled punk to laugh even harder.
Max stood stunned in the doorway, without the faintest of clue as how to even begin dealing with the situation. She didn't know whether to laugh along or cry. Was a rewind in order?
"Is this some kind of joke?"
"No!" "No, but it's hilarious anyways,"
Both Max and Chloe managed to spew at the same time.
Victoria's posture was weirdly stiff, and Max wasn't certain if she was uncomfortable with the situation or something else. Her fists were clenched at her sides, and her scowl only piqued more curiosity.
"It's, uh," She mumbled, stumbling for an explanation, though why she did such was beyond her, "It's not what it looks-"
"Whatever, I don't want to know. I'll see you after class if you actually have anything important to say."
"B-But-"
Victoria turned sharply and left, slamming the door behind her before she could find any words. Max couldn't help herself from grabbing a pillow and throwing it at her friend.
"Hey! What was that for?"
"Seriously, Chloe?" She grumbled, "Why did you have to go and do that?"
A mocking snort answered back, "Why not? As if you were handling it any better. You could hardly even form a sentence."
Max groaned, crumpling to the floor against the bedframe and burying her face in her hands.
The mattress shifted behind her and she could suddenly feel a presence at her side. Peeking out between her fingers, Chloe was looking back at her upside down, dangling off of the bed.
"Why'd Victoria come by anyway? Making friends with the enemy?" Repulsion was laced in her words, but Max couldn't blame her after what she had experienced.
"Huh? How do you know Victoria?"
"Parties, duh, plus dealing with Nathan. Hah! Oh! And Rachel used to always tell me about-"
The excitement in her words was cut short. Eyes widened in shock, and suddenly Chloe retracted herself from the ledge, pulling her body back up on top of the bed and promptly hugging her knees to her chest. A beat passed with no explanation. She sat quietly, tugging at a bracelet hanging loosely on her wrist.
Rachel? That name sounds familiar...
Max pushed herself off of the floor, closing the short distance between her and the desk. She rifled through some of the mess and discarded books from their late night study session, pulling out a flyer she had meant to look in to a few weeks prior.
The bed sagged with her weight as she sat down beside Chloe, holding the flyer out in front of her to study, "You mean… Rachel Amber? You knew her?"
Chloe laughed bitterly, taking the flyer from her hands and tracing a finger around Rachel's face in the photograph. A dull ache echoed through Max's chest. She couldn't help but feel a shared pain watching her friend look so forlorn.
"Yeah," She sighed, "I guess you could say that."
/
English lecture was lackluster as always. She would've skipped it if it weren't for the fact that she had nothing else to do. All her notes sat neatly in front of her, having already been completed long before. Pink, purple and blue all alternated for each type of header and sub note, and her yellow highlights looking jarringly out of place. She took a mental note to buy new pens before pulling out her phone.
Not at school again?
Three minutes passed by. She stared impatiently at the clock at the front of the class, counting the seconds as they ticked away.
Why would i? U want me 2 flip shit on every1?
You still can't sleep?
More minutes passed. She hated waiting on responses; it always filled her with a sense of dread. One would think conversing with people would be easier over a screen, but she always found it easier to gauge how to react in person.
no shit cuz I cant fuckin score
Score? So he means…
That explained all the extra 'party supplies' he was always picking up that never made an appearance. She wondered then how long it had been going on for. Had Nathan always self-medicated before? His unstable behavior lately suddenly made a bit more sense.
Huh.
Isn't that price girl your dealer? I saw her on campus today, I could pick up for you?
She hated that she offered, but at this point, she would do anything to see Nathan be himself again. She could happily go her whole life without having to interact with that trashy sleaze. It made her even more irritated knowing she was a friend, or more, with Max.
Talk about low standards on her part.
Maybe that was why she bothered with Victoria.
dumb bitch cheated money off her supplier n cant get me shit anyways
Well, she sure knows how to pick her friends.
