A couple of days have passed and Max and Chloe have tried to lay low, they've been in between places to sleep, the dorms and of course Chloe's house but they left things quiet for too long now. Soon most of Arcadia Bay will be at Rachel Amber's vigil; tomorrow they will remember who she was and what symbolism she left behind, to her classmates and faculty, her parents; who didn't really understand her and to those close enough to get to know many sides if not all; to what made her collectively become Rachel Amber.
Chloe had been dreading this day, she hadn't got any sleep after she dropped off Max, at her dorm room and made sure she was safe. Chloe had tried to go home and sleep it off but Joyce kept wanting to talk to her. then when she tried David tried to counteract and immediately said that Rachel wasn't the friend she needed, and well it just turned into an argument once again, as it always did. Of course, Chloe didn't expect David to understand but she did expect some respect and it just wasn't healthy for her to stay trapped inside with all the negativity.
Grabbing a change of clothes Chloe grabbed her phone and wallet She felt like tonight was one of those nights when she would need it most, she had no destination but she needed a breather and some fresh air would do her good.
Out the door she set off, after gassing up her truck she headed someone familiar, driving around the Amber's neighborhood, it was a little past 8 p.m. which meant they were probably having dinner, it was customary that they eat late since Mr. Amber came from the office late and with all the things Rachel was involved with she tried to avoid as much time as possible with her parents. Chloe parked about a block away from their home, the vivid home bright as ever; she sat on the curb on at the opposite house across the street.
Chloe remembered when she was first brought to this home, it wasn't a pleasant experience but with time James; Mr. Amber came to accept the girl's friendship with her daughter, there were plenty of times where he didn't like the type of people Rachel was associating with but he knew in his heart that Chloe wasn't a bad person or that she went looking for trouble but that sometimes people seek excitement when whatever the rest of the world is doing isn't enough.
Neither Rachel or Chloe had ever thought of each other as bad or toxic influences; no they were two girls who had feelings for one another and had the urge to get out of Arcadia Bay , to take a chance on the rest of the world, for whatever reason if they didn't agree with the rest of the world they knew that they could back to safety, to the comfort and protection of their parents but they knew they had to try and make something, to try to prove to everyone who ever doubted their abilities and what they could accomplish; that was mostly true for Chloe because she had nothing to fall back on and everything to gain from leaving.
Chloe took out her marker and walked across to the Amber's residence, got to the porch and drew something rather familiar to this neighborhood 'Chloe was here' graffiti. No matter what the Ambers thought of her she wanted them to know that she was still here; if they needed someone to remind them who their daughter was; to remind them that Rachel will never be forgotten and that it's become impossible to not miss her with every being of herself, that tomorrow and the days to come she will be there, not only for them but for Rachel. To let them know that the girl from a broken home never stopped looking for her, that no matter how many people gave up on Chloe she never gave up Rachel and would have continued to look for her until her last breath.
Chloe moved forward and running her hand over the stained-glass door before going back to her truck, she raced along the streets and made a sharp turn to train tracks, anything but cautious as she raced the train itself, with her window rolled down, feeling the wisps of her hair flying all over. Chloe slowed down when she got to the junkyard, leaving the truck where she had once found it about three years ago. Chloe still didn't trust that it was safe, she hadn't been here in a while and now it was eerie and it was haunting her because this is where many girls and boys like Rachel had shared their same fate.
The junkyard was still considered a crime scene and so the exact area where Rachel was found was still plastered in yellow tape. Chloe did her best to avoid that area for now, it was far from easy but she made her way to their shed. Even this sacred space had been looked over as a crime scene and nothing was where it belonged, there was a sense of relief in that notion because if things stayed the same, Chloe wouldn't have the courage to brace this darkness alone. The thing is Chloe needed to say goodbye to her former self alone, to have someone else there wouldn't feel genuine, to make new memories with Max would potentially erase Rachel and she didn't want that to happen, no far from it.
Because of David and James this was the only place that Rachel and she could be together without anyone interfering in their plans, David was just as he always was; meddling in Chloe's business. James was just trying to redeem himself and in Rachel's eyes she couldn't forgive who he had become, and to James he sought Chloe as the problem for the start of when she started rebelling against him. So, in turn neither of their friendship was approved from their father figures in their lives.
