The following Wednesday Max sat in Mr Jefferson's class, absentmindedly doodling little cartoons in the margin of her notebook. She'd drawn dozens of cameras, hearts, and musical notes, and now she was putting the final touches on a sketch of two stick-figure pirates. One had a choppy brown bob and was holding a camera to her eye as if it were a telescope, and the other had an eye patch, big black boots and a beanie in place of a pirate hat. There was a speech bubble protruding from her lips that said 'I'm a pirate, show me your booty!'. Max grabbed a crayon, colouring in the second pirate's hair blue. She reached into her bag for her cellphone and snapped a picture of the drawing, giggling as she typed out a message and sent it to Chloe.
"Max Caulfield. Just because you sit at the back doesn't mean I can't see you using your phone, I hope you realise?"
Mr Jefferson's voice sliced through the air like a knife, snapping Max straight out of her Chloe-oriented daydream and back into reality, startling her so much that she dropped her phone on the desk with an embarrassing clatter. Nine pairs of eyes swivelled towards her and she looked down at her fingernails, blushing an unflattering shade of crimson. Crap. Why did she always have to zone out during Jeffferson's class, and why did he always manage to call her out on it?
"U-uh, sorry Mr J-Jefferson," Max mumbled, tripping over her own words. It was at moments like these that she really wished she had the ability to rewind time.
"Look, I know there's things you'd all rather be doing than listening to some old hipster discussing Robert Capa's The Falling Soldier, but c'mon guys, give me some enthusiasm! Max, you're one of my best students- you can do better. Frankly I'm disappointed. See me after class." Mr Jefferson instructed sternly, giving a little weary shake of his head.
A low collective whistle went around the room, and Max curled into herself, her throat tight. Tears pricked the corners of her eyes and she bit down on her lip hard, willing herself not to cry. Even though she knew she deserved the scolding, - she hadn't been paying attention, after all- Jefferson's words still stung. He used to look at her with such praise and admiration- now he was treating her like she was some juvenile delinquent. Oh God, what if he hated her now?
"Freak." Nathan hissed loudly across the room, eliciting a chorus of giggles from Victoria and Taylor. The three of them tossed Max an identical withering glare- seriously, it seemed to be a Vortex Club trademark- and she blushed even harder, anger pulsing at her fingertips. Assholes.
"Nathan, thank you for that remark. Looks like you'll be joining Max after class." Mr Jefferson suddenly interjected, shooting Nathan a contemptuous frown before turning to walk towards his desk. As he turned, though, he gave Max a conspiratorial wink and a small smile. Max looked down, suppressing a grin. Okay, so he didn't hate her.
Jefferson continued on with the lecture, ignoring Nathan's indignant complaints. Max forced herself to pay more attention, furiously scribbling notes in her jotter and even raising her hand to answer a few questions, which she normally avoided doing at all costs. The rest of the lesson passed relatively quickly, and before long the bell had rung and everybody had traipsed out of the classroom, leaving Max, Nathan and Mr Jefferson alone.
"Can we make this quick? I have places to be." Nathan groaned in a bored tone, slouching so far down in his chair that it was surprising he didn't fall off onto the floor. Max wished he would.
"You can leave, Nathan. After you apologise to Max, of course." Mr Jefferson replied, crossing his arms and leaning back against his desk.
Nathan's eyes practically popped out of his head. "Are you fucking kidding me? I'm not apologising to her!"
"Alright then. You can write me a thousand-word essay on the merits of black-and-white photography over colour tonight. In fact, make that a fifteen-hundred-word essay. For the swearing."
Nathan's face turned purple with rage, and his mouth gaped open like a fish out of water. Max supressed a giggle; she wished she could snap a picture, it was such a comical sight. "If you think I'm doing that, you're out of your fuc-freaking mind."
Mr Jefferson raised an eyebrow, giving an unthreatened shrug. "Maybe I'll call your father and have a chat with him then, hmm? The choice is yours, Nathan."
