The train cars pulled slowly away as Chloe followed Rachel up the path. They'd jumped off at the old park, a lovely, quiet, secluded spot away from the humdrum of life with trees, running water, picnic tables, paths…

It's actually really peaceful here.

This is… weird. I mean, I'm following Rachel freaking Amber around the park! It's… surreal. Really surreal.

Rachel did seem to be in a bit of a hurry. Every now and then she'd check her watch and look around. For what, Chloe had no idea. They could see trees, lots and lots of trees. There were a few other people milling around. Chloe did notice a woman in a white dress standing at the base of one of the larger trees, but no sooner did she stop to look than Rachel caught her hand and pulled her along the path.

"Rachel, wait," panted Chloe, "please."

"It's just a little further," said Rachel, pulling her along the path.

"Where are we going?"

"The Overlook," she said, pointing up. Chloe looked up to see the path winding its way through the forest and the rocks, reaching what was colloquially known as 'The Overlook', an area which offered up the best aerial view of the surrounding park. She recognised it as somewhere William had taken her and Max many years ago, although she was no longer familiar with the place. "Come on, it's not far now."

"Why are going up there?"

"You'll see," said Rachel, "when we get there. Come on!"

…

"I hate you," panted Chloe, sinking to her knees and drawing in great lungfuls of air. "I hate you, Rachel Amber."

"No you don't," said Rachel, smiling, putting her hand on Chloe's shoulder. "You need to get a little fitter, that's all."

"I walk everywhere, dude," said Chloe.

"You need to walk further then. Or eat less shit."

"Are you actually saying that?" said Chloe. "For real?" She looked up at Rachel, who, to her credit, looked slightly abashed.

"Sorry," she said. "That… came out differently than I meant."

"Yeah, well, you'd better be," said Chloe, sounding slightly annoyed. "Okay, so now we're here," she continued, getting to her feet and looking around, "this is actually a pretty nice view." The Overlook didn't disappoint. You could see for miles. In fact, Chloe found that if she squinted, she could actually see the remnants of the train they'd hitched a ride on, winding past a…

Is that a junk heap? That looks… potential. It has potential. Ooooo, we could spend time there. Like, like a…

"Glad you approve," said Rachel, checking her watch once more. "And, as your reward for making it up here in piece, I have a new game for us to play."

"Really? Another game?" said Chloe. "I think I'm all gamed out, Rache."

"Chloe, I like games," said Rachel, "so deal with it. Anyway, this one I learned about in drama class. It's fun. It's all about improvisation."

"Aw man, I'm shit at that," said Chloe.

"Somehow, I don't think you are," said Rachel, carefully. "Somehow, I think you have a talent for acting."

"Look, I get that all the world's a stage and shit, but I'm no actor."

"Funny that," said Rachel. "I see you acting tough in school all the time."

"I… that's…" fumbled Chloe, then she gave up. "Dammit!" Rachel giggled. "That's not fair!" protested Chloe, causing Rachel to continue to giggle.

"This game involves spying on people from afar," she said, sparking Chloe's interest. "Luckily for us, we have access to the latest, state-of-the-art high-tech surveillance equipment in which to commence our spyage."

"You mean the telescope," said Chloe, dryly. "That one, there?" She pointed to one of the two viewfinder/telescopes that had been erected at the Overlook to allow people to enjoy the view.

"Exactly," said Rachel, not rising to the bait, much to Chloe's chagrin. "Let's fire it up, shall we?" She inserted a quarter into the right-hand telescope and put her eye to the viewfinder. "Funny," she said, "can't see anything." She looked again, then hit the telescope a couple of times. "Can't seem to…"

"Look," said Chloe, pointing to the 'Out of Order' sign on the telescope. "I think it might not be working."

"Gee, thanks Sherlock," said Rachel.

Chloe grinned and began examining the telescope, puffing on an imaginary pipe. "Elementary, my dear Amber," she said, sounding far more like Sean Connery than Sherlock Holmes. "Using my super-deducing-powers, I can confirm that this telescope is, to use the technical term… fucked."

"Well, shit," said Rachel, losing her jollity. "That was my last quarter. You got one?"

"Sorry, quarterless," said Chloe. Rachel looked so downcast at this that it got Chloe thinking.

