Max woke up in a room inked in a golden red. The American flag hanging over the window did a good job colorizing the whole room.

Weariness still in her limbs, she tried to rub the sleep out of her eyes, while letting out a small yawn. She had actually managed to get some sleep. Today of all days. She blamed her girlfriend's comfyness for it.

Of course there had been nightmares haunting her again, but feeling two arms, slung around her waist from behind, pressing Max's back against Chloe, she couldn't even remember them. The brunette tried to turn herself so that she could face her girlfriend, but there was no escape from the claws of Cuddle-Chlo. She would just have to accept the comforting warmth oozing out of the punk's body. Oh, what a wretched fate it was.

She would've loved to stay like this forever, but there was a thought in the back of her head that kept nagging her. Something about…

Her body darted up, waking Chloe on its way. The punk, not knowing where she was, grumbled some curses in surprise.

"C-Chloe?"

After letting out a sleepy sigh a half awake Chloe mumbled, "... Another shitty dream, babe?" A yawn interrupted her. "Get over here, snuggle with me. Snuggling always helps."

The freckled girl was obedient, and nestled her face against the inviting collarbone of her girlfriend, while drearily sighing, "No nightmares, Che."

The bigger girl noticed how much Max's body was trembling, after the smaller girl had fallen into her arms. "Sean Prescott… We fell asleep!... What if he didn't?...-"

"Easy there, Jumpy." Chloe interrupted the small girl, now a lot more lucid than a few seconds ago. One of her hands started massaging the hippie's head. "I was awake until around three. You really think he would come at such an hour?"

"But-" She couldn't even understand how she could be so careless in the first place.

"No buts, except your skinny one, here. He didn't come. We don't know why." The brunette didn't know what to answer. Chloe was right. But was that a reason to be happy? Maybe he didn't come because he didn't need to? Maybe he found another way to get out of the investigation. Would he still try to fuck them over then though?

Seeing that Max was about to have break down again, Chloe quickly tightened the hug, so that their bodies were pressing against each other. "Shh." The punk hummed, trying to hush the lost girl. "We're good, Maxy."

"Are we, really?" A husky voice came from the head, nestled in the punk's collar.

The blue haired girl knew what she was supposed to say, knew what she should say to keep Max from panicking, but she just couldn't bring herself to lie into her girlfriend's face. Instead, the two of them fell in an awkward silence.

After a few minutes of worrying and comforting, they brought it over themselves to stand up. "Let's get the fuck out of here. Do some sightseeing, eh?" The punk proposed.

"Sightseeing? Chlo, Arcadia hasn't changed too much, the past ten years."

"Well… Then, we'll do something else. I'll come up with something funny." The bigger girl was worried that her girlfriend would, just like yesterday, fall in a spiral of fear, and didn't even try to hide the fact that she wanted to stop that from happening again.

Then, like most mornings the two shared, Max tried to be subtle while gazing at the punk who was changing.

She should just leave the room for a minute, couldn't she? Max tried to justify her leching.

And the blue haired girl would have done so if it would've bother her. But Chloe somehow felt honored, in a weird kind of way. Also, she was the one who had made things awkward between them when it came to more… intimate affairs, so blaming someone else would be nothing but unfair.

But I won't fuck her. I'll make love to her! She promised the freckled girl quietly.

...

As they left the child room - Chloe hated it when someone called her room childish- they could hear Joyce getting ready for work in the bathroom. Just seconds later they found Chloe's step father as well. David was already sitting on the table next to the kitchen, having free on weekends was one of the few privileges he had. His face was hidden behind the newspaper he was reading. Max didn't know how things were between Chloe and her step dad now, but as he lowered the paper, he gave the two of them a weird look, she couldn't decipher at all.

They said good morning to him, and he politely greeted them without saying anything suspicious. The couple then moved in the kitchen to loot something edible. They were content after finding some milk and cereals. Even if neither of them was hunger, they still forced themselves to eat something at least. By now both of them knew that the other one would force them otherwise.

"So?"

"So… I guess we should head for Blackwell sooner or later, but before that we could hang out somewhere." Chloe suggested.

"Sounds good. Anything specific in mind?"

"Naaa, we'll see where the day will flow."