Nathan rose from his chair furiously, glowering. He paused for a moment, glared at Max and then Mr Jefferson disgustedly, and then stormed out of the room, kicking a table leg as he went. His stomping footsteps echoed down the hall, followed by the slam of his fist into a locker. Max let out a shaky exhale, her skin crawling. Nathan made her feel so uncomfortable; there was something…off about him. Unhinged, even.
Across from her, Jefferson let out a disbelieving laugh. "I can't believe it. How hard is it to apologise?"
"That's Nathan Prescott you're talking about. I don't think the word 'sorry' is even in his vocabulary." Max replied bitterly, and Jefferson chuckled. He gestured to the desk in front of him, patting it with his hand.
"Sit down, Max. I want to talk to you."
Max ambled over to the desk, sitting down tentatively. Even though her all-consuming, slightly embarrassing crush on Jefferson wasn't so prevalent now that she'd met Chloe, she still felt ridiculously nervous every time she spoke to him. Photography was her dream, her passion, and to her Jefferson was up there with Annie Leibovitz and Robert Frank. She was self-conscious about her photos as it was, and having him as a teacher- even though he'd given her tons of praise and assurance- made her even more insecure. It was like an aspiring pop star having their voice critiqued by Beyoncé.
"Max, what's going on with you? These past few weeks you've not been yourself- you're on your phone in class, you're distracted…you don't even stay after class to discuss your work with me anymore." Mr Jefferson asked, sitting down next to her and leaning in, giving her a concerned frown.
Max shifted uncomfortably on the hard plastic chair, looking down at the desk and away from Mr Jefferson's inquisitive stare. She noticed with surprise that 'RACHEL AMBER 4EVER' was etched into the wood; so Rachel had been Jefferson's student when she'd been here. Max wondered for a moment if she'd crushed on him, too.
"I'm sorry, Mr Jefferson. I've had so much school work, it's really been stressing me out. I'll try and stay after school more- I've just been really busy." She mumbled, feeling slightly ashamed. She hadn't been putting as much effort into photography work as she should have; even though she adored the subject and took photos all the time, she hadn't even gotten through half of the epic reading list Jefferson had assigned them all at the start of the semester, and she still hadn't made any headway on that freaking project.
Jefferson nodded understandingly. "I get it, Max, high school is tough. In fact, it pretty much sucks. But I've missed seeing you participate in class, and I've definitely missed those after school sessions. It impresses me that you were willing to give up your free time to listen to the ramblings of the has-been hipster photography teacher."
Max stared at him incredulously. "You're not a has-been at all, Mr Jefferson! I really admire your work."
"That's sweet of you to say, Max."
"No, seriously!" Max reiterated. "This is, um, kinda weird…but the prospect of having you as a teacher is what convinced me to move back to Arcadia Bay. Your work is really inspiring, Mr Jefferson."
Jefferson gave a bashful smile. "Well thank you, Max. That means a lot more than you think. And please, call me Mark. It's after-school hours, and frankly 'Mr Jefferson' makes me feel kinda old."
"Okay, M-Mark." The word felt odd on Max's tongue, and she blushed. It was weird to call a teacher by their first name; she'd kind of forgotten teachers even had first names.
"That's better. So, how's your project going? I know the deadline's not until next semester, but you'd be surprised how quickly time passes your senior year. It doesn't hurt to get a good head start."
Max chewed her lip, looking down at her lap and then back up at Mr Jefferson sheepishly. "U-uh, well, I've certainly been uh…thinking about stuff, and-"
Mr Jefferson raised an eyebrow, giving Max a knowing look. "Thinking about stuff? Uh-oh. That doesn't sound too promising."
"As I said, I've just been really busy. I promise I'll get started on it as soon as I can."
"Look, Max, I know I shouldn't say this but…you're the best student in this class. You work hard- usually- and your pictures possess an extraordinary depth of talent. You have a gift." Jefferson leaned forward suddenly, resting his hand on Max's forearm. "Listen, if there's anything going on you can tell me, okay?"