She really wants to use that telescope. I mean, this is far more than for a silly game, right? That's why she's so pissed that it didn't work.

"Maybe I can MacGyver something up," said Chloe, and Rachel visibly brightened.

"Really?"

"I've been told I'm pretty handy, you know," said Chloe, smiling in what she hoped was a reassuring way.

"Who by?" asked Rachel with raised eyebrows. She obviously didn't believe Chloe.

"Meh, one of the people that don't totally ignore me. I forget who," said Chloe, still smiling. "It looks like that telescope over there works." She pointed to the other telescope, but Rachel shook her head.

"But we don't have a quarter."

"Yet," corrected Chloe.

"What?"

"We don't have a quarter, yet," said Chloe. "Just you wait there for a moment, see what I can conjure up." She looked at the telescope. It was quite a simple design, with a metal plate covering what would be the coin bucket.

Our quarter is in there. Maybe with some other quarters? So close, I just need to…

"I need to pry open that plate there," said Chloe, pointing. "You have a knife on you?"

"A knife?"

"Yeah, you know, sharp pointy thing. Useful for stabbing rabbits."

"I know what a knife is," said Rachel, beginning to laugh. "Stabbing rabbits?"

"Hey, I needed to think of something quick."

"You need one?"

"Yeah, my mom took mine the other day," said Chloe. "Still bummed about that."

"Sorry," said Rachel, looking through her bag, "but how about this?" She held up a nail file.

"We could try," said Chloe, dubiously. She took the nail fail and assumed a ninja stance. "I guess you could stab a rabbit with it," she said, laughing. She tried to pry open the plate, but the nail file wasn't strong enough. "I don't want to snap it," she said. "Wait here. I'll see if I can find something with a little more oomph."

Well, that was a bust. Damn, it always looks so easy in the movies.

Damn you Hollywood, for lying to me! Damn you all to hell!

She wandered off, looking around the Overlook for anything she could use. As she did so, her phone buzzed. It was a text.

ICKY VICKY [CHLOE PRICE]

CHLOE [Um, you know my name now, do you?]

ICKY VICKY [I heard some fucked up shit about you]

CHLOE [Oh really? I'm guessing that's not hard to come by. You're gonna have to narrow it down a little. You know, 'cos of all the fucked up shit I did]

ICKY VICKY [I was talking to Nathan]

CHLOE [Oh yeah, that prick. He wasn't very nice to me this morning, you know]

VICTORIA [Just who do you think you are?]

VICTORIA [You don't know anything about him, you dumb fuckup]

VICTORIA [Just go back to your trailer, trash]

CHLOE [Oh, I see what you did there]

VICTORIA [By the way, just for totes info, you were totally played last night by Rachel Amber. You'll be lucky if she ever speaks to you again]

CHLOE [Oh shit, why didn't I see that? Rachel will never talk to me again. You're so right]

CHLOE [I'm feeling so hurt right now. So hurt. Right to the bone]

VICTORIA [This is just the beginning, bitch]

VICTORIA [You'd better watch your back]

CHLOE [I'm literally quaking in my boots right now. You have scared me so much I think I might even need to pee]

CHLOE [Oh and you can tell that fucked up boyfriend of yours, if he wants me to stand up for him, he might want to practice doing the same for me. Or anyone else, come to that, You know, rather than slamming me into the ground without even an apology. Basic manners go a long way, don't they?]

CHLOE [Karma's a bitch, aint it?]

Rachel sounds… distracted at the moment. In actual fact, she's been… different since we jumped off the train. She was in a hurry to get up here, now that we're here, she's… she's not herself.

Mind you, this could be her normal self. It's not like you know her.

True, but… after last night and this morning, she does seem… distracted.

She looked around but couldn't see anything obvious. She wandered off a little further and came across a couple setting out a picnic on one of the covered picnic tables.

"… and I've been saying 'sorry' all morning, okay?" said the man, as Chloe approached. "I admit, it was really dumb to lock us out of the car, but come on! You've been on my case for three hours, dammit!"

"I just wanted today to go smoothly, okay?" said the woman. "I'm sorry, I got pissed at you."

"Which is absolutely fine for you," said the man, "but when I get pissed about something, whoa, it's like 'call the divorce attorney'. It's like I'm not allowed to get pissed at you."

