"Noooo!"
Time slowed down as Chloe stepped off the cliff, gravity taking hold immediately as she plunged out of sight. Max started forward but Nathan quickly ran to stop herself from following her friend. A moment later, there was a dull thud from the beach below and Max sank to her knees, sobbing uncontrollably. Jefferson quickly moved to her side and pointed the gun at her.
"Max, look at me," he commanded, but Max was too far inside her shell to acknowledge. The former photography teacher just stood there, looking at the sobbing girl, shaking uncontrollably on the ground. He waited for several minutes, finally nodding to Nathan, who nodded back. "Max, I'm not a monster," he said. "I didn't kill Chloe, she chose to kill herself to save you." He paused, looking up at the storm. "I'm a man of my word," he continued, looking back at the stricken girl. He turned and, followed by Nathan, they walked off into the forest, leaving Max alone.
Chloe.
Chloe.
Don't leave me…
…
Five minutes later, Victoria and Kate, stumbling out of the trees, found Max. She was still on her knees, sobbing uncontrollably face-down in the mud, total inconsolable. From careful prompting by Kate, Max pointed over the cliff and Victoria, carefully looking over the edge, saw Chloe's broken body on the beach below. She immediately clapped her hand over her mouth and began crying, stopping Kate from looking over and for several minutes, all three girls cried together.
Suddenly, there was a crash from overhead. Victoria looked up in horror to see a large boat smashing into the lighthouse. In slow motion, the whole top section crumbled and began to fall down, straight to where they were kneeling.
"Run!" she yelled, and Kate looked up, immediately scrambling away. But Max didn't seem to hear her, and it was she could do to pull the girl out of the way, her sore ankle reluctantly doing what she'd asked, the masonry and wood crashing down just feet away from where they were scrambling away. "Max!" she screamed, more in frustration and fear of what might have happened rather than any anger, but the small girl, caught up in her own world, failed to hear her, or even acknowledge that she was there. Kate helped and together they managed to drag Max a fair distance away from the lighthouse, now with its entire top section exposed to the wild elements. The tall girl shivered as the biting cold once again wrapped its icy arms around her, coupled with the knowledge that they had come so close to serious injury, or worse.
"Max?" asked Kate, gently. She took the girl in her arms and rocked her gently back and forth. "Ssh, Max, it's okay," she whispered. "But we need to get out of the storm, yeah? Will you at least stand up?" She looked across to Victoria, who tested her ankle. It still hurt to put any weight on it, but now wasn't the time to complain. She bent down, hooked Max's arm over her shoulder and together with Kate, managed to raise her to her feet.
Max was still totally unresponsive and a dead weight. Her head lolled from side to side, her eyes completely devoid of any life. In fact, the only way they knew she was still alive was her ragged breathing. Between them, they helped her down the path, avoiding the slippery mud, the falling trees and the rocks which had somehow broken out of their pile and were rolling freely down the path.
Suddenly, Victoria's ankle gave out completely, and she fell to the floor, pulling Max and Kate down with her. She moaned in pain as Kate picked herself up, first making sure that Max was comfortable, sat with her back temporarily up against a fallen tree trunk, then tending to her other friend, who was lying in the mud, face screwed up in pain.
"Tori?" Kate asked, as she helped the blonde girl to sit up. "Your ankle?" Victoria nodded as Kate knelt down in the mud, propping Victoria's leg upon her own. She winced as Kate's hands touched her swollen ankle, and Kate immediately looked up, apologetic, but Victoria just motioned for her to continue.
Kate's hands were cold, but Victoria hardly noticed as her friend removed her shoe and vigorously rubbed the circulation back into her ankle. She winced several times, but eventually felt able to stand, which she did with Kate's help. She stood, balancing precariously on one leg, and looked at Max, who was sat, still non-responsive, against the tree. Kate took her hand and pulled gently, helping Max to her feet.
They made their way slowly and carefully down the path. Now, Kate found herself supporting both Max and Victoria's weight, and several times the mud nearly got the better of her, but she gainly stayed on her feet, stayed strong for her friends, and eventually they reached Victoria's car. Kate unlocked it and helped first Max into the back seat, then Victoria into the passenger side before finally climbing in herself.
