Max was walking down a long, dark corridor. Portraits of faces of people she knew lined the wall, each of their eyes crossed out. She could feel the portraits staring at her, boring holes into her body. She was scared. Behind her, she could hear the walls start to shift. She started running. The walls were closing in. The portraits started laughing. She ran faster. The walls closed in faster. In the distance, she could see an open doorway, gleaming with a bright light. Shielding her eyes and bating her breath, Max sprinted towards the door and jumped through. She collapsed on the floor, breathless. She slowly got up.
"BOOM!" The vault door slammed behind her. Max whirled around, but saw nothing but blackness. She continued forward. She felt a prick in her neck and her muscles relaxed. A man spoke to her in a soft voice.
"Maxine, are you there?" He chuckled. "It's been a long time, hasn't it? But you've done well. Thanks to you, everything has fallen into place."
Max tried to speak, but no words came out.
"Max… see you soon."
Max awoke. She sat bolt upright, gasping, drenched in a cold sweat. She quietly grabbed her phone and looked at the time. 4am. "Shit." She mumbled.
"Another nightmare?" A voice stirred next to her.
Max shivered. "Yeah." She said reluctantly.
"You can't keep denying it, Max. You need help." Rachel said.
"No, I can manage."
"Like hell you will." Chloe rebutted. She sat up and pulled Max into her so Max was lying on her chest. "We're only a week away from… whatever happened to you happening now."
Rachel crawled over and lay on top Max, her arm softly clutching at Max's shoulder. As they were all naked, it was an odd but comfortable feeling. "No-one's gonna think less of you for seeking help."
Max sobbed. "But how do I explain my situation? How can I say why I feel like this?"
"One thing I've learned from therapy is that if you want total confidentiality, they'll give it. No questions asked." Chloe said. "Besides, you can afford to lie. I didn't exactly tell my therapist that I almost killed a guy, and would have if I'd succeeded in my opportunity."
Rachel nodded. "You went through some serious trauma. You need to at least acknowledge that. Who cares if no-one else has perceived it yet? To you it happened. And that's what matters."
Max felt unsure. "I…"
"Look at this way." Rachel interrupted. "You fought tooth and nail to go back. Back to where it all began. And your aim was to ensure that what happened to you NEVER happens to someone else. Why? Because it was horrible."
Chloe kissed Max's neck. "Rachel's right. You are tough and you are stubborn. I know this like I know myself. We're all tough and stubborn, but this is not an instance that calls for those two qualities. I found that out the hard way too."
Max sighed. "It's just so hard. To open myself up like that."
"You've done it about 5 times already." Rachel replied.
Chloe laughed. "Touché. She's got you there." Max said nothing. "I know it's different. But you'll be great. It will help. Trust me." Chloe dug her face into the nape of Max's neck. "We love you."
Rachel leaned upwards and kissed Max's neck. "We really do."
"Now. Let's get some sleep." Chloe said, slowly letting go of Max and rolling back over.
"No wait, stop." Max quietly cried. "Please, don't let go. That was nice."
Chloe smiled. She and Rachel both resumed their positions, squeezing Max's small body. Smiling, they all quickly fell asleep.
That afternoon, Rachel had asked Warren and Kate to come over to their apartment to discuss the situation, and offer suggestions for how to help Max. Warren sat at the table, a supportive hand on Max's shoulder. Max smiled at him. Kate made a pot of tea and set it on the table for them. Kate sat down next to Max, on the opposite to Warren. Max turned to smile at her. Chloe and Rachel sat opposite Max.
"Rachel is right. You need help." Warren said. "I-I-I know your situation is like some crazy Prometheus shit but they can't just turn you away."
"What if they end up putting me in a mental hospital? Like Nathan?" Max asked.
Rachel shook her head. "They can't do that unless they're absolutely sure you plan to hurt yourself, or someone else."
"Max. Answer me honestly." Kate said. "Have you ever thought about hurting yourself?"
