Max wandered the streets of Portland in a haze. Steph had called her and texted her many times. She didn't answer or read the texts. Her mind kept repeating the same thing, over and over, "Chloe is here."
The ache inside had not dimmed, rather it grew in strength. The ache of a need unfulfilled, that could never be fulfilled.
Her mind and heart mourned the loss of the budding friendship with Steph, just as it mourned the loss of Chloe.
Early in the morning she somehow managed to make her way home, where she collapsed on her futon. Her mind and heart were numb. The entire time she had wanted to cry, had begged to cry and it simply wouldn't happen. Lying on her couch, her hands dug at her hair, pulled it until her eyes streamed tears from the pain.
It wasn't enough. The pain inside her eclipsed even that and was not satisfied. At last, worn out from the pain she slipped into a dark sleep.
"Mommy," Max shouted as she bounded through the door, "you'll never guess what happened today!"
"Maxine," her mother said sternly, "You're indoors, use your quiet voice. Plus, you didn't wipe your feet! Now there are muddy footprints all over the floor."
Stopping, Max's little face dropped and she hung her head. "I'm sorry, mommy." Her little voice had gone from bright and cheerful to sad.
Sighing, Vanessa Caulfield ground the heel of her hand against her forehead. Kneeling by her young daughter, she took the girl in her arms. "I'm sorry, Maxine. I'm tired from all the studying I did today. I didn't mean to hurt your feelings."
Max looked up at her mom, bottom lip stuck out. Vanessa melted before the sad face. Hugging her tight, she kissed the little girl on the forehead. "Tell you what, Maxine, let's clean up the mud together and you can tell me all about what happened."
The light returned to Max's eyes swiftly at her mommy's suggestion. "Yes, yes, yes," Max said, bouncing on her toes. Within moments her muddy shoes were on the porch, waiting to be cleaned. Mother and daughter were side by side cleaning the floor with soapy water and rags.
"Are you going to tell me what happened today," Vanessa prompted.
"I made a friend," Max practically yelled. Vanessa stopped what she was doing and looked at her daughter.
"A friend," Vanessa asked.
Looking at her mommy, face beaming like the sun, she nodded vigorously. "And her name is Chloe Elizabeth Price! She's one year older than me. And best of all! She likes pirates too!"
The light of morning pulled Max reluctantly from her sleep. Sitting up, she peered around her apartment, thoughts sluggish and cold. A lump of cold pain was in her stomach. It took her several minutes to remember last night.
Lowering her head into her hands she let the pain wash over her. She had to stay away, that was the only way. Looking at her phone she saw it was dead. She was so frazzled when she got home she had forgot to plug it in.
Finding her charge cord, she plugged her phone in. And groaned. Today was her off day and she needed to use it to find another job. Slumping back on the futon, she fought the despair rising in her.
Drawing her legs up, she rested her forehead on her knees. She had her cafe job and the contract with Steph. The cafe job alone wouldn't pay her bills and her contract required her to meet with Steph to review any pictures she had.
Pictures. Her camera! Her head snapped up, eyes wide as she realized she'd left her bag at Steph's! Falling over with a groan she berated herself.
Why did I have to accept that D&D invitation? Why did I have to get close to Steph? Why did I think I could be friends with anyone?
She knew the answers to those questions. She was lonely, so lonely. That darkness inside was eating her alive. She wanted a friend. Steph's invitation had touched her in a way that hadn't happened in a very long time.
Not since an entire lifetime ago.
Friendship reminded her of that lifetime and the empty void she carried. A Chloe shaped void. It was why she avoided having friends. It fucking hurt!
Her stomach rumbled, distracting her from the dark thoughts. Rising from the futon, she set about the day.
After a shower, clean clothes, and a breakfast, which tasted bland, Max set her thoughts on replacing her lost job. The remainder of the day she spent applying for jobs and building a portfolio website. She was glad she hadn't taken her laptop with her yesterday.
Steph called and messaged her several times. At some point she'd need to answer. Right now, everything was still too fresh. Talking to Steph would bring up too many questions that she couldn't answer. Well, couldn't answer in a way that Steph could believe.
For now she had to be the crazy photographer who bolted from a party for no reason.
The day lengthened towards night before Max gave thought to her missing bag. If not for that she could avoid Steph for a very long time. There were at least forty more sets to shoot and that could take her weeks. If she had a camera. If she had a camera better than her cellphone.