After that revelation, she even considered herself of all people better company for the absent-minded brunette than the shady girl she was apparently sleeping with. She couldn't help but draw those conclusions. Her jaw clenched with every added thought. Was Max actually… gay? And for a pig-headed drug dealer? Of course, being the hipster she was, it made sense that she had horrible taste. Victoria mentally groaned at the notion.
I'm way hotter than her.
Her molars pressed harder against each other. She always did that when she was stressed. She knew it was bad for her dental health, but could never shake the tension and stop herself. Though this time an uncomfortable energy accompanied it, welling up through her chest like a balloon pressing on her ribcage.
Why the fuck do I even care?
Her phone buzzed again, thankfully distracting her from her thoughts.
i still got lotsa other stuff tho, lets throw a rager and get fucked up 2nite.
She chewed at her lip in deliberation. It wasn't like she had anything else to do this weekend aside from work on her photography project, and there was plenty of time for that. It wasn't like she felt particularly eager to work on it with her partner at the moment anyways. It had been awhile since she'd really let loose. As much as she didn't really want to go last weekend, this time it felt like a much-needed release.
Plz vic? i need something to take my mind off things n just have fun
Okay but you are NOT wearing your letterman
Another chat notification appeared at the top of her screen as she mulled over what she was going to wear. Of course it was none other than Caulfield.
Hey sorry about my friend Chloe :Z we're out having breakfast then I'm coming back after. I wanna talk, for cereal this time. Will u be free? :x
She couldn't believe she was using emojiis. As if Max wasn't already dorky enough. As she read the text over again, her molars resumed in their clenching.
Ugh. Chloe.
Whatever idc I'll see you when I see you
A thought occurred to her then. Maybe there was a way for Nathan to get his fix after all.
/
"I don't get why you even want to bother talking to her," Chloe scoffed as she slid in to the booth, "So what if she's involved? We should keep it on the down low. Y'know, as to not arouse any suspicion?"
Max scooped up a menu as she settled in the seat across from her, picking at the frayed tape on the edges. The menus were exactly the same as they used to be, down to the spelling mistake on the "orange pekeo". All except for the price hike, of course.
"I… I dunno Chloe. It doesn't sit right with me."
"So you're gonna go with your gut feeling instead of running from the chance at being drugged up against your will? Brilliant."
Skipping her wake-n-bake sessions sure seemed to add an extra layer of snark.
"Okay, just like you're going to go with your gut feeling that Rachel didn't just run away?" Max retorted, feeling way too over behavior that even she didn't understand, "I mean, Arcadia Bay isn't exactly the best place to be."
Chloe shot daggers at her. A scowl cut thick across her face as she kicked her boots up on the table with a thud, causing the cutlery to clatter as they fell loose from their napkins.
"You don't know shit about Rachel," She all but spat, "She would never leave me like that. And she would keep in touch, unlike some people."
Before Max could open her mouth, Joyce glided on over to their booth, swatting off Chloe's feet with a look of disdain, "Chloe, what did I tell you about doing that? One of these days I'm gonna make you clean every single one of these, down to scraping the gum off of the undersides."
She rolled her eyes, "As if. You'd never let me work here, you always complain that I'd scare away all your customers."
"Well, you don't exactly have that family friendly attitude that my diner represents."
Chloe huffed, turning to face out the window and giving her mother the classic cold shoulder.
Max tried hard not to laugh. It wasn't every day you got to see your friend get justifiably ripped on by their parent. She would later upon reflecting feel thankful that Joyce came by when she did, effectively stealing away the negative attention that was focused on her.
Joyce leaned over to pour Chloe a coffee before nodding in her direction, "And you'd like an English breakfast, soy, no sugar?"
"Soy good of you to remember, I'm flattered."
Chloe audibly groaned, slapping a hand against the table as she threw herself dramatically against the back of the booth, "Emojiis, puns, what's next? I'm in friendship hell."
Max couldn't help but smile. As prickly as her friend managed to be around the edges, she didn't know if she could have her any other way. Her spunk always did have its moments of amusement.
It just wouldn't be…. Chloe.