Chloe went to where the floor was sticking up, the boards loose but they had not been tampered when the police had come to investigate. There Chloe had hidden the letters that Max had never sent, she had also hidden a now very cold bottle of wine, rose just the kind Rachel preferred when it was just them two. Chloe looked at the bottle in her hands, and slumped back against one of the crates. Chloe would have settled for a goodbye letter, if Rachel was given the chance she knew that she would have said goodbye; she definitely wasn't like the others. The thought was excruciating painful and very vindictive of her. Chloe took out her pocket knife and stabbed the cork right down the middle before jabbing it out.
The cork didn't come out but instead it went inside the bottle, not that it made a difference, it wasn't as if she was going to save it for later. The smooth taste of the pink wine tasted wonderful as she took a couple of swigs from the bottle. Chloe tucked the bottle in between her legs and pulled her beanie over her eyes. It was dark and it was cold, the alcohol did nothing to warm her but she didn't feel it. She felt her out of body, her soul wasn't connected to her, she disassociated and tried hard to remember why she needed to come to the junkyard. Tears spilling down her face, making a choking sound when she remembered that far off memory of what Rachel's laugh sounded like or when she had a hint of a flirtatious edge to her canter, which was who Rachel was. Rachel looked up to Chloe and she knew it too, it was like a daze of admiration.
One memory came to mind and it was one of her favorite memories; one that she could recall so vividly even those with her dad couldn't compare. It was two years ago for her seventeenth birthday, Chloe and Rachel didn't exactly get out of Oregon but they got out of Arcadia Bay, Rachel had planned it all out and even convinced Chloe to get blindfolded and have Rachel be the designated driver. Rachel had made a playlist of their first show, A mix of Firewalk and Daughter, just the perfect jams for their short road trip. Like Rachel had promised they would walk along the beach, no way in hell would they get in, the ocean was brutal in march but things don't always go according to plan. The first day they got to their destination the sun was barely coming down, on its way to set; the shades of oranges kissing the horizon. Rachel was hand and hand with Chloe, their heals digging in the sand.
Of course, it being Rachel, Chloe got tricked into coming knee deep into the water, but that was never enough. Rachel jumped onto Chloe's back and pulled her into the cold water, they were both gasping for air and chattering their teeth but yet Rachel had the biggest grin; one that has never appeared on her face. Chloe being Chloe came for Rachel, she walked against the current with Rachel backing away; her fingers making a cross for a time out and yet she couldn't help but laugh and scream with joy when Chloe finally caught up to her and slung her over her slender shoulders and again they went under the water. In those moments Chloe remembered all the blur around her, the only thing that mattered was being able to breathe, not thinking about what was to come next.
Chloe felt hands grab on her and pull her up, those same hands were stripping her out of her jacket and pulling her back to the shore. Chloe tried to cover most of Rachel's body until they got to the comfort of her truck, cranking the heat up after they had a change of clothes, they slumped back against the seat of the car and simultaneously started laughing, nothing needed to be said and this was just routine with them; enjoying the mischief and the easiness that came with within distance of each other
"Happy Birthday Chloe." Rachel had said once the laughter had died down, she leaned closer to with her head-on Chloe's shoulder just as it rested a hundred times before. Rachel pulled something from her bag, it was small so it was easy for her to conceal, Rachel pulled it up right in front of her; examining the continents of the small bag before giving it to Chloe. "I saw this when I went to Portland with my parents last week, this really interesting guy was selling these just outside our hotel. It reminded me of you. Like you look tough as hell but inside you're both hollowed out and I think there's something really cool about that. You can bring anything you want to the table and no one will call you out on it. because well you're a price and you've already been through the ringer." Chloe took the small bag from Rachel's hand, three hallowed out bullets strung on like a necklace. "Uh thanks, but do you see me as hollowed? I mean honestly?" Chloe pulled on the string from the bag and dangled it, viewing it in the little light they had from that dumb flickering red bulb.
Rachel arched her eyebrow, meaning no offense she didn't think anything of it. "Yeah, I mean Chloe that's a good thing. You don't know what direction to go and people know you to be one way when you're really not. You had a lot of mystery to you and I find it fascinating that people don't know what to expect of us when out here like this." Chloe laughed it off "Well I don't even know what to expect from you, you brought me in the middle of nowhere and now I am at your command." She shrugged her shoulders before placing her necklace in the palm of Rachel's hand. "Can you put it on, please?" Rachel looked up at her with a delighted smile. "Chloe Price asking for my help, I feel blessed." She giggled complying.
Chloe gave her a smirk before she turned her back on her and nervously wrung the beanie in her hands, she had never had anyone give her something so personal and that was after the fact that Rachel was putting it on her. Chloe did feel Rachel's hot breath on her neck, the hairs on her arms going up without so much as a thought to what was happening.
