Max stepped out the door of the apartment, following Chloe and Rachel downstairs and out the building towards the parking lot, where Chloe's "beast" was waiting for them.
Chloe turned around and looked at Max. "I uh, made some alterations to the truck."
Max stared in awe. "I can see that."
The truck looked completely different. It was actually clean finally, its pale cream coat reflecting the sunlight perfectly. It featured various pieces of Chloe's artwork, and a rainbow flag hung off the back.
Max smirked. "I see you finally set your patriotism on something that actually deserves it."
"The three housewives of Arcadia Gay." Chloe smiled.
Max and Rachel laughed.
"There's still room in the truck for your skinny ass, even if it is a tight squeeze." Rachel smiled.
"Look who's talking, Professional Model." Max smirked.
"Settle down, you two." Chloe said. "Get in, we got to go to the stores and we don't have all day."
"One of us does." Rachel smiled.
"Ah, yes, cause I WANT to overuse my power." Max replied sarcastically. "To the point where it acts on its own, apparently." Max murmured.
Rachel gritted her teeth and said nothing. Chloe simply stared at her truck, her back to Max.
"We should leave. Both here and this conversation." Chloe said.
"Yeah. Agreed." Rachel nodded.
Once again, Max squeezed in between Rachel and Chloe as Chloe drove. Whereas the last time it was awkward, this time it felt completely natural. They must have been doing this for quite some time.
"How long have I been living with you guys?" Max asked.
"Ever since you left Seattle. About a month ago." Chloe explained.
"A month? Wowzers."
"Wow. I didn't think you still said that." Chloe smirked. "Guess some things never change, huh?"
"I would hope not."
"Like I said, better ring your parents. They might be able to update you."
"Yeah, definitely will."
"Plus, you can tell them what to get you for your birthday."
"My… birthday?" Max asked slowly. It hadn't even occurred to her that her birthday was only 3 weeks away. According to everyone except her, she wasn't even 18 yet. She wondered how Chloe and Rachel felt about that.
"Passage of time must feel weird, huh?" Rachel asked.
"Yeah. Technically I've lived longer than you guys."
"And yet, you're the minor." Chloe smirked. "Go figure."
"Heh. Yeah." Max felt downcast.
"Not long now." Rachel put her hand on Max's shoulder. "We're definitely gonna have a lot of fun on your birthday."
"I sure hope so." Max leaned back in her seat, looking up at the ceiling light, slumping downwards. "For once, I just wanna chill out and not worry about people dying or the world ending or whatever."
"It's unfair, the level of responsibility that was thrown on you." Chloe said. "Anyway, enough of that. We're here."
After spending several minutes finding a car park, they got out of the truck and went into the store.
"What are we even getting, anyway?" Max frowned.
"I don't know, boring shit? Milk, bread." Chloe paused. "Weed."
"Yes, Chloe. Let's go ask for some weed at a shitty convenience store. That'll go down well." Rachel said.
"Knowing you it might actually work." Chloe replied.
"I'm not a siren, Chloe."
"You may as well be." Chloe whispered, sneaking a grab at Rachel's ass.
Rachel jumped. "Chloe! We're in public!" She whispered harshly.
"That makes it hotter." Chloe whispered back.
"Ugh I'm so gonna murder you."
Max laughed. "You two are such dorks."
"I see not everything changes." Came a soft voice that Max didn't recognise. Chloe and Rachel whipped their heads around straight away.
"Steph?" Rachel cried.
"Holy shit." Chloe said.
"Yep. The very same." The girl, apparently called Steph, said.
"Holy shit." Chloe said again. "Steph fucking Gingrich is a checkout chick. Who'da thought?"
Steph shrugged. "I'm doing fine, thank you for asking." She smiled. "How are you guys? This must be the elusive Max."
Max blushed. "Yeah. Hi. That'd be me."
"So tell me Max." Steph narrowed her eyes. "How on Earth did you get yourself mixed up with these idiots? I take it you keep them in check."
Max laughed. "Not likely. Chloe and I have been friends since we were babies. Real troublemaker then, real troublemaker now."
"As you well know." Chloe smiled.
"Seattle must have sucked without her." Steph said, fiddling with a dragon necklace that she wore around her neck.
"Not being with Chloe did make it harder to enjoy it there. At least she had Rachel."
Steph looked down. "Yeah. That was good."
Chloe leaned down and whispered in Max's ear. "She had a major crush on Rachel in high school. I swooped in a day before she wanted to make a move not even knowing. Still hasn't gotten over it, I guess."
"She seems nice." Max whispered back.