"Do you even want something to eat?" said the woman, standing up. "Because, you know, I'm suddenly not hungry anymore."

"Oh, terrific," said the man. "Just great. I'm so glad we took the time to come all the way our here. On my day off, too."

"Don't you dare make this about me, you…"

"Excuse me," said Chloe, breaking in. "I'm sorry to bother you, I was just wanting to know if you had some spare change. Or a spare knife, maybe?" As soon as she'd asked the question, she could have kicked herself as she saw the look on the woman's face.

"A… a knife?" said the woman.

"Spare change?" said the man. "I'm so sorry," he continued, without looking in his pockets, "we don't have anything. I guess we might have some spare food for you when we're done."

"What? No, I'm not a…" said Chloe, throwing her hands in the air. "I mean, look I was just wanting to… wait a sec, what kind of food?"

"Aw man," said the guy, whispering to his ladyfriend. "This place really has gone downhill."

"I'm, like, right here," said Chloe. "I can hear you, you know. Just thought I'd let you know. Okay, you don't have spare change, that's fine, even though I know you didn't look in your pocket that was jangling with change there. You also don't have that spare knife that's there on the table? Also absolutely fine. I'm so sorry to bother you ladies," she said. "Thanks for your ass…" She shook her head and walked off.

Chloe walked back towards Rachel. She was passing a park bench when a flash of something caught her eye. Looking at the bench, she could see that it had one of those plaques that commemorated someone attached to it. Looking around, she quickly unscrewed the plate (it said 'Martin Lewis Prescott' so it really didn't count) and headed back to Rachel. On the way, she felt her phone buzz again.

Fuck off, Vicky.

She unlocked her phone, but it wasn't another text for Victoria.

STEPH [Hey Chloe]

CHLOE [Hey Steph. Wassup?]

STEPH [A heads up. Your absence from school has been noticed]

CHLOE [Shit. Who by?]

STEPH [Ms Grant, I think. Did you have chem first period?]

CHLOE [Yeah. And I promised her I'd be there. Double shit. I'm guessing she didn't keep this info to herself?]

STEPH [Nope. Wells is on the warpath]

CHLOE [Oh no!]

STEPH [Seriously, Chloe. I'm just trying to help]

CHLOE [Yeah, right! You killed me this morning!]

STEPH [I'm a GM. That's what I do, dude]

STEPH [Oh, and thanks for playing with us this morning. Mikey had a blast]

STEPH [Actually, so did I]

CHLOE [Mikey's cool]

STEPH [Yeah. He's been down a lot recently. Not entirely sure why. But I know you playing with us this morning helped a lot. Even if you did sever his legs]

CHLOE [LOL. That was sweet]

STEPH [Thanks, Chloe]

CHLOE [Don't sweat it. Thanks for the info]

Chloe put her phone away and headed back to Rachel. "Ask and ye shall receive," she said, prying the plate away from the telescope. "Prescott power, activate!" After a little effort, the plate bent sufficiently for her to be able to retrieve the quarter; to her disappointment, theirs was the only quarter in the telescope. Others had obviously seen the 'Out of Order' sign before falling foul of the quarter-eater. She turned to Rachel in triumph, offering up the retrieved quarter.

"I don't want to boast..." she said, "so I'll let you do it for me."

"Chloe Price," said Rachel, with reverence in her voice, "you truly are the telescope whisperer. I stand in awe of your ultimate power." She inserted the quarter into the telescope and they both looked through it, taking one eye each.

Jasmine. She smells of… jasmine.

"Alright, here's the game," said Rachel. "It's quite simple. You find some people for us to spy on, then you and I will act out what they're saying and thinking. Or at least, what they could be saying and thinking. We have to keep it within the realms of possibilities, okay? So no dragons, or robot chickens, anything like that."

"That's it? I do that in my head, during, well, every class. It's the only thing keep me sa… well, maybe not," she grinned.

"See? You're a natural. Okay, let's give it a try," said Rachel. Chloe nodded and swung the telescope around, focusing on a grill.

"Hey, we could barbecue a coupla squirrels when we're done here," said Chloe, faking a southern redneck account. "Ah do declare, squirrels make fahne eatin'." Rachel giggled and bumped Chloe with her shoulder.