Max blushed, her heart soaring at Jefferson's praise. He'd complemented her work before, sure, but he'd never said anything like that. Mark Jefferson thought she had a gift? This couldn't be possible. "T-thank you so much, Mr Jeff- uh, Mark. But there's nothing going on, not really. It's just difficult trying to balance school work and other stuff, I guess."
A look that Max couldn't quite place flashed in Jefferson's eyes. "Other stuff? Boyfriend giving you trouble?"
Max blinked. Wait, what? Was Mr Jefferson indirectly asking if she had a boyfriend? "No, I, uh, I don't have a boyfriend. Like I said, I'm just really busy." She stammered in response, suddenly becoming all too aware of Jefferson's hand on her arm and the close proximity of their bodies. If this had happened a month ago, she would have been a hot, sweaty, blushing mess, but now it just felt kinda…inappropriate. Jefferson was probably just being friendly, but still.
Suddenly there was a loud knock at the door. Mr Jefferson wrenched his hand away from Max at lightning speed, standing up and adjusting his tie with an awkward cough. Max's head flew towards the door; Stella Hill was stood there with her fingers clutched around a pile of books, a confused expression on her face.
"U-uh sorry to interrupt, Mr Jefferson. I'll come back later." She murmured, shooting Max an odd look before turning to leave.
"No Stella, wait. What's up?" Mr Jefferson hurried towards her, his voice sounding slightly strained- guilty, even. But what did he have to be guilty for?
Stella paused in the doorway. "Well, I just wanted to hand in my extra credit essay. You said I could drop by after class whenever I wanted?"
Mr Jefferson nodded emphatically, running his hands through his hair. "Oh yes, yes of course. I'll mark that for you tonight and get it back to you tomorrow. Thanks, Stella." He reached out and took the essay from Stella's hands and then looked back at Max, a flustered expression on his face. "Right, well, I guess you can go now Max. I'll see you in class."
Max stood, feeling awkward. "Sure Mr Jefferson. See you in class." She echoed, grabbing her stuff and following Stella out of the room. The two girls walked for a moment down the half-empty hall in silence, before Stella turned to Max with a knowing smile.
"So, you and Mr Jefferson were looking pretty cozy." She said with a giggle.
Max flushed. Her and Stella had never really talked before, and she always got shy talking to new people. Especially about Mr Jefferson- oh God, what if Stella could somehow tell that Max had- or used to have- a hugeass crush on him? How embarrassing. "N-no, no way. He was just giving me some advice."
Stella gave a wistful sigh. "I wish he would give me advice. He's totally gorgeous, isn't he? Talk about study motivation."
Max laughed awkwardly. "Yeah, I guess. He's a great teacher."
"I heard he gave some students more than a few extra-credit assignments, if you know what I mean."
Max's eyes flew towards Stella in disbelief. Surely she couldn't have heard that right. "I-I don't think that can be true."
The two of them reached the water fountain by the main doors, and Stella paused to fill up her water bottle. Across the hall, Max could see Dana handing out flyers and chatting animatedly to students, her face lit up in a wide smile. A few jock assholes were goofing around near the door to the girls' bathroom, kicking it open occasionally with their feet and shouting insults before the door swung shut. Ugh. Pigs.
Stella turned back towards Max, giving her a knowledgeable smile. "You have a lot to learn here at Blackwell, Max. Rachel Amber absolutely had sex with Mr Jefferson."
Max's eyebrows shot up so high they practically disappeared into her hairline. No. That was surely just gossip- she too had heard the rumours about Rachel hooking up with a member of faculty. But she'd also heard rumours that Rachel had run away to join the circus, and that she was a part of the Russian mafia. The Jefferson rumour was probably made up by some jealous classmate- no doubt Victoria- in order to ruin Rachel's reputation. How pathetic.
Max opened her mouth to dispel the rumour, but was interrupted by a breathless Dana bounding up to them both and shoving a flyer in their face excitedly.
"Hey you guys! Here, have one of these." She exclaimed, waving the flyer about like a flag.