"Oh yeah. Real gentle soul. She was nice. It's good to run into her again."
"So how's Mikey and Drew?" Rachel asked. "It's been a while since… you know."
"They're good." Steph nodded and leaned on the counter. She parted her bright red hair behind her ear. "It's kinda wild, actually. They both fucked off down South first chance they could. Ironic considering the name, huh?" She chuckled.
"Really? What for?" Chloe asked.
"Well, Drew got signed on to a pro-football team in San Francisco, so that's where they live now. Mikey wants to work at Silicon Valley some day, and considering his grades, he might actually do it."
Rachel's jaw dropped. "Silicon Valley?"
"I knew the kid was ambitious, but holy shit." Chloe breathed.
"I can't believe he's only 16." Steph shook her head. "I played DnD with him so often it's easy to forget that he was so young when everything happened."
"You must miss him." Chloe said.
Steph sniffed. "Yeah. And Drew as well. After Mikey came out of hospital, Drew kept coming to our sessions. Says he really enjoyed it." Steph looked sad for a moment. "He still hasn't forgiven himself over the whole Prescott thing."
"Prescott can handle it." Rachel said, but Chloe glared at her and she sighed. "Yeah. I know. He just creeps me out."
"I don't think I've seen Mikey and Drew since they left Blackwell." Chloe looked down. "Or you, for that matter."
"Times change, I guess. Doing some internships here and there, but this is what I do to survive now."
"I work at Two Whales' diner. My mom is my fucking boss. How cool is that?" Chloe said, causing Steph to laugh.
Max's attention was drawn elsewhere. Steph seemed cool, but Max felt that she couldn't really be a part of the conversation. She looked around for the things Chloe said to buy. A man in a thick coat walked into the store with his hood up, despite it being nearly 75 degrees outside. Max stared at him intently.
"I shouldn't be so prejudiced. He's probably fine." Max thought, but she couldn't help but continue to stare at him. He stood in the corner for a few seconds, eyeing some soft drinks. After a while he turned and headed straight for the counter. Steph wasn't paying attention. Max saw the man reach into his coat pocket and pull out a gun. "Shit!" Max cried. She held out her right hand and watched as he reversed his way through the store and out the door. She gave it a few more minutes before stopping. "Fuck. That really hurt." Max thought, clutching her head. "Gotta warn them."
"I knew the kid was ambitious, but holy shit." Chloe breathed.
Max tapped Chloe on the shoulder desperately.
"Jesus Max alright." Chloe said. "Give me a second, Steph."
Steph shrugged.
"Max, I'm trying to talk to an old friend. What's wrong?"
"Armed robber. About 5 minutes away." Max whispered.
Chloe stared wide-eyed at her. "Holy fuck are you sure?" She whispered back.
"I saw him pull out his gun on Steph. Some guy with a coat and a hood."
"Shit. Okay. What should we do?"
"I'll hide by the door and try to ambush him. I'll hit him from behind and then you subdue him. Get Steph to call the cops and wait, I guess."
"Okay Max. Remember to rewind in case anything goes wrong."
Max nodded. "I will." Her mind flash-backed to all the various times she had been forced to save Chloe's life. She hoped it wasn't another one of those times. A few minutes later, Max was standing by the door, pretending to look bored. Chloe had resumed her conversation with Rachel and Steph, but kept side-eyeing her. The man walked in, his body shaking. Max didn't want to make a scene in case he testified against her, so she followed close behind, waiting for him to make a move. Chloe nodded at her as she walked past. The man walked to the drinks just as he did before, staring at them intently. He turned slightly. Instead of going straight to the counter, he walked past Max and headed to the other side of the store. Max was confused. She followed him. He walked away. She followed him.
And then he punched her.
"Shit! Fuck!" Max cried, clutching her eye.
Chloe immediately panicked and ran towards him. "What the fuck!" She growled. The man tried to reach his gun, but Max regained her senses enough to grab him and pull his arm back just long enough for Chloe to close the distance. The man stomped on Max's toe and elbowed her in the stomach, knocking her backwards. Chloe punched him in the face and he fell over. He didn't get up.
"Ah! Shit! That really fucking hurt!" Max cried, unsure which part of her body was the most sore. She sucked air heavily through her teeth.
"Shit Max, you alright?" Chloe asked.
"Thanks to you. That could have gone a lot worse."
"Steph, call the cops. Now." Rachel commanded.
"You don't have to tell me twice." Steph said, staring in awe at Max and Chloe as she grabbed her cellphone.
A few minutes later, Officer Berry showed up with another younger-looking cop Max didn't recognise. Officer Berry took Max's statement while the younger cop talked to Chloe. She and Rachel looked viscerally uncomfortable with the young cop's presence.