"No, of course not!" Max cried in shock.
"Ok. Just making sure." Kate nodded solemnly.
"I don't know how you haven't." Warren said. "If I were you, I would have thrown in the towel by now."
Max clutched her mug and rested her chin on the table. "Believe me, I've wanted to. But I don't have that choice."
"You do, actually." Warren said, causing Max's head to turn.
"How can you say that?"
"A selfish person would choose to walk away. To ignore it and let it keep happening." Warren said. "But you're not a selfish person. And that's why we love you so much."
"As well as…" Chloe coughed. "Other reasons." She shot Warren a look and he shrank back slightly, mumbling an apology. Kate glared at Chloe briefly before turning back to Max.
"You did everything in your power to save me. You said so yourself." Kate said. "And look at what you did for Rachel. Without you, she wouldn't be here."
Rachel smiled weakly as Max looked up at her.
"It's fair to say that we should help you this time. And we can start by getting you to see a professional." Kate continued.
"Ok! You've convinced me already!" Max laughed. "But for now I wanna work out how we tackle Jefferson and Merrick."
Kate pursed her lips and looked away. Warren looked down at the ground. Rachel and Chloe looked at each other. Chloe sighed.
"A week from today, in the other timeline, you would see me get shot in the bathroom. I get that you want to prevent this, but everything going on it's hard! We have to lay low."
Max raised an eyebrow. "Who are you and what have you done with my Chloe?"
"I'm saying, going gung ho is what got us into this mess in the first place." Chloe said. "You were always the one holding me back, now it's my turn."
Max stared at Chloe. "She really has changed, hasn't she? I've done more to change this timeline than I ever could have predicted."
"Well…" Rachel trailed off, nervously parting her hair behind her ear, showing off her feather earring. "We could go to the vortex club party this week.."
Everyone stared at her. Chloe was the first to speak. "You can't be serious."
"It could be a really fun way to unwind!" Rachel tried to explain. "Plus, us showing up would be a massive middle finger to them, right? Well, to Victoria anyway."
"I mean…" Max trailed off.
"Max what the fuck?" Chloe cried. "There's no way you're seriously considering this."
"I mean, I already said to Taylor I might go… And besides, if we all stick together, we'll be safe."
Kate started sweating. "Well, you can go if you want, but there's no way in hell I'm going. I don't want history to repeat itself."
Warren nodded. "Me neither. We'll spend the evening together."
"You both have lost your minds." Chloe said. "But there's no way in hell I'm leaving you two alone."
"You're not the one with superpowers." Max replied.
"You're not the one who knows their way around a gun."
Max stared at her. "The fuck do you mean?"
"How could you not know I have a gun license?" Chloe replied. "David taught me how to shoot."
Max shook her head suddenly. "Sorry. Bad memories." Chloe nodded and said nothing.
"Then it's a date then." Rachel smiled, raising a cheeky eyebrow as she did.
"This was an excuse for you to get piss drunk. We know this." Chloe rolled her eyes.
"It's also an excuse for you to get piss drunk." Rachel replied, poking her.
"Okay fine. You sold me. Looking forward to tearing that shitfest apart." Chloe grinned.
"Ready for the mosh pit, shaka brah." Max smiled as she flashed-back to her best favourite memory. It may have been one of the most embarrassing to have ever emerged from her mouth, but with Chloe as the only audience, she didn't care. And that first kiss, that beautiful, surprising first kiss. She would never forget it. Max looked and saw Chloe smiling lovingly at her.
"Max you have no idea how cute you are when you smile." Chloe whispered. Max blushed. Warren looked away and coughed. Kate sipped her tea awkwardly.
Rachel giggled. "I appreciate the moment, but we have guests here."
"They can stay and enjoy the show." Chloe shrugged, still smiling.
Max felt her heart pound. When Chloe smiled goofily, without any air of smugness, that was the Chloe Max loved the most. It may have been rare, but it was a pure, heartfelt, and loving smile. It reminded Max that Chloe truly loved her, and why Max loved Chloe so much.