Max took one, examining the glossy embossed surface. It was advertising the Halloween dance; a logo that read VORTEX CLUB glowed menacingly in the top right corner, like a warning sign. "Oh, thanks Dana." She replied, folding the flyer and shoving it into her bag. The idea of going was tempting…but it was a couples' dance. She couldn't exactly roll up with Chloe (who wasn't even officially her girlfriend, anyway) and start booty-shaking with her in front of the entire school. Besides, it was a Vortex party. No way.
Dana clapped her hands together- she seemed to have a penchant for doing that- and squealed. "Awesome! I can't wait to see what costume you guys come in!" Max resisted the urge to groan. Of course it was a costume party. "Max, I know who you'll be bringing." Dana added with a wink and a grin, nudging Max before whipping around and flouncing off, leaving a cloud of her expensive Marc Jacobs perfume hanging in the air.
Max cursed herself internally, wrinkling her nose at the slightly overpowering floral scent. She really needed to sit Dana down and convince her that she was not. Into. Warren. At all. In fact, she hadn't even spoke to him since he'd confronted her about lying in the parking lot. He'd done a stellar job of avoiding her; he'd even asked Mrs Grant if he could switch lab partners in Chemistry so they wouldn't have to work together. Max had tried desperately to apologise; she'd sent him a million texts, left him apologetic voicemails, wrote him notes…she'd even tried to sneak into the boys' dorm to say sorry face to face, but had chickened out when she saw Nathan and the other jock assholes hanging about near the doors. It sucked. She missed Warren- he was funny, and kind, and he always had something interesting to say. She couldn't believe what a mess she'd made of things.
"Anyway, I've gotta go Max- got a ton of homework I have to do tonight. See ya later. Hey, you think Jefferson would want to go with me to this Halloween dance thing?" Stella joked, giving a little wave and heading towards the doors.
Max waved back. "Yeah, Principal Wells would love that. See you later!" She took a sip from the water fountain, grateful for the refreshment, and then followed Stella out of the main doors into the late afternoon sunshine. It was a perfectly picturesque fall day; golden, chestnut and burnt orange leaves cluttered the campus grounds, the air smelled like cinnamon and grass, and the sky was a tender, milky blue, even though pale grey clouds lurked on the horizon, threatening rain. Max took a deep breath and smiled; there was nothing prettier than a suburban town in the midst of fall.
"Hey, Max!" Came a timid yet cheerful voice to her left. Max turned to see Kate hurrying towards her, her cheeks flushed pink from the chilly air and her hands clutching her Bible as always.
"Hey Kate. How are you?" Max asked. She'd been hanging out with Kate more and more recently; she was actually a really fun, sweet girl once she got over her shyness.
"I'm pretty good Max, thank you. How are you doing? I hope Mr Jefferson wasn't too hard on you after class."
"Oh, uh, he wasn't too bad. I just need to stop being so distracted." Max replied, fiddling with the strap of her bag.
Kate nodded understandingly. A slow, knowing smile spread across her lips, and she cocked her head. "Any reason that you're distracted? Maybe it's something to do with a certain blue-haired someone?"
Max blushed, giggling. She was so glad she'd told Kate about Chloe; it felt so good to talk about her to someone, especially someone who understood and wouldn't judge her. "You know me well, Kate."
"Too well. So, how are things going with you two? Have you guys had the 'talk' yet?"
Max looked away, chewing her lip. Kate had been urging her to speak to Chloe about what they were- were they together, or just having fun? – but she hadn't quite plucked up the courage to do so yet. Max liked Chloe, she really liked her, and a part of her wanted them to be official…but another part was resisting. There was just so much shit they had to sort through. Firstly, she wasn't sure if Chloe was over Rachel. Even though she was missing, Rachel seemed to loom over them with a ghostly presence, her name always slipping into the conversation somehow. And then there was the issue of people at school finding out. Max wasn't ashamed of Chloe, or her feelings for her, but she was scared of the Vortex Club- as much as she hated to admit it. She knew most of her classmates wouldn't have a problem with her dating a girl, but Victoria definitely would. And whatever Victoria had a problem with, Nathan did too. They hated her enough as it was; Max couldn't bear the thought of how hellish her life would be if they found out about her and Chloe.
