The inside of Rachel's house was tidy and conventional. The entrance led right to the den, a little ways forward was the kitchen, and beside it, the dining room. A grand chandelier hung from the ceiling shedding an orangey light that covered the whole living area. The den was big; the couches looked incredibly soft, so soft that it looked to be more comfortable than an actual bed. To the left were the stairs. Beyond the dining area was the door to their backyard. They had a swimming pool and a patio. On the patio table sat two unfinished cups of coffee, and a carton of cigarettes.
The floor was carpeted, a red color with intricate designs. The walls were plain, but they tied the rooms together. Bright, blooming flowers were present in almost every section of the house. Everything seemed to mix together beautifully. There was a particular aesthetic that the house had. It was classy and sophisticated, but it was also intense and mystifying.
By the entrance, the side of the wall contained family portraits. Little moments trapped in time. A young Rachel riding her pink bicycle at a park, smiling as she looked like she was trying not to fall. Rachel, smiling as she looked at the camera behind her while they were at the beach. A dressed-up, stunning Rachel as she wore an evening dark blue gown. Her hand was on her waist as she smiled. It was clear Rachel's parents loved her very much, seeing as most of the pictures comprised of her and her childhood. Their faces were not included in any of the photos, except one.
There was a formal picture that, judging by the looks of it, was their family picture. Rachel's parents were sitting on chairs while Rachel was behind them, standing up with each hand on each of their shoulders. It had a blue backdrop with subtle curved lines. They all smiled widely. It was a beautiful picture. Rachel certainly took after her mother. They had most of the same features, but her eyes, those were her father's. Piercing and enigmatic.
Rachel led them to the living room. "Can I get you guys anything – " Chloe was about to open her mouth. "Chloe, beer, I know. But you, Max?" Rachel smiled at Max. "Don't be shy."
"I'm good, but thank you", said Max politely.
"Are you sure? Well, if you change your mind, feel free to raid our fridge. What's mine is yours." Rachel smiled sweetly before she turned around and made her way to the kitchen to get Chloe a beer.
Rachel is so nice. Hell, I'm starting to fall in love with her.
"Isn't she great?" asks Chloe, watching her go. She turns to Max.
"Yeah, totally", said Max.
"Don't be nervous. Rachel is hella easy to talk to. You don't even really have to be saying anything. She just talks and talks and talks", said Chloe.
"Ahem! That's enough out of you, Chloe." Rachel appeared by the entrance of the den, looking at Chloe amusingly. She walked towards them, and playfully nudges the beer to Chloe's abdomen. "I'll remember that the next time we have a fight so I can silent treatment your ass."
Chloe nervously laughs as she opens her beer.
Rachel takes Max's hands in hers. "And Chloe's right. Don't be nervous, Max. I've been wanting to meet you for a super long time. Now I can finally attach a face to all of Chloe's stories", said Rachel, excitedly.
"Chloe's stories?" Max looked at Chloe who tried to look busy drinking her beer.
I knew Chloe talked about me. I've been so preoccupied with the thought that she must have told Rachel about how I abandoned her for five years, and nothing else. Because, I mean, when you hate someone, that's what you do. You focus on how they fucked you over. But Rachel looks so happy. Did Chloe tell her about me, the me before I left? The us before I left?
"I have some friends over. I'll introduce you, Max. They're just some classmates from Blackwell helping me with a photoshoot. I need some great shots to put in my album. And don't worry, there's only two of them. Evan and Victoria. So I hope you don't feel out of place. If you do, just come straight to me and I'll bridge", said Rachel warmly.
Okay, she's an angel.
Chloe finished her beer and put the empty can on the table. "Why the fuck did you invite Victoria? She's a royal pain in the ass. Oh, and also a bitch?"
"She's not that bad. Besides, she has a great eye for style which is handy when it comes to modelling."
"Hey, I have a great eye for style too", said Chloe.
"Oh please! Every time I ask for your opinion on outfits, all you say is 'the black one'", said Rachel, rolling her eyes.
"How can you go wrong with black?!"
Max watched them playfully bicker. She could tell they were a great couple. Rachel knew Chloe really well. They knew how to talk and poke fun at each other. They weren't just acting like girlfriends, but best friends too. Though Chloe, and even Rachel, reassured her that she has nothing to be nervous about, she still felt pretty queasy. No amount of consoling or encouragement, from herself or anybody else, could take away the fact that Chloe and Rachel have something special.
Max was starting to doubt whether her uncomfortableness wasn't rooted in the fact that they were so close. Maybe it really was something else. Maybe…
No.
She watched them share a kiss, still teasing each other. Chloe's hand was on her waist again.
No. No. No.
Max started breathing fast. She couldn't take her eyes off them. Her heart was pounding.
Why do I want to be the one teasing her? And joking about giving her the silent treatment when we fight? And knowing she wants a beer as soon as she enters the house?
Why do I feel like I want her hand to be on my waist?
Why do I feel like… I want to be the one kissing her?
She felt like throwing up. Her stomach felt funny, and she felt woozy. She couldn't believe herself, she just couldn't. There's no way.
She tried to make herself block the thought out. It was ridiculous, and she didn't want to think about it any longer. Because the more she did, the more terrified she got.
"Hey, are you alright? You're looking kind of pale", said Chloe, looking at Max with a worried expression on her face.
Max jumped. "Wha, oh yeah! I'm fine! Just uh, excited to get started."
Chloe watched her with an eyebrow raised, skeptical.