Kate interrupted the moment, feeling awkward. "Is there anything we can do between now and Friday?"
"Keep yourselves safe." Max replied instinctively.
"No, for you."
Max looked down at the table. "You guys… just being here today has been enough. Knowing I have your support is making this so much easier. So thank you."
Kate smiled. "That's good."
Warren stood up, and Max and Kate did the same. "We should get going. But it was really nice to see you guys." He turned to Rachel. "Thanks for inviting us over. And Max?"
"Yeah?"
Warren hugged Max. "Please stay safe. I don't know what I- uh, we, would do without you."
Max hugged him back. "Thanks, Warren. Same goes for you."
They all waved goodbye as Kate and Warren left. Chloe stood up and walked over to Max, pulling her in for a tight hug.
"Max Caulfield. Do you have any idea how much I fucking love you?"
Max giggled. "You're in a funny mood today, Chloe."
"I may be running on 4 hours sleep. Anyway, answer the question, goop."
"Goop. You haven't called me that for a long time." Max breathed in and took in Chloe's scent. "And of course I do. You reminded me today. Sitting at the table, smiling at me like a fucking dork." Max turned to Rachel, who was standing by the table looking foolish. "Don't think you're getting outta this one, missy."
Rachel beamed, swallowing her doubts. She ran over and jumped on Chloe and Max, squashing them together.
"Oof!" Max cried, before laughing. "The fact that you invited Kate and Warren here to support me, cause you know how much I value their friendship." She sniffed. "Thank you both. So much."
"Max Caulfield. We love you! Maxine Caulfield, we lo-o-ove you!" Rachel sang, jumping up and down with glee. "I am so stoked for this party. We need to have a huge makeover session beforehand."
"There is no more discouraging statement you could have said just then." Chloe replied, still hugging Max and Rachel.
"Don't worry. I can make you look more badass." Rachel smiled, breaking the hug. "You need more clothes anyway."
"Fine. No makeup, and no dresses."
"Chloe, I'd sooner stab you than make you wear either of those things. Besides, you look hot the way you are."
Max smiled wryly. "I'm not good with dresses either. The last time I even wore a dress was…" She trailed off.
"Oh jeez." Rachel grimaced. "Bad prom?"
Max shook her head.
Chloe's eyes flitted downwards. "Dad's funeral." She muttered.
Max nodded. Silence rang through the apartment.
"If you don't mind me asking, how come you didn't wear a dress to prom?"
Max shrugged. "I didn't go to prom. No-one ever invited me." She said matter-of-factly, like it wasn't a big deal.
Rachel and Chloe looked at each other. "Well then." Rachel said. "Let this be the best party of your life."
"Max, can I talk to you for a moment?""
Max froze. She wished she had her music loud enough so she could have not heard him, but curse her kind nature. She slowly turned to face the person who spoke to her, taking one earbud out but not pausing her music. "What's wrong?"
Jefferson laughed. "You act as if you've done something wrong." He suddenly turned serious. "Or have you done something wrong?"
Max started to sweat and backed up slightly as he approached her. "No, of course not-"
Jefferson laughed again. "Haha I'm only kidding! Relax Max. I only want to know how you are doing."
"Fine. Actually." She mumbled, refusing to look him in the eye.
"Are you sure, Max?" Jefferson leaned slightly against the wall, trying to close the height distance between him. If his plan was to intimidate Max any less, it wasn't working. "I've noticed you've been more… reclusive than normal. I pinned that down to you being shy, as some of your previous teachers have told me, but you tend to be very hostile towards some individuals, especially a certain Victoria Chase."
Max rolled her eyes. "Whatever she said, she's lying."