Max opened her mouth to reply to Kate, when a familiarly smug, superior voice rang through the air. "Look who it is! Jesus-whore and Max Selfie."
Shit. Speak of the motherfucking devil.
Max swivelled around, heart sinking. Victoria, flanked by Taylor and Courtney, was sauntering towards her, her lips curled into a spiteful smirk. She wore a black collared dress, with lacy stockings and a pair of gleaming, uber-polished Oxfords. A diamond-encrusted snake necklace that Max had only seen gracing the covers of magazines hung around her neck, the snake's jewelled eyes glinting maliciously.
"I didn't know you were into charity work, Maxine." Victoria continued, arching her perfectly plucked eyebrow.
Max gritted her teeth, a flare of anger shooting through her at the sound of her full name. "What are you talking about, Victoria?"
Victoria cocked her head, widening her eyes in mock innocence. "You know, keeping Katie here company. It's always sweet to help the socially impaired, isn't it?" She gestured towards Kate with her manicured hand, giggling. Taylor and Courtney snickered beside her, nasty expressions slapped across their faces.
Max's hands curled into fists, and she glanced at Kate, whose entire face had wilted. Her eyes looked huge and fearful, and her top lip quivered as if she were about to cry. Victoria was such a jerk.
"We think it's just adorable how you loners like to stick together. Are you forming some sort of fashion challenged club for freaks, or something?" Taylor chipped in bitchily. Max noticed how her words seemed kind of forced, though, and she kept glancing at Victoria as if for encouragement or approval. Taylor was thin, tan and blonde, and today she was wearing acid-wash denim shorts and a matching jacket, with knee length, brown cowboy boots. She looked like a cross between a cowgirl and, ironically, Taylor Swift. All she needed was a hat and a Southern accent and the look was complete. Max didn't know how she could call her fashion challenged.
Max opened her mouth to retaliate, but Victoria cut her off instantly. "Actually, Max doesn't look like complete shit today, funnily enough." She reached over and grabbed the safety-pin necklace around Max's neck. Max pulled away, wincing at the touch and instantly regretting her decision to wear Rachel's outfit today. She knew it was weird to wear it, but the outfit was so well put together that she couldn't resist.
Victoria clearly recognised the ensemble, because she dropped the necklace like it was on fire and let out a short, sardonic little laugh. "What is this, your Rachel Amber Halloween costume? Why the hell are you wearing her tacky old clothes? Were they a present from that faux-punk slut I saw you with the other week?"
Rage pooled in Max's gut and she took a step forward, closing the distance between her and Victoria. "Shut the fuck up." She hissed, anger pulsing in her veins.
Victoria laughed again, and the sound sent chills up Max's spine. "What's her name- Chloe, isn't it? She used to hang around with Rachel and that hobo Frank- Nathan told me about her. Wow, Max. I didn't know you were into train-wreck druggies. Tell me…does the carpet match the drapes?"
"SHUT UP!" Max began to shout, but someone else had beat her to it. Kate.
Max stared at her, shocked. Kate was stood there, shoulders squared and looking more powerful than Max had ever seen her. Her mouth was set into a hard line, her cheeks were flushed, and she was clutching her Bible as if it were giving her some sort of Godly strength.
Victoria, Taylor and Courtney both let out a simultaneous, disbelieving scoff. Max couldn't believe it either; in the past month she'd been at Blackwell, she'd never seen Kate stand up to Victoria and her posse. Even when Victoria accidentally-on-purpose spilt her cappuccino all over Kate's pristine white blouse, or when she spread a rumour around school that Kate was hooking up with Samuel, the creepy old groundskeeper at Blackwell. But now she was doing it- she was standing up for Max.
"What did you just say to me, Katiekins?" Victoria said slowly, her voice laced with venom. She was a good four inches taller than Kate, and she moved towards her, looming over her threateningly.