Joyce laughed, shaking her head at her daughter. Despite their bickering, there was a certain glint in her eye that made her look particularly happy. Max could tell it meant a lot to her that she was back around for Chloe. It made her wonder who she normally hung out with after Rachel had supposedly vanished.
"And what'll your order be? That's one thing you could never decide on."
"Oh, uh,"
Would it be wrong to rewind after eating one meal to eat another one? God I love Joyce's cooking. How would that work? Would I technically be vomiting the one I ate…?
Ew. On second thought.
"Apple-sausage omelette, please,"
"Usual for me. Extra bacon, no skimping out."
"Unless you finally pay off your tab, that's one slice for you." Joyce chided as she made her way back to the kitchen.
Chloe flushed under her mother's glower. Max should've known when she said breakfast was her treat, that it would really be Joyce's.
"Anyways," She muttered in to her coffee before taking a sip, "Aside from no leads on your time bending, what about Kate?"
Max scratched at the skin around the edges of her splint as she sagged in defeat. She couldn't wait to take it off. It was itching like crazy.
"Nothing really … I mean, I hardly even know how to text her about it, forget trying to pull information."
Before she could discern the meaning behind Chloe's devious grin, she leapt over and swiped Max's phone from in front of her.
"Chloe! No!"
Max reached with her body across the table, barely missing the coffee, but her friend's gangly limbs held the phone too high for her reach.
"Chloe yes!" She guffawed, squirming in her seat to avoid Max's grasping hands.
"Seriously! Kate's… She's… You could make her really upset!"
A new mug clicked down on the marbled white tabletop, and Joyce struck a hand out and caught Chloe by the wrist with a strong grip. The two of them exchanged stares wordlessly. After a moment, Joyce loosened her grip, and Chloe handed the phone back over with a startlingly docile grace.
"Food will be by in ten, drink up hun."
Joyce was her own personal super-hero this morning. With her new time powers popping up, it wouldn't surprise her if Joyce had some kind of mind control. Though that was probably something all mothers had to an extent.
A resigned sigh escaped Chloe as she settled back in to her seat with a pout. She could be such a brat. "Okay. So nothing from Kate at all?"
"Well… She's obviously really bothered by the whole thing. And the video. She hardly comes to class anymore and I hear crying whenever I pass by her room…" She decided to leave out the part where Kate's room was nowhere near hers. As if people didn't think she was snoopy enough already. Withholding unnecessary details never hurt anyone.
"So we know she was probably drugged, and we can link her to Nathan too. Which leads to the question," Chloe rubbed at her chin as she propped her head up, "Did anything else happen?"
Max drummed her fingers against the sides of her hot beverage, staring in to its cloudy depths as if it could provide her answers through some means of mysticism, "She seems to avoid the subject when I ask, it's almost like she's scared of something… and ashamed maybe?"
"Hmm," Chloe slurped at her coffee loudly, accidentally spilling some, "I don't like this. Some rich prick going around drugging up girls, doing who knows what, and getting away with it? Not on my watch."
"Well you already ruled out the police. We're hardly even adults, what do you expect us to do? This is way beyond us."
"Max, come on. Who knows how many girls he's done this too that we haven't heard about. Are you gonna let that slide? What if you're next?"
She chewed on the skin around her nails. The whole situation felt rather overwhelming, but she knew deep down that Chloe was right.
She continued on in Max's silence, "You have freakin' time powers! And a badass sidekick. We can be real life heroes, just like we pretended when we were kids!"
Max raised her hands in mock defeat with a soft smile, "Okay, okay, you got me sold. But what the heck are we supposed to do?"
"Well. It's the weekend again. So there's no doubt gonna be some sort of party," Chloe had that no-good grin of hers plastered across her face again. Max could tell already she wasn't going to like where she was going with this.
"We just need you to infiltrate it."
Yup. We're doomed.
/
A hand hooked through her elbow, yanking her out from the rush in the hallway and nearly causing her to trip.
"Who the fuck!?"