Rachel quickly moved to her and placed her hands on Max's shoulder, feeding on her enthusiasm. "Yes! Oh my god, I'm so pumped. Let's go upstairs and start the photoshoot now!"
She took Max's hand and led her up the staircase, leaving Chloe to follow.
As Rachel was leading Max up the stairs, Rachel blabbered on about her shoot. Max could see how passionate and excited she was about modeling. Zoning out on Rachel's words, Max thought to herself.
She's trying really hard to make sure I'm comfortable. She's such a great person. I can see why Chloe fell for her. Max looked down, frowning. Who wouldn't?
They reached the top, and entered the room on the far left. It was at the end of the hall.
Rachel's room looked nothing like the rest of the house. It looked like a slightly cleaner version of Chloe's room. Posters were put up all over the walls, but unlike Chloe's posters, they had an optimistic, hopeful vibe to them. Some of them contained the same themes from the ones Max saw in the hideout from the scrapyard – sceneries of LA. Though everything was bright and cheery, she still had punk elements to her room. Looking around, Rachel seemed like a toned-down version of Chloe, with less hopelessness and loss.
On her bedside table, she had a picture of Chloe and her. Chloe was giving her a piggyback ride, and could barely hold her up. They looked like they were laughing so hard. It was a cute picture. Max looked away as soon as she could.
Lying on the bed was a short-haired, blonde woman. She was attractive. She wore a gray sweater and a binder skirt. It looked like she was wearing expensive jewelry as well. Max spotted her shoes on the ground and knew they must have costed a pretty penny. She had her feet up, and she looked like she was engrossed with something on her phone.
On the ground, there was a guy with spiky hair and hipster glasses on. He was dressed smartly, a blue cardigan, a polo shirt, and some jeans that looked quite expensive. He was fixing his camera, adjusting the lens and fixing the settings.
"Sorry for the hold-up. We have a guest", said Rachel to the room, still holding Max's hand. "This is Max, one of Chloe's friends. Max, this is Evan. And over there on the bed is Victoria."
Evan looked up at Max and smiled. "Nice to meet you."
Before Max could say anything, Victoria put her phone down. "What? Is Chloe here? Ugh", said Victoria, ignoring Max's introduction.
Chloe walked in the door right as she said it. "Hey Victoria. Nice to see you here. Taking a break from devoting your days to spreading ignorance?"
"Fuck off, Chloe. How does it feel to be a bum with zero talent and brains?"
"Feels great. Anyway, how did you get here? I thought the zoo was closed at night."
Victoria was on the verge of attacking Chloe when Rachel cut her off.
"Can you two please try to get along? This is really important to me."
Victoria moved back to the bed. "Whatever, she started it."
"I started it? I got called to the principal's office because of you", said Chloe, annoyingly.
"You spray painted my car!"
"Why is everyone so hung up on details?!"
Rachel moved to Evan, and sat on the floor with him while Chloe and Victoria continued to argue.
"So is the camera ready?" asked Rachel. She looked excited.
"Just a little more and… done! Camera's good. Ready when you are."
Rachel stood up and went over to Max. "Hey, so just, make yourself at home. Why don't you chill on the bed so you can get comfortable?"
"That sounds great. Thanks, Rachel."
Max walked over to the other side of the bed and laid down, leaning on the headboard. She watched Rachel and Evan setting up. They were discussing good poses and angles. Rachel's eyes shined bright as she spoke about it. She was beautiful, intelligent, talented, sweet, and generous. Max thought to herself what a catch she was. She almost seemed too good to be true.
Could I ever get on that level? How am I supposed to measure up to that?
She sulked on the bed, but then, she remembered something.
"All my happiest memories are the ones I had with you."
Chloe…
Max watched Chloe while she was still engaging in a screaming match with Victoria.
If I have you, I don't need anything else.
The photoshoot had started. Rachel worked her stuff as Evan moved around her, taking pictures in various positions and capturing her face from different angles. She moved gracefully, like she completely owned the room, everyone tranced by her movements. Her mind was completely enveloped in it that she never for a second looked like she was thinking too hard. It wasn't even in photograph form, yet she had already looked breathtaking. The way she moved – it was still, but animated. She definitely knew what she was doing.
As Max relaxed on the bed, Victoria appeared and laid next to her. She looked at Max questioningly.
"Who are you?"
Max looked at her. "Max?"
Victoria slowly shook her head, confused.
Max paused. "Rachel introduced me five minutes ago?"
Victoria stared at her completely puzzled.
"Chloe's friend?"
Victoria looked forward. "Right. Chloe's a bitch."
Max sighed. What even is this day?
Out of the corner of her eye, Max spots Chloe. She was observing Rachel. Her eyes were filled with so much pride and admiration as she was watching Rachel move.
Max watched Chloe watching Rachel.
She gripped the bed sheet in frustration. She looked down at her fist. She looked at the surface of the bed around it, then slowly looked all over the bed.
This bed... The two of them. They must have...
Max couldn't take it anymore. She got up from the bed and made her way to the doorway, passing in front of Chloe. As Max passed her, Chloe's gaze to Rachel had been cut, and she kept her eyes on Max instead. Max opened the door and left. Rachel was too in the moment of her modeling. Evan was focused on taking pictures. Victoria was back on her phone. Nobody had noticed, but Chloe. She stared at the door longingly.
To nobody's attention, Chloe muttered, "I'll be right back."
And followed her right out the door.