If Kate was intimidated, though, she didn't show it. "I told you to shut up." She repeated, raising her chin defiantly. Max's heart felt ready to burst with admiration for the girl; she knew this must be terrifying for timid, painfully shy Kate, but she wasn't letting it stop her.
Taylor and Courtney exchanged an incredulous look, and Victoria's eyes narrowed into sharp, menacing slits. "Hmm. Yeah, that's what I thought. What I'm more confused about, though, is what exactly gave you the impression that you could talk to me that way?" Her eyes flicked down to Kate's Bible, and she suddenly grabbed it, wrenching it out of Kate's grasp.
Kate let out a cry, leaping forward. "Give that back!"
"Maybe this thing will give me a clue," Victoria giggled, flicking through the pages carelessly. "Blah blah blah, we're all going to hell, blah blah blah. Oops, guess not. You do realise this thing is full of shit, right?"
Tears streamed down Kate's face. "Please Victoria, give it back. My grandma gave it to me!"
"Give it back right fucking now, Victoria." Max snapped, her heart shattering as she saw how upset Kate was. Kate had told her only the other day that her grandma had passed away about a year ago. The two of them had been really close, and the Bible was the only thing her grandma had left her. No wonder Kate treasured it so much.
Victoria's eyes glinted with scorn. Beside her, Taylor and Courtney tittered. "Oh, your grandma gave it to you? Well why didn't you say so? Here." Victoria moved forward, holding out the Bible. Kate reached for it but just as she was about to grab it, Victoria snapped her arm back. Max lurched forward as well, trying to get it, but Victoria's height worked to her advantage and she waggled it in the air tauntingly, just out of reach.
"I think Jesus wants to go for a spin, don't you?" She cried, letting out a gleeful laugh and then hurling the book as far as it would go.
"NO!" Kate and Max both screamed, but it was too late. The Bible sailed past them, and Max closed her eyes, waiting for the inevitable clunk as it hit the stone path. The impact would probably snap the book's delicate hardback spine; it would be ruined forever.
Yet, the clunk never came. There were a few moments of silence, and then Max heard Kate let out a relieved sigh and Victoria say in a low voice "no fucking way". Her eyes flew open and she spun around, her gaze registered a tall, skinny figure a few feet away.
It was Chloe.
She was holding the Bible in the air triumphantly, like a trophy, and she had a wide grin stretched across her face. She raised an eyebrow, bowed, and sauntered over to them, giving in an insouciant wiggle of her hips. "I believe this is yours." She announced casually, holding out the Bible to Kate with a warm smile.
Max couldn't believe it. Pride, respect, gratitude…she felt it all as she watched Kate take the book and clutch it to her chest, thanking Chloe gratefully. Chloe nodded at her, winked at Max sexily, and then turned to Victoria and smirked. "Next time, I'll shove that thing up your bony white ass." She said simply.
Victoria's let out a choked cough, evidently flustered. "I'd like to see you try."
Chloe gave her a long, amused look. "You know, if you wanna play catch, I'd recommend Nathan's balls. They're a lot smaller than that Bible."
Max burst into instantaneous laughter, slapping her hand over her mouth. Beside her Kate snorted quietly, and even Taylor and Courtney had their lips pressed tightly together, evidently suppressing a giggle. Chloe's grin widened and she reached into her jacket pocket, lighting up a cigarette. She took a slow drag and continued. "Besides, he doesn't ever use them, does he? I'm sure he won't miss 'em."
Victoria's face flushed almost violet. If this were a cartoon, Max was sure she'd have clouds of steam billowing out of her ears. She looked Chloe up and down, shooting her the dirtiest glare imaginable. "Please. You look like some bad rip-off of Shane from The L Word, muff-muncher."
Chloe grinned ear-to-ear and winked, not offended in the slightest. "I'll take that as a compliment, Icky Vicky."