Jefferson narrowed her eyes and glared at Max. "Interesting that that's the first conclusion you jump to, Miss Caulfield." He stood back up and folded his arms. "Ironically, she didn't come to me at all. This was what I have observed myself. Your personal vendetta against young Miss Chase gone on long enough, and it's no longer warranted."
Max scowled.
"Granted, our young entrepreneur is no saint, and she will also be having this discussion with me in private. I encourage, once that has been fulfilled, for you two to come to a resolution, so maybe you can survive one class without tearing at each other's throats, and acting like civilised human beings." Jefferson tilted her head. "Now, does that sound reasonable, Miss Caulfield."
"I want nothing more than to punch your face in, and stab your eyes out with the broken shards of your glasses." Max mumbled.
Jefferson was taken aback. "Excuse me? You and I are gonna-"
Max lazily held up her right hand and rewound the previous few seconds. She took a deep breath.
"Yes, Mr. Jefferson. That sounds reasonable."
"Good." Jefferson smiled. "I knew I could count on you. I'm also really looking forward to your entry for the Everyday Heroes contest. Only two weeks away, you know."
"I know." Max nodded.
"Are you going to the vortex club party on Friday?" He asked casually.
Max raised an eyebrow. "Why on earth do you care?" She thought. She answered anyway. "Potentially. I don't know yet."
"Max, you have to make a decision at some point." His phone rang and he quickly took it out of his pocket and answered it. "Anyway, I gotta take this. I'll see you in class." Mark Jefferson smiled. Max stood next to the doorway, eavesdropping.
"Last time I did this, my best friend was walking towards the dorm room to kill herself…" A chilling thought passed through Max's brain.
"Yeah. Listen now's not a good time." Jefferson was keeping his voice low and his words vague. Max had the feeling he was talking to someone very important, and perhaps relevant to her investigation. "I am just about to go teach a class. Yes the plan is still going ahead, no that's too dangerous."
Max frowned. "What the fuck does he mean by that?"
"Eavesdropping on your teacher's phone conversation, are we Max?" David Madsen's rough voice practically boomed down the corridor, despite him standing right next to Max.
Max jumped. She looked at Jefferson, who was side-eyeing a glare at David. "No, of course not." She expertly lied. "I'm waiting for Kate so we can go in together. That's all."
David narrowed his eyes. "Alright I believe ya. You doing alright, Max?"
"Yeah, I'm fine. How are you, David? And how's Joyce?"
"I'm at work, so stick to Mr. Madsen for now, alright?" His expression softened and he sighed. "We're good, yeah. Joyce is missin' you guys, and so am I. We're long overdue for another visit from you, Chloe, and Rachel."
Max nodded. "Yeah that sounds good-"
"Listen, Max. I know you tend to be a rather… investigative person. But watch out, if you start distrusting the people closest to you, it's gonna get hairy. Believe me, I know."
"I'll… keep that in mind. Thanks Mr. Madsen."
"See you 'round, Max." David tipped his cap and walked off.
Max quickly tried to listen back in on the conversation.
"Hold on, you're cutting off- Ah. Forget it. I'll call you later. I'm gonna be late for my own class."
"Shit!" Max fumed and walked into the classroom, sitting down before Jefferson could be any the wiser. Kate was already sitting at her table. She smiled at Max as she sat down.
"Hey Max." Kate smiled.
"Hi, Kate." Max smiled back. "Is that new lipstick? It looks great!"
Kate blinked. "Why thank you, Max! It was a gift."
"From Warren?"
Kate laughed. "Warren wouldn't know good lipstick if it walked up and kissed him in the face. No, this was rather surprising: Victoria gave it to me."
"Victoria? Really?" Max asked, confused.
Kate nodded. "She said she was sorry for the way she was treating me. She had a pretty nasty weekend, as I'm sure you know."
Max nodded. "Poor Nathan…"
"Taylor was going through a lot too. Apparently she and Victoria had a big fight."
"A fight? Really?"