She was not ready to venture back to Steph's apartment for her bag. If she knew when Chloe wasn't there, she could go then. Without that knowledge she took a risk each time she went there. She would have to call Steph this week and arrange to get her bag.
Future meetings would need to be somewhere else as well. She couldn't risk another meeting. Would it be strange to request that she only deal with Steph? Her finger tapped her chin at that thought.
A rumbling stomach told her it was time for dinner. Closing her laptop she prepared and ate her dinner, still tasting bland. Bed called her soon after.
Thursday came and the pain had ebbed a little. The emptiness inside was a little more bearable. It presented little obstacle to her day, other than when someone came to the cafe that reminded her of Chloe or Steph. Then, her face hot, she worked quickly to fulfill the order, handing it over without looking.
Steph called and messaged several times during the day. She would not give up. Max didn't read the messages or listen to the voicemail. Her thumb played over the unread message count, amazed at seeing it in double digits. This girl, she would not give up and Max didn't understand it.
"Girls! Come on! The food is almost ready."
Max and Chloe giggled as they played along the rocky shoreline. William's voice carried far on the wind, tempting them with promises of hotdogs and hamburgers.
"Captain Chloe Blue will not succumb to temptation of mere food," Chloe shouted at the sea. She stood proudly atop the highest rock, foam sword thrust toward the sky.
"Aye, Captain Blue," Max yelled from below, "the treasures of Blackbeard the Sea Dog await ye. Sail onward!"
The girls hopped from rock to rock, pretending to sail the sea to the treasure hold of Blackbeard. "Max Silver," Chloe called, "do ye see sign of the scurvy beast?"
"Nay, Captain!"
They leaped onto the last rock, the largest and flattest of them all. "He be here abouts last time we seen 'im," Max said. At that moment a blond head popped above the rock.
"'e be takin' ye captive if 'e don't come 'n' eat," William cried as he scrambled onto the rock. The girls shrieked with surprise and stepped back. Then, the moment of surprise past, they leaped forward foam swords swinging.
William had his own foam sword and soon the three were swinging, and thrusting, and parrying, and leaping around the rock. Within moments Captain Blue and Max Silver had disarmed him and backed him to the edge of the rock.
"Ok. Ok," he panted, "let me live and ye c'n 'ave me treasure!"
With a flourish, the girls sheathed their swords. "Hotdogs and Hamburgers," Max asked, eagerly.
"Just the way you like them," William said as he tousled Max's hair. Taking each girl by the hand, they leaped from the rock, and made their way back to the cook-out.
Friday was the same as Thursday, a long day where she tried to function without breaking into pieces. The pain was still there. Her food still tasted bland. The only good thing that happened was her bank account was finally unlocked. She received an email during her lunch break.
That news changed her mood and outlook. When she returned to work, she was a little faster, a little more positive with her coworkers. She even began humming a little tune.
It all came crashing down when she turned around to hand a finished sandwich to a customer only to see multi-colored hair and amazing blue eyes watching her. With a gasp she dropped the sandwich, spilling its contents all over the floor and making a loud clatter with the plate.
Everything faded except those blue eyes. They leaned closer and she her the sound of speech but didn't recognize the words.
Her shoulder was jostled, returning her to reality. Sound came back in a flash and she realized Chloe was talking to her.
"You know, you're hella cute when you're flustered," Chloe said to her.
Oh no! Everything felt hot and her eyes darted around. She was vaguely aware of someone cleaning up her mess. A face peered into the edge of her vision. Her boss! No! She couldn't screw up and lose this job too!
Scrambling to her knees, Max tried to help clean up the mess but somehow made it worse. Someone kneeled down next to her. Her boss.
Laying a hand gently on Max's shoulder, she said, "Hey, Max, go talk to her. We'll finish cleaning this up."
Head snapping up, she saw a big grin on her boss's face. No! She probably thought…gah!
The hints of a tremble wove its way through her. It started in her fingers, which couldn't keep still. Rising to her feet, she looked at Chloe, then averted her eyes. Hands clenched together, she shuffled her way to the end of the counter where she could step into the general area.
She stood there several moments head down, Chloe looking her. Moving her head slightly, she took a quick glance at her. Chloe was looking at her with a half smile, eyes focused on her face.
"Were you checking me out the other night?"
That brought her head up quickly. "What? I- what?" Oh, it was hot in here again!
Chloe's head nodded slowly. "Steph told me. Sitting next to you, she saw you sneaking peeks at me when you thought no one was looking."