Max snorted with laughter again, and Victoria scowled at her. "Whatever. You three are fucking tragic." She snarled, reaching forward and plucking the cigarette out of Chloe's fingers and placing it between her cherry-red lips unapologetically. "Oh by the way, Chloe, there's a sale on at Hot Topic in case you want to stock up on some more discount ripped jeans. Goodbye, freaks. Taylor, Courtney?" And with a snap of her fingers she was gone, flouncing past Max with a hard shove. Taylor and Courtney looked at each other in bewilderment, then turned and shuffled past Kate, Chloe and Max- their eyes on Chloe the entire time. Max noted, with a flash of pride, that beneath the confusion and hostility in their eyes there was something else. Respect. Maybe, like her, they'd been longing to see someone give Victoria the smackdown she so richly deserved.
"T-thank you so much! Both of you." Kate sputtered when they were gone, her cheeks bright pink and eyes lit up with joy. Max smiled, reaching out and touching her arm in reassurance.
Chloe nodded at her, looking touched. "No biggie. You're Kate, right? Max has told me about you. You're clearly a cool chick, don't let those assholes bring you down."
Kate looked down shyly, fiddling with her cross necklace. "Thank you. Max has told me about you, too."
Chloe cocked an eyebrow at Max. "Oh yeah? All good things, I hope?"
Kate nodded. "Oh, most definitely." She shot Max a secret smile, and began moving away. "I'd better go- I'll see you later, Max. Thanks again, Chloe."
"See you, Kate." Chloe and Max said in unison. Kate ambled away, her head bowed and a smile on her lips.
Max turned back to Chloe, who was grinning like a Cheshire cat. "Chloe Price, to the rescue. Just call me your saviour." The blue-haired girl announced, winking.
Max giggled. "How will I ever thank you?"
"Oh, I can think of a few ways." Chloe purred, biting her lip and pulling Max into a hug. As they embraced, she slid her hands into the back pocket of Max's jeans and squeezed her butt. Max squealed, pulling away and looking around the campus to make sure no one had seen. Thankfully, the only person about was Samuel, who was busy sweeping a pile of leaves on the far side of the lawn with his back to them.
"What, we can't play grab-ass on campus?" Chloe whined, pouting.
"Let's save that for later, kay? Seriously Chlo, that was amazing. I mean, 'icky Vicky'? Did you see Victoria's face? Hilarious."
"What can I say, I am a master of nicknames. Kind of disappointed she didn't give me one back, though. I personally think 'hoe-y Chloe' has a good ring to it, don't you?" Chloe said, waggling her eyebrows. "Dude, I fucking told you she was gay. Didn't you hear her? She watches THE L WORD."
Max giggled, rolling her eyes and staring at the blue-haired girl for a moment. Kicking Victoria's ass, again…it was the sexiest thing Chloe had ever done. And that was saying something. Suddenly, Max felt her heart quicken and a wave of something hot and animalistic burst in her pelvis. She blushed, suddenly worried Chloe could see exactly what she was thinking, and gave a nonchalant cough. "S-so, uh, what are you doing here anyways?"
"Well, I thought I'd come surprise you. Aren't I cute? Let's go to mine. It's Taco Tuesday at the Price-Madsen residence."
Max raised an eyebrow. "Chloe, it's Wednesday."
Chloe laughed. "Shit, really? Then I guess it's Waffle Wednesday! You in?"
Max smiled, reaching up and gently tugging a strand of Chloe's aquamarine hair. "Of course. Let's get out of here."
A/N: SORRY FOR THE LATE UPDATE. I know, I know, I suck. And sorry for the lack of Pricefield fluff in this chapter- I had to spend some time on Jefferson though. You'll see why in future chapters;) Also, in regards to The L Word reference- Kate Moennig (who plays Shane) is seriously the only person I'd ever want to play Chloe in a movie version of LIS. Seriously. She is the hoooottest. Anyways, I hope you all enjoy this chapter. I have a really good plan for this series- I know it's 'just' a fanfic, but I want it to be a lot more than that. So get prepared for some drama, some tragedy, and a lot of cuuuute Pricefield moments. There is a lot to come. Thank you for all your lovely comments, please leave any feedback/message you want. I love hearing from you all- it's crazy to me that over 140 people subscribe to and read this story. You're the best.