It was the 15th of November and Chloe checked the mail as soon as she pulled into the driveway. She was disappointed when she looked into the empty mailbox. As she walked inside the house, she was immediately met with a smile from her girlfriend. "Looking for something?" Max asked, handing a the plastic-wrapped magazine to her girlfriend.

"Hello, love," Chloe smiled, kissing her partner and grabbing the magazine, which she swiftly unwrapped. Thumbing through the pages, she stopped abruptly as a full-page, high-resolution image of the tiger caught her eye. 'She's Back!' read the title on the adjacent page.

'It was only a matter of time before Oregon 'Fresh Ink' winner Chloe Price graced our pages again. With her multiple award-winning back piece [adjacent], she proved that time was now. Still just twenty years of age, Chloe's stunning work is already earning her acclaim throughout the industry...'

The girls stood together, reading the article with equal amounts of wonder. Max would stroke her partner's back absent-mindedly, smiling as she read the flattering words. Beyond that, neither moved but to turn the pages.

'Well done if you took our advice back in June and booked an appointment early. If not, at least know that your new tattoo from this highly desired artist, will be well worth the wait. You can find Chloe at her immaculate new 'InkedIn' studio in the heart of Portland.'

"Holy fuck, Max," Chloe said in astonishment as she finished the article. "Lita just went ballistic!"

"You deserve every word, my sweet," Max smiled proudly. "That was pretty amazing though, I have to say."

"People are, like...gonna read that shit...about me," Chloe went on, still in disbelief.

Max laughed at her confounded partner, "Well if not, a few people we know are going to be out of work." The younger girl took the magazine from her unmoving lover's hands, placing it on the dining table. "Roll 'em up, sister," she grinned, smacking Chloe roughly on the backside.

The older girl snapped from her reverie with a laugh, "Pour 'em, sister!"

~oOo~

A couple of weeks had passed and the two girls were getting ready for the opening of Max's exhibition at 'Ruby Tuesday Gallery'. Max was feeling more nervous than she could ever remember. She thought back to that other time-line in which she was again consoling herself. 'With everything you've been through, this should be one of the least scary things...' she thought as she dressed into a nice new pair of blue jeans and brown faux-suede jacket, bought specifically for the occasion. Looking at herself in the mirror, face made-up and hair done earlier in the day, Max couldn't help but smile. She was happy with her new look and it gave her a little extra confidence. "Are you nearly ready, babe?" the brown-haired girl called out.

"Just a second," Chloe yelled back from the spare room. Max was looking forward to seeing what her partner had in store, ever since she said she was getting changed in the other room. Unbeknownst to Max, the older girl had gone shopping for a new outfit herself. Chloe had wanted something a little more sophisticated for her girlfriend's big night. She looked in the mirror and felt a flutter of apprehension, putting it aside and walking out into the lounge room.

Max stared at her girlfriend, mouth agape. She'd never seen anything quite so breathtaking before and it rendered her completely speechless. "I don't think I've worn a dress for nearly ten years," Chloe said. "Does it look ok?" The dress was of the little and black variety, figure hugging and sleek and stopping at the middle of her pale thighs. She wore a stylish black leather jacket and a pair of tall, black, high-heeled boots with silver buckles which extended up to her knees. A lock of her blue hair fell across her fair, lightly made-up face. Dark red pouting lips pursed in a tight grin.

"Ok?" Max gulped. "Chloe, my God! I...we need to fuck...for years."

Chloe burst into laughter, "Oh shit, Max! That's absolutely beautiful."

"Sorry, babe," Max smiled. "Seriously though...I don't think I've seen anything so stunning in my whole life. No waterfalls. No sunsets."

"Flattery will get you absolutely everywhere, my love," Chloe grinned. "Starting as soon as we get home."

"One second, babe." Max said, running to the bedroom. "I need a photo of this, so bad."

"Porn for Max," Chloe said cheekily.

"I can't argue," Max smirked as she returned.

~oOo~

The two girls walked into the gallery hand-in hand. Max was nervous, but the presence of her stunning, rock-star girlfriend gave her renewed confidence. "Hello darling," the gallery owner greeted, giving her a warm hug. "And your gorgeous plus one?"

"This is Chloe. My partner," the younger girl smiled.

"Adorable. Lovely to meet you, my dear," Ruby said, hugging the blue-haired girl.

"You too," Chloe smiled at the lady's easy-going nature.

"Help yourself to some refreshments if you like. There are canapés and champagne over there," the older lady said, pointing to a large table that was set up against a wall. "I've invited some lovely people. I think you'll really like them, and they're looking forward to meeting you."