She was just about ready to throw down, until she saw those stupid, insufferably deep blue doe-eyes staring up at her with a look of determination.
"What the hell, Maxine?" She managed to sputter, with less irritancy than she had hoped for.
The shorter brunette quickly poked her head out to scan the hallway before continuing to tug on her arm towards the exit. She appeared to be a bit more off than usual; urgency never did seem to be her thing.
"Look," She said sternly, "We need to talk."
Victoria rolled her eyes as she exhaled in annoyance. She was starting to find herself less and less surprised by Max's oddities, which probably wasn't a good thing.
"Now? Can't it wait? I'm going to class."
"It's…important."
Max chewed on her lip nervously. Her eyes were cast to the floor as she fidgeted with her hands, and Victoria couldn't help but instinctually stifle her temper. Ironically though, it caused even more infuriation to flare up in the back of her mind.
"What, and it wasn't important earlier when I actually had time?"
"I-I was caught off guard, I mean…" Max groaned, combing a hand through her messy hair, "Ugh, I'm sorry okay? I mean it when I say it's important. Please?"
The pleading tone caused something in Victoria's gut to twitch, and with the way Max was looking at her, it was inevitable that she would give in.
"Okay, fine, but you better explain."
Max gave her a half-smile out of relief, but she could tell there was still some hesitation behind it. The brunette continued to tug her out towards the exit, quickly checking over her shoulder before they made their way outside. She appeared to be a lot stiffer than her usual goofy aloofness. It took a moment for it to sink in that she was on edge about something.
Is Max… afraid of me?
The pair continued on into the empty courtyard, far from any lingering eyes in the classroom buildings. A sense of uneasiness washed over her as they stopped in a small opening by the parking lot.
Max's shoulders dropped a little after she took another look around, but suddenly tensed again as her voice snapped out of her unevenly, "Victoria… What was that video about?"
"What?" She found herself caught off guard by Max's challenging stare. She didn't look like she was having any of it though.
"That video you posted with Kate," Max's resolve cracked as emotion seeped in to her voice, "I… I can't believe you would do that."
She sounded hurt, and suddenly refused to look her in the eye. It made Victoria's chest squeeze in discomfort. It made her feel like the worst kind of scum. But she wasn't just going to take that in stride.
"It was…" Victoria started to stammer. She couldn't believe she even allowed herself to be in this situation so shortsightedly. How could she allow herself to have such a lack of control? She should've planned better for something like this. She knew Kate and Max were friends.
"It was just a joke, okay? We were drunk," Her voice rose as she cranked high on the defensive, "It's not a big deal."
Max threw her hands up wildly in exasperation, "Not a big deal? Victoria, of course it's a big fucking deal! Kate hardly even leaves her room anymore. That was cruel."
She could feel her eyes narrow. Cruel. Of course. She was just some stuck-up heartless bitch. Her hands clenched and shook in tight little fists at her side.
"And why is that my problem? She brought it on herself! I didn't ask her to get wasted and slut around," She was bristling with anger now. She didn't even know where it was all coming from.
She wanted to stop, to walk away, but she rattled on, "And you know what, Maxine? Maybe I am cruel. So why don't you go cry it out with Kate or run off to someone who actually gives a shit like your drug-dealer girlfriend?"
What the fuck is wrong with me?
Victoria felt a wave of shame crash over her. She hated that she let herself be so consumed by her pride, but she couldn't back down now, lest her ego take a massive hit. She stood her ground firmly, towering over the brunette.
Max looked torn. She reached out with a hand, and Victoria flinched, expecting to be struck, but her hand stilled then fell to her side.
"You give a shit, Victoria,"
Stop sounding so fucking upset.
"I know you do,"
No I fucking don't.
"And I don't get why you'd ever be involved in drugging Kate."
Of course I-
"Kate was drugged?" Her hands unclenched and her jaw hung ajar as she stared dumbly at Max. It all made sense now. The way Kate was acting in that video, the blown eyes… Kate, of all people, prided herself too much on her sobriety and devotion. She would never do that on her own accord. How could she have let that slip by? How could she forget to ask Nathan?