"You have the best ideas," she whispered. "What else?" Chloe swung it around further and settled on a woman, laying on the grass looking at a laptop.

"What about her? Sweet beanie," said Chloe, and beside her, Rachel nodded. "Sure, the view's great'n'all," said Chloe, taking on a low, mocking voice, "but I'd really rather look at pictures of nature on my computer. They're so realistic, you can almost believe you're actually there."

"Yeah," said Rachel, in a similar mocking tone, "the grass around here just isn't the right shade of green." Chloe giggled.

"It's so time for the machines to take over," she said. "Then I won't even have to think about it." This made Rachel laugh out loud, and Chloe smiled, feeling a flush of pleasure wash over her. They laughed together for a moment, then Chloe swung the telescope around to settle on a man doing some stretching exercises. They recognised him as the guy they'd seen on the way up; he was some kind of speedwalker, or mincer, or something similar. "Loving this guy," she said.

"What's he thinking?" said Rachel.

"Only two more miles to go," said Chloe, adopting an out-of-breath voice. "Then the beef steak between my ass-cheeks should be nice and tender!" Again, Rachel laughed out loud.

"So tragic," she said, "but, in its own way, also so beautiful. You totally nailed it." She took over the telescope duties from Chloe, swinging around to settle on a couple, walking along holding hands. "Those two," she said.

"Okay." Chloe thought for a moment, then took on a low, raspy voice. "Would you like to come home and see my record collection?"

"Oh, yes please," said Rachel, in a high-pitched squeak. "Is this the sort of collection where we have to get under the covers to really appreciate the acoustical value of the timbre?"

"Uh, yeah, whatever," said Chloe, a little taken aback. "But, to be totally honest, clothes kinda mess with the acoustics, so…" She couldn't hold it in any longer and broke out laughing, joined by Rachel for a few moments. "Timbre?" she said, still laughing.

"My dad is always going on about it, whenever they go to a concert or opera or some shit," said Rachel. "I've no idea what it means."

"Damn, you sounded totally real there," said Chloe, calming down. "Like you totally knew what you were talking about."

"And that's exactly what the best improv is all about," said Rachel. "Sounding believable, even if you're talking about total bullshit."

"Damn, girl, you're good," said Chloe.

"Don't put yourself down," said Rachel. "You're not so bad yourself, you know. Come on, find me another." Chloe nodded and they looked through the telescope once more. Chloe swung it around, searching, and finally settled on a woman in a white dress. She recognised her as the one she'd seen earlier, waiting underneath the large tree. As they watched, she was approached by a man in a suit and they embraced. "Whoa, jackpot!" said Chloe. "Commence make-out session in three, two, one… aaaand go!" On her mark, the two started kissing. "Nailed it," she crowed, then, looking closer, "damn, they're really going at it." She put on her mocking voice. "Oh honey, you're the best, although I think we used the…" She stopped talking as she realised that Rachel was no longer beside her. Taking a step away from the telescope, she saw Rachel a little way off, looking down at the tree and the couple beneath it. "Rachel?" When Rachel didn't answer, Chloe walked over to her. "Hey, are you okay?"

"What are we doing?" said Rachel, and Chloe took a step back. Her voice was… different. Very different. There was a burning intensity to it now, no trace of the joviality that she'd displayed while looking through the telescope.

"What do you mean?" said Chloe, confused. "We're here, looking through the…"

"Last I checked, you're supposed to be Chloe Price," said Rachel.

"Last I checked, I was," said Chloe, still confused as to where this was going, but Rachel sounded almost… hostile.

What's going on? Did I do something wrong?

You stupid girl, you've fucked this up, just like everything else in your life.

No, I mean, she was…

Get real, Chloe. You can't keep a friend, so why try?

No, that's not fair. She's just…

You fucked up. Plain and simple.

"We've ditched school for hours now and we haven't even got wasted. That's got to be against some school ditching rule, right?"

"Um, yeah, I guess," said Chloe. "I mean, the honour student wants to show the school delinquent how to party?" She shrugged, her arms in the air. "Be my guest."