"Taylor was telling me about it. She said she felt bad cause it was around the same Nathan was admitted to hospital, but she was saying she was basically sick of Victoria's attitude and how she treated you and I, and told her to grow up."
"Bet Victoria took that well." Max said sarcastically.
"Oh she absolutely did not. Victoria kicked Taylor outta the Vortex Club. For a while at least anyway."
"Shit."
"They quickly reconciled, and Victoria just bought me this lipstick."
Max looked up. "Speak of the devil."
Victoria and Taylor had just walked in, strangely silent. Instead of going straight to their table like normal. Victoria hesitated, looking at Taylor. Taylor nodded sternly, and sat down at her chair. Victoria walked towards Max.
"Hey Max, can you stand up for a second? I need to um… talk to you. For just a second." Victoria said.
Max blinked. "This is one strange fucking day." She thought. "Sure." She said aloud, getting up from her chair. Kate looked at her with a puzzled expression on her face.
Then, Victoria did something Max could have never predicted. She hugged her. "Max, I'm so, so, sorry. For everything. Everything I've done, everything you went through, I just-"
Max quickly let go. "You know!? " Max cried. She glared at Taylor.
"I had to, Max. I just couldn't take it. Victoria was ragging on about you and I just-" Taylor said.
Max held up both hands and closed her eyes. "It's- it's fine. It's okay. We can deal with this." She sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. "How much do you know?"
Victoria stumbled over her words. "Enough to know that our teacher is a freak, and that without you half of the people in this room, and my best friend, would all be dead right now." Victoria looked at the ground. "And that I did something unforgivable. And now I feel guilty for being a part of something horrible, being friends with someone that… that… twisted!" She cried. She looked over at Kate. "I'm so sorry for all the mean shit I said to you, Kate. Now and in whatever weird reality Max was from." Kate just nodded a thanks.
Max rubbed Victoria's arm. "But you haven't done it yet. And Nathan's exactly where he needs, and deserves, to be. He went through hell. I saw it myself. Yes, it's important that he's somewhere where he can't hurt anyone but his own health is more important to him right now. And so is yours. We've all worked on ourselves since that timeline. It's no longer who we are. You can be a good person, Victoria. I've seen it."
Victoria nodded. "As you keep reminding me, Caulfield." She looked Max in the eye. "And for the first time, I actually believe it. I hope we can all get through this soon, one way or another. And if Rachel were here, I would have apologised to her too. She was more of a victim than any of us."
Max chuckled. "I'll pass on the message."
"This sounds weird, but maybe we could hug it out?"
Max smiled. "That would be nice." Max walked up and hugged Victoria. She felt odd. Victoria was simultaneously warm and clammy. She was also surprisingly bony.
"Wow. That was fast." Jefferson said. He had just walked into the classroom, cellphone still in hand. "I wasn't expecting that quick of a result, Max. Good work." He beamed and sat down at his desk, opening up his laptop immediately.
Max scowled and said nothing. Max looked at Victoria, and saw she was scowling too. She giggled. "Guess we're not so different after all, huh?"
"Oh no, we absolutely are." Victoria said without malice. "But that's a good thing. Too many of either of us and the school would be hell." She looked back to Jefferson. "Well, more than it already is." She murmured. "Are you going to the vortex club party on Friday?" She asked, looking back at Max.
"Why does everyone keep asking me that?" Max asked. "Surprisingly, I am. Rachel wanted to go, and we can't exactly leave her alone at the moment."
Victoria looked awkward. "Cool. Taylor was telling me she wanted to do a makeover session with you. I'd be down for that as well. What about you, Katie?"
Kate was barely paying attention. "Hmm? Me? Oh! No. I kinda wanna steer clear of the vortex club and their parties. No offense."
Victoria coughed. "I can't say I blame you." She sighed. "Still, it'd be cool for us all to hang out. Act like that we're not mortal enemies, or that the world is ending." Victoria looked at Taylor. "That should be the theme for next week's party! End of the World."
"OOH! I like that." Taylor clapped her hands together with glee.