A chill crept up her spine at the thought of his name. How couldn't she forget. But how could even think of something like that when he was so broken?
A small voice pulled her back out of herself, "So… You weren't a part of it then, were you?"
Her eyes refocused on Max, who looked way too relieved for someone who was talking about drugging girls. Not to mention she had just gotten yelled at.
Victoria folded her arms across her chest with a humph, "Hell no."
"Do you know any-"
"Jesus, Max! No. The Vortex Club does some pretty fucked up things, but we'd never do that. It wasn't us, I swear."
Max had on that weird puzzled looking face that she was becoming famous for. Her freckled nose crinkled slightly as her eyebrows drew together in concentration, and her eyes spaced out on the horizon.
"Victoria. Chloe supplies the drugs. Nathans the one buying them."
Chloe. Not her again. She was sick of that name already.
She opened up her purse and began to rifle through it, not failing to notice that Max tensed up again.
"Relax," She scoffed, throwing a small envelope at her, "It's not like I have a gun or anything."
Max flailed, nearly dropping the envelope in a fumble as it came her way.
She eyed it skeptically, hefting it in her hands to check its weight, "What is this..?"
"Nathan doesn't drug people," She swallowed, steeling herself against the haunting images of him that were still so fresh in her mind, "Nathan needs those for himself."
It didn't phase her at the time that'd she'd been so bluntly honest with Max. But it did feel really good to get that off her chest, and to prove her and Chloe wrong.
Max looked baffled. "What?"
"Five hundred cash. Pay off whoever and get it to him as soon as you can."
"But-"
"No," She cut in sharply, raising a hand to dismiss any more retorts that Max could offer, "I'm done with you today. Thanks for assuming I was a horrible fucking person."
She felt drained. Tired of the day, tired of Max, and tired of herself. Turning on her heel, she stormed off back towards the school.
"Victoria," Max called after her, but she kept on walking.
Tonight better be fucking good.
/
That could've gone so, so much better… Damn it, Max. Way to fuck up.
Max sidled up in to the passenger seat after clearing off the discarded fast food packaging, and tossed the envelope over on to Chloe's lap.
"What's this?" She inquired, shaking it around as if the answer would answer back to her like pieces of Lego clacking against one another.
Max simply sat in silence, staring at the dashboard as she brooded over her latest failure. She was kicking herself for not using her time powers. She was so tempted, but there was something stopping her.
Chloe frowned as she studied her friend; "You never made the signal, so it must've went well. But then why so glum, chum?"
Why was she so glum? She groaned, dropping her face in to her hands before mumbling against them, "Victoria hates me."
An unsympathetic snort followed suit, "News flash. Victoria hates everyone. So, is she a part of it?"
"No, Chloe!" She snapped back, immediately regretting it. She knew she was just trying to lighten the mood. But it was hard to see anything light about the matter.
Eyebrows rose back at her, "Okay then, so what's the big deal?"
"I don't… Whatever, let's just forget it."
I need to make this right.
"Okay, jeez," Chloe couldn't help but laugh a little, "And you think I'm childish."
"Yeah, well. This 'child' just got you five hundred dollars to pay off your debt."
Her expression after that was, one could say, Priceless.
Chloe's words spoke of disbelief, but her voice betrayed otherwise, "You're shitting me."
"No." Max almost smirked. If it were any other circumstances, she would have.
In record time, Chloe tore in to the packaging; only to have crisp green bills slide out and spill all over the floor of her truck.
"Holy shit. You's a boss, Max!" She threw the remainder of the wad into the ever-increasing mess that surrounded them so she could lunge over and scoop Max up in a tight squeeze.
"Up for a road trip to go see Frank?"
Max looked back towards the school. That was the last place she wanted to be at this moment.
As Chloe released her, she sighed, squishing her cheek to the cold window as she flopped against the door gracelessly, "Why not?"