"Well, how gracious of you," said Rachel, turning and walking away, walking so quickly that Chloe had to jog to keep up. They reached the spot where the couple Chloe had seen earlier were still picnicking. "Right. They have wine."

"They do have wine," said Chloe. "What of it?"

"Let's liberate it," said Rachel.

"Um, we could do that," said Chloe, "or we could go find a liquor store instead?"

"No way, nuh-uh," said Rachel. "You don't bring alcohol to the public park if you're not willing to share it with everyone, right?"

"I… guess." In all honesty, Rachel was beginning to scare Chloe. There seemed to be a certain recklessness about her that was worrying, and Chloe was beginning to look ahead and realise that she wasn't actually in control of the situation at all.

How far do I go with this?

How far will Rachel take it?

How far will I follow her?

Is a friendship with her worth the risk?

It is… kinda exciting, though. Kinda… exhilarating.

"Fuck it, I just want to take something that's not mine," said Rachel, and turned back towards the picnickers. "Alright, I'm going in. Try to keep up," she said not giving Chloe a chance to reply, and marched over to the couple, who seemed to have forgotten (or forgiven) their argument from earlier.

Shit!

"Um, can we help you?" said the woman, noticing Rachel approaching her. She soon became quite concerned as Rachel seemed to have difficulty breathing and suddenly, without warning, her legs gave way and she collapsed heavily to the ground. "Oh my god! Are you okay?" she screamed as Rachel moaned and lay still.

Holy shit! Talk about method acting, Rachel's putting everything into…

But is she? She's just lying there. She's expecting you to do all the work, do the actual stealing. Right?

I… guess.

She said she wanted to steal something. But she's not actually doing it. You are. So put up or shut up, yeah?

"Do something!" screamed the woman at her companion, but he simply shrugged his shoulders.

"What do we do?" he said, and the woman looked straight at him with incredulity.

"Didn't you used to be a lifeguard?" she said. "Give her CPR or something, whatever it is you do!"

Chloe crept over towards the picnic table. The couple had left it clear to go and help Rachel, and the bottle of wine was standing there, just asking to be taken.

"That was years ago!" said the man. "You think I remember?"

"What, how to save someone's life? You think that's the sort of thing you'll ever forget?" The bottle of wine was almost in reach, and Chloe's heart was pounding.

"Well, yeah," said the guy. "I mean, I've never had to use it before, and…"

"Well, there's always a first time," said the woman. "Quick! It's like riding a bike, isn't it?"

"If it's so easy, then why don't you do it?" he said, and the woman slapped him soundly.

"Don't yell at me!" she screamed. "This poor girl needs our help. So help her!" Chloe reached out for the bottle, but unfortunately the woman spun around in her frustration and saw her. "Oh thank god," she said, calming down a little. "This poor girl's in trouble. Can you go and get some help, please?"

"Um, yeah," said Chloe, standing up, but the woman recognised her.

"Wait, aren't you the one from before, the vagrant?"

"Excuse me?" said Chloe, feeling her temper rise.

"Yeah, you were out looking for money. And a knife. Whoever knows what for. To rob us, probably."

"Really?" said Chloe. "You automatically assume that, do you?"

"Well, what else would you need a knife for, if not to threaten us?"

"Well, for one thing," said Chloe, the heat rising to her face, "if I was going to threaten you with a knife, I wouldn't be asking you for one. Just think about that for a moment, yeah? And secondly, just because I wanted a knife, doesn't mean I wanted it for any sort of nefarious purpose. And yeah, I know big words, so just think about that, too. What I actually wanted was a quarter. Just one quarter, because I wanted to look through the telescope up there. I put a quarter into the machine, but it was broken and I didn't have another. The knife, well, I was actually just looking for a tool to repair a bench up there," she continued, trying hard not to lose her. "Someone had defaced the dedication plate, but thanks to you, I wasn't able to do that."

"Yeah, whatever," said the woman, waving her arm, "just go and get help, will you? I'll do what I can here." She turned away, back towards Rachel, but then turned back a moment later. "What are you waiting for? Go!" Her dismissive attitude finally got the better of Chloe.

"Why don't you forget about me," she snapped, "and start focussing on Baywatch over there. Mr 'I don't remember how to do CPR, waaahh'." She turned to the man. "Come on dude, it's time to put up or shut up," she said.