Rachel did feel Chloe tense up a bit and she thought it was rather cute that she still had those moments where it everything felt new and exciting because it honestly had never felt different; except now there was way more love from both of them and it wasn't just fabricated out of lust. Rachel wrapped her arms around Chloe's neck, leaning forward and whispering in her ear "Relax it's just us, no asshole is going to ruin this for us. I promise." Rachel tugged on Chloe's neckless, trailing the length stopping at her low-cut tank top. Rachel plastered a sly smile on her face before kissing the top of Chloe's head and pulling away. "Come on, we're missing the best part." Rachel raced outside at the bed of her truck, they had brought her air mattress and a mountain of comforters. Rachel tried to park away from the water so the night air wouldn't get so bad. "You don't mind keeping each other warm, right?"
"No uh... I can do that." Chloe released her tongue, she made her way towards the back door pulling on the latch.
Rachel found some decent sized rocks and placed them in front of the tires so they wouldn't roll anywhere else.
They shared a bed looking at the starry night, the mountains of covers and pillows keeping them company through the night, sometimes they preferred the silence; once in a while they could catch the sound of their rapid heartbeats or so they thought and that was enough, to share a moment like this sometimes never came to people, ever in their life and that is one blessing that they both shared.
Nothing was said on that trip that they didn't know, but everything changed that night. It wasn't just this playful banter anymore; it was raw feelings and it was real to both of them and nothing would ever change that. Chloe thought about it a lot and You don't just give up on someone because the world opposes you and you don't just give up because they were troubled and so were you, that's when you need each other the most and that's what Chloe learned from that night and all the other nights to come, the ones that were so intimate it hurt to recall, but she still had those memories hard pressed in the front of her mind. It was hard to move past it. Even if it was moving past it with Max, a girl that Chloe does truly love and maybe has loved even before Rachel came into the picture.
Chloe sure wished that her dad would come back and speak to her in one of those dreams, to guide her through such a heartache that she can't express because no one else would understand it, no one else knew this type of mourning. To be in love with two people, to have one of them dead and there being nothing anyone could do about it. Even more so, to explain the situation you're in to your best friend. It just isn't something that Chloe could talk to Max about; not realistically anyway.
Back at the dorms Max was having one of her dreams and this time she wasn't anywhere she recognized, not until she got to her feet. She was in one of those freight carts the exact train that almost took Chloe's life; that first week they reunited. Rachel sitting in the shadows, her hair up, looking like new age punk era. Rachel didn't make a sound or give any indication that she was going to move. This seemed like a more serious version that Max had not yet come to meet, in a sense that she seemed more absolute in a way. When she was dancing, and stomping over her own grave it had a sort of mystical feeling surrounding themselves in, it still seemed eerie to Max but now they were here, talking business.
Rachel now sat at the edge of train with her legs dangling over. "Things could have been so different you know, with you and Chloe, you could have left like she's been wanting to all along. Like we were going to." Rachel twisted her body so that now she was facing Max, her head tilted to the side as she sized the shorter girl in a few glances. Rachel smiled effortlessly before carrying on "You don't belong in this sort of mess and I'm trying to keep Chloe out of it, if I wanted her involved I would have dragged her down with me but there is a reason why I kept her out of everything that I did the last few weeks I was alive." Rachel started playing with her feather as she confessed some to Max. "Chloe got dealt a shitty hand. William, you, David and even Joyce. Things keep piling up and it's not been easy for her and I've done what I can to help her cope but I don't think it's' helped much." Rachel turned fully on Max "And this shit that you two are planning has to stop. Like completely stop, lots of shit is going down and yeah some of it is connected with Jefferson but some of it is connected with my parents and I just don't either of you getting involved. It's not your problem, I am out of that tangle and you should stay away. Please Max it's all I'm asking. Just go home."
Max couldn't help but feel the guilt wash over her, even though Rachel had told her it was a bad idea to pursue her parents and look over the files that Jefferson had she choose to ignore it, she even brought it up to Chloe and then they both laughed it off until recently back at the dorms. "I don't know if I can just let it go. If there's others like you that are in trouble, or were never found. What happened to you could have happened to Nathan, Victoria, Kate and I was going to be next. I'm scared if I stay here. I'm scared if I go and Chloe is on me, because there's something wrong with me, I feel it every time I used to my powers, I feel it even if I just have the urge to do so. I can't tell anyone, the only person I can tell just tells me not to do it. Like how fucking easy. I feel like this thing is a part of me. You know what I mean right? I know what you've done. With the fire, the storm. What's next for us Rachel?"
.