Max started to sweat. "Uh, about the makeover thing… Rachel said just last night that she wanted to give me and Chloe a makeover, so…"
"Price is going?" Victoria looked confused. "I'm afraid we don't plan on playing any of Satan's music, so she's not gonna have plenty of fun."
"Chloe doesn't even like Black Metal." Max rolled her eyes. "She has a pretty wide range. She just likes punk."
"What does Chloe even plan on wearing?" Victoria laughed. "The theme is musical theatre. Right up Rachel's alley, of course." Victoria rolled her eyes. "I can imagine she'll be the star of the show…" She looked at Max's glare and stopped herself. "Sorry."
"American Idiot is a musical." Taylor said. "So that kinda works."
Victoria whirled around. "Since when do you listen to that sort of music?"
"Since I had a boyfriend who liked pop punk." Taylor smiled.
Victoria bit her lip. "Right. Sorry TT."
"Well, I'll let Chloe and Rachel know that's the theme." Max said.
"Wait! If we all do our makeover together, wouldn't that be fun?" Victoria asked. "It'd be a nice way for me and Rachel to bond."
Max smiled wryly. "I can't imagine she'll be very on board with that."
Victoria shrugged. "At least give it a try." She walked back over to her table and sat back down.
"No, Mr. Graham, you can't come in." Jefferson said to the door. "Time for class. I know we're running a little late, but so does most of the class, so I think we're good." He chuckled. "How are you all doing? You good?" He asked the select few people in class.
Victoria, Taylor, Kate, and Max all looked awkwardly at each other. Everyone either nodded or mumbled an affirmation.
"Spectacular! I love the energy!" He said sarcastically. He looked at his watch. "I'm just going to assume anyone who isn't here isn't coming, so I'll just start." Jefferson walked over and resumed his regular spot on Daniel's desk. Stella huffed, realising she was the only person Jefferson wasn't directly facing this time. Everyone else was absent. "As you all know you have an essay due at the beginning of the next month. You're all adults and you're all artists, so you should have the freedom to choose your particular topic. I will guide you on finding a question for you to answer, as well as finding some credible academia for you to utilise in your research."
Victoria gave a disgusted look. Max giggled. It felt nice to finally relate to Victoria. Stella looked at them oddly with an eyebrow raised, a look Max had become all too familiar with. Max ignored her.
"Has anyone here chosen at the very least an aspect of photography they would want to write about?" Jefferson asked. "It could be a report on your favourite photographer, or an aspect of photography from long past. For instance, Max over here could talk about polaroids, and how even a type of photography as old and as simple as that is still so beautiful and prevalent in modern photography."
Max shrank back slightly.
"But that's just an example." Jefferson said. "Unless of course, that is something you'd wanna write about?" He turned to Max.
"Uh, yeah. Sure. Sounds good."
"Great!" Jefferson said excitedly. "That's something we can discuss later on. Does anyone else have any ideas they might like to talk about?"
Everyone refused to make eye contact.
"Well, once again, Max is the star of the class. Good work, Miss Caulfield."
Victoria turned to Max and scowled. When she saw Max scowling at Jefferson, she turned away, dropping her expression. Victoria's expression implied she understood that Max was just as annoyed at Jefferson's flattery as Victoria was. That comforted Max slightly. But their friendship was far from becoming a reality. While Max wanted an alliance, she was still hesitant at the potential of befriending Victoria. Max wasn't sure how to feel about that. Victoria's constant back-and-forth between her regular hostility and this newfound contentment reminded Max of Chloe when they first reunited. That now seemed like a lifetime ago. Back then, dealing with that pain and guilt felt so complex, now it felt like a walk in the park compared to what was going on now and what her life has become. She sighed and looked down at her desk. She had her notepad up with some random doodles she had drawn, as well as a couple of notes she had scrawn. Clearly her past self hadn't paid that much attention, as some of the stuff she was learning was actually new to her. She also had her journal open and her cellphone on her desk. A quick peek at her phone told her Chloe had texted her, saying she was on her way to pick Max and Rachel up. She smiled. She quickly looked up at Jefferson to see if he was looking at her, before grabbing her phone and sending a quick text to Chloe.