"Chloe have you been smoking again?" The two girls could hear David say.

The couple stared at each other dumbfoundedly, neither of them really knew if Chloe's step dad was joking, or if this was a serious question. "Uhm… N-No?" The punk finally let out after a few awkward moments.

"Sounds like the meds have sunk too deep into your head then."

The blue haired girl blinked a few times, looking at David with eyes wide open. "Are you… fucking with us right now?"

"Of Course I am… Christ, don't make it harder on me than it already is. I'm trying over here." He finally confessed. The adult man then cleared his throat before saying, "I couldn't help but overhear your conversation. Before you two head out, I want to talk to you two. In the garage preferably.

"Okaaaay?..." Chloe narrowed her eyes in distrust. It was… too weird. He was acting nice out of a blue? Just because he opened up a bit to them she wouldn't just forgive him... would she? Then again, now knowing that David had his own demons that haunted him, like his dead best friend, had brought him into a new light. The veteran never really hated Chloe or her lifestyle, but he loathed himself.

And he couldn't find a better way of expressing himself then to unleash it on me?... Like I'm one to talk about dealing with bad temper...

Saying that I never hit someone I love would be a fucking lie… So, maybe… fuck…. So, maybe me and him really aren't that different? Ugh, it hurts to just think stuff like this.

While Chloe was dealing with her inner struggle, Max had agreed -on behalf of both of them- to meet him in his garage after they were done breakfasting. David nodded, folded his newspaper, stuck it under his arm, and left the room with it.

The punk slowly turned around, brows furrowed for multiple reasons. "Dude, we're really going in his step-cave? Like, isn't that what parents warn young kids about?"

"Just that he isn't a stranger, Chlo."

"Oh, you sure? Now that I think about it, didn't you write in your journal that you jumped into my truck just like that?"

"T-That was completely different!" The freckled girl said with an unusual high pitched voice. "Nathan was there, and I just recognized you, too!"

"Hmm, so you say that you trusted me? After all those years? Even if I look totally trashed now?"

"I-I… Wowser, do you really want to hear it?" Max grimaced in agony.

"What?"

"How did we even end here?"

"Don't try to be evasive now, Caulfield. Spit it out." The punk scoffed.

"There's nothing to be spit." Max groaned back.

"Nothing, but…"

Max felt liked balling together. Her blue eyes were meeting the ground, one hand going through her nearly-brown hair. "That you fucking mesmerized me, the moment I saw you? You were there. My childhood friend. Chloe Elizabeth Price. Not the energetic little girl I used to know, but instead a full fledged woman. With this awesome punk style that I wish I had on top of that!" Max buried her face in her hands, cheeks glowing red. Chloe was her girlfriend, but that didn't mean she couldn't feel embarrassed anymore.

We're talking about me, Maxine Caulfield, the shy hipster geek here. No way I'll ever not be embarrassed about half my life!

The brunette then risked a quick glimpse at Chloe, and noticed that her girlfriend was staring at her with a picture-book smug smile.

"What?" Maxine hissed.

"Oh, nothing." The punk shrugged. "You're just… adorbs, is all."

"L-Let's just talk to David, shall we?"

"Sure, sure." The bigger girl agreed, in a weird way that let Max know that this wouldn't be the last she heard about this topic. But instead of pouting any longer, she put her empty bowl in the dishwasher.

Neither of them was sure what they should expect from David's invitation. Instead, of coming up with some wild theory, they decided to just go in there and face him.

"We could just sneak away. Be the Arcadia Ninjas once more." Chloe tried one last time to convince her girlfriend.

The freckled girl rolled her eyes in return, although an amused grin played around her lips. She then reached for the door, and opened it.

"Ah, there you two are. Close the door behind you, would you please."

Chloe didn't like this. Being in a shady room with no one, but Max and her step. She couldn't help it, even if she knew that he was trying.

Trying what exactly? She asked herself in silence. You can't just lay the mantel of sergeant pepper down.

David was sitting on a wooden chair, next to his workbench. A few screws were laying next to the -now folded- newspaper issue. He stood up so that the couple could see it better, and then pointed at the paper with his chin, not leaving the two girls out of his eyes. "Didn't want Joyce to see you two, when you read this. She would know something's off."

And it was just then that both of them were struck with the same idea. It wasn't like one of those sappy moments in a cliche story where you find it cute that you, and your love think alike. No, not at all.

There was a feeling of utter disgust, brimming with hatred for the idea alone.

If this would be a movie then there would be a funny catch to all of this, but neither of them felt like laughing. The only thing they felt was the hammering of their hearts against their rib cage.

If this would indeed be a story, then neither of the girls would be the funky protagonist. Despite Chloe's sad back-story. Despite Max's super powers. Neither of them was the hero of this story.

Nathan was.

In front of them was the new issue of "Arcadia-Express." Probably the most popular newspaper of the town. On the front cover a face that had haunted Max's dreams since last week constantly.

"Sean Prescott not the good guy from next door? More on page 2!"

…

"This is really good!"

"Told you."

"Count me surprised. I thought your idea was maximum snobby."

"Drinking tea has nothing to do with being wealthy, Chloe." Kate corrected the blue haired girl. But good to know that you like it here."

The three of them were sitting in a coffee, although neither of them was actually drinking the brown coffin-filled liquid. Instead, they were following Kate's advice, and tried different types of tea. Chloe was pleased with a bitter black one, and Max had just found her new favorite sort: peppermint.

"So, how was school today?" Chloe asked the two students.

"I would've told you if something exciting would've happened" Max pointed out. "Or do you just want to remind me how boring it is without you?"

"Heh, maybe? And how are things on your end Katie? Max told me that you and Vicky are hella besties now?"

"W-Well, besties is taking it a bit far… But she doesn't bully me, or anyone at all, anymore."

"Hmm… We're talking about Chase, right?" And as the blonde girl nodded in response, the punk frowned. "That's weird. Wasn't she the queen bee of Blackwell?"

"Exactly. Was." Kate tried to defend her new friend.

"Ha, look at that Maximus, she's getting all smart ass on me!"

With a smile on her face, the brunette quipped back, "Well, sitting here drinking tea isn't that punk-rock either, is it?"

"Course it is! As if you had an idea of what a life as punk girl is about. We are like onions."

Before Max could warn her classmate she innocently asked. "Like onions? You make people cry?"

"No, Kitty-Kate. We have layers. Like onions."

While Kate was simply confused, the blue haired girl couldn't hold the chuckle in any longer.

"Don't worry, Kate. It's just a quote from a movie we watched yesterday."

The blonde let out a confused "Ahhh." but left it at that.

It had been five days since Sean Prescott was supposed to blackmail the partners in time. Five days without a single word from Nathan's father.

Today, it being Wednesday once again, they had met up with Kate to get something close to a breather to all the worrying they had done in the last few days.

And the christian girl was delivering. For a few hours the couple hadn't thought once about storms, psycho teachers, or evil billionaires. Just three girls enjoying some tea accompanied by sweet biscuits.

After a lot of brooding over the article, Chloe and Max had come up with two theories: The first one was that the police had given the press the information, though this was unlikely. Nathan's papers were probably still being used in the investigation after all.

The second one was simply that the heir of the family had given them to the newspaper himself.

"Duh, as if he wouldn't have a copy of documents that mean this much to him." Chloe could facepalm herself for not thinking about it before.

"So, he needed the papers to reach the police safely, before he could take the risk to give them someone else."

"Exactly, Watson. His father could've easily bought the press. Or threatened them. Or whatever those rich people do." The punk shrugged.

But it didn't matter to either of them what happened. They didn't care. Forced themselves not to care. No, this time they would simply be happy, even if it felt wrong that Nathan probably had played a bigger role in it, than both of them together.

But they wouldn't care about something like that either. Nope. Not this time.

That was at least what they told themselves, but the sad truth was that it was shredding them up from within. Especially Chloe felt taunted by the fact that Rachel's killer had saved her and her new love. Like it was one more prank the universe pulled on her.

But right now both of them were just enjoying the time they spent with Kate Marsh.

"Max, sorry if I ask so boldly, but you said you would try to come to school as much as possible. We were pretty worried when you… well, didn't come. Something happened, right?" Kate asked them after pondering over Chloe's weird quote for some time.