"Everything alright, Max?" Officer Berry asked.
"Yeah. Just a little shaken up. Can I talk to my friends?"
"Sure. Chloe was the one that hit him, right? We're gonna have to take you three down to the station. Nothing major, but Chloe does have a history and while this was most definitely self-defense, we still have to write it up."
"Uh, of course." Max gulped.
"You did the right thing, Max. That was very brave."
"Thanks, Officer Berry."
Officer Berry nodded and walked out, motioning to his apprentice. Max walked back over to Chloe.
"Eliot, what the fuck." Chloe hissed. "What happened to Mr. 'fuck the police and burn everything to the ground'?"
"Chloe, I was a kid." Eliot said. Max felt like that name was familiar.
"In some way, it kinda makes sense. After what you did." Chloe growled. Eliot looked down and inhaled deeply.
"I'm truly sorry about that. I didn't know what situation you were in, and I was a selfish and envious prick."
"You put Chloe's life, my life, and my mother's life in danger." Rachel said.
"Yes, I know." Eliot nodded and closed his eyes. "I'm really sorry. After I got kicked out of Blackwell, I gave myself some time to think about what I did and absolve it. Went to an army training camp for a couple years, then came back and trained to be a police officer."
"But why? So you can be more controlling? That's all it is. The Eliot I hung out with knew that."
"No! So I can be a positive force for Arcadia! I want to help people, in a way that doesn't hurt them."
Rachel scoffed. "Right, so you became a cop. Firefighters, EMTs, paramedics - fuck those guys, right?"
"No! I-" Eliot sighed. "Forget it. I have to go. It was nice seeing you two again."
"Goodbye, Eliot." Chloe said indignantly.
"Shit, who was that guy?" Max said after he left.
"Just some asshole from Blackwell. The guy who was obsessed with me, remember?"
"Oh my God, that was him?" Max shuddered.
"'Absolve'. What a pretentious dickhead." Rachel said.
"Probably wrote it in one of his famous poems." Chloe sighed.
"Ew." Rachel pulled a face. "Don't remind me."
"Don't get me wrong, they were well done, but just… eugh."
"What do you mean?" Max asked.
"How well do you get on with Warren? Or did. Will do. Whatever."
"I mean, he was pretty cool, I guess."
"Clearly super into you, that's for sure."
Max slapped her forehead. "I know." She sighed. "So, he was like that?"
"Eliot was a lot more subtle, but if anything that made it creepier. He got obsessive." Chloe shuddered. She was clearly still shaken over seeing him again.
"Let's get our things and leave." Max said.
"Good idea, Max." Rachel sighed. "Talk to Steph. We'll get the things."
Max smiled. "Sure." She walked up to Steph, feeling back to her normal shy and awkward self. "Hi."
"You're sweating pinballs, Max." Steph giggled. Max was immediately reminded of Well's first interrogation and shuddered. "Good on you for taking that guy out. I couldn't imagine what would have happened if you hadn't stepped in."
"That's why they call me Supermax." Max shrugged.
"Do they?" Steph asked with a weird smirk on her face.
"Only Chloe." Max giggled.
"Seems like all the cute ones are all over Chloe." Steph said. Max turned to hide her blush and Steph winked.
"Yep. Can't keep either of these two off me." Chloe said, placing a bag of food on top of the checkout.
"Wow Chloe, you're so cool and sexy, please have sex with me." Steph said sarcastically.
"The processing for applicants to the polycule take several months, I'm afraid. You'll just have to wait in line."
"I'm so excited." Steph replied as she scanned the last couple items.
Everyone laughed.
Rachel bagged the items before handing it to Chloe.
"Ah yes, at the end of the day, Rachel, you still need someone big and strong to carry all the stuff." Chloe mocked.
Rachel glared at her and grabbed the bag back off her. "It's not even heavy." She scoffed.
"You guys are so cute." Steph said.
"We're like an old married couple." Rachel said. "Except there's three of us, four if you want to account for Chloe's ego."
"Oh, right, yeah. Cause I spend half an hour looking at myself in the mirror every morning." Chloe fired back.
"I would too if I had Rachel's figure." Max said.
"Ouch, Max." Chloe pretended to look hurt.
"Oh fuck off. You know you're hot."
"Like I said, twice the ego." Rachel added.
"Woah! Suddenly everyone is on me! As my stepdad would say, I know when I'm outflanked."
"Oh we'll be on you alright." Rachel whispered, causing Chloe and Max to laugh.