Chloe moved closer, not enough to enter Max's personal space, but close enough. "Too bad you had to go so suddenly," Chloe said. "I'd really like to know more about you."
Max's eyes kept flicking between Chloe and the store, Chloe and the store. Chloe kept that half smile on her face, hands in her pockets, loose stance while she spoke to her. Max's hands, meanwhile, were trying to turn her apron into a tortilla and her feet shuffled here and there.
"Your coworkers say you make an awesome sandwich," Chloe said after a while. "Do you think you could make me a sandwich sometime?"
Gulping, Max looked at Chloe again, then back on the counter. "Y-yes. The turkey on rye with sprouts is a favorite."
Chloe held out a piece of paper. "Tell you what. Come over to our place tomorrow and you can make me a sandwich there. Text me what you need and I'll be sure it's there for you."
Max looked at the paper, torn from a magazine. Digits were written on it in blue. A phone number. Chloe's phone number. Biting her lip, she managed to loosen one hand to reach up and take the paper. She was very careful not to touch her.
"Can you make it by 6 PM?"
Max looked up again. Big mistake. Those blue eyes captured her again. Time lost meaning as she lost herself in those eyes. They leaned forward and she heard Chloe's voice. "Is that a yes?"
Blinking, she pulled away. "Y-yes," she managed to squeak out. Chloe gave her one more crooked smile, turned, and sauntered out the door.
Max didn't mean to. She consciously told herself not to. But she couldn't help herself. She turned and followed her with her eyes until Chloe left the shop.
That was when she realized she was holding her breath. Letting it out in a loud noise, she looked down at the paper clutched in on hand. A phone number with the name Beth Price.
Turning, she made her way back behind the counter. Only when she was back by the sandwich making station did she realize the cafe was quiet.
Oh god, no! Did everyone hear what just happened?
Face burning, she turned and scanned her coworkers and the few customers nearby. Too many of them had smiles on their faces and knowing looks in their eyes.
Her manager interposed herself in her vision. "Well, Max," she gently said, "I didn't know you had a girlfriend. That's really great."
Words failed her, as usual. She wanted to protest, to say she didn't have a girlfriend. Would it matter? After what everyone saw, it didn't matter what she said, her actions showed otherwise.
Resigning to a small smile, Max nodded and turned back to the sandwich station. She shoved the paper into her pocket, pushed the thoughts out of her mind, and focused on making sandwiches. Blue eyes watched her in her vision the rest of her shift.
The afternoon passed, and she finally stepped out into the late afternoon air. Instead of returning home, she went to one of her quiet places to think and plan. There were several places around each of her work places she found that provided privacy and quiet. When she was stressed, or her anxiety was getting the best of her, she'd go to one of these places and chill.
Chloe's visit to the cafe had unnerved her and she needed to give thought to her future, if she would still have one here. The money that she'd originally planned to put toward her student loan debt, now she'd need to use as her emergency fund. In all likelihood she wouldn't be able to get the drone either.
Letting the quiet of the place soothe her, she leaned against the brick warmed by the sun. The drone could help her get work. It might be worth the risk with her current situation. Or she should pay as many of her bills as she could with the money. She could check the numbers again when she got home.
She stayed in the quiet place a long time, letting her worries fade away. The blue eyes from earlier still haunted her. Truthfully, nothing would take those away. Did she even want that anymore?
They also spurred the ever-present melancholy. She was ignoring the warning signs and that would leave nothing but trouble. Arcadia Bay, Medford, Klamath Falls, Seattle, and more. She'd even left the Pacific Northwest once to no avail. Each time they found each other. Each time trouble found them.
She had to bring this to an end. Again. Before people got hurt, well more than herself. With that dark thought filling her mind, she left her quiet place.
The journey home eroded that resolve. There was something different with this timeline. The memories and visions had started earlier. She suspected that Chloe's visit today was involved in the difference also.
The inner truth was, she wanted to be in Chloe's company. No matter how much that hurt, no matter the fact she'd be forced into a reset.
The sun was near the horizon when she finally got home. There was a strange car parked on the street in front of the house. Probably someone visiting her landlady.
Once inside her apartment, she washed her hands then sat on the couch. Opening her laptop she was about to redo her finances when a knock sounded on the door, startling her.
No one had ever visited her. Who could it be? Maybe her landlady needed help with something. Once Max had to help her reset her iPad because it had stopped connecting to wifi and nothing else worked.