"^_^ 3"
Within seconds, Chloe replied: "NO EMOJI", making Max giggle.
"Heehee, I love you! XOMAXO"
She looked back up and quickly placed her cellphone back on her desk, grinning to herself. Kate smiled at her. She subtly turned her notepad around to show her doodles, which were of several anthropomorphic animal children laughing and playing together.
"This is really good, Kate." Max whispered.
"Thank you. I like your flower too."
Max giggled. Her drawings were considerably darker and creepier than Kate's were, but Max refused to let that get to her. She preferred the dark and mysterious nature of her doodles over her past self's depressing and simple faces.
"Perhaps… a little sunshine and water will make this wilted flower grow… " Max thought to herself, before drawing a smiling stick figure with a watering can pouring water over the dead flower. She thought back to her dorm room days, when she had Lisa. Her beautiful little (or rather not so little) plant that her mother had given her. She remembered the near-weekly reminders to look after it. Max lamented briefly on simpler times, before looking back to her drawing. " Sometimes, a flower has to wilt before it can grow." Max blinked. "Shit, that's actually really poetic. I'm gonna write that down."
"Ok!" Jefferson clapped his hands. "Now that you've all had your class nap, it's time for you to go home and have your home nap." Jefferson smiled. "I'll be emailing you some potential discussion questions for your essay tonight. You don't have to reply to me straight away, but at the very least a vague idea by the end of tomorrow would be preferred. Mostly because I want you guys to have a fun weekend with the vortex club party this weekend." Jefferson chuckled. "See? I'm a cool teacher!"
Everyone groaned. The bell rang, and everyone immediately proceeded to pack their things.
"Alright, fine!" Jefferson laughed. "I'm only kidding. Now before you leave, yet another reminder about the Everyday Heroes Contest for next week! I do hope you guys plan to enter, it's practically a free opportunity to sell yourself to the world before you even leave high school. It'd be foolish to pass up such an opportunity."
"That's a little harsh." Max mumbled to herself.
"I'll see you all tomorrow!" Jefferson said, and everyone quickly scrambled out the classroom door, muttering several thank you's and 'see you tomorrow's' as they went.
Max walked out the door, and found Chloe and Rachel standing outside the science classroom, talking to Ms. Grant. Warren was there too, but he didn't seem to be part of the conversation. He waved to Max, and she waved back, walking over to join Chloe and Rachel. Max couldn't help but notice Warren's saddened expression as he walked off.
"Hey Chloe. Hey Rachel." Max said. "Hi Ms. Grant."
"Max!" Ms. Grant beamed. "We were just talking about you. How have you been?"
Max nodded. "I've been pretty good. Steady going, as they say."
"As who say?" Ms. Grant chuckled. "This isn't the Great Depression, Max."
Max resisted the urge to make a comeback. She simply shrugged.
"I was just catching up our young friend Chloe here. You know, at one stage she was my star pupil."
Max feigned surprise. "What? No way! Not Chloe."
"Oh shut your mouth, Caulfield." Chloe rolled her eyes. "Unless you'd rather walk home." She smirked. Rachel punched her shoulder and Chloe cried out.
"Be nice." Rachel said quietly. She was using her smooth chocolatey voice, which Max knew was Chloe's weakness. "There are teachers present."
Chloe scowled.
Ms. Grant laughed. "Oh you two have not changed a bit. I miss having you in my classes, Chloe."
"You do?" Chloe asked nervously.
"Sure. When you weren't being, if you'll excuse my language, a bratty little bitch, yes. You were a great student."
Chloe laughed. "Sounds like me."
"Well now that you have Warren in your classes, surely you're not missing out on having a smartass genius in your class." Max said.