"Ew ew ew!" Steph pulled a face. "Get this disgusting shit out of my store!" She shooed away the trio with her hands.
"It was really nice seeing you again, Steph. I've missed you."
"Likewise. We should all meet up sometime."
Chloe and Rachel looked at each other.
"Sounds like a plan." Rachel smiled. "We'll text you."
Max waved goodbye and followed Chloe and Rachel outside, where it was slowly starting to rain. "So, step- dad , huh?"
"Yes? I have a stepdad, Max. How long were you were out for?" Chloe looked confused.
"No, I just- I'm used to you calling him step-douche."
"I haven't called him that in ages." Chloe sighed. "He's a much better person now. That therapy did him well. And me. We needed it." Chloe sighed and turned to Rachel. "No more mock-therapy sessions in the back of old trucks for us, eh Rachel?"
Rachel laughed. "Nope. This time you get the real deal."
"Ha! Just meds for now, thanks." Chloe smiled. "Unless something else goes to shit." Chloe side-eyed Max, who shuddered and rubbed her arm.
"I'm… not sure how much has been changed. It does seem odd that I've been meeting so many people from your time at Blackwell, especially today. First Steph then Eliot? I never even MET them originally."
"Really? They must have like, jumped ship or something as soon as they left Blackwell." Chloe frowned.
"Well, now we know where Eliot went."
"But did he? In your weird timeline? How different could those two realities be?" Chloe asked.
"My head still hurts from taking that fucker down. I don't want to think quantum physics right now."
"Fair point."
"Urgh!" Max cried, clutching her head. "Shit! Ah fuck! Case in point- oof!" Max stopped walking for a few seconds so the headache could pass.
"Woah! You good, girl?" Rachel asked.
"Yeah. I'm fine now. Let's keep going- ah shit!" Her headache flared up again, this time much worse. She looked up to see a car careening around the corner on the road ahead of them, travelling far too fast.
Right as Victoria Chase was crossing the road.
"FUCK! VICTORIA!" Max screamed.
Victoria paid no attention. Max saw she was wearing headphones. She couldn't hear a thing. Max, in her pained state, knew there was only one thing to do.
But fuck it was gonna hurt.
With her right hand out, she charged towards Victoria as fast as she could, rewinding time as she went. She grabbed Victoria and threw her onto the footpath, jumping out of the way before the car flattened her.
"Hey! What the fuck!" Victoria cried as she sprawled onto the concrete. She looked up to see the car drive straight between herself and the person who threw her. "What…? Holy shit…"
As the car flew past, with Officer Berry and Eliot in tow, Max ran towards Victoria, still on the ground.
"Holy shit, are you okay?" Max cried. Much like when she first arrived at Blackwell dorm, her emotions made it difficult for her not to instinctively say Victoria.
"I… I don't know…" Victoria spoke slowly, still processing what happened. "What was that car doing!? I could have died!" She looked up at Max. "You… you saved my life."
"At the cost of your cellphone screen, apparently." Max giggled, trying to lift the awkwardness.
Victoria looked down, and sure enough, her phone was out of her pocket, the screen completely shattered. "Fucking fuck me!" She shook her head. "Considering what just happened, and the number of bruises that are probably on my hips and legs right now, that's the least of my worries."
"Max holy fuck!" Chloe and Rachel came running over. "What happened? You just vanished. You didn't use-" Chloe stopped when she saw Victoria. "Oh. I see."
"Chloe Price? Rachel Amber?" Victoria shook her head. "I should have known. Trouble does seem to follow you." She looked at Max in panic. "Not that I'm blaming you for what happened, I just-"
"Once a bitch, always a bitch?" Rachel replied smugly.
Victoria laughed. "Normally I'd be insulted, but I literally do not have the energy to be offended right now." She moved her leg and winced. Max helped her get off the ground and on her feet.
"So, your name is Max, I take it?" Victoria asked, pocketing her now-useless phone.
"Yes, I'm… Chloe and Rachel's friend."
"I, uh, I see." Victoria cleared her throat. "Anyway, I should get going. Thanks for… saving my life. Will I see you around?"
"If you're going to Blackwell tomorrow, then yes."
"Oh! Well!" Victoria laughed. "Exciting times to be had, I'm sure." She shook head. "How the hell am I gonna explain this to Mom and Dad? Good fucking lord." She muttered as she walked off.
"Well that was…. I don't even know what to say." Chloe said, confused.
"Your head must be burning." Rachel said.
"Well now that you mention it…." Max rubbed her forehead. They approached the truck and climbed in.
"Let's get the hell out of here." Chloe frowned, and drove off.