"Watch out," said the man, "I'm going to check her pulse." He paused, then looked up. "It's, uh, on her neck, right?"

"Seriously?" said Chloe. "You were a lifeguard?"

"It was years ago!"

"And? It's like riding a bike, dude. You don't forget something like that. Well, not unless you're full of bullshit. I'm not sure you actually were a lifeguard, you know."

"Quiet, both of you!" said the woman. "I still think you should go get help. There's a ranger station on the other side of the park, isn't there? If you run, you could get help quickly."

"Good point," said the man, sounding relieved. "We'll keep watch while you go."

"Really? Look at all the time you've wasted already. This woman obviously needs help. She needs mouth-to-mouth resuscitation, that's what she needs. Stat," said Chloe. She'd calmed down a bit, and was starting to enjoy the role.

"Nnnnnoooo," groaned Rachel, but Chloe couldn't help it.

"Yup, definitely mouth-to-mouth. Which of you bozos wants to volunteer?"

"Go on," said the woman to her partner, "you've done it before, right?" He looked up and took a deep breath.

"Okay, okay, you got this, you can do… nooooo, I can't do it!"

"Absolutely pathetic," said the woman. "I mean, really?" She turned back to Chloe. "Go and get help, love," she said. "This girl needs help from someone who actually knows what they're doing. Not this total bag of shit here."

"Hey!"

"Well that's what you are. You've been bigging yourself up all day, and now it comes down to it, now it actually comes down to brass tacks, now there's a girl who actually needs your help, you bottle it."

The bottle, yes. Can't lose sight of the prize.

Although, maybe it's time to double down, go with a little reverse psychology. I could have some fun with this.

"Okay, okay, I'm going," said Chloe, throwing her hands in the air. "But when the police show up, I really hope they don't arrest you."

"Arrest us?" said the woman. "Whatever for?"

"Good Samaritan law, ever heard of it?" said Chloe, trying to sound as authoritative as possible. "If you see someone in trouble and don't do everything you can to help, you're guilty as charged," she continued. "In fact, you can be guilty of homicide if, by your inaction, someone loses their life where you had a chance to help them. Do you want to be that person?" she said, taking a step towards the woman. "Do you?"

"For god's sake," screamed the woman to her partner. "Do something! Quick!"

"Okay, okay!" said the man in resignation. "I'm going in." He took a deep breath and leaned in towards Rachel. As his lips touched hers, she pushed him away and sprang to her feet.

"Hey, wow!" she said, breathing in deeply. "I think I'm feeling a lot better." She hugged the man, failing to see the glare that the woman was giving her. "You saved my life," she breathed, hugging him tightly. "From the bottom of my heart, thank you." As she was talking, Chloe managed to sneak the bottle and hide it behind her.

"Yeah, good work everyone," she said, walking away. Rachel also began walking away. As she did so, the woman grabbed her partner's arm.

"That was incredible," she said, hugging him close. "You're a hero."

"I… guess I am," said the man, thoughtfully. "Yeah, I'm a hero. I like that."

The girls ran to the parking lot, laughing. Rachel took the bottle of wine from Chloe and took a long swig from it, smacking her lips as she swallowed. She looked at Chloe and offered the bottle, Chloe accepting it gratefully and taking a long drink herself.

"Here, you earned it," said Rachel, but Chloe shook her head.

"Man, so did you!" she said, laughing. "That was awesome. I mean, I've heard of method acting before, but…"

"Elementary," said Rachel, laughing with Chloe. Now she had some wine in her, it seemed that her previous fun side had resurfaced. "The Good Samaritan law? I have to confess, I've never heard of that before."

"Me neither," said Chloe, and Rachel stopped dead, looking at her, then she broke out laughing.

"Damn girl!" said Rachel, taking the bottle and drinking again. "Remember what I said earlier about improv being believable. Fuck, you actually had me believing you there! Nice one!" She offered up her hand for a high-five and Chloe accepting, smacking palms together.

"Thanks," said Chloe, flushing. "Never really thought of it as improv or acting before. Just thought I was daydreaming, or thinking up bullshit. But hey, I'll take the compliment."

"And one well eared," said Rachel. "Come on, let's walk. I am still sober. I don't want to be."