As she shut the door, the world changed. Gone was the sting of the driving rain, the howl of the vicious wind, the bite of the deathly cold. She immediately turned the ignition on and began to warm the car up, sighing happily to be out of the cold. A few minutes later, the car had begun to feel far warmer, and she sighed in relief and gazed over at the blonde girl sitting in the passenger seat. Victoria had removed both her shoes and was slowly massaging her ankle. In the light of the car, it really did look nasty. It had swollen up to double its normal size and had taken on a nasty purple hue, and by the constant grimacing on Victoria's face, it was causing her pain. A lot of pain.
Victoria noticed Kate's gaze and blushed involuntarily. "Thanks."
Kate smiled gently. "It was my pleasure, Tori," she said, placing her hand on Victoria's arm, causing the blonde girl to flinch ever so slightly. "How is it?" she said, inclining her head towards Victoria's ankle.
"It's been better," said Victoria. "Probably could have done without the walk up there and back if I'm being honest, but it needed to be done." She paused. "Thanks, Kate," she said, blushing more. "You didn't have to do that, you know."
"Oh, I know that," said Kate, brightly. She looked forward and her face dropped slightly. "What do we do now?" She turned around to look at Max, still sat quietly on the back seat. "And what about Max?"
Victoria fell silent for a moment, thinking. "Well," she began, cautiously, "don't take this wrong way, but I don't think we should, I mean, you should be driving in this, yeah?"
Kate looked relieved. "Thanks," she said, breathing a little easier, "I wasn't looking forward to that."
"Can you at least get us out of the storm, or at least a way away?" asked Victoria. "I'd rather not get caught up in it." She smiled, a little wanly, but to her immense relief Kate nodded.
"I can do that," she said, "although I won't be driving quickly.
"Fine," agreed the taller girl. "Just get us out of here. And don't go to the Dark Room," she continued. "Even though everyone is sheltering there, I don't want you or Max anywhere near it."
"A-and you?" said Kate. "I'm guessing you don't really want to be there either?"
Victoria nodded in response. "Yeah," she said quietly. "I'd… rather not go there either."
"You know anywhere we can go?"
Victoria nodded again. "I think so," she said, pointing to the left and behind. "Go back that way, I'll direct you." Kate nodded and started the car.
…
Fifteen minutes later, Kate pulled off the road and killed the engine. They were outside Arcadia Bay, well out of the range of the storm, looking back at the town they called home. Above the trees, visibly swaying in the wind, was the hungry maw of the tornado, closing in on the sleepy seaside town like a slow, deliberate, relentless predator. While Max was still non-responsive, both Kate and Victoria could do nothing except sit in shocked silence, watching the storm continue its merciless pursuit of the small, defenceless town. Neither girl said anything, nor were any tears shed. They simply sat in a stunned silence, trying to digest what they were witnessing; the possible death of their home.
However, just before it made landfall, the storm finally ran out of energy and quickly dissipated. The funnel collapsed in on itself, the skies cleared and the wind died down to an eerie calm. Several minutes passed like this before Kate and Victoria realised they were holding each other's hand tightly. They both let go at the same moment, both blushing. Victoria looked forward towards the bay, but Kate concentrated on the girl in the back of the car. Immediately, she could see that Max was shivering; her arms were wrapped around herself, even though the air in the car was warm.
"Max?" Kate climbed out of the car and sat in the back, next to Max. She placed her arm gently around Max's shoulders. But again, there was no response from Max. "Max?" said Kate, again. "Max, the storm's over. We're through it. You're safe now, with Victoria and myself." She fell silent, simply embracing her dear friend as she felt Max's shoulders begin to heave as tears streaked a familiar path down Max's cheeks once more. In silence, she held Max until her tears finally evaporated and Max once again lay still.
Then, Kate felt Max's weight shift slightly. It wasn't much, but it was noticeable. She looked across and smiled. Max had leaned into Kate, sharing her warmth. It was a small gesture, but, considering her state over the previous hour or so, it was an important one.
"Hey," she whispered, hugging Max tighter and feeling her respond, if sluggishly. "Anyone home?" She twisted to give Max a reassuring kiss on her forehead, then fell silent and, with a glance to Victoria, ensured that she stayed silent as well. She felt Max's breathing begin to slow down and her whole body began to relax. Eventually, after several minutes of silence, she felt Max shift in her arms. Her head raised slightly, and Kate's heart began to beat in anticipation.
"Kate?"
The voice, when it came, was quiet but full of emotion. The desperation and sadness in that single word nearly set Kate crying again. Instead, she just held Max tight.
"Hey," she whispered again. "Welcome back, Max."