Ms. Grant nodded. "Warren's a great student. Absolutely the best I've ever had. I hope he goes on to do great things, and I know he will. Just like you all will." Ms. Grant checked her watch. "Now I better go, my husband's birthday is today and I gotta dash to the supermarket for his birthday surprise." She winked, then turned around and left.
"I like Ms. Grant." Max smiled. "I'm glad we were able to talk to her."
"Me too." Chloe said. "She's one of the few good people in this shithole." She shivered. "Anyway, we better go. Being in here is bringing back some bad memories."
"Then what are we waiting for?" Rachel giggled, grabbing Chloe and Max's hands and pulling them down the hall. "Let's go!"
"Last one to the truck is a rotten egg!" Max cried, running full speed ahead to the parking lot.
"Jesus Christ, Max." Chloe huffed. She and Rachel quickly sprinted in an effort to catch up to her, but she was already way further ahead.
"What took you so long?" Max laughed as Chloe and Rachel gradually made their way to the truck.
Rachel puffed. "How the hell… are you… so fast?" She asked. "Surely you… must have cheated." She coughed, resting her hands on her knees. "You used your rewind power, didn't you?"
"Nope!" Max grinned. "I've always been better at running than Chloe has."
Chloe scowled. "Unfortunately, the mad bitch is right. She's always been better at sports than me, even if she doesn't look it." She lifted up her muscular arms, exposing her belly and her armpits from underneath her trademark skull singlet. She sighed deeply. "Now, if you're done eyeing up my sexy midriff, we can get in the truck and go home."
Max smirked, and squeezed into her usual spot in the middle. She pulled out her phone.
"Oooh! Texting up some cute boys behind our backs, are we?" Chloe teased.
"The opposite, actually." Max smiled. "It's Victoria."
"Max, it's a good thing I haven't started driving yet, or I would have slammed the brakes. Why the hell does Chase have yout number?"
Max shrugged. "You know, it's weird."
"What is?" Chloe asked.
Rachel preemptively groaned. "I think I know where this is going."
"Once she found out what had happened, she was instantly a lot nicer."
"SHE KNOWS!? " Chloe yelled. "I thought she was the one person we weren't supposed to tell!"
"Yeah, well, blame Taylor." Max sighed. "Actually, don't. The situation was rather messy."
"Wasn't like, Taylor's mom in the hospital same time as Nathan?" Rachel asked
Max nodded. "Yeah. They had this big argument about how Taylor didn't like the way Victoria was treating us anymore, and it got heated, so she blabbed."
"About everything?" Chloe asked, starting the truck and pulling out of the parking lot.
"It seems so."
"Shit. Okay. So what's the text about?"
"Well, in class today she asked if we all wanted to meet on Friday before the vortex club party for our makeover session."
"Oh, right. And why would we agree to that?" Chloe asked sarcastically.
"Because she said she's sorry. For everything that she did, in every reality. Pretty much her words."
"That doesn't magically fix everything."
"No, of course not. But considering how she reacted it's clear she feels awful. She apologised to Kate too."
"GOOD." Rachel snarled. "How did she take that, anyway? That she was almost responsible for a classmate's suicide?"
"About as well as Taylor did. In fact I'd say even worse."
"Well Taylor looked like she'd have rather be trampled by a herd of elephants, so that is something." Rachel sighed. "I don't know. I'd be willing to give her a shot. I'd like to think I forgive easily."
"Except your dad, of course." Chloe smirked.
"Yes but he's a different case entirely." Rachel scowled at Chloe. "Thanks for bringing that up, by the way." She hissed.
"Okay, sorry." Chloe murmured.
Max smiled as she read through her past messages. Kate, Warren, Taylor and Victoria had all sent her encouraging words and promises to meet up in the future. She looked back and forth between Rachel and Chloe, now silent.
"Maybe, just maybe, this wilted flower can grow again."