"Thank you so much, Mrs Wa-" Max began.

"Ruby, please. Mrs. Wainwright was my mother." the woman smiled.

"Thank you, Ruby," Max said again.

~oOo~

Throughout the night, Max was introduced to many members of the local art community. From fellow photographers, writers and painters to collectors, dealers and gallery owners. She was speaking with one of the collectors, Philippe Lapierre. A tall, slim and debonair man in his early fifties wearing an Armani suit, he spoke with a distinctive French accent and exuded affluence. He'd come at the request of his close friend, Ruby, and was interested to see the potential in the young photographer. "A very impressive eye for someone so young," he said looking over the prints. "I'll take these five for five hundred," he smiled, pointing out some of the works.

"Um...I really appreciate it, thank you," Max said, unsure of the man's offer. "But I'm selling them for half that."

The older man laughed, "A few hundred here or there is fine, really. Besides, if I'm right I'll get to have bragging rights about the day I bought some of your early works for a mere hundred dollars."

"You really think my pictures will be that valuable one day?" Max asked, never thinking much about finances beside selling a few pieces online. It had been enough of a shock to her to have prints for sale at all.

"I'm not saying you're the next Leibovitz, necessarily," Philippe smiled, "But who can say? Whatever the case, you have talent and I'll be surprised if you don't make a name for yourself in the photography circle. This is how it all begins. You sell five pieces to me for five hundred. People know me, so it already values your work higher than it was ten minutes ago. If I'd invested my last five hundred dollars right now, I'd tell you to start slowly raising your prices right away. But thankfully I'm not, so this isn't about money," he laughed. "Every time you meet someone like me and you sell more of your work, make sure you set your prices to match. One day you'll deal in thousands rather than tens or hundreds."

"I really appreciate the advice, thank you," Max smiled gratefully. "And the money," she added jokingly.

"My pleasure," the wealthy man smiled easily. "Always happy to share the few things that I've learned in this life. Now, I must bid you and the lovely miss Chloe, adieu." Philippe kissed each of the girls' hands with an abundance of charm. "And my dearest, sparkling Ruby," he said, turning to the older lady, "An honour and a privilege as always, to be around someone so beautiful." He kissed her on both cheeks and hugged her before turning to walk out. "Ladies," he said with a bow and a smile.

"A bit of a charmer," Max smiled as the man left.

"Been charming me for nearly thirty years," Ruby said wistfully.

~oOo~

The night had finished and Max was both disappointed and slightly relieved. She'd never shaken so many hands and spoken so much about herself before. It was a little overwhelming and quite exhaustive. The girls thanked Ruby for the evening and were sitting outside in Max's Mini. "Happy, angel?" Chloe asked, grabbing her partner's hand.

"Couldn't be happier, my love," Max smiled back. "Tired...and very sick of talking about myself all the time. It's so awkward! But yes...very happy."

"Philippe was sure impressed," Chloe said with a grin.

"I think he'd be impressed with anything that has breasts," the younger girl joked and Chloe laughed out loud. "But yeah, he was a cool guy. I can't believe he bought five prints."

"You sold a fair few, babe," Chloe said, having watched people's reaction to her girlfriend's work all night. Noticing which people wanted a print here or there. Max was surprised by the number of sales too. Probably only around twenty-five or so including Philippe's, but exhibition openings aren't necessarily where most sales are made. They're building blocks for the show ahead, and the career ahead.

"I'm kind of shocked, to be honest," Max said, her mind still buzzing. "There were so many amazing people from the art scene. Ruby meant it when she said she knew everyone. I had to laugh when a couple of them recognised you, too. My celebrity girlfriend."

"After the night you had, sweets, I think there's plenty of celebrity for both of us," Chloe smiled. Max stared at her blue-haired lover sitting across from her in that tight black dress. She'd done so many times throughout the evening. Her eyes drifted up and down her partner's body, undressing her, but at the same time not wanting to change a thing about the sight she was seeing. Unable to control herself any longer, Max threw herself awkwardly over the parking brake and kissed Chloe's crimson lips ardently.

~oOo~

"Enough!" a flustered Max exclaimed a little while later, climbing back over to her side of the car and starting the engine. "Must have you now!"

"Step on it, Metal Max," Chloe laughed. "Get me home and have your damn way with me!" She was enjoying Max's reaction to her look, but it was slowly becoming lost to the anticipation that was ever growing. Max drove faster than she'd driven before, though to be fair, it was still pretty close to the speed limit.