"Yep. Something did happen. And no, Kate, this time I seriously can't tell you anything." Max knew that the act of admitting alone was probably too much already, but she had lied to Kate enough already.

"Can't say I'm not curious, but I won't annoy you with it again, I guess."

"No, don't you even think that it annoys me! It's actually really sweet of you to worry. I'm lucky to have a friend like you, Kate." The freckled girl clarified.

A sudden clap startled both friends, and their eyes darted towards Chloe, who had just clapped her hands once. "Okay, ladies, enough lame sappy blabla. Time to do something exciting."

"I love you, Che, but you saying something like this doesn't mean something good." Max was still overwhelmed with how well Kate had taken all of this. She didn't even make a face when the two of them kissed each other. Like it was… just normal. Then again, had Kate ever been a person that judged other for what they are?

Max was pulled back into reality by an intense stare from her girlfriend. The blue haired girl slightly furrowed her brows, while not losing the big grin on her lips. Her big blue eyes were sparkling. The type of sparkling that screamed mischief. And instead of retorting anything to soothe her girlfriend, Chloe just stood up and readied herself to leave.

As the three girls -Max and Kate being pushed out by Chloe- left the coffee, she then finally explained what she had planned for the rest of the evening.

We're gonna give you a new style. And little Kate will help me with it."

"Uh-oh." The blonde said unsure.

"You know, Maxster over here always dreamed to be a punk girl."

And there it was. The freckled girl had already anticipated something like this. She knew her girlfriend too good to think that she would simply drop something like that.

"You do?" Kate asked sheepishly.

"W-Well…" The brunette fiddled with her fingers. "Not punk, but at least a bit more… I don't know, daring? I guess?" She didn't even try to deny it. There was no escape.

"Explains the pink in your hair." Her classmate concluded. "I guess you can afford it with the new job of yours."

The punk was actually doing pretty well as a server. Despite knowing that Jefferson had been in said local once, Max even visited her girlfriend here and there. At first it was even a bit alienating. Chloe wearing something normal. Normal meaning a white vest slung over a blue top, and black pants. Her being polite to strangers, always carrying a friendly smile on her lips. Chloe was actually trying.

It made Max proud of her, just thinking about it.

The punk lead the two students to her truck. Afterwards she started the engine of her not-so-safe-to-drive truck and finally explained what she had in mind.

"The problem is, Shitcadia doesn't have any shops. Well, except for the stuff… you wear normally."

Knowing that it was just a playful jab, Max let out a huff but then noted, "Always did wonder where you got your clothes from."

"One powerful, yet magical word. Internet."

The brunette needed a moment, but then she understood what that meant. "If we don't go shopping does that mean… I'm not gonna do a Chloe-cosplay…"

"We're gonna do Chlosplays!" Kate announced cheerfully, before her eyes went down to the radio clock on Chloe's truck. "Dang it, it's already past five. Sorry to let you guys hang but I really should finish some of my homework…"

The punk sighed, not even trying to hide her disappointment. "School sucks!"

"I'm sorry…"

"Don't be, Kate. We can't all life from a side job, like some do."

"H-Hey, what's that supposed to mean?" The blue haired girl faked to be offended, which just earned another scoff from Max.

"That Kate got a bright future. We shouldn't try to pull her down with us."

"Us? Babe, I think your talking yourself down again."

"Nuh-uh. I've fallen too deep into the rabbit hole."

For a moment Chloe wanted to retort with "More like punk hole", but then she noticed how awkward that would sound. Her cheeks suddenly felt slightly warmer than a minute ago. Not much, but more than enough for Max to notice. She didn't comment on it though, but instead blushed as well, silently understanding what her girlfriend must've been thinking.

A few minutes later they reached Blackwell. As Kate left the car, she turned around, one eyebrow quirked up. "What about you, Max? Gonna sleep at Chloe's again?"

The freckled girl just shrugged in return. Sleeping alone was still… unsettling. But she couldn't explain that to Kate, could she? "Probably."

"See you tomorrow, then?"

"Kate, you don't need to make sure. I won't chuck another sickie."

"For now." Chloe added, her smile of mischief lurking on the tips